Communards - Famous Communards

Famous Communards

Henri Rochefort gave a series of lectures that were published in the New York Herald Tribune while staying in the United States after his escape from New Caledonia. They were highly critical of the French government for denying its citizens "liberty." His 1884 novel L’Évadé: roman canaque helped shaped the legend of the deportation. It offered a portrayal of the deportation and the policies of the government in New Caledonia that was different from what the governmental propaganda was promoting.

Georges Eugene Raoul Pilotell (1845-1918) was the son of a Judge but pursued art and moved to Paris in 1862. As a prolific political caricaturist he was frequently imprisoned and became an active member of the commune in which he appointed himself ‘Directeur des Beaux Arts’ but later properly appointed a ‘commissaire special’. In 1874 he escaped a death sentence by fleeing to London. While he was well known for his caricatures in France, he gained a reputation in England as a fashion designer, society portrait painter and theatre costume designer. He has work in both the National Portrait Gallery and the British Museum and The Victoria and Albert Museum.