My Alsace - Hardcover

Hansi

4.6 out of 5 stars

5 ratings by Goodreads

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 086315767X ISBN 13: 9780863157677

Publisher: Floris Books, 2011

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Alsace is a region in the east of modern-day France which changed hands four times between France and Germany in the 19th and 20th centuries. When Jean-Jacques Waltz ('Hansi') was born in 1873, it was two years since the Prussian army had marched into Alsace, and the province remained under German annexation until the end of the First World War. Hansi remembered his years at the German school in Colmar as among the worst of his life. Above all, he hated the history lessons in which the teacher forced the French pupils to learn about Prussian conquests and the defeat and humiliation of Alsace. Nothing was ever said about the glorious and happy past when Alsace was a free land, joined to the ancient region of Gaul with its Celtic races. In 1912, Hansi decided to write his own History of Alsace for children. He wanted to show them how much pride they could have in their past, and to hear the story from their own side. The first edition was published in Paris and was a great success, thoug

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About the Author

Hansi (1873–1951) was born Jean-Jacques Waltz in Colmar, in the French region of Alsace. A pro-French activist in a German-occupied area following the Franco-Prussian War, he worked as an artist and produced satirical drawings that mocked German authorities. In 1908, he began publishing under the pseudonym “Oncle Hansi,” or just “Hansi.” He was imprisoned several times, including in Leipzig in 1914, from where he escaped back to France to join the military during World War I. In 1941, the Gestapo nearly assassinated him, but he fled to Switzerland. He never recovered from his injuries and died in Colmar in 1951. He is a hero in Alsace, where his books and drawings are widely reproduced.

Review

'In Alsace, you can't miss Hansi's paintings of idyllic village life... In 1912 and 1919 he published two picture books on the history and identity of Alsace. The most beautiful images and words from the two books are available in German or English, as you choose. They will enable tourists to enjoy the idyll and understand the identity of Alsace.' -- Alsatiques, December 2010

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