Berthe bombing

The Berthe bombing was a bomb attack carried out in Paris on the night of 5–6 July 1887, by anarchists targeting the shop of a landlord at 46 Berthe street. The explosion destroyed the shop's storefront around three in the morning, caused a panic among the few passers-by on the street, and resulted in no casualties. It was likely an act of vengeance aimed at a landlord who was in conflict with various Italian anarchists.

Although the precise perpetrators of the bombing were never found, the fact that the target, Viguier, had had run-ins a few months earlier with three Italian anarchists among his tenants—one of whom had been convicted just days prior for assault and battery against Viguier—led authorities to suspect the three Italian anarchists: Figeri, Pogni, and Paolo Chiericotti. The police discovered traces of gunpowder at their homes, but lacked sufficient evidence to implicate them, and they were released.

Later, authorities began to suspect Vittorio Pini, who was close to Chiericotti and a member of the group the Intransigents of London and Paris. He left French territory in October 1887 and took refuge in Belgium. One of Pini's associates, Placide Schouppe, became the main suspect for the anarchist bombing campaign of 1888–1889 the following year, a campaign that also targeted the storefronts of buildings in the middle of the night.