Years ago I bought the magazine cover on the left in an antique mall in Mobile, Alabama. I recognized that statue on the cover. It's the handsome one of George Washington at Place d'Iéna in Paris, not far from Trocadero. It was given to France by "the women of America" in 1901, in gratitude for French help during the American Revolution... without which, as a reminder, George Washington might well have been hanged.
The French are very fond of Washington to this day and the American Revolution is one of the last political events on which the French agree across the political spectrum. When the Americans won, there were huge public dances at Place de la Concorde and elsewhere.
After World War I, when American soldiers came through Paris, it became a challenge to keep the sword in Washington's hand. Apparently it was stolen at least half a dozen times. And that's a tall statue!
