French Left
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The French Left refers to communist, socialist, and social-democratic political forces in France. The term originates from the National Assembly of 1789, where supporters of the revolution were seated on the left of the assembly. During the 1800s, left largely meant support for the Republic, whereas right largely meant support for the monarchy.
Liberty Leading the People (1830) by Eugène Delacroix commemorates the July Revolution of 1830. The child with the gun, at the right of the woman personifiying Liberty, who holds the Republican, tricolor flag, would be Victor Hugo's inspiration for Gavroche in Les Misérables, who would die on the barricades in June 1832.
The massacre of the rue Transnonain, Paris, on 14 April 1834, depicted by the caricaturist Honoré Daumier.
June Days uprising
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The June Days uprising was an uprising staged by French civilians from 22 to 26 June 1848. It was in response to plans to close the National Workshops, created by the Second Republic in order to provide work and a minimal source of income for the unemployed. The National Guard, led by General Louis-Eugène Cavaignac, was called out to quell the rebellion. Over 10,000 people were either killed or injured, while 4,000 insurgents were deported to French Algeria. The uprising marked the end of the hopes of a "Democratic and Social Republic" and the victory of the liberals over the Radical Republicans.
Barricades on rue Saint-Maur, 25 June 1848. These are the first barricades ever photographed.
Painting of a barricade on Rue Soufflot (with the Panthéon behind), Paris, June 1848. By Horace Vernet.
Rue Saint-Maur-Popincourt after the attack by General Lamoricière's troops, 26 June 1848