University of Virginia Library

50. Strasbourg.

Hotels. *Ville de Paris (Pl. a) a handsome new building; R. from
2 fr., L. 1 fr., B. 1½ fr., D. exc. W. 3 fr., A. 1 fr. *Maison Rouge
(Pl b). Hôtel d'Angleterre near the stat., well spoken of. Vignette
(Pl. e, Grand'Rue 119); La Pomme d'or (Pl. f) in the Bue d'Or; Badischer
Hof.

Cafés. *Café Cadé in the Kleberplatz; *Café Adam, or du Broglie;
Café de l'Europe and Café de l'Univers both near the Kleberplatz;
Café Hauswald, not far from the Railway-station.

Public Gardens. Jardin Lips and Jardin Kämmerer, both outside
the Porte des Juifs; music and other entertainments in the evening
2 or 3 times a week. The Orangerie, a well-kept garden belonging to the
town, situated in the Ruprechtsau, about 3 M. distant, affords an agreeable
promenade.

Cabs or Citadines 1—2 persons for ¼ hr. 50 cent., ½ hr. 90 cent.,
from the Strasbourg station to the Rhine bridge 1 fr.

Railway Station on the N.W. side of the town for the Paris, Bâle,
Mayence and Kehl lines; on the last-named line there is also a station
at the Austerlitz Gate.

Pâtes de foie gras at Henry's, Meisengasse, Doyen, Münstergasse,
or Hummel, Schlossergasse; prices from 5 to 40 fr. according to size.
The geese's livers not unfrequently attain a weight of 2—3 lbs. each.

Travellers whose time is limited should ascend the tower of the
Cathedral (see below), inspect the cathedral itself, and visit the Church
of St. Thomas (p. 262).

English Church Service in the Hôtel de Paris.

Gates closed at 11.

Strasbourg (Ger. Strassburg), the Argentoratum of the Romans,
formerly capital of Lower Alsace and one of the most important
towns on the Rhine, now the capital of the French Department
of the Lower Rhine, lies on the Ill, about 2½ M. from the Rhine
with which it is connected by a small and a large canal. On
the 30th of Sept., 1681, in a time of peace, Strasbourg was seized
by Louis XIV., and France was confirmed in the possession of
the city by the peace of Ryswyk in 1697. Since then the fortifications
have been greatly enlarged, so that it is now one of
the strongest fortresses and the third largest arsenal in France.
Garrison upwards of 6000; pop. 79,000, of whom nearly one
half are Protestants.

The Emperor Maximilian I., in writing of Strasbourg, describes
it as the strong bulwark of the holy Roman kingdom, and praises
it highly for the good old German honesty, constancy and bravery
of its inhabitants. The town has to this day a German air, and
although it has been under French dominion for 170 years, the
ancient language and customs of the townspeople still prevail.

The *Cathedral (Pl. 1) (always open except from 12 to
2 o'clock) was first funded by Clovis in 510, but having been
destroyed by lightning in 1007, the foundation of the present
edifice was laid by Bishop Werner of Hapsburg in 1015, and
the interior completed in 1275. In 1277 the erection of the
*Façade was commenced by Erwin of Steinbach and his daughter
Sabina, to the latter of whom the church is indebted for the

Strasbourg.

magnificent decorations of the *Portal. Above it in niches are
the equestrian statues of Clovis, Dagobert, Rudolph of Hapsburg,
and (since 1823) Louis XIV. The sculptures above the portal
belong chiefly to the 13th and 14th centuries. The upper part
of the spire was erected by Johann Hültz of Cologne at the
commencement of the 15th cent. in the capricious and variegated
modern Gothic style, and finally completed in 1439. The upper
part of the S. tower is entirely wanting. Few cathedrals offer so
good an opportunity for tracing the progress of the Gothic style
from the time when it took its origin from the modern Romanesque
style (choir, crypt and part of transept) to its highest
and purest perfection (the body of the church completed in 1275,
and the façade of 1277—1339), and to its decline (the platform
between the towers of 1365, and the top of the spire of 1439).

