Who really was Marianne, who became the symbol of the French Republic

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

French Marianne was born in 1792, but since then she has neither grown old nor obsolete. And if for the first century and a half simple women gave her their appearance, then the time of stars came: the most beautiful women in the country, or at least the most popular among the people. And now Marianne is the one with whom the French identify their country.

The story of the appearance of Marianne

With the fall of the monarchy as a result of the Great French Revolution of 1789, it was time for other state symbols. The former were abolished, and the new ones were required not to remind anything of monarchs and tyranny, but, on the contrary, to personify the republic and its ideals, including the motto “Freedom, Equality, Brotherhood”. By the decision of the National Assembly, the image of a woman with a spear in her hand and wearing a "Jacobin cap" or a Phrygian cap appeared on the new state seal. Such a headdress was worn in the Roman era by freed slaves.

Why Marianne? There is a version that in those years a song was very popular among the people, the heroine of which bore this name. One way or another, and among common women - peasants, maids - then it was Marie and Anna that most often met, therefore the combination of the two most common names into one perfectly continued the ideas of the people's revolution. The image of Marianne not only adorned the new state seal, but also provided artists and sculptors with a powerful source of inspiration.

Perhaps the most famous of the paintings depicting Marianne is the work of Eugene Delacroix "Liberty Leading the People", but it was written not under the influence of the events of the Revolution of 1789, but after the July coup of 1830, when the reign of Charles X and the regime Restorations. The image of Marianne then became extremely popular. In 1848, a competition was announced for the best depiction of this symbol of France.

Two options won, one - "Marianna the wise", with her hair tied up, dressed modestly enough, and "Marianna wrestling" - with her hair down, in a Phrygian cap, with an open chest and with a weapon in hand. The topless look, however, was soon banned.

Symbolic image and symbolic connections

At first glance, it may seem that the authors of paintings and sculptures dedicated to Marianne were guided only by aesthetic considerations when creating works, but the image of Marianne in art was filled with many symbols. She was sometimes depicted wearing a crown - a sign of the invincibility of France, with broken chains - a sign of freedom. Bare breasts symbolized emancipation, crossed arms - brotherhood.

During the Second Empire, from 1852 to 1870, when Napoleon III ruled France, images of Marianne were banned. And with the beginning of the period of the Third Republic, her image returned and, moreover, became much more popular than before. In the seventies of the XIX century, Marianne's sculptures began to adorn official institutions, town halls, courts, replacing the busts of Napoleon III. Marianne personified France, and was even "married" in 1963 to a personified image of another country, Germany. This marked the signing of the Elysee Treaty between the two countries - France and Germany.

The sculptors who received the order drew their lovers and wives, professional models, simply beautiful women by chance as models. In the late sixties of the last century, the sculptor Alain Aslan received the order to create the busts of Marianne. He decided to take a new path, taking as a model the most popular French woman at that time, who was also considered one of the most beautiful women in the whole world - Brigitte Bardot.

The number of copies of the bust sold exceeded twenty thousand. This is how the tradition of “living Marianne” appeared, when the image of France is personified by a woman who exists in reality, one that is well known to the French and by whom their country is judged throughout the world.

"Live" Marianne

Marianne is chosen by the mayors of French cities, this happens when the time comes to renew the busts that have served their time - after all, in the country they are used in thousands of institutions. After Brigitte Bardot, in 1972, the film actress Michelle Morgan became "Marianne". The sculptor who created the bust based on her appearance was Bernard Potel.

In 1978, the singer Mireille Mathieu was chosen for this role, the sculptural image was again created by Alain Aslan. Seven years later, the actress Catherine Deneuve became the symbol of the republic, and in 1989 - Ines de la Fressange, the top model. This event led to some unpleasant consequences: the Chanel fashion house terminated the contract with Ines, Karl Lagerfeld, its head, announced that Marianne was the embodiment of everything boring, bourgeois and provincial, and that he did not intend to “wear a monument”.

In the two thousandth year, "Marianna" was another model - Laetitia Casta. Three years later, Evelyn Thoma, a TV presenter, was chosen - this decision was received, in contrast to the previous ones, ambiguously. Unlike her predecessors, Toma, from the generally accepted point of view, was not distinguished by either exquisite beauty or charisma. She hosted a TV show in which she touched upon various "uncomfortable" topics - and this was very fond of ordinary French people, far from the world of fashion and show business. By the way, Evelyn Toma at that time bypassed Sophie Marceau, Carla Bruni and Cecilia Sarkozy.

And in 2012, ahead of Marion Cotillard and Vanessa Paradis as a result of the vote count, actress Sophie Marceau was finally elected "Marianne." Marianne adorns Place de la République in Paris, as well as Place de la Nation - where she is depicted on a chariot drawn by two lions, surrounded by figures representing motherhood and childhood. The whole composition is directed in the direction where the Bastille used to be.

However, the famous American Statue of Liberty was also created thanks to the same image - the French gave the United States not only a colossal sculpture, but also their vision of independence - Marianne.

And the most popular among the busts of Marianne is still the one that was created in the image of Brigitte Bardot. By the way, there is no mandatory requirement for the placement of such sculptures, this is just an expression of love and admiration for her Marianne, a beautiful metaphor that personifies France.

In the career of Catherine Deneuve, the election to the role of Marianne was an important event, despite the numerous twists and turns of the fate of the French "cold beauty".