individuals. The town, no longer the capital of Lower Normandy, is still
equally distinguished as the capital of the department of the Calvados.
The prefect resides here; and the royal court of Caen comprises in its
jurisdiction, not only the department more especially appertaining to
it, but also those of the Manche and the Orne.--The situation of the
town, though at the confluence of the Orne and the Odon, is not such as
can be regarded favorable to extensive trade. The united rivers form a
stream, which, though navigable at very high tides for vessels of two
hundred tons burthen, will, on other occasions, admit only of much
smaller ones; while the channel, nearer to its mouth, is obstructed by
rocks that render the navigation difficult and dangerous. Many plans
have been projected and attempted for the purpose of improving and
enlarging the harbor, but little or no progress has yet been made.
Vauban long since pointed out the mouth of the Orne as singularly well
adapted for a naval station; and Napoléon, in pursuance of this idea,
actually commenced the excavation of a basin under the walls of the
town, and intended to deepen the bed of the river, thinking it best to
make a beginning in this direction. All idea, however, of prosecuting
such a plan is for the present abandoned.--Other engineers have proposed
the junction of the Orne with the Loire by means of a canal, which would
be of the greatest importance to France, not only by facilitating
internal commerce, but by saving her vessels the necessity of coasting
Capes Finisterre, and la Hogue, and thus enabling them to avoid a
navigation, which is at all times dangerous, and in case of war
peculiarly exposed.
For minor purposes, however, for mills and manufactories of different
kinds, Caen is certainly well situated; being in almost every direction
intersected with streams, owing to the repeated ramifications of the
Odon, some of which are artificial, and of as early a date as the
eleventh century. The same circumstance contributes materially to the
pleasantness of the town; for the banks of the river are in many places
formed into walks, and crowned by avenues of noble trees.
[Illustration: Head-Dress of Females, at Caen]
The _grand cours_ at Caen is almost as fine a promenade as that at
Rouen. On Sunday evening it was completely crowded. The scene was full
of life and gaiety, and very varied. All the females of the lower rank,
and many of the higher orders, were dressed in the costume of the
country, which commonly consists of a scarlet gown and deep-blue apron,
or _vice versâ_. Their hair, which is usually powdered, is combed
entirely back from every part of their faces, and tucked up behind. The
snow-white cap which covers it is beautifully plaited, and has longer
lappets than in the Pays de Caux. Mr. Cotman sketched the _coiffure_ of
the chamber-maid, at the Hôtel d'Espagne, in grand costume, and I send
his drawing to you.--The men dress like the English; but do not
therefore fancy that you or I should have any chance of being mistaken
for natives, even if we did not betray ourselves by our accent. Here, as
every where else, our countrymen are infallibly known: their careless
slouching gait is sure to mark them; and the police keep a watchful eye
upon them. Caen is at present frequented by the English: those indeed,
who, like the Virgilian steeds, "stare loco nesciunt," seldom shew
themselves in Lower Normandy; but above thirty British families have
taken up their residence in this town: they have been induced to do so
principally by the cheapness of living, and by the advantages held out
for the education of their children. A friend of mine, who is of the
number of temporary inhabitants, occupies the best house in the place,
formerly the residence of the Duc d'Aumale; and for this, with the
garden, and offices, and furniture of all kinds, except linen and plate,
he pays only nine pounds a month. For a still larger house in the
country, including an orchard and garden, containing three acres, well
stocked with fruit-trees, he is asked sixty pounds from this time to
Christmas. But, cheap as this appears, the expence of living at
Coutances, or at Bayeux, or Valognes, is very much less.
Were I obliged to seek myself a residence beyond the limits of our own
country, I never saw a place which I should prefer to Caen. I should not
be tempted to look much farther before I said,
"Sis meæ sedes utinam senectæ:"--
The historical recollections that are called forth at almost every turn,
would probably have some influence in determining my choice; the noble
specimens of ancient architecture which happily remain, unscathed by
wars and Calvinists and revolutions, might possibly have more; but the
literary resources which the town affords, the pleasant society with
which it abounds, and, above all, the amiable character of its
inhabitants, would be my great attraction.--At present, indeed, we have
not been here sufficiently long to say much upon the subject of society
from our own experience; but the testimony we receive from all quarters
is uniform in this point, and the civilities already shewn us, are of a
nature to cause the most agreeable prepossessions. It is not our
intention to be hurried at Caen; and I shall therefore reserve to my
future letters any remarks upon its history and its antiquities. To a
traveller who is desirous of information, the town is calculated to
furnish abundant materials.
