The Lion of Lucerne

One of the must see items in Lucerne (which is a small town of about 80,000 compared to nearby Zurich or Munich) is the lion of Lucerne. And as one famous tourist once quipped, there is no sadder lion on earth.  The carving in stone is a memorial to the Swiss Guards who lost their lives fighting the French. Wait, you may say, I thought the Swiss were a neutral nation? Yes, famously they have been and are. BUT, the famous Swiss guards were hired warriors, for instance to guard the Vatican to this very day, and they indeed fought bravely against the French in the 1790s and many lost their lives.  The story is told in picture and description at that site in Lucerne.  The event took place at the Tuileries Palace. The Swiss are in the red uniforms.

The inscription reads ‘Of the Swiss, faithful in virtue’.