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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

Gray's Memorial to the Dead, Place de la République, was commissioned in 1920 by the commune to honour the 265 inhabitants who died in battle during the First World War. The project chosen, that of sculptor Georges Iselin, is distinguished by a dynamic composition: two soldiers in uniform, walking towards the front, are held by a woman holding her child, forming a round that invites the spectator to make a tour. This bronze group, 2.40 metres high, rests on a 3.08-metre pedestal where the names of the disappeared are engraved as well as the dedication "THE CITY OF GRAY TO ITS CHILDREN DEAD FOR FRANCE 1914-1918".

On 29 July 1922, an OTC contract was signed with Georges Iselin, whose price was 50,000 francs. Originally from Clairegoutte (Haute-Saône), this sculptor trained at the École des beaux-arts in Paris under Mercié and Lemaire is already known for his monumental works, such as monuments to the dead of Luxeuil, Marnay and Ronchamp. His Parisian workshop, located on Rue Humboldt, here delivers an original iconography in the corpus of commemorations of the Great War, mixing family symbolism and patriotic momentum. The monument, entirely classified by decree of 19 December 2022, marks the urban space of the city of Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater Greater.

The chosen location, a triangle formed by the road of Besançon and the street of the forage store, replaces the old granting of walks to the south of the city. This strategic positioning, in a busy area, underlines the will of the municipality to anchor this monument in the daily lives of the inhabitants. The work, a municipal property, embodies both the mourning and resilience of a conflict-stricken community, while celebrating the sacrifice of soldiers through a sober and expressive aesthetic. Iselin's style, marked by its academic heritage and its sense of movement, gives the monument an intimate and universal dimension.

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