35. St. Cloud and Sèvres.
Railways to St. Cloud and Sèvres see pp. 168, 169; Steamboat see p. 25.
Horse-railway from the Place de la Concorde (60 c.).
The route as far as Auteuil has already been described at p. 170.
Here the road to St. Cloud diverges to the r., intersects the fortifications
and in a straight direction traverses the S. extremity of
the Bois de Boulogne. Beyond the suburb of Boulogne, almost
exclusively peopled by "blanchisseuses", the Seine is crossed.
On the opposite bank rises the small town of St. Cloud (3000 inh.),
with a new Romanesque parish church.
On an eminence above the town is situated the Palace of
St. Cloud, erected in 1572 by the wealthy financier Jérôme de
Gondy, purchased in 1658 by Louis XIV, and presented to his
brother the Duke of Orleans, whose family occupied it during
more than a century. In 1782 it was purchased by Louis XVI.
for Marie Antoinette with whom it was a favourite resort. —
Here in 1589 Henry III. was assassinated by the fanatical Dominican
Jacques Clément.
The Salle de l'Orangerie is celebrated as the apartment
where the Council of the Five Hundred held their sessions. On
March 9th, 1799, Bonaparte with his grenadiers dispersed the
assembly, and a few days later caused himself to be nominated
First Consul. To these reminiscences of the first rise of his
power is perhaps to be ascribed the marked preference which
the emperor always manifested for St. Cloud.
On July 3rd, 1815, the second capitulation of Paris was here
signed. here likewise in 1830 Charles X. signed the fatal decrees
(abolition of the freedom of the press, dissolution of the
Chambers, alteration of the statutes respecting elections) which
immediately preceded the revolution of July.
St. Cloud is now the principal summer residence of the emperor
and is only shown during the absence of the imperial family, when
the public are admitted on Sundays and Thursdays 2—4. The
palace contains but few reminiscences of Napoleon I., although
once his favourite residence, and a very limited number of works
of art. In the vestibule is placed *Pradier's Sappho, his last
work (1852); in one of the apartments Pollet's Hora ("une heure
de la nuit"); several modern pictures, among others the Sisters
of Charity by Pils; several choice specimens of Gobelins tapestry;
a collection of Sèvres porcelain etc.
The terrace in front of the palace commands a magnificent
prospect. The park, laid out by the celebrated Le Nôtre and
considered his master-piece, contains another still finer point
of view.
Quitting the palace by the route by which he ascended, the
visitor takes the first path to the right and proceeds in a straight
direction through the avenue, passing La Haute et la Basse Cascade,
the former surmounted by a fine group by Adam, representing
the Seine and the Marne. The fountains usually play
every alternate Sunday in summer, and every Sunday from 4 to
5 o'clock during the fête of St. Cloud which takes place in the
three last weeks of September. The "Jet Géant" or Grand jet
d'eau, to the left of the cascades, rises to a height of 140 ft.
By the small fish-pond the paved path to the left, by the
iron railing, should be taken. The visitor soon after turns to
the right and finally ascends a grassy slope to the left, opposite
to the W. side and the gardens of the palace.
On the summit of the hill is situated the Lanterne de Démosthène,
about 25 minutes' walk from the terrace of the palace.
It is a lofty tower surmounted by a cupola and supported by
Corinthian columns, and was erected by Napoleon I. in imitation
of the so-called Lantern of Demosthenes at Athens executed by
Lysicrates. The summit of the tower affords an extensive and
magnificent *panorama. Far below flows the Seine, to the left
is the bridge of St. Cloud, beyond it the town and the Bois de
Boulogne, then the triumphal arch and in the background Montmartre;
from among the houses of Paris rise St. Vincent de Paul,
the Dome of the Invalides, St. Sulpice, the Pantheon and (the
last dome to the right) the church of Val de Grâce; to the r. of
Paris the village of Issy (p. 169), commanded by the fort. On
the farther side of the city the cemetery of Père Lachaise may
also be distinguished.
If the stranger here pursue his route towards the right, then
turn to the left, cross a bridge, and where the path divides select
that to the right, he will in ¼ hr. reach the village of Sèvres
(Restaurant au Berceau), one of the most ancient in the environs
of Paris. The celebrated Imperial *Porcelain Manufactory
is situated 5 minutes' walk farther. It has for upwards of a
century been the property of the government, and employs
180 hands.
The public are admitted (after 11 o'clock) to the Exhibition
Rooms only (1 fr. gratuity), which contain a great number of
specimens of the products of the manufactory, the most remarkable
being the large paintings on porcelain, most of them copies
from celebrated Italian masters. Stained glass is likewise here
manufactured and may be compared with some beautiful specimens
of German workmanship from Munich, presented in 1838.
The Musée Céramique (open to the public on Thursdays),
founded in 1800 by Alexander Brongniart, consists of an extensive
collection of objects bearing reference to the history of the
fabrication of porcelain, and of specimens of modern manufacturers
from all parts of the world. Among other articles may be mentioned
those of the period of Bernard Palissy (15th cent.), the inventor
of glazing. The collection, however, possesses more interest for
the virtuoso than the ordinary visitor.
The old châateau in which the manufactory is at present
established being in a dilapidated condition, the works will soon
be transferred to a new building now in course of construction
nearer the Pont de Sèvres.
Railway (rive gauche) see p. 169; the trains of this line also
stop at Sèvres, those to Versailles at a quarter after every hour,
to Paris a quarter before every hour.
