Tchantchès

Folk and emblematic figure of the district inhabitant of Li2ege of Outremeuse, Tchantchès is in the beginning a Marionnette with rod equipped with the traditional costume inhabitant of Li2ege the pants with black and white square, the blue Sarrau, the red scarf with white peas, the blue cap. Tchantchès also raises the red nose of amateur of Peket (Genièvre).

Question character, it incarnates the critical spirit of the Inhabitants of Li2ege who, at the time of his creation (beginning of 19th), pared the Dutchmen outside shortly after that they made in the same way prince-bishops: it is not impressed by the titles and the crowns, it courageous and given, is assoiffé of freedom but so sensitive to the gloriole. For this prototype of the catch inhabitant of Li2ege it was necessary to associate a good woman inhabitant of Li2ege, it was made with Nânesse the woman of Tchantchès. At the house it is it which carries the breeches its revolutionist of husband does not have that has to be held well because its frying pan is not useful that has to make of the bouquettes. This would not be a manner of underlining with irony supposed the decree of Albert de Cuyck which would mark the beginning of individual freedoms in Liege: “catch in its house is the king”.

Little story of Tchantchès and the puppet inhabitant of Li2ege

At the beginning of the XIXe century a sicilian, certain Conti establishes in Outremeuse a puppet theater of the sicilian type or puppets with rod. This theater names “imperial old royal theater” and in term of emperor one never knew if it were about Napoleon or other emperor of occident: Charlemagne. Because in the pure tradition of the troubadours to the program was the chanson de geste. In the between-scenes a character intervened whom one had named Titcho (diminutive of Francisco) that the public inhabitant of Li2ege deformed well quickly in tchantchès and claimed with body and cries so much and so that of the between-scenes it entered the scenes and became contemporary of Charlemagne. And as at the time some romantic wanted absolutely to give birth to Charlemagne in area inhabitant of Li2ege, Tchantchès did not have really to move much to meet the large character.

The legend of Tchantchès

Tchantchès, according to an enamelled local tradition quite naive anachronisms, was born in Liege, in a miraculous way, on August 25th, 760: it came in the world between two paving stones from the district from Outremeuse, currently Free République of Outremeuse. Good people who found it was marvelously astonished to intend it to sing, as of its entry in the life: " Let us go, the Gaspard mother, still glass! ". It was a baby chubby-checked fellow, goulu, laughing unceasingly; however, he was sulky with the only sight of water; to make it completely pleasant, his/her adoptive father made him suck a cookie soaked in peket; he separated it with a smoked herring and its pupil contracted some, for the remainder of its days, an inextinguishable thirst.

As all those which are destined for a great destiny, Tchantchès knew the vexations of the existence: with the ceremony of the baptism, the midwife so inopportunely knocked the nose to him on the edge of the crowned font that the proboscis of the poor child was put to lengthen inordinately and the facies of the innocent victim became ridiculous about it so much so that it was used as model for the masks. , Reached measles later, the small child was obliged to take ferruginous water: constant unlucky, it swallowed a piece of horseshoe which remained to him in the gosier. Consequently, it could not turn the head any more that from left to right and from right to left, it had from now on to flat put belly to fix the ground and on the back to look in the air. Because of its cyranesque conk, Tchantchès initially hesitated to leave at his place, but soon, its instinct of freedom made him face crowd and it was offered to make Saint-Måcrawe, i.e., with being carried very smeared of soot black on a sedan-chair constant and escorted by all people of the district. This memorable event took place the assumption day before of year 770. He knew the great triumph and realized soon that the ugliness, accompanied by the spirit and kindness of heart, can be made like. Since this day, he was crowned " Prince di Dju from there Mouse" (Prince of Outremeuse).

One day while strolling at the edge of the Meuse, it made the meeting of the Turpin Bishop and Roland, nephew of Charlemagne. Turpin morigénait Roland on his deplorable results in Latin. Tchantchès, with its usual impertinence, was reached in the conversation and, to put main agreement and raises, pronounced this major sentence:

- Yes, Lord Knight Roland, Latin is not used for nothing the whole, but is very useful nevertheless.
- Which is this churl? ask Roland.
- Tchantchès, Prince de Dju from there, to serve Lord Knight to you.

