48. From Paris to Cologne.
a. Direct Route by Namur and Liège.
By Express (viâ Compiêgne, St. Quentin and Haumont) from the
Station du Nord in 12 hrs., by ordinary trains in 15—18 hrs.; fares 58 fr.
95 c. and 43 fr. 90 c. The luggage of passengers provided with through-tickets
is examined on their arrival at Cologne. First-class passengers only
are conveyed by the express trains. The second-class carriages of the French
and Belgian lines are far inferior in comfort to those of the German
railways.
At Creil (p. 208) the trains for Boulogne, Calais and Brussels
diverge from the direct line from Paris to Cologne.
Compiègne (*La Cloche; Hôtel de France; Soleil d'Or) has
for centuries been a favourite residence of the monarchs of France.
The Château (accessible on Sundays during the absence of the
imperial family), erected by Louis XV., was considerably enlarged
by Napoleon I., who here received his bride Marie Louise. The
extensive forest, which covers an area of 40,000 acres, was a favourite
resort of Charles X. and is annually visited by the present
emperor, whose partiality for field-sports is well known. The
town itself (12,137 inhab) contains little to interest the traveller,
with the exception of the handsome Hôtel de Ville, a late Gothic
edifice, and the churches of St. Jacques and St. Antoine. Near
the bridge is an ancient, dilapidated tower, where, May 25th
1430, Joan of Arc was taken prisoner by the Burgundians. She
had conducted a sally from the town, which was besieged by the
duke, but as she was about to re-enter it, the portenllis was
dropped by the commandant who was jealous of her reputation
and she was thus betrayed to her enemies.
Noyon, the next station of importance, possesses an interesting
church of the 12th or 13th cent. Birthplace of Calvin (1509)
the house still exists.
Chauny, a small but ancient town, is partly situated on at
island in the Oise, which is here connected with St. Quentin by
means of a canal. (St. Gobain, 12 M. to the E., contains the
most extensive manufactory of mirrors in France.) At Tergnier is a
vast establishment for the construction of locomotives and railway
carriages. A branch line here diverges to Rheims and Epernay
(p. 253). — About 12 M. to the W. of Montescourt stands the
castle of Ham, where the ministers of Charles X. were confined
during 6 years after the revolution of July, 1830. Louis Napo-
leon was also imprisoned here after the unsuccessful descent upon
Boulogne in 1840, as were the generals Changarnier, Lamoricière,
Cavaignac and others, after the coup d'état of Dec. 2nd, 1851.
St. Quentin (*Hôtel du Cygne), a fortified town on the Somme,
with a population of 31,790, the Augusta Veromanduorum of the
Romans, is one of the most important linen and cotton manufacturing
towns in France. It is connected with the Scheldt by
means of a canal, and derives its supplies of coal from the extensive
mines of Hainault. The Church is a pure Gothic structure
and well merits attention. The Hôtel de Ville, dating from
the 15th cent., is in the same style as the beautiful Belgian
town-halls of the same period. Here, in 1557, the great battle
between the Spaniards with their English, German and Flemish
auxiliaries, under the Duke of Savoy, and the French, under
Coligny and the Constable Montmorency, was fought, in which
the latter were signally defeated.
At stat. Haumont the most direct line from Paris to Brussels
diverges. The preceding stat. Landrecies and the following stat.
Maubeuge are two small French fortresses.
Jeumont is the last French and Erquelines the first Belgian
station. Thuin is picturesquely situated on an eminence. A more
interesting district, through which the Sambre winds, is now
entered.
Charleroi (Pays Bas, Grand Monarque), the most modern
town in Belgium was founded by Charles II. of Spain about the
middle of the 17th cent. It is connected with Brussels by means
of a canal, an important means of communication in this animated
and industrial district. The railway to Brussels also diverges here.
The train now passes several stations with extensive foundries
and frequently crosses the Sambre.
