Decoupling social movements from modernity: a critical reappraisal of Charles Tilly’s theory on the origins of social movements

Abstract Conventional wisdom situates the historical origins of social movements in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries by attributing their emergence to the rise of democracy, capitalism, and the nation-state. In this article, I challenge this scholarly orthodoxy by presenting primary sources and historical scholarship that demonstrate how the German Peasants’ Revolt of 1524 and 1525 meets Charles Tilly’s criteria for a modern social movement. By challenging the standard narrative of social movements as a product of modernity, this article breaks with the dichotomy between modern and premodern social movements and encourages us to rethink the concept of social movements.