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Henri IV's white plume
Emblem of King Henri IV of France / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Henri IV's white plume, emblem of King Henri IV of France, was originally a large bouquet of white feathers worn on Henri IV's helmet during the battle of Ivry on March 14, 1590, during the Wars of Religion. The plume, mentioned in the first accounts written just after the battle, served as a rallying point for the royal army on the battlefield. It was also a symbol that brought together Catholic supporters of Henri IV and Huguenots, and then, after Henri IV's conversion, all Frenchmen.
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In the first half of the 17th century, Agrippa d'Aubigné coined the phrase “Ralliez-vous à mon panache blanc” (“Rally to my white plume”), which was later added to by Hardouin de Péréfixe and Voltaire in the highly successful La Henriade. The white plume gradually became a specific attribute of Henri IV, the main elements of his legend having been established.
In the 19th century, the white plume became a royalist and then a legitimist emblem. During the Restoration, it symbolized the rallying of the French to the Bourbon monarchy, in an attempt to assimilate Louis XVIII to a new Henri IV. It also lent historical depth to the use of the white flag. In 1873, to justify his plan for monarchical restoration and his rejection of the tricolor flag, the Comte de Chambord appealed to the imagination associated with the white plume.
Under the Third Republic, images depicting Henri IV and his white plume multiplied to meet the needs of developing school education. The rallying formula was taught in schools. Henri IV became a patriotic king, integrated into the republican and national pantheon, his white plume symbolizing the union of the French.
The white plume then became a personal folkloric attribute of Henri IV, like the hen in the pot, which is still used today.