Namur (*Hôtel de Harscamp; *Hôtel de Hollande; *Bellevue)
the strongly fortified capital of this province of Belgium, with a
population of 24,716, is beautifully situated at the confluence of
the Meuse and Sambre. The town contains nothing particularly
worthy of mention. In the vicinity a sanguinary conflict took
place in 1815, a few days after the battle of Waterloo, between
French and Prussian troops. The cemetery contains a monument
to the memory of the Prussians who fell on the occasion.
Huy (Aigle Noir), which possesses a strong citadel and a fine
Gothic church, is in a remarkably picturesque situation. On an
eminence near Flémalle rises the castle of Chokier, and beyond it
that of Aigremont. Seraing is celebrated for its iron foundries,
coal mines etc. The train continues to follow the course of the
Meuse and soon reaches
Liége (Hôtels: *de Suède, R. 2½ fr. and upwards, D. 3 fr.; Bellevue;
de l'Europe; d'Angleterre; Schiller; railway restaurant
at the station), the picturesquely situated capital (89,411 inhab.)
of the Walloon district, gradually rising to a considerable height
above the river. The extensive manufactories of weapons, cutlery,
machines etc. consume a large proportion of the coal yielded by
the mines in the vicinity. The forest of lofty chimneys on the
height near the citadel afford abundant proof of the industrial
character of the district.
Travellers whose time is limited should confine their attention
to the Palais de Justice and the churches of St. Jacques and
St. Paul.
The Palais de Justice (Pl. 24), erected in 1523 in the Renaissance
style, possesses a remarkably peculiar, half Moorish colonnade.
Till 1792 it was the residence of the archbishops,
whose see had hitherto belonged to the German empire. The
N. wing, added in 1852 in the original style, is the Hôtel du
Gouvernement.
The Church of St. Paul (Cathédrale, Pl. 5) contains several
fine pictures and an admirably carved modern pulpit by Geefs.
The choir dates from the close of the 13th cent., the nave and
other parts were completed in 1557.
The Church of St. Jacques (Pl. 18) is a splendid example of
late Gothic, erected 1522—1538, and gorgeously decorated.
Soon after quitting Liége[1]
, the train passes the extensive
zinc-foundry of the Vieille Montagne company. To the right, the
picturesque watering-place Chaudfontaine; to the left, the château
of La Rochette; r. Le Trooz, the château of Fraipont on an eminence,
Nessonvaux, the "Château des Masures" and Pepinster,
junction for Spa (½ hr.).
Verviers (Hôtel du Chemin de Fer; Pays Bas with a population
of nearly 30,000, consists almost exclusively of manufactories,
the residences of their owners and the habitations of the operatives,
and contains nothing to interest the traveller. — Carriages
changed here.
Near Dolhain, picturesquely situated in the valley of the
Vesdre, the ancient ruined fortress of Limburg is seen on an
eminence, the sole remnant of the once flourishing capital of the
duchy of that name.
Herbesthal is the Prussian frontier-station. Beyond it the
train passes through two tunnels and then descends to the ancient
imperial city of
Aix-la-Chapelle (Hôtels: *Dremel; *Nuellens; de l'Empereur;
Hoyer, moderate; at the station, Royal, Chemin de Fer and
Paris. — English Church in the Anna Strasse), with a population of
68,000. The Town-hall, erected in 1358, has been judiciously
restored and adorned with beautiful modern frescoes. — The
Cathedral, a portion of which was erected by Charlemagne in
796—804, is a most interesting monument of early Christian
architecture, but unfortunately disfigured by modern additions.
The tomb of Charlemagne (d. 814), indicated by the inscription
"Carolo Magno", situated in the centre of the octagonal portion
of the church, was opened by Otto II. in the year 1000. The
body of the great emperor was found seated on a marble throne,
which was afterwards employed for the coronation ceremonies, and
is still to be seen in the "Hochmünster" or gallery. The church
also contains many interesting relics and valuable ecclesiastical
vessels (fee 1 thlr. for 1—8 pers). — The
Sulphur-baths of Aix
and the contiguous town of
Burtscheid (or
Borcette) are much
frequented.
