Le Triomphe de la Republique statue Paris
The Triumph of the Republic is an extremely large bronze statue group designed by Aime Jules Dalou, that took many years to complete and still stands within the centre of the Place de la Nation square where it was inaugurated in 1899.
A bit of history
It was back in the 1870s that a competition was first launched by the City of Paris to produce a monument to commemorate the French Republic, which would be placed within the Place de la Republique square and numerous entries were submitted by different artists, and eventually, this completion was won by the artists Leopold Maurice and his brother Francois-Charles Maurice, with the final design being put in place within that square in 1883.
However, the judges were also exceedingly impressed with the design of the runner up, which was an innovative design project by the artist and sculptor Aime Jules Dalou.
So, the jury decided that Dalou could produce this monumental statue group for another square in Paris called the Place de la Nation. But after ten years this enormous statue was not complete, and therefore a painted plaster model was placed within the square in 1889 for the ceremonies that took place for the centenary of the French Revolution, and you can still view a model of the statue at the Petit Palais today.
But it took another ten years before the monumental statue was in position within the Place de la Nation, and called Le Triomphe de la Republique, this was inaugurated in the November of 1899 in the presence of the French President Emile Loubet.
However, in 1908, there were bronze crocodiles, or alligators that were added within a basin, or pond, which were designed to represent the enemies of the Republic, and spitting water from their mouths, these were sculpted by the animal sculptor Georges Gardet.
Unfortunately though, these particular elements were melted down during World War II when Paris was under Nazi occupation, but thankfully, the main monument remained, and can still be seen today in all its glory, although the basin has also been filled in.
About Triomphe de la Republique statue Today
Le Triomphe de la Republique monumental statue group by Jules Dalou weighs a colossal 35 tons and has lots of different features to admire with different allegorical statues, all with meanings.
Now to start with you will see a chariot being pulled by two lions, which are a symbol of popular force, and these are being led by the Spirit of Liberty statue, or La Genie de la Liberte in French, which is a figure located on top of the lions, lighting the way holding a torch.
From the chariot itself, this rises up to see a celestial globe, and on top of the globe is an allegorical statue just called Republique or sometimes known as Marianne, supported by a beam, that represents the French Republic, and the chariot itself with the globe is designed to symbolise universal suffrage.
There are also two main statues that flank this centre part of the bronze statue group of Le Triomphe de la Republique on either side as though you were looking at it from the front, and the first figure was designed by Dalou to represent Labour, which is why the man represents a blacksmith holding a hammer. The other is designed to represent Justice, which is a statue of a woman holding a cloak and the arm of justice.
You will also be able to see two different bronze statues of children, and the one nearest the blacksmith is holding a book, and Aime Jules Dalou wanted this to represent instruction and education, whereas the other child on the opposite side was designed to represent equity, in other words, balance and wealth.
However, if you venture round to the back of the Triumph of the Republic statue, then you will see that there is an additional allegorical figure of a woman, which is designed to represent La Paix, or The Peace in English, yet is sometimes also referred to as representing Abundance, and you can see her spreading flowers behind the chariot.
So, as you can tell, with the craftsmanship and thought that went into Le Triomphe de la Republique, you can understand why this has been classed as a historical monument in Paris, which is located in the historical Place de la Nation.
Visiting Le Triomphe de la Republique Statue
As we mentioned previously, you will find the monumental statue located within the Square de la Place de la Nation, which is a square in Paris that borders the 11th and 12th Arrondissements and the Place de la Nation is permanently open for people to walk around and admire the statue up close.
However, do bear in mind that this is positioned in the centre of the round square, which is like a central area of a large roundabout or intersection with numerous different roads converging on it.
But when it comes to getting to Le Triomphe de la Republique statue via public transport in Paris, you will find that there is a Metro station located here called the Nation stop, which serves lines 1, 2, 6 and 9. Plus there is also an RER train station here by the same name that serves line A of the RER.
