The word gendarme comes from the old French “gens d’armes”, men at arms. From the end of the Middle Ages to the beginning of the modern era, the term designated an elite troop of heavily armed horsemen, of noble birth, serving in the French army. This troop disappeared at the end of the 18th century for economic reasons 1 . The expression acquired a new connotation after the French Revolution, when the Marechaussee of the Ancien Régime, which carried out police missions, was renamed the "national gendarmerie" in 1791 because it was no longer in the service of the king but of the nation.
A nod to the gendarmes of St Tropez with Louis De funes
Made in France in Aubagne by hand
Composition: Clay
size 7cm