England, received the order of knighthood, together with the earldoms of
Brittany, Poitou, and Angers, from Philip Augustus, immediately
previously to entering upon the expedition, which ultimately ended with
his death; and, according to tradition, it was on this occasion that the
town adopted for its arms the sable shield, charged with a knight in
armor, argent[22].
Gournay has now no other remains of antiquity, except the collegiate
church of St. Hildebert[23], which was founded towards the conclusion of
the eleventh century, though it was scarcely completed at the end of the
thirteenth. Hence the discrepancy of style observable in the
architecture of its different parts. The west front, in which the
windows are all pointed, was probably one of the last portions
completed. The interior is principally of semi-circular architecture,
with piers unusually massy, and capitals no less fanciful and
extraordinary than those already noticed at St. Georges. Here, however,
we have fewer monsters. The ornaments consist chiefly of foliage, and
wreaths, and knots, and chequered work, and imitations of members of the
antique capital. Some of the pillars, instead of ending in regular
capitals, are surmounted by a narrow projecting rim, carved with
undulating lines. It has been supposed that this ornament, which is
quite peculiar to the church of St. Hildebert, is a kind of
hieroglyphical representation of water.--Perhaps, it is the chamber of
Sagittarius; or, perhaps, it is a _fess wavy_, to which the same
signification has been assigned by heralds.--If this interpretation be
correct, the symbol is allusive to the ancient situation of the town,
built in the midst of a marsh, intersected by two streams, the Epte and
the St. Aubin.
While we were on the point of setting out from Gournay, we had the
pleasure of meeting Mr. Cotman, who landed a few days since at Dieppe,
and purposes remaining in Normandy, to complete a series of drawings
which he began last year, towards the illustration of the architectural
antiquities of the duchy. He has joined our party, and we are likely to
have the advantage of his society for some little time.
The village of Neufmarché, about a league from Gournay, on the right
bank of the Epte, still retains a small part of its castle, built by
Henry Ist, to command the passage of the river, and to serve as a
barrier against the incursions of the French. Its situation is good,
upon an artificial hill, surrounded by a fosse; and the principal
entrance is still tolerably entire. But the rest is merely a shapeless
heap of ruins: the interior is wholly under the plough; and the
fragments of denudated walls preserve small remains of the coating of
large square stones, which formerly embellished and protected them.
Neufmarché, in the days of Norman sovereignty, was one of the strong
holds of the duchy. The chroniclers[24] speak of the village as being
defended by a fortress, in the reign of William the Conqueror. The
church, too, with its semi-circular architecture, attests the antiquity
of the station.
Long before we reached Gisors, we had a view of the keep of the castle,
rising majestically above the town, which is indeed at present "une
assez maussade petite ville, qui n'a guère qu'une rue." From its
position and general outline, the castle, at first view, resembles the
remains of Launceston, in Cornwall. It recalled to my mind the
impressions of surprise, mixed with something approaching to awe, which
seized me, when the first object that met my eyes in the morning (for it
was late and dark when I reached Launceston) was the noble keep,
towering immediately above my chamber windows, and so near, that it
appeared as if I had only to open them and step into it. I do not mean
to draw a parallel between the castles of Launceston and Gisors, and
still less am I about to inquire into the relationship between the
Norman and the Cornish fortresses. The lapse of twenty years has
materially weakened my recollection of the latter, nor would this be a
seasonable opportunity for such a disquisition: but the subject deserves
investigation, the result of which may tend to establish the common
origin of both, and to dissipate the day-dreams of Borlase, who longed
to dignify the castellated ruins of the Cornish peninsula, by ascribing
them to the Roman conquerors of Britain.
