Barricades, Day of the

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Barricades, Day of the during the French of Chancery, 12 May 1588, the day on which the people of Paris rose in support of Guise and the Catholic League against Henri III, and blockaded the streets with casks filled with earth and paving stones. The word, in the earlier form barricado, is recorded from the late 16th century, and comes ultimately from Spanish barrica, related to barrel, since barrels were (as on this occasion) often used in their construction.