In February 1848, barricades and bloody battles were the marks of the opposition of the working class stirred up against the powerful. The Archbishop of Paris, Denis Auguste Affre, was killed trying to intervene between the fighting factions. Rendu was deeply grieved by this. She herself climbed the barricades to try to help the wounded fighters without considering their political loyalties in the fight. Without any fear, she risked her life in these confrontations. Her courage and sense of freedom commanded the admiration of all.