The Defeat of Vercingetorix by Caesar in 52 BC

The Baptism of Clovis in the Year 496 AD

In 19th century France two very different personalities were venerated as founders of the nation, according to political orientation of the party concerned.

The choice of the liberal-republican camp fell on Vercingetorix, who as commander of the Gauls had rebelled again Caesar in the year 52 BC.

The insurrection was brutally subdued and the whole territory of Gaul was occupied by the Romans. Despite the crushing defeat, Vercingetorix was seen in the 19th century as the founding father of the French because he alone is said to have proved his courage in facing the superior force of the enemy: he could not save his homeland, but he saved the honour of the nation. This is why the Lionel-Noël Royer depicts Vercingetorix in the pose of a victorious general as he throws down his weapons at Caesar’s feet. Defeated but unbroken, he reins in his horse in order to ride through a path surrounded by high palisades on his way to the Roman imperator.

For its part the monarchist-Catholic party chose Clovis (Chlodwig), the Merovingian founder of the Frankish kingdom, as its candidate for founding father of the nation. In the year 496 AD, Clovis had fended off the threatened invasion of the Alemanni near Tolbiac (now Zülpich near Cologne). In the face of defeat he swore that he would convert to Christianity if he should achieve victory, and in fact it came about that his forces turned the tide and won a victory. The battle, followed by the baptism of Clovis, were seen as the founding events of French history. Before they were converted, the Franks were considered a brave but barbarian people. But now the baptised Clovis could lead France, under the guidance of divine providence, to its destiny. Civilization, the founding of the monarchy and obedience to the church were, it was felt, the characteristic elements of the glorious history of France, the »eldest daughter of the Church«.

Faith and War

St. Joan Liberates Orléans, 1429

The story of Joan of Arc is an episode from the Hundred Years' War (1339-1453) in which France and England grappled with each other for the succession to the throne of France. As England had occupied almost the entire north of France in the 1420s, young Joan, a peasant girl from Lorraine, is supposed to have appeared before French dauphin, the future Charles VII. Allegedly guided by heavenly »voices«, she urged Charles to give her an army, at the head of which she in fact then liberated the city of Orléans in 1429. This victory marked a change for the better in France's fortunes in the war. Joan herself was captured by the enemy, however, and burned at the stake as a heretic.

The legend of Joan became so popular in 19th century France primarily because it could be adapted to the interests of all different political factions. The Catholic monarchists emphasised her piety and drew a parallel between St. Joan and the Virgin Mary, while the liberal Republicans praised her as an honest patriot and woman of the people. The decisive message, however, can be found in both interpretations: it was the courage of a single individual and her deep belief in the righteous cause of her people that brought victory to France.

This is the sense in which Joan is depicted in most illustrations. Standing upright or mounted on a white horse, decorated with the lily as the symbol of the mother of God and carrying the white flag of innocence, she leads the army to victory.

Freedom

The French Revolution of 1789

In France the Great Revolution was a controversial event, splitting the nation into two camps. While one side stressed freedom and progress, the other one pointed to the violence and destruction it was causing. The two camps and their viewpoints found eloquent expression in the so-called »Tennis Court Oath« on June 20th and a few weeks later at the storming of the Bastille (14th July 1789). The storming of the Bastille, that monument which had become a symbol of arbitrary rule and despotism, has entered the national consciousness as the beginning of the revolution.

The pictorial representation of the attack stresses its significance: the sinister, ominous-looking and seemingly impregnable bulwark symbolises the inhumanity of the old order, but at the same time the beginning of the Revolution. This violent act of liberty stands in contrast to the peaceable oath taken in the indoor tennis court by members of the Third Estate who had assembled there, in which they swore not to separate until they had drawn up a constitution, and thus took a stand against the Ancien Régime and the king.