The day of the Paris Commune is celebrated in honor of the victory of the first proletarian revolution of 1871, on March 18. The Parisian commune was called the revolutionary government formed during the events of 1871 in the French capital.
Background to the events of 1871
France, the 19th century ... Workers, overthrowing the bourgeois monarchy, in February 1848 put forward revolutionary demands. In June of that year, with arms in hand, the Paris proletariat opposed the republic of "privileges and capital" for a "social republic." This was the first attempt on the bourgeois order, the first major civil war between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat. A severe defeat in 1848 weakened the working class for a long time. Only in 1871 did he dare to speak out again against the authorities.
The Day of the Paris Commune is celebrated (the events of 1848 served its formation) by many now.
Occurrence
After a truce was established between Prussia and France in the Franco-Prussian war, unrest began in Paris, which grew into a revolution. As a result, self-government was introduced, which lasted in 1871 from March 18 to May 28. The Paris Commune was led by representatives of the parties of anarchists and socialists. The leaders of both movements proclaimed it the first model of the dictatorship of the proletariat.
A natural phenomenon in history was the emergence of the Paris Commune. The reason was the deep social contradictions that existed within the French society, which intensified very sharply after the defeat of the country during the Franco-Prussian war, which lasted from 1870 to 1871. The government of Thiers was formed in February (his photo is presented below), a protege of the big bourgeoisie, who accepted the humiliating and difficult conditions of a peace treaty. The revolutionary forces responded by creating the Republican Federation of National Guard. Headed its central committee.
The first days of the revolution
On the night of March 18, the Thiers government made an attempt to disarm the proletarian regions of Paris and arrest the representatives of the Central Committee of the National Guard. However, the plan failed. In a panic, the government fled to Versailles from Paris. The National Guard is located in the town hall, printing house and barracks. A red banner fluttered above the town hall . Thus was proclaimed as a result of an armed uprising and the overthrow of the bourgeois government the Paris Commune. The elections to the Council of the Commune of Paris were held on March 26. Two days later, his first meeting was held, chaired by Proudhon Bele. The new municipality was officially renamed the Paris Commune on March 29.
Paris Commune Day
Date March 18, 1871 is a special one in the history of France. She is known and remembered also throughout the world. It was then that the proletarian revolution took place. On March 18, the power of the bourgeoisie fell. This was the first day of the Paris Commune. The events of 1848 preceded, as we have already mentioned, this great date. By decision of the First International, the very next year, March 18 was the day of the first successful attempt to seize political power by the workers. This is the Day of the Paris Commune. It was celebrated until 1917 in our country at illegal meetings of revolutionary organizations. For the first time this revolutionary day began to be widely celebrated after in March 1923 the CCAMLR Central Committee declared the Day of the Paris Commune as its holiday .
What contributed to the emergence of the Paris Commune?
France was on the verge of a national catastrophe after the defeat at Sedan. Most of the country's territory was occupied by Prussian troops. They also occupied for a short time some areas of the capital. The National Assembly, elected in 1871, February 8, consisted of overt and covert monarchists. More armed workers than Bismarck were feared by the big bourgeoisie. France, under the terms of the preliminary agreement, was obliged to pay a huge indemnity to Prussia. Its size was 5 billion francs in gold. Also, Prussia departed Alsace and Lorraine.
National Guard
Workers and advanced intelligentsia defended the capital. In Paris in September 1870, the National Guard was formed - 215 battalions. At the same time, a political organization arose. The Central Committee of the National Guard was actually the embryo of people's power.
The difficult situation in the capital in winter
Poor people in Paris survived the siege of hungry and cold winters. In addition, the Prussians subjected to shelling the capital. The food was bad. By some estimates, Parisians ate forty thousand horses. They paid a lot of money for rats, cats and dogs. The norm of food per day was 50 grams of horsemeat, as well as 300 grams of poor quality bread made from oats and rice. Huge lines were at the bakery. A crisis has ripened, a situation has developed in which a revolution was inevitable.
The situation in Paris was becoming pre-revolutionary. A. Thiers then decided to disperse the national guard by force of arms, arrest the central committee, sign the final peace with Bismarck, and then restore the monarchy. A national assembly was convened in Bordeaux, which then moved to Versailles.
