Gevel op de binnenplaats van het kasteel van Blois met rechts een reliëf van Lodewijk XII te paard c. 1880 - 1900

Méderic Mieusement created this photograph of the façade in the inner courtyard of the Château de Blois in the 19th century. Royal residences such as this one broadcast power through a visual language of classical motifs and heraldic emblems. The photograph captures the architectural details of the facade, including the relief of Louis XII on horseback. This emphasis speaks to France’s political climate at the time. Following the French Revolution, the nation grappled with its identity, torn between its republican ideals and its imperial past. The photograph romanticizes that past, offering a vision of national identity rooted in monarchy and the grandeur of royal architecture. Mieusement worked for the Commission des Monuments Historiques, an organization dedicated to cataloging and preserving French monuments. By studying the archives of organizations like this, historians can gain insight into the ways national identity has been visually constructed and disseminated. Through photography, France's grand past becomes an aesthetic commodity.