What is the Paris Commune?

Answer 1

There were actually two Paris Communes. A commune, by the way, is just a self-governing city council, so a Paris Commune was just an institution that governed Paris and refused to follow the orders of the national government.

Paris Commune of 1792: During the French Revolution, the Paris Commune was a governing body that took control of the city, and acted to kill off opponents. A large number of people were massacred.

Paris Commune of 1871: This is usually the commune that is referred to when the term "Paris Commune" is mentioned. Following the Franco-Prussian war, the people of Paris were angry against the national government. Louis-Napoleon, the former emperor, had resigned, and the newly-elected leader - Thiers - was seen as conservative and repressive. One day, after weeks of growing animosity, there was a spontaneous popular uprising, and the national government was forced to flee to Versailles. A new, socialist government, the Paris Commune, was elected. The Commune held the city for 72 days, but it was eventually toppled by the national government. Today, the Paris Commune is remembered primarily for being the first socialist government in history. Many of its ministers came from the proletariat, and reforms were made that favored the working classes. Although the Commune itself was poorly directed and introduced barely any new, lasting legislation, its symbolic importance has influenced many Communist thinkers over the years, including Marx, Lenin, Trotsky, and Mao.

Source: The Fall of Paris: The Siege and the Commune by Alistair Horne.

Answer 2

The Paris Commune, was the name of the city's governing body between late March and late May 1871. While in power it enacted a series of measures separating church and state, extending debt relief, granting pensions to unmarried companions, abolishing night work and remitting rents.

The Paris Commune ended when French troops marched into Paris and assaulted the Commune's barricades. The military ended the Commune and killed 30,000 communards , while losing 7,500 troops in the battle.