* * * * *
FOOTNOTES:
[Footnote 70: The following were among the articles of the decree:--"No
individual to leave his _arrondissement_ without a passport.--No person
to receive a stranger in his house, or suffer one to quit it, without
apprising the police.--The inhabitants to carry their arms of all kinds
to the Hôtel de Ville.--No plays to be performed, except first approved
by the officers of the police.--The manager of the theatre to give
notice every Friday to the mayor, of the pieces intended to be acted the
following week.--The actors to read nothing, and say nothing, which is
not in the play.--The performance to begin precisely at six, and close
at ten.--Only a certain interval to be allowed between the different
pieces, or between the acts of each.--Every person to be uncovered,
except the soldiers on duty.--No weapons of any kind, nor even sticks or
umbrellas, to be taken into the theatre."]
LETTER XXIV.
HISTORIANS OF CAEN--TOWERS AND FORTIFICATIONS--CHÂTEAU DE LA
GENDARMERIE--CASTLE--CHURCHES OF ST. STEPHEN, ST. NICHOLAS, ST. PETER,
ST. JOHN, AND ST. MICHEL DE VAUCELLES.
(_Caen, August,_ 1818.)
France does not abound in topographical writers; but the history and
antiquities of Caen have been illustrated with singular ability, by men
to whom the town gave birth, and who have treated their subject with
equal research and fidelity--these are Charles de Bourgueville, commonly
called the Seigneur de Bras, and the learned Huet, Bishop of Avranches.
De Bourgueville was a magistrate of Caen, where he resided during almost
the whole of the sixteenth century. The religious wars were then raging;
and he relates, in a most entertaining and artless manner, the history
of the events of which he was an eye-witness. His work, as is justly
observed by Huet, is a treasure, that has preserved the recollection of
a great variety of the most curious details, which would otherwise have
been neglected and forgotten. Every page of it is stamped with the
character of the author--frankness, simplicity, and uprightness. It
abounds in sound morality, sage maxims, and proofs of excellent
principles in religion and politics; and, if the writer occasionally
carries his _naïveté_ to excess, it is to be recollected that the book
was published when he was in his eighty-fifth year, a period of life
when indulgence may reasonably be claimed. He died four years
subsequently, in 1593.--In Huet's work, the materials are selected with
more skill, and are digested with more talent. The author brought to his
task a mind well stored with the learning requisite for the purpose, and
employed it with judgment. But he has confined himself, almost wholly,
to the description of the town; and the consequence is, that while the
bishop's is the work most commonly referred to, the magistrate's is that
which is most generally read. The dedication of the former to the town
of Caen, does honor to the feelings of the writer: the portrait of the
latter, prefixed to his volume, and encircled with his quaint motto,
_"L'heur de grace use l'oubli,"_ itself an anagram upon his name,
bespeaks and insures the good will of the reader.
The origin of Caen is uncertain.--Its foundation has been alternately
ascribed to Phoenicians, Romans, Gauls, Saxons, and Normans. The
earliest historical fact connected with the town, is recorded in an old
chronicle of Normandy[71], written in 1487, by William de Talleur, of
Rouen. The author, in speaking of the meeting between Louis d'Outremer,
King of France, and Richard Ist, Duke of Normandy, about the year 945,
enumerates Caen among the good towns of the province. Upon this, Huet
observes that, supposing Caen to have been at that time only recently
founded, it must have acquired importance with much rapidity; for, in
the charter, by which Richard IIIrd, Duke of Normandy, granted a dowery
to Adela, daughter of Robert, King of France, whom he married in 1026,
Caen is not only stated as one of the portions of the dower, but its
churches, its market, its custom-house, its quay, and its various
appurtenances are expressly mentioned; and two hundred years afterwards,
Brito in his _Philippiad_, puts Caen in competition with Paris,
"Villa potens, opulenta situ, spatiosa, decora,
Fluminibus, pratis, et agrorum fertilitate,
Merciferasque rates portu capiente marino,
Seque tot ecclesiis, domibus et civibus ornans,
Ut se Parisio vix annuat esse minorem."--
Caen is designated in Duke Richard's charter, by the appellation of "in
Bajocensi comitatu villa quæ dicitur _Cathim_, super fluvium
Olnæ."--From _Cathim_, came _Cahem_; and _Cahem_, in process of time,
was gradually softened into _Caen_. The elision that took place in the
first instance, is of a similar nature to that by which the Italian
words _padre_ and _madre_, have been converted into _père_ and _mère_;
and the alteration in the latter case continued to be indicated by the
diæresis, which, till lately, separated the two adjoining
vowels.--Towards the latter part of the eleventh century, Caen is
frequently mentioned by the monkish historians, in whose Latin, the town
is styled _Cadomus_ or _Cadomum_.--And here ingenious etymologists have
found a wide field for conjecture: Cadomus, says one, was undoubtedly
founded by Cadmus; another, who hesitates at a Phoenician antiquity,
grasps with greater eagerness at a Roman etymon, and maintains that
_Cadomus_ is a corruption from _Caii domus_, fully and sufficiently
proving that the town was built by Julius Cæsar.
