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Semaine sanglante
The Semaine sanglante ("Bloody Week") was a weeklong battle in Paris from 21 to 28 May 1871, during which the French Army recaptured the city from the Paris Commune. This was the final battle of the Paris Commune.
Following the Treaty of Frankfurt and France's loss in the Franco-Prussian War, on 18 March the new French government under Prime Minister Adolphe Thiers attempted to remove a large number of cannon from a park in Montmartre, to keep them out of the hands of the more radical soldiers of the Paris National Guard. In the confrontation that followed, two French generals were seized and executed by the National Guard. Thiers, the army commander Patrice de MacMahon and the French government hurriedly left the city, and established their headquarters in Versailles, and prepared plans to recapture the city. The Paris Commune made an unsuccessful attack on Versailles under the leadership of Louis Charles Delescluze. Between 8 and 20 May, French forces had retaken the territory surrounding Paris and began bombarding the city. On 21 May, French forces entered the city and began the Semaine sanglante.
During the week of combat, an estimated ten to fifteen thousand Commune soldiers were killed in combat or executed afterwards. The Communards took and executed about one hundred hostages, including Georges Darboy, the Archbishop of Paris, and committed arson against many Paris landmarks, including the Tuileries Palace, the Hôtel de Ville, the Palais de Justice building, the Cour de Comptes, and the Palais de la Légion d'Honneur. Fighting continued until 28 May, when the last Communard soldiers surrendered.
43,522 Communards were taken prisoner, including 1,054 women. More than half were quickly released. Fifteen thousand were tried, 13,500 of whom were found guilty. Ninety-five were sentenced to death, 251 to forced labor, and 1,169 to deportation (mostly to New Caledonia). Many Commune supporters, including several of the leaders, fled abroad, mostly to England, Belgium and Switzerland. All the prisoners and exiles received pardons in 1880 and could return home, where some resumed political careers.
On paper the Paris Commune's military force, the National Guard, was formidable; all able-bodied men in the Commune, numbering 150,000, were required to serve, and half were enrolled in armed units. At the beginning of the Semaine sanglante, the Commune forces had, on paper, fifty thousand men in combat companies. with ten thousand soldiers on the south line, two thousand to the west, and six thousand in the southwest. South of the city, about 7,500 Communards were entrenched. Several thousand National Guard soldiers were kept as a reserve in barracks within the city, including three thousand at the Champ de Mars. However, at the beginning of May, twenty percent, or ten thousand, were reported absent without leave.
Commune historian Prosper-Olivier Lissagaray in 1876 gave slightly smaller numbers; according to his figures, 20,000 Commune soldiers defended the Right Bank and 17,000 defended the Left Bank, or 37,000 in all.
Once the fighting began, a large number of Commune soldiers, as many as half, simply stayed home and went into the cellars under their buildings. 45,522 Commune soldiers, most of whom had not fought, were taken prisoner after the fighting ended. Jacques Rougerie put the numbers of National Guard fighters who fought at just twenty thousand.
The French Army, the official forces of the Third Republic, grew from 55,000 men at the beginning of April to 120,000 men by the end of May. In the beginning, the army had few experienced officers or trained soldiers. This problem eased with the release of thousands of soldiers and officers captured during the Franco-Prussian War from German prison-camps, who returned to service upon their release.
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Semaine sanglante
The Semaine sanglante ("Bloody Week") was a weeklong battle in Paris from 21 to 28 May 1871, during which the French Army recaptured the city from the Paris Commune. This was the final battle of the Paris Commune.
Following the Treaty of Frankfurt and France's loss in the Franco-Prussian War, on 18 March the new French government under Prime Minister Adolphe Thiers attempted to remove a large number of cannon from a park in Montmartre, to keep them out of the hands of the more radical soldiers of the Paris National Guard. In the confrontation that followed, two French generals were seized and executed by the National Guard. Thiers, the army commander Patrice de MacMahon and the French government hurriedly left the city, and established their headquarters in Versailles, and prepared plans to recapture the city. The Paris Commune made an unsuccessful attack on Versailles under the leadership of Louis Charles Delescluze. Between 8 and 20 May, French forces had retaken the territory surrounding Paris and began bombarding the city. On 21 May, French forces entered the city and began the Semaine sanglante.
During the week of combat, an estimated ten to fifteen thousand Commune soldiers were killed in combat or executed afterwards. The Communards took and executed about one hundred hostages, including Georges Darboy, the Archbishop of Paris, and committed arson against many Paris landmarks, including the Tuileries Palace, the Hôtel de Ville, the Palais de Justice building, the Cour de Comptes, and the Palais de la Légion d'Honneur. Fighting continued until 28 May, when the last Communard soldiers surrendered.
43,522 Communards were taken prisoner, including 1,054 women. More than half were quickly released. Fifteen thousand were tried, 13,500 of whom were found guilty. Ninety-five were sentenced to death, 251 to forced labor, and 1,169 to deportation (mostly to New Caledonia). Many Commune supporters, including several of the leaders, fled abroad, mostly to England, Belgium and Switzerland. All the prisoners and exiles received pardons in 1880 and could return home, where some resumed political careers.
On paper the Paris Commune's military force, the National Guard, was formidable; all able-bodied men in the Commune, numbering 150,000, were required to serve, and half were enrolled in armed units. At the beginning of the Semaine sanglante, the Commune forces had, on paper, fifty thousand men in combat companies. with ten thousand soldiers on the south line, two thousand to the west, and six thousand in the southwest. South of the city, about 7,500 Communards were entrenched. Several thousand National Guard soldiers were kept as a reserve in barracks within the city, including three thousand at the Champ de Mars. However, at the beginning of May, twenty percent, or ten thousand, were reported absent without leave.
Commune historian Prosper-Olivier Lissagaray in 1876 gave slightly smaller numbers; according to his figures, 20,000 Commune soldiers defended the Right Bank and 17,000 defended the Left Bank, or 37,000 in all.
Once the fighting began, a large number of Commune soldiers, as many as half, simply stayed home and went into the cellars under their buildings. 45,522 Commune soldiers, most of whom had not fought, were taken prisoner after the fighting ended. Jacques Rougerie put the numbers of National Guard fighters who fought at just twenty thousand.
The French Army, the official forces of the Third Republic, grew from 55,000 men at the beginning of April to 120,000 men by the end of May. In the beginning, the army had few experienced officers or trained soldiers. This problem eased with the release of thousands of soldiers and officers captured during the Franco-Prussian War from German prison-camps, who returned to service upon their release.
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