Logo Musée du Patrimoine

All French heritage classified by regions, departments and cities

  2. Patrimoine
  3. Île de France
  4. Seine-et-Marne
  5. 77100 Meaux

  6. Monument of Liberty in Meaux

 Monument of Liberty in Meaux en Seine-et-Marne

Patrimoine classé
Monument
Seine-et-Marne

Monument of Liberty in Meaux

    Route de Varreddes
    77100 Meaux
Monument de la Liberté éplorée à Meaux
Monument de la Liberté éplorée à Meaux
Monument de la Liberté éplorée à Meaux
Monument de la Liberté éplorée à Meaux
Monument de la Liberté éplorée à Meaux
Monument de la Liberté éplorée à Meaux
Monument de la Liberté éplorée à Meaux
Monument de la Liberté éplorée à Meaux
Monument de la Liberté éplorée à Meaux
Monument de la Liberté éplorée à Meaux
Crédit photo : P.poschadel - Sous licence Creative Commons

Timeline

XIXe siècle
Époque contemporaine
1900
2000
septembre 1914
First Battle of the Marne
1922
Bronze model
11 septembre 1932
Opening of the monument
6 février 1990
Historical Monument
2011
Opening of the Great War Museum
3 juin 2021
Damage caused by lightning
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui

Heritage classified

American Memorial (Case AE 254): Registration by Order of 6 February 1990

Key figures

Frederick William MacMonnies - American sculptor Author of the model and designer of the monument.
Edmondo Quattrocchi - Sculptor Realized the statue in full size (26 m).
Thomas Hastings - Architect Designs the base of the memorial.
Albert Lebrun - President of the Republic (1932) Inaugurated the monument in September 1932.
Joseph Joffre - French general Author of the agenda engraved (1914).
John Pershing - American General Present at the inauguration (1932).

Origin and history

The Meaux American Memorial, nicknamed Liberty in Distress, is a tribute to the Allies of the First World War, especially the French and British soldiers who repulsed German troops during the first battle of the Marne (September 1914). This historic battle, near Meaux, marked a turning point by blocking the German advance towards Paris. In the United States, French sympathizers launched a commemorative statue project after 1918, funded by American donations. The sculptor Frederick William MacMonnies, chosen through a competition, made a first bronze version (1922) exhibited in Atlantic City, before orchestrating the construction of the definitive monument in France.

The monumental statue, 26 metres high and composed of 220 blocks of stone of Lorraine, was carved by Edmondo Quattrocchi after the plans of MacMonnies, while architect Thomas Hastings designed its base. Inaugurated on September 11, 1932 in the presence of President Albert Lebrun and American dignitaries, it symbolizes the mourning freedom holding a baby (hope) and a broken sword (costful victory), surrounded by dead soldiers. The base has the agenda of General Joffre (6 September 1914) and an inscription in English celebrating the French sacrifice. American donation to the city of Meaux in 1933, the monument was classified as a Historical Monument in 1990.

Damaged by lightning in June 2021 (destruction of the upper part), its restoration was supported by the French Heritage Society. Close to the Museum of the Great War (opened in 2011), the memorial embodies both mourning, resilience and the Franco-American alliance. Its iconography combines national symbols (Gaulian cock, fleurs de lilies) and universal symbols (motherly pain, hope), while its location on the road to Varreddes recalls the theatre of the 1914 fighting.

The project, launched by a call from the New York Times (1917), mobilized US private funds and artists related to France, such as MacMonnies, who had been based in Paris and Giverny for 25 years. The final composition (1928) expanded the original model six times, creating one of the most ambitious peaceful monuments of the 2nd quarter of the 20th century. His inauguration brought together 30,000 people, including General Pershing and the US Ambassador, highlighting his diplomatic and memorial role.

External links

Page Wikipedia
Page Monumentum