University of Virginia Library

47. From Paris to Caen and Cherbourg.

To Cherbourg (232 M.) in 10—11 hrs.; fares 41 fr. 55, 31 fr. 15, 22 fr. 85 c.
— To Caen (149½ M.) in 5½—7½ hrs.; fares 26 fr. 75, 20 fr. 10, 14 fr. 70 c.
— Station in the Rue St. Lazare (p. 23).

As far as Mantes (36¼ M.), where the Cherbourg line diverges
from that to Rouen and Havre, the journey has been described
at p. 220. The valley of the Seine is quitted and the scenery is
uninteresting. Beyond stat. Bueil on the Eure, the river is crossed.
Stat. Evreux (Grand Cerf), capital of the Département de l'Eure
(12,265 inhab.), boasts of an interesting cathedral, a museum etc.
and an animated traffic in cotton manufactures. The town lies
on the Itou, an affluent of the Eure, which the railway now
follows. Beyond stat. La Bonneville the train enters a tunnel
beneath Conches, a village on an eminence, possessing a fine
church (St. Foy) and a ruined castle.

A branch-line here diverges to the l. to Laigle (p. 229).
From stat. Serquigny a line runs to stat. Oissel, affording the
most direct communication between Caen and Rouen.

Stat. Bernay is a manufacturing place; so also stat. Lisieux,
a town with 13,121 inhab., boasting of a handsome Gothic church

CAEN

(St. Pierre). Branch-line hence by Pont l'Evêque to Honfleur and
Trouville (p. 222). The train then passes through a tunnel,
nearly 2 M. in length. Stat. Mézidon is the junction of a line
which runs to Argentan, Alençon and Le Mans (p. 230).

Caen. Hôtel d'Angleterre, Rue St. Jean 79; *Sainte Barbe,
Rue Ecuyère 13, not expensive; Hôtel Humby on the quay, an English
house. — Omnibus with luggage 15 c. (low fare owing to great competition).
— Fiacre per drive 1, per hr. 2 fr., luggage 25 c.

English Church Service, Rue de la Geole.

Caen, capital of the Department of Calvados, with a popul.
of 43,740, on the Orne, 9 M. distant from the sea, is indebted
for its extent and importance to William the Conqueror. It
finally became subject to France in 1450. The town suffered
severely during the wars of the Huguenots, and still more in
consequence of the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes (1685).
"Cette ville au jugement de chacun qui la voit et contemple,
est l'une des plus belles, spacieuses et delectables, qu'on puisse
regarder", is the opinion pronounced respecting Caen by an historian
of the town. The traveller will not fail to find this
opinion confirmed by a visit to Caen, the principal attraction
of which however consists rather of its relics of antiquity than
of its modern "improvements".

*St. Etienne or L'Abbaye aux Hommes was commenced by
William the Conqueror in 1066 and completed in 1077. This
work was undertaken by him and the Abbaye aux Dames (p. 242)
was at the same time founded by his consort Matilda on expiation
of their offence of intermarriage within the prohibited degrees.
The principal façade towards the W. is strikingly simple. The
interior is also remarkable for its vigour and severity. The nave
is formed by means of two series of round arches, one above the
other. A contrast to this Romanesque construction is afforded
by the Gothic choir of the 12th cent., to which period the upper
portions of the towers also belong. The choir is flanked by
16 chapels. A black marble slab marks the tomb of the founder
(d. 1087), who by his own wish was here interred. His bones
however were dispersed by the Huguenots. A portrait of the
Conqueror is preserved in the Sacristy.

The adjacent monastery has been converted into a Lycée
Impérial.

To the N. of St. Etienne stands the former church of St. Nicolas
(1083), now employed as a hay-magazine. To the S.E.
La Gloriette, a Gothic edifice of the 15th cent., recently judiciously
restored.

In the centre of the town stands *St. Pierre, which possesses
one of the most beautiful Gothic towers in existence (215 ft. high),
erected in 1308. Its central story contains long, narrow windows,
a perfect model of vigour combined with gracefulness. The

summit consists of elegant open-work in stone. The decorated
portals, as well as the nave, date from the 14th cent., whilst
the ceiling, the choir and its chapels, with their overladen and
fantastic decorations, belong to the 16th cent. The capitals of
the columns of the nave have been decorated with a variety of
the most whimsical devices, such as Lancelot riding across the
sea on his sword, Aristotle with bridle and bit employed as a
steed by the mistress of Alexander.

In the main street, which runs hence to the quay and railway
station and derives its appellation from the church, is situated
St. Jean, with two unfinished towers of the 14th cent. Restoration
begun but far from complete.

A Palace, rising on the eminence to the N. above St. Pierre,
was also erected by William the Conqueror, but the sole remnants
of it still extant are the chapel of St. Georges, restored in
the 15th cent., and an ancient hall, both now employed as artillery-magazines.

On an eminence to the E., without the town, rises *Ste. Trinité,
or L'Abbaye aux Dames, consecrated in 1066, but not completed
until a later date. It is smaller and far more attractive
than St. Etienne, to which it forms a most pleasing counterpart.
With the exception of the upper parts of the towers, it is a
perfect specimen of the pure Romanesque style. In the choir,
which is reserved for the nuns of the contiguous convent, the remains
of the foundress Matilda repose. Beneath the choir is a
crypt, supported by 36 buttresses. The buildings of the eloister
are modern and comprise a hospital, conducted by sisters of the
Augustine order.

The Place Royale is a handsome modern square, but destitute
of animation. The centre is adorned with a very mediocre
bronze Statue of Louis XIV. by Petitot. The handsome Hôtel
de Ville contains a *Picture Gallery (entrance in the court on the
l., 1st door to the l. on the 1st floor; open to the public on
Sundays and Thursdays 11—4 o'clock), of considerably greater
merit than the collections usually encountered in the provinces.

