Allegories Used in European Nations
Marianne
- In France, the statue of a Christian female named Marianne was erected in public spots to visualize the nation. She wore the red cap, and the cockade and held the tricolor.
- Her characteristics were derived from liberty and republic. For example, the red cap symbolized liberty and the tricolor represented the French republic.
- Marianne became a national symbol of unity and people came to identify with her. Her images could be found in coins and stamps of France.
Germania
- Similarly in Germany, Germania was used as an allegory. She was represented as a warlike lady. She wore a crown of oak leaves as the German oak represents heroism.
- She was holding a sword surrounded by olive branches which represented readiness for war. She was also holding the German tricolor.
- In the years post-1871, she is shown holding a black, white, and red flag of the German Empire.
Visualising the Nation- CBSE Class 10 History
After the beginning of the French Revolution in the late eighteenth century, the idea of creating nation-states in place of existing monarchies spread like wildfire throughout the whole of Europe. It was only during the French Revolution that ideas of liberty, equality, fraternity, democracy, and basic human rights gained popularity and people started protesting in their own countries for creating an independent nation with basic human rights by uprooting existing monarchy or imperial power in their respective countries.