Banal Transgressions of Gun Laws in France, 1900s–30s: The Domestic Face of Self-Defense

In the early decades of the 20th century, affordable and mass-produced small firearms emerged as a popular choice for home and personal protection in response to the security crisis that characterized French society. As in other major European cities, Parisian newspapers were flooded with stories of crimes and urban insecurity. Although the carrying of revolvers was officially prohibited, many self-proclaimed law-abiding citizens regarded them as essential tools for self-defense, in particular to navigate the increased mobility of urban life.

Police archives suggest that law enforcement authorities exercised discretion in interpreting firearm laws; police officers considered the urban and social contexts in which weapons were discovered to distinguish legitimate gun carriers from criminal offenders. With the promotion of self-defense, pocket pistols took on a symbolic value, standing in not only for security but also for social status and urban lifestyle. However, despite their widespread presence and apparent “banality”, small firearms never became neutral tools devoid of power dynamics, especially when their use for self-defense extended beyond public spaces. The material conditions that facilitated and legitimized armed protection practices contributed to a broader culture of civilian armament which affected various aspects of social life including household safety and marital relationships. The storage of handguns within homes, for instance, could turn into a point of contention between partners. I aim to examine how the incomplete normalization of small firearms meant for self-defense intersected with domestic violence. Attitudes of both acceptance and resistance toward an everyday object, at times practical and reassuring for some, yet mesmerizing or menacing for others, highlight the power of things in shaping and transforming marital behaviors. Ultimately, this contribution seeks to understand why, after a period in which handguns were glamorized for personal security, they gradually disappeared from everyday life after the 1930s.