1. La Belle Époque
!e Beautiful A"
1870-1914

2. France
• Franco-­‐Prussian
War
(1870-­‐71)
– France
“goaded”
into
declaring
war
by
Bismarck
– France
loses
–
Napoleon
III
is
captured
• 1871
–
German
unificaGon
– Emphasizes
the
weakness
of
France

3. Third French Republic Declared!
• September,
1870
• Napoleon
III
abdicated
• New
government
headed
by
Adolphe
Thiers
• conGnued
the
fight
against
the
Germans
• France
surrendered
in
February,
1871
aQer
40,000
Parisians
died

4. The Third French Republic
• Thiers’
government
was
seen
as:
– Too
conservaGve
– Too
royalist
– Too
ready
to
accept
a
humiliaGng
peace
with
Prussia
• French
gov’t
est.
at
Versailles,
NOT
Paris
– Parisians

angry
– Opposed
policies
of
new
gov’t
– AXempted
to
restore
order
in
Paris

5. Paris in Revolt…Again!
• The
Paris
Commune
[Communards]
was
elected
on
March
28
and
established
itself
at
the
Hôtel
de
Ville

6. Attempted Communard Reforms
* Allowed
trade
unions
&
workers
cooperaGves
to
take
over
factories
not
in
use
and
start
them
up
again
* Set
up
unemployment
exchanges
in
town
halls
* Provide
basic
elementary
educaGon
for
all

they
were
strongly
against
church-­‐controlled
schools
* AXempted
to
set
up
girls
schools
* Daycare
near
factories
for
working
mothers

7. Civil War!
 The
Commune
was
Troops
from
Versailles
Communards
suppressed
by
government
troops
led
by
Marshal
Patrice
MacMahon
during
the
last
week
of
May,
1871
 Known
as
the
“Bloody
Week”

8. The Communards

9. L’Hôtel de Ville Destroyed

10. Communard Casualties
25,000
Communards
killed
35,000
arrested

11. Mur des Fédérés
On
28
May
1871,
147
communards
were
brought
to
this
wall
at
Père
Lachaise
Cemetery
and
shot,
then
thrown
in
an
open
trench
at
the
end
of
the
wall.
The
wall
remains
a
symbol
to
the
French
leQ
of
the
struggles
of
the
people.

12. Significance of Paris Commune
• First
example
of
working
people
taking
power
(Proletariat
RevoluGon!)
• Source
of
inspiraGon
for
future
Communists
&
Socialists
(i.e.
Lenin,
Trotsky,
Mao
Zedong)

13. Third French Republic
• PoliGcally
very
unstable
• Rivalry
between
monarchists
and
republicans
• A
number
of
scandals
including
The
Dreyfus
Affair
[L’Affaire]
• Because
there
were
so
many
facGons

all
gov’ts
=
coaliGons
• SGll,
it
survived
longer
than
any
other
regime
since
1789!

14. The Dreyfus Affair

15. The Dreyfus Affair
* 1894:
a
bordereau
(list
of
French
military
documents)
was
found
in
the
trash
of
the
German
Embassy
in
Paris
* French
counter-­‐intelligence
suspected
Captain
Alfred
Dreyfus,
from
a
wealthy
AlsaGan
Jewish
family

one
of
the
few
Jews
on
the
General
Staff

16. The Dreyfus Affair
* Dreyfus
was
tried,
convicted
of
treason,
and
sent
to
Devil’s
Island
in
French
Guiana
* The
real
culprit
was
Major
Esterhazy,
whose
handwriGng
was
the
same
as
that
on
the
bordereau
* The
government
tried
him
and
found
him
not
guilty
in
two
days

17. The Dreyfus Affair
* A
famous
author,
Émile
Zola
published
an
open
leXer
called
J’Accuse!
– He
accused
the
army
of
a
mistrial
and
cover-­‐up
– The
government
prosecuted
him
for
libel
– Found
him
guilty

sentenced
to
a
year
in
prison

18. J’Accuse!

19. The Dreyfus Affair
An5-­‐
Dreyfusards
* Public
opinion
divided

reflected
divisions
in
Fr.
Society
* Dreyfusards
=
anG-­‐clericals,
intellectuals,
Free
Masons,
&
Socialists
* An5-­‐Dreyfusards
=
army
supported,
monarchists,
&
Catholics
* the
honor
of
the
army
was
more
important
than
Dreyfus’
guilt
or
innocence

20. Dreyfus, the Traitor!

21. The Dreyfus Affair
* 1899
–
New
trial
* Brought
back
from
Devil’s
Island
a
broken
man
* Results:
– Found
guilty
again,
BUT
with
extenuaGng
circumstances
– Was
given
a
presidenGal
pardon
– Exonerated
in
1906
– Served
honorably
in
WWI
– Died
in
1935

22. La Belle Époque
19th
C.
French
Society

23. 1889 WORLD EXPOSITION
• Centennial
CelebraGon
of
French
RevoluGon
• Gustave
Eiffel
• Eiffel
Tower
=
Entrance
to
Fair

27. THE BOURGEOISIE
• Fashion,
behavior,
eGqueXe
mimicked
the
aristocracy
• Frequented:
– Theater
– Opera
– Restaurants
– Casinos
– Gardens

28. Bourgeoisie
enjoy
a
stroll
at
Porte
Dauphine
(ca.
1900)

29. A
café
on
the
Grands
Boulevards
(1900)

30. Bourgeois
children
play
at
the
Jardin
du
Luxembourg
(1899)
Children
of
the
working
class
in
the
slums
(1900)

31. VIVE LA BOHÈME!

32. THE BOHEMIAN WAY
• Challenged
status
quo
• Rejected
mainstream
values
• Mocked
bourgeoisie
• Comprised
of
– ArGsts
– Students
– Writers

33. THE BOHEMIANS
• MoXo:
“ Truth,
beauty,
freedom
and
love”
• Frequented
cafés
&
music
halls
• Most
popular
areas:
– LaGn
Quarter
– Montmartre
Lapin
Agile,
1905

35. MONTMARTRE

36. LE MOULIN ROUGE
• Est.
1889
• Most
famous
symbol
of
the
Bohemian
life

39. AT THE MOULIN ROUGE
• Dancers
(Can-­‐
Can)
• Elephant
• Drink
– Absinthe

41. OMG! It’s the Can-Can!