Why did French shepherds walk on stilts until the 20th century?

The first thing that comes to mind when you see this photo is a group of itinerant street performers. Or you may think that circus performers went to training.

However, such stilts were used by French shepherds. Until the beginning of the 20th century, stilts were used by shepherds in Les Landes, a region in southwestern France.

The shepherds were forced to walk on stilts, following their flocks and watching the sheep from a bird's eye view.

Les Landes was an impoverished region. There were practically no roads here. There were only swampy terrain around. It was difficult to get around here.

Local residents have been trained to walk on stilts since childhood. Even women have learned to bounce on them, picking flowers.

Wooden stilts reached a height of 1.5 meters. The feet were fastened with leather straps. The stilts were stable - you could stand on them and watch the sheep.

It looks almost modern. Only instead of mobile phones people plunged into books

According to the memoirs of contemporaries, the locals moved on stilts very quickly - much faster than a walking person.

When Napoleon Bonaparte's lover Josephine visited Les Landes in 1808, she was greeted by a column of people on stilts. They escorted her carriage into the city, moving with ease along with her horses.

Here is how Scientific American wrote about local shepherds on stilts in 1891:

“The shepherds Les Landes demonstrate extraordinary freedom and skill… they are very good at maintaining balance. A man on stilts is able to move with giant steps, run fast and even perform basic tricks of a real acrobat. Shepherds pick up stones from the ground, pluck flowers and run on one leg with ease.”

At the beginning of the 20th century, the Landre swamps began to dry up and gradually the shepherds no longer needed an exotic means of transportation.