"Mémorial des chasseurs d'Afrique" (African Hunters Memorial)
The Prussian and Bavarian artillery, which is more numerous and efficient, quickly neutralised the French artillery ; then, through terribly efficient shooting, massacred the magnificent regiments of African Chasseurs, Hussars, Cuirassiers with impunity...
The Margueritte cavalry could only charge for honour in a desperate situation, but their heroic charges were the last and most pathetic in the history of the French Margueritte cavalry.
The Memorial and the steles of the 12 Regiments of African Chasseurs are spaced out from right to left of the central monument and serve as a dedication to the memory of the African Chasseurs. There is a large inscription across the monument done by the sculptor Emile Guillaume, which reads: ‘In honour of the French cavalry,’ an indication of how important this monument is nationally.
It is also called “The Brave People” as a reminder that the King of Prussia, Guillaume I, so admired this heroism, that he couldn’t help shouting out ‘Oh, what brave people’, while following the battle with binoculars from the chemin des Romains at Frénois.
In 1950, the body of the Lieutenant Colonel de Liniers, commander of the third regiment of the African Chasseurs as well as 150 officers and horsemen killed during the charges were buried under a large tombstone at the foot of the monument. The bodies had previously been buried at the foot of the oldest oak in Sedan. The latter remains an enclosed area called ‘Fond de Cazal’ which is still a place for memory and meditation today.
Additional information
- Equipment : Shady garden, Car park, Disabled access
Documents downlaod
Gallery
