Bourla-papey

Bourla-Papey was the name given to a popular revolt that took place between February and May 1802 in the Canton of Léman, in Switzerland, during the days of the Helvetic Republic. The uprising was in response to the restoration of feudal rights and taxes that had been abolished following the French invasion of 1798. The Bourla-papey seized archives from castles in the area now known as the Canton de Vaud, which they burned in an attempt to destroy records of what was owned by whom, making it impossible to collect taxes.

The leaders of the revolt were condemned to death by a special tribunal convened by the government of the Helvetic Republic in summer 1802, but were shortly afterwards given an amnesty. At the same time, all feudal rights were abolished in the canton, a few months before the Act of Mediation abolished them for the entire country.

The name Bourla-Papey (pronounced [ˈburla paˈpe]) is of Arpitan origin ; it means Burn-Papers in English, in reference to the numerous acts committed during the revolt. This way of writing the name represents an old writing-system, and today Bourla-Papiérs is used in Arpitan.

The territory of what is now the canton of Vaud had been under the sovereignty of Bern since the 16th century, subjected, as a vassal territory, to feudal rights and associated taxes such as the tithe. During the 18th century a growing discontent began to emerge, and influential Vaudois patriots such as La Harpe sought French assistance to free them from Bern's control.

In 1798, several events came to a head simultaneously. Basel had also been petitioning the French Directory for support through Peter Ochs, and revolted on 13 January. The Vaudois began their own revolution a few days later, proclaiming the short-lived Lemanic Republic, and again asked France for assistance. The Directory responded by sending a force led by General Philippe Romain Ménard, which entered Switzerland on 28 January. The Helvetic revolution immediately spread to nearby cantons, and the Swiss Confederation collapsed within 8 months, replaced by a centralized government based on the principle of egalitarianism. The old feudal rights were abolished in late 1798.

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