Defense of porte de Longboyau, at the Château de Buzenval, October 21, 1870

The Third Republic was a golden age for military painting. Painters responded to the trauma of the 1871 defeat with images, which were sometimes unforgettable, depicting the heroic and glorious actions of ill-fortuned combats.
Defense of the porte de Longboyau illustrates the recovery of a piece of artillery during the fighting that took place around besieged Paris, on October 21, 1870, as the French moved out to the area of Bougival-Sant-Cucufa. The Prussians drove back the French infantry from the grounds of Malmaison in the mid-afternoon, and the artillery pieces positioned by Captain Nismes in front of porte de Longboyau had to be abandoned, except for one piece, which was salvaged.
Captain Nismes and a handful of infantrymen fought until their last cartridges were used up.
Alphonse de Neuville was inspired by the battle, going on to create a painting with a vigorous composition that upheld the drama of the scene. With its remarkable staging, Longboyau is one of his masterpieces.
The war with the Prussians was fatal for the Second Empire. The annihilation of Napoleon III's armies in Sedan and then in Metz created a jolt of resistance against the failing regiments and against the occupant. Heroic combats delayed the invasion in the Paris and Loire regions up until the armistice on January 28, 1871.