Transition of the Versailles division to the side of the rebels
Government forces in 1871, the night of March 18, managed to capture almost all the artillery located at the heights of Montmartre. The people of Paris rose in alarm. Soon, almost the entire Versailles division took the side of the rebels. This became one of the decisive events of the proletarian revolution. On the orders of the Central Committee, battalions of the national guard occupied the buildings of the ministry, police, barracks, and the station. Over the city hall on the evening of March 19, a red flag rose. So the Paris Commune arose (date of foundation - March 18, 1871) - the proletarian state, as well as the organ of the workers dictatorship. It lasted only 72 days. However, the history of Paris is unthinkable without the events that were saturated with this time.
Appeal of the Central Committee of the National Guard to the people
The Central Committee of the National Guard on the same day appealed to the people of France, in which he expressed hope that the capital would serve as an example for the formation of a new republic. The state of siege was lifted, which was premature. It was said in an appeal to the guardsmen that the Central Committee was laying down its powers, since it did not want to seize the place of those whom the storm of indignation of the people had just dared. The leaders of the uprising did not even declare themselves an interim government. They did not dare to take away all power.
Commune Elections
The Central Committee, instead of organizing a campaign against Versailles, began to prepare elections for the commune. But at the same time, there was no active agitation of the population for candidates from workers. Thus, initiative, time was lost. Fear of accusing the authorities of usurpation had fatal consequences. In many departments of France, an uprising in the capital was supported, but due to the lack of a leading party, unity of action was not achieved.
March 26 held elections to the Council of the Commune, which is the highest authority. Of the 86 workers, only 25 places went to him. The rest were occupied by employees and the intelligentsia. The apparatus of the Paris Commune was adapted as a form of power, first of all, to realize the most revolutionary tasks set by the course of events.
Not only decisions were made by members of the Council of the commune. They participated in their practical implementation. Thus, various institutions, as well as the principle of separation of powers, were eliminated. The council of the commune selected 10 commissions from among its members responsible for various spheres of society.
Military establishment
The Paris Commune, as during the Jacobin dictatorship, relied on the armed people. After March 18, in most districts of the capital, the police were replaced by the national guard, its reserve battalions.
The decree of March 29, 1871 also abolished recruitment and proclaimed that citizens fit for service are included in the national guard.
Actions of the Versailles Government
The enemies of the commune lurking in Paris used all their means to disorganize the life of the capital, complicate the situation of the commune and thereby accelerate its death. For example, it was a sabotage of employees of communal and state institutions, which was organized by the Versailles government. The commune decided on March 29 that orders and orders no longer have legal force and that employees who intend to ignore this decision are subject to immediate dismissal.
In the very first days after the events of March 18, the bourgeois press began to sharply oppose the established regime. She began to defame the leaders of the Paris Commune, dissolve malicious inventions against them. The Central Committee, and then the commune, carried out a series of measures against these actions. In total, about 30 Paris magazines and newspapers were closed during the existence of the commune.
Decree of April 2
The history of Paris in 1871 was marked by a series of dramatic events. April 2 decided to bring Thiers, as well as five more members of the Versailles government to justice. They were accused of starting a civil war, organizing an attack on the capital. In response to the executions of prisoners on April 5, the commune issued a hostage decree. According to him, any person who was found to be in partnership with the government at Versailles was subject to arrest. The decree threatened to execute three hostages for each executed communard.
Several hundred people were arrested on the basis of this decree. Among them were Bonzhan, a former senator, Darboux, archbishop, Jekker, a major banker, as well as a group of gendarmes, priests and officials. At the time of the shooting of prisoners, the Versailles were forced to suspend. However, when it became clear that the commune was in no hurry with the execution of hostages, the executions of the captured federates resumed. The leaders of the government clearly lacked understanding of the need for repression against class enemies. Lenin, analyzing the reasons for the failure of the Paris Commune, noted that it did not use the armed forces vigorously enough to suppress resistance.
Despite the fact that on May 28 the revolution was defeated, and today all over the world many people celebrate the Day of the Paris Commune. This is a symbol of the victory of the proletariat in the struggle for power. Every Frenchman knows that March 18 is the Day of the Paris Commune. This date went down in history as the accomplishment of the world's first proletarian revolution.