Voices and Saints

Statue of Joan of Arc in the Place des Pyramides

Nigel Bruce

• 1 min read
Statue of Joan of Arc in the Place des Pyramides

This grand statue of Joan of Arc in the Place des Pyramides, in Paris, was designed by Emmanuel Frémiet in 1874, right after France's defeat in the 1870 Franco-Prussian War, which saw Alsace–Lorraine become part of a newly unified German Empire.

Statue of Joan of Arc in the Place des Pyramides, in Paris. It was designed by Emmanuel Fremiet in 1874.

Aiming at nationalist symbolism, Frémiet took as his model a young woman from Domrémy. Even today, the royalist movement Action Française likes to have its annual ceremony in May by the statue, with placards that say things like "Today anarchy, tomorrow monarchy" and "Everyone hates the Republic." The photo up top shows Marine Le Pen using it as the backdrop for a Front National (FN) speech.

It isn't actually the original statue anymore though. In 1898, during construction for the metro, the statue had to be removed, and Frémiet quietly replaced it with a new one and covered it in gold.

Curiously, copies of the statue can be found on display in Nancy, New Orleans, Philadelphia, Portland (Oregon) and Melbourne (Australia).