Bloody Sunday is a name given to political clashes that occurred in

Colmar Colmar (, ; Alsatian: ' ; German during 1871–1918 and 1940–1945: ') is a city and commune in the Haut-Rhin department and Grand Est region of north-eastern France. The third-largest commune in Alsace (after Strasbourg and Mulhouse), it is ...

Alsace Alsace (, ; ; Low Alemannic German/ gsw-FR, Elsàss ; german: Elsass ; la, Alsatia) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in eastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine next to Germany and Switzerland. In 2020, it had ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

on August 22, 1926. On that day the

French Communist Party The French Communist Party (french: Parti communiste français, ''PCF'' ; ) is a political party in France which advocates the principles of communism. The PCF is a member of the Party of the European Left, and its MEPs sit in the European Unit ...

and the Colmar section of the Popular Republican Union (a

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

organization) had organized a joint protest meeting at the ''Salle des Catherinettes''. The theme of the meeting was to denounce measures by the French state against the signatories of the Alsatian autonomist '' Heimatbund'' manifesto.Goodfellow, Samuel.
From Communism to Nazism: The Transformation of Alsatian Communists
', in ''Journal of Contemporary History'', Vol. 27, No. 2 (Apr., 1992), pp. 231-258Fischer, Christopher J.
Alsace to the Alsatians?: Visions and Divisions of Alsatian Regionalism, 1870-1939
'. New York: Berghahn Books, 2010. p. 187 However, a large group of French nationalists had assembled at the meeting point of the rally. They included the

royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of governme ...

Camelots du Roi The King's Camelots, officially the National Federation of the King's Camelots (french: Fédération nationale des Camelots du Roi) was a far-right youth organization of the French militant royalist and integralist movement Action Française act ...

'' and ''

Action française Action may refer to: * Action (narrative), a literary mode * Action fiction, a type of genre fiction * Action game, a genre of video game Film * Action film, a genre of film * ''Action'' (1921 film), a film by John Ford * ''Action'' (1980 f ...

''. The French nationalists sought to blockade the Alsatian autonomists from holding their meeting. As Dr.

Eugène Ricklin Doctor Eugène Ricklin (1862 – 4 September 1935) was a popular Alsatian politician known for his fiery opposition both to German and French assimilationist policies in Alsace. Biography Eugène Ricklin was born in Dannemarie(German: ''Damme ...

, a clerical autonomist and one of the main speakers of the event, and Joseph Rossé, reached the Colmar train station, they were attacked by the French nationalists. At the site of the meeting, violent clashes erupted again. Police, partly mounted, slowly intervened. Around 60 people were injured. Amongst the injured was Ricklin. However, the autonomist rally was conducted despite the violence.Callahan, Kevin J., and Sarah Ann Curtis.
Views from the Margins: Creating Identities in Modern France
'. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2008. p. 146 The Bloody Sunday rally was significant in breaking up the taboo of cooperation between communists and Catholic autonomists. It also marked the starting point of a split between a section of Alsatian communists and the French Communist Party. Bloody Sunday furthered cooperation between Alsatian communists with right-wing sectors sharing common autonomist goals, which would eventually lead to the expulsion of a sector of Alsatian communists from the French Communist Party in 1929. The expellees founded the Opposition Communist Party of Alsace-Lorraine.

References

{{reflist Politics of Alsace 1926 in France 1926 protests Riots and civil disorder in France 1926 riots August 1926 events