midday
The Versailles army , therefore , on the morning of the 22d , was master of the Trocadero and the Chateau of la Muette on the right bank , and of Grenelle on the left ; and great was the rage and consternation that prevailed among the Communists , who were already accusing one another of treason , frantic at the thought of their inevitable defeat . When Maurice at last understood the condition of affairs his first thought was that the end had come , that all left him was to go forth and meet his death . But the tocsin was pealing , drums were beating , women and children , even , were working on the barricades , the streets were alive with the stir and bustle of the battalions hurrying to assume the positions assigned them in the coming conflict . By midday it was seen that the Versaillese were remaining quiet in their new positions , and then fresh courage returned to the hearts of the soldiers of the Commune , who were resolved to conquer or die . The enemy 's army , which they had feared to see in possession of the Tuileries by that time , profiting by the stern lessons of experience and imitating the prudent tactics of the Prussians , conducted its operations with the utmost caution . The Committee of Public Safety and Delescluze , Delegate at War , directed the defense from their quarters in the Hotel de Ville . It was reported that a last proposal for a peaceable arrangement had been rejected by them with disdain .