Passage du Rhin 1918; retour au pays natal (Crossing the Rhine 1918; return to the native country)

A Rhine landscape with birds in the sky. Men, women and children come from a caravan in single file. They cross a bridge to the other side of the river. The figures are drawn in profile silhouette. Jean Jacques Waltz, also known as 'Hansi', was a French artist born in Alsace two years after its annexation by the German Empire in 1871. He was a staunch pro-French activist producing drawings which contained harsh criticisms against Germany. In 1908 he began publishing works under the pseudonym 'Hansi', making fun of Germans, particularly German tourists. Hansi became famous in France for his polemical satiric work 'Professor Knatschke' (1912) as well as several other militant works. He came to represent the pro-French Alsace. He was imprisoned several times by the German authorities for his satirizing of the German military and intellectuals, which eventually resulted in a one year sentence given to him in July 1914. This caused an outrage in France making headlines across the country. Hansi eventually escaped to France where he joined the military as a translator during the First World War. He was then transferred to the propaganda department, where he produced many posters in support of the French war effort. After the war Hansi became curator of the Colmar Museum in Alsace. In 1940, Hansi was forced to flee Alsace to Vichy France as the Gestapo wanted him over his 'treason' during the First World War. The Gestapo attempted to assassinate Hansi in Agen and from there, badly injured, he fled to Switzerland. He remained ill and weak from the attempted assassination and eventually died from his wounds in 1951.