Beyond Aix-la-Chapelle the district traversed is picturesque
and continues to present the same animated and industrial aspect.
After emerging from the long tunnel of Kœnigsdorf, the train
reaches the rich and fertile plain which extends from this point
to Cologne (see "Baedeker's Rhine").
b. From Paris to Cologne by Brussels.
The two principal lines connecting Paris and Brussels are: (1) Viâ Haumont,
Maubeuge and Mons; express in 6½ hrs.; fares 32 fr. 50, 24 fr. 35,
17 fr. 60 c.; (2) Viâ Amiens, Arras, Douai and Valenciennes; express in
9 hrs.; fares 37 fr. 55, 28 fr. 20, 19 fr. 45 c.
(1). As far as Haumont the line has been already described
in the previous route (a.). Feignies is the last French and Quéry
the first Belgian station. Stat. Mons is the next place of importance;
thence to Brussels see below.
(2). From Paris to Arras see R. 40.
l. Douai (Hôtel de Flandre), on the Scarpe, with 24,486 inhab.,
an ancient fortified town, is the first important station. The
Town Hall, with its Beffroi or belfry of five towers, is a fine
example of a Flemish civic edifice of the 15th cent. The vane
on the summit of the central tower is wielded by the lion of
Flanders. Douai is the seat of an important school of artillery
and possesses a foundry which furnishes a large proportion of
the guns employed by the French army.
At Douai the line to Courtrai, Lille and Ghent diverges.
After several minor stations the train passes near the valuable
coal-mines of Anzin, situated to the r. of the line, crosses the
Scheldt and reaches.
r. Valenciennes (Poste; *Hotel des Princes; *Railway Restaurant),
a very ancient fortified town, with 24,966 inhab., on the
Escaut, or Scheldt. The streets are narrow and dirty. The
Town Hall, in the Gothic combined with subsequent styles, is
perhaps the only edifice worthy of note. The Museum contains
several pictures by Rubens, the church of
St. Gery a Descent
from the Cross by the same master.
Valenciennes formerly belonged to Hainault. It was unsuccessfully
besieged by Turenne in 1656. By the peace of Nymwegen
it was adjudged to France and newly fortified by Vauban. In
1793 the fortress succumbed to the united Austrian, English and
Hanoverian forces under the Prince of Coburg, but was recovered
by the French the following year.
r. Blanc-Misseron is the last French, Quiévrain the first Belgian
station.
l. St. Ghislain, the point of divergence of a line to Ghent,
is situated on the canal which conveys the valuable products of
the neighbouring coal-mines from Mons to Condé.
Near stat. Jemappes (3 M. to the W. of the line) General
Dumouriez and the Duc de Chartres (afterwards King Louis
Philippe) with 50,000 French defeated 22,000 Austrians under
the Duke of Coburg, Nov. 6th, 1792.
At Malplaquet (3 M. to the S.E. of Mons) Marlborough and
Prince Eugene, with a loss of 20,000 men, defeated the French
in 1700. In the vicinity, on May 18th, 1794, Pichegru defeated
the Duke of York and captured 60 guns and 1500 prisoners.
r. Mons (Hôtel Garin; Hôtel Royal), capital of Hainault, with
26,061 inhab., is indebted for its origin to a fort erected here
by Cæsar during his Gallic campaign. The emperor Joseph II.
caused the fortifications to be demolished, but the town was
strongly re-fortified in 1818. In 1861—62, however, the works
were again levelled and the materials conveyed to Antwerp.
Valuable coal-mines in the vicinity.
The Cathédrale de Ste. Waudru (St. Waltrudis) is the most
considerable edifice in Mons, situated to the l. as the town is
entered from the station. It was commenced in 1460 and completed
in 1589. It possesses a small, pointed Gothic spire, but
the principal tower was never completed. The exterior is somewhat
disfigured by modern additions, but the interior is a model
of boldness and elegance. Several reliefs in marble and tabernacle
deserve inspection. One of the lateral chapels contains a
quaint Resurrection; Christ is represented as stepping forward
from the picture. On the W. wall a new picture by Isendyk:
St. Waltrudis healing a sick man.
