Gueux, pillards, boutefeux : l’ordre public et les « libertins » (1620-1780) (Première partie)

The historiography of the use of the words “libertin” and “libertinage” is limited as a general rule to irreligion and so-called deviant sexual behaviour. Yet the use of these denominations under the Ancien Régime to designate civil insubordination and attacks on public order are amply attested. The first part of this article (published here alone) seeks to demonstrate this, serving as an introduction to a study of the repression of the libertinage of the “mauvais pauvres”.