burnt on the Place de Grève? is a question answered by the _Moniteur_ of
3 and 4 Frimaire, in the year II. (23rd and 24th November, 1793), which
declares that the body was not entire; and we further know that
previously, in olden time, relics of the Saint were distributed to many
churches, the abbey of Chelles amongst others.
The ordinary offices at S. Étienne are in no way remarkable for
splendour of ritual or of music, but one is worthy of notice--the
Washing of the Feet in Holy Week. In spite of so-called uniformity,
certain functions have a totally different aspect at the various
churches. Take, for instance, the ceremonies of Holy Thursday, the
Washing of the Feet, and the Distribution of the Bread and Wine. At many
churches the priest who performs this function generally passes down in
front of an array of old men and women; each receives a loaf and a
bottle of wine, and that is all. But at S. Étienne it is a very quaint
affair. A square portion of the nave is railed off; within sit the boys
whose feet are to be washed, and upon a table are rows of loaves and
bottles of wine. Then comes the _curé_, a tall, elegant-mannered man,
and kneeling to each, he washes and wipes their feet, and then
distributes the wine and bread. It is a very curious function; seeing
all those boys taking off their boots in the middle of a church is most
extraordinary; and then the quaint expressions, the keen curiosity or
stupid dull gaze, the costumes and the surrounding audience, form a
picture which is eminently quaint and queer.
SAINT-EUSTACHE.
[Illustration: THE OLD FAÇADE.]
S. Eustache, often called by the ancestors of _les dames de la Halle_
Notre-Dame des Halles, though by no means one of the oldest of Parisian
churches, is, after the cathedral, the largest. In plan and arrangement
it is Gothic, while its decorations and details are in the Renaissance
style. It has double aisles, octagonal shafts, round-headed arches, and
curvilinear tracery. It was finished in 1641, having been more than a
century in building; but in spite of this, the original plan was carried
out, and few churches that were so long in course of construction
present so harmonious an appearance. Unfortunately, the west end, the
towers of which were left unfinished, was sacrificed to the stupid taste
of the 18th century; Mansard de Jouy and Moreau being allowed to replace
what an old print shows to have been an interesting _façade_, in keeping
with the rest of the church, by the heavy structure we all know,
because, forsooth, the artistic gentlemen of the day found the original
to be in a "_goût barbare qui choquait les yeux!_"
Père Du Breul (one of the Benedictines of S. Germain des Près), writing
in 1612 in his _Théâtre des Antiquités de Paris_, speaks of the church
as follows: "Ce sera un des plus beaux bâtiments de l'Europe, s'il peut
être parfait comme il a été commencé; car rien n'y manque pour ce qui
est de la perfection de l'architecture, soit pour le haut exhaussement,
les fenêtres et ouvertures, et aussi l'enrichissement des diverses
frises et moulures de toutes sortes et façons. Toutefois, pour la grande
dépense qu'il y conviendrait faire, il est demeuré imparfait jusques à
présent." To meet this _grande dépense_, the chancellor Séquier, and the
_Surintendant de finance_, Claude de Bullion, supplied a considerable
sum.
But a church existed upon the same site long before the foundation stone
of the present building was laid by Jean de La Barre in 1532. Whether
there is any truth in the tradition that the Romans erected a temple
dedicated to Cybele upon the spot during the reign of Julian the
Apostate, based probably upon the discovery of a large bronze head of
the goddess at the entrance to the Rue Coquillière, there is no doubt
that a chapel under the patronage of S. Agnes was built in the early
ages of Christianity, for an account of its foundation is given by
Gilles Corrozet, the first of the historians of Paris. It appears that a
certain citizen named Jean Alais, in consideration of his help in
financial matters, obtained from the king the right to levy a tax of a
penny upon every basket of fish sold in the market. Remorse overtaking
this modern publican, he begged his sovereign to revoke the tax; but the
victims gained nothing by the repentance, as the privilege was accorded
to another citizen, with an augmentation of the tax. Thereupon Alais,
dying of remorse, was buried near the chapel he had founded in expiation
of his sins, at the spot where a stream passed through the market. A
large stone was placed hard by, which served as a bridge in time of rain
and flood--hence, _Pont Alais_.
