Battle of Faubourg Saint-Antoine

Timeline

1. 1652Plain outside the Porte Saint-Antoine · ParisThe Prince of Condé retreated with his remaining forces from the southeast and was pursued and cut off outside the Porte Saint-Antoine by royal troops under Marshal Turenne. The rebels were trapped fighting with their backs to the city, in an extremely critical situation. Royal forces numbered about 15,000, while Condé had only a few thousand men left.
2. 1652Porte Saint-Antoine · ParisCondé's troops engaged the royal forces in fierce street fighting near the Porte Saint-Antoine. Condé himself mounted and charged repeatedly, narrowly escaping danger; the battle caused heavy casualties on both sides. Lacking reinforcements, Condé could not drive Turenne's royal forces back frontally.
3. 1652Bastille · ParisAt the critical moment, Anne Marie Louise d'Orléans (Mademoiselle, "La Grande Mademoiselle") persuaded the provost of Paris to open the gates and personally ordered the Bastille's cannon to fire on Turenne's royal troops. The bombardment forced the royal army to fall back, and Condé led his remaining forces into Paris. Upon hearing the news, Louis XIV declared that she had "shot Condé's marriage," destroying Mademoiselle's political career. Though the battle saved Condé temporarily, it left Parisians deeply weary of civil war, depriving the Fronde of its last popular support.