 | Paris and northern France |  |
NORTHERN FRANCE.
A. ROUTES FROM LONDON TO PARIS.
39. By Folkstone, Boulogne and Amiens.
By Tidal Express Trains (see advertisements in the "Times"
"Bradshaw" from Charing Cross or London Bridge in 10—12 hrs., average
sea-passage 2 hrs.; fares 2 L. 11 s. 8 d. and 1 L. 18 s., return tickets valid
for one month 4 L. 7 s. and 3 L. 7 s. — Passengers with single tickets
may break their journey at the principal stations and spend 7 days
the route. Omnibus from the harbour at Boulogne to the railway station
gratis. Luggage registered from London or Folkstone to Paris is not
examined before arrival at Paris (station, Place Roubaix).
By Steamboat from London to Boulogne daily (see adver-
tisement in the "Times" or in "Bradshaw") and thence to Paris by railway
total 14—17 hrs. excl. of detention at Boulogne, where the trains do not
always correspond with the steamers; river-passage about 6 hrs., sea-
passage 3 hrs.; fares 25 s. and 18 s.; tickets available for 10 days. This
is the cheapest and in favourable weather the pleasantest route.
Boulogne-sur-Mer. (Hotels: *des Bains; *d'Angleterre; du
Nord, all in the Rue Napoleon and in the vicinity of the harbour. Oppo-
site to the steamboat-wharf: London and Folkstone Hôtel. Near
the baths: Hôtel de la Marine and Grand Hôtel du Pavillon, com-
manding a fine view. — Restaurants: Vermond and Café de France
d'Angleterre in the Rue Napoleon; Café Veyez, Grand'Rue 1. — Voitures
place: per drive 1 fr. 50 c., per hour 2 fr. for the first, 1 fr. 75 c. for the
following. — Diligence to Calais 3 times daily in 3½ hrs. — English Church
Service in the Haute-Ville, the Basse-Ville, the Rue Royale and the Rue
de la Lampe.)
Boulogne, termed "sur mer" to distinguish it from Boulogne-
sur-Seine near Paris, the Bononia (?) or Gesoriacum of the Ro-
mans, is an important sea-port town, situated on the Liane, with
a population of 36,265, of whom upwards of 2000 are English
The aspect of the town may be said to combine a certain amount
of English comfort with French taste. It possesses 120 educational
establishments, many of which enjoy a high reputation.
The Basse-Ville is situated on a slight eminence which rises
gradually from the river. A broad street (Rue de la Lampe
Rue St. Nicolas, Grand'Rue) leads from the Pont de l'Ecluse
the Haute-Ville. This line of streets is intersected by another
(Rue Napoléon, Rue Royale), from N.W. to S.E., the most ani-
mated portion of the town, where the principal shops are situated.
The *Museum (open to the public on Sundays, Thursdays
and Saturdays from 10 to 4 o'clock; at other times, fee 1 fr.),
situated in the Grand'Rue, merits a visit. 1st Room: curiosities
from China, India and the South Sea Islands; French coins a
medals, among the latter one bearing an inscription which will
provoke the smile of the English traveller: "Descente en Angle
the purpose of commemorating Napoleon's projected invasion of
England. — 2nd Room: Roman antiquities, ancient weapons and
armour, carving, coins etc. — 3rd Room: Celtic, Greek and
Egyptian antiquities, amongst the latter a mummy, pronounced
by the celebrated archæologist Champollion to be a finer specimen
than any of those contained in the Louvre. — A large hall
contains casts from well known sculptures. — The upper story
contains pictures, stuffed quadrupeds etc. — On the basement story,
to the left, models of naval and architectural objects, of the Colonne
Napoléon and the Tower of Caligula. — The Library contains
30,000 vols., among which are some good specimens of early printing.
At the extremity of the Grand'Rue, to the left, is the Esplanade,
adorned with a colossal bust of Henry II. of France by
David, commemorating the restoration of the town to the French
by the English (1550).
The Haute-Ville, enclosed by lofty walls, is entered by the
Porte des Dunes, within which, to the left, the Hôtel de Ville
is situated, occupying the site of an ancient castle where in 1065
the crusader Godfrey de Bouillon, third son of the Count de
Boulogne, was born. The lower portion of the tower dates from
the 11th. cent., the upper portion from the year 1544.
The Cathedral, situated in the vicinity, a modern and still
unfinished building in the Italian style, occupies the site of a
Gothic church demolished in 1793. The perforated vaulting of
the cupola over the transept is peculiar. The principal point of
attraction in this edifice is the lofty dome, conspicuous from a
great distance and affording a most extensive *prospect, comprising
the downs, the elevated plain which the road to Calais
traverses, in the foreground the Colonne Napoléon, and in the
distance, in favourable weather, the white cliffs of the English
coast. The entrance to the staircase is by a door to the right
in the interior of the church (access gratuitous).
The Crypt, discovered in 1840 during the construction of the
church, is believed to date from the 8th or 9th cent. Entrance
(1 fr.) near the staircase to the dome.
The E. angle of the Haute-Ville is formed by the Chãteau,
in which Louis Napoleon was confined after the attempted insurrection
of 1840. It is now converted into barracks and an
artillery depôt. No. 3, Rue du Château, in the vicinity, is the
house in which Lesage, the author of Gil Blas, died (1747).
The Harbour, especially the W. portion near the Douane
and the steamboat-wharf, in the vicinity of some of the principal
hotels, presents a scene of the greatest animation.
At the extremity of the harbour is situated the Etablissement
de Bains, a spacious building, open from May to November,
but far inferior to that of Dieppe.
Towards evening the Pier (Jetée), which extends upwards of
500 yds. from the shore, forms a favourite promenade. The opposite
(W.) pier is 180 yds. longer. Both are provided with
light-houses.
The spacious, semi-circular Basin on the left bank of the
Liane was constructed by order of Napoleon I. to accommodate
the flotilla which was to convey his troops to England (see below).
The Fish-Market is held at an early hour in the morning on
the quay, near the Hôtel des Bains. The fishermen and their
families occupy a separate quarter of the town on the W. side
and constitute one tenth of the entire population. They are remarkable
for their adherence to the picturesque costume of their
ancestors, and in their character and usages differ materially from
the other inhabitants of the town. The women (Matelottes), as
is usually the case in communities of this description, exercise
unlimited sway on shore, whilst the sea is the undisputed domain
of their husbands.
Jésus Flagellé, a small chapel 1½ M. to the N. of the town,
a few hundred paces to the left of the Colonne Napoleon is a
place of pious resort, much frequented by the fishing population
as the greater number of the votive tablets indicate.
Boulogne possesses upwards of 250 fishing boats, which during
the herring fishery extend their voyages as far as the Scottish
coast and even to Iceland, and in favourable seasons realize a
sum of 60,000 L.
In 1804 Napoleon assembled an army of 172,000 infantry and
9000 cavalry on the table-land to the N. of Boulogne, under the
command of Soult, Ney, Davoust and Victor, and in the harbour
a flotilla consisting of 2413 craft of various dimensions, for the
purpose of invading England and establishing a republic there.
The troops were admirably drilled and only awaited the arrival of
the fleets from Antwerp, Brest, Cadiz and the harbours of the
Mediterranean, which had been formed several years previously
with this express object. Their union was prevented by the
English fleet under Sir Robert Calder, and the victory of Nelson
at Trafalgar (Oct. 22nd, 1805) completed the triumph of England
and the discomfiture of the entire undertaking.
The Colonne Napoléon, a pillar of marble of the Doric order,
160 ft. in height, situated 1½ M. from Boulogne on the road to
Calais, was founded in 1804, the first stone being laid by Marshal
Soult in the presence of the whole army. It was not, however,
completed until 1841. The summit is occupied by a statue of
the emperor, one of Bosio's finest works. The basement is adorned
with reliefs and emblems of war. The view from the
summit (custodian's fee 50 c.) is similar to that commanded by
the dome of the cathedral. Model in the museum (p. 204).
A Block of Marble, situated about ¾ M. nearer the coast,
commemorates the distribution of the decorations of the Legion
of Honour to the army in 1804. It was removed after the Restoration
but subsequently replaced. In the vicinity is the pilgrimage
chapel of Jésus Flagellé, mentioned above.
Nearer the town, on the chalk cliffs (falaises) above the bathing
establishment, are seen the scanty remnants of a Roman tower
(La Tour d'Ordre, perhaps from turris ardens), conjectured to
have been a light-house, erected by Caligula in the year 40, who
like Napoleon made an unsuccessful attempt to invade England
from this point. When this district was conquered by the English
in 1544, the tower was still standing and at a distance of
200 yds. from the cliffs. A century later it fell, and since that
period the sea has made such encroachments that the fragments
of the tower are new close to the verge. Model in the museum
(p. 204).
The railway-station at Boulogne is on the left bank of the
Liane, close to the bridge.
On quitting the station the train traverses the valley of the
Liane. The country soon becomes flat and uninteresting. Near
the station of Pont-de-Brique is situated a château in which Napoleon
frequently resided, and whence several of his imperial decrees
emanated. The following station is Neufchâtel.
The train now traverses sandy downs and crosses the Cauche
by a long bridge. Near the station of Etaples two lofty lighthouses
are conspicuous objects. Montreuil - Verton is one of the
places mentioned in Sterne's "Sentimental Journey". Near Noyelle,
situated in the midst of a dreary expanse of sand, the Somme
was crossed by Edward III. before the battle of Cressy. The
train now quits the sea-coast and proceeds inland, generally
following the course of the Somme.
Abbeville (Hôtel de l'Europe; Tête de Bœuf) is a manufacturing
town of ancient origin, with a population of 20,058. The
principal object of interest is the unfinished Church of St. Wolfram,
founded by Cardinal d'Amboise, the minister and favourite of
Louis XII., at the commencement of the 16th cent. The façade
with its three portals, a richly decorated specimen of florid Gothic,
merits examination.
The district now becomes more picturesque as the fertile
valley of the Somme is ascended. After passing several stations
of minor importance the train traverses three short tunnels and
stops at the station of
Amiens (Hôtel de France; Hôtel de Paris; Hôtel du Rhin
situated in a small garden near the station; Hôtel de l'Univers;
*Railway Restaurant), the ancient capital of Picardy, now of the
Department of the Somme, with a population of 58,780, is one
the peace between France and England was here concluded.
The *Cathedral, one of the finest Gothic structures in Europe,
was erected in 1220—1288 by the architects Robert de Luzarche,
Thomas de Cormont and his son Renault. The lofty tower over
the transept, 350 ft. in height, was erected in 1529 to replace
a tower which had been destroyed by lightning two years previously.
The uncompleted towers of the W. façade belong (the
lower) to the 13th and the 15th centuries. The three lofty
Portals, with their retiring arches, are richly decorated with reliefs
and statues. The reliefs of the central portal represent the
Final Judgment, the statues the 12 Apostles. "Le beau dieu
d'Amiens" is an admirable figure of the Saviour which separates
the doors of this portal. Above the portal to the right is represented
the entombment of the Virgin, above that to the left the
history of St. Firmin, the apostle of Picardy.
The church possesses a nave and transept with two aisles.
The choir with its four aisles is flanked by a series of 7 lateral
chapels. The chapels in the other aisles were added at a period
subsequent to that of the original edifice. The magnificent rose-windows,
each upwards of 100 ft. in circumference, are filled
with stained glass. A visit to the triforium, which commands
a good survey of the church, may conveniently be combined with
a walk round the external gallery and the ascent of the tower.
(The sacristan lives to the left of the W. façade; fee 1 fr.)
The S. transept contains a high relief of the 16th cent., painted and
gilded, representing in four compartments the history of St. James the
Great. The N. transept contains similar reliefs, representing the expulsion
of the money-changers from the Temple. A species of stone vessel,
resembling a sarcophagus and probably dating from the 11th cent., is believed
to have been employed in ancient times as a font.
The N. wall of the choir is adorned with reliefs representing the history
of John the Baptist; those on the S. side illustrate the life of St. Firmin,
sculptured in 1480 and 1539.
Behind the high-altar is a monument to Canon Lucas, executed at the
commencement of the last century by Blasset. Between the statues of the
canon and the Virgin is a much admired weeping angel ("enfant pleureur").
The stalls of the choir are fine specimens of carving of the commencement
of the 16th cent. and deserve examination. At the entrance to the
choir are placed statues of St. Vincent de Paul and St. Carlo Borromeo.
With the exception of the cathedral Amiens possesses little
to arrest the traveller A colossal statue of Dufresne Ducange
(d. 1688), an eminent linguist and native of Amiens, is passed
on the way from the station to the town.
At Longueau (Rail. restaurant), the first station after Amiens,
the lines from Boulogne and Calais unite.
Near Boves are seen the ruins of an ancient castle in which
Henry IV. frequently resided with the beautiful Gabrielle d'Estrées.
A view is here obtained of the picturesque valley of the Noye.
Clermont, to the right, the next station of importance, is situated
on a grassy eminence, crowned with an ancient château,
now employed as a prison. The district here becomes extremely
picturesque and animated.
Liancourt. To the left of the line a handsome church of the
16th cent. By the desire of Henry IV. Gabrielle d'Estrées was
married to a certain Seigneur de Liancourt, a man of deformed
stature and deficient intellect, on condition that he should never
see her again after the ceremony.
As the train approaches Creil (*Refreshment-room) it skirts
the bank of the Oise. Extensive porcelain manufactory on an
island in the river.
Beauvais, 1 hr. by railway to the N. W. of Creil, possesses a magnificent,
though uncompleted, Gothic cathedral, remarkable for its noble
and lofty proportions.
The direct line to Paris is vià Chantilly and St. Denis. Montmarire
rises to the right as the city is approached. The
magnificent Station du Nord, erected in 1863, is adorned externally
with a number of statues emblematical of the principal
cities of Europe. — Conveyances see p. 1.
40. By Dover, Calais and Amiens.
By Express Trains, starting from the London Bridge, Charing
Cross, Victoria and Blackfriars stations, in 10½—11½ hrs.; sea passage
generally under 2 hrs.; fares 2 L. 17 s. 10 d. and 2 L. 2 s. 6 d ; tickets available
for 7 days, with option of halting at Dover, Calais and Amiens; return-tickets,
valid for one month, 4 L. 7 s. and 3 L. 7 s. Luggage should
be registered, in order that the examination at Calais may be avoided.
By Steamer from London to Calais twice a week (comp. advertisement
in the "Times" or in "Bradshaw") and thence to Paris by
railway; total 15—20 hrs., excl. of detention at Calais where the trains
seldom correspond with the steamboat; river-passage about 6 hrs.; sea-passage
4½—5 hrs.; fares 31 s. 3 d. and 33 s. 3 d., tickets available for
10 days.
Calais (Hotels: Station Hotel, conveniently situated at the terminus;
de France. — Sea-Bathing: to the N. of the Bassin de Retenue. —
Military Music in the Grande Place on Sundays and Thursdays from 2 to
4 o'clock. — Diligence to Boulogne twice daily (in 3½ hrs.) from the Grande
Place, N. side — English Churches: in Calais and in the Basse Ville)
is an important military point and is surrounded by strong fortifications
(24,018 inhab.). Its form is an oblong square, the N.
side of which is bounded by the Bassin à Flot, the Port de
l'échouage and the Bassin du Paradis. Courgain, a suburb contiguous
to the latter, is inhabited exclusively by sailors and fishermen.
The Quai de Marée, which extends into the sea for a considerable
distance, forms an agreeable promenade.
In front of the Hôtel de Ville, in the Grande Place, stand two
small obelisks, adorned with busts of the Duc de Guise and Cardinal
Richelieu. The former retook the town from the English
in 1558, after it had been held by them for two centuries; the latter
band plays (see above), the Grande Place is a favourite resort
of the townspeople. — The Church, in the early Gothic style,
was erected whilst the town was in the possession of the English.
Calais, together with the Basse-Ville, contains a greater number
of English residents than Boulogne; most of them, however,
are lace-manufacturers and persons in humble life.
Quitting Calais, the train skirts a portion of the fortifications,
follows the bank of the Aa, and crosses the Canal d'Ardres. The
district traversed is flat and marshy, and being below the high
tide level is protected by embankments.
Near the station of Ardres, to the right of the line, the celebrated
meeting of Henry VIII. and Francis I. on the "Field of
the Cloth of Gold" took place in 1520.
St. Omer (Ancienne Poste; Hôtel de France; Hôtel d'Angleterre),
a fortified town with a population of 25,706, is situated on the
Aa in a marshy, uninteresting district. The Cathedral is a fine
edifice in the transition style. The Abbey of St. Bertin, of
which a few scanty fragments only remain, once afforded an asylum
to Thomas à Becket, whilst an exile in France. St. Omer also
contains a Seminary for English and Irish Roman Catholics, the
attendance at which is very small. English Church in the Rue du
Bon Pasteur; number of English residents about 450.
Hazebrouck (Trois Chevaux; St. George) is the next station of
importance, being the junction of the lines from Calais, Dunkirk and
Lille. The direct line to Paris is by Arras (Griffon; St. Paul; Hôtel
de l'Europe; Hôtel du Commerce), a fortified town of considerable
importance, with a population of 25,905, situated on the Scarpe.
It is the seat of the bishop and contains three important schools
for officers of the engineers. The Grande Place and the Place
de l'Hôtel de Ville present an interesting aspect, many of the
houses dating from the 15th and 16th centuries. Their mediæval
exterior, by a decree of the town-council, may not be altered. —
Robespierre was born here. — When in 1640 the French captured
the town, at that time occupied by a Spanish garrison, they found
the following inscription over one of the gates:
Les souris mangeront les chats".
erasing the first letter of the fourth word, thus exactly reversing
the meaning.
After passing several stations of no great importance, the train
stops at Longueau (Rail. restaurant), where passengers for Amiens
(10 min. by rail) change trains. From Longueau to Paris by Creil
(R. 39) see p. 207.
41. By Newhaven, Dieppe and Rouen.
By Express Tidal Train (during the season) from London Bridge,
Victoria and Kensington stations in 12-15 hrs. (see advertisements in
the "Times" or "Bradshaw"); single tickets, available for 7 days, 30 s. and
22 s., return-tickets, available for one month, 50 s. and 26 s.; sea-passage
about 6 hours. Luggage should be registered. This route is one of the
least expensive and in favourable weather most agreeable, but not recommended
in winter.
Dieppe. (Hotels: Royal, Bristol, des Bains, all facing the
shore; Victoria and de Londres opposite the harbour; Chariot
d'Or, *du Commerce and Armes de France, more moderate. —
Restaurants: Lafosse, Grand' Rue 90, and adjoining the bath establishment;
Restaurant de la Place d'Armes, Grand' Rue 56; Café Suisse on the
quay. — Omnibus to the station 40 c., luggage 20 c. — English Church
Service every Sunday).