Thus the legend. But the chapel is mentioned for the first time in
authentic documents of the year 1213, when it is described as situated
on the vast territory belonging to S. Germain l'Auxerrois (the eldest
daughter of Notre-Dame), at a little distance from the cemetery of the
Holy Innocents, upon the road leading from the capital to Montmartre.
Whoever may have been the founder, it is mentioned in this same year
(1213) as a parish, for the _curé_ appealed to the abbot of S.
Geneviève, and the dean of Notre-Dame de Chartres, in the matter of a
squabble between himself and the dean of S. Germain l'Auxerrois. Ten
years later, it is called the church of S. Eustache, in a charter giving
the sentence delivered by the bishop of Paris and two of his canons in
another squabble between Simon, _prestre de l'église Saint-Eustache_,
and the dean of S. Germain, who seems to have been of a combative
temperament. This _curé's_ name figures at the head of the list of
rectors of the church, which ends with another of the same name, the
grand abbé Simon who was seized by the Communists, and all but received
martyrdom with Archbishop Darboy and the _curé_ of the Madeleine,
Duguerry. L'abbé Le Beuf records the increase of population, and the
necessary want of a larger church; consequently some relics of S.
Eustache preserved at S. Denis were brought to Paris, and became the
reason for the substitution of the Roman warrior for the gentle maiden
Agnes as patron of the church. But later, the two Saints were combined
in the patronage, probably from the crypt under the Lady Chapel bearing
Agnes' name--a crypt that would be more truthfully called a cellar, from
the use it is, or was, put to by a neighbouring fruiterer. The lease may
have run out lately, in which case it now belongs to the church; as the
clergy had determined to regain possession as soon as possible.
What appearance the first church presented, we know not, but in 1429 the
high altar was advanced a foot into the chancel, and the altar of S.
Gregory destroyed, to make a passage to the crypt of S. Agnes. In 1434,
the church was enlarged "_pour la multiplication du peuple_"; and again
in 1466, an addition required the demolition of the greater part of a
house in the Rue de Séjour (now Rue du Jour), next to the Hôtel de
Royaumont. Thirty years later the bishop gave the churchwardens a little
piece of ground situated at the corner of Pont-Alais, in the Rue
Montmartre, in order to extend the building still farther.
Here a slight digression may not be out of place to relate the legend of
S. Eustache, whose _fête_ day occurs on September 20th, a day, among
several others, when the church is visited by crowds, some of whom go to
pray, and others to hear the exquisite music for which S. Eustache is
famous. When the 20th falls on a weekday, the festival is transferred to
the following Sunday.
S. Eustache was a Roman soldier and captain of the guards of the
Emperor Trajan. His name in early life was Placidus, and he had a
beautiful wife and two fine sons. He lived in great style, practised all
the heathen virtues, notably those of charity and loyalty, and was not
only a brave warrior, but withal, a great huntsman. Now it happened one
day, while sporting in the forest, that a beautiful white stag appeared
before him, having a cross of radiant light between its horns, and on
the cross an image of the Redeemer. Being astonished and dazzled by the
vision, he fell upon his knees, and lo! a voice came from the crucifix
and cried to him: "Placidus, why pursuest thou Me? I am Christ, whom
thou hast hitherto served without knowing Me? Dost thou now believe?"
And Placidus fell with his face upon the ground and said, "Lord, I
believe!" And the voice said: "Thou shalt suffer many tribulations for
my sake, and shalt be tried by many temptations; but be strong and of
good courage, I will not forsake thee." To which Placidus replied,
"Lord, I am content. Give thou me but patience to suffer!" And when he
looked up again, the wondrous vision had faded away. Then he arose and
returned to his wife, and the next day the whole family was baptised,
Placidus adopting the name of Eustatius.
But it came about as was foretold by the vision. All his possessions
were spoiled by robbers, and his beautiful and loving wife was taken
away by pirates; poverty stared him in the face, and affliction pursued
him. Then one day, as he wandered forth with his children, he came to a
swollen river which he was obliged to cross; and being troubled as to
his means of fording the torrent, he took one child in his arms and swam
across, leaving the other on the bank. Having placed the little one in a
safe nook, he returned for the other; but when in mid-stream he saw a
wolf come out of the forest, and carry off one child, while a lion
appeared upon the opposite bank, and seizing the other babe, carried it
off and made away with it! Then the wretched father tore his hair and
gave way to weeping and lamentations; but remembering his promise to
suffer for Christ's sake, he dried his tears and prayed for patience and
resignation. So he came to a village where he lived peacefully for
fifteen years by the labour of his hands; but at the end of that time,
the Emperor Adrian being on the throne, sent out messengers to all parts
of the Empire to seek for Placidus, as he had need of him; and at length
they found him, and he was restored to his former position, and led his
troops to victory. But although the Emperor loaded him with honours and
wealth, his heart was sad for the loss of his wife and children.
