Friday, March 28, 2014

La “Der des Ders” – The War to End All Wars 1914 - 1918


Fifth day of mobilization in Paris. Departure of the 5th Artillery, August 6, 1914
© Excelsior, rights held by roger-viollet.fr

2014 marks the centennial of the outbreak of the Great War, the War to end all Wars, or La Der des Ders, la derrière des derrières, in French. France suffered the second highest number of military deaths (almost 1.4 million) of the Allied nations, very high civilian population losses, and the highest number of deaths as a percentage of the total population (4.3%). Paris alone experienced the loss of 90,000 soldiers. The numbers were (and remain) unprecedented. Over twenty percent of the total population was mobilized, sixteen percent of them killed and a staggering additional 50% wounded. The total French casualties (killed in action, wounded, taken prisoner) were over 73% of soldiers mobilized.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_I_casualties  

The wounded who made it home were known as the gueules cassées, men with broken faces. They were often not classified as wounded veterans since they often retained use of their limbs and could, in theory, still be productive members of society. As today, the imperative to get men back to the front or back to civil life in order to support the war effort provided the impetus for great strides in oral and maxillofacial surgery and prosthetics development, as well as the beginnings of recognition of the psychological trauma of war and treatment for what was then known as ‘shell shock.’

The video below, Gueules cassées – Men with broken faces (1918) – Music by Igorrr (2008), is footage from a facial prosthetics lab in which you see a young soldier being fitted with a prosthetic jaw. 


There are quite a few events commemorating the Great War in Paris this year. Below is a selection of exhibits in Paris. There are also many battlefield events outside of Paris. I highly recommend a day trip to the Musée de la Grande Guerre in Meaux (details below).  

Great War Centennial Events in Paris



Centenaire 1914-2014 Que Faire à Paris?


Exhibits

Paris 14-18 : La Guerre au quotidien, Daily life in Paris during the Great War, photographs by Charles Lansiaux.
-        Galerie des bibliothèques, Bibliothèque Historique de la Ville de Paris, 22 rue Malher, 4 th, M: St. Paul. Tuesday – Sunday, 1 – 7 p.m., Thursday, until 9 p.m. Closed Monday. Entry: 4-6 €.
(January 15 – June 15, 2014)

Jean Jaurès – The largest exhibit ever on the social activist and founder of the newspaper L’Humanité. The exhibit follows his career in politics and journalism up until his assassination on the eve of the Great War.
-         Archives Nationales, Hôtel de Soubise, 60 rue des Francs-Bourgeois, 3rd, M: Rambuteau.
Wednesday – Monday, 10 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday, 2 p.m. – 5:30 p.m. Closed Tuesdays. Free entry.
(March 5 – June 2, 2014)

Eté 14 : Les Derniers Jours de l’Ancien Monde, Summer of ’14 – The last days of the old world. An exhibit focusing on the chain of events from July 23 – August 4, 2014 and the diplomatic, political and military decisions leading up to the outbreak of war.
-          BnF François Mitterand, Grande Galerie Quai François-Mauriac, 13th, M: Quai de la Gare & Bibliothèque François Mitterand, Tuesday – Saturday, 10 a.m. – 7 p.m., Sunday, 1 – 7 p.m. Entry : 5 – 7 €.
(March 25 – August 3, 2014)

Paris 1900, la Ville Spectacle, Paris at the time of the Universal Exposition inaugurating the 20th century – the rise of the leisure class, theater, cinema, art, fashion and department stores, everything that contributed to the image of Paris as the a city of luxury and center of civilization in the years prior to the Great War.
-         Petit Palais – Musée des Beaux-Arts de la Ville de Paris, 2 ave Winston, 8 th, M : Champs-Elysées-Clemenceau. Closed Mondays. Entry: 5.50 – 11 €.
(April 2 – August 17, 2014)

Laurent Corvaisier illustre Guillaume Apollinaire, Original images by Laurent Corvaisier illustrate Apollinaire’s poem Il y a.
-         Bibliotheque Buffon, 15 rue Buffon, 5th, M : Gare d’Austerlitz. Friday, 10:30 a.m. – 7 p.m.; Saturday 10:30 a.m. – 6 p.m. Free Entry.
(April 12 – May 31, 2014)

