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Origin and history

The monument to Louis Pergaud is a bronze work by Antoine Bourdelle, erected in homage to the writer Louis Pergaud, who died tragically during the First World War. Born from a local initiative supported by the magazine Franche-Comté and Monts Jura, the project was financed by public subscription between 1924 and 1925. Bourdelle drew the plans before his death in 1929, and his collaborators finished the statue, melted in 1931 by Alexis Rudier. The monument depicts Pergaud in hairy uniform, with a scarf bearing the franc-comtoise motto, and its base gravens the titles of his major works like The War of Buttons.

Inaugurated on 19 June 1932 in the presence of political and literary figures, including the ministers Anatole de Monzie and Jules Durand, as well as members of the French Academy and the Pergaud family, the monument became a memorial symbol. During the Second World War, he escaped destruction through the intervention of local elected officials, including Georges Rousset, who defended his artistic and historical value in the face of German requisitions. This preservation made it an emblem of cultural resistance.

The monument was listed as historic monuments on 11 January 2024, after favourable opinions from the Regional Heritage Commission (2023) and the National Commission (2022). The DRAC of Burgundy-Franche-Comté and the city council of Besançon, owner of the work, supported this protection. Its history reflects both the tribute to a martyr writer and the desire to safeguard an artistic and memorial heritage.

Louis Pergaud, mobilized as sergeant during the First World War, disappeared in April 1915 during the Battle of the Woëvre near Verdun. Gravely wounded and captured by the Germans, he died shortly afterwards, without his body being found. His tragic destiny, coupled with his literary success (The War of Buttons), reinforced the symbolic dimension of the monument, celebrating both his talent and his sacrifice.

The statue, located in Micaud Park in Besançon (Doubs), is a remarkable example of early twentieth century commemorative art. It also illustrates the role of public monuments in the transmission of collective memory, especially that of writers and soldiers who fell during conflicts. Its recent inscription as a historic monument underscores its heritage and artistic importance.

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