Memorial National de la Guerre d'Algerie
This memorial is dedicated to the soldiers and fighters who lost their lives fighting for France during the war of Algeria and the battles of Morocco and Tunisia and the full name for this monument in Paris is the Memorial National de la Guerre d'Algerie et des combats du Maroc et de la Tunisie.
About the Memorial National de la Guerre d'Algerie
The national monument and war memorial of Algeria and the fighting in Morocco and Tunisia has been designed as a tribute to the soldiers that died for France in North Africa. But this is also in memory for those that died even after the cease-fire and the violation of the Evian agreements along with civilians victims of the fighting, many of which have never been identified.
With a full name of Memorial National de la Guerre d'Algerie et des combats du Maroc et de la Tunisie, this monument was designed by the French artist Gerard Collin-Thiebaut and located on the pedestrian promenade of the Quai Branly that overlooks the River Seine, this was officially inaugurated on 5th December 2002 by the French President Jacques Chirac.
There are actually three columns that stand over 5.5 metres high and each side is just over half a metre and they are separated by two metres in between and are placed on moulded concrete with the limestone colour in Paris.
You will also find that the columns of this memorial are all aligned and have LEDs for an electronic display and the first column play with the light with the colour blue, the middle one is white, yet the right hand column has red LEDs lights to portray the sun and light of Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia.
Now the first column to the left scrolls the names of 23,000 soldiers and Harkis, which are sorted by year and alphabetically for those that died for France between the years of 1954 and 1962 in Algeria and between the years of 1952 and 1956 for those that died in Morocco and Tunisia.
The second column has scrolling messages that recall the war and in memory of those that disappeared, even after the ceasefire, however, the third column is actually interactive, as through a terminal located by the memorial column people can search for a specific name.
There is a plaque that states the name of the memorial and as well as that, the Memorial National de la Guerre d'Algerie has an inscription carved in stone which incorporates the words of in memory of the soldiers who died for France.
But there is also another plaque that remembers the missing people and the civilian victims of the massacres and atrocities that were committed during the war and after the violation of the Evian agreements.
And even though this is a modern and contemporary memorial, one of the great things about it, is that because the exacts figures of losses and the names of many are unknown, due to the utilisation of a computer, additional names can be added as information arises.
Yet there is still no official national commemoration day, but on the 19th March 2012, which was the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Evian agreement that marked the end of the Algerian war, there were veterans that marched from the Memorial National de la Guerre d'Algerie et des combats du Maroc et de la Tunisie to the Arc de Triomphe and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
Access to the Memorial National de la Guerre d'Algerie
The Memorial de la Guerre d’Algerie et des combats du Maroc et de la Tunisie Memorial Monument in Paris is located in the 7th Arrondissement along the promenade of the Quai Branly overlooking the River Seine in between the Pont d’Iena and the Avenue de la Bourdonnais.
This monument in Paris is also very close to the Eiffel Tower and the nearest public transport access is via the Metro stops called the Bir-Hakeim stop servicing Line 6 or a slight shorter walk, the Trocadero stop, which is on the opposite side of the River Seine by the Palais de Chaillot serving Lines 6 and 9.
Yet the nearest RER train station is the Champs de Mars - Tour Eiffel stop for the RER Line C. However, it is also close to one of the Batobus stops along the River Seine, which has a dock in between the Pont d'Iena and the Bateaux Parisiens that provide River Seine cruises, plus the tour buses like l'OpenTour all go to the Eiffel Tower.
You will also find that the Bus lines 32, 42, 63, 69, 72, 80, 82 and 87 are only a short walk away from the Memorial de la Guerre d’Algerie, plus the Noctilien Night Bus Service via line N53 has a stop by the Place du Trocadero.