Gisors itself existed before the tenth century; but its chief celebrity
was due to William Rufus, who, anxious to strengthen his frontiers
against the power of the kings of France, caused Robert of Bellême to
erect this castle, in 1097. Thus then we have a certain date; and there
is no reason to believe, but that the whole of what is left us is really
of the same æra, or of the following reign, in which it is known that
the works were greatly augmented; for Henry Ist was completely a
castle-builder. He was a prince who spared no pains in strengthening and
defending the natural frontiers of his province, as the fortresses of
Verneuil, Tillières, Nonancourt, Anet, Ivry, Château-sur-Epte, Gisors,
and many others, abundantly testify. All these were either actually
built, or materially strengthened by him.--This at Gisors, important
from its strength and from its situation, was the source of frequent
dissentions between the sovereigns of England and France, as well as the
frequent witness of their plighted faith, and the scene of their
festivities.--In 1119, a well-known interview took place here, between
Henry Ist and Pope Calixtus IInd, who had travelled to France for the
purpose of healing the schisms in the church, and who, after having
accomplished that task, was desirous not to quit the kingdom till he had
completed the work of pacification, by reconciling Henry to Louis le
Gros, and to his brother, Robert. The speech of our sovereign upon this
occasion, as recorded by Ordericus Vitalis[25], is a valuable document
to the English historian: it sets forth, at considerable length, his
various causes of grievance, whether real, imaginary, or invented,
against the legal heir to our throne.--After a lapse of thirty-nine
years, Louis le Jeune succeeded in annexing Gisors to the crown of
France; but he resigned it to our Henry IInd, only three years
subsequently, as a part of the marriage portion of his daughter,
Margaret. It then remained with our countrymen till the conquest of the
duchy by Philip Augustus; previously to which event, that sovereign and
Henry met, in the year 1188, under an elm near Gisors, on the road to
Trie, upon receiving the news of the capture of Jerusalem by the Sultan
Saladin[26]. The monarchs, actuated by religious zeal, took up the
cross, and mutually pledged themselves to suspend for a while their
respective differences, and direct their united efforts against the
common foe of the christian faith, Legends also tell that, during the
conference, a miraculous cross appeared in the air, as if in
ratification of the compact; and hence the inhabitants derive the
armoria bearing of the town; _gules_, a cross engrailed _or_[27]. In
1197, Philip embellished Gisors with new buildings; and he retired
hither the following year, after the battle of Courcelles, a conflict,
which began by his endeavor to surprise Richard Coeur-de-Lion, but which
ended with his total defeat. He had well nigh lost his life during the
flight, by his horse plunging with him, all armed as he was, into the
Epte.--He took refuge in Gisors; and the _golden gate_ of the town
commemorated his gratitude. With eastern magnificence, he caused the
entire portal to be covered with gold; and the statue of the Virgin,
which surmounted it, received the same splendor.
During the wars between France and England, in the fifteenth century,
Gisors was repeatedly won and lost by the contending parties. In later
and more peaceable times, it has been only known as the provincial
capital of the bailiwick of Gisors, and of the Norman portion of the
Vexin.
The castle consists of a double ballium, the inner occupying the top of
a high artificial mound, in whose centre stands the keep. The whole of
the fortress is of the most solid masonry. Previously to the discovery
of cannon, it could scarcely be regarded otherwise than as impregnable,
for the site which it occupies is admirably adapted for defence; and the
walls were as strong as art could make them.--The outer walls were of
great extent: they were defended by two covered ways, and flanked by
several towers, of various shapes.--In the inclosed sketch, you will
observe a circular tower, which is perhaps more perfect than any of the
rest. The two entrances which led to the inner wards, were defended by
more massy towers, strengthened with portcullises and draw-bridges.
[Illustration: Distant of the Castle of Gisors]
The conical mound is almost inaccessible, on account of its steepness.
The summit is inclosed by a circular wall of considerable height,
pierced with loop-holes, and strengthened at regular intervals with
buttresses, most of which are small and shallow, and resemble such as
are found in the Norman churches. Those, however, which flank the
entrance of the keep, are of a different character: they project so
boldly, that they may rather be considered as bastions or solid
turrets.--The dungeon rises high above all the rest, a lofty octagon
tower, with a turret on one side of the same shape, intended to receive
the winding staircase, which still remains, but in so shattered a state,
that we could not venture to ascend it. The shell of the keep itself is
nearly perfect, and is also varied in its outline with projecting
piers.--Within the inner ballium, we discovered the remains of the
castle-chapel. More than half, indeed, of the building is destroyed, but
the east end is standing, and is tolerably entire. The roof is vaulted
and groined: the groins spring from short pillars, whose capitals are
beautifully sculptured with foliage; The architecture of the whole is
semi-circular; but I should apprehend it to be posterior to any part of
the fortress.--The inside of the castle serves at this time for a
market-hall: the fosse, now dry and planted with trees, forms a
delightful walk round the whole.
