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,
not completed till 1706), representing events from the lives of Christ and
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
therefore probable that remnants of the earliest structure, dating from the
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
Rue St. Aubin, every even hour 40 c.), is interesting. Another
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
the fusil, he caused many of his victims (as many as 600 in one day) to
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
veux leur faire peur encore après ma mort. Promettez-moi de
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.).
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