Victory! The Making of Heroes

With the Olympic and Paralympic Games taking place in 2024, the Musée de l’Armée is devoting an exhibition to the notion of Victory and the various ways in which women and men have experienced, celebrated and embodied it across the world and history.

The exhibition Victory! The Making of Heroes takes a close-up look at the various events that follow a victory, from its celebration to its commemoration, by way of its staging and perpetuation in the collective memory. Trophies, booty, rewards and ceremonies enable the embodiment, depiction and patrimonialisation of success.

From Roman triumphs to parades along the Champs-Élysées, from royal banquets to prize-giving ceremonies, paying tribute to heroes is a ritual that has crossed the ages. As well as preserving and passing on their memory. Stories, songs, depictions, stelae, monuments, decorations and even merchandise ensure the victory’s place in history, in line with the strategic, political or commercial issues involved. There is no victor without a vanquished foe.

Victory results from a confrontation of adversaries followed by a not always obvious distinction between winner and loser. Although defeat is connected with the notion of disgrace, it can also be used to foster conspiracy, understanding or revenge. Hence, some failures can be constructive if lessons are drawn from them, even becoming factors of cohesion and reform.