To the l. in the vicinity rises the Beffroi, on the highest site
in the town. The castle to which it belongs is now a lunatic
asylum, occupying the ground on which Cæsar's Castrum once stood.
The Town Hall, dating from the 15th cent., with a tower
subsequently added, is inferior in elegance of design to the similar
structures at Brussels, Louvain etc. — A large statue,
erected in 1853, perpetuates the memory of Orlando di Lasso
(Roland de Lattre), the celebrated composer, who was born at
Mons in 1530.
From stat. Jurbise a branch line diverges to Tournai and Courtrai.
l. Stat. Soignies, a town with 6500 inhab. possesses a monastery
(of St. Vincent) founded in the 7th cent. and erected in its present
form by St. Bruno, archbishop of Cologne, in 965, probably
the most ancient edifice in Belgium.
l. Braine-le-Comte, a small town of very ancient origin, at
some distance from the station, is the junction for Namur. Carriages
are sometimes changed here.
l. Hal (Hôtel des Pays Bas), a small town on the Senne and
the canal from Charleroi, is resorted to by pilgrims who revere
a picture of the Virgin in the Church of St. Mary, a fine Gothic
edifice. The high-altar, completed in 1583, is an admirable
specimen of the Renaissance style, executed in alabaster, adorned
with numerous reliefs. The bronze font of 1446 also merits
inspection. A monument in black marble, with a sleeping child,
is sacred to the memory of the Dauphin Joachim (d. 1460) son
of Louis XI.
A hilly district is now traversed and for some distance the
line skirts the canal to Charleroi. Near Forest the line crosses
the Senne and intersects a rich pastoral district, through which
the stream meanders. The ramparts of Brussels are soon crossed
near the Porte de Hal and the Station du Midi entered, situated
upwards of 1 M. from the Station du Nord.
Brussels. Hôtels in the Place Royale in the upper part of the town:
de Bellevue, *de Flandre, de l'Europe, all expensive. *Hôtel de
Suède, Rue de l'Evêque, R. 2½, D. 3½ fr.; *de Saxe and *de l'Univers
in the Rue Neuve, leading from the station into the town. —
Hôtel de Brabant, Marché aux Charbons, at the back of the Hôtel
de Ville.
Restaurants: *Allard, Rue Fossé aux Loups, near the theatre;
*Dubost, Rue de la Putterie, and many others.
Cafés: several in the Place de la Monnaie. Ices at Marugg's, Rue
Treurenberg, and Marchal, next door to the Théâtre du Parc.
Estaminets or beer-houses are very numerous. One of the best
is the Hôtel de la Monnaie, opposite the theatre. "Faro" is weak and acid,
"Louvain" similar, but sweeter. Bavarian beer at Puth's, Rue du Tir 20,
outside the gate of Namur; at the Prince Charles, Rue d'Aremberg 10, in
the rear of the Passage, etc.
Shops: the most attractive are in the Rue de la Madeleine and Montagne
de la Cour.
English Church Service at the Chapel Royal, Rue du Musée
(9 a. m. and 2 30 p. m.), at the Chapel in the Boulevard de l'Observatoire,
and at the Evangelical Chapel, Rue Belliard.
Brussels, the capital of Belgium and residence of the King,
contains a population of 236,000, including the suburbs, ⅔rds
of whom speak Flemish, ⅓rd French. Like Paris it possesses
its Café des Mille Colonnes, a counterpart of the Champs Elisées
and the Garden of the Tuileries in the Allée Verte and the Park,
its Boulevards, Café-chantants etc. This Paris in miniature should
be seen before the great French metropolis by those who desire
to avoid disappointment.
The passing visitor is recommended to take the following
walk: Adjacent to the Rue Neuve, which leads from the station
into the city, rises the *Martyrs' Monument (Pl. 25), designed
by Geefs and erected in 1838 to the memory of those who fell in
the war with Holland in 1830. The marble figure represents
"Belgium Delivered"; marble tablets in an open vault record the
names (445) of the slain.