Dieppe (20,187 inhab.) is situated in a valley formed by two
ranges of lofty, white chalk-cliffs, at the mouth of the Arques
which forms a harbour capable of containing vessels of considerable
size. As a sea-port and commercial town, the vicinity of
Havre has deprived it of its former importance. The trade of
Dieppe is now principally confined to its traffic in fish. As a
watering-place, however, it is in a flourishing condition, being
patronized by the present emperor and annually visited by a large
number of English, as well as French families.
The principal attraction for visitors is the *Etablissement de
Bains, the paradise of loungers during the bathing season and
replete with every convenience. In front are placed about
200 small tents, which serve as dressing-rooms, whence the
bathers descend into the water, accompanied by a guide-baigneur,
if necessary. In favourable weather the scene is very animated
and novel withal to the English visitor.
Soon after 2 o'clock the band begins to play, and towards 3
the promenades in front of the bath establishment and along the
beach are crowded. The gardens in the rear of the establishment
afford sheltered walks, and contain gymnastic apparatus and a
riding-course. At the entrance, bathing-tickets may be purchased.
On the way from the bathing-place to the town is situated
the Bazaar, occupying a circular space, in the centre of which is
a mast with a red flag, hoisted when the tide is favourable for
bathing. Here the beautiful carved ivory ornaments manufactured
at Dieppe may be purchased.
In the immediate vicinity of the bazaar rises the handsome
and extensive Castle, with its massive walls, towers and bastions,
erected in 1433 as a defence against the English. In 1694, however,
it was unable to prevent the wanton cannonade of the
English fleet, then returning from an unsuccessful attack on Brest;
the result of which unequal contest was the total destruction of
the town. The view from the summit, and especially from the
![illustration](https://iiif.lib.virginia.edu/iiif/uva-lib:111226/full/!1600,1600/0/default.jpg")
Dieppe
nothing to attract visitors.
The church of St. Jacques (the patron saint of fishermen),
in the Place Nationale, dates from the 14th and 15th centuries.
The interior is, however, sadly disfigured. Near the church is
the Statue of Duquesne, a celebrated admiral and native of
Dieppe (d. 1687), who conquered the redoubtable De Ruyter off
the Sicilian coast in 1676. The Dutch hero soon after died of
his wounds at Syracuse. Duquesne, who was a Calvinist, was
interred in the church of Aubonne on the Lake of Geneva.
On market-days, Wednesdays and Saturdays, an opportunity is
afforded to the stranger of observing some of the singular headdresses
of the Norman country-women.
The Jetée de l'Ouest, situated at the N.W. extremity of the
town, forms an agreeable evening promenade, and with the opposite
Jetée de l'Est constitutes the entrance to the harbour. Towards
the S.E. the harbour terminates in the Bassin de Retenue, flanked
by the Cours Bourbon, an avenue ¾ M. in length, and affording
a retired and sheltered walk.
This basin contains an extensive Oyster Park, formerly one
of the principal sources from which Paris derived its supplies.
The oysters are first brought from the inexhaustible beds of Cancale
and Granville to St. Vaast near Cherbourg, whence they are afterwards
removed to Dieppe. Here they are "travaillées", or dieted,
so as materially to improve their flavour and render them fit for
exportation. It has been observed that the oyster, when in a natural
state, frequently opens its shell to eject the sea-water from
which it derives its nourishment and to take in a fresh supply.
In the "park" they open their shells less frequently, and after a
treatment of a month it is found that they remain closed for ten
or twelve days together, an interval which admits of their being transported
in a perfectly fresh state to all parts of the continent. Since
the completion of the railway from Paris to Cherbourg the oyster-park
of Dieppe has lost much of its importance, and the metropolis
now derives its chief supplies from a more convenient source.
Contiguous to the oyster-park is a restaurant of humble pretension,
where the delicious bivalve (75 c. per dozen), fresh from
its native element, may be enjoyed in the highest perfection.
Le Pollet, a suburb of Dieppe inhabited exclusively by sailors
and fishermen, adjoins the Bassin de Retenue on the N. side. The
population differs externally but little from that of Dieppe. It is,
however, alleged that they are the descendants of an ancient
Venetian colony, and it is certain that to this day they possess
a primitive simplicity of character unknown among their neighbours.
On the coast, 1½ M. to the N.E. of this point, is situated
the so-called Camp de César, more probably of Gallic origin.
greater retirement than the establishment at Dieppe.
By far the most interesting point in the environs of Dieppe
is the ruined castle of Arques, situated at the confluence of the
Béthune and Arques, about 4 M. to the S.E. of the town It is
memorable in history as the scene of the victory gained by Henry IV.
with his army of 4000 men over 30,000 men of the League under
the Duc de Mayenne, Sept. 21st. 1589. The issue of the contest,
as Sully records in his memoirs, was mainly due to the
execution done by four cannons which were fired from the castle
walls. The spot where the fiercest struggle took place is denoted
by an obelisk.
The best route from Dieppe to Arques is by St. Pierre, diverging
to the left from the Rouen road immediately outside of
the town. Those who prefer to drive may proceed by carriage
(in 1½ hr.) as far as the auberge of Arques, whence the castle
must be visited on foot. The view from the summit repays the
ascent, and comprises the valleys of the Arques, the Béthune and
the Eaulne.
The excursion may also be made by water (ascent 1¼, return
¾ hr.). Boatmen may be engaged at the Bassin de Retenue,
into which the Arques flows.
From Dieppe diligence twice daily (office on the quay) to Abbeville
(p. 206) in 8 hrs., coupé 8 fr.; to St. Valéry three times
daily Passengers usually breakfast or dine at Ville d'Eu (*Hôtel
du Cygne), where these two routes diverge.
Soon after quitting Dieppe the train passes through a tunnel,
upwards of 1 M. in length, and enters the valley of the Scie,
which it crosses 22 times. After passing several stations of minor
importance, the train reaches Malaunay, where the Rouen-Havre
and Dieppe lines unite. From this point to Rouen the
district traversed is picturesque and animated, abounding in cotton
and other factories.
Rouen. (Hôtels: d'Albion and d'Angleterre, both on the quay,
R. 2½—5 fr., B. 1½, D. 3 fr.; Hôtel de France, Rue Grand-Pont,
less expensive; Hôtel Fromentin, Rue de l'Impératrice; Hôtel du
Commerce, Rue du Bec; de Normandic, Rue du Bec 13; du Grand
Vatel, Rue des Carmes 70. — Restaurants: *Heurteventand and Jacquinot,
both in the Petite Provence on the quay. — Cafés: Hugnot, on the quay,
near the Exchange; Café de la Place de Notre Dame, near the
Cathedral, etc. — Omnibus: from the station to the town 40 c., luggage
20 c.; several different lines traverse the city. — Voitures: 1 fr. 25 c. per
drive, luggage 50 c.; per hour 1½ fr. — The "Confitures", for which Rouen
is celebrated, may be purchased of Célestin Magné, Rue des Carmes. —
English Church Service in the chapel at Sotteville at 11, a. m., and in the
French Protestant Church, Place St. Eloi.)
Rouen, formerly the capital of ancient Normandy, now of the
Department of the Seine Inférieure, with a population of 102,649
![illustration](https://iiif.lib.virginia.edu/iiif/uva-lib:111232/full/!1600,1600/0/default.jpg")
Rouen
in mediæval architecture. The ancient houses (Maisons Normandes)
with their quaint wooden façades are however unfortunately
rapidly disappearing, and the picturesque aspect of the
city has been considerably marred by modern improvements. It
is, moreover, of great importance on account of its cotton factories,
and has not inaptly been termed the Manchester of
France. Rouen is likewise one of the principal depôts of the
wines of Bordeaux, which are conveyed hither by small sea vessels
on the Seine. As in ancient times, this city and its environs
are still renowned for their superior breed of horses, as
well as for the robust stature of the inhabitants, who furnish the
French army with some of its finest troops
The city is bounded on the S. by the Seine, which is here
upwards of 300 yds. in breadth and separates Rouen from the
suburb of St. Sever (20,000 inhab.). By the windings of the
river Havre is about 100 M. distant. (Steamboats descend in
8 hrs., a picturesque though somewhat tedious journey.)
The other sides of the city are bounded by the boulevards,
which resemble those of Paris, though of course less animated. The
ancient ramparts and fortifications successfully resisted the attacks
of Henry V. of England (1415) and Henry IV. of France (1591).
The suburbs without the boulevards are occupied principally by
the manufacturing portion of the population. The following walk
will be found to comprise the most interesting points of the city,
arranged in a convenient order, commencing with the river on
the S. side.
The Seine is here crossed by two bridges which unite Rouen
with St. Sever. The Pont d'Orléans, the upper of these bridges,
constructed of stone (1829), crosses from St. Sever to the lower
extremity of the Ile Lacroix, where the statue of Corneille (by
David d'Angers), a native of Rouen (d. 1684), is situated, and
thence to Rouen. The street opposite to the bridge, recently
constructed by the demolition of a labyrinth of old houses, leads
to the Place St. Ouen.
Farther down the river is situated the Grand Pont or Pont
Suspendu (toll 1 c., carriage 15 c.), a suspension bridge (1836),
which affords an admirable survey of the river with its forest of
masts, the streets flanking the quays, behind which rises the
cathedral, and the numerous manufactories of St. Sever.
The "Petite Provence", an avenue of trees opposite to the
suspension bridge, is adorned with a statue of the eminent composer
Boieldieu (d. 1834), who was a native of Rouen. Farther
W. is the Bourse, which a small public garden adjoins, and beyond
it the Quai du Havre, the Douane and Post-office. This is one
of the pleasantest and most animated portions of the town.
From the suspension-bridge a line of streets (Rue Grandpont,
Rue des Carmes, Rue Beauvoisine) leads to the Boulevard Beauvoisine,
intersecting the entire city from S. to N Here the best
shops are situated. The new and important Rue de l'Impératrice,
to make room for which many of the ancient and narrow lanes
have been demolished, extends from the quay below the suspension-bridge,
passing the church of St. Vincent, the Marché
Neuf with the adjacent Palais de Justice, the Jardin de Solferino
and the Tour du Donjon or de Jeanne d'Arc, to the Boulevards
near the railway-station.
At the extremity of the Rue Grandpont the traveller arrives
at the Cathedral; thence to the right by the Rue des Bonnetiers
to the church of St. Maclou, and by the Rue Impériale to St. Ouen,
which may be regarded as the architectural gem of Rouen. The
Hôtel de Ville is contiguous to St. Ouen, after a glance at which
the traveller should visit the Musée des Antiquités in the Rue
Beauvoisine, near the boulevards.
Thence to the Palais de Justice, Tour de la Grosse Horloge,
Place de la Pucelle, Hôtel du Bourgtheroulde and back to the quay.
The entire walk may be accomplished in the course of one
morning; the evening may be devoted to the ascent of Mont
Ste. Catherine or Bon Secours (p. 219).
The *Cathedral (Notre Dame, Plan 1), the principal portions
of which date from 1207—80, is one of the grandest Gothic edifices
in Normandy. The central portal of the W. façade, towards
the Place du Parois Notre Dame, was erected by Cardinal d'Amboise,
the favourite minister of Louis XII., at the commencement
of the 16th cent., and profusely decorated in the florid style.
The sculptures above the entrance represent the genealogy of
Christ; to the left the beheading of John the Baptist, to the
right the Virgin and saints.
The two towers of the façade are of unequal height. The
Tour de Beurre, the loftier and more beautiful, derives its appellation
from having been erected with the money paid for indulgences
to eat butter during Lent. It once contained one of
the largest bells in the world, melted down during the first revolution.
A few fragments were sent to the Mint at Paris, where
they were employed in striking medals with the inscription:
"Monument de vanité, détruit pour l'utilité, l'an II. de l'égalité".
The central spire, over the transept, was burned down in 1822,
having been ignited by lightning, and is replaced by a most unsightly
tower of cast iron, 460 ft. in height, which sadly mars the
exterior of the church. A spiral staircase ascends to the summit.
The portals by which the transept is entered, dating from the
15th cent., are more chaste in style than the above mentioned.
The Portail des Libraires, to the N., so termed from the booksellers'
stalls which formerly occupied the court in front of it,
sculptures represent the Last Judgment. The Portail de la Calendre,
by which the church is entered on the S., is adorned with
sculptures from the history of Joseph. The hanging figure is
popularly believed to be that of a usurer, put to death in this
manner for having employed false weights and measures, and
whose property was confiscated and expended in the construction
of this portal. The figure is, however, doubtless intended to represent
Pharaoh's baker.
The interior of the church (440 ft. in length and 90 ft. in height) is
in the early pointed style, and possesses three fine rose windows in the
nave and transepts. A tier of small arches, placed between the columns
which separate the nave from the aisles, is intended to give stability to
the structure, but somewhat detracts from the grandeur of the effect.
The last chapel on the S. side of the nave contains the tomb of Rollo
(d. 927), first duke of Normandy, the corresponding chapel on the N side
that of his son William, "Longue Epée" (d. 943); the figures, however, are
probably not earlier than the 13th. cent. A modern screen separates the
choir from the nave. The carving of the stalls dates from 1467, the stained
glass from the 13th cent.
The Chapelle du Christ, contiguous to the high altar, contains an ancient
mutilated figure in limestone, 6½ ft in height, of Richard Cœur de
Lion (d. 1199), discovered in 1838. His heart, which was interred in the
choir, was found at the same time, and is now preserved in the museum.
Its original resting-place in the choir is indicated by a small marble tablet
with a Latin inscription.
To the right in the Chapelle de la Vierge is the magnificent *Monument
of Cardinal George d'Amboise and his nephew, who was likewise a cardinal.
It was executed in 1525 in black and white marble; under a richly decorated
canopy are the figures of the cardinals in a kneeling posture; in
niches are placed figures of the 12 Apostles and beneath are the cardinal
virtues.
To the left is the handsome *Monument of the Duc de Brézé (d. 1530),
grand seneschal of Normandy, erected by his wife, the celebrated Diana
of Poitiers (d. 1566), mistress of Henry II. Above is an equestrian statue
of the duke; beneath, on a sarcophagus of black marble, he is represented
as an emaciated corpse. At his head kneels his disconsolate widow in
an attitude of prayer, at his feet stand the Virgin and Child. The inscription:
"Ut fuit in thalamo, sic eril in tumulo"
in the château of Anet, where she died. The monument is attributed
to the celebrated Huguenot sculptor Jean Goujon (p. 55). The altarpiece,
representing the Adoration of the shepherds, is by Ph. de Champaigne.
*St. Maclou (Plan 2), "un diminutif de St. Ouen", as it has
not inaptly been termed, is a fine specimen of the florid style of
the 15th cent. The central tower over the transept is a graceful
structure, although incomplete. The sculptures which adorn the
three portals are admirably executed. The wooden doors are remarkable
for their exquisitely carved reliefs from biblical subjects,
ascribed to Jean Goujon. The beautiful spiral staircase near the
W. entrance is also deserving of inspection.
**St. Ouen (Abbaye de St. Ouen; Pl. 3), one of the most exquisite
Gothic edifices in the world, far surpasses the cathedral
in extent and in chasteness of style. It was founded in 1318;
and the nave and tower towards the close of the 15th cent. The
original plan having been followed throughout, the entire edifice
exhibits a rare harmony of design. The tower over the transept,
270 ft. in height, is surmounted by an octagonal superstructure
with flying buttresses and turrets at the angles, a remarkably elegant
specimen of open-work. The whole is terminated by a
crown of fleurs-de-lis, the so-called "Couronne de la Normandie".
The summit commands a fine prospect. — The towers of the
W. facade have recently been judiciously completed, although not
in strict harmony with the rest of the edifice. The sacrilegious
outrages committed by the Huguenots (1562) and the republicans
(1793) have also been carefully repaired, and the church is now
one of the few perfect Gothic structures on the continent.
The S. "Portail des Marmousets", so called from the figures
of the animals with which it is adorned, merits the most minute
inspection. The reliefs above the door represent the death and
assumption of the Virgin.
The proportions of the interior (445 ft. in length, 83 ft. in
breadth and 110 ft. in height) are distinguished by their graceful
elegance. The walls appear to be almost superseded by the numerous
(120) windows, all of which are filled with stained glass.
The unusually lofty triforium is exceedingly beautiful. In the
nave and transepts are three fine rose-windows, also filled with
stained glass.
Around the choir are situated eleven chapels, which the
verger (1½ fr.) opens, and whence several fine views of the
interior of the edifice are enjoyed.
Alexander Berneval, the architect of this noble church, is interred
in the Chapel of St. Agnes, the second on the N. side (to
the left) in the choir. Tradition alleges that in a fit of jealousy
he killed his apprentice who in the execution of the rose-window
of the N. transept had surpassed his master in skill.
In the rear of the church and the adjoining Hôtel de Ville a
pleasant garden is situated, to which the public have access. The
Chambre aux Clercs, a Norman tower of the 11th cent., is contiguous
to the church on this side, and probably formed a portion
of an earlier edifice which once occupied the same site. St. Ouen
(d. 678), to whom the church is dedicated, was archbishop
of Rouen.
The Hôtel de Ville (Pl. 4), on the N. side of the church,
was formerly within the precincts of the monastery of St. Ouen.
The building is in the Italian style, with a row of Corinthian
columns. The Picture Gallery (entrance to the r. at the end of
the gallery on the second floor; open to the public on Sundays
and Thursdays, to artists and strangers daily at the same hours;
who was born here and died in 1824) contains little to interest
the visitor. No. 301. The Virgin with saints and angels, in the
great gallery, deserves mention as a fine picture of the old German
school, ascribed to Memling. Adjoining the museum is the
Library, open daily from 11 to 4 and from 6 to 9 o'clock,
Sundays and Thursdays excepted, which contains upwards of
110,000 vols. and a collection of MSS., among which are several
valuable miniatures. In front of the Town Hall rises the Equestrian
Statue of Napoleon I. by Vital-Dubray. The metal consists
of cannons captured at Austerlitz. A relief at the back represents
Napoleon visiting the workmen in the suburb St. Sever
in 1802.
The *Musée des Antiquités (Pl. 5), situated in the cloisters
of an ancient convent, in the Rue Beauvoisine, is an extremely
interesting collection. Admission daily from 12 to 4; at other
times for a fee of 1 fr.
It contains numerous interesting relics found in Normandy. Of the
Roman period: sarcophagi and a large, freely restored mosaic representing
Orpheus. The collection of mediæval curiosities is especially valuable.