Meanwhile the latter had been rescued from the jaws of the wolf and the
lion, and his wife had escaped from the hands of the pirates; so it came
about, after many years, that they all met again and were re-united; and
Eustace said in his heart: "Surely all my sorrows are now at an end."
But it was not so; for the Emperor desiring to celebrate a mighty
victory over the Barbarians by a great sacrifice to the gods, and
Eustace and his family refusing to offer incense, they were shut up in a
brazen bull, and a fire being kindled under it, they all perished
together. Such is the legend, which, like all the stories of the lives
of Saints and early martyrs, shows forth the steadfastness with which
they clung to their faith, and the simplicity with which they practised
the virtues of fortitude, patience, resignation, and courage. There is a
certain similarity between the legend of S. Eustace and that of S.
Hubert; but in art they are easily distinguished, as the former is in
Classic or warrior costume, and the latter is represented either as a
huntsman or a priest. Pictures of S. Eustace are not uncommon; in the
Pitti Palace there is one by Soggi; and somewhere I have seen one by
Domenichino. The traditional date of the martyrdom of S. Eustace is 118,
which is much earlier than that of the other patron of the church, the
simple maiden Agnes, who suffered in 304, and whose _fête_ day is
January 21st. The legend of this Saint is one of the most authentic, and
one of the oldest, being mentioned by S. Jerome, in the 4th century, as
popular throughout the world. Hymns and homilies had been written in her
honour from the earliest times; and her youth and beauty, added to her
innocence, had combined to invest her person with a charm and a
fascination which few of the Saints possess.
Agnes was a Roman maiden of thirteen, filled with all the good gifts of
the Holy Spirit, having loved and followed Christ from her infancy, and
being withal most beautiful, when the son of the Prefect passed her way.
Whether the name was given to her because of her lamblike innocence or
otherwise, is not recorded. The young man no sooner beheld her than he
loved her passionately, and asked her in marriage. But Agnes repelled
him, even though he came laden with gold and gems, and costly ornaments;
and, unlike poor Gretchen, she cried: "Away from me, tempter! for I am
already betrothed to a lover who is greater and fairer than any earthly
suitor. To him I have pledged my faith, and he will crown me with jewels
compared to which thy gifts are dross.... The music of His divine voice
has sounded in mine ears; He is so fair that the sun and moon are
ravished by His beauty, and so mighty is He that the Angels are but His
servants."
Hearing these words the youth naturally felt consumed by jealousy and
rage; and he went home, only to fall ill of a fever, and to be sick
almost unto death. The wise medicine men immediately discovered the
cause, and told the Prefect that the illness being unrequited love,
their potions could avail nothing. Then the great man questioned his
son, who replied: "My father, unless I can take me Agnes to wife, I
die." Now the Prefect, Sempronius, loved his son tenderly, and so he
went weeping to Agnes' parents, and besought them to intercede for the
youth. But Agnes made the same answer, and Sempronius was much angered
that she should prefer another to his son, and asked who this great
prince might be to whom Agnes was betrothed. And some one said: "Knowest
thou not that the maiden hath been a Christian from her infancy; and her
husband of whom she speaks is none other than Jesus Christ?" When the
Prefect heard this, he rejoiced greatly, for he knew he could force
Agnes to marry his son, by threats of imprisonment; for an edict had
gone forth against the Christians. And so he sent for Agnes, and told
her that since she was resolved not to marry, she must enter the service
of the goddess Vesta. But Agnes replied: "Thinkest thou that I, who
would not listen to thy son, who is yet a man and can hear and see and
move and speak, will bow down to vain images, which are but senseless
wood and stone; or, what is worse, to the demons who inhabit them?"
