The Working Class
The Paris Commune was caused by a war between the Prussians and the French, which the French lost. The loss in the war sucked all the money out of their national treasury. The humiliating loss and the current economic status caused some of the factory workers to riot. They slowly gained supporters and threatened to overtake the current government if their demands of giving up power to the people was not met. When the requests weren't met and Paris was informed of the loss at Sedan, the last battle fought in the war, crowds took the streets immediately demonstrating in front of the legislative chamber until they forced there way inside and required that the emperor be deposed and the chamber accented. Several prominent statesmen told the supporters that they would meet at a hotel to lead a new government. The supporters of the commune were Communards. The Communards then placed a temporary government in and started to run the country. This was very unsuccessful due to the fact that the factory workers were not government officials and had no idea how to effectively run a country. The old government's army was just outside the city at Versailles, where they planned their counter attack to get back their city.