La Guerre des Crayons, Drawings and writing by school children in two local schools during the war.
-         Bibliothèque Jacqueline de Romilly, 16 ave de la Porte Montmartre, 18 th, M : Porte de Saint-Ouen & Porte de Clignancourt. Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, 1 – 7 p.m.; Wednesday, 10 a.m. – 7 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. (April 8 – May 3, 2014). Free Entry.
-         Bibliotheque Maurice Genevoix, 19 rue Tristan Tzara, 18th, M: Porte de la Chapelle. Saturday, 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. Free Entry.
(April 24 – May 17, 2014)

Updating of map of the front, provided to the Parisians by Excelsior, boulevard des Italiens, end of August 1917
© Excelsior, rights held by roger-viollet.fr

L’Est Parisian Pendant la Grande Guerre, The eastern quarters of Paris during the Great War. Photographs of daily life, departure of soldiers to the front and bombardment of Paris.
-        Médiathèque Marguerite Duras, 115 rue de Bagnolet, 20th, M: Porte de Bagnolet. Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, 1 p.m. – 7 p.m.; Wednesday, 10 a.m. – 7 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.; Sunday, 1 – 6 p.m. Free Entry.
(April 2 – June 29, 2014)
-        Also at the Médiathèque Marguerite Duras – L’Oreille ne fait pas de Sieste Spécial 14 – 18, Presentation of recorded texts of the time. Free Entry.
(May 15, 2014, 3 – 4 p.m.)

De l’Arrière au Front, Original documents from the Historical Library of Paris detailing moral and material support for soldiers.
-        Bibliothèque Saint Simon, 116 rue de Grenelle, 7th, M: Solferino. Tuesday – Friday, Noon – 7 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. Closed Sunday and Monday. Free Entry.
(May 6 – 30, 2014)

Jours de Guerre 1914 - 1918, Days of War, Photographs from the newspaper Excelsior, one of the first dailies to include photos. During the war the paper published 20-30 photographs with each issue.
-        Orangerie du Sénat, 19 bis rue de Vaugirard, 6th, M: Saint-Sulpice; RER: Luxemburg. Tuesday – Sunday, 11 a.m. – 8 p.m. Free entry.
(June 1 – 29, 2014)

Le Camp retranché à Paris, Two monumental models representing the Ile de France region in 1914 and 2014.
-        Esplanade of the Hôtel de Ville, 4 th, M: Hôtel de Ville. Free entry.
(June 15 – July 1, 2014)

Visages et Vestiges de la Grande Guerre, Photographs of the poilus (solders) and objects of the period in the Main Departure Hall and exterior gates of the Gare de l’Est train station, gathering point of soldiers leaving for the front during the Great War.
-        Gare d’Est, Place du 11 Novembre 1918, 10th, M: Gare de l’Est. Open during station hours. Free Entry.
(June 23 – November 29, 2014)

Bastille Day: National ceremonies and welcome of troops in the different arrondissements with a “War and Peace” themed firework display at the Eiffel Tower in the evening. See here for previous year’s program. Will be updated early July. Free Entry.
(Monday, July 14, 2014)

The Heroism of the Taxis of the Marne, honoring 1300 taxis for their assistance in transporting 5000 troops to the front. At the Invalides. Details to come.
(September 6 – 7, 2014)

American Writers in Paris during the Great War, Details to come.
(September – December, 2014)

France decrees general mobilization, August 1, 1914. An officer is carried triumphantly through the Gare de l’Est train station. Photo appeared in Excelsior on Sunday, August 2, 1914.
© Excelsior, rights held by roger-viollet.fr

Day Trip from Paris: Meaux

Musée de la Grande Guerre du Pays de Meaux
-        The permanent exhibit offers two itineraries.
The short itinerary takes about 90 minutes and focuses on the period after the 1870 defeat and pre-war mentalities; the Marne in 1914 and 1918 and life in the trenches; and the period between the two world wars, the illusion of victory and the construction of memory.  
For those who wish to spend a half-day or more in the museum, the long itinerary focuses on ten thematic areas that explore various aspects of the conflict, from technological advances, women’s place in the conflict, daily life in the trenches, the involvement of soldiers drafted from the French colonies, and the role of the American Expeditionary Force in the final victory.
  
      Musée de la Grande Guerre du Pays de Meaux, rue Lazare Ponticelli, 77100 Meaux,
May to September, Wednesday – Monday, 9:30 a.m. – 6:30 p.m. Closed Tuesday.
October to April, Wednesday – Monday, 10 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. Closed Tuesday.
From Paris: Train from Gare de l’Est to Meaux (30 minutes), then Bus M6 to museum (additional 10 minutes).
Entry: 5 € - 10 €.

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