Siege of Paris (1870–1871)

The siege of Paris took place from 19 September 1870 to 28 January 1871 and ended in the capture of the city by forces of the various states of the North German Confederation, led by the Kingdom of Prussia. The siege was the culmination of the Franco-Prussian War, which saw the Second French Empire attempt to reassert its dominance over continental Europe by declaring war on the North German Confederation. The Prussian-dominated North German Confederation had recently emerged victorious in the Austro-Prussian War of 1866, which led to the questioning of France's status as the dominant power of continental Europe. With a declaration of war by the French parliament on 16 July 1870, Imperial France soon faced a series of defeats at German hands over the following months, leading to the Battle of Sedan, which, on 2 September 1870, saw a decisive defeat of French forces and the capture of the French emperor, Napoleon III.

With the capture of Napoleon III, the government of the Second French Empire collapsed and the Third French Republic was declared, provisionally led by the Government of National Defense. Despite German forces reaching and besieging Paris by 19 September 1870, the new French government advocated for the continuation of the war, leading to over four more months of fighting, during which Paris was continuously besieged. With the city fully encircled, the Parisian garrison attempted three unsuccessful break-out attempts and German forces began a relatively ineffectual artillery bombardment campaign of the city in January 1871. In response to the poor results of the artillery bombardment, the Prussians brought forth large-caliber Krupp heavy siege artillery to attack the city beginning 25 January 1871. With the renewed artillery attack and an increasingly starving and ill Parisian population and garrison, the Government of National Defense would conclude armistice negotiations with the North German Confederation on 28 January 1871. While the armistice led to food shipments being immediately permitted into the city, the capture of their capital city and the disaster of the war itself would have a long-lasting impact on the French populace, Franco-German relations, and Europe as a whole. French defeat in the war would directly lead to a victorious North German Confederation unifying with still-independent South German states and declaring the German Empire as well as a disgruntled and radicalized Parisian population taking control of Paris and forming the Paris Commune.