Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni
Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni (, ; ) is a commune of French Guiana, an overseas region and department of France located in South America. Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni is one of the three sub-prefectures of French Guiana and the seat of the Arrondissement ...
) was a French cardboard maker, socialist activist, ambulance worker and communard. She was condemned to death for her action during the
Paris Commune
The Paris Commune (, ) was a French revolutionary government that seized power in Paris on 18 March 1871 and controlled parts of the city until 28 May 1871. During the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–71, the French National Guard (France), Nation ...
, where she was sentenced to perform hard labor before she was deported to
Guyana
Guyana, officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern coast of South America, part of the historic British West Indies. entry "Guyana" Georgetown, Guyana, Georgetown is the capital of Guyana and is also the co ...
.
Biography
Earning her living as a cardboard maker, she decided to help those who were needy in Paris. Her strong temper had her sentenced in 1853 for assault and battery against another woman, and in 1855 for contempt of officers. During the insurrection of the Paris Commune in 1871, she became an ambulance driver and declared that she would have treated the people as well as the
communards
The Communards () were members and supporters of the short-lived 1871 Paris Commune formed in the wake of the French defeat in the Franco-Prussian War. After the suppression of the Commune by the French Army in May 1871, 43,000 Communards we ...
.
Witnesses claim to have seen her in May 1871 among the troops of the Communards of Belleville wearing the red scarf and a rifle slung over her shoulder. She is also accused of being a " petroleuse" and guilty of arson.
While she denied these accusations, she was condemned to death on September 4, 1871, by the 4th