The French demonstration of 15 May 1848 was an event played out, mostly, in the streets of Paris. It was intended to reverse the results of a Second Republic election of deputies to the Constituent Assembly. It is difficult to say, with any precision, whether this phenomenon should be called a ''demonstration'', a ''riot'', an ''invasion'', a ''rebellion'', or an ''attempted coup d'état''. Nonetheless, it seems to have been largely unplanned, not particularly bloody, and indisputably a failure.

Context

The election results of 23 April 1848, which chose deputies to serve in the national Constituent Assembly, were very unfavorable to republican progressives, a party that held strong socialistic views such as wanting the government to be the "supreme regulator of production" and led by the "utopian socialist"

Louis Blanc Louis Jean Joseph Charles Blanc ( ; ; 29 October 1811 – 6 December 1882) was a French Socialism, socialist politician, journalist and historian. He called for the creation of cooperatives in order to job guarantee, guarantee employment for t ...

. Universal male suffrage, applied for the first time since 1792, resulted in the election of an Assembly with a majority composed of a group calling themselves "tomorrow's republicans". A new government was elected by the Assembly, called the ''Commission exécutive de la République française'' (executive committee of the French Republic), which was composed largely of moderate Republicans who were opposed to the socialistic agenda enacted by the provisional government that had been in place since the February 1848 revolution. Once assembled, the deputies tried to insulate themselves from the inevitable popular pressure engendered by meeting in Paris. Nonetheless, on 10 May, the new assembly spurned the proposal of

concerning the establishment of a "Ministry of Labor and Progress", a bold measure that aimed to implement Blanc's socialist agenda. Blanc was opposed to the free markets and market competition and wanted the "Ministry of Labor and Progress" to establish communal "workshops" in various industries that all supported each other. The goal was to have government backed labor "workshops" so everyone could have a job and make government the "supreme regulator of production". Blanc claimed that "in destroying competition we strangle at the same time the evils which it brings forth", to which Blanc believed would lead to the downfall of capitalism. The urban laborers behind Blanc were unnerved by the measures taken against him. On 12 May, the Assembly banned political parties and special-interest groups from sending delegations to read petitions to the Assembly, an old practice from revolutionary Paris (1792–1794) and the so-called

Sans-culottes The (; ) were the working class, common people of the social class in France, lower classes in late 18th-century history of France, France, a great many of whom became radical and militant partisans of the French Revolution in response to their ...

, which had been resumed in February 1848. This action was seen by Parisians as undemocratic. The progressives in the Assembly were also unhappy about the inaction of the Department of Foreign Affairs and its provisional minister,

Jules Bastide Jules Bastide (; 22 November 1800, in Paris, France – 2 March 1879) was a French politician, journalist and writer. Lawyer and revolutionary Bastide studied law for a time, and was afterward engaged in business as a timber merchant. In 1821, h ...

, who refused to help the Poles then under the occupation of Prussian and Austrian troops. The newly elected government, it seemed, was only continuing the foreign policy of the provisional government, a timid and feckless platform, which, under the leadership of

Alphonse de Lamartine Alphonse Marie Louis de Prat de Lamartine (; 21 October 179028 February 1869) was a French author, poet, and statesman. Initially a moderate royalist, he became one of the leading critics of the July Monarchy of Louis-Philippe, aligning more w ...

, had, on 4 March, passed a resolution denying support to ''all'' popular revolutions (in Italy, Poland, Germany, and elsewhere in Europe.) The progressive Republicans had difficulty in understanding this passivity when, within human memory, France had been a "great nation" which marched to the aid of those "oppressed by their rulers". This was the standard of greatness established by the Revolution of 1792, and many 1848 progressives found France's current passivity painfully disconcerting.

Event

A ceremony of flags had been scheduled for 14 May 1848, and Paris was full of National Guards, many from the provinces. The ceremony had been suddenly canceled because of the refusal of the delegation of workers sitting in the

Luxembourg Palace The Luxembourg Palace (, ) is at 15 Rue de Vaugirard in the 6th arrondissement of Paris, France. It was originally built (1615–1645) to the designs of the French architect Salomon de Brosse to be the royal residence of the regent Marie de' Med ...

to participate in the ceremony. Delegates from

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

(specifically,

Poznań Poznań ( ) is a city on the Warta, River Warta in west Poland, within the Greater Poland region. The city is an important cultural and business center and one of Poland's most populous regions with many regional customs such as Saint John's ...

and

Lemberg Lviv ( or ; ; ; see #Names and symbols, below for other names) is the largest city in western Ukraine, as well as the List of cities in Ukraine, fifth-largest city in Ukraine, with a population of It serves as the administrative centre of ...

