Why Rodin’s masterpiece of sacrifice was once considered a public scandal

Art · Published 3 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: Auguste Rodin’s iconic sculpture depicts six men walking to their deaths to save their city. Yet, when first proposed, the public rejected it. They demanded a traditional, heroic monument, but Rodin offered something far more raw: a haunting, ground-level portrayal of human anguish, fatalism, and the heavy burden of sacrifice.

In 1346, during the Hundred Years' War, King Edward III of England besieged the French port of Calais for nearly a year. Starvation eventually forced the city to negotiate. According to chronicler Jean Froissart, Edward demanded that six prominent citizens surrender themselves, wearing nooses and carrying the city keys, to face execution. Their lives were only spared after the intervention of Queen Philippa of Hainault, who pleaded for mercy on behalf of her unborn child.

The City of Calais had sought a monument to honor these men since 1845, but two previous artists failed to complete the project. In 1884, the city invited Rodin to submit a proposal. His design was radical. Eschewing the standard pyramidal arrangement and allegorical figures, he presented six figures at ground level, stripped of antique glory. The public was outraged, expecting a triumphant display of heroism rather than the visible pain and despair Rodin captured. He intended for viewers to feel a sense of solidarity with the figures, almost bumping into them, rather than looking up at a pedestal.

Rodin completed the work by 1889, though the monument was not dedicated in Calais until 1895. Even then, the city ignored his wishes and placed the group on a high pedestal. It was only later that his vision was realized, with the sculpture moved to a lower base in front of the town hall. Today, the work is recognized as a masterpiece of self-sacrifice, with twelve original bronze casts distributed globally, from the Rodin Museum in Paris to the Leeum Museum of Art in Seoul.

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