After the defeat of the French forces by the Prussian army at Sedan on 1 September 1870 the French Emperor, Napoleon III resigned and a Republic was set up after mass demonstrations in Paris, calling for the Third Republic.
With the Prussians marching upon Paris, a newly established “Government of National Defence” was organised.
On 20 September 1870, the Prussians began a siege of Paris which would last for four months. When, in October, the French government began negotiations with the Prussians, the Parisian workers rose up and established a revolutionary government which was suppressed a month later
At the end of January 1871 Paris was surrendered to the Prussians. But the population remained armed and only a small section of the capital was actually surrendered.
On 8 February rigged elections to a National Assembly were held. The Assembly was meant to ratify the terms of “peace”. An enormous clerical and monarchical majority was the result.
The “National Assembly”, with Adolphe Thiers as the chief executive — scared of the revolutionary mood in Paris — wanted to overthrow the Republic and disarm the armed workers. It deposed Paris as capital of France and transfered the government to Versailles.
Meanwhile in Paris a Central Committee of the National Guard was created — to resist reaction. On 18 March Thiers attempted to disarm Paris and sent the regular army into the city. After fraternisation with Paris workers, led by working-class women, they refused to carry out their orders.
Elections were held on 26 March and a Paris Commune was proclaimed, taking over from the Central Committee. The Commune was to be both the legislature (law maker) and executive, responsible for carrying out the new laws.
The majority of representatives were working class and were socialists of one sort or another — insurrectionary left Republicans who were followers of Louis Auguste Blanqui; as well as members of the International Working Men’s Association (the First Interntional) who in France were mainly influenced by Pierre-Joseph Proudhon and many were (out of line with Proudhon’s views) trade unionists. A small number of bourgeois Liberals and Radicals were also elected.
One of the first acts of the Commune was to grant a complete release from all rent from October, 1870, to July, 1871. There were to be many other acts in the interests of proletarian Paris. But there was never one clear manifesto.
Meanwhile the Assembly consolidated its army, strengthened by several regiments of released prisoners of war from Germany.
By the end of March all the “moderate” members of the Commune had resigned and the “respectable” population had left Paris.
On 1 April Thiers officially declared war on Paris. His attacks on Paris culminated in the mass slaughter of a “bloody week” in May. On 28 May the Commune fell.
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