The Fronde was a long period of instability, violence and war that swept France between the years 1648-52 when Mazarin's unpopularity and high taxes marked the outbreak of revolution. The state administrators became lawbreakers as the treasurers declined tax payments, bringing the administrative machinery to a near-halt. The judges of Paris refused to hear cases and it became a contest of wills between the ministry and the crown. After this occurred in Paris, the protest of merchants, artisans and peasants was soon to follow. This is the story of that revolution, of the events and personalities that constituted the Fronde.