French Elephants
France loves elephants.
What? French Elephants? Even though and maybe because they are not native to France it seems there has been a fascination with elephants throughout French history. When you begin to look around you find there are quite a few more or less famous French elephants. Some are of course imaginary, others constructed of wood and still others are live ones in zoos or sanctuaries. Let's have a tour of France's beloved elephants through the ages.
Early history
Cave painting attest to mammoths, but Hannibal's elephants were likely the first true elephants in Gaul, but they didn't fare so well. The next importation wasn't for quite a few years.
The French Kings' Elephants over 900 years 768 to 1668
Many French kings kept elephants at court and by the Renaissance they were quite in vogue.
Charlemagne's was named Abul-Abbas and was an Asian elephant brought from Baghdad by a diplomat in about 802. The gift was from the Abbasid caliph and symbolizes the beginni…
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