Documents of Richard Cœur de Lion with his seals, model of St. Maclou;
a small glass box containing the relics of Richard's "lion" heart; shrine
of St. Sever in the form of a Gothic chapel, adorned with silver statuettes,
dating from the 12th cent., formerly in the cathedral; five reliefs in marble
representing the Final Judgment; a number of coins. Casts of the reliefs
in the Hôtel du Bourgtheroulde (p. 218); weapons; documents with signatures
of celebrated persons, among which is one bearing the sign (a cross)
of William the Conqueror; the door of Corneille's house etc. Then a collection
of fayence-articles manufactured at Rouen, where the art formerly
flourished. The museum contains such a vast number of interesting objects
which cannot here be enumerated, that a catalogue is almost indispensable.
The fifteen windows are filled with stained glass from different
secularized monasteries. The Cabinet of Natural History, in an adjoining
building, is also a creditable collection.
The Tour du Donjon, or de Jeanne d'Arc, in the Rue de
l'Impératrice, is the last remnant of a citadel erected by Philip
Augustus in 1205, where Joan of Arc was afterwards imprisoned.
St. Godard (Pl. 6), between the Rue de l'Impératrice and the
Rue Beauvoisine, contains two fine stained glass windows of the
16th cent.
St. Patrice, situated to the W. of the Rue de l'Impératrice,
erected in 1535, merits a visit on account of the rich stained
glass it contains.
The *Palais de Justice (Pl. 7), in the late florid style, resembles
the handsome council halls of Belgian towns, although
less lofty. The central portion of the edifice and the projecting
pavilions form an entrance-court, enclosed by a railing. The left
wing, the Salle des Procureurs, erected in 1493, is a spacious
and lofty hall with an open roof, and once served as an exchange.
The central part was erected under Louis XII., six years later, for
the Cour de l'Echiquier of Normandy, the supreme tribunal in
Here the assizes are now held. The residence of the former presidents
of the parliament, situated in the rear of the Palais, has
been converted into another court of justice. The portress (50 c.)
conducts visitors through the different apartments.
In the vicinity rises the Tour de la Grosse Horloge or
Beffroi (belfry), contiguous to and deriving its name from the
clock-gateway erected in 1527. Several of the houses in this
narrow, but extremely picturesque street (Grand' Rue) merit inspection.
Farther to the W., near the Theatre (Pl. 9), is the Place de
la Pucelle, where Joan of Arc was burned at the stake in 1431.
About 24 years later she was declared innocent of the crime of
witchcraft by a papal bull, and the French, who it is well known
had been her betrayers, being now masters of Rouen, erected a
cross to her memory on the spot where she suffered. The place
is now occupied by a paltry figure over a fountain.
The adjoining Hôtel du Bourgtheroulde (Pl. 10), which is
here entered by a gateway, was erected by a M. de Bourgtheroulde
at the close of the 15th. cent. in the style of the Palais
de Justice. The court contains a number of reliefs in marble,
one of which represents the interview of the rival monarchs on
the "Field of the Cloth of Gold". The graceful hexagonal tower
is decorated with sculptures from biblical subjects.
Descending hence to the quay of the Havre steamboats, and
skirting the entire length of the wharf towards the E, the traveller
will reach *Mont Ste. Catherine (380 ft.), which rises at the
extremity of the city, immediately beyond the Champ de Mars.
The summit is occupied by a few fragments of the fortress which
Henry IV. captured from the troops of the League under Marshal
Villars, and caused to be demolished. The ascent occupies
½ hr. The view is extensive and embraces the city with its
numerous towers and chimneys, the course of the river, the railway
and the animated and industrial environs.
A still finer prospect may be enjoyed from the recently constructed
pilgrimage church of Notre Dame de Bon Secours, or
*Bon Secours as it is usually termed, situated on the lofty bank
of the river, 2 M. from Rouen. The view comprises the entire
city, the course of the river for many miles above and below
Rouen, and in the distance the rich and verdant pastures of
Normandy.
A delightful excursion may be taken to La Bouille, 15 M.
below Rouen, by the local steamboat starting at 6 a. m. and returning
at 2 p. m. The right bank of the Seine is bounded by precipitous
chalk-hills and studded with picturesque country residences
and parks, whilst the left bank consists of rich meadows and
pasturage.
La Bouille (Hôtel de la Rénaissance) is a small but animated
town, where several important high roads unite. The Château
de Robert le Diable, the scanty ruins of which occupy the summit
of a hill in the vicinity, affords a charming prospect of the
wooded mountains, portions of the valley of the Seine with its
white chalk-hills, and in the distance Rouen with the cathedral.
Passing by means of three tunnels under the Boulevards
St. Hilaire and Beauvoisine and Mont Ste. Catherine, the train
crosses the Seine, affording a beautiful view of Rouen to the right.
To the left, on the Côte, or hills which rise from the river, is
situated the church of Bon Secours. At Sotteville, the first station,
the English church is situated. Tourville is the station for
Elbeuf, 6 M. distant, a cloth-manufacturing town of considerable
importance.
Near Oissel the Seine is again crossed, and is recrossed beyond
Pont de l'Arche above the influx of the Eure. Between St. Pierre
de Vauvray and Villers (Louviers in the vicinity is a town with
extensive cloth-factories) the train penetrates the chalk hills by
means of two tunnels.
Near Les Andelys, 3 M. distant from the line, rise the ruins
of the castle of Gaillard, erected by Richard Cœur de Lion to
protect the Duchy of Normandy against the incursions of the French
kings. It was afterwards employed as a state-prison. Here in
1314 the infamous Margaret of Burgundy, consort of Louis X.,
was strangled by order of her husband. The castle was demolished
by Henry IV. at the same time with other castles of Norman
barons who were disaffected to the French supremacy.
The station of Gaillon is situated opposite to the village of
Courcelles. The château of Gaillon, erected in 1500, was one
of the finest in Normandy and the favourite residence of Francis I.
The lofty façade has been transferred to the court of the Ecole
des Beaux Arts in Paris. The castle is now employed as a
prison.
The conspicuous tower of Vernon, once a strongly fortified
town, was erected in 1123 by Henry I. of England. Here in
1198 Philip Augustus of France sought refuge when conquered
by Richard Cœur de Lion. The château of Bizy in the vicinity was
once the property of Louis Philippe.
The tunnel between Bonnières and Rolleboise cuts off the wide
circuit which the river here describes.
Rosny possesses a château where Sully (d 1641), the celebrated
minister of Henry IV., was born in 1559. It was subsequently
the property of the Duchess of Berry who resided in it
from 1818 to 1830.
The picturesque town of Mantes is memorable in history as
the place where William the Conqueror was so severely injured
The lofty towers of the Gothic church of Notre Dame and
of St Maclou are conspicuous objects in the town. The line
continues to skirt the banks of the Seine and frequently commands
fine views.
Poissy, the next station of importance, was the birthplace of
St. Louis, who frequently styled himself "Louis de Poissy". Here
in 1561 a conference was assembled by order of the States General,
with a view to adjust the differences between the Roman Catholic
and Protestant parties. The former was represented by 6 cardinals,
36 bishops and numerous doctors of theology, the latter by
Theodore Beza, the friend of Calvin, Peter Vermigli of Florence,
professor of theology at Strasbourg, and other reformers. Their
deliberations, however, led to no result owing to the intervention
of the Sorbonne, the celebrated theological faculty of Paris, by
whose influence and strong condemnation of the Calvinists the
proceedings were terminated. — The cattle-market of Poissy is
the most important in France, and together with Sceaux supplies
the whole of Paris. It will, however, probably soon be transferred
to the metropolis.
Conflans, at the confluence of the Seine and Oise, lies to the
left. The train now traverses the forest of St. Germain (p. 189).
At Maisons-Laffitte the Seine is again crossed. The château was
formerly the property of the Comte d'Artois (Charles X.). It was
afterwards presented to Marshal Lannes by Napoleon, and finally
purchased by M. Laffitte the financier.
Near Bezons the line recrosses the Seine and at Colombes
unites with the St. Germain railway. St. Germain with its palace
is a conspicuous object on an eminence to the right.
The Seine is crossed for the last time at Asnières, near which
the lines to Argenteuil and Versailles diverge. The train now
passes Clichy and intersects the fortification of Paris; on emerging
from a short tunnel under the Place de l'Europe it reaches
the station in the Rue St. Lazare. Conveyances, see p. 1.
42. By Southampton, Havre and Rouen.
By Railway to Southampton in 3 hours; by Steamboat to Havre
daily, generally at 11. 45 p. m. (see advertisements in the "Times" or
"Bradshaw") in 9½—10 hrs.; by Express from Havre to Paris in 5 hrs.;
by ordinary trains in 7½ hrs.; omnibus from the quay to the station at
Havre not incl. in the fare. Single tickets, available for 4 days 28 s.
and 20 s.; return-tickets available for one month, 50 s. and 36 s. Luggage
may be registered direct to Paris. — This "cheap and picturesque" route
as it is styled in the advertisements, is one of the pleasantest in summer.
By Steamboat from London to Havre direct twice a week (see
advertisements of General Steam Navigation Company), average passage,
incl. 5—6 hrs. in the Thames, 16 hrs.; fares the same as above.
Le Havre. Hôtels: Frascati, opposite the beach, bathing-place;
*de l'Amirauté, Grand Quai 43; Hôtel du Louvre and des
![illustration](https://iiif.lib.virginia.edu/iiif/uva-lib:111244/full/!1600,1600/0/default.jpg")
Le Havre.
Normandie, Rue de Paris, moderate. — Cafés: *Reinart, Place du
Spectacle; Guichard, Place Napoléon III.; du Siècle, well supplied with
newspapers; Alcazar, Chaussée d'Ingouville, a concert every evening. —
Omnibus to the station 30 c. — Voiture 1 fr. 25 c. per drive. —
English Church, Rue d'Orléans; American, Rue de la Paix), formerly
termed Havre de Grâce from the chapel of Notre Dame de Grâce
founded by Louis XII. in 1509, was fortified by Francis I. in
1516, and is now the harbour for Paris and one of the most
important sea-ports of France (80,130 inhab.). The buildings,
as well as the commercial prosperity of the town, are of very
recent origin. Its situation at the mouth of the Seine is extremely
advantageous.
The Rue de Paris, intersecting the town from N. to S., is the
centre of traffic. The handsome Hôtel de Ville is a modern edifice,
situated in the Place Napoléon III. with its Jardin Public.
The original fortifications have been demolished, but the town
and harbour are commanded by new forts erected on the heights
of Ingouville and Ste. Adresse (p. 222).
The extensive docks are capable of containing 500—600 vessels
of considerable tonnage, which can enter the harbour during
3—4 hrs. every tide. The Retenue de la Floride is a large basin,
by means of which, with the aid of a series of sluices, the accumulation
of the deposits of the Seine at the mouth of the harbour
is prevented. This basin is connected with the spacious
Bassin de l'Eure, constructed in 1846—1856, where the huge
Transatlantic steamers lie. Extensive operations are still in
progress for the improvement and fortification of the harbour.
Next to Marseilles Havre is the most important sea-port of
France, and is frequented annually by about 6829 vessels of an
aggregate tonnage of 1,269,000. The average annual value of
the exports is 729 million fr., that of the imports 541 million.
The import duties amount to about 50, the export to 60 million fr.
Opposite the Bassin de Commerce is situated the Theatre,
erected in 1825, and considerably enlarged since a fire by which
it was greatly damaged in 1843.
Here, in 1796, Admiral Sir Sidney Smith, in an unsuccessful
attempt to capture a French vessel, was stranded on the shallows
of the estuary of the Seine and taken prisoner by the French.
Opposite to the harbour rises the Musée, in front of which
are statues by David d'Angers of Bernardin de St. Pierre (author
of "Paul et Virginie" to which the reliefs refer) and Casimir
de la Vigne, the dramatist, both natives of Havre.
The *Museum (open on Thursdays and Sundays 10—4 o'clock,
at other times for a gratuity) contains several saloons with stuffed
animals, among which is a whale stranded near Havre, a room
with casts, a collection of pictures, and the Casimir Delavigne
building also contains a Library.
The *Jetée, or pier, near the Hôtel Frascati, commands a
fine view; to the right rises the precipitous Côte d'Ingouville
with its two lighthouses, to the left in the distance the coast of
Honfleur, on the opposite side of the estuary. Numerous boats
here afford the visitor an opportunity of enjoying an excursion
by water.
As Havre itself contains little to interest the traveller, those
who have a few hours at their disposal are recommended to ascend
the eminence on which Ingouville, a town with 12,000 inhab.,
is situated. Since the removal of the ramparts of Havre, Ingouville
and Graville, another contiguous town, are now united with
Havre, and contain numerous and handsome villas and gardens.
The *view from the lighthouse which occupies the summit of the
hill, 1½ M. distant from the harbour of Havre, comprises the
town with its forest of masts, the estuary of the Seine, to the
S. W. in the distance the Rochers de Calvados, celebrated for their
oyster-beds, and to the N. the promontory of La Hève with its
two lighthouses.
Havre being a convenient point of embarcation for the New
World, shoals of emigrants are here periodically encountered.
Honfleur (Cheval Blane; Dauphin), a remarkably picturesque
fishing-town, situated on the opposite bank of the estuary of the
Seine (by steamboat in 40 min.), with a population of 9553,
affords a delightful summer residence. (Railway in 6—8 hrs. to
Paris by Lisieux, a station on the Paris and Cherbourg line.)
The *Côte de Grace commands a magnificent prospect. The church
of Ste. Catherine contains two pictures of some merit by Quellyn
and Jordaens.
Ste. Adresse (Hôtel des Bains, concerts during the season;
Hôtel à la descente des Phares), delightfully situated a short distance
to the N.E. of Havre, and sheltered from the N. winds,
annually attracts a considerable number of visitors.
Trouville-sur-Mer (Hôtels: de la Mer; de Paris; d'Angleterre;
de la Plage; *du Bras d'Or et de la Poste, in the Rue des Bains.
pens. 6 fr. per diem, excl. of breakfast and wine; attendance 10 fr. per month),
situated about 10 M. to the S.W. of Honfleur (by railway in 30
min.; by steamboat from Havre in 1 hr.), is now a fashionable
watering-place, frequented by Parisians of the highest class
(5200 inhab.). The Salon de Trouville (subscription 6 fr. per week)
contains apartments devoted to balls, concerts, reading and play.
The railway station at Havre is near the Cours Napoleon, not
far from the Bassin Vauban. On quitting the station the traveller
will observe Graville, with its interesting church of the 11th cent.,
on the high ground to the left.
Harfleur, once an important sea-port, is now entirely superseded
by Havre. Its harbour has, moreover, been completely
filled up by the deposits of the Lézarde, which here falls into
the Seine. In 1405 the town was taken by Henry V. of England,
to whom the foundation of the church is attributed. It is a fine
Gothic edifice, although in a sadly dilapidated condition.
Nointot is the station for Bolbec, a flourishing industrial town
with a population of 10,000.
Yvetot is another manufacturing place with 9000 inhabitants,
the ancient counts or soi - disants kings of which, are thus described
by Béranger (d. 1857) in his usual playful manner:
Peu connu dans l'histoire,
Se levant tard, se couchant tôt,
Dormant fort bien sans gloire,
Et couronné par Jeanneton
D'un simple bonnet de coton".
Passing several unimportant stations, the train now quits the
undulating and fertile table land (400 ft. above Rouen) of the
Pays de Caux, as this district is termed, and descends to the
lofty viaduct of Barentin, 1600 ft. in length, the highest arch of
which is upwards of 100 ft. above the level of the valley. Shortly
afterwards a tunnel, 1½ M. in length, is entered, on emerging
from which the train soon reaches Malaunay, where the Dieppe
line diverges. From this point to Rouen, and Paris, see pp. 212—221.
B. NORTH-WESTERN FRANCE.
43. From Paris to Orléans and Tours.
Chemin de Fer d'Orléans. Express to Orléans in 2½, ordinary trains
in 4¼ hrs. (fares 13 fr. 55, 10 fr. 15, 7 fr. 45 c.); to Tours in 4½—9¾ hrs.
(fares 26 fr. 20, 19 fr. 65, 14 fr. 40 c.). Station in the Boulevard de l'Hôpital,
comp. p. 24.
The line ascends the l. bank of the Seine, which is occasionally
visible on the l. On the r. Jvry, a manufacturing place
with 12,000 inhab. Stat. Athis-Mons lies at the confluence of
the Orge and the Seine.
From stat. Juvisy a branch-line diverges to the l., following
the course of the Seine, to the small manufacturing town of
Corbeil and Maisse.
The animated valley of the Orge is now traversed. After
crossing the river, the train commands an extensive view to
the r. The ruined castle of Montlhéry, with its lofty tower
(98 ft.), is a conspicuous object in the landscape. It was once
a place of great strength and was often unsuccessfully besieged
took place here in 1465 between Louis and Charles the Bold,
the leader of the French nobility (the "Ligue du bien public"),
which although indecisive compelled the king to make concessions.
The castle was destroyed in the wars of the Huguenots.
At Bretigny a line diverges to the r. to Dourdan, Chateaudun
and Vendôme (110 M. from Paris), which will be prolonged to
Tours and will then be the most direct route between Paris
and Tours.
Stat. Chamarande possesses a château, erected by Mansard in
the 17th cent. To the r. of stat. Etrechy the huge, ruined tower
of Guinette becomes visible. It appertained to the citadel of the
ancient town and rises immediately to the r. above the station.
Etampes (Grand Courrier; Bois de Vincennes), with 10,000 inhab.,
consists of a long street with many architecturally interesting
buildings. The cathedral of Notre-Dame, in the round-arch and
pointed style combined, possesses a very graceful tower. St. Martin
was erected in the first half of the 12th cent.; the foundations
of the tower (15th cent.) have settled, so that it is considerably
out of the perpendicular. St. Gilles, the Hôtel de Ville and several
other old buildings deserve inspection.
Beyond Etampes the line ascends rapidly (1:125). The
district is monotonous and uninteresting, but becomes more
attractive as the vine-clad valley of the Loire is approached.
Stat. Les Aubrais. Those who arrive by express here, change
carriages in order to be conveyed to the town, 1 M. distant, the
station of which is entered by the ordinary trains only.
Orléans. *Hôtel d'Orléans, Rue Bannier 118, R. 2, B. 1, D. 3½,
A. ½ fr. Hôtel Lorret and Trois Empereurs, Rue Bannier 18.
Hôtel Boule d'Or. Near the station the Hôtel St Aignan, much
frequented. — Café Foy, Rue Bannier. — Bookseller A. Gatineau,
corner of the Rue Royale and the Rue Jeanne d'Arc. — Omnibus 30,
with luggage 60 c. — Voiture 1½ fr. per course, 2 fr. per hour.
