Monument aux morts
Monument
Monument aux morts, located in Annecy (Département 74), is a modern edifice built in the 19th-20th centuries. The monument is currently closed to visitors.
Key facts
- Type
- autre
- Period
- Modern (19th-20th century)
- Location
- Annecy, Département 74, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 45.9029, 6.1302
- Mérimée Reference
- PA74000036
Built in the aftermath of the Great War, Annecy's war memorial pays tribute to the sons and daughters of Savoie who fell in battle, combining the solemnity and sculpted symbolism characteristic of the inter-war period.
History
In the heart of Annecy, a town bathed in the glow of the lake and heir to a long Alpine memory, the war memorial stands as a place of collective remembrance of rare intensity. Listed as a Historic Monument since 2019, it testifies to the town's determination to preserve what is one of the most moving architectural and symbolic testimonies to the local 20th century. Designed in the first half of the 20th century, this monument was part of the great wave of commemorative works that swept across France after the Armistice of 1918. Every commune, from the most modest to the departmental capital, sought to give form to the unspeakable national mourning. Annecy, the prefecture of Haute-Savoie with its strong civic and Catholic traditions, chose a building worthy of its position: a sober, solemn structure designed to stand the test of time without losing its emotional charge. The strength of this monument lies in the balance it strikes between its universal purpose - to honour those who did not return - and its deeply local roots. The names engraved in the stone are those of families from Annecy, the sons of Savoyard farmers, craftsmen from the old town and teachers from the secondary school. This mournful list, read aloud every 11 November, transforms the abstract commemoration into an intimate face-to-face encounter with history. To visit this monument is to be immersed in an atmosphere of contemplation that is made all the more poignant by the beauty of the Annécian setting - bell towers, lauze roofs, the proximity of the lake. The contrast between the serenity of the Alpine landscape and the gravity of the commemorative sculpture produces a lasting impression, typical of the great French memorial sites.
Architecture
The Annecy war memorial is in keeping with the dominant aesthetic canons of French commemorative art between the wars. It features the formal characteristics that define this monumental genre: a base or pedestal in ashlar, often limestone or granite, on which one or more allegorical or realistic sculpted figures stand. The formal vocabulary borrowed both from Republican neoclassicism - columns, friezes, Latin or French inscriptions - and from patriotic realism, which sought to represent the soldier, the bereaved mother or the figure of winged Victory. The materials used reflect the regional resources and practices of the time: limestone from the Jura and granite from the nearby Alps give the ensemble a robustness and a natural integration into the landscape in this Savoyard context. Bronze, for the engraved plaques and sculpted elements, provides the permanence and nobility required by the memorial function. The names of the soldiers who died for France are engraved in the republican tradition, classified by conflict or alphabetically. The urban location of the monument - probably in a square or close to a central civic thoroughfare - contributes to its symbolic legibility: visible, accessible and integrated into the urban fabric of Annecy, while at the same time standing out for its verticality and solemnity. The overall effect is one of architectural harmony, typical of high-quality provincial commemorative projects, combining the geometric rigour of the building and the expressiveness of the sculpture.
Related Figures
Les soldats annéciens de la 27e Division d'Infanterie Alpine (Diables Bleus), principaux dédicataires du monumentLes maires successifs d'Annecy de l'entre-deux-guerres, initiateurs et commanditaires de la commémorationLes sculpteurs et ateliers régionaux ou lyonnais spécialisés dans l'art funéraire et commémoratif des années 1920Les anciens combattants et associations de vétérans de la Haute-Savoie, gardiens de la mémoire du monumentLes résistants des Maquis de Haute-Savoie (Glières, Mont-Blanc), dont certains noms figurent sur les plaques commémoratives ultérieuresLes familles savoyardes endeuillées ayant financé par souscription l'érection du monument
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Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Monument aux morts located?
Monument aux morts is located in Annecy, Département 74 department, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, France.
When was Monument aux morts built?
Monument aux morts dates back to a period built in the modern era (19th-20th century).
Is Monument aux morts open to visitors?
Monument aux morts is currently closed to visitors.