Interestingly enough, this mural of wild geese punctuating the urban wall scape is what a transplanted Irish friend sees from her kitchen window in La Défense. Today's title, " Flight of the Wild Geese," refers to the exile to France in 1691 of disbanded Irish soldiers loyal to King James II.
"Wild Geese" became a popular term for Irish soldiers who migrated from Ireland and joined continental European armies throughout the 17th and 18th centuries. France was their favorite destination because it was largely Roman Catholic and sympathetic to the Irish cause.
Vocabulary
un oie sauvage: a wild goose
le vol: the flight
©2014 P.B. Lecron
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