REVOLUTION OF 1848. Ferdinand de MYLIUS (1784-1866) general. 2 L.A. (minutes), 1848-1849; 4pages folio (1st unfinished). Interesting accounts of the demonstration and insurrection of May 15, 1848. May 20, 1848, to his beloved Delorcelle, recounting the day of the 15th, when he was informed "that a gathering of more than 30,000 unarmed men had invaded the Place de la Concorde, that a Battalion of the 1st Legion had wanted to cross the Place to go to the Palais de l'Assemblée Nationale, and that the rioters had gone ahead and, waving their hats and caps, had prevented it from continuing on its way. [...] Arriving at the Place de la Concorde, which was jammed with people, we saw a compact mass which, like a black snake, surrounded the Palais de l'Assemblée Nationale [...] I then said to Captain Perrin: the Assembly is surrounded, it cannot deliberate in freedom, and we put the rod in the barrel to show the crowd that the weapons are not loaded; misfortunes will happen!"March 27, 1849, to M. Bérenger. He returns "to the affair of May 15", and asks: "Why did the Commanders of these Battalions submit so easily to the intimidation of a few unarmed men, and did these Commanders immediately notify the Superior Commander? By whom did they notify him, and what orders did they receive? [...] There were only people to surround the Palais, there were a lot of curious onlookers, it was very easy to circulate on the Bridge and between the ranks of the gathering, and there was nobody on the Place de la Concorde; many men had already left"... At 2 h. ½, an officer, stopped by the crowd, announced that "their petition had been accepted and that the Assembly had declared war on Austria. At that moment, the Assembly was not invaded, and the gathering still seemed quite peaceful. Two strong National Guard battalions, also arriving via the Quai d'Orsay, quietly crossed the gathering and positioned themselves, I believe, at the entrance to the Pont de la Concorde on the Place side. [...] So there were enough forces if someone had been at their head to disperse the gathering".