The American Monument

The silent voices of France's heroic sons can still be heard here. They braved all, gave all during the long days full of pitfalls, while death lurked… They stopped the flow of an imminent disaster and their supreme devotion made the world tremble " these are the poignant words of Maréchal Joffre in tribute to the American soldiers who fought on French soil during the First World War.

This gigantic 26-metre-high monument stands on the outskirts of Meaux, close to the Musée de la Grande Guerre.

A monument to celebrate the heroes of the Battle of the Marne

In the United States, the victory of the Marne aroused the enthusiasm of many supporters of France. After this victory, the idea of creating a commemorative statue took shape and a competition was organised for models, the winner of which was Frederick Mac Monnies. However, it took 14 years for the project to come to fruition, and it was not until September 1932 that the American Monument also known as Tearful Liberty or the Marne Battle Monument, was inaugurated.

The sculptor symbolised the drama of 1914 in a form reminiscent of the purest creations of Antiquity. France, the central figure, seems at once a Spartan mother, ready to sacrifice her sons for the salvation of her country, and a sorrowful, distraught mother. She stands up heroically, her heart bleeding. Her face is one long cry of anguish, a heart-rending appeal over the panic of the armies, the cry of alarm of a nation that must summon all its energies. This is why the monument was given the title "Tearful Liberty ".

Many American soldiers who fought in the Great War and the Second World War are buried in Suresnes, west of Paris. The Suresnes American Cemetery is the only one in Europe which associates the 2 conflicts.

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