3-039-196 - The Print Collector/Heritage Images

The French Siege of Paris: May morning, 1871. 'All the houses, indeed, outside the enceinte of fortifications on the western side of Paris, and even those inside the ramparts which are near the Grand Avenue of the Champs Elysées, have become unsafe abodes since the bombardment was commenced not only from Mont Valérien but from the batteries at Courbevoie and the Bridge of Neuilly, to which the Communist battery at the Porte Maillot endeavours to reply. The townspeople of Paris nevertheless venture into the Champs Elysées, attracted by curiosity, near enough to hear the noise and see the smoke of the exploding shells...The aspect of Paris in general is very triste in these days; and May Day, which has in former years been marked by many pleasant and graceful signs of the belle saison, was a dismal anniversary by contrast of the present discomfort and peril with the state of affairs in time of peace'. From "Illustrated London News", 1871.