Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The statue of the Marshal of Tourville, made of Carrara marble by sculptor Joseph Charles Marin in 1816, was originally commissioned by Napoleon Bonaparte to decorate the bridge of Concorde in Paris. The purpose of this project was to celebrate military and civilian figures of the Ancien Régime, in a context of the Monarchical Restoration after 1815. The twelve statues, including that of Tourville, were installed under the bridge in 1828, but removed from the July monarchy in 1832 to be stored at Versailles Castle.

Anne Hilarion de Costentin, Count of Tourville (1642-1701), was an iconic vice-admiral under Louis XIV, elevated to the rank of Marshal of France for his naval victories. The statue depicts him standing, with a coat of hat, holding a sword and a command stick. Symbol of preromantic neoclassicism, the work measures 4.26 meters and embodies the tribute given to the military glories of the Old Regime by the Bourbons.

In 1931, the statue was transferred to Tourville-sur-Sienne, a Norman commune linked to the family of Tourville, where it has since reigned in Place Léon-Paul-Legraverend. Ranked a historic monument in 2006, it enjoyed a restoration in 2016 to preserve its Carrara marble. Its foundation, excluded from protection, emphasizes its status as a public good managed by the State.

The choice of Tourville-sur-Sienne as a destination reflects the desire to re-establish these national symbols in their original territory. The statue, both a work of art and a memorial, bears witness to the political tensions of the nineteenth century between monarchic heritage and Napoleonic memory, while celebrating a Norman maritime heritage.

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