French war memorials
French war memorials are much more examples of statuary than their British crucifix-based counterparts (which is not to say that British statue-types do not exist, but are just not the norm).
The typical war memorial is a poilu (French WWI infrantryman), sometimes rendered in excellent detail and sometimes quite naïvely.
This from Monflanquin, one of the fortified bastide towns of the Lot-et-Garonne, is a nice example.
10th November 2008
If you enjoyed this entry, send me a Comment. Nigel.
The typical war memorial is a poilu (French WWI infrantryman), sometimes rendered in excellent detail and sometimes quite naïvely.
This from Monflanquin, one of the fortified bastide towns of the Lot-et-Garonne, is a nice example.
One of my favourites is the war memorial in Argelès-Gazost in the Hautes-Pyrénées. The casting of the child is superbly executed, as he traces "ARGELES GAZOST SES HEROES MORTS POUR LA FRANCE".
The sides of the plinth bear the names of the dead from 1914-18, and even here - at the diametrically opposite corner of France from the carnage of the Western Front - the list is substantial. Many of the dead appear in groups of the same surname: brothers, cousins or more loosely related, each represents a family devastated.
10th November 2008
If you enjoyed this entry, send me a Comment. Nigel.
Posted by Nigel Utting at 10 Nov 2008, 8:39 PM 
Categories: Travel:War memorials:France
Tags: Monflanquin Poilu bastide
Categories: Travel:War memorials:France
Tags: Monflanquin Poilu bastide
Comments