During the week of 21-28 May 1871, between 20, 000 and 30, 000 Parisians were killed in the repression of the Paris Commune; a ten-week revolution that followed the conclusion of the Franco-Prussian War. As evidenced by the brutal reaction against it, and its relative absence from the French historical memory, the Commune has been surrounded by controversy since its advent.

David A. Shafer examines the emergence of the Commune out of a political culture influenced by both the traditions bequeathed to the nineteenth century by the French Revolution and contemporary events, circumstances and ideas. This essential guide provides readers with a survey of the Commune's foundations and its narrative history, as well as an assessment of the evolution of its historiography and topics which have rendered the Commune vital to an understanding of the concept of revolution.