1st Room: Modern pictures. 2nd Room: *Perugino, Sposalizio
(Nuptials of the Virgin) from the cathedral of Perugia, carried off by the
French during the Revolution and not restored; this is the identical model
on which Raphael based his celebrated and far more highly perfected picture
of the same subject in the Brera at Milan, an engraving of which may
be here inspected for the sake of comparison. 3rd Room: Rubens, Melchisedek
offering bread and wine to Abraham; several pictures by
P. Veronese, Judith, Temptation of St. Antony, Exodus of the Jews, Christ
gives Peter the keys of Heaven; Jordaens, Beggar. 4th Room: Modern
pictures 5th Room: Animal pieces; Van der Meuten, Passage of the
Rhine by Louis XIV.

There is also a Collection of Antiquities, opposite to which is
a Library of considerable extent.

CHERBOURG

The University Buildings, Rue de la Chaine, contain an extensive
Natural History Museum, which at the same time comprises
the collection made in the Pacific by Admiral Dumont
d'Urville (p. 166).

Caen and its environs afford abundant materials for architectural
research. The Departement du Calvados boasts of no fewer
than 70 churches of the 11th and 12th centuries. The bank of
the Orne affords a pleasant walk.

From Caen to Havre. Steamboat daily in 3—4 hrs.; fare 6 fr.; the
hour of departure varies with the tide. The voyage is a very pleasant
one in favourable weather: for 1¼ hr. the narrow Orne is traversed,
skirted at first with villas and promenades; near its mouth are the quarries
which have yielded the excellent stone of which Caen is principally
constructed. The steamer then skirts the broad and open bay on the
coast of Normandy into which the Seine empties itself, and where Trouville
and Honfleur (p. 222) are situated. The heights of Havre, its houses
and embankments now soon become visible. The vessels stop at the
Grand Quai in the Avant Port.

As the train proceeds towards Cherbourg, it crosses the Orne
and the Odon; to the l. the handsome church-tower of Norrey.
Several chateaux are also passed. Bayeux (Hôtel du Luxembourg)
possesses an admirable Cathedral, dating from several different
epochs, and a very celebrated piece of Embroidery by Queen
Matilda (215 ft. long, 1½ ft. high), representing in 58 sections
the conquest of England by her husband. This curiosity is exhibited
in the library of the Hôtel de Ville. When Napoleon
contemplated a descent on England, he caused this embroidery
to be sent from town to town, with a view more effectually to
stimulate the patriotism of the French.

From stat. Lison a branch-line diverges to St. Lo. Stat. Isigny
is a small seaport; Carentan possesses a handsome church (15th
cent.) and a dilapidated castle. A flat district is now traversed.
Valognes is one of the most important stations. To the I. of
Sottevast stands a château of the time of Louis XIV. The line
ascends as far as Couville, then descends in wide curves by
Martinvast to

Cherbourg (Hôtel de l'Univers; Hôtel de France; Hôtel de
l'Europe; Hôtel de l'Amirauté), with 41,812 inhab., situated on the
N. side of the peninsula La Manche which here extends into
the English Channel. It is the principal naval harbour of France,
to which circumstance the town is indebted for its importance.
The remarkable advantages of the situation, which would be highly
favourable for offensive as well as defensive operations against
England, were fully appreciated by Vauban. At the same time
insurmountable obstacles to the construction of a harbour appeared
to have been thrown in the way by nature. The works were
commenced by Louis XIV., prosecuted by Louis XVI., Napoleon
and Louis Philippe, notwithstanding frequent failures, and finally

completed in 1858, on which occasion Queen Victoria visited the
Emperor of the French and was present at the inauguration-festival.

The Roads of Cherbourg are exposed to violent storms from
the N., but are protected by the Digue, a vast breakwater, the
construction of which did not succeed until the labour of 50 years
and a sum of 67 million fr. had been expended on it.

Under Louis XIV. large wooden cones filled with stones were sunk,
but were soon washed away. Masses of irregularly shaped stones were
then submerged and on this foundation a fortified breakwater erected, but
these works were totally destroyed by a storm in 1808. Under Louis
Philippe the plan of cementing the stones with mortar ("beton") was
adopted. Notwithstanding these precautions, however, doubts are justly
entertained with regard to the durability of the Digue. It is 3880 yds. in
length and consists of two parts, the foundation (jetée) sloping outwards,
increasing from 180 ft. to 600 ft. in breadth, and the upper wall, 280 ft.
in thickness, which at low tide is above the surface of the water. The
depth of the water by the side of the breakwater is 30—40 ft. At the
sides are the entrances to the harbour. Three forts have been erected on
the Digue.

The Naval Harbour, entirely hewn out of the solid rock
(cards of admission, from 8—11 o'clock, are obtained at the
"Majorité", or office of the commandant, on exhibiting a passport
or visiting-card), consists of three portions, the Avant-Port, the
Bassin à Flot and within these the Bassin Napoléon III. (the
latter was commenced in 1836 and completed in Aug. 1858).
At the lowest ebb-tide 40 ships of the linec an easily be accommodated
here. The various workshops, magazines and arsenals
are of vast and imposing dimensions. The aggregate expenses
of the entire establishment have amounted to upwards of 400
million ft. An extensive system of Forts command the roads
and at the same time protect them from attack from the land side.

The Commercial Harbour, now in process of being extended,
is of little importance. The town is of recent origin and contains
no objects of interest, except perhaps the Picture Gallery
in the Hôtel de Ville (Sundays 12—4), termed the Musée Henri
after its founder.

The Fort du Roule (accessible on payment of a fee), ascended
in 15 min., commands a good survey of the town and roads.