Orléans, the ancient Aurelianum, founded by the emperor
M. Aurelius (according to others by Aurelian) on the site of
Genabum which was destroyed by Cæsar B. C. 52, lies on the
r. bank of the Loire. It is the capital of the Department of the
Loiret, with a population of 50,798. Its situation formerly rendered
it a place of great military importance. It is now a quiet town,
the ancient monuments of which have gradually given way to
modern improvements. Its prosperity was materially injured by
the revocation of the Edict of Nantes. A handsome bridge connects
the town with the suburb St. Marceau. From the bridge
the principal street, the Rue Royale, leads to the Place du Martroy
with the statue (see below) and is prolonged by the Rue Bannier
to the Boulevards near the railway station. Below the Place the
broad Rue Jeanne d'Arc diverges to the cathedral towards the E.
![illustration](https://iiif.lib.virginia.edu/iiif/uva-lib:111251/full/!1600,1600/0/default.jpg")
ORLEANS
The *Equestrian Statue of Joan of Arc, by Foyatier, was erected
by the town in 1855, "avec le concours de la France entière".
The statue is 13 ft., the granite pedestal 14 ft. in height. The
intention of the artist was to represent the Maid in the attitude
of returning thanks to God for a victory, but the execution is
somewhat unsatisfactory. The reliefs on the pedestal represent
the principal events in the life of the heroine, beginning at the
back on the l.: 1. Joan (born at the village of Domremy in 1412)
with her flock summoned by saints to the succour of her distressed
countrymen; 2. Her departure from Vaucouleurs; 3. Interview
at Chinon with Charles VII., whom she convinces of her divine
mission; 4. Entrance into the besieged town of Orleans, Apr. 29,
1429: "Messire m'a envoyé pour secourir la bonne ville d'Orléans":
5 (to the l. above) Capture on May 7th of Tourelles, the têtede-pont
on the l. bank of the Loire, in consequence of which
the siege was raised (the Maid was wounded on this occasion);
6. (to the r. above) Coronation of Charles VII. at Rheims, July 17th;
7. Joan wounded in the attack on Paris; 8. Her capture at Compiègne
in 1430 (comp. p. 245); 9. Her captivity at Rouen;
10. Her death (p. 218).
The Cathedral, partially destroyed by the Huguenots in 1468
was gradually restored in the 17th cent. The principal façade with its
two truncated towers (268 ft. in height), was completed in 1766,
the towers themselves in 1829. The vast dimensions of the
exterior, as well as of the interior with its nave and double
aisles, produce an imposing effect. The chapels of the choir are
a fine specimen of late Gothic of the 14th cent.; the stained
glass is modern.
On a marble basement adjacent to the cathedral rises the
bronze statue of Robert Joseph Pothier, the eminent jurist (d. 1762),
erected in 1859.
In the same Place is situated the *Hôtel de Ville, erected in
the florid Renaissance style in 1530, restored in 1850—54. The
Caryatides at the side-entrances are attributed to Jean Goujon.
The interior (concierge 1 fr.) deserves inspection, especially the
Salle des Mariages and the Salle des Conférences with fine
wainscoting and chimney-piece. One of the rooms contains a
cast of a beautiful statuette of Joan of Arc on horseback, over
a mortally wounded English soldier, executed by the Princess
Mary of Orleans.
To the S. of the Rue Jeanne d'Arc is situated the old Town
Hall, erected in the 15th cent. It contains the Museum (open
to the public on Sundays and Thursdays, 12—4 o'clock, to
strangers at any time for a gratuity).
Among the pictures may be mentioned Nos. 12—15 in the first saloon,
painted for Richelien by Claude Derret of Nancy, allegorically representing
Venus, by Pradier; 496. Hebe with the eagle, by Vilain. In the room to
the r. several modern pictures and a statue of Venus by Mollknecht; on
the l. portraits. Then a room with casts and two others with sculpture,
carving etc. The upper story contains a nat. history collection which
comprises the Collection Départementale, exhibiting the Fauna of the environs.
In the immediate vicinity is the so-called *House of Diana
of Poitiers, a charming specimen of the Renaissance style, the
side towards the court particularly well preserved. It contains
the Musée Historique, a collection of local antiquities.
No. 15 Rue de Tabourg, to the E. of the Rue Royale, is the
so-called *House of Agnes Sorel (mistress of Charles VII.). No. 45
in the same street is the House of Joan of Arc, in which she
resided during her stay in the town. No. 28. Rue de la Recouvrance
is the House of Francis I. Several other ancient houses
also merit inspection.
The train from Orleans to Tours returns to Les Aubrais (p. 224).
The express trains do not enter the station of Orleans, passengers
for which by these trains change carriages. The best seats
are now on the I.
The line traverses the broad and sunny valley of the Loire,
on the N. side of the river. The district is well cultivated and
abounds in vineyards. The river is rarely visible, but ancient
towns and castles render the journey interesting.
Stat. Meung possesses a Romanesque church and a half ruined
castle peeping forth from the trees. The small and antiquated
town of Beaugency is picturesquely situated between two hills.
It is commanded by a venerable and massive square tower (10th
or 11th cent.) which adjoins the castle. Town Hall of the
16th cent. Then stat. Mer.
An excursion may be made hence to the celebrated château of Chambord
(near it the *Hôtel St. Michael), situated to the S. of the Loire. It
was founded by Francis I., but not finished till the reign of Louis XV.
The latter presented it to Marshal Saxe, who died here in 1750. It was
subsequently occupied by Stanislaus Lescinsky, the exiled king of Poland.
Napoleon presented it to Marshal Berthier, from whose widow it was
purchased by the now exiled proprietor in 1821.
Stat. Suevers, then Menars with a handsome château, once
occupied by Madame de Pompadour.
Blois (Hôtel d'Angleterre), an ancient town with 20,331 inhab.,
situated on an eminence on the Loire, over which a bridge leads
to the Faubourg Vienne, is the capital of the Department Loir-etCher.
The château, once a residence of the French kings, is rich
in historical reminiscences of Louis XII., Francis I., Henry III.,
and Catharine and Mary de Medicis. The church of St. Nicolas
is a fine Gothic structure of the 12th cent. The Cathedral or
Church of the Jesuits is by Mansard. The pleasant situation of
the town attracts frequent visitors. Omnibus in 2 hrs. to Chambord
(see above).
The line now skirts the river, the bank of which is protected
by a bulwark. Traces of the destructive inundation of 1866
are still everywhere visible. S. of the Loire, beyond stat. Onzain,
rises the handsome château of Chaumont, once the residence of
Catharine de Medicis.
Amboise (Lion d'Or), a town with 4570 inhab., possesses a
château of the 15th cent., the interior of which however was
entirely modernized by Louis Philippe, who kept Abdel Kader
in confinement here. The latter was indebted for his liberation
to the present emperor. The conspiracy of Amboise against the
Guises in 1560 terminated in a fearful massacre of the Huguenots
implicated. Leonardo da Vinci died at Amboise in 1519.
The château of Chénonceaux on the Cher, erected by Francis I.,
exterior and interior in admirable preservation, is situated 9½ M.
to the S.
Three stations in a fertile district. The train then crosses
the Loire. To the l. a number of cavities in the rocks, employed
as dwellings, are visible, a somewhat strange apparition in the
19th cent., which however is encountered in other localities in
France. Stat. Montlouis. Then over the Cher to St. Pierre des
Corps, where the express trains stop. Passengers by these trains
change carriages for Tours. The ordinary trains only go as far
as the town.
Tours. *Hôtel de l'Univers in the Boulevard, R. 4, D. 4, A.
and L. 1½ fr.; Hôtel de Bordeaux and Victoria in the Boulevard;
Hôtel de l'Europe, Rue de Paris 10; Hôtel du Faisan, Rue
Royale 9, all with similar charges and frequently occupied by families
making a prolonged stay. *Hôtel du Croissant, less pretending, a
commercial inn. — Cafés de la Ville and du Commerce in the Rue
Royale. — Omnibus with luggage 60 c. — English Church Service.
Tours, the Roman Caesarodunum, capital of the Turones, the
central point of the Department of the Indre and Loire, formerly
of the county of Touraine, with 41,061 inhab., is situated in a
fertile plain on the l. bank of the Loire. The river is crossed
by a handsome bridge of 15 arches, from which the Rue Royale,
the principal street, extends to the Boulevards, bisecting the town.
In the Place in front of the bridge stands the statue of the
celebrated philosopher René Descartes or Cartesius; on the pedestal
is inscribed the fundamental maxim of his philosophy: "Cogito,
ergo sum". At the entrance of the Rue Royale, on the r., is
situated the Hôtel de Ville, on the l. the Museum (open on Sundays
12—4 o'clock). The latter contains pictures and casts on
the first floor and on the second nat. historical and archæological
collections.
To the l. in the Rue Royale is the church of St. Julien, a
fine Gothic edifice of 1224, parts of which are of still earlier
date, restored in 1847. The interior is plain.
No. 35 Rue du Commerce (the second to the r. from the
bridge) is a handsome *Renaissance edifice of 1400, recently
restored. The same street contains several other interesting
houses, e. g. the corner-house in the Vieux Marché.
In the Rue Martin in the vicinity rise on opposite sides of
the street two towers, the Tour de St. Martin and the Tour' de
Charlemagne, which once pertained to the great cathedral of
St. Martin. From the 7th cent. downwards this church was
regarded as a most sacred shrine and was visited by vast numbers
of pilgrims, but was plundered by the Huguenots and
totally destroyed in the revolution. The corn-hall was formerly
a church of St. Clement, dating from the 16th cent.
E. of the Rue Royale stands the *Cathedral of St. Gatien.
The richly decorated principal façade, with its three lofty portals,
dates from 1510. The towers were roofed in at a later period
and consequently do not harmonize with the rest of the structure.
The interior (12th—15th cent.) is in the purest Gothic style.
The wheel-windows and those of the chapels of the choir merit
examination. The first chapel in the choir to the r. contains a
Renaissance monument to the two children of Charles VIII.,
after whose death Louis XII., of the younger branch of the
House of Valois, acceded to the throne in 1498.
In proceeding hence to the river the traveller observes in
the barracks to the r. an ancient tower, the last fragment of a
castle erected in the 12th cent. A chain-bridge (5 c.) crosses
by an island to the other side of the river, on which there is
a pleasant promenade.
Tours attracts a number of foreign residents, especially English
families, on account of the mildness of its climate.
From Tours to Angers (65½ M.) railway in 2½—3½ hrs.; fares
12 fr., 9 fr. 25, 6 fr. 50 c. The line returns at station Cinq-Mars to the r.
bank of the Loire, on which it remains. Station Saumur, with 14,079
inhabitants, is remarkable for its handsome Hôtel de Ville and numerous
windmills. Celtic antiquitics in the vicinity. Angers see p. 232.
From Tours to Le Mans (62 M.) by railway in 3 hrs.; fares 11 fr. 10,
8 fr. 30, 6 fr. 10 c.; Le Mans see p. 230.
44. From Paris to Nantes by Chartres, Le Mans
and Angers.
247½ M. By express in 9, ordinary trains in 15 hrs.; fares 44 fr. 35,
33 fr. 25, 24 fr. 35 c. To Chartres (55 M.) express in 1⅔, ordinary trains
in 2½ hrs.; fares 9 fr. 85, 7 fr. 40, 5 fr. 40 c.; from Chartres to Le Mans
(77 M.) express in 2½, ordinary trains in 3½ hrs.; fares 13 fr. 90, 10 fr.
30, 7 fr. 60 c.; from Le Mans to Angers (60½ M.) by express in 2, ordinary
trains in 3 hrs.; fares 10 fr. 85, 8 fr. 15, 5 fr. 15 c.; from Angers to Nantes
(55 M.) express in 2, ordinary trains in 4 hrs.; fares 9 fr. 85, 7 fr. 40,
5 fr. 40 c. — Railway station in the Boulevard Montparnasse (comp. p. 25).
Journey to Versailles see p. 168. No stoppages at the minor
stations, except sometimes at Bellevue.
Stat. St. Cyr possesses a celebrated military school, founded
in 1806, where 350 pupils, who are received from their 16th
to their 20th year, are prepared for the army. About 140 students
annually obtain their commissions. An establishment for
girls originally occupied this spot, founded by Madame de Maintenon,
who died and was interred here in 1719. At St. Cyr a
branch-line diverges to Dreux and Laigle.
Rambouillet possesses an ancient chàteau of the kings of
France, where Charles X. signed his abdication in 1830.
Stat. Maintenon, with its old castle, gives its name to Françoise
d'Aubigné, widow of the author Searron, who in 1685,
when in her 50th year, was married to Louis XIV. The ruins of
the huge aqueduct, which that monarch purposed constructing for
his gardens in Versailles, are observed in the vicinity. From 1685
to 1688 about 30,000 men, principally soldiers, were employed in
this undertaking: but it was never completed and Louis for the
future avoided this locality. His successor employed part of
the materials in erecting the chàteau of Crécy for Madame
de Pompadour.
The valley is crossed by a long viaduct. The train crosses
the Eure and reaches
Chartres. *Hôtel du Duc de Chartres; Hôtel du Monarque;
Hôtel de France, all in the Place des Epars and very unpretending.
In the same Place Cafés de France and du Monarque.
Chartres, the loftily situated capital of the Department Eureet-Loire,
with 19,531 inhab., is one of the most ancient towns
in France.
The **Cathedral of Notre Dame is one of the finest Gothic
edifices in France. The crypt dates from the beginning of the
11th cent.; the upper part of the church was not completed till
1260. The towers are not uniform; that on the S. side, 324 ft.
high, belongs to the older structure; that on the N., 350 ft. high
and of graceful open-work, was added in 1506—1514.
The W. Façade, between the two towers, has three portals: in the
centre the Porte Royale, decorated with royal saints; over the door Christ
with prophets and elders. The entire façade is in the chaste style of the
12th cent., the figures however somewhat approaching Byzantine stiffness.
The N. and S. entrances, both much richer, roofed in and approached by
steps, are of the 14th cent. The profuseness of ornamentation for which
both exterior and interior are remarkable is very striking; upwards of
1800 separate figures have been counted.
The Interior produces a most imposing impression owing to the purity
and vigour of its proportions. Length 403 ft., breadth 141 ft., height of
nave 131 ft. Magnificent stained glass, principally of the 13th cent., representing
events in Scripture history and legends of saints; the three wheel-windows
merit special attention.
The Choir possesses a double passage and seven chapels. The interior,
of the last cent., harmonizes badly with the remainder of the church The
outer screen is adorned with *reliefs in the late Gothic style (begun in 1514,
the Virgin; the detail remarkably elegant. In the first chapel on the l. is
the Vierge Noire, a miraculous image of the Virgin, which since the middle
ages has been an object of profound veneration; the surrounding walls are
covered with votive offerings.
The Lower Church (Durand, S. of the church, keeps the keys), pertaining
to an ancient edifice of the 11th cent., extends under the entire upper
church and contains a number of chapels, which are now undergoing restoration.
The ascent of the roof and the towers is recommended, more
for the thorough inspection of the church itself than for the sake of
the view.
St. Pierre, in the lower part of the town, near a hussar-barrack,
dating from the 12th to the 14th cent., exhibits the transition
from the round-arch to the pointed style.
At Chartres a much frequented corn-market is held on Saturdays.
In the market-place, Place Marceau, between the old and
new parts of the town on the side towards the railway station,
stands an obelisk commemorative of General Marceau, a native of the
town, "soldat à 16 ans, général à 23, il mourut à 27." Another statue
of the general in bronze was erected in the Place des Epars in
1851. Several ancient structures, such as the Porte Guillaume
(14th cent.), deserve inspection.
The railway from Chartres to Le Mans conveys the traveller
past several small stations to Nogent-le-Rotrou, with an ancient
château, once the property of Sully. The Hôtel Dieu founded by
him contains his monument and that of his wife in a kneeling
posture, by Boduin (1642); his remains were disinterred and dispersed
in 1793.
Stat. La Ferté Bernard possesses a late Gothic church of great
merit. The town-hall is established in an old gateway.
Le Mans. Hôtel du Dauphin; Boule d'Or, commercial; Hôtel
de France, all in the Place des IIalles. Cafés de l'Univers and de
l'Europe etc. in the same Place. — Omnibus 30 c., with luggage 60 c.
Le Mans, with 37,209 inhab., situated on an eminence on
the l. bank of the Sarthe, and the capital of the Department
of that name, formerly of the province of Maine, is an ancient
town of considerable importance and boasts of several attractive
edifices.
The *Cathedral of St. Julien, occupying the loftiest site in
the town, is one of the most interesting churches in France. It
owes its origin to different periods, the various styles of which
present a most striking contrast.
The simple W Façade dates from the 11th cent; that on the S. contains
a rich Portal in the Romanesque style of the 12th cent. At the
S.W. corner a high block of sandstone built into the wall is believed to
be of Druidical origin. The entire nave in the Romanesque style with
pointed arches exhibits the transition state of the two styles and belongs
to the 11th and 12th centuries. Certain portions bear manifest marks of
great antiquity, and the construction of the external walls recals the
Roman opus reticulatum (i. e. small stones with a superabundance of
mortar, in contradistinction to the solid slabs of Gothic masonry). It is
8th or 9th cent., still exist.
The Choir on the other hand is constructed in the matured pointed
style of the 13th cent., and the nave, especially in the interior, appears
low and depressed when compared with the noble proportions of the former.
It possesses a double passage with 13 chapels and beautiful stained
glass. The wheel-windows are of later date (beginning of 15th cent.).
The r. transept contains the monument of Berengaria, consort of
Richard Cœur de Lion, placed here in 1821. The first chapel of the Choir
to the l. contains the monuments of Charles IV. of Anjou (d. 1492) and
Guillaume de Bellay-Langey, a distinguished statesman and author under
Francis I.
Adjoining the cathedral is a handsome building in the Renaissance
style, termed Le Grabatoir. The house opposite the
tower is said to have once belonged to Searron (p. 229). Below
the cathedral extend regular avenues, where the Theatre is situated.
The lower apartments contain a Musée Historique with numerous
antiquities (open on Sundays 12—4 o'clock).
The abbey-church of *Notre Dame de la Couture, at present
undergoing restoration, possesses a fine portal of the 13th cent.
The choir and crypt date from the commencement of the 11th cent.;
the nave and aisles are less ancient.
The adjacent monastery has been converted into the Préfecture.