[Illustration: Banded Pillar in the Church of Gisors]
We were much disappointed by the church of Gisors; in the illustration
of the details of which, Millin is very diffuse. The building is of
considerable magnitude; its proportions are not unpleasing, and it
contains much elaborate sculpture; but the labor has been ill bestowed,
having been lavished without any attention to consistency. It is
throughout a jumble of Roman and Gothic, except that the exterior of the
north transept is wholly Gothic. Some of the little figures which
decorate it are very gracefully carved, especially in the drapery. A
pillar in the south aisle, entwined by spiral fillets, is of great
singularity and beauty. The dolphin is introduced in each pannel, and
the heraldic form of this fish harmonizes with the gentle curve of the
field upon which it is sculptured. A crown of fleurs-de-lys surrounds
the columns at mid-height. These symbols, as I believe I observed on a
former occasion, are often employed as ornaments by the French
architects. The church, which is dedicated to the twin saints, St.
Gervais and St. Protais, is the work of different æras, but principally
of the latter half of the sixteenth century, a time when, as a Frenchman
told me, "l'on commença à bâtir dans le beau style Romain."--The man who
made the observation was of the lower order of society, one of the
_swinish multitude_, who, in England, never dream about styles in
architecture. I mention the circumstance, for the sake of pointing out
the difference that exists in these matters between the two countries.
Here, every man, gentle or simple, educated or uneducated, thinks
himself qualified and bound to deliver his opinion on objects connected
with the fine arts; and though such opinions are of necessity commonly
crude, and sometimes absurd, they, on the other hand, frequently display
a degree of feeling, and occasionally of knowledge, that surprises you.
It may be true indeed, as Dr. Johnson said, with some illiberality, of
our brethren across the Tweed, that though "every man may have a
mouthful, no one has a belly full;" but it still marks a degree of
national refinement, that any attention whatever is bestowed upon such
subjects. This smattering of knowledge, accompanied with the constant
readiness to communicate it, is also agreeable to a stranger. Except in
a few instances at Rouen, I never failed to find civility and attention
among the French. To the ladies of our nation they are uniformly polite
though occasionally their compliments may appear of somewhat a
questionable complexion; as it happened to a female friend of mine to be
told, while drawing the church of St, Ouen, "qu'elle avait de l'esprit
comme quatre diables."
* * * * *
FOOTNOTES:
[Footnote 19: _Histoire de la Haute Normandie_, I, p. 18.]
[Footnote 20: _Duchesne, Scriptores Normanni_, p. 1046.]
[Footnote 21: _Duchesne, Scriptores Normanni_, p. 1129.]
[Footnote 22: _Histoire de la Haute Normandie_, I. p. 20.]
[Footnote 23: See _Cotman's Architectural Antiquities of Normandy,
plates_ 38-41.]
[Footnote 24: _Ordericus Vitalis_, in _Duchesne's Scriptores Normanni_,
p. 490, 491, 606.]
[Footnote 25: _Duchesne, Scriptores Normanni_, p. 865.]