When Sempronius heard this he fell into a fury; he loaded Agnes' limbs
with chains, and threatened her with death; and as nothing would
prevail, he ordered her to be exposed to the most degrading outrages;
but being stripped of her garments, she fell on her knees and prayed,
and immediately her hair became so thick and long that it formed a
complete covering. Then, although the onlookers were dismayed, they shut
her up in a chamber, and left her. And suddenly she saw a bright and
glistening garment, with which she clothed herself, praising God and
saying: "I thank thee, O Lord, that I am found worthy to put on the
garment of Thine elect!" And the whole place was filled with miraculous
light, brighter than the sun at noonday.
Then the young man thought that if he visited her, Agnes would give way;
but as soon as he entered her chamber he was struck blind, and fell into
convulsions. And the mother and father appearing, and falling into
lamentations and weeping, Agnes was moved with compassion, and prayed
that their son might be restored to health; and her prayer was granted.
Then Sempronius would have saved Agnes; but the people caused a tumult,
and cried out that the maid was a witch and a sorceress, and therefore
worthy of death. And so she was judged and thrown into the fire; but the
flames, refusing to touch her, severely scorched the executioners, which
still more irritated Sempronius and the people. Then the wicked Prefect
commanded the executioners to slay her; and she, looking up to Heaven,
yielded up her pure spirit to her God. And it happened that when her
friends were one day praying at her tomb, in the cemetery on the Via
Nomentana, she appeared unto them arrayed in white, with a lamb whiter
than snow. And she said: "Weep not, dry your tears, and rejoice with
exceeding joy; for me a throne is prepared by the side of Him who on
earth I preferred to all others, and to whom I am united for ever in
Heaven." And having thus spoken, she vanished.
As we have seen, the devotion paid to S. Agnes is of so early a period
that it is quite possible the first chapel in the Halles dedicated to
her memory may date back to the 8th or 9th century; but nothing
authentic is recorded before the 13th century, and no part of the
present church of S. Eustache and S. Agnes is earlier than the 16th
century, when it was commenced during the reign of François I^{er.}
L'abbé Le Beuf gives the name of the architect as Charles David, and
undoubtedly one of that name was attached to the church, as the fact is
recorded upon an epitaph. But as he died in 1650, at the age of
ninety-eight, he must have been born in 1552; and, the church having
been commenced in 1532, this David could only have been a master of the
works, carrying out the design of some predecessor. A theory has been
propounded that this may have been Dominico da Cortona (Boccadoro), the
architect of the Hôtel de Ville, or one of his pupils, who followed him
from Italy; the evidence brought forward being the similarity of some of
the details of the two buildings. S. Eustache was commenced, as we have
seen, in 1532, the Hôtel de Ville in the following year; but beyond this
and a resemblance between the niches for statues of the two edifices,
there is absolutely no evidence for the supposition, and the name of the
architect of S. Eustache remains a hidden mystery. That he was an
accomplished artist, a man having an eye for great effects, with a
first-rate sense of proportion, the church bears witness, although it
has had its detractors ever since it was finished. Too Gothic for the
men patronized by Louis XIV., its Renaissance element shocked the
artistic taste of their successors; called a _barbarous style_ by the
first, because of its Gothic plan, its Renaissance detail was
_pernicious_ to the æsthetic instincts of the latter. It is amusing to
read Mr. Dibden's opinion of the church in his _Picturesque Tour_,[66]
as it is that of a cultured traveller, and probably is an example of the
judgment passed upon S. Eustache by the artists of his day. "Next in
importance to S. Gervais is the Gothic church of S. Eustache; a perfect
specimen, throughout, of that adulterated style of Gothic architecture
(called its restoration!) which prevailed at the commencement of the
reign of Francis I. Faulty, and even meretricious, as is the whole of
the interior, the choir will not fail to strike you with surprise and
gratification. It is light, rich, and lofty. This church is very large,
but not so capacious as S. Gervais, while its situation is, if possible,
still more objectionable." How the good parson could compare the two
churches, apparently to the advantage of S. Gervais, seems
extraordinary; for no unbiassed person can fail to be impressed by the
beauty of the proportions of S. Eustache, its length and height, its
effective choir, and its grand, but simple, altar. With the exception of
its glass chandeliers, all the furniture and accessories are in keeping
with the building; there is nothing tawdry, nor in bad taste; and it
lends itself more effectively than even Notre-Dame to processions and
grand ceremonials.
