WAR MEMORIAL

Curious and long history that the monument of Gentioux. It is part of the peaceful monuments, as there are many in France, although there are not so many of them as regards the number of monuments to the death of the Hexagon. It also has a unique history. Built after the First World War, in 1922, a bronze statue representing a child was installed at its feet. One point surprise, it refers to the names of the 58 soldiers who died during this conflict. The foundation bears the «Cursed or War» inscription, carved in stone. The message clearly expresses a child's pain as a result of the loss of a father during the war. In 1985, an attempt to officially inaugurate this monument was unsuccessful. However, he has always been honoured: by the mayor reading the official text, by school children reading a text in the spirit of the orphan and by very popular demonstrations. On the other hand, it was said that the troops that joined the Masonry military camp had to turn their heads away when they found it on their way… Today, the Morts Memorial is registered in the Supplementary inventory of Historic monuments. In this small village, some families had lost two or three of their lives during this more deadly war than any other. Jules Coutaud, a mayor from 1920 to 1965 who was at the origin of the project, had himself been gassed during the conflict. The monument to the dead of Gentioux became one of the most famous of its kind.