Robert Wace states, in his _Roman de Rou_, that, at the time
immediately previous to the conquest of England, Caen was an open
town.--
"Encore ert Caen sans Châtel,
N'y avoit mur, ny quesnel."--
And Wace is a competent witness; for he lived during the reign of Henry
Ist, to whom he dedicated his poem. Philip de Valois, in 1346, allowed
the citizens to surround the town with ditches, walls, and gates. This
permission was granted by the king, on the application of the
inhabitants, Caen, as they then complained, being still open and
unfortified. Hence, the fortifications have been considered to be the
work of the fourteenth century, and, generally speaking, they were
unquestionably, of that time; but it is equally certain, that a portion
was erected long before.
A proof of the antiquity of the fortifications may perhaps be found in
the name of the tower called _la Tour Guillaume le Roi_, which stands
immediately behind St. Peter's, and was intended to protect the river at
the extremity of the walls, dividing the town from the suburb of
Vaugeux. This tower is generally supposed to be the oldest in the
fortifications. Its masonry is similar to that of the wall with which it
is connected, and which is known to have been built about the same time
as the abbey of St. Stephen. The appearance of it is plain, massy, and
rugged; and it forms a picturesque object. Such also is the _Tour au
Massacre_, which is situated at the confluence of the Orne and Odon. The
tower in question is said to have received its gloomy title from a
massacre, of which our countrymen were guilty, at the time when the town
was taken in 1346. There is, however, reason to believe that this tale
is a mere fiction. Huet, at the same time that he does not venture so
far to oppose popular belief, as altogether to deny the truth of the
story of the massacre, adds, that the original name of the tower was _la
Tour Machart_, and suspects its present appellation to be no more than a
corruption of the former one. Renauld Machart was bailiff of Caen two
years prior to the capture of the place by Edward IIIrd; and the
probability is, that the tower was erected by him in those times of
alarm, and thus took his name. It has been supposed that the figure
sculptured upon it, may also be intended for a representation of Machart
himself.
Caen contains another castellated building, which might easily mislead
the studious antiquarian. The _Château de Calix_, as it is sometimes
called, is situated at the extremity of the suburb known by that name;
and the curious inhabitants of Caen usually suppose that it was erected
for the purpose of commanding the river, whilst it flowed in its
ancient, but now deserted, bed; or, at least, that it replaces such a
fortification. According to the learned Abbé de la Rue, however, and he
is a most competent authority, no real fortification ever existed here;
but the castle was raised in conformity to the caprice of Girard de
Nollent, the wealthy owner of the property, who flourished towards the
beginning of the sixteenth century.--Girard de Nollent's mansion is now
occupied by a farmer. It has four fronts. The windows are
square-headed, and surrounded by elegant mouldings; but the mullions
have been destroyed. One medallion yet remains over the entrance; and it
is probable that the walls were originally covered with ornaments of
this kind. Such, at least, is the case with the towers and walls, which,
surrounding the dwelling, have given it a castellated aspect. The
circular tower nearest the gate forms the subject of the accompanying
sketch: it is dotted on all sides with busts in basso-relievo, enclosed
in medallions, and of great diversity of character. One is a frowning
warrior, arrayed in the helmet of an emperor of the lower empire;
another, is a damsel attired in a ruff; a third, is a turbaned turk. The
borders of the medallions are equally diversified: the _cordelière_,
well known in French heraldry, the vine-leaf, the oak-leaf, all appear
as ornaments. The battlements are surmounted with two statues,
apparently Neptune, or a sea-god, and Hercules. These heathen deities
not being very familiar to the good people of Caen, they have converted
them, in imagination, into two gens-d'armes, mounting guard on the
castle; and hence it is frequently called the _Château de la
Gendarmerie_. Some of the busts are accompanied by inscriptions--"Vincit
pudicitiam mors;" "Vincit amor pudicitiam;" "Amor vincit mortem;" and
all seem to be either historical or allegorical. The battlements of the
curtain-wall are ornamented in the same manner. The farther tower has
less decoration, and is verging to decay. I have given these details,
because the castle of Calix is a specimen of a style of which we have no
fair parallel in England, and the workmanship is far from being
contemptible.
