On October 31, 1870, a popular insurrection occupied Paris's City Hall (Hôtel de Ville).
[1] Amidst the Franco-Prussian War, Parisians simultaneously heard of losses at Le Bourget and Metz alongside armistice negotiations.
Parisian soldiers had succeeded on October 28 to capture the village of Le Bourget, near Paris, despite the encirclement of the capital by German troops.
The Government of National Defense refuses an exit attempt to try and breach the enemies' deployment, or because they think the attack would have no chance of success, or because they do not want to prolong military operations.
Lastly, Parisians learned that the government had sent Adolphe Thiers to negotiate an armistice at Versailles with Otto von Bismarck, and they felt betrayed.