Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

Grasse's monument to the dead of 1914-1918 was designed as a commemorative square-plan portal, supported by four pillars and covered with a roof in a building. This hybrid tempieto, combining ancient architecture and provençal motifs, was designed by the local architect Léon Le Bel, while the sculptor Gaston Le Bourgeois realized the artistic elements. The Art Deco decoration, visible on the capitals and the scabs, alternate combat scenes and representations of the daily life of the hairy in the trenches. The ensemble was inaugurated on 4 March 1928 after a complete urban redevelopment of the surrounding square.

The layout includes a square with gardeners, caladized floors and wrought iron grills, as well as a straight staircase linking the square to Tracastel Street. A crypt composed of two rooms, located under the square, completes the device. The monument, classified in total (including its surroundings and crypt) by decree of 22 February 2010, illustrates the memory of the post-war period, combining tribute to the soldiers and landscape integration into the urban fabric of the country.

The location of the monument, Place du Petit-Puy, marks the centre of an ambitious urban project, where the commemorative art dialogues with the public space. The stylistic influences — between classicism and modernity — reflect the artistic tensions between the two wars, while the warrior iconography recalls the lasting impact of the conflict on the French communes. Owned by the town of Grasse, the monument remains a strong symbol of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, anchored in its historical and geographical context.

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