Guides of France

Founded in 1923, this association is called from now on the Scouts and Guides of France following the fusion of this association and the Scouts de France in 2004.

Definition of the Guides of France

The movement of the Guides of France was lengthily defined as a " movement of female scouting, catholic and opened with tous". It belonged to the Worldwide association of the Guides and Girl guides (AMGE), whose seat is in London, and of the Catholic International Conference of Guidisme (CICG)

History

  • 1910 : Foundation of the Girl Guides in England, which then gathers six thousand (6 000) girls. Separated from the movement of the Servant boy Scouts, it has same the broad outlines of them, with like teaching objective the development: character and intelligence; address and physical skill; spirit and friendship; physical health and hygiene. When this femininist movement is officially recognized by the government in 1915, it will then count thirty-eight thousand (38 000) young people adherent.

  • 1911 : Appearance in France of the Scouts of France. This movement is recognized by Baden-Powell in spite of her nondenominational character.

  • 1920 : Birth of the Scouts de France, addressing itself to the boys of catholic confession. The attention of Albertine Duhamel is drawn towards the methods of scouting, and the aspects beneficial that patronages could withdraw some. It is then general secretary of Archiconfrérie of patronages, affiliated with the international league of catholic female works in Rome. Its meeting with Marie Diemer will be decisive, the latter indeed explaining the need to him for not keeping away of the movement scout the catholic young girls.

  • 1922 : Bunches attached to parishes or patronages exist that and there and apply the methods of scouting. These spontaneous attempts take place without common reflections. Mrs Duhamel takes the things in hand and supervises courses of den mothers.

  • 1923 :
May 26th, 1923: the name " Guides of France" is deposited with the prefecture of the Seine and registered voter like subsidiary company of Scouts de France. The guides keep nevertheless their independence and are a movement with whole share.
  • June 1923: The association of the Guides of France is officially founded, with a management committee and an head office installed with 76 rue des Saints-Pères in VIIe district. The General Chaplain of Scouts de France, the canon Cornet, becomes the General Chaplain about it. The Dubois Cardinal receives the promise of Mrs Duhamel on June 16th, 1923, and the badge of the guides gives to him.
  • February 22nd, 1923: go back symbolic system from the birthdays to Robert and Olave Baden-Powell, the first group (or " compagnie" guides of France is born with patronage from Montcalm, under the crook of Helene Depaux-Dumesnil. This company will be the " first Paris". The tradition will want that each company of Guides takes, in addition to the name of its parish, the figure corresponding to its row of creation and the name of its city. For example: " Company of the Guides of France of Notre-Dame de Compassion, second Paris".
    • Second world war - 1940-1945
    Under the German occupation, all the movements of scouting will be prohibited. That does not prevent the movement of perdurer. In free zone, Vichy tries to control the movement. The five existing movement react and are organized.
    • 24, September 25th, 26th and th 1940 : Birth of the French Scouting. The movements of scouting meet in Oradou, close to Clermont-Ferrand, and create the " Charter of Oradou" , which federates female associations and male, but respects the identity of each one.
    At the conclusion of the war, one counts either three, but four million scouts throughout the world. The Guides of France, as for them, are fifty-two thousand (52 000).
    • 1968 : In reaction to May 68 and the Concile Vatican II, the Scouts de France and the Guides of France decide to adapt, calling in question their method of education, the vocabulary… in order to better answer waiting of these young people " révoltés". They change the style of the uniform, and divide the young people in four age brackets (" branches" : 8-12 years, 12-15 years, 15-18 years and 18-21 years), instead of three (8-12 years, 12-17 years and +17 years). However, the principal ideals of the movements remain the same ones. But these changes are not appreciated by all the local groups, and some try to preserve their pedagogy " unitaire" with three branches (" unitaire" for the unicity of branch 12-17 years). But in front of the difficulty in preserving this pedagogy while remaining integrated into the movement, a first great schism appears and allows the appearance of the Scouts Unitaires of France, movement not integrated in the Fédération of French Scouting, and which does not profit from the recognition of the Worldwide organization of Scouting, but however is recognized by the Church.
    • 1976 : Scouts de France and the Guides of France approach and create a common work group, called " the team of coordination scouts/guides" , to study the following files: " inter-éducation" , the animation of the units (groups) at the local level, and the creation of a common elder branch. However, the two movements do not manage to agree on the degree of sovereignty that each one is ready to give up. Scouts, superiors of number, wish a fusion. The Guides of France support the creation of a confederation. They indeed fear the disappearance of the identity of the Guides to the profit of Scouts, which is unacceptable for them after one half-century of fight for female autonomy.
    • 1981 : incompetents to agree, a painful rupture is started between the movements of the Scouts de France and the Guides of France.
    • 1982 : The Scouts de France open to the girls, and directly compete with the Guides of France, which causes many crises at the local level.
    • 2004 : After having joined again the dialog during several years and having found areas of agreements and compromises mutual, the Guides of France and the Scouts de France join in a single movement of the Scouts and Guides of France.

    The position of the Church: rejection with the active investment

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