A huge explosion pierces the Parisian night.
It is two o'clock in the morning, this March 24, 1961. From the Place des Invalides to the Pont de la Concorde, passing by the rue de l'Université, an acrid and strong smell floods the fresh spring atmosphere.
The capital is deserted, and the National Assembly wakes up with a start.
Burning heat spreads minute by minute through the buildings.
“
Fire, fire!
“, shouts a Republican guard, crossing at full speed the spans of the Palais Bourbon.
Minute after minute, all the occupants of the premises are drawn from sleep by cries.
The panic is total: the National Assembly is in flames.
The alert is given: firefighters from six barracks rush to the scene urgently.
They rush into the left wing, completely invaded by a burning fire.
The situation is dramatic: the building and the priceless works it contains must be saved.
As the flames sweep through the building, a rumor is born and spreads like wildfire: the fire could be the cause… an attack…
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