Then past the Théâtre Royal to the *Hôtel de Ville
(Pl. 20), resembling that of Louvain; the magnificent façade
was completed in 1442; the statues of Dukes of Brabant, erected
in 1853, replace those mutilated by the sans-culottes in 1793.
The graceful tower, 364 ft. in height, is from some unknown
cause not in the centre of the edifice. The interior contains
nothing remarkable.
The entire square, or Grande Place, is adorned with handsome
mediæval buildings; on the W. side the various guild-houses,
erected at the beginning of last century. Here, on June 5th,
1568. Duke Alva witnessed the execution of the counts Egmont
and Hoorne from the Halle au Pain, or Maison du Roi as it is
commonly termed, opposite the Hôtel de Ville.
In the rear of the Hôtel de Ville, at the corner of the Rue
du Chêne and the Rue de l'Etuve, is the Manneken fountain
(Pl. 24), an object of veneration amongst the populace.
The *Passage, or Galerie St. Hubert, an arcade near
the Hôtel de Ville, diverging from the Rue de la Madeleine, is
a very favourite promenade. It is a handsome structure, 650 ft.
long, 60 ft. high and 25 ft. broad, and contains some of the
most tempting shops in the city.
The Rue de la Madeleine and its continuation, the Montagne
de la Cour, which ascend hence, present a succession of attractive
windows.
The latter terminates in the Place Royale, adorned with the
equestrian *Statue of Godfrey de Bouillon, in bronze,
executed by Simonis in 1848. It is said to stand on the spot
where the great crusader stood when he summoned a numerous
assembly of knights to aid him in the liberation of the Holy
Sepulchre.
The fresco in the tympanum of the opposite church of St.
Jacques sur Caudenberg (Pl. 11), painted by Portaels in 1852,
represents the Virgin as the consoler of the sorrowful.
The adjoining *Park, in Sept. 1830 a spot of great importance,
having been successfully maintained by the Dutch against the
Belgians who occupied the Place Royale, is the favourite promenade
of the citizens. On the S. side rises the Royal Palace
(Pl. 33), on the N. side the
Palais de la Nation (Pl. 31), the
vestibule of which contains 6 modern statues of Belgian princes.
On the W. side of the park is the marble statue of the French
general Belliard (p. 117), by Geefs.
Hence to the *Cathedral (Ste. Gudule, Pl. 10), the finest
church in Brussels, with its two truncated Gothic towers. The
choir and transept are of the 13th, towers and nave of the 14th,
aisles of the 15th, the large S. Chapelle du St. Sacrament of the
15th cent.
The latter contains a *Monument in marble of Count F. de
Merode, who fell in a skirmish with the Dutch in 1830, executed
by Geefs.
The Stained Glass in the N. chapel, executed in 1546, representing
the emp. Charles V. and his relations, is remarkably
fine. That in other parts of the church, including the newest
at the back of the high altar, is of little artistic value.
The Pulpit is a curious specimen of wood-carving, executed
by Verbrüggen in 1699, representing the expulsion from Paradise
and a number of different animals.
The walk thus indicated would occupy about half a day and
embrace the most interesting points in Brussels. Those whose
time permits may also visit the Picture Gallery (Musée, Pl. 26),
open to the public on Sundays, Mondays and Thursdays, 10—3
o'clock; at other times admission 1 fr. It contains seven large
pictures by Rubens (not his best works), but little else worthy
of mention. The church of *Notre Dame de la Chapelle
(Pl. 7) merits a visit on account of its fine frescoes and oil-paintings
by Eykens (d. 1853). At the Porte de Hal (Pl. 27),
at the extremity of the same street (Rue Haute), is preserved a
considerable collection (1 fr.) of Weapons and Antiquities.
The Zoological Garden, 20 min. walk to the S. of the park,
is extensive and well laid out, and may also be inspected by
those who have leisure.
From Brussels to Liège see Baedeker's Rhine, thence to Cologne
see R. 48 a.