The building also comprises a Library and Museum
(Sundays, Thursdays, Fridays 10—3 o'clock). The pictures are
mediocre. An *enamelled slab of the 12th cent., representing
Geoffrey Plantagenet, count of Anjou and Maine, formerly decorating
his tomb in the cathedral, but removed during the Revolution,
is an object of interest. There is also a Nat. Hist. Collection
and several relics of antiquity.
The town is connected with the quarter on the r. bank by
several bridges. The bank affords a pleasant promenade, passing
several old-fashioned wood-mills, the motive power of which is
the stream of the river. A good survey is obtained hence of the
narrow and crooked streets of the older quarters of the town
Near the river, on the r. bank, is situated *Notre Dame du Pré,
an antique church of the 11th cent. with a crypt, now undergoing
renovation. Le Mans was occupied by the partisans of the
Vendée in 1793, but was again wrested from them by Marceau
(p. 230), who sanctioned a fearful massacre among the women
and children who accompanied them.
From Le Mans to Rennes and Brest see p. 240. From Le
Mans to Tours see p. 228.
The line now follows the valley of the Sarthe, which it frequently
crosses. Stat. La Suze possesses a bridge of the time
of Henry IV. and an ancient château, now the town-hall, once
occupied by Gilles de Retz, better known as Barbe-bleue, who
after having committed many enormities was burned at Nantes
in 1440.
At stat. Sablé is a chateau of the last cent.; black marble is
extensively quarried in the vicinity, and several coal-mines are
encountered. The Benedictine abbey of Solesmes, containing some
celebrated sculpture in the late Gothic style, is situated 1½ M.
from Sablé.
Several small stations; then the junction of this line with
that from Tours. As Angers is approached numerous slate-quarries
are observed, which yield upwards of 150 million slabs annually,
supplying a considerable part of France and of the neighbouring
countries.
Angers. *Hôtel d'Anjou, agreeably situated in the Boulevard
and the Champ de Mars; *Cheval Blanc, Rue St. Aubin. — Faisan;
Londres on the quay etc. unpretending. — Café Sérin, Rue St. Aubin
41. — Omnibus 30 c., with luggage 50 c. — Steamboats to Nantes daily;
fares 3 fr. 20, 2 fr. 20 c.
Angers, capital of the Department Maine-et-Loire, formerly
of the Duchy of Anjou, with 56,797 inhab., is situated on both
sides of the Maine, which is formed by the union of the Mayenne
and Sarthe a short distance above the town and empties itself
into the Loire 5 M. below. Thus favourably situated in the
vicinity of three navigable rivers, the town has always been a
place of considerable importance. Its exterior has recently been
extensively modernized, and its former sobriquet of "la ville noire"
is no longer applicable. It still, however, contains a great number
of interesting relics.
The principal quarter of the town lies on the l. bank of the
river. The ramparts have been converted into boulevards. To
the E. of these is an open space, the Champ de Mars; adjacent
are the limited grounds and shady avenue of the Jardin du Mail;
farther N. a small Botanic Garden. Descending the Boulevard
to the W. the visitor reaches the *Castle, close to the river, a
massive structure of the 13th cent. with moats and 17 round
towers (70 ft. high). The interior now serves as a magazine
and, with the exception of a late Gothic chapel, contains nothing
worthy of special mention.
In front of the castle stands the bronze Statue of King René
of Anjou, a work of David, 1853; on the base are represented
12 princes of Anjou, from Dumnacus, the opponent of Cæsar, and
Roland downwards; also lists of the dukes and counts of Anjou.
The loftily situated *Cathedral of St. Maurice was commenced
in the 11th, but not completed till the 13th cent. It is surmounted
by two slender towers, the effect of which is somewhat
marred by the Renaissance erection subsequently introduced between
them. The principal façade exhibits the simple style of
the 12th cent. and is adorned with sculptures, Christ and saints;
higher up are statues of seven dukes of Anjou of a more recent
period.
The interior consists of a long nave without aisles. To the
l. of the entrance a basin for holy water of green marble, said
to be of Byzantine workmanship and a gift of king René. The
church is also remarkable for its rich stained glass of the 13th cent.
The *Museum, in the Rue Courte, a short distance S. of the
cathedral, occupies a most attractive edifice, partly Gothic and
partly Renaissance, erected about 1500 (Sundays and Thursdays
12—4 o'clock; at other times for a fee). The ground-floor contains
casts; one hall and two rooms here contain the principal
works of the sculptor David (d. 1856), a native of Angers, most of
them presented by himself. There are altogether about 150 works,
forming an instructive series. Five rooms on the first floor contain
pictures by ancient and modern masters; a small "Holy
Family" is attributed to Raphael. The mineralogical department
in the Nat. Hist. Cabinet is especially valuable. Also a collection
of Antiquities and a Library.
In the Rue Courte the traveller will also perceive the tower
of St Aubin (12th cent.), belonging to a former monastery, now
the prefecture. The neighbouring church of St. Martin (12th cent.)
has been converted into a magazine.
At the N. extremity of the town, near the seminary and the
Jardin des Plantes, stands St. Serge, an edifice of different periods,
portions of it very old. The simple nave, without transepts
or aisles, is entered from the vestibule. The choir of the
11th cent. is borne by 6 very slender columns.
The Marne is crossed at the N. end of the town by a chainbridge,
the Pont de la Haute Chaine (5 c.). Beyond it, on the r.,
appears the extensive modern Hospice Ste. Marie, capable of accommodating
upwards of 1000 patients and indigent persons. To
the l. the Hospice St. Jean, founded in the 12th cent. Below
the bridge the ruins of the old Pont des Treilles are observed;
farther on, the Grand Pont, or principal bridge. A third bridge,
the Pont de la Basse Chaine, crosses the river by the castle.
A suspension-bridge formerly occupied this position, but fell in
1850 as a batallion of light infantry were passing over it, 223 of
whom were drowned.
On the r. bank of the Maine (not far from the Grand Pont)
is the church de la Trinité, in the transition style of the 11th
and 12th centuries. The contiguous church du Ronceray, of the
11th cent., is within the precincts of the Ecole des Arts et Métiers
and in a very dilapidated condition. Both of these churches are
undergoing restoration. St. Jacques, without the Boulevards, is
also of very early origin.
Several other mediæval houses are encountered in the narrow
streets of the old town.
A visit to the slate-quarries, of which the most extensive are
Des Grands Carreaux (omnibus in the Boulevard, corner of the
excursion (omnibus from the same point every half-hour, 25 c.)
is to the Ponts de Cé on the Loire, 2 M. distant.
The line to Nantes crosses the Maine near stat. La Pointe
and then follows the r. bank of the Loire. At stat. Champtocé
are the ruins of the château of Gilles de Retz (p. 231), the veritable
French Bluebeard, who is said to have murdered upwards
of 100 girls and children, whose blood he drank in order to
restore himself to youth. To the l., on the opposite bank of
the river, rises Montjean with a ruined monastery.
Beyond stat. Ingrandes and Varades, St. Florent-le-Vieil is
perceived on the opposite bank of the Loire, a place frequently
mentioned in the wars of the Vendée, a district which commences
at this point.
At stat. Ancenis a suspension-bridge, at Oudon a lofty and
ancient church-tower. Several tunnels and small stations are
passed, and the train reaches
Nantes. Hotels: Hôtel de France, in the Place Graslin; Hôtel
du Commerce, Rue Santeuil; Hôtel de Bretagne, Place du Port
Communeau 6, a quiet situation; Hôtel de la Flcur, Place Neptune 4;
Hôtel de l'Europe, Place Neptune 7; Hôtel de Paris, Rue Boileau,
not far from the Passage; Hôtel des Voyageurs, Rue Molière.
Restaurants and Cafés: several in the Place Graslin. Principal newspaper:
Phare de la Loire.
Omnibus with luggage 60 c. — Fiacre per drive 1 fr. 25 c., per hr. 1½ fr.
Post-Office in the Passage Pommeraye.
Consuls. English: Mr. P. Barrow, Rue Héronnière 6; N American:
M. de la Montagnie, Quai Fosse 78.
English Church Service, every Sunday.
Steamboats to Angers, St. Nazaire, Bordeaux and other French seaports.
A regular line of communication has also recently been established between
St. Nazaire and America (comp. p. 236).
Nantes (popul. 113,625) is situated on the r. bank of the
Loire, at the point where it receives the Erdre, coming from
the N., which flows through the centre of the town, and the
Sèvre from the S. It lies 32 M. from the sea, so that vessels
of small tonnage (200) only ascend as far as the town; it is
however regarded as the fourth seaport of France (after Marseilles,
Havre and Bordeaux). It is now the most important
sugar-mart of France; in 1863 upwards of 60,000 tons were
imported and here manufactured. The import-dues amounted to
29,549,024 fr. An extensive ship-building traffic is also here
carried on.
Nantes was founded prior to the Roman period. It was subsequently
one of the chief towns of Brittany. In the Revolution it was remarkable
for its republican bias, and in 1793 strenuously and successfully opposed
the partisans of the Vendée. The town has acquired a melancholy celebrity
from the "Noyades" of Carrier, a brutal, ignorant miscreant, who had
been an advocate in Auvergne, and was sent by the "committee for the
public welfare" to Nantes Oct. 8th, 1793, but recalled on Feb. 1st 1794.
He is said to have put to death within 4 months (the data of the different
accounts vary) 6—9000 persons, a large proportion of whom were women
and children. Not satisfied with the execution done by the guillotine and
![illustration](https://iiif.lib.virginia.edu/iiif/uva-lib:111265/full/!1600,1600/0/default.jpg")
Nantes.
be thrown into the Loire. Persons of different sex were bound together
in a state of nudity and committed to the waters: such were the "mariages
republicains" invented by this ruffian. In 1789 Nantes had a population
of 81,000, but in 1800, notwithstanding a vast influx of new citizens from
the Vendée, it numbered 75,000 only. It is estimated that in Nantes and
the environs not fewer than 30,000 persons fell victims to the Revolution.
Nantes is now a handsome town of modern construction. The
numerous bridges which cross the different arms of the river impart
to it a somewhat novel aspect. The central point of traffic are the
Place Graslin, with the theatre, and the Place Royale. The Rue
Crébillon descends from the former to the latter, and from it
the Passage Pommeraye, constructed in 1843, leads to the Rue
de la Fosse. This animated arcade is remarkable for its three
different stories, connected by stairs and thus accommodating itself
the level of different streets. In the Place Royale rises a large
and sumptuous *Fountain; the principal figure in marble is the
Loire, around which are a number of small bronze figures, representing
the tributaries Sevre, Erdre, Cher, Loiret etc.
In the vicinity is St. Nicholas (Pl. 18), a handsome modern church
in the Gothic style, commenced in 1844; tower still unfinished.
At the back of the church is situated the *Musée de Peinture
(Pl. 30), in a building restored in 1861. The five saloons, lighted
from above, are admirably arranged, and the collection is one of
the finest in the provinces (Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays 12 to
4 o'clock; at other times fee 1 fr.; generally closed in September).
1st Room. Most modern pictures, among which, on the r.: Hamon,
Young mother and juggler. — 2nd Room. Older pictures: Two landscapes,
by Poussin: Adoration, by Honthorst (Gherardo delte Notti). The
most valuable addition to the museum, consisting of a series of fine paintings
of the modern French school, is due to the bequests of two private
collections. In the Collection Urvoy de St. Bedan: r. Ingres, Portrait;
Géricault, Hussar; Brascassat, several animal-pieces, the principal
of which are *Bulls fighting; Horace Vernet, The nocturnal ride; De Curzon,
Spinner; *P. Baudry, Charlotte Corday; by the same, Repentant Magdalene;
Destouches, Parting; *Grénier, Children attacked by a wolf; Ary Scheffer,
Dying nun. — Collection Clarke de Feltre: r. Portrait of Frederick
the Great; a number of heads, studies by P. Delaroche; H. Vernet, Abraham
and Hagar; *Delaroche, Sketch of the mural painting in the Ecole
des Beaux Arts (p. 151); Verboeckhoven, Sheep; Greuze, Boy reading; Leopold
Robert, Monk, Fisherboys, Girl of the neighbourhood of Naples; P. Delaroche,
Mother and child; Flandrin, Young girl; Delaroche, Girl swinging;
Fabre, Portrait of the Due de Feltre when minister of war in 1810; A. Hesse,
Reaper; R. Fleury, Cuirassiers; Nattier, Girl with flowers. — In the Last
Room, *Cleopatra, statue in marble over life-size, by Daniel Ducommun
du Locle, presented by the artist who was a native of Nantes.
The Natural History Museum (Pl. 29), Rue St. Léonard 3
(Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays 11—3 o'clock), contains a
mineralogical collection formed within the Department, a mummy
etc. The principal curiosity is the tanned skin of one of the
soldiers who fell in 1793 whilst fighting against the army of the
Vendée: before his death he had said to his comrades: "J'ai
fait peur aux brigands (i. e. the Royalists) pendant ma vie, je
vous faire un tambour avec ma peau". This whimsical request
was, however, only partially complied with.
The Archaeological Museum (Pl. 28), comprising Egyptian,
Roman and mediæval antiquities, is situated in the Rue Felix 14
(Thursdays and Sundays 12—4 o'clock). — The public Library
(Pl. 3), Rue de l'Aigle 1 (daily, except Sundays and Mondays,
11—4 o'clock) is a collection of considerable value.
The *Palace (Pl. 6) on the Loire was entirely renewed in
the 16th cent.; some portions only are of earlier date. Part of
it is employed as an arsenal (access permitted).
The *Cathedral of St. Pierre (Pl. 19), with unfinished towers,
dates from different periods. A thorough restoration was commenced
in the 15th cent., but has never been entirely carried
out. The three portals of the W. Façade are remarkable for
their profuse decoration with sculpture. The nave, 160 ft. in
height, is very impressive. Its loftiness and late Gothic construction
present a marked contrast to the Romanesque choir of
the 11th cent.
Since the Revolution the S. transept has contained the *Monument
of Francis II., the last Duke of Bretagne, and his wife
Margaret de Foix, a sumptuous work with numerous figures,
saints and allegories in the Renaissance style, by Michael Colomb
(d. 1514).
The Cours St. Pierre and St. André, a broad promenade,
separating the old town from the Faubourg St. Clément, is adorned
with mediocre statues of Anna of Bretagne, Arthur III.,
Duguesclin and Clisson. In the centre is the Place Louis XVI.,
with a column (86 ft. high) surmounted by a statue of the king.
Here on July 30th, 1830, a skirmish took place between the military
and a band of enterprising youths who desired to uphold the charter.
Ten of the latter, however, fell victims to their temerity.
The Cours Napoléon, near the Place Graslin, is adorned with
a statue of General Cambronne (Pl. 34), a native of Nantes,
erected by the town and the army in 1848. The words on the
pedestal: "La garde meurt, mais ne se rend pas" are erroneously
attributed to him.
His grave, like that of General de Bréa and the victims
of the July Revolution, is in the principal burial-ground, the
Cimetière de la Miséricorde.
The seaport of Nantes is Saint Nazaire, at the mouth of the
Loire, with 10,849 inhab., rapidly rising in importance. By
railway (5 trains daily) in 1¾—2½ hrs., fares 5 fr., 4 fr., 2½ fr.
From St. Nazaire Steamboat (Comp. Générale Transatlantique) on the
8th of every month to St. Vincent, Cayenne and Panama (in 21 days, 1st
cl. 1100, 2nd cl. 965 fr.); on the 16th of every month to St. Thomas, Havanna
and Veracruz (in 24 days, 1st cl. 1240, 2nd cl. 1100 fr.); every ten days to
Lisbon, Cadiz, Gibraltar and Malaga (to Lisbon 1st cl. 220, 2nd cl. 150 fr.).
45. From Nantes to Brest.
The Direct Railway, skirting the coast of Brittany, is open as far as
Châteaulin, a distance of 177½ M.; one train daily in 8½ hrs., fares
30 fr. 60, 22 fr. 70, 15 fr. 65 c. Omnibus from the station at Châteaulin
to the harbour (1 fr.), whence Steamboat to Brest in 4—5 hrs., fares 4
or 3 fr. The last portion of the route is however expected to be completed
during the present year.
Branch-line from Redon to Rennes. From Nantes to Rennes in 5,
thence to Brest in 8 hrs. (p. 239)
The peninsula of Brittany, 13,640 sq. M. in area, is intersected by
chains of hills which rise to the height of 1200 ft. The rock-formation is
principally granite; the soil is poor, the climate stormy and rainy. The
inhabitants, who are of Celtic origin, still cling to their ancient language
and customs, and are the least advanced in civilisation of all the inhabitants
of France. Rude Celtic antiquities (Menhir, stones placed on one end, sometimes
upwards of 40 ft. high; Dolms, or tables of stone, both probably employed
as monuments to the dead) are still encountered in great numbers, but
are gradually disappearing as cultivation advances.
On leaving the principal station the train skirts the harbour
on the Loire and passes the Palace and the Exchange (station).
It then follows the bank of the river for some distance and
finally proceeds inland. The S. coast of Brittany is flat and
marshy and the sea is seldom visible, so that the journey is
uninteresting.
At stat. Savenay the branch-line to St. Nazaire (p. 236) diverges,
at Redon (Rail. Restaurant) the line to Rennes (p. 239).
Several minor stations, then
Vannes (*Hôtel du Commerce; Hôtel de France), capital of
the Department du Morbihan, with 14,564 inhab., a small harbour
and no gas, although a place of considerable importance.
At Carnac near stat. Auray (Poste) the Celtic monuments of
Brittany are most abundant. Branch-line from Auray to Napoléonville,
formerly Pontivy (the former name, given to it by Napoleon
I., after having long been in abeyance, was revived under
the second empire).
Lorient (Hôtel de France), with 35,462 inhab., is an important
military and commercial place of modern origin, strongly fortified
and situated in a marshy plain. The next important place is
Quimper (Hôtel de l'Epée), with 11,438 inhab., capital of the
Department of Finisterre, possessing a handsome cathedral,
pleasantly situated.
A bleak stony district is next traversed and the train then
descends to stat. Châteaulin (Grande Maison), charmingly situated
in the valley of the Aulne, the continuation of which forms one
of the branches of the harbour at Brest. The train crosses the
river by an imposing viaduct. The steamboat journey to Brest
is beautiful. The diligence accommodates a limited number of
passengers only.
Brest. Hôtel de Provence (Pl. a), in the Champ de Bataille;
Hôtel du Grand Monarque (Pl. b); Hôtel des Voyageurs (Pl. c),
inn; Hôtel de France.
Omnibus from the station or the quay, with luggage 60 c.
