The Eighth Hungarian Tribe, 1983 (10. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
1983-11-01 / 11. szám
November, 1983 THE EIGHTH HUNGARIAN TRIBE Pag® 7 Enroute back to Paris after Laboulaye’s dinner party, Bartholdi reviewed what was said by his host. He also recalled his pilgrimage to Egypt as a young student and his visits, with the painter J.L. Gerome, to the Pyramids, the Sphinx, the Colossi at Abu Simbel, and the other legacies to the world bequeathed by unsurpassed sculptors of ancient Egypt. How to implant those impressions within his own style to create an enduring work of sculpture, was something for him to think about. And ponder it he did. For six long years! THE IDEA TAKES ROOT It was in 1865 that Frederic Auguste Bartholdi attended the dinner party at which Laboulaye first spoke of a commemorative gift from France to the United States of America. The two men, however, did not meet again until the end of the Franco-Prussian War in 1871. During this six-year interval, Bartholdi had served as an officer in the French Army. He had also given Laboulaye’s proposal a great deal of thought. Consequently, when he again visited Glatigny in the Spring of 1871, he was prepared to present some ideas of his own. Coming in the wake of the disastrous French defeat in the Franco-Prussian War, the mood of Laboulaye’s guests on this occasion was somber. But the conversation was as lively as ever. And, as usual, the talk got around to the latest news from America. This time Bartholdi spoke. The time was right, he said, for France’s gift to the United States. It should be a monument to liberty. A huge statue symbolizing liberty enlightening the world, he urged, a “Statue of Liberty”. Laboulaye and his guests became infused with enthusiasm for the idea. What Laboulaye had suggested six years earlier, had taken root in the creative mind of the great sculptor. Before the dinner party ended, Bartholdi and Laboulaye had agreed upon a plan of action. Bartholdi would go to the United States to present the project, to find out whether the Americans would support it, and, if they indicated that they would, to pinpoint a suitable site location. It turned out to be the beginning of a 15-year-long struggle to convert a dream into a reality! BARTHOLDI VISITS AMERICA Armed with letters of introduction and detailed instructions by Laboulaye, Bartholdi sailed for America in the Summer of 1871. Upon his arrival, he called upon such prominent Americans and molders of public opinion as Cyrus Field, Peter Cooper, Horace Greeley, William Cullen Bryant, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, and others. He was warmly welcomed and assured of generous support. Wherever he went, the idea of a great monument to liberty symbolizing friendship between France and the United States of America was received with great enthusiasm and immediately endorsed. Money would not be a problem, he was told. In Washington, Bartholdi met with President Grant and members of Congress and was assured of governmental support. Everywhere he traveled throughout the country — north, south, east and west — the response was favorable. Now all that remained was to find a suitable site location for his creation. Returning to New York, Bartholdi was wined and dined by the city’s elite. He was provided with transportation and an escort for daily trips in search of a suitable site location. Finally he was offered a choice between Governor’s Island and Bedloe’s Island, the former site of Fort Wood (1808-1811). He chose Bedloe’s Island as the perfect location for “Liberty Enlightening the World”. It was situated astride the gateway to America. Assured that America would finance the construction of the pedestal on which his creation would be erected, Bartholdi returned to France bubbling with enthusiasm. Upon his arrival home, he hurried to Glatigny to report his findings. Laboulaye was so pleased with his protege’s report he boasted that “Liberty Enlightening the World” would be represented by a statue of colossal proportions which would surpass all that ever existed since the most ancient times. But, unfortunately, Laboulaye could not yet give his approval to proceed with the project. It would have to be kept under wraps for awhile because of the existing political struggle between the Republicans and the Orleanists. But Laboulaye did propose that Bartholdi should begin work on the models, while he would quietly spread word around about the project. Then, when the time was right, he promised, it would be revealed with great fanfare throughout France. The time was not right for almost five long years! Meanwhile, Bartholdi was commissioned by the President of France to execute a bronze statue of Lafayette. This statue was presented to the City of New York in appreciation of the city’s generous aid after the siege of Paris (1870- 1871). It now stands in Union Square! THE PROJECT IS REVEALED The stormy political climate in France ended in 1875. With the moderate Republicans now in power, the Laboulaye-Bartholdi project was announced and a French-American Union was organized to raise funds on both sides of the Atlantic. Laboulaye, of course, headed this organization and sparkplugged its fund-raising drive. By 1882, the results were in. More than 181 towns and 100,000 citizens of France had contributed the whopping sum of $400,000.00! While wealthy individuals, commercial interests, businessmen, trade unions, and fraternal organizations — such as the Masonic Lodge grandmastered by Henri Martin, for example — made