[Illustration: Tower in the _Château de Calix_, at Caen]
In the Rue St. Jean is a house with decorations, in the same style, but
more sumptuous, or, perhaps I ought rather to say, more perfect. Both of
them are most probably of nearly the same date: for it was principally
during the reigns of Charles VIIIth and Louis XIIth, that the practice
prevailed in France, of ornamenting the fronts of houses with
medallions. The custom died away under Francis Ist.
I must now return to more genuine fortifications.--When the walls of
Caen were perfect, they afforded an agreeable and convenient promenade
completely round the town, their width being so great, that three
persons might with ease walk abreast upon them. De Bourgueville tells us
that, in his time, they were as much frequented as the streets; and he
expatiates with great pleasure upon the gay and busy prospect which they
commanded,
The castle at Caen, degraded as it is in its character by modern
innovation, is more deserving of notice as an historical, than as an
architectural, relic. It still claims to be ranked as a place of
defence, though it retains but few of its original features. The
spacious, lofty, circular towers, known by the names of the black, the
white, the red, and the grey horse, which flanked its ramparts, have
been brought down to the level of the platform. The dungeon tower is
destroyed. All the grandeur of the Norman castle is lost; though the
width of its ditches, and the thickness of its walls, still testify its
ancient strength. I doubt whether any castle in France covers an equal
extent of ground. Monstrelet and other writers have observed, that this
single fortress exceeded in size the towns of Corbeil or of Montferrand;
and, indeed, there are reasons for supposing that Caen, when first
founded, only occupied the site of the present castle; and that, when it
became advisable to convert the old town into a fortress, the
inhabitants migrated into the valley below. Six thousand infantry could
be drawn up in battle-array within the outer ballium; and so great was
the number of houses and of inhabitants enclosed within its area, that
it was thought expedient to build in it a parochial church, dedicated to
St. George, besides two chapels.
One of the chapels is still in existence, though now converted to a
store-house; and the Abbé de la Rue considers it as an erection anterior
to the conquest, and, belonging to the old town of Caen. Its choir is
turned towards the west, and its front to the east.--The religious
edifices upon the continent do not preserve the same uniformity as our
English ones, in having their altars placed in the direction of the
rising sun; but this at Caen is a very remarkable instance of the
position of the entrance and the altar being completely reversed[72].
The door-way is a fine semi-circular arch: the side pillars supporting
it are very small, but the decorations of the archivolt are rich: they
consist principally of three rows of the chevron moulding, enclosed
within a narrow fillet of smaller ornaments, approaching in shape to
quatrefoils. Collectively, they form a wide band, which springs from
flat piers level with the wall, and does not immediately unite with the
head of the inner arch. The intermediate space is covered by a
reticulated pattern indented in the stone. Above the entrance is a
window of the same form, its top encircled by a broad chequered band, a
very unusual accompaniment to this style of architecture. The front of
the chapel presents in other respects, a flat uniform surface, unvaried,
except by four Norman buttresses, and a string-course of the simplest
form, running round the whole building, at somewhat less than
mid-height. The sides of the chapel are lighted by a row of
circular-headed windows, with columns in the angles; and between these
windows are buttresses, as in the chapel of the lazar-house of St.
Julien, at Rouen.