Steamboats daily to Châteaulin and Landerneau (see p. 239); to
New York every fortnight (every other Saturday) in 10 days, 1st cl. 825,
2nd cl. 500 fr. (the express from Paris at 8 p. m. on Fridays corresponds
with these vessels which start on Saturday afternoon).
Brest, situated near Cape Finisterre, the most W. point of
France, with 67,833 inhab., possesses an admirable harbour, the
best in France and one of the best in Europe. It extends
between two promontories and is extremely capacious, being
about 13 M. long and 2¼ M. broad. The narrow (1 M.) entrance,
Le Goulet, is blockaded by a rocky island, which renders it almost
impregnable, and commanded by powerful batteries, numbering
about 400 guns. An extensive system of fortifications protects
these batteries and the various forts towards the land-side and
at the same time commands the inner roadstead. The latter is
divided into two main arms, which with numerous creeks and
inlets at last terminate in rivers. The N. arm, that of Landerneau,
is the estuary of the Elorn; the S., that of Châteaulin, is formed
by the influx of the Aulne.
At the mouth of a deep, ravine-like creek, on the N. side
of the roadstead, the town of Brest is situated. The principal
part of the town lies on the 1. bank, connected with the suburb
Recouvrance by a massive iron bridge, capable of being opened
to admit of the passage of the vessels of war from the docks
situated within it. The Naval Harbour is established in this
creek, which is 30 ft. in depth. At the issue stands an ancient
castle of the Dukes of Brittany, modernized by Vauban and incorporated
with the other fortifications. The improvement of the
harbour was commenced by Richelieu in 1631, and subsequent
governments have prosecuted the works down to the present
time. These operations have been conducted on a gigantic scale,
and in many places vast excavations in the solid granit have been
necessary. The entire establishment comprises three docks, a
number of workshops for the manufacture of cables, sails,
machines, cannon etc., extensive magazines, sailors' barracks accommodating
3500 men, a large hospital etc. (permission to visit
the dockyard obtained at the office of the "Etat Major" on exhibiting
a passport or visiting-card).
To this vast naval station, the workshops of which employ
8—9000 hands, Brest is indebted for its importance and busy
traffic. In other respects it is a place of modern aspect and
destitute of attraction. The Cours Ajot, a charming promenade,
affording an extensive survey of the roads, is however deserving
of mention.
At the foot of the latter, near Portztrein, to the 1. of the
entrance to the inner government-harbour, the commercial harbour,
![illustration](https://iiif.lib.virginia.edu/iiif/uva-lib:111273/full/!1600,1600/0/default.jpg")
BREST
and is enclosed by protecting bulwarks. It is, however, questionable
whether this harbour will attain to great importance, Brest being
so far removed from the main arteries of traffic.
A number of vessels of war generally lie in the roads. A
visit to these, or by a local steamer to landerneau or Châteaulin
(2½ hrs., returning by railway, p. 237), is recommended as the
pleasantest occupation for a few leisure hours.
Brest is also strongly fortified on the land-side and even in
former centuries has frequently been unsuccessfully attacked by
the English.
46. From Brest to Paris by Rennes and Le Mans.
389½ M. Railway in 17 hrs.; fares 69 fr. 80, 52 fr. 35, 38 fr. 40 c. —
As far as Rennes (155½ M.) two ordinary trains only daily, thence to
Le Mans there are also two express trains, from Le Mans to Paris five express
Endeavours are made to attract to this channel a large proportion of the
stream of emigrants bound for America, the sea-voyage between Brest
and the W. hemisphere being the shortest of all those from the French
coast (9—11 days). Express trains will probably soon run between Rennes
and Brest, so as to diminish the journey by 2 hrs.
The train passes stat. Kerhuon, on the Landerneau arm of
the harbour; pleasing scenery (views on the r.). Beyond stat.
Landerneau (Hôtel de l'Univers), a small manufacturing town
with a popul. of 7000, the Elorn is crossed. To the r. the
church and picturesque ruined castle of La Roche Maurice are
next passed.
Stat. Morlaix (Hôtel de Provence), a town with 14,000 inhab.,
is picturesquely situated in a ravine, which the train crosses by
an imposing viaduct (290 yds. long, 195 ft. high). Then several
unimportant stations, of which Guingamp possesses a handsome
church.
The train now ascends to stat. Chatelaudren and crosses the
valley of the Gouet by a viaduct 540 ft. in height. Stat. St. Brieuc,
a town with 15,341 inhab. will be the junction of this line with
that from Auray and Napoléonville (p. 237). Eight insignificant
stations are next passed, and the train reaches
Rennes. Grand Hôtel Julien; *Hôtel de France. — Café
de France. — Omnibus 40 c., with luggage 60 c. Fiacres per drive
1 fr. 25 c., for 1 hr. 1 fr. 75 c., each subsequent hr. 1 fr. 50 c.
Rennes, situated at the confluence of the Vilaine and Ille,
capital of the Department of these rivers, formerly of Brittany,
with a popul. of 45,485, was almost totally destroyed by fire in
1720 and is now a pleasant modern town.
The handsome Palais de Justice, dating from 1670, is situated
in the Place du Palais. The Cathedral is modern, with vaulted
ceiling and Corinthian columns. Opposite to it the ancient Porte
formerly entered to celebrate their coronation.
On the quay rise the handsome, recently erected University
Buildings. They contain a *Museum (Sundays and Thursdays
12—4 o'clock; entrance at the back), a very creditable collection
which is worthy of a visit.
It contains a large saloon with sculptures and casts; a natural history
collection; a corridor with drawings of the French school; 5 saloons with
pictures (Lion Hunt by Rubens, Andromeda by P. Veronese, Horses by
Wouvermann etc.; also a quaint picture representing death in the different
grades of life, attributed by the inscription, which was subsequently added,
to René d'Anjou, Roy de Sicile); another room with engravings.
Beautiful walks to the Mont Thabor, in the Botanical Gardens,
Le Mail, the confluence of the Ille and the Vilaine etc.
Branch-line from Rennes in 2½ hrs. to St. Malo (Hôtel de France,
the house in which Châuteaubriand was born; Hôtel de la Paix), a fortified
seaport with 10,886 inhab., situated on a rocky islet which is connected
with the mainland by an embankment.
Laval (Hôtel de Paris), on the Mayenne, capital of this Department,
with 22,892 inhab., is the next stat. of importance.
Several ancient structures still exist, such as the castle, now
prison, of the 12th cent., and the Romanesque church of Avenières,
erected in 1040. The town possesses extensive manufactories
of linen and cotton.
The line then crosses the Mayenne and passes eleven unimportant
villages, most of which lie to the r. of the line
Le Mans, and thence to Paris, see pp. 231—229.
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
![illustration](https://iiif.lib.virginia.edu/iiif/uva-lib:111279/full/!1600,1600/0/default.jpg")
CAEN
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
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.
![illustration](https://iiif.lib.virginia.edu/iiif/uva-lib:111284/full/!1600,1600/0/default.jpg")
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
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.
C. ROUTES FROM PARIS TO THE RHINE
AND SWITZERLAND.
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
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.)
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
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").
For a more detailed account of this route see "Baedeker's Belgique et
Hollande" or "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
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
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
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
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.
49. From Paris to Strasbourg by Châlons and Nancy.
By Express in 10¼—11¼ hrs., by ordinary trains in 15—16½ hrs.;
fares 56 fr. 20 c., 42 fr. 15 c. and 30 fr. 90 c. — Station in the Place de
Strasbourg; special omnibuses, see p. 24.
Soon after quitting the station the train crosses the canal of
St. Denis and the high-road from Paris to Lille. Beyond the
fortifications it skirts Pantin, where on March 14th, 1814, the most
sanguinary encounters took place between French and Russian
troops. Stat. Noisy-le-Sec. Several of the villages beyond the
Forêt de Bondy, especially Lagny and Damard, annually send
a vast quantity of fruit to Paris, of an average value of 50,000 L.
the bank of the river as far as Vitry-le-François (p. 255). The
valley of the Marne presents a succession of picturesque landscapes.
Near Chalifert the river is crossed and a tunnel entered.
The Canal de Chalifert also penetrates the hill by means of another
tunnel, navigated by small steamboats. The country is here
remarkably pretty.
Meaux (Sirène; Hôtel Grignan; Palais Royal) is a small town of
great antiquity, on the Marne (10,762 inhab.). Here in 1240 the
council sat which sentenced the emperor Frederick II. to excommunication.
Five centuries later Meaux was the episcopal residence
of the celebrated Bossuet (d. 1704), whose study and favourite
walks are still pointed out. The Gothic Cathedral, erected at
various periods between the 12th and 16th. centuries, is situated
on an eminence. It contains a monument to Bossuet of very inferior
workmanship. The vaulted roof is remarkable for its loftiness,
and the triforium merits inspection.
The small town of Laferté-sous-Jouarre, birthplace of Madame
de Pompadour, was in the 16th cent. a flourishing Protestant community,
whose liberty, however, was but of short duration. It is
situated in a fertile and highly cultivated valley and surrounded
by numerous country-residences. To the left, the river is bounded
by richly wooded hills.
Château-Thierry (Hôtel d'Angleterre), on the Marne, is rendered
conspicuous by the massive tower of the ancient Gothic
church of St. Crispin, and the scanty ruins of a castle said to
have been erected by Charles Martel in 720 for the young king
Thierry. Lafontaine, the eminent fabulist, was born here, and a
monument has been erected to his memory. The Russians suffered
severe losses in the vicinity of the town in Feb., 1814.
The champagne-growing district is now entered. Between
Port-à-Binson and Damery, on a wooded eminence to the right,
rises the Château de Boursault, a handsome Gothic edifice erected
by Madame Cliquot, a name dear to the bon-vivant, for her sonin-law
M. de Mortemart.
To the right and left rise rich, vine-clad hills, between which,
in a broad, fertile valley, the Marne winds.
Epernay (Hôtel de l'Europe), the central point of the champagne
traffic, is picturesquely situated in the midst of the most
prolific vineyards. The spacious cellars hewn in the chalk-rock
are admirably suited for storing the wine, and contain millions of
bottles. — The day-express allows passengers time for a hasty
meal ("déjeuner-dînatoire") at Epernay, 2½ fr. incl. wine; champagne
may be purchased by the glass.
From Epernay to Rheims by a branch line in 50 min.; fares 3 fr.
35, 2 fr. 50 and 1 fr. 25 c.
Rheims (Lion d'Or, opp. the cathedral; Arbre d'Or. — English Church
Service), situated on the right bank of the Vesle and surrounded by vine-clad
inhab.) where for many centuries the coronation of the monarchs of France
was wont to be celebrated.
The most interesting monument which Rheims possesses of the late
Roman period is the *Porte de Mars, a triumphal arch sonsisting of three
different archways. On the vaulting of the arch to the right (approached
from the town) are represented Romulus and Remus with the wolf, between
Faustulus and Acca Laurentia (?). On the central arch were represented
the 12 months in different compartments, five of which are totally
destroyed. A few fragments of the beautifully fluted Corinthian columns
still exist.
The *Cathedral is a magnificent structure in the early Gothic style,
founded in 1212 and completed by Robert de Coucy of Rheims at the commencement
of the 14th cent. The Façade, with its three receding portals,
adorned with numerous statues, is unfortunately in a dilapidated state,
but is now with the rest of the church undergoing a careful restoration.
The central portal represents the Coronation of the Virgin, that to the r.
the Final Judgment, and to the l. the Passion. Of the seven Towers five
were destroyed by fire in 1841. The two towers of the façade, which lost
their spires on the same occasion, present a far more elegant aspect than
is usually the case with unfinished Gothic towers, owing to the pointed
character of the large windows and the remarkably graceful turrets at the
angles. Many of the numerous sculptures with which the exterior is richly
decorated are considered the finest specimens in France of the early
Gothic period.
The church is cruciform with an unusually projecting transept, an dconsists
of a nave and two aisles; the choir is at first flanked with four
aisles, of which however the two external beyond the second arch form
a series of chapels. The entire length of the edifice is 450 ft., breadth
92 ft., length of transept 153 ft., height 110 ft. The tracery of the triforium
gallery and the windows is rich and beautiful; generally, however, the interior
of the church is far simpler than the exterior with the exception
of the jambs of the door, which alone are adorned with 122 statues. On
those of the principal entrance is represented the martyrdom of St. Nicaise.
Most of the windows, including the magnificent rose between the towers
of the façade, are filled with stained glass.
To the r. in the nave is situated the ancient Sarcophagus of Jovinus,
at a very remote period prefect of Rheims, removed to its present position
in 1790 from the Gothic church of St. Nicaise, which was at that time
destroyed. It consists of a single, solid block of white marble, 8½ ft.
long and 4½ ft. in thickness. The bas-relief which adorns it represents
a lion-hunt, beautifully executed.
The Clock with moveable figures in the N. transept is said to be the
oldest existing piece of mechanism of this description.
Rheims was probably selected for the coronation of the monarchs of
France because here the Sainte Ampoule, or sacred oil-vessel, was preserved,
which is said to have been brought down from heaven by a dove on the
occasion of the baptism of Clovis by St. Remi Louis VII. and his son
Philip Augustus elevated the archbishops to the rank of dukes and confirmed
their often disputed privilege of performing the coronation ceremony.
Here in 1429 Charles VII. was crowned, after he had been conducted to
Rheims by the intrepid Joan of Arc, who during the ceremony stood beside
him, the victorious banner in her hand. With the exception of
Henry II. who was crowned at Chartres, Napoleon I., crowned at Paris,
and Louis XVIII., Louis Philippe and Napoleon III. on whom the ceremony
was never performed, all the monarchs of France since 1173 have been
crowned at Rheims by the archbishop as primate of the entire kingdom.
Of all the costly objects employed on these occasions none have escaped
the Vandalism of the Revolution with the exception of the massive golden
goblet of St. Remi, which during six centuries has been in the possession
of the cathedral.
![illustration](https://iiif.lib.virginia.edu/iiif/uva-lib:111299/full/!1600,1600/0/default.jpg")
REIMS
The S. tower, which contains the huge bell (24,000 lbs.) cast in 1750,
should be ascended, as it affords an admirable survey of the rich decorations
and architectural beauties of the exterior of the church.
The Archiepiscopal Palace, contiguous to the cathedral on the S. side,
contains a gorgeously decorated vestibule and a beautiful chapel. Here
the sovereigns of France abode during the coronation festivities, and in
1429 the Maid of Orleans.
*St. Remi, founded in 1044, is the most ancient church in Rheims, and
in its plan somewhat resembles the cathedral. The interior was originally
Romanesque, the choir is a beautiful specimen of Gothic, the S. transept
Flamboyant. The five semicircular chapels which flank the choir are separated
from it by a graceful colonnade. The exterior displays a few
symptoms of early Gothic; the two Romanesque towers of the façade are
surmounted by lofty, pointed spires. The revolution has left the church
entirely destitute of its former costly and magnificent contents, save the
12 statues representing the 6 temporal and 6 spiritual peers of France, and
the group of the tomb of St. Remi.
The Sainte Ampoule (see p. 254) was formerly kept in the church of
St. Remi. The abbot, mounted on a white palfrey, conveyed this precious
vessel, filled with the sacred oil, to the cathedral on the coronation-day,
whilst a number of knights were detained at St. Remi as pledges for the
safe return of the holy man. The Sainte Ampoule was destroyed during
the devastation of the abbey in 1793; a fragment, however, is said to have
been preserved, and was afterwards employed at the coronation of Charles X.
in 1826.
The handsome Hôtel de Ville is Renaissance, erected under Louis XIII.,
an equestrian figure of whom is seen in the bas-relief above the entrance.
The best-built street in Rheims leads from the Hôtel de Ville to the
Place Royale, adorned with a statue of Louis XV. The houses surrounding
the square are flanked with arcades of the Doric order.
The tasteful fountain in the Place Goudinot was erected to the memory
of a canon of that name who was instrumental in supplying the town
with water.
Over the door of the Hôtel de la Maison Rouge is the following inscription:
"L'an 1429, au sucre de Charles VII., dans cette hôtellerie, ulors
nommée l'Ane Rouge, le père et la mère de Jeanne d'Arc ont été logés et défrayés
par le conseil de la ville."
Beyond Epernay the country becomes flatter. The first
station of importance is Châlons-sur-Marne (Cloche d'Or;
Morisot), capital of the Department of the Marne, with a
population of 16,675, and one of the principal depôts of champagne.
The extensive buildings to the right of the station are
the champagne manufactory of M. Jacquesson. — The Cathedral
with its graceful, open-work towers is a conspicuous object in
the town. Notre Dame, on the other side of the town, a fine
example of the transition from the Romanesque to the Gothic,
dates from 1157. Its towers are more massive than those of the
cathedral, but by no means devoid of beauty.
Near Chalons (by a branch line in 50 min.) is situated the
camp of Le Mourmelon, destined by the present emperor for the
great annual manœuvres of the army which take place every autumn.
The train next traverses a far poorer district. To the left
flows the Marne winding through picturesque meadows and fringed
with trees.
Vitry-le-François, with its handsome Renaissance church,
surrounded by vineyards and fruit-trees, is indebted to Francis I.
emperor Charles V. — Here the Marne is crossed for the last
time and the course of the Rhine-Marne Canal followed. The
next station worthy of mention is
Bar-le-Duc (Hôtel de Metz et du Commerce; Cygne, moderate),
a picturesque town on the Ornain, once the capital of the
ancient Duché de Bar, now of the Department of the Meuse
(population 14,922). The church of St. Pierre in the Haute Ville
contains a well-executed monument in marble to the memory of
the Duc Réné de Châlons, Prince of Orange, who fell in 1544
at the siege of St. Dizier. The animated Ville Basse contains
monuments of the marshals Oudinot and Excelmans, both natives
of Bar-le-Duc.
After traversing a somewhat monotonous district the train
descends into the valley of the Meuse, here an insignificant stream,
which it twice crosses.
Commercy possesses a château of considerable size, on the
bank of the Meuse, which was once the residence of Cardinal
Francis Paul de Retz (d. 1679), who here wrote his memoirs. It
was subsequently occupied by Stanislaus Lesczinski, ex-king of
Poland, in 1744, and is now employed as barracks.
Toul (Hôtel de l'Europe), the Tullum Leucorum of the Romans,
a fortress situated on the Moselle at some distance to the right of
the line, has during 1200 years been the seat of a bishop and
is one of the most ancient towns of Lorraine (7687 inhab.).
The beautiful Gothic towers of the Cathedral are conspicuous; it
also possesses an admirable façade dating from 1340—1389. Another
Gothic tower which is also visible belongs to the abbey
church of St. Gengoult.
