Kelsey and the Lion of Belfort

Kelsey and the lion . . .

Metro station:
Place de Denfer-Rochereau and entrance to the Catacombs of Paris

When Kelsey, my lion-haired granddaughter, posed for her dad's photos here (August 3, 2010), little did we know of this lion's story.

He's a replica, actually.  The original Lion of Belfort is perched in the mountains of eastern France, near the borders of Germany and Switzerland--a tribute to the citizens of Belfort who, during the Franco-Prussian War (1870-71) staged a 100-day resistance under the leadership of Colonel Denfert-Rochereau.  The city, unlike neighboring Alsace and Lorraine, remained in French hands once the war was over.

Frederic Auguste Bartholdi, an Alsatian best known for designing the Statue of Liberty, sculpted both the original Lion of Belfort and its replica.  The Parisian lion was placed atop his pedestal just in time for France's first celebration of Bastille Day--July 14, 1880.  Both lions face east, guarding France from invaders from the east . . .

The square--Place Denfert-Rochereau--was named so, after his death, for the colonel who saved Belfort from Prussian occupation.  Its original name was Place d'Enfer, or Place of Hell, perhaps a reference to the Catacombs of Paris whose entrance is also located there?

Also nearby is Montparnasse Cemetery where Frederic Auguste Bartholdi rests.  I can't believe that, among all the photographs from our brief visit there, there is no picture of Bartholdi's impressive tomb.  Yet one more incentive for us to return to Paris . . .