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Parvis Notre-Dame (4e)

Charlemagne et ses leudes

Charlemagne and his guards

Charlemagne (Carolus Magnus) (unknown place 742 - Aachen 814)
King of the Franks (since 768) and Emperor (since 800)
(Wikipedia)

Charles and Louis Rochet
1882

Description

Equestrian statue of Charlemagne and two of his leudes (Olivier and Roland with his sword Durendal).

Inscription(s)

CHARLEMAGNE
ET
SES LEVDES

Signed: (pedestal) charles et lovis / ROCHET –1882

Annotation

A Leudes was a vassal or tenant in the early Middle Ages. From the bravest of their tribe a number of warriors were chosen to be the companions and guards of the chief. They called Leudes, and usually served on horseback, while the greater part of the nation fought on foot; and they were bound to their chief by an oath of fidelity. These Leudes were, in fact, the nobility of the tribes, but resembled the knights of an after age in nothing except the circumstance of fighting on horseback.

Sculptor

Charles Rochet (Paris 1813 - Paris 1878) and Louis Rochet (1819-1900), French sculptors (brothers).

Sources & Information

Nella Buscot, Sculptures dans les jardins, squares et autres lieux publics, Paris.
Phidias-Sculptures de rue, Les statues de rue de Paris.
Kees van Tilburg, From Marcus Aurelius to Kim Jong-il: The story of equestrian statues throughout the ages (Amstelveen, 2017). – see also the Equestrian statue website.

Locatie (N 48°51'11" - E 2°20'53") (Satellite view: Google Maps)

Item Code: frif004; Photograph: 24 May 2011
Of each statue we made photos from various angles and also detail photos of the various texts.
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© Website and photos: René & Peter van der Krogt

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