Statue Charles et Yvonne De Gaulle
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Statue Charles et Yvonne De Gaulle
Place d'Armes - 62100 CALAIS
At the foot of the watchtower, this statue depicts the presidential couple from 1958 to 1969. It commemorates the marriage of Charles de Gaulle and Yvonne Vendroux in the hometown of the First Lady of France. Then a captain in the French army, Charles de Gaulle married Yvonne Vendroux in 1921. The civil ceremony took place on April 6th at Calais City Hall, and the religious ceremony the following day at Notre Dame Church in Calais. It was an important wedding locally, as the Vendroux family were prominent entrepreneurs and notables in Calais. The City of Calais wished to commemorate this happy event…which took on a new significance with the life of Charles de Gaulle. This bronze statue dates from 2013 and is the work of Elisabeth Cibot. This Parisian sculptress produced several works depicting prominent figures (Marshal Murat, President François Mitterrand, Chancellor Willy Brandt, Pope John Paul II in Lyon, etc.). The artist drew inspiration from a photograph of the presidential couple during an official visit to Calais in 1959. Photographs and documents of the presidential couple can be seen in the Charles and Yvonne de Gaulle Room at the Calais Memorial Museum (Musée-Mémoire 1939-1945). It is worth noting that Madame Yvonne de Gaulle-Vendroux is looking in a specific direction. Her eyes are fixed on the site of her childhood home at the beginning of the 20th century. This house was destroyed during the bombings of the Second World War. This area, which was the old medieval Calais, was nearly 70% destroyed.
