1	The Franco-Prussian War 1870 © Patricia Barry 2006.
2	Relationship between France and Prussia. Great difficulties existed in Europe because of the aggressive attitude of Prussia. Since the Napoleonic war, Prussia had very deep anti-French feelings. This hostility became aggravated during the time of the Second Empire in France which was then governed by Emperor Napoléon III
3	Prussia. At this time, Germany as a country did not exist. “Germany” was a collection of a hundred or so German states, of which Prussia was the largest.
4	The Prussian Army During the 19th century, the Prussian army had become the most powerful in Europe. The French philosopher, Voltaire, remarked : « Prussia is not a country with an army; it is an army with a country. »
5	A desire for unification. Bismarck, the Prussian Chancellor, wanted to unify the German states, but he foresaw that he would need to consolidate German unity in a common cause before attempting to do this. One way of doing this, could be through waging a victorious war against France.
6	An opportune moment. In 1870, Bismarck saw an opportune moment to do this. The French army was poorly prepared for war. Its artillery was weak. Its tactics were inappropriate and old-fashioned. The generals were ageing and lacked enthusiasm for war.
7	A pretext for war. However, it was the French who declared war! The throne of Spain was vacant. The King of Prussia (William II) proposed his own candidate for it, his cousin.
8	No to the Prussian candidate. Obviously having Prussian neighbours to the South (as well as to the North and East) was not acceptable to the French.
9	The declaration of war.
10	The war. The war was particularly disastrous for France. France was diplomatically isolated. France had at its disposal an army that was badly organised and smaller than the Prussian army.
11	The war. Defeats began to accumulate. The French army had to withdraw from Alsace The Germans entered France.
12	Defeat at Sedan.
13	Sedan His armies had to surrender. It meant that the Second Empire fell. France was without a leader.
14	The Prussians arrive at Paris The Prussian armies marched on Paris. By the 18th September 1870, about 400,000 Prussians arrived at Paris
15	The start of the siege. The following day, the 19th September, 1870, the city was surround in spite of a fierce resistance. The siege of Paris had begun.
16	The siege Paris — the city too proud to surrender to the enemy. The siege lasted from the 20th September 1870 to the 28 January 1871
17	Siege statistics. The Germans: COMMANDANT Marshall Helmuth von Moltke FORCES 206 000 infantry 34 000 cavalry 898 field guns 240 cannons altogether: 240 000 men LOSSES 10 000 killed and injured 2 000 missing The French COMMANDANT Général Louis Trochu FORCES 355 000 infantry 5 000 cavalry 1 964 canons altogether 400 000 men LOSSES 16 000 killed and injured 8 000 missing
18	The Prussian artillery The city of Paris was defended by two strongly fortified town walls, which included 94 forts. Von Moltke’s troops occupied the hills around the capital and installed their artillery there. From here, they fired shells into the city to bring terror to its inhabitants.
19	In the city. For three months, the only way people could enter or leave the capital was in hot air balloons. During the whole siege, communication was maintained with the outside world thanks to the use of the hot air balloons.
20	The hot air balloons. This was the first aerial war. The use of microfilm for the first time allowed the safe transmission of masses of official documents as well as private mail to « free France ».
21	The first hot air mail balloon. This stamp commemorates the centenary of the first air mail delivery. The first mail balloon, « Le Neptune », left Paris loaded with 125 kilos of mail. After a flight of 3h15m it landed 75km from the city.
22	Preparation of a balloon. This photo shows a group inflating and preparing a balloon prior to its flight. The balloonists took great risks. Firstly, it was impossible to maintain the balloons in a good condition during the siege. And once aloft, the Prussians tried to shoot them down. A little hole in the fabric meant the swift end of the balloon’s flight!
23	An eye-witness A brave aviator from this time described his dangerous flight: « I heard the guns thundering at the gates of Paris. I saw in my imagination the Prussians waiting for me, their guns raised and vomiting a hail of bullets on my airship.»
24	Resistance. Nothing and no-one could enter or leave the capital, which posed many problems. How were people to feed themselves, defend the city and replace weapons and bullets? The Parisians chose not to surrender and everyone contributed to the resistance against the Prussians.
25	What to eat? The Parisians were short of food and they were dying of hunger. They ate cats, dogs, rats and mice and after a while even these animals began to disappear from the streets!
26	A « repas de fête ». The menu on these pages was offered by a restaurant during the siege. It was their special Christmas meal. There was no fresh meat or vegetables left. People had reached the stage of eating the zoo animals since they could no longer feed them. It’s obvious that the chef had a sense of humour. CAFÉ VOISIN. G. Braquessac, 261, rue Saint-Honoré. 99th DAY OF THE SIEGE. 25th Decembre 1870 HORS D'ŒUVRE Butter - Radishes Stuffed head of donkey -Sardines
27	"SOUPS" SOUPS Kidney bean purée with croûtons Éléphant Consommé STARTERS Fried carp Roast camel, English style Leg of Kangaroo Roast bears’ ribs in a pepper sauce. ROASTS Leg of wolf with chervil sauce Cat surrounded by rats Watercress Antelope terrine with truffles Bordeaux mushrooms Peas in butter
28	"BETWEEN COURSES" BETWEEN COURSES Rice pudding with jam DESSERT GRUYERE CHEESE WINES FIRST SERVICE Xérès Mouton Rotschild 1846 Latour Blanche 1861 Ch. Palmer 1864 SECOND SERVICE Romanée Conti 1858 Bellenger frappé Grand porto 1827 Coffee and liqueurs
29	Surrender. The Parisians were dying of hunger. On the26 January, General Trochu asked for an armistice. On the 28 January, Paris surrendered.
30	La Commune The time after the war was marked by a terrible revolt. The people of Paris were: Made desperate with misery Exhausted by the deprivation of the long siege. Humiliated by the surrender and the constant victory parades of the Prussians Whipped up by revolutionary propaganda Totally exasperated by the new repressive laws of the National Assembly.
31	The Communards The Parisians united with the National Guard and the soldiers in Paris. They formed a revolutionary council called: la Commune de Paris.
32	The army of Versailles. the government retreated to Versailles. With the assistance of an army formed from the returned prisoners from Germany, they began to lay siege to the capital.
33	Paris is re-taken The army of Versailles entered Paris on the 21st May. They succeeded in re-taking the capital street by street. There were furious street battles – it was an absolute carnage – during the « bloody week ».
34	The defeat of the Communards The last barricade fell on the 27th May More than 30.000 Parisian « communards » died.
35	Repression A severe repression followed lasting many months 20.000 to 35.000 executions, 50.000 arrests 10.000 imprisoned or deported.
36	And the end of the story…? The peace treaty was signed at Frankfort on the 10 May 1871. France had to give away Alsace and Lorraine France was condemned to pay war reparations of 5 billion gold francs.
37	The heritage. The Franco-Prussian war left a bitter heritage which would last for decades. Many French people wanted to avenge themselves for the humiliation they suffered. They wanted to recover Alsace and Lorraine. This war would eventually be one the causes of the First World War.