The Rhine-Marne Canal and Moselle here flow side by side
and are crossed at Fontenoy, beyond which one of the most
picturesque and, in an engineering point of view, remarkable
points of the whole line is reached. The valley of the Moselle
here contracts, the banks become more precipitous, and vineyards
begin to appear on the sunny heights.
Liverdun, the Livodunum of the Romans, is picturesquely
situated on an eminence, with the ruins of a castle destroyed in
1467. For some distance the railway, high-road, river and canal
are parallel to each other; the latter penetrates the hill, on which
Liverdun lies, by means of a tunnel. Here, within a very short
distance of each other, are two railway-bridges, a canal-bridge,
a lock, a harbour, a canal-tunnel and railway-bridges over canal
and road, works which have cost upwards of 140,000 L.
At Frouard the Meurthe unites with the Moselle. The town
is on the right, the railway-station on the left bank of the river.
The line to Metz diverges here.
Nancy. Hotels: *de l'Europe; de France; de Paris; du Commerce;
*d'Angleterre, moderate, and de Metz both near the railway-stations.
— Cafés: Stanislas; de l'Opéra; de la Comédie etc. all in
the Place Stanislas, formerly capital of Lorraine and seat of the dukes,
of whom Stanislaus Lesczinsky, ex-king of Poland, was the last,
is chiefly indebted for its prosperous aspect to his predecessor
Leopold (d. 1729), father of the German emperor Francis I. It
is now the principal town of the Department of the Meurthe,
on which river it is situated, and has a population of 49,305.
Nancy is one of the best-built towns in France and possesses
many handsome edifices. The vineyards by which it is surrounded
contribute greatly to the beauty of the situation. —
It contains an Ecole Forestière, or nursery for forest-trees, the only
establishment of the kind in France.
The town is entered by the Porte Stanislas, one of the seven
handsome gates of Nancy, leading to the Place Dombasle, where
a statue by David of the eminent agriculturist of that name stands.
The first street which diverges from the Rue Stanislas to the left
leads to the Cours Léopold, a handsome square adorned with a
*Statue of Marshal Drouot, in bronze, by David. The pedestal
is decorated with reliefs and inscribed with the names of battles
at which the marshal (a native of Nancy) was present.
Returning to the Rue Stanislas the traveller follows this street
and will soon reach the *Place Stanislas, the finest point in the
town. It is adorned with the Statue of Stanislaus (d. 1766),
erected by the three departments (Meurthe, Meuse, Vosges) which
formerly constituted the Duchy of Lorraine. The statue looks towards
the Triumphal Arch which Stanislaus erected in honour of
Louis XV. The Place is surrounded by five handsome edifices,
the Hôtel de Ville, the theatre, the episcopal palace (Evêché)
and two private residences.
The Hôtel de Ville contains a small *collection of pictures.
1st Room (in a small box is preserved a lock of Napoleon's
hair, his star of the Legion of Honour and a sabre worn by him
in Egypt): 225. Delacroix, Battle of Nancy, Jan. 5th, 1477, fought
by Charles le Téméraire, Duke of Burgundy, against Duke Réné
of Lorraine, in which the former fell; 184. Horace Vernet, Portrait
of General Drouot; 187. Vouet, Nymphs; 188. Vouet, Cupids
playing with the arms of Æneas; 189. Ziegler, St. George and
the dragon. 2nd Room: 14. Guido Reni, Cleopatra; 16. Copy
of the celebrated "Marriage of Cana" of Paul Veronese in the
Louvre (p. 62); 45. De Craeyer, The pestilence at Milan;
46. Delmont, The Resurrection, covering the greater portion of
the wall. — 3rd Room: 15. Leonardo da Vinci, Head of Christ;
75. Teniers, Interior of a farm; 76. Teniers, Landscape; 163. A
landscape by "Claude Lorrain" (properly Claude Gelée, d 1652)
in 1600; 170. Mignard, Virgin and Child.
At the back of the Hôtel de Ville, in the Rue d'Alliance
(so called from the French and Austrian alliance of 1756 against
Prussia), is the Préfecture.
Passing through the Triumphal Arch, to the left, the visitor
reaches the Place Carrière, another handsome square planted with
trees, on the farther side of which is the former palace of King
Stanislaus, now the residence of the commander of the 3rd corps
of the French army (lately Marshal Forey). On either side, the
Tribunal de Commerce and the Cour Impériale.
The Franciscan Eglise de Cordeliers, at the back of the palace,
contains (l. side) the tomb of the talented painter and engraver
Jacques Callot, and, in the richly decorated *Chapelle Ronde,
burial-place of the Dukes of Lorraine, a number of interesting
monuments from the 12th to the 18th cent. During the first
revolution the coffins were conveyed to the public cemetery and
this chapel converted into a magazine. In 1822 it was restored
at the expense of France and Austria. Mass is still performed
here by an almoner of the Lorraine Hapsburg family. — Duke
Francis of Lorraine by his marriage with the Archduchess
Maria Theresa (1736), heiress of the lands of Hapsburg, became
the founder of the present imperial house of Austria.
The contiguous Palais Ducal, formerly a residence of the
dukes, contains the Musée Lorrain, a collection of relics from the
Lorraine period. In a small court, Roman antiquities found in
the environs. The palace itself now serves as barracks. It was
erected by Duke Réné II., conqueror of Charles le Téméraire,
and possesses a fine late Gothic portal with an equestrian statue
of Duke Leopold II. towards the Grand' Rue. The edifice was
restored by Stanislaus.
In the new part of the town, to the right of the Place Stanislas
(when approached from the station) rises the Cathedral,
in the Jesuitical style, completed in 1742, containing nothing to
interest the traveller save some handsome altars in marble.
The Pepinière, extensive grounds with fine avenues, entered
from the Place Stanislas and the Place Carrière, affords a pleasant
promenade; military music at 4 p. m. during the season.
In the suburb of St Pierre is the Eglise de Bon Secours,
where Stanislaus (d. 1766) and his consort are interred. After
his abdication as king of Poland (1735) he continued to be reigning
duke of Lorraine and Bar until his death, when the duchy
fell to the crown of France.
In 1814, and again in 1815, the three allied monarchs (Prussia,
Austria, Russia) had their head-quarters at Nancy, where the proposal
of a "Holy Alliance" is said first to have been originated.
The railway-station of Nancy occupies a piece of marshy ground
where, after the battle of Nancy, the body of the Duke of
Burgundy was found. In a burial ground in the vicinity 4000
of the duke's troops were interred, and the commemorative Croix
de Bourgogne erected by the victorious Duke Réné (d. 1508),
bearing the following inscription:
| En l'an de l'incarnation | Et en bataille ici transcy |
| Mil quatre cent septante six | Ou croix fut mise pour mémoire |
| Veille de l'Apparition | Réné Duc de Loraine me(r)cy |
| Fut le Duc de Bourgogne occis | Rendant à Dieu pour la victoire. |
Quitting Nancy, the train crosses the Meurthe and the Rhine-Marne
Canal.
Varangeville and St. Nicolas are two small towns connected
by a bridge over the Meurthe. The church of the former dates
from the 15th cent., that of the latter from 1494—1544.
Lunéville (15,528 inhab.), at the confluence of the Meurthe
and Vezouse, was the birthplace of Francis I. of Austria, son
of Leopold Duke of Lorraine, and founder of the present
imperial house. In a house in the Rue d'Allemagne the
peace of Lunéville, between France and Austria, was signed,
Feb. 9th, 1801.
Sarrebourg (*Hôtel du Sauvage), on the Sarre which here
becomes navigable, is the boundary between the French and German
languages, the former being spoken in the upper, the latter
in the lower part of the town (not to be confounded with Saarburg
near Treves, in the Prussian dominions). The place would
become of the utmost importance in case of a Rhenish war,
and has in consequence been provided with extensive provision
magazines.
The rich plains of Lorraine are now quitted, and a spur of
the Vosges Mts. is penetrated by the tunnel of Archwiller, 1½ M.
in length, through which the Rhine-Marne Canal also passes. The
train enters the valley of the Zorn. Opposite to Lutzelbourg, the
last station in the Department of the Meurthe, rise the picturesque
ruins of an ancient fortress.
Saverne (*Soleil), a small town with a population of 6400.
The handsome Palace, erected in 1666 by a Bishop of Strasbourg,
was afterwards occupied by Cardinal de Rohan (d. 1802), whose
fatal influence on the destinies of the court of Louis XVI is well
known. By an imperial decree of 1852 the edifice was appropriated
to the use of widows and daughters of deserving officials.
Above the town rises the ancient castle of Greifenstein. On the
opposite side of the valley, the extensive and picturesque ruins
of *Haut-Barr, scarcely distinguishable from the grotesquely shaped
rocks on which it stands.
Between Saverne and Strasbourg the country is uninteresting.
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
![illustration](https://iiif.lib.virginia.edu/iiif/uva-lib:111309/full/!1600,1600/0/default.jpg")
Strasbourg.
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
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.
51. From Paris to Mannheim or Coblenz (Bingen).
Express to Forbach in 11, ordinary trains in 14 hrs.; fares to Forbach
51 fr. 30 c., 38 fr. 45 c., 28 fr. 20 c. First-class tickets only issued for
the express trains.
From Forbach to Mannheim in 4¼ hrs.; fares 6 fl. 37 kr., 4 fl. 9 kr.,
2 fl. 51 kr.
The railway-station for Strasbourg and Metz is at the N. extremity of
the Boulevard de Strasbourg (Pl., red 10). Special omnibus see p. 24.
a. From Paris to Metz.
Express in 8, ordinary trains in 12½ hrs.; fares 39 fr. 65, 29 fr. 80,
21 fr. 25 c.
From Paris to Frouard see R. 49.
At Frouard the carriages for Metz are detached from the train
to Nancy and Strasbourg, cross the canal and the Moselle near
the station and follow the pleasant and populous valley of the
latter, which here becomes navigable and is enclosed between
gently sloping banks.
Pont-à-Mousson, with the ruined fortress Mousson (fine view)
on an eminence, its church (St. Martin) with two towers and its
bridge over the Moselle, presents a pleasing picture. Cardinal
![illustration](https://iiif.lib.virginia.edu/iiif/uva-lib:111317/full/!1600,1600/0/default.jpg")
METZ
in which were occupied by Jesuits. Before the cession of Lorraine
to the French (1746) the town with its small territory
was under the jurisdiction of a German Margrave.
On a mountain on the l., near stat. Pagny, are the ruins of
the château of Prény, once appertaining to the Dukes of Lorraine.
Excellent wine is produced here.
At stat. Novéant a suspension-bridge crosses the Moselle. On
the r. bank of the river the extensive remains of a Roman
*Aqueduct, constructed by Drusus, visible from a considerable
distance, are perceived at intervals. It was 57 ft. in height and
3420 ft. in length and conducted water from the hills of the r. bank
to Divodurum, the modern Metz. At Jouy-aux-Arches 11 arches
are still well preserved, and at Ars (or rather Arches-sur-Moselle),
7 others, termed by the peasantry "Pont du Diable", rise close
to the railway. The bridge by which the train crosses the
Moselle affords a good final survey of this imposing Roman
structure.
The train then reaches Metz, which lies so buried amidst its
green ramparts, that little of the town is perceived from the
railway.
b. Metz.
Hôtels. *Grand Hôtel de Metz (Pl. a), R. 2, B. 1, D. inc. W. 3½,
A. ¾ fr.; Hôtel de l'Europe (Pl. b), R. and L. 3, D. 4, A. 1 fr.; both
in the Rue des Clercs. *Hôtel de Paris (Pl. c), adjoining the Terrace,
of the second class. Hôtel du Nord (Pl. d); Hôtel du Commerce
(Pl. e); Hôtel du Porte Enseigne (Pl. f)
Cafés. Café Parisien, Place de la Comédie; Café du Grand
Balcon, in the Esplanade near the station, affording a great variety of
ices; Café Français and Café Fabert, in the Place Napoléon, near
the cathedral.
Metz, once the capital of the kingdom of Austrasia, afterwards
appertaining to the German empire, and in 1556 ceded to
France together with Toul and Verdun, is now one of the most
important military stations in France, with a garrison of 14,000
men and a great school of artillery. It is the capital of the
Département de la Moselle and contains a population of 56,888.
The river flows through the town in several branches, thus
forming several islands.
The most important edifice is the *Cathedral (Pl. 7), a
Gothic structure with numerous flying buttresses. The nave
was completed in 1332, the choir in 1519 and the portal added
in 1764. At the altar adjoining the sacristy is the kneeling
figure of the architect Pierre Perrat (d. 1400). All the ancient
monuments and pictures were destroyed during the revolution,
with the exception of a few venerable frescoes on the pillars,
recently freed from their coating of whitewash. The choir contains
besides several windows of modern workmanship.
The tower is 363 ft. in height; 110 steps ascend to the first
(105 to the large bell La Muette), 78 more to the highest terrace.
The passage is very narrow at one point, but presents no
real difficulty. The view from the summit amply repays the
ascent and embraces the extremely fertile "Pays Messin", the
town, the fortifications and the course of the Moselle.
The open halls of the Marché Couvert (Pl. 23), opposite
the W. portal, are occupied by vendors of fruit, vegetables and
flowers and afford a striking proof of the luxuriant fertility of
the environs. Pine-apples of considerable size, as well as fine
specimens of other fruits, are frequently observed. — Those who
are interested in such establishments may visit the extensive
Abattoir, or slaughter-house, situated without the Porte Chambière.
In the Place Napoléon, which adjoins the W. side of the
cathedral, rises the Statue of Marshal Fabert (d. 1662), a
contemporary of Turenne. The inscription records a declaration
by the marshal of his willingness to sacrifice his life and property
in the service of his king.
The Library (Pl. 2), near the cathedral, contains numerous
Roman antiquities and a small collection of pictures.
The Arsenal (Pl. 1) contains specimens of modern, as well
as ancient weapons, tastefully arranged, and in the court numerous
cannons (gratuity 1 fr., closed on Sundays). Under a roof to the
l. of the entrance is a long cannon carried off by the French
with 189 others in 1799 from the fortress of Ehrenbreitstein,
where it was known by the name of Vogel Greiff, having been
constructed by order of the Elector of Trèves, Richard von
Greiffenclau. It is 15 ft. in length and weighs 12½ tons.
The high road to Germany issues from the Porte des Allemands
and the Fort Belle Croix. The Rue des Allemands, leading
to this gate, contains a considerable number of German shops.
The gate exhibits bullet-marks dating from the unsuccessful siege
of the town by the emperor Charles V.
The contiguous church of St. Eucaire (St. Eucharius) (Pl. 5)
is a tasteful structure of the 12th cent., especially interesting to
the professional observer. Interior destitute of ornament.
The S. side of the town is bounded by the Esplanade,
with its beautiful walks and imposing barracks. Military music
here in the evening, three times weekly.
On the Esplanade rises the Palais de Justice (Pl. 25),
an extensive building erected during the last century, and seat
of the different courts of judicature. In the police and other
courts the services of an interpreter are frequently required when
the parties concerned are natives of the E. or N. portion of the
exclusively spoken.
A few leisure hours may advantageously be employed in
making an excursion to Jouy-aux-Arches (p. 265).
Railway from Metz to Trèves by Thionville and Luxembourg,
the most direct route, in 3¾ hrs.; fares 12 fr. 45, 9 fr. 25,
6 fr. 65 c.
c. From Metz to Mannheim and Mayence.
By Railway in 7½ hrs.; fares from Metz to Forbach 11 fr. 65, 8 fr. 65,
6 fr. 95 c.; from Forbach to Ludwigshafen (Mannheim) 6 fl. 37, 4 fl. 9,
2 fl. 51 kr.
An undulating, agricultural district is traversed between Metz
and Forbach, and several unimportant stations are passed.
At St. Avold the line enters a forest; the red sandstone
imparts greater variety to the landscape.
Hombourg lies picturesquely on an isolated eminence, which
has procured for the place the epithet of "la guérite du monde".
The cuttings through the wooded mountains beyond Hombourg
afford a survey of the strata of the red sandstone.
Forbach is the last French station, where those entering
France undergo the usual custom-house formalities. Carriages are
changed here. Soon after the station is quitted several smelting
furnaces are perceived on the r., and the coal-district is entered.
The frontier is crossed, and the train descends to the Saar, which
it crosses, and soon reaches
Saarbrücken (Post), the first Prussian station, and seat of
the custom-house officials. — Arnual, in the vicinity, possesses
a fine Gothic church of 1315, containing an admirable font and
very interesting ancient monuments of the princely family of
Nassau-Saarbrücken.
(Railway to Trèves in 3 hrs. From Trèves to Coblenz by
steamboat in 10—12 hrs., comp. Baedeker's Rhine.)
The long series of furnaces near Duttweiler are situated in
the midst of a most valuable coal-district, which in almost its
entire extent belongs to the Prussian government, and is the
seat of numerous industrial establishments in the vicinity of the
following stations Sulzbach, Friedrichsthal and Neunkirchen. The
cuttings through the rocky and wooded mountains frequently
display the stratification of the coal. Between the two last
stations a tunnel 500 yds. in length.
At Neunkirchen the Rhine-Nahe Railway diverges to Creuznach
and Bingen (Coblenz), see p. 269.
At Bexbach, where the Bavarian Palatinate commences, the
country becomes flat. To the r. a pleasing survey of the green
dale watered by the Bexbach.
Homburg is a small town with a handsome modern church.
It was once fortified, but was dismantled in consequence of the
but again destroyed in 1714 after the Peace of Baden. The
castle of Carlsberg, situated on an eminence 1½ M. from the
town, erected in 1780 by Duke Charles II. of Zweibrücken,
was destroyed by the French in 1793.
The line now skirts a chain of wooded hills and passes two
small stations.
Landstuhl was once the seat of the Sickingen family, whose
ruined stronghold, with walls 24 ft. in thickness, rises above the
village. Francis von Sickingen was here besieged by the electors
of the Palatinate and Trèves and killed, May 7th, 1523, by a
falling beam.
Kaiserslautern (Cygne) is one of the most considerable towns
of the Palatinate. The site of a magnificent palace erected here
by the emp. Frederick I. (Barbarossa) in 1153, destroyed in the
Spanish War of Succession, is now occupied by a modern house
of correction. The handsome corn-exchange was built in 1846.
A monument in the churchyard is sacred to the memory of
soldiers of Napoleon who were natives of Kaiserslautern. The
ancient Protestant church, with its three towers, said to have
been also founded by Frederick I., is one of the most conspicuous
edifices.
The line soon enters the Haardt Mountains and descends in
the picturesque and wooded valley of the Speierbach to the
plain of the Rhine, 100 ft. lower. Within a short distance 12
tunnels here penetrate the variegated sandstone rock, the first
of which (1500 yds. long) is the longest. Each tunnel is
furnished with a species of portal.
