Princess Maria Antonia of Parma

Getting around

Poor conditions for train passengers

During the late 19th century, trains were often poorly lit, forcing passengers to bring portable candles to read, and heating was only provided in first-class carriages using hot water bottles.

At the table

The Ordinary Worker Lunch: Ordinaire

A typical working-class lunch, known as an ordinaire, consisted of boiled beef, broth, vegetables, cheese, bread, and wine for about one franc. Many workers saved money by eating only the broth and vegetables at lunch and taking the beef home for dinner.

What people wore

Alsatian folk dress used on political parades

In Alsace, traditional Tracht was tied to religious occasions like weddings and first communions, but it later became common at political rallies; when Kaiser Wilhelm II visited Strasbourg in 1877, women were greeted in Tracht. The text also describes how the costume’s symbolism shifted with politics over the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

Music

Violins, accordions, and brass were common instruments

Common instruments in rural settings included violins and accordions, while brass bands played wind and percussion instruments like drums, cymbals, and triangles.

Daily life

Mandatory primary education reform

Following the Ferry laws of the 1880s, primary education became free, compulsory, and secular for children aged 7 to 13.