Barricades, Days of

   The term "Days of the Barricades" is given to several Parisian insurrections throughout French history. The Day of May 12, 1588, the duke of Guise took Paris. King Henry III wanted to recapture the city with his troops, but the population rose up, blocking the streets with large barrels and casks (barriques) filled with earth. The king had to flee, leaving the city to the duke de Guise. The Day of August 26, 1648, the city rose up following the arrest of popular figures by the regent anne of Austria, who was then forced to free them. This day marks the beginning of the fronde. The Days of July 1830 mark the beginning of the revolution of 1830; those of February and June 1848 signal the beginnings of the revolution of 1848 and of the subsequent popular uprising. The Day of December 3, 1851, was a day of revolutionary protest against the coup d'état of Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte (December 2, 1851), and like many Days of the Barricades, was centered in the faubourg Saint-Antoine. The Days of the commune of Paris of 1871 mark the resistance of the Commune of Paris against the national troops sent from Versailles. The Days of August 1944 occurred during the Liberation of Paris. The Week of the Barricades (January 24,-February 1, 1960) was an insurrection against the policies of General charles de gaulle and the conflict in Algeria. The Days of May 1968 mark the student uprisings in Paris that helped to bring about the end of the de Gaulle government. See also napoléon III.