70

From the Ancien Régime to the middle of the twentieth century, the central government was always wary of the political behavior of a capital city all too prone to uprisings, as illustrated by numerous episodes such as the revolt of the Maillottins, the insurrectional Commune during the French Revolution, the 'Trois Glorieuses', the uprisings of February and June 1848, the Commune of 1871, and even the insurrection for the liberation of 1944 in which the communists played an important part. That is the reason why the municipal liberties of Paris have almost constantly been restricted. It was only at the end of the twentieth century, in the context of a pacified democracy, that the law of December 31, 1975 altered the administrative structures established by the law of April 14, 1871, thereby moving the capital closer to the system of common law, albeit with some exceptions.