[Illustration: SAINT-EUSTACHE FROM THE HALLES CENTRALES.]
After its commencement the building seems to have struggled on for eight
years; when, for want of funds, it remained stationary until 1552,
although some of the altars had been consecrated by the Bishop of Mégare
sixteen years previously. In 1552 it was helped on again by Lenten
offerings, in return for dispensations to consume butter and milk. How
much these dispensations produced, and how long the funds lasted, we
are not informed; but civil war and religious troubles stopped the works
again, and it was not until 1624 that they were resumed. Both Sauval and
du Breul speak of the choir having been commenced in that year, and the
latter's description of it is interesting as showing its original form.
"Le choeur est un des plus beaux et un des plus grands de Paris après
celui de Notre-Dame, large, spacieux, garni de quatre rangées de
chaises; l'autel est fort haut en forme de frontispice, enrichi de six
colonnes de marbre, d'un riche tableau au fond et d'un tabernacle ample
et grand de bois ciselé et doré. Toute la clôture de ce choeur est
composée de piliers de cuivre et de marbre. Au derrière est un autre
autel de bois où l'art de la menuiserie n'est pas épargné, non plus que
l'or et le marbre, et dans cet autel est le sainct ciboire où repose le
saint Sacrement." Of the west front, the destruction of which, with two
chapels erected by Colbert and decorated by Mignard, is the cause of the
disproportion of length to height, Du Breul thus speaks: "Le portail est
fort massif, illustré d'ouvrages et ciselures de pierre. Au-dessus de la
grande porte par dehors est une galerie environnée de balustres; au deux
coings de ce portail sont commencées deux grosses tours. En celle de
main droicte sont les cloches. Aux deux costés de devant sont les images
de pierre de Saint Eustache et de Sainte Agnès, patrons de la dite
église et au dehors un assez ample parvis entouré de piliers." Writing a
century later Piganiol de la Force only speaks of this part of the
church. "Il était formé par six piliers buttants d'environ trente pieds
de saillie au delà du pignon, dont deux aux encoignures de dix pieds
d'épaisseur; deux autres de treize pieds servaient à soutenir la poussée
des arcades intérieures qui exigeait une grande solidité. Ces quatre
piliers formaient trois travées; dans celle du milieu était la porte
d'entrée; les deux autres avaient été construites pour porter deux
tours, et dans leur intérieur M. Colbert avait fait construire deux
chapelles, l'une pour les mariages et l'autre pour les fonts."
The church was finished and consecrated by Jean de Gondy, first
archbishop of Paris, on the 26th April, 1637. Round the altar were ten
statues, which, according to the taste of the day, were portraits of
contemporaries, although representing sacred personages. They were by
Jacques Sarrazin. Louis XIII. was the embodiment of S. Louis; Anne
d'Autriche and the future _Grande monarque_ were allowed to represent
the Blessed Virgin and her Child. Above these were the patron saints.
It must be remembered by critics who find fault with the disproportion
between length and height of S. Eustache, that an entire bay of the nave
and two chapels were demolished with the west front, thus reducing the
length. One of the chapels, erected at Colbert's expense, must have been
of value artistically, certainly more so than the present west front
which was substituted; for Mignard's frescoes are immortalised by
Molière in his _Gloire du Val-de-Grâce_. They represented the Heavens
with the Almighty surrounded by Angels, the Circumcision, and the
Baptism of Christ:
"Colbert, dont le bon goût suit celui de son maître,
A senti même charme et nous le fait paraître.
Ce vigoureux génie au travail si constant,
Dont la vaste prudence à tous emplois s'étend,
Qui du choix souverain tient par son haut mérite
Du commerce et des arts la suprême conduite,
A d'une noble idée enfanté le dessein,
Qu'il confie au talent de cette docte main,
Et dont il veut par elle attacher la richesse
Aux sacrés murs du temple où son coeur s'intéresse (St-Eust.).
La voilà cette main qui se met en chaleur;
Elle prend les pinceaux, trace, étend la couleur;
Empâte, adoucit, touche et ne fait nulle pose.
Voilà qu'elle a fini: l'ouvrage aux yeux s'expose,
Et nous y découvrons aux yeux des grands experts
Trois miracles de l'art en trois tableