An official art exhibition organised by the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Paris and held in the French capital from 1725 onwards. The show set the patterns of the academic art of the time. In 1737 the exhibition was opened to the public and was held, at first, annually, and then biennially, in odd-numbered years. In 1748 a jury of awarded artists was introduced. In 1849 medals for the winners were presented for the first time. In 1881 the French government withdrew its official patronage of the Salon, and a group of artists founded the Société des Artistes Français to take over the running of the show. Until the late-nineteenth century it was one of the top international art events and absolutely essential for any artist who wished to earn prestige. With the passing of time, the Salon became more conservative and academicist, and unreceptive to many of the emerging movements, like Impressionism. More and more works were rejected or hung in unfavourable places. This situation upset many artists and critics, leading eventually to the creation of less strict alternative salons.

A radical insurrectional movement that governed the city of Paris from 18 March to 28 May 1871. Led by the dissatisfied working class, the uprising came about as a protest against the provisional regime which the Republic—presided by Adolphe Thiers—wished to instate in the country following the defeat of Napoleon III in the Franco-Prussian War. The Commune was established on 28 March with the creation of the Commune Council, which, apart from a large number of politicians, also included workers, small shop owners, physicians and journalists. They wanted to implement a socialist political project, based on self-management, but it collapsed after just sixty days due to the extremely harsh repression. After a month of incessant hand-to-hand combat in bloody street battles, particularly from 21 to 28 May in the so-called Bloody Week, the Government recovered the city centre of Paris. The final result was around 20,000 deaths, over 200 historical monuments and buildings damaged and Paris was subjected to martial law for five years.

The Royal and Distinguished Spanish Order of Charles III, originally Royal and Much Distinguished Order of Charles III, is the highest civil distinction granted in Spain. Established in 1771 by King Charles III (1716-1788), its mandate is to reward individuals for their actions in benefit to Spain and the Crown. Although it was created as a military order, more specifically for the cavalry, it was converted into a civil order in 1847.

The Real Order of Isabella the Catholic is a Spanish civil order created by King Ferdinand VII (1784-1833) on 14 March 1815 with the name of Royal and American Order of Isabella the Catholic. It was instated to recognise loyalty to the Nation and to reward the merits of Spanish or foreign individuals who may have contributed to the prosperity of the Crown’s overseas territories. The order was reorganised in 1847 by royal decree and adopted its present-day name. It currently depends on the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and is granted mostly for civil merits aimed at improving international relationships of cooperation.