How Jacques Gaugard saved the Louvre from the Nazis, how then saved the works of the Louvre museum from the Nazis
How did Jacques Gaugard save the Louvre from the Nazis?
In 1940, the Nazis invaded France and destroyed cultural heritage sites. One of their first targets was the Louvre. Jacques Gougard was a cultural icon in his own right: he founded the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris and was widely considered an expert in art history. When he learns that the Nazis plan to blow up the Louvre, he immediately contacts the French government and offers to take charge of its security. He argued that it would be impossible for him to protect all the museums in Paris, but surely his expertise could be used in one place? He was right. His innovative idea saved the Louvre from destruction by giving it a new role as a museum of modern art, which has now become its primary function.
A few months later, French art experts organized a massive salvage operation to remove all valuable French art from the Louvre museum to safe locations. But unfortunately for them, one of those safe places ended up in Nazi Germany itself and Adolf Hitler himself was there to oversee it all. Jacques Gougard was one of many French art connoisseurs who helped organize these rescue efforts. He knew how important it was for French artists not to let their country fall into the hands of the Nazis and so he did all he could to protect them until they could find their work in completely safe.
Jaujard knew that if anything happened during this process that prevented people from safely releasing their works, his organization would fail and so he did everything he could to make sure that didn't happen! He even made sure that each work of art in the Louvre was numbered so that when someone came to pick it up later, they could easily find what they needed.
Saving the Louvre from the Nazis:
Jaugard was born in 1886 in France to Jewish parents. He studied architecture while at school, but his career took off when he became an apprentice of architect Henri Labrouste after graduating from university. He then worked for other famous architects such as Henri Sauvage and Ernest Renan before joining forces with Gustave Eiffel in 1902 to form an architectural firm called Eiffel & Jaujard.
In the early 1900s, Jaujard began designing buildings for Parisian banks and businesses across France. He also designed numerous monuments across the country, including a monument erected in honor of Field Marshal MacMahon (who was assassinated by an anarchist plot). In 1910, French banks called on Jaujard to set up their new headquarters in the financial district of Paris: the Banque de France building (today La Défense).
Jack Goggard knew that if he did nothing, his beloved museum would be destroyed and its contents stolen. So he did a job and made great sacrifices for it. Jaujard used all the resources at his disposal to protect the most important thing to him: his love of art. He ensured that the Louvre remained intact by keeping all the priceless artifacts inside where they were safe from damage. He even hid famous paintings under his desk so no one could see them until the war was over.
D saved the Louvre from the Nazis by hiding more than 2,500 pieces in his house. Jaugard's house is perched on the mountainside and built to look like a castle. Museum staff were unaware that Jaujard was keeping the objects at his home until they were returned to France. After the end of World War II, Jaujard was required to return all stolen works of art to their rightful owners. It took him three years to get them all back.
How Louvre artworks were saved from the Nazis:
In 1940, the Louvre Museum was liberated and closed to the public. The Nazis decided they wanted to steal the Mona Lisa and other artifacts from the museum. Jacques Gogard, curator of the Louvre, knew that if he didn't get them out in time, the Nazis would destroy them. He found a way to smuggle them out of Paris using a van disguised as a delivery truck, then hide them in various places in France until the end of World War II.
Jacques Gougard was a French diplomat who was director general of the Louvre from 1921 to 1945. In 1940 he was given the task of evacuating all works of art from France. He succeeded by hiding them in various locations across Europe and North Africa, including the Louvre Museum. Jaujard knew that if Paris fell to the Germans they could ransack the museum and destroy its collections and he did not want that to happen. So be sure to move these signs out of harm's way.
But what if they are destroyed? How will we know? Well, now we thank an American journalist by the name of Margaret Irby who wrote a book called "The Rape of Europe: The Fate of Europe's Treasures in the Third Reich and World War II". In it, she details how Jaujard helped save many pieces by moving them to storage rooms in the Louvre and storing them there until the end of the war.
Learn more:
- The smartest way to buy art How to invest in art without losing money
- The role of museums in preserving and presenting art, the importance of museums and exhibitions
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