, now known as

Lviv Lviv ( or ; ; ; see #Names and symbols, below for other names) is the largest city in western Ukraine, as well as the List of cities in Ukraine, fifth-largest city in Ukraine, with a population of It serves as the administrative centre of ...

) prevailed upon a sympathetic deputy from the department of the Seine, a naturalized Pole, Louis Wolowski, to have the Assembly discuss the Polish question on 15 May. Also on 15 May, Parisian militants, mostly progressive Republicans and socialists, held a demonstration in support of the Polish cause. This happened despite the reluctance of Republican leaders, such as François-Vincent Raspail, Armand Barbès, and Louis Auguste Blanqui, to support it. The event started at the Bastille and headed through the boulevards toward the

Place de la Concorde The Place de la Concorde (; ) is a public square in Paris, France. Measuring in area, it is the largest square in the French capital. It is located in the city's eighth arrondissement, at the eastern end of the Champs-Élysées. It was the s ...

, at the western end of the

Tuileries Gardens The Tuileries Garden (, ) is a public garden between the Louvre and the Place de la Concorde in the 1st arrondissement of Paris, France. Created by Catherine de' Medici as the garden of the Tuileries Palace in 1564, it was opened to the public in ...

. Many foreign delegations (Irish, Italian, Polish) participated. Provocative behavior by fiery old revolutionaries, like Aloysius Huber, and a general failure by Courtois, the commander of the National Guard, to respond appropriately caused the situation to degenerate. Protesters headed for the

Palais Bourbon The Palais Bourbon () is the meeting place of the National Assembly, the lower legislative chamber of the French Parliament. It is in the 7th arrondissement of Paris, on the Rive Gauche of the Seine across from the Place de la Concorde. The offi ...

, where the Assembly was meeting, and forced their way into the chamber. In the hubbub, someone read the petition in favor of Poland. Then Aloysius Huber exclaimed: "The National Assembly is dissolved." The crowd then marched to the City Hall of Paris, where it proclaimed an "insurrectionary government" with Blanqui, Ledru-Rollin, Alexandre Martin,

, Aloysius Huber, Thoré,

Pierre Leroux Pierre Henri Leroux (; 7 April 1797 – 12 April 1871) was a French philosopher and political economy, political economist. He was born at Bercy, now a part of Paris, France, Paris, the son of an artisan. Life His education was interrupted by ...

, and Raspail to serve as ministers. Elements of the National Guard, joined by Lamartine, Ledru-Rollin, and members of the five-day-old Executive Committee, besieged the city hall and dislodged the protesters.

Aftermath

The assembly and the executive committee resumed control of the situation. The Republican leaders were arrested. They were brought before the High Court of Justice of Bourges on 7 March to 3 April 1849.

Marc Caussidière Marc Caussidière (; 18 May 1808 – 27 January 1861) was a significant personality of the French Republicans under the Restoration, French republican movement of the first half of the 19th century. Biography Caussidière was born in Geneva. ...

was dismissed from his position as prefect of police, and he was replaced by a banker from

Le Mans Le Mans (; ) is a Communes of France, city in Northwestern France on the Sarthe (river), Sarthe River where it meets the Huisne. Traditionally the capital of the Provinces of France, province of Maine (province), Maine, it is now the capital of ...

, Ariste Jacques Trouvé-Chauvel. General de Courtois, commandant of the National Guard of Paris, who had shown some sympathy for the protesters, was arrested and replaced by General Clément Thomas. Jules Favre tried in vain to get the Assembly to indict Louis Blanc.

Philippe Buchez Philippe-Joseph-Benjamin Buchez (March 31, 1796–August 11, 1865), more commonly called Philippe Buchez, was a French historian, sociologist, and politician. He was the founder of the newspaper ''L'Atelier'', and he served briefly, in 1848, as th ...

, who had shown no reaction to the demonstrators, lost the presidency of the Assembly, and he was succeeded by the former attorney, Antoine Sénard. The Conservatives were, after these events, free to carry on the offensive against their great nemesis: the national workshops associated with Louis Blanc.

References

External links

"Encyclopedia of 1848 Revolutions" new articles by scholars; comprehensive coverage
1848 in France Conflicts in 1848 1840s coups d'état and coup attempts . French Second Republic July Monarchy Protest marches in France

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

Political riots in France Attacks on legislatures in France May 1848 1840s in Paris 19th-century political riots 1848 in politics Attacks on buildings and structures in Paris

Context

Event

Aftermath

See also

References

Further reading

External links