Le Kaiser Prend Le Commandement Des Armées Austro-Hongroises & Allemandes (The Kaiser Takes Command of the Austro-Hungarian and German Armies)

Emile Causé

1867–?

Le Kaiser Prend Le Commandement Des Armées Austro-Hongroises & Allemandes (The Kaiser Takes Command of the Austro-Hungarian and German Armies), 1914

Where object was made: France

Material/technique: color lithograph

Dimensions:
Image Dimensions Height/Width (Height x Width): 253 x 447 mm
Image Dimensions Height/Width (Height x Width): 9 15/16 x 17 5/8 in
Sheet/Paper Dimensions (Height x Width): 301 x 655 mm
Sheet/Paper Dimensions (Height x Width): 11 7/8 x 25 13/16 in
Mat Dimensions (Height x Width): 24 x 32 in

Credit line: Gift of Eric G. Carlson in honor of Stephen, Diane, Erica, Emily, and Caitlin Goddard

Accession number: 2004.0166

Not on display

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Label texts

Exhibition Label:
"Machine in a Void: World War I & the Graphic Arts," Mar-2010, Steve Goddard
In France, the German Emperor, Kaiser Wilhelm II, received a large share of the blame for the outbreak of war. He was a popular target for wartime propaganda, appearing repeatedly in cartoons, lithographs for magazines, and even postcards. As long as Wilhelm’s distinctive mustache was present, the French viewer would have no problem reading even the most distorted figure as the hated Kaiser, a fact that many artists used to great effect.

Causé depicts Wilhelm II at the head of an army of cripples, old men, and children facing off against the emblems of the Allied powers: the lion represents Belgium, the Gallic rooster France, and the leopard England. Behind these animals, Marianne, the personification of France, weeps amongst the ruins. Behind the Kaiser’s forces stands the Russian bear, guarding the Eastern front.