1. Execution of Marshal Ney (1815):
- After Napoleon's defeat at Waterloo and his second abdication, Marshal Michel Ney, one of Napoleon's most loyal commanders, faced trial for supporting Bonaparte during the Hundred Days in breach of King Louis XVIII's authority.
- Found guilty of treason, Ney was sentenced to death.
- On March 1, 1815, in front of a firing squad commanded by Marshal André Masséna, Ney defiantly gave the command to initiate his own execution and uttered his famous final words: "Fire! Comrades, into the heart!" ("Feu! Camarades, au cœur!").
2. Proclamation of the Second French Republic (1848):
- The February Revolution of 1848 in France began on February 22 and soon led to the abdication of King Louis-Philippe, ending the July Monarchy.
- On March 1, following a provisional government meeting, the Second French Republic was proclaimed from the Town Hall on the Place de l'Hotel de Ville in Paris.
- Alphonse de Lamartine, a famous political orator, addressed the people, declaring "France is a Republic!" The news spread nationwide, establishing the Second Republic.
3. Paris Commune (1871):
- After France's loss to Prussia in the Franco-Prussian War and internal conflicts within France, tensions arose in Paris between the provisional government, located at Versailles, and more radical socialists in control of the capital itself.
- On March 1, 1871, after the Parisian National Guard attempted to seize Paris' cannons used against it, widespread demonstrations and conflict erupted that marked the beginning of the Paris Commune.
- This revolutionary experiment lasted almost two months before its violent suppression led by government forces with heavy civilian casualties.