The Turpin Bishop looked at our friend with kindness: " And well, Tchantchès, I will present céans to you to the large Emperor Charlemagne, you will be used henceforth as companion with his Roland" nephew;.

And thus Tchantchès was introduced at the court of Charlemagne. Brilliant forwarding came from Spain. The history swarms with very interesting anecdotes, showing the degree of intimacy that Tchantchès had for Charlemagne. Thus one day, it entered deliberately the tent of the Emperor who took a meal of great official reception and which says to him by swallowing a mouthful: " What do you want Tchantchès? Let eat my moules" to me;.

Another time still, it is used as chamberlain with the majestic warrior:

- Lord Empereur, the Embassy of the negro black, King de Marsille, wishes to you parler.
- Has how much are they?
- They are only with un.
- Whereas they enter turtous by two and that last the farm the door.

Tchantchès left Charlemagne and Roland neither the night nor the day: in all circumstances, in the private councils and on the battle field, always it was there to help them of its judicious opinions or its terrible blows of head, because Tchantchès was the champion of the soukeus of Dju of. Here the way of fighting of Tchantchès: without lance, spear, sword, for gonfanon a red handkerchief around the neck, for shield, its blue overall, for heaume, its cap of black silk adjusted in a dexterity on its solid cranium like rock. It spits in its hands, seizure the adversary by the two shoulders, and side! Into full in the sternum, a blow of head launches to him which breaks the coasts to him and sends it in a better world. Null armor, however solid is it, cannot resist this masterly ram; any man reached by Tchantchès is a died man, and itself, thanks to its blessed nose is invulnerable. During the battle of Roncevaux, too bold Roland, sent to sleep Tchantchès, which yawned during the combat and which, for its part, had crashed to pieces the coasts of at least three thousand Buckwheats. It was the only cause of the famous disaster.

Whatever was not the pain of the hero inhabitant of Li2ege while contemplating with Charlemagne, the inert body of the Roland valiant knight! For better testifying to its sadness, it removed its cap and tore off handles of hair (it was the habit at the time) by pronouncing this homélie funeral: " Lord Empereur, your valiant nephew has daye, we will avenge it! "

Tchantchès accompanied its Master with the seat by Saragossa and it was him which crosses the first the ramparts of the city. Of return to Aachen with the Imperial court, it attended the punishment of the Ganelon traitor. This félon was to be quartered, but Tchantchès was opposed to it. He wanted and obtained that the inaccurate count was drowned in a distilled water tank, torment which our man found only logic, in fact, because very often in Liege he had intended to sing: " Coward, goes-T, I disavow you. With you opprobrium and contempt! " What it included/understood as follows: with you clean water and contempt.

Tchantchès, in spite of objurgations of the Emperor, returned in his good town of Liege and never comforted itself to have slept during the last phase of the battle of Roncevaux. After a frank feast, he died of the Spanish influenza and was buried at the place even where its monument rises, places of Yser. Nothing could embank it, neither even the love, because there remained unmarried, nor even old age, he died out at the 40 years age! Regretted by all the population, he remained the prototype of the true inhabitant of Li2ege: bad head, spirit critical, large gosier, enemy of ostentation and the great ceremonies, savagely independent, but gold heart and prompt to ignite for all the noble causes.

Tchantchès as a cartoon

The character of Tchantchès was the subject of two adaptations as a cartoon.

The first time in July 1940 by Al Peclers, in the form of a strip quotiden in the pages of the newspaper the légia . Tchantchès will live there 3 stories (adventures of Tchantchès, Tchantchès in Far-West and Tchantchès and conspirators) which will be published shortly after in album, by the Gordinne editions.

For the second adaptation going back to 1988, the editions Khani published a first album Tchantchès , containing several short stories, drawn by François Walthéry. A second album: Tchantchès street urchin , was published in 1995 by the editions Noir drawing production.

Publication

1950 : History of a popular type. Tchantchès and its evolution in the tradition inhabitant of Li2ege , by Maurice Piron, Brussels: Palate of the academies

External bonds

Official site of the Free Republic of Outremeuse.

Small report with the Tchantchès museum of the street Surlet (Liege, Outremeuse).

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