The Colorado statesman. [volume] (Denver, Colo.) 1895-1961, 1919-03-08

81
since last November IL. What
will be the next distinguish
ing feature of the Place de la Con-
corde, one of Paris great places, and
perhaps the most magnificent public
square in the world? asks the Kansas
City Star. VIII it, too, be tragic? For
an air of tragedy has chung to this
splendid product of engineering and
art.
Thousands died there in the blood
madness of the French Revolution; the
allied armies of Napoleon held sol
emn tie deum there in 1914; in 1871
the hated Prussian encamped in the
beautiful square; later the same year
it was the scene of fierce and bloody
conflicts between Versailles troops and
the Communards, who had erected bar
ricades at one of the entrances; since
1871 the statue dedicated to the city
of Strassburg had been continuously
draped in mourning and known as the
"Lost Sister," keeping alive in the
minds of Frenchmen the theft of AL
sace-Lorraine.
A Place of Beauty.
1t is a place of lovely fountains and
statues. Originally it was intended as
center of commemoration, where
statues and monuments might be erect
ed to celebrate the memory of great
Frenchmen and their deeds. Louis XIV
modestly give it start with a statue
of himself, but this no longer stands
there. 1t disappeared in the Revolu-
ton. There are in it now eight colos-
sal statues representing eight princi-
pal cities of France-Lille, Rouen,
Nantes, Bordeaux, Brest, Marseilles.
Lyons and Strassburg. There is now
talk of erecting in it some immortal
conception of the present conflict and
its victorious outcome.
On one side of the Place de Ia Con-
corde runs the broad Rue Royale, ex-
tending to the majestic church of La
Madeleine. On the opposite side is the
River Seine. On its right is the Gar
den of the Tuileries and on the left
the famous promenade of the Champs
Elysees. In the old peace times the
Place de Ia Concorde was scene of
gayety. Came to it tourists from all
parts of the world, about it promenad-
ed the fashionables of Paris.
The note of gayety would die out
of the voices of Frenchmen as they
passed the figure of the Lost Sister"
with its ever present crepe and SOM
Der wreaths of mourning. 1t signitied
that France had neither forgotten nor
forgiven.
The day the arnistice was declared
unparalleled scenes of joy occurred in
the Place de la Concorde. Captured
German guns were brought to its con-
fines; soldiers, civilians, women and
children gathered there and laughed
and sang and cheered with all the
abandon of the Gaul. The mourning
wreaths were torn away from the
Strassburg monument and the statue
decked with a crown of gold leaves.
This crown is still upon the colossal
figure of what is now the Redeemed
Sister,
The dreams of many men of genius
have gone into the making of the
Place de la Concorde. Gabriel, the
architect, and an unnamed engineer
of great imagination. constructed the
pavilions and balustrades, laid the
groundwork for the achievement in
the middle of the eighteenth century.
The equestrian figure of Louis XIV,
which stood in the square until the
Revolution, was the work of Bou
chardon Pigalle, one of his contempt
raries, surrounded this statue with fig
ures emblematic of Strength, Wisdom,
Justice and Peace. The square re-
ceived its present form in 1854 from
designs by Hittorf. The great statues
of the cities were made by four IA
nous French sculptors, each of whom
did two figures. At the entrance to
the Champs Elysees, which forms the
western boundary of the place, are
the famous Horses of Marty" by Gull
laume COustou, and mt the eastern
side mt the entrance to the Garden of
the Tuileries, are the "Renomees' of
Coyzevox-Mercury and Fame bestride
the horses.
Obeisk of Rameses II.
In the center rises the obelisk OF
Rameses II, towering 76 feet and
Weighing 24O tons 1t is Il single block
of reddish granite, more than three
thousand years old and it once stood