At Neustadt (Löwe, at the station; Schiff; Krone) the line
reaches the plain of the Rhine. This is the principal town of
the Haardt Mts., and was founded by the Counts Palatine, several
monuments to whom are preserved in the handsome church,
erected about the middle of the 14th cent.
On an eminence about 1000 ft. in height, 3 M. to the S.
of Neustadt, rises the Maxburg, a still unfinished castle erected
by king Max II. of Bavaria when crown-prince, on the site of
the former castle of Hambach.
To the l. near Neustadt, half-way up the hill, lies the Haardter
Schlösschen (the ancient castle of Winzingen), the ivy-clad ruins
of which are converted into picturesque grounds.
The line then traverses extensive vineyards and tobacco-fields.
At Schifferstadt a line diverges to Speyer (15 min.). Then
Ludwigshafen (Deutsches Haus), a small well-built town of
recent origin, connected with Mannheim (European Hotel on the
Rhine; Palatinate Hotel, German Hotel in the town) by a bridge
of boats.
Cab from the station at Ludwigshafen to that of Mannheim
a drive of 20 min., 1—2 pers. 45 kr., 3 pers. 1 fl., 4 pers.
1 fl. 12 kr.
From Ludwigshafen in 2 hrs. to Mayence (Rhenish, Dutch
and English Hotels), comp. Baedeker's Rhine.
d. From Metz to Coblenz by Neunkirchen, Creuznach
and Bingen.
Railway to Bingen in 6½, to Coblenz in 8 hrs.; fares to Bingen
22 fr. 60, 15 fr. 95, 16 fr. 85 c.; from Bingen to Coblenz 50, 37½, 22 Sgr.
Scenery and construction of railway very interesting between Neunkirchen
and Bingerbrück.
From Metz to Neunkirchen see p. 267. Hence by the
Rhein-Nahe line to Ottweiler, St. Wendel and Wallhausen, the
culminating point (1200 ft.) between the Moselle and the Rhine.
Then Birkenfeld (Medicus) capital of a small isolated territory
belonging to Oldenburg. Next stat. Heimbach and Kronweiler,
beyond which the construction of the line is less remarkable.
Oberstein (*Heindl, on the r. bank; Scriba, on the l. bank),
the most picturesque point of the Nahe Valley, with its church
curiously inserted in the face of a cliff, is noted for its agates,
in polishing which most of the inhabitants are occupied. The
stones themselves are now largely imported from America. Next
stat. Fischbach and Kirn (Post) with the ruin of Kyrburg. To
the l. a valley opens, in which the imposing ruins of the castle
of Dhaun are situated.
Then Monzingen, Sobernheim and Staudernheim (*Salmen).
To the r. rises the Dissibodenberg, with the ruins of an abbey
founded as early as 500 and deserted in 1560. Above Waldböckelheim
rises the ruin of Böckelheim. The next important
station is
Creuznach (Palatinate Hotel; Eagle), with 11,000 inhab.,
noted for its saline baths (6000 patients annually). The environs
abound in beautiful walks (Münster am Stein, Rheingrafenstein,
Ebernburg, Gans, Rothenfels).
At Bingerbrück the line unites with the Rhenish Railway.
Bingen (Hôtel Victoria; White Horse; *Bellevue), a Hessian
town with 6000 inhab., lies opposite Bingerbrück, on the r. bank
of the Nahe, at a considerable distance from the terminus of the
Nahe line, and is not entered by passengers proceeding down
the Rhine.
Then stat. Bacharach, Oberwesel, Boppard, St. Goar, Capellen
(Stolzenfels) and Coblenz, all interesting points (comp. Baedeker's
Rhine).
52. From Paris to Bâle by Troyes, Belfort
and Mulhouse.
Express in 12½, ordinary trains in 16 hrs.; fares 58 fr. 70 c., 44 fr.,
32 fr. 30 c. The station is on the l., adjoining the Station de Strasbourg.
From Paris to Noisy-le-Sec see p. 252. The Strasbourg line
here diverges to the l. At Nogent-sur-Marne (p. 127) the Marne
is crossed. On the r. the park of Vincennes is visible. The
line now enters the fertile, but monotonous plain of Brie. From
stat. Gretz a branch-line to Armainvillers. Nangis with 2000 inhab.,
a busy little town, possesses an ancient castle and an interesting
Gothic church (St. Martin).
The line traverses several attractive valleys and a succession
of viaducts and tunnels. Stat. Longueville.
Branch-line in 15 min. to Provins, an ancient town (7500 inhab.) on
the Vouzie, with remnants of a castle of the former Counts of Champagne.
The church of St. Quiriace, with its dome, and the Tour du Roi (or de César),
an early mediæval structure, are worthy of notice.
At stat. Chalmaison the line quits the plain of Brie and
enters the valley of the Seine. From stat. Flamboin a branch-line
to Montereau (p. 273). At stat. Nogent-sur-Seine, the line
crosses the Seine.
About 4½ M. to the S. of Nogent once lay the Abbey of Paraclet,
where during nearly seven centuries the remains of Abélard and Heloïse
reposed. In 1792 they were conveyed to the church of St. Laurent at
Nogent, whence they were finally removed to the cemetery of Père Lachaise
at Paris (p. 115). The farm of a M. Walckenaer now occupies the
site of the abbey. The empty vault, however, still exists.
The district continues flat. Near stat. Pont-sur-Seine is situated
the château Le Muet, where Madame Letitia, Napoleon's
mother once resided, afterwards the property of Casimir Périer.
The remains of Voltaire once reposed in the church of stat. Romilly,
whither they were transported on the suppression of the
neighbouring abbey of Scellières, the great poet's first resting-place.
They were subsequently conveyed to the Pantheon at
Paris (p. 139), whence they were removed in 1814. Several
small stations, then
Troyes (Hôtels de Paris, de France, du Mulet, du Commerce;
Restaurants Pillost, Chaulin; *Rail. Restaurant) on the Seine, the
ancient capital of Champagne, an animated and well-built town
with 33,000 inhab. During the Roman period the town was
named Augustobona, then Tricassis, and after the 5th cent. Trecae.
Mention of it is frequently made in the wars of the middle ages.
The cathedral of St. Pierre, commenced in 1208, completed
in 1640, exhibits a combination of different styles of architecture.
The choir has recently been restored in the early Gothic style.
The richly decorated Portal dates from 1506. — *St. Urbain was
erected in 1262—67 by Pope Urban IV. (Jacques Pantaléon,
son of a shoemaker), a native of this town. — The churches
of the 12th century contain little to detain the traveller.
The last named possesses a handsome rood-loft (jobé) with rich
sculpture.
The *Hôtel de Ville, erected 1624—70, contains a magnificent
hall, adorned with the busts of seven celebrated natives of the
town. On the E. side a medallion-figure in marble of Louis XIV.,
dating from 1680, with Latin inscription by Racine.
The Museum, founded in 1831 contains pictures, sculptures
and objects illustrative of natural history. Above it a *Library of
100,000 vols. and upwards of 2000 MSS. (open daily 10—2 o'clock).
Branch-line from Troyes to Bar-sur-Seine in 1 hr. 5 min.
Leaving Troyes the train traverses meadow-land on the bank
of the Scine, which it quits at stat. Rouilly. Beyond stat. Vendeuvre
the picturesque and partially wooded valley of the Aube
is entered. This district between Troyes and Arcis, and as far
as Langres, was the scene of the final desperate struggle of Napoleon
against the Allies under Schwarzenberg and Blücher in the
winter of 1814. Stat. Jessains commands an extensive prospect.
On the Aube is situated the village of La Rothière, where on Feb. 1st,
1814 Blücher obtained the first victory over Napoleon on French soil.
Farther to the l., on the height beyond the Aube, rises the ancient town
of Brienne (Brienne le Château, now named Brienne Napoléon), celebrated
for the military school where Napoleon studied in 1779—84. A sanguinary
conflict here took place between Blücher and Napoleon, Jan. 29th, 1814,
when the town was bombarded and set on fire and Blücher narrowly
escaped capture. Napoleon destined the sum of one million fr. to be employed
in rebuilding the town. In 1852 Napoleon III. presented the inhabitants
with 400,000 fr., which has been expended in the construction
of the new Mairie; in front of the latter a bronze Statue of Napoleon in
his 15th year by Louis Rochet.
The line now descends the pleasant valley of the Aube, crosses
the stream near stat. Arsonval and reaches Bar-sur-Aube, an
ancient town (4500 inhab.), with the churches of St. Maclou and
St. Pierre, dating from the 11th and 12th centuries. Schwarzenberg
here gained a victory over Oudinot on Feb. 27th, 1814.
Next stat. Clairvaux, which lies to the r. in the valley of the
Aube. The celebrated Cistercian abbey (Clara Vallis) founded
by St. Bernard in 1115 is now a workhouse. No traces of antiquity
are now perceptible.
The line now enters the valley of the Aujon, and at stat.
Maranville that of the Brozé. Stat. Bricon is the junction of
the branch-line to Châtillon-sur-Seine and Nuits-sous-Ravières
(p. 274). Beyond Villiers-le-Sec a huge viaduct of 50 arches,
150 ft. in height, crosses the valley of the Suize to Chaumont
(en-Bassigny), a fortified town (6300 inhab.) on a barren ridge
between the Suize and the Marne. The church of St. Jean Baptiste
of the 13th, with choir of the 16th cent., deserves notice.
La Tour Hautefeuille near the Palais de Justice, is the remains
of an ancient castle of the Counts of Champagne.
Branch-line from Chaumont in 2½ hrs. to Blesme, a station on the
Paris and Strasbourg line, traversing the valley of the Marne.
The line descends through deep cuttings into the valley of
the Marne. The district is picturesque. Stat. Foulain, Rolampont,
then Langres (Hôtel de l'Europe; Poste), the ancient Andomatunum,
capital of the Lingones, now an episcopal residence
loftily situated on a spur of the Plateau de Langres, with
8300 inhab. The cathedral of *St. Mammès, with its two vast
towers is a structure of the 11th and 12th centuries in the transition
style from Romanesque to Gothic. St. Martin, of the
13th cent., is Gothic; tower of the 18th cent. At the Porte du
Marché is an admirably preserved *Roman Gateway. The Museum
(Place St Didier) contains altars, inscriptions and other antiquities.
Diderot (d. at Paris in 1784) was born at Langres in 1713. —
The three sources of the Marne are situated in a rocky ravine,
to the S., near the farm La Marnotte.
From stat. Chalindrey a line diverges to Gray and Auxonne
(p. 275). Then a long tunnel. The line then enters the valley
of the Amance, which it follows down to the Saône. Stat. Hortes,
Charmoy, Laferté-sur-Amance.
The celebrated baths of Bourbonne-les-Bains are situated 12 M. to
the N. (diligence in 2 hrs.); sulphureous and saline waters, known to
the Romans.
The line soon crosses the Saône and ascends on its r. bank.
At Port d'Atelier the line from Vesoul to Nancy by Epinal diverges,
which unites with the Paris and Strasbourg line at stat. Blainville-la-Grande.
At stat. Port-sur-Saône the valley of the Saône is quitted,
and the line traverses wooded heights to Vaivre and Vesoul
(6800 inhab.), the busy capital of the Departement Haute-Saône,
picturesquely situated in the valley of the Durgeon. (Branch-line
to Gray, see above.)
Then three small stations, and several cuttings and tunnels.
Towards the l. (N.E.) the Vosges Mts. become visible. Stat. Lure
in the valley of the Ognon, was once a considerable abbey. The
Vosges continue to rise picturesquely on the l.
Belfort (6000 inhab.), a fortress on the Savoureuse, was constructed
by Vauban under Louis XIV.
This is the junction of the line to Besauçon, which proceeds thence
by Lons le Saulnier and Bourg to Lyons, being the most direct line of communication
between Strasbourg and Lyons.
Mulhouse, Ger. Mülhausen (Ville de Paris; Lion Rouge;
Hôtel de France, at the station), once a free town of the Germanic
Empire, belonging to Switzerland from 1515 to 1798,
since then French, is an important manufacturing town on the
Rhine-Rhone Canal, with upwards of 40,000 inhab. Several
branches of the Ill traverse the town. The Société Commerciale
possesses nat. history and industrial collections.
The line to Bâle now traverses the broad plain of the Rhine;
to the r. vine-clad hills; to the l. in the distance the mountains
of the Black Forest, among which the Blauen is the most conspicuous.
St. Louis is the last French stat. To the l. on the
Rhine is situated the former fortress of Hüningen, constructed
by Vauban in 1679, dismantled by the Austrians in 1815.
Bâle (*Trois Rois, on the Rhine. At the central station:
*Schweizerhof; *Sauvage; *Cicogne; *Couronne and Tête, on the
Rhine; Poste; Cygne), see Baedeker's Switzerland.
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.
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.
54. From Paris to Geneva by Macon, Ambérieu
and Culoz.
Express to Macon in 9½, ordinary trains in 12½ hrs.; fares 49 fr. 40,
37 fr. 5, 27 fr. 15 c. From Macon to Geneva by express in 5½, ordinary
trains in 7 hrs.; fares 20 fr. 60, 15 fr. 45, 11 fr. 35 c. Station in the Boulevard
Mazas, comp. p. 24.
As far as Dijon see p. 273. The line to Macon crosses the
Ouche and the Canal de Bourgogne (p. 273) and skirts the base
of the sunny vineyards of the Côte d'Or, which extend almost
the entire distance from Dijon to Châlons and produce the choicest
qualities of the Burgundy wines (Chambertin, Clos de Bèze, Clos
de Vougeot, Romanée, Tâche, Nuits, Beaune etc.). To the r. of
stat. Corgoloin is the village of Aloxe, another well-known wine
producing place (Corton, Charlemagne, Clos du Roi). Stat. Beaune,
with 11,000 inhab., on the Bouzoise, a town with several Gothic
edifices and a monument of the mathematician Monge, who was
born here in 1746 (d. 1818).
From stat. Chagny a branch-line diverges to Creuzot. The
line passes under the Canal du Centre, which connects the Saône
and the Loire, by means of a tunnel, intersects the Col de Chagny
and enters the valley of the Thalie.
Chalons-sur-Saône (Trois Faisans; Hôtel du Chevreuil; Hôtel
de l'Europe) with 19,000 inhab., the Cabillonum of the Romans,
is situated at the junction of the Canal du Centre with the Saône,
which is here navigated by steamboats (to Lyons in 5—6 hrs.).
The town contains little to detain the traveller. The early Gothic
Cathedral, recently restored, exhibits the transition to that
style from the Romanesque. (The express trains do not touch
Châlons, the branch line to which diverges from the junction
St. Cosme.)
The line follows the r. bank of the Saône; to the l. in the
distance the Jura is visible; to the r. in clear weather the snowy
summit of Mont Blanc, 150 M. distant. Stat. Tournus (5500 inhab.)
possesses a fine abbey-church (St. Philibert).
Macon (Hôtels du Sauvage, des Champs Elysées, de l'Europe;
Rail. Restaurant), capital of the Department of the Saône and
the Loire, with 18,000 inhab., is another great focus of the wine-trade.
The remains of the early Romanesque cathedral of St. Vincent
are interesting to architects.
Macon is the junction for Lyons, the line to which diverges
to the r. at St. Clément. The Saône is now crossed and the Departement
de l'Ain entered by the r. bank of the Veyle; in front
and to the l. the Jura Mts. continue to be visible.
Bourg (Hôtels de l'Europe, du Midi, du Palais), with 14,000 inhab.,
the ancient capital of Bresse, is situated on the l. bank of
the Reyzousse, ¾ M. from the station. The church of Notre
Dame de Bourg, erected from the 15th to the 17th cent. in a
variety of styles, contains several pictures, sculpture and fine
wood-carving. On the promenade Le Bastion is a *Monument
of Bichat (d. 1802), who once studied at Bourg, by David d'Angers.
The house in which Lalnade (d. at Paris in 1807) was born is
indicated by a tablet. — Bourg is the junction for Lyons, Mouchard,
Besançon and Mulhouse, the direct line between Lyons
and Strasbourg.
The celebrated *Church of Brou, in the florid Gothic style, erected in
1511—36 by Margaret of Austria, regent of the Netherlands, is situated
½ M. from the town. It contains the sumptuous *Monuments of the
foundress, her husband Philibert, Duke of Savoy, and her mother-in-law
Margaret of Bourbon. Her well-known motto: "Fortune infortune forte une"
may be seen in different parts of the church.
The line intersects the forest of Seillon. Near stat. Pont
d'Ain the Ain is crossed.
Ambérieu, a pleasant little town on the Albarine, situated
at the base of the Jura Mts., is the junction for Lyons.
The valley of the Albarine is now ascended. To the l. the
ruined châteaux of Vieux-Mont-Ferrand and St. Germain. The
valley which soon becomes wilder and more imposing, is quitted
at stat Tenay. Beyond stat. Rossillon a tunnel (587 yds.); then
to the r. the lakes of Pugieu. The line enters the Valley of the
Rhone at
Stat. Culoz, junction for Chambéry and St. Michel (Susa and
Turin), at the S. base of the Colombier (4700 ft.), which is
occasionally ascended for the sake of the view.
The broad, marshy valley of the Rhone is next traversed.
Stat. Seyssel lies on both banks of the river, which is here crossed
by a double suspension-bridge. To the r., on the opposite bank,
the loftily situated church of Bassy. Near stat. Pyrimont are
mines of asphalt. Then four tunnels.
Stat. Bellegarde (Poste), at the entrance of the valley of the
Valserine, is the last French station. Custom-house formalities
for travellers entering France.
Above the influx of the Valserine, ¾ M. from the Hôtel de la Poste,
is the so-called Perte du Rhone. When the river is low, the water is
"lost" in a rocky gulf, which however has been considerably widened by
blasting. These rocks are covered when the stream is high.
Immediately beyond Bellegarde the train crosses the great
Valserine Viaduct (to the r. far below is the bridge of the road)
and enters the long Crédo Tunnel (2⅓ M.). The rocky ravine
next traversed is bounded by Mont Vuache (3475 ft.) on the r.
and the Jura (Les Grandes Crêtes; Col de Farges etc.) on the l.
The Fort de l'Ecluse high above on the l, completely commands
this defile. Several small stations, then.
Geneva (On the l. bank: *Métropole; *Ecu de Genève; *Couronne.
— *Hôtel de la Poste and *Hôtel du Rhône, moderate. —
On the right bank: *Hôtel des Bergues; d'Angleterre; Victoria,
Genève) see Baedeker's Switzerland.
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