The Rooster: The Emblem of France

Why is the rooster the emblem of France? What does it represent?

The beaver in Canada, the lion in England, the kangaroo in Australia, or the springbok in South Africa... Many countries have chosen an animal as their national emblem. But why a rooster for France? What values does the gallinaceous represent? To find out, we have to go back to Antiquity.

The rooster, bright and combative

For thousands of years, the rooster's behavior and appearance have been surrounded by two strong symbols:

The light. The rooster borrows its name from the Celtic root kog, which means red. With the color of the dawn and the planet Venus, the bird embodies the passage between darkness and light. It is at the call of the rooster that the sun rises, a power that has sacralized the animal among many peoples. Mercury, the Roman god of commerce, is often accompanied by a rooster, a symbol of a new day. In Greek mythology, the solar bird is also associated with the gods Hermes, Helios, and Apollo the Shining;

Bravery. A cadence gait, a swollen chest, a plume-like tail, and sharp dewclaws give the rooster a warrior's look. Ready to sacrifice itself in battle, the animal represents military courage in Ancient Greece. Fiery and combative in the eyes of the Romans, the divine bird rubs shoulders with Minerva (goddess of war strategy) and Mars, god of war. In ancient China, following the example of Zi Lan, a disciple of Confucius, the black rooster feather symbolized courageous fighters.

The rooster, from symbol to emblem

In Gaulish times, the Latin word "gallus" meant both "Gallic" and "rooster". For the Romans, the homonymy became an object of mockery towards the Gallic people considered, like the gallinaceous, as brazen and arrogant. In addition to this, the image of the bird, which looked pale in comparison with the Roman eagle, was also a source of ridicule. The association of the two terms then fell into disuse to be again persecuted by the historical enemies of the French... The English began to mock King Philip Augustus, judging him as proud as the barnyard animal. By bravado, the royalty seized the symbols of courage, fight, and daring conveyed by the bird to make it its emblem. Monarchs also relied on the fact that the animal is mentioned several times in the Bible.

The rooster at the top of the churches

According to the gospels, the rooster announces the new day. This moment when the darkness dissipates and the light imposes itself can be translated as the triumph of good over the demons of the night and by extension, as the victory of life over death (the resurrection). Among Christians, the rooster is also synonymous with vigilance: placed at the top of church towers, it watches for the sunrise above the horizon and celebrates it with its song. Overlooking the rooftops and shining with all its coppery lights, the animal symbolizes Christ who can be seen by the greatest number of people and from afar.

When the rooster makes his revolution

Since the Renaissance, and in particular, during the reign of the Valois and Bourbon families, the animal officially appears in the effigies of the kings of France, such as engravings and coins. Louis XIV integrated it into the decorative ornaments of buildings, as in the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles, alternating with the fleur-de-lis, the royal symbol. It is under the French Revolution that the rooster takes all of its scales. The people rise up, the oath of the game of palm marks the birth of the first constitution and the first rights of man and citizen are declared. The revolutionaries take over the gallinaceous to make it the emblem of France, removing all representations of fleur-de-lis.

The rooster, scorned by Napoleon 1st

When the Republic was created in 1792, three symbols were chosen: the tricolor flag, Marianne, and the rooster. Proclaimed Emperor of the French in 1804, Napoleon addressed for the first time the need for a new symbolism to mark the break with the monarchy of the Old Regime. For Bonaparte, "the rooster has no strength, it can not be the image of an empire such as France. To the volatile adopted by the Council of State, Napoleon prefers the lion and then changes his mind and scratches the fawn of the decree establishing his seal and his arms. Instead, he chose the eagle - more rewarding in his eyes - but never managed to impose it in France.

The rooster at the gates of the Elysée

After its disappearance, the rooster regained its prestige on July 30, 1830, when Louis-Philippe d'Orléans signed an ordinance raising the animal on all the flags of the national guard and the various army corps of the Kingdom, as well as on the buttons of the uniform. The bird then had its moment of glory under the Third Republic, which used it on its seal and gold coins. With its wings spread, its crest raised and its spur sharpened, the rooster is erected to the summit.