the commune of paris

1 definition found

the commune of paris - Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 :

  Commune \Com"mune\ (k[o^]m"m[=u]n), n. [F., fr. commun. See
     Common.]
     1. The commonalty; the common people. [Obs.] --Chaucer.
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              In this struggle -- to use the technical words of
              the time -- of the "commune", the general mass of
              the inhabitants, against the "prudhommes" or "wiser"
              few.                                  --J. R. Green.
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     2. A small territorial district in France under the
        government of a mayor and municipal council; also, the
        inhabitants, or the government, of such a district. See
        Arrondissement.
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     3. Absolute municipal self-government.
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     4. a group of people living together as an organized
        community and owning in common most or all of their
        property and possessions, and sharing work, income, and
        many other aspects of daily life. Such sommunities are
        oftten organized based on religious or idealistic
        principles, and they sometimes have unconventional
        lifestyles, practises, or moral codes.
        [PJC]
  
     The Commune of Paris, or The Commune
        (a) The government established in Paris (1792-94) by a
            usurpation of supreme power on the part of
            representatives chosen by the communes; the period of
            its continuance is known as the "Reign of Terror."
        (b) The revolutionary government, modeled on the commune
            of 1792, which the communists, so called, attempted to
            establish in 1871.
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