The entire length of the edifice is 175 yds., and the breadth
65 yds.; the nave is 95 ft. in height and 42 ft. in breadth.
Some of the stained-glass windows are admirably executed; the
Magi with the Virgin Mary in the north aisle are modern. The
pillars and columns of the interior are elegant and are embellished
with statues, but on the whole the church is somewhat
destitute of ornament. The Font in the N. transept dates from
1453 and the *pulpit, richly decorated with sculpture, from 1486.
The Chapel of St. John (to the l. by the choir) contains a monument
to Bishop Conrad of Lichtenberg, under whose auspices
the construction of the façade began. The Chapel of St. Mary
(S. aisle) contains a sculpture representing the interment of the
Virgin, executed in 1480.

The celebrated astronomical *Clock, constructed by Schwilgué
in 1838—1842 in the S. transept, is a highly curious and ingenious
piece of workmanship. Some paintings and portions of the
old clock have been used in the erection of the new.

The globe beneath shows the course of the stars, behind it is a perpetual
almanac, on the l. a piece of mechanism exhibiting ecclesiastical
reckoning of time, and on the r. the geocentric opposition and conjunction
of the sun and moon; above it is a dial determining the intervening time,
and still higher is shown the course of the moon through the heavens.
The exterior of the clock attracts spectators at all times, but especially
at noon. On the first gallery an angel strikes the quarters on a bell
which he holds in his hand; higher up is a skeleton, representing time,
which strikes the hour of 12, and round it are figures which strike the
quarters and represent man's progress through the various stages of boyhood,
youth, manhood and old age. Under the first gallery the symbolic
deity of each day of the week steps out of a niche, Apollo on Sunday,
Diana on Monday, and so on. In the highest niche the 12 apostles move
round a figure of the Saviour, bowing as they pass. On the highest pinnacle
of the side-tower is perched a cock which flaps its wings, stretches
its neck and crows, awakening the echoes of the remotest nooks of the
cathedral.

Two old inscriptions on a pillar near the clock commemorate
the zeal and piety of Johann Geiler of Kaisersberg (d. 1510), one
of the most learned men and undaunted preachers of his time.

On the Romanesque S. *Portal were erected, in 1840, statues
of the great architect Erwin and his talented daughter Sabina.
The sculpturing on this portal by the latter has been skilfully
renovated and deserves the minutest inspection. Above the doors
are represented the death, interment, resurrection and coronation
of the Virgin, and on the middle pillar the Saviour and king
Solomon. Beneath is Solomon's Judgment, and on the r. and l.
figures emblematical of Christianity and Judaism. There are
also several statues by Sabina on pillars in the S. aisle next to
the transept.

On the N. side is the Chapel of St. Laurentius with its beautiful
gateway of the 15th cent., adorned with restored sculptures
of the martyrdom of the saints.

The *Cathedral-Tower rises in front of the structure to such
a height that the spectator almost feels dizzy as his eye attempts
to reach the lofty summit. Near the r. hand Portal, round
the corner, is a door leading to a staircase of easy ascent. A
few steps up, the custodian dwells, from whom a ticket (15 cent.)
must be procured. The visitor then ascends 330 steps to the
platform, 230 ft. above the street, which commands a fine view
of the old-fashioned town with its planted ramparts and promenades.
To the l. is seen the Black Forest from Baden to the
Blauen; on the W. and N. the entire chain of the Vosges, on
the S. the insulated Kaiserstuhl, rising from the plain, and
beyond it in the extreme distance the magnificent chain of the
Jura. The services of the door-keeper are unnecessary in ascending
to the platform, though a fee is generally expected.
From the platform another staircase leads to the summit of the
spire, the so-called "Lantern". The entrance to it is closed by
an iron grating, which is not opened to the visitor without a
special permission from the mayor.

The ancient residence of the Bishops, opposite to the S.
Portal of the Cathedral, with terrace facing the Ill, was purchased
by the town at the period of the Revolution and presented
in 1806 to Napoleon. From 1814—1848 it served as a
royal residence, and in 1853 was presented to Napoleon III.

From the cathedral the attention of the traveller is next
directed to the Church of St. Thomas. His way leads across
the Place Gutenberg, where a handsome bronze Statue was erected
in 1840 to the memory of the great printer who conducted his
first experiments in the newly-discovered art at Strasbourg in
1436. The four bas-reliefs are emblematical of the power and
blessing of the invention of printing in the four quarters of the
globe, and comprise likenesses of many celebrated men.

The *Church of St. Thomas (Pl. 10; the sacristan lives at
the back of the choir) was founded in 1031; the choir, of plain
Gothic construction, was commenced in 1270, and the main-body

of the church with its five aisles was erected in the Gothic style
in 1313—1330. It is now appropriated to the use of a Protestant
congregation. The choir where the high-altar formerly
stood, contains a magnificent monument in marble, erected by
Louis XV. to Marshal Saxe; it is the work of the sculptor Pigalle,
and the result of twenty years' labour. The marshal is represented
descending into the tomb held open to receive him by Death,
while a beautiful female figure personifying France strives to
detain him; at the side Hercules is represented in a mournful
attitude leaning upon his club; on the l. side are the Austrian
eagle, the Dutch lion and the English leopard, with broken flags
beneath them, commemorating the victories gained by the marshal
over the three united powers in the Flemish wars. The
whole is an allegory in accordance with the questionable taste
of the age, but as a work of art it is masterly and original.

The church also contains busts and monuments of celebrated
professors of the University of Strasbourg, among others of Schöpilin,
Koch and Oberlin, brother of the well-known pastor of that name.
In a side-chapel may be seen two mummies, found in 1 02,
and said to be the bodies of a Count of Nassau-saarbrücken
and his daughter, who probably died in the 16th cent

The New Church (Temple Neuf, Pl. 11.). which belongs to
the 16th cent, once the property of the Dominicans, now appropriated
to the Protestant service, contains the tombstone of the
celebrated Dominican Joh. Tauler (d. 13 1) and some curions old
frescoes of a death-dance, probably of the 14th or 15th cent.

Near the New Church is the Town Library (Pl. 5), which
possesses a rich collection of curious ancient works and documents.
In the entrance-hall some Roman and other antiquities are to
be seen.

The square called the Broglie, after a marshal of that name,
is bounded on the N.E. by the Theatre (Pl. 3 ), completed in
1821, with a Portio adorned with statues of 6 of the Muses.
Representations on Sund., Tues., Thurs. and Frid.

Opposite to the theatre on the r. are the residences of the
prefect of the town and the general of the troops garrisoned
here. The Statue (Pl. 38) of the Marquis de Lezay-Marnesia,
by Grass, was erected in 1857. Farther on is the Town Hall
(Pl. 26, entrance from the Rue Brulée) which contains a small
collection of pictures open on Sund., Tues. and Thurs. from
2 to 4; at other times on payment of a fee of 1 fr.

The Rue Brulée, which runs in a S.E. direction parallel with
the Broglie, has received its appellation from the circumstance
of 2000 Jews, who refused to be baptized, having been burned,
Feb. 14th, 1349, on the spot where the Hôtel de la Préfecture
now stands.

The University, inaugurated in 1621, once numbered Goethe
among its students; it was here that the great poet and scholar
completed his law studies and took the degree of doctor in 1772.
It is now converted into an Academy, and deserves a visit on
account of its Museum of Natural History, a collection of more
than ordinary value and interest. It is open to the public on
Thurs. from 2 to 4, and on Sund. from 10 to 12; at other times
adm. may be procured for a fee of 1 fr.

In the Place d'Armes a bronze Statue has been erected
to the memory of General Kleber, at the foot of which reclines
an Egyptian sphynx; on the sides are two reliefs. The Café
Cadé is on the N.W. side of the Place, next door to the
Guard-house.

The Kehl railway-station is about 4 M. distant from Strasbourg,
and connected with it by a junction line lately completed.
In the immediate vicinity of the Porte d'Austerlitz are the spacious
Artillery Barracks (St. Nicholas) and near them the Arsenal
de construction, one of the largest dépôts of ammunition in
France.

A few minutes after leaving the town by this gate the traveller
passes the Cemetery and catches a glimpse of the green
ramparts of the Citadel, constructed by Vauban in 1682—1684,
which lies to the l. of the road. On the other side of the bridge
over a branch of the Rhine stands a Monument erected by Napoleon
to the memory of General Desaix, who fell in the battle
of Marengo in 1800.

Junction-line to Kehl see p. 260; fares 1 fr., 70 and 50 c.