La Sentinelle
oil on linen, 41 " x 23.5 "

Private Collection

La Sentinelle and depicts the 3rd victory of famed French ace Jean Navarre.

Jean Marie Dominique Navarre (1895-1919) carried the distinction of being the first officially designated French air ace of the First World War and eventually amassed a total of twelve aerial victories between 1915-18. His success in the Verdun sector of the front earned the nickname "The Sentinel of Verdun".

Navarre's third victory occurred on Oct. 26, 1915 while flying MS- N 523/ 15. That morning, while Navarre was on standby at the airfield of MS12, word came from observers in the Chateau-Thierry lines that a German two-seater was overhead.

Navarre caught up to the German aircraft, and attacked head-on. After only 8 shots the German was forced down to land alongside the Marne river. Navarre flew overhead and observed that the German aircrew were attempting to set fire to their airplane. Navarre dove and fired some warning shots at the Germans to dissuade them: the Germans understood and walked away from the aircraft with hands held high in the air.

Seeing no French troops at hand, Navarre decided to land nearby and protect his second captured aircraft from any further damage. He learned from the captured airmen that 4 of his 8 bullets had struck the motor, disabling it on his first firing pass.

La Sentinelle depicts Navarre as he makes his pass on the grounded German LVG. The German crewmen walk away from their aircraft with their hands in the air, having been "warned" by the Hotchkiss gun on Navarre's Morane. This is the final painting scheduled for my book due out later this year, and will also be the featured cover art for an upcoming biography on Jean Navarre by Jim Wilberg.

Details of La Sentinelle
(click on any thumbnail for a detailed image)

The Galleries / World War 1 Originals