Joan of Arc Statue Quebec City
Public Art: Joan of Arc statue (copy)
Also Known: Jeanne d’Arc statue
Sculptor: ©Anna Vaughn Hyatt Huntington
Date Unveiled: 1938
Description: The bronze replica depicts the French heroine raising her sword to the sky as she rides her horse.
Location: The Joan of Arc statue is located in the Plains of Abraham, Quebec City, Canada.
Inscription:
Inspired by the historic charm of Québec, the two anonymous donors of this monument have offered it to the National Battlefields Commission as an emblem of the patriotism and valour of the brave in 1759 and 1760.
Background to the Joan of Arc statue:
The Joan of Arc statue by Anna Vaughn Hyatt Huntington was conceived just prior to World War I. A committee in New York was formed with the desire to erect a statue to the French heroine and Martyr on the 500th anniversary of her birth. It was also seen as a way to bolster the Franco- American relations considering the world was on the brink of war. Sculptor Anna Vaughn Hyatt Huntington, who by chance had just completed a life-size plaster cast of Joan of Arc on horseback in 1910, was the most favoured candidate. On December 6th, 1915 her statue was unveiled on the banks of the Hudson River. Joan was depicted in full armour holding her sword up high, whilst the horse holds a majestic stance. The monument was so admired an additional 4 replicas were cast. Between 1921 and 1938 more copies were made. One of which was given to Quebec City.
It was no wonder that Anna Vaughn Hyatt Huntington’s depiction of Joan of Arc was so revered. She had spent many years working and living in Paris. She had studied the works of Dubois and Frémiet who had both depicted Joan of Arc. She visited numerous medieval armour displays and live horse shows to study authenticity, movement and symmetry. When it was time to create her work she chose to use a “heavy” horse as a live model for her work. If you look closely at the bronze you can see great muscle definition on the horse. She also chose to have Joan on her toes leaning forward into the horse giving the feeling of movement.
Controversy: In 1938 Huntington and her husband gifted the fifth and final replica of the statue to the Canadian National Battlefields Commission. They, in turn, gifted it to Quebec City and the newly built Jardin Jeanne d’Arc, which was located on the former Seven Years War battlefield of the Plaines d’Abraham.The gift was not initially received well. Which isn’t surprising. It was kind of ironic that a statue of the French heroine, who led her country to victory against the English was erected on the battlefield where the British troops defeated the French during the 1759 Battle of Québec.
Joan of Arc Background : Joan of Arc was a peasant girl, who believed she could save her country, France, from the would-be English conquerors, during the Hundred Years’ War. Acting under divine guidance (or so she believed), Joan secured the confidence of Dauphin (later King Charles VII) and led the French army in a momentous victory at Orleans in 1429. Whilst at Charles’s coronation at Reims, she was captured by the English and their French collaborators and tried as a witch. Unfortunately, Joan was found guilty and was promptly burned at the stake. In 1455 a retrial was ordered and the earlier verdict against the peasant girl was overturned. Joan not only became a national heroine but also a legend. On May 16th, 1920 she was canonized by Pope Benedict XV.