Huet endeavours to prove that the first fortress which was built at
Caen, was erected by William the Conqueror, who frequently resided here
with his Queen Matilda, and who was likely to find some protection of
this nature desirable, as well to guard his royal residence against the
mutinous disposition of the lords of the Bessin, as to command the
navigation of the Orne. The castle was enlarged and strengthened by his
son Henry; but it is believed that the four towers, just mentioned, and
the walls surrounding the keep, were added by our countrymen, during
that short period when the Norman sceptre was again wielded by the
descendants of the Norman dukes. Under Louis XIIth and Francis Ist, the
whole of the castle, but particularly the dungeon, underwent great
repairs, by which the original form of the structure was entirely
changed.--From that period history is silent respecting the fortress. I
cannot, however, take leave of it without reminding you, that Sir John
Fastolf, whilom our neighbour at Castor, was for some time placed in
command here, as Lieutenant to the Regent Duke of Bedford. You, who are
acquainted with the true character of the knight, need scarcely be told,
that even his enemies concur in bearing testimony to his ability, his
vigilance, and his valor: it is to be regretted that he has not met with
equal justice at home. Not one individual troubles himself about
history, whilst a thousand read the drama; and the stains which
Shakspeare's pen has affixed to the name of Fastolf, are of a nature
never to be wiped away; thus disproving the distich of the satyrist, who
indeed, by his own works, has effectually falsified his own maxim,
that--
"Truth will survive when merry jokes are past;
For rising merit must buoy up at last."
As usual, the buildings dedicated to religion are far more numerous and
valuable than the relics of military architecture. Of these, the first
which salutes the stranger who enters by the great high road, is the
Hôtel Dieu, which is almost intact and unaltered. The basement story
contains large and deep pointed arches, ornamented with the chevron
moulding, disposed in a very peculiar manner.--From the style of the
building, there is every reason to believe that it is of the beginning
of the thirteenth century, at which time William, Count of Magneville,
appropriated to charitable purposes the ground now occupied by this
hospital, and caused his donation to be confirmed by a bull from Pope
Innocent IIIrd, dated in April, 1210.
The abbeys, the glories of Caen, will require more leisure: at present
let us pass on to the parochial churches. Of these, the most ancient
foundation is _St. Etienne le Vieil_; and tradition relates that this
church was dedicated by St. Renobert, bishop of Bayeux, in the year
350.--But, though the present edifice may stand upon the site of an
ancient one, there would be little risk in affirming, that not one stone
of it was laid upon another till after the year 1400. The building is
spacious, and its tower is not devoid of beauty. The architecture is a
medley of debased gothic and corrupted Roman; but the large pointed
windows, decorated by fanciful mouldings and scroll-work, have an air of
richness, though the component parts are so inharmonious.
Attached to the wall of the choir of this church is still to be seen an
equestrian statue[73], part of the celebrated group supposed to
represent William the Conqueror making his triumphal entry into Caen. A
headless horse, mounted by a headless rider, and a figure, which has
lost all shape and form, beneath the feet of the steed, are all that now
remain; but De Bourgueville, who knew the group when perfect, says, that
there likewise belonged to it a man and woman upon their knees, as if
seeking some explanation for the death of their child, or
rather, perhaps, in the act of imploring mercy.--I have already pointed
out the resemblance between these statues and the bas-relief, of which I
have sent you a sketch from St. Georges. One of the most learned
antiquaries of the present time has found a prototype for the supposed
figure of the Duke, among the sculptures of the Trajan column. But this,
with all due deference, is far from a decisive proof that the statue in
question was not intended for William. Similar adaptations of the
antique model, "mutato nomine," frequently occur among the works of the
artists of the middle ages; and there is at least a possibility that,
had the face been left us, we might have traced some attempt at a
portrait of the Norman Duke. Upon the date of the sculpture, or the
style of the workmanship, I dare not venture an opinion. There are
antiquaries, I know, (and men well qualified to judge,) who believe it
Roman: I have heard it pronounced from high authority, that it is of the
eleventh century, others suspect that it is Italian, of the thirteenth
or fourteenth centuries; whilst M. Le Prevost and M. De Gerville
maintain most strenuously that it is not anterior to the fifteenth. De
Bourgueville certainly calls it "une antiquité de grand remarque;" but
we all know that any object which is above an hundred years old, becomes
a piece of antiquity in the eye of an uncritical observer; and such was
the good magistrate.