20. Monument of Emperor Wilhelm I, Metz - 13 Sept 1900 | Glass Plates
Of all the monuments pictured in the box of glass plates, this was the most challenging to locate. War, defeat and triumph, history unfolding on the streets has left its marks and scars on Metz. Statues have been raised to reflected the altered cultural pantheon, and they have been torn down for the same reason.
Events of the 19th and 20th Century symbolically reshaped this public park so that whatever stood atop the plinth on this spot represented the victors and their values.
The location pictured is Esplanade Place in Metz, a city in the north-east of France. During 1900, when the image was taken, Metz, although French-speaking, had been annexed to the German Empire for almost three decades. This was following the Franco-Prussian War (July 1870-January 1871) and the question of Metz's sovereignty had been decided in Treaty of Frankfurt (1871), where France was forced to cede the territory of Alsace-Lorraine to the aggressively militaristic Second Reich (the first being the Holy Roman Empire; the Third needs no introduction).
As noted in the previous post examining Metz’s Cathedral, the city of Metz is a metropolis resting on a historic fault line waiting for the next crisis to shake its civic face.
Emperor Wilhelm I stood victorious at the end of the Franco-Prussian War and his authoritative-looking, equestrian visage was erected in one of the more prominent riverside parks in the city. Authority, granted by the grace of God – and military might – was at the centre of Wilhelm’s philosophy, and the imperial glory gained by his Second Reich would shape much of what was to follow into the middle of the next century.
Metz was in German hands and the bronze Kaiser sat astride his horse gazing at his captured city.
The Liberating Solider
Following the First World War (1914-1918), with the defeat of the Second Reich, the city reverted to French control. On Armistice Day, or very soon after, this statue that represented German dominance, and many similar in Metz, were torn down by French soldiers. Raised in their place were those to the liberators, not depicting a singular figure such as an Emperor, but to the soldiers themselves in a symbolic monument to sacrifice and freedom.
This symbolic civic transformation began with a temporary statue of a French solder standing on the old pedestal, his foot crushing a German helmet. Materials were short in the aftermath of the war, and so this first French statue was made of domestic materials such as plaster, wire mesh, and mops by sculptor Henri Bouchard.
Two years later, this symbol to liberation was starting to look ragged; it was made to stand on the Kaiser’s pedestal as a statement, but the statement had been a transient cry of victory, now it needed a more permanent message of liberation. As such, Emmanuel Hannaux was hired to create a new monument, removing the old base, and replacing it with an elaborate multi-tiered pedestal with a classical figure with its arms outstretch in a gesture of openness and liberation, and the symbolic French soldier standing above. To add to the message of victory, the statue was cast from the bronze of a former German cannon.
From artillery to statuary. From a weapon to an artwork.
Perhaps it became artillery to again to be used against the French as, at the start of the German occupation of Metz during the Second World War, the statue was melted down to feed the war’s hunger for raw metal. Moreover, I suspect the occupiers did not appreciate gazing up at this symbol to their former defeat.
Following the Battle of Metz, which raged between September and December 1944, the city was again returned to French control. This time, however, the spot remained vacant of any symbol of victory; the sight being left fallow following the former two monuments raised to national triumph – the Kaiser and the French soldier – being torn down by the opposing side.
In 1952, once the dust of war had settled, the city decided to raise a modest statue commemorating the soldiers of First World War in the park. While it is based on Bouchard’s original, the statue itself is far more modest. In scale it is smaller, and it no longer crushes a helmet beneath its feet, but has both boots on the ground with fallen helmets close beside. Most notably, the pedestal is less than a foot off the ground: military might being no longer raised and celebrated, but instead the individual soldier recognised for his vital contribution to the liberating of the city.
The evolution from the grandiose original statue to the subtle, understated, modern memorial is quite telling about the way public statues relate to the nation and the idea of nationhood in contemporary Europe.
Long may Le Poilu Libérateur stand. It seems to have stood longer than the others already.
The Shadow in the Foreground
Lastly, another point of note that makes this photograph particularly interesting is that it is the only one to offer a glimpse at the camera setup of the unknown photographer.
If you look on the bottom right, in the foreground on the wall, there is a shadow that appears to be a large box camera on a tripod. There are very few other details that can be made out by the silhouette, but this in itself shows the size of the equipment that had to be carried to expose and then transport these fragile glass plates from England, across the continent, and back.
I hope you will join me for the next stage of the glass plate journey as we move from Metz to Strasbourg.
References
van der Krogt, René & Peter ‘Le Poillu libérateur: the Liberating Soldier’, Statues Vanderkrogt <https://statues.vanderkrogt.net/object.php?webpage=ST&record=frlo189>
Vinck, Marie-Christine, ‘Memorial "Le Poilu Libérateur"’, Traces of War <https://www.tracesofwar.com/sights/47825/Memorial-Le-Poilu-Lib%C3%A9rateur.htm>
1900 Glass Plates: This project explores a series of glass plates from the year 1900 with the eventual goal of travelling the same route as the photographer. It will be a varied journey that will stretch from simple blog posts examining each photo to videos and more. This project is in collaboration with photographer Aleksandar Nenad Zecevic, who’ll be restoring the photographs to bring out details dimmed by time. More to follow.
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