In the 18th century, France in time setting – Liberation

For some time now, historiography has been interested in the way companies have been coordinating their activities with the invention of schedules. A researcher in history, Catherine Herr-Laporte shows how this technical and psychic process intensified during the 18th century. This need for schedules is in particular due to the new speed search in the transport of letters and people, a research which intensified from the 1750s and even more after the revolution. From 1675, we observe the regular publication of postal schedules indicating the departure of letters and, from 1725, more than half of the hours were given at the time. The precision at half an hour, even in the quarter of an hour, is however still exceptional. Considered schedules are however only useful if the population has access to the hour which specifically becomes widespread during the century. The watch becomes transportable thanks to this major innovation that is the Spiral pendulum, and its possession is generalized to the point of becoming quite ordinary. In 1790, there were in 70 % of inventories after death, merchants and ecclesiastics seeming the most rigorous in compliance with schedules. Public hour is also increasingly accessible thanks to the multiplication of clocks, in particular near inns and post relays.

The multiplication of schedules leads to the appearance of a new concept: the delay. The use of the word increases strong