[Footnote 26: Some writers say that the real cause of their meeting was
to settle a difference of long standing.--Hoveden, as quoted in the
_Concilia Normannica_, I. p. 92, tells us, that Henry was upon the point
of sailing for England, when tidings were brought him that Philip had
collected a great force, with which he threatened to lay Normandy waste,
unless the British monarch surrendered to him Gisors with its
dependencies, or caused his son Richard, Count of Poitou, to marry
Alice, sister of the French king;--"Quod cùm regi Angliæ constaret,
reversus est in Normanniam; et, accepte colloquio inter ipsum et Regem
Franciæ inter Gisortium et Trie, XII. Kalendas Februarii, die S. Agnetis
V. et Martyris, convenerunt illuc cum Archiepiscopis, et Episcopis et
Comitibus, et Baronibus regnoram suorum. Cui colloquio interfuit
Archiepiscopus Tyri, qui repletus spiritu sapientiæ et intellectus, miro
modo prædicavit verbum Domini coram regibus et principibus. Et convertit
corda eorum ad crucem capiendam; et qui priùs hostes erant, illo
prædicante, et Deo co-operante, facti sunt amici in illa die, et de manu
ejus crucem receperunt: et in eadem hora apparuit super eos signum
crucis in cÅ"lo. Quo viso miraculo, plures catervatim ruebant ad
susceptionem crucis. Prædicti verò reges in susceptionem crucis, ad
cognoscendum gentem suam, signum sibi et suis providerunt. Rex namque
Franciæ et gens sua receperunt cruces rubeas et Rex Angliæ cum gente sua
suscepit cruces virides: et sic unusqnisque ad providendum sibi et
itineri suo necessaria, reversus est in regionem suam."]
[Footnote 27: In 1555, an addition was made to this coat of a chief
_azure_, charged with three fleurs-de-lys, _or_, by the command of Henry
IInd of France, to commemorate his public entry into Gisors.]
LETTER XVII.
ANDELYS--FOUNTAIN OF SAINT CLOTILDA--LA GRANDE MAISON--CHÂTEAU
GAILLARD--ECOUIS.
(_Ecouis, July_, 1818)
Our evening journey from Gisors to Andelys, was not without its
inconveniences.--The road, if road it may be called, was sometimes
merely a narrow ravine or trench, so closely bordered by trees and
underwood, that our vehicle could scarcely force its way; and sometimes
our jaded horses labored along a waggon-way which wound amidst an
expanse of corn-fields. Our postilion had earnestly requested us to
postpone our departure till the following morning; and he swore and
cursed most valiantly during the whole of his ride. On our arrival,
however, at Andelys, a few kind words from my companions served to
mitigate his ire; and as their eloquence may have been assisted by a few
extra sous, presented to him at the same time, his nut-brown countenance
brightened up, and all was tranquillity.
Andelys is a town, whose antiquity is not to be questioned: it had
existence in the time of the venerable Bede, by whom it is expressly
mentioned, under its Latin appellation, _Andilegum_[28]. The derivation
of this name has afforded employment to etymologists. The syllable _and_
enters, as it is said, into the composition of the names of sundry
places, reported to be founded by Franks, and Saxons, and Germans; and
therefore it is agreed that a Teutonic origin must be assigned to
Andelys. But, as to the import of this same syllable, they are all of
them wholly at a loss.--The history of Andelys is brief and unimportant,
considering its antiquity and situation. It was captured by Louis le
Gros in the war which he undertook against Henry Ist, in favour of
Clito, heir of the unfortunate Duke Robert; and his son, Louis le Jeune,
in 1166, burned Andelys to the ground, thus revenging the outrages
committed by the Anglo-Normans in France: in 1197, it was the subject of
the exchange which I have already mentioned, between Richard
Coeur-de-Lion and Walter, Archbishop of Rouen; and only a few years
afterwards it passed by capitulation into the possession of Philip
Augustus, when the murder of Arthur of Brittany afforded the French
sovereign a plausible pretext for dispossessing our worthless monarch of
his Norman territory.
What Andelys wants, however, in secular interest, it makes up in
sanctity. Saint Clotilda founded a very celebrated monastery here, which
was afterwards destroyed by the Normans.--If we now send our ripening
daughters to France, to be schooled and accomplished, the practice
prevailed equally amongst our Anglo-Saxon ancestors; and we learn from
Bede, that Andelys was then one of the most fashionable
establishments[29]. However, we must not forget that the fair Elfleda,
and the rosy Ælfgiva, were so taught in the convent, as to be fitted
only for the embraces of a celestial husband--a mode of matrimony which
has most fortunately become obsolete in our days of increasing
knowledge and civilization.
After the destruction of the monastery by the Normans, it was never
rebuilt; yet its sanctity is not wholly lost. At the behest of Clotilda,
the waters of the fountain of Andelys were changed into wine for the
relief of the weary labourer, and the tutelary saint is still worshipped
by the faithful.
It was our good fortune to arrive at Andelys on the vigil of the
festival of Saint Clotilda. The following morning, at early dawn, the
tolling bell announced the returning holiday; and then we saw the
procession advance, priests and acolytes bearing crosses and consecrated
banners and burning tapers, followed by a joyous crowd of votaries and
pilgrims. We had wished to approach the holy well; but the throng
thickened around it, and we were forced to desist. We could not witness
the rites, whatever they were, which were performed at the fountain; and
long after they had concluded, it was still surrounded by groups of
women, some idling and staring, some asking charity and whining, and
some conducting their little ones to the salutary-fountain. Many are the
infirmities and ailments which are relieved through the intercession of
Saint Clotilda, after the patient has been plunged in the gelid spring.
A Parisian sceptic might incline to ascribe a portion of their cures to
cold-bathing and ablution; but, at Andelys, no one ever thought of
diminishing the veneration, inspired by the Christian queen of the
founder of the monarchy. Several children were pointed out to us,
heretical strangers, as living proofs of the continuance of miracles in
the Catholic church. They had been cured on the preceding anniversary;
for it is only on Saint Clotilda's day that her benign influence is shed
upon the spring.
Andelys possesses a valuable specimen of ancient domestic architecture.
The _Great House_[30] is a most sumptuous mansion, evidently of the age
of Francis Ist; but I could gain no account of its former occupants or
history. I must again borrow from my friend's vocabulary, and say, that
it is built in the "Burgundian style." In its general outline and
character, it resembles the house in the _Place de la Pucelle_, at
Rouen. Its walls, indeed, are not covered with the same profusion of
sculpture; yet, perhaps, its simplicity is accompanied by greater
elegance.--The windows are disposed in three divisions, formed by
slender buttresses, which run up to the roof. They are square-headed,
and divided by a mullion and transom.--The portal is in the centre: it
is formed by a Tudor arch, enriched with deep mouldings, and surmounted
by a lofty ogee, ending with a crocketed pinnacle, which transfixes the
cornice immediately above, as well as the sill of the window, and then
unites with the mullion of the latter.--The roof takes a very high
pitch.--A figured cornice, upon which it rests, is boldly sculptured
with foliage.--The chimneys are ornamented by angular buttresses.--All
these portions of the building assimilate more or less to our Gothic
architecture of the sixteenth century; but a most magnificent oriel
window, which fills the whole of the space between the centre and
left-hand divisions, is a specimen of pointed architecture in its best
and purest style. The arches are lofty and acute. Each angle is formed
by a double buttress, and the tabernacles affixed to these are filled
with statues. The basement of the oriel, which projects from the flat
wall of the house, after the fashion of a bartizan, is divided into
compartments, studded with medallions, and intermixed with tracery of
great variety and beauty. On either side of the bay, there are flying
buttresses of elaborate sculpture, spreading along the wall.--As,
comparatively speaking, good models of ancient domestic architecture are
very rare, I would particularly recommend this at Andelys to the notice
of every architect, whom chance may conduct to Normandy.--This building,
like too many others of the same class in our own counties of Norfolk
and Suffolk, is degraded from its station. The _great house_ is used
merely as a granary, though, by a very small expence, it might be put
into habitable repair. The stone retains its clear and polished surface;
and the massy timbers are undecayed.--The inside corresponds with the
exterior, in decorations and grandeur: the chimney-pieces are large and
elaborate, and there is abundance of sculpture on the ceilings and other
parts which admit of ornament.
The French, in speaking of Andelys, commonly use the plural number, and
say, _les Andelys_, there being a smaller town of the same name, within
the distance of a mile: hence, the larger, all inconsiderable as it is,
and though it scarcely contains two thousand inhabitants, is dignified
by the appellation of _le Grand Andelys_.