53. From Paris to Neuchâtel by Dijon.
Express to Dijon in 6½, ordinary trains in 10 hrs.; fares 35 fr. 30, 26 fr. 45,
19 fr. 40. Express from Dijon to Neuchâlel in 6¾, ordinary trains in
8½ hrs.; fares 15 fr. 20, 11 fr. 95, 8 fr. 75. Station in the Boulevard
Mazas, comp. p. 24.
As far as Fontainebleau see p. 196. Next stat. Thomery, celebrated
for its luscious grapes (Chasselas de Fontainebleau). Stat.
Moret, a venerable town on the Loing, which here falls into the
Seine, possesses a Gothic church of the 13th cent. and a ruined
chateau once occupied by Sully. (Railway hence to Montargis,
Nevers, Moulins and Vichy.)
The line crosses the valley of the Loing by a viaduct of
30 arches. Stat. St. Mammès; then Montereau (Grand Monarque),
picturesquely situated at the confluence of the Seine and Yonne.
Here on Feb. 18th, 1814, Napoleon gained his last victory over
the Allies and the Prince of Wirtemberg. (Branch-line to Flamboin,
p. 270, stat. on the Paris and Troyes line.)
The train ascends the broad and well cultivated valley of the
Yonne. Sens (Hôtel de l'Ecu), the ancient capital of the Senones,
who under Brennus plundered Rome (B.C. 390), the Agedincum
of the Romans, is now a quiet and clean town with
12,000 inhab. The early Gothic *Cathedral (St. Etienne) dates
from the 12th cent.; magnificent S. Portal in the Flamboyant
style. Ancient stained glass and several monuments in the choir.
The episcopal vestments and other relics of Thomas à Becket,
who sought an asylum at Sens in 1164, are shown. The cathedral
bells are among the finest in France, one of them weighing
upwards of 17 tons.
Joigny (Duc de Bourgogne), the Joviniacum of the Romans,
is a picturesque and ancient town (6000 inhab.) on the Yonne.
Next stat. La Roche.
From La Roche by a branch-line in 52 min. to Auxerre (Hôtel du
Léopard), capital (13,000 inhab.) of the Department of the Yonne, possessing
several good churches, especially the late Gothic cathedral. Chablis, well
known for its wines, lies between Auxerre and Tonnerre (see below).
13½ M. to the E. of the former.
Near La Roche the line crosses the Yonne, into which the
Armançon here empties itself, and follows the latter river and
the Canal de Bourgogne, connecting the Seine and Saône.
About 6 M. from St. Florentin is the Cistercian Abbey of
Pontigny, where Thomas à Becket passed two years of his exile.
Langton, archbishop of Canterbury, banished by John, and other
English prelates have also sought a retreat within its walls.
Tonnerre (Lion d'Or; *Rail. Restaurant), picturesquely situated
on the Armançon, a town with 5000 inhab., possesses a monument
to the minister Louvois (d. 1691). The church of St. Pierre, on
an eminence above the town, commands a pleasing prospect.
Stat. Tanlay possesses a fine château in the Renaissance
style, founded by the brother of Admiral Coligny, the chief victim
of St. Bartholomew's Night, who with the Prince de Condé and
other Huguenot leaders held meetings in one of the apartments.
Then a tunnel, 540 yds. in length; bridge over the Armançon;
tunnel 1020 yds. long, and the canal and Armançon are again
crossed. From stat. Nuits-sous-Ravières a branch line to Châtillonsur-Seine
and Bricon (p. 271). Montbard, birth-place (1707) of
the naturalist Buffon (d. at Paris in 1788), contains his château
and a monument to his memory.
Beyond stat. Blaisy-Bas the line penetrates the culminating
ridge, or watershed (1244 ft.), between the Seine and the Rhone
by a long tunnel (2¼ M.). Hence to Dijon a succession of
viaducts, cuttings and tunnels. Beyond stat. Malain, with its
ruined château, the line enters the picturesque valley of the Ouche,
bounded on the r. by the slopes of the Côte d'Or.
Dijon (Hôtels de la Cloche, du Parc, du Jura; Rail. Restaurant),
the ancient capital of Burgundy, now of the Department of the
Côte d'Or (37,000 inhab.), is situated at the confluence of the
Ouche and the Souzon. During four centuries, until the death
of Charles the Bold (1476) the dukes of Burgundy resided here.
Their handsome and extensive palace, part of which was fitted
up in the last century as an *Hôtel de Ville, is still an object
of interest.
The *Museum, contiguous to the Hôtel de Ville, contains
mediæval relics, ornaments, carved ivory, paintings, engravings etc.
The most interesting objects are the magnificent *monuments of
the dukes Philippe le Hardi (d. 1404) and Jean sans Peur
(d. 1419), and of Margaretha, wife of the latter, formerly in the
Chartreuse, afterwards in the church of St. Benigne. They were
seriously injured in 1793, but restored in 1828. — In the vicinity
are the Theatre and the Palais de Justice, the latter with a façade
in the Renaissance style.
The cathedral of St. Benigne is a Gothic edifice of the 13th
and 14th centuries. The church of *Notre Dame is a fine specimen
of pure Gothic of the 14th cent., the E. side especially
worthy of attention. St. Michel, consecrated in 1529, is in the
Renaissance style.
The castle, now half in ruins, was constructed by Louis XI.
(1478—1512) after the union of Burgundy with France and was
afterwards employed as a state-prison. The former Carthusian
Monastery, of which a few fragments still remain, is now a
lunatic asylum.
The town possesses a number of handsome houses in the
Renaissance style, especially interesting to the professional. The
former ramparts have been converted into promenades. — Dijon
is the nucleus of the wine-traffic of Upper Burgundy; the growths
of Gevroy (which yields the delicious Chambertin), Vougeot, Nuits,
and Beaune are the most celebrated (comp. p. 276).
At Dijon the railway to Macon (p. 276) diverges to the r.
The line now described follows the l. bank of the Ouche. Near
the small fortress of Auxonne the line crosses the Saône. After
stat. Champvans a long tunnel (885 yds.)
Dôle (Ville de Lyon; Ville de Genève), with 11,000 inhab.,
formerly the capital of Franche Comté, is picturesquely situated
on the Doubs and the Rhone-Rhine-Canal The esplanade of
St. Maurice commands a fine view of the Jura Mts. and Mont
Blanc in the extreme distance to the r. Branch-line hence to
Besançon.
The canal and the river are now crossed and the valley of
the Loue entered, on the side of the wooded hills of Forêt de
Chaux. Stat. Arc-Senans, two villages with a saline-spring, is
the junction for the Belfort, Besançon and Lyons line (p. 276),
which again diverges to the r. at the next stat. Mouchard. To
the l. a branch line to Salins.
The line now penetrates the valleys of the Jura. Numerous
viaducts and tunnels. Stat. Arbois (Pomme d'Or), a pleasant
town (6000 inhab.) on the Cuisance in a wine-growing district,
was the birth-place (1761) of Pichegru. Mesnay, a large village
on the opposite bank of the Cuisance, possesses an extensive
paper-manufactory. Then several small stations.
Pontarlier (Hôtel National; Croix Blanche), a small town
(5000 inhab.), on the Doubs, is the last French station of importance.
Custom-house formalities for those entering France.
The line follows the l. bank of the Doubs and crosses the
river near the fortified pass of La Cluse. To the r., on a rock
600 ft. in height, is situated the Fort de Joux, where Mirabeau,
Toussaint Louverture and several other well-known characters
were once confined. To the l., on a still loftier rock, rises a
new fort. To the l. the church of St. Pierre de la Cluse. Les
Verrières de Joux (2829 ft.) is the last French, and Les Verrières
Suisses the first Swiss station.
Beyond Les Verrières the line reaches the culminating point
(Col des Verrières, 2890 ft.) between the Doubs and the Reuse.
Then two tunnels; to the r. far below is
St. Sulpice where the
Reuse rises in considerable volume. Two viaducts and another
tunnel (560 yds.).
Stat. Boveresse lies high above the village and commands a
pleasant view of the animated Val de Travers. On the opposite
bank of the Reuse lies Motiers (Maison Commune), where Rousseau
wrote his "Lettres de la Montagne". Then to the r. Fleurier
(Couronne), a small town of some importance with considerable
watch-manufactories.
The line gradually descends to stat. Couvet (Ecu), a picturesque
town, and stat. Travers.
To the r. rises the Creux du Vent (4510 ft.), which may be ascended
hence or from Noiraigue. On the summit is a crater in the form of a
horse-shoe opening towards the N.E., about 500 ft. in depth, and 2½ M.
in circumference. When the weather changes this crater becomes filled
with white vapour, resembling a vast boiling cauldron.
Stat. Noiraigue. The Val de Travers here terminates and the
line enters a narrow ravine, traversed by the Reuse. Frequent
tunnels and viaducts. At Troisrods, where the ravine is quitted,
the extensive viaduct of the line to Yverdon is perceived far
below to the r. A striking prospect is now obtained to the r.
of the Lake of Neuchatel and the Alps. The line descends
gradually to stat. Auvernier, the junction for Yverdon; it then
crosses the Ravine of Serrières (village of Serrières to the r. on
the lake below) by a lofty viaduct and finally reaches the station,
situated high above the town, of
Neuchâtel (*Hôtel Bellevue, in an open situation on the lake,
omnibus ¾ fr.; *Hôtel des Alpes, near the lake; *Faucon, in the
town; Hôtel du Lac, on the lake, moderate; Hôtel du Commerce
near the post-office); see Baedeker's Switzerland.
