Denis-Auguste Affre archbishop of Paris

Archbishop of Paris

The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Paris is one of twenty-three archdioceses of the Roman Catholic Church in France. The original diocese is traditionally thought to have been created in the 3rd century by St. Denis and corresponded with the Civitas Parisiorum; it was elevated to an archdiocese on...

, was born at Saint-Rome-de-Tarn

Saint-Rome-de-Tarn

Saint-Rome-de-Tarn is a commune in the Aveyron department in southern France.-Population:-References:*...

, in the department of Aveyron

Aveyron

Aveyron is a département in southern France named after the Aveyron River.- History :Aveyron is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790....

.

He was educated for the priesthood at Saint-Sulpice

Saint-Sulpice (Paris)

Saint-Sulpice is a Roman Catholic church in Paris, France, on the east side of the Place Saint-Sulpice, in the Luxembourg Quarter of the VIe arrondissement. At 113 metres long, 58 metres in width and 34 metres tall, it is only slightly smaller than Notre-Dame and thus the second largest church in...

, where in 1818 he became professor of dogmatic theology

Dogmatic theology

Dogmatic theology is that part of theology dealing with the theoretical truths of faith concerning God and his works, especially the official theology recognized by an organized Church body, such as the Roman Catholic Church, Dutch Reformed Church, etc...

. After filling a number of ecclesiastical offices, he was elevated to the archbishopric of Paris

Paris

Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...

 in 1840. Though opposed to the government of Louis-Philippe, he took no part in politics, but devoted himself to his pastoral work. His episcopate, however, is chiefly remembered owing to its tragic close. During the insurrection of June 1848 the archbishop was led to believe that by his personal interference peace might be restored between the soldiery and the insurgent

Insurgency

An insurgency is an armed rebellion against a constituted authority when those taking part in the rebellion are not recognized as belligerents...

s. Accordingly, in spite of the warning of General Cavaignac

Louis Eugène Cavaignac

Louis-Eugène-John-Jacob-Cavaignac , French general, second son of Jean-Baptiste Cavaignac and brother of Éléonore Louis Godefroi Cavaignac, was born at Paris.- Military career :...

, he mounted the barricade at the entrance to the Faubourg Saint-Antoine, bearing a green branch as sign of peace. He had spoken only a few words, however, when the insurgents, hearing some shots, and fancying they were betrayed, opened fire upon the national guard, and the archbishop fell, struck by a stray bullet. He was removed to his palace, where he died on 27 June.

Next day the National Assembly

National Assembly

National Assembly is either a legislature, or the lower house of a bicameral legislature in some countries. The best known National Assembly, and the first legislature to be known by this title, was that established during the French Revolution in 1789, known as the Assemblée nationale...

 issued a decree expressing their great sorrow on account of his death; and the public funeral on 7 July was one of the most striking spectacles of its kind.

The archbishop wrote several treatises of considerable value, including an Essai sur les hieroglyphes egyptiens (Paris, 1834), in which he showed that Champollion

Jean-François Champollion

Jean-François Champollion was a French classical scholar, philologist and orientalist, decipherer of the Egyptian hieroglyphs....

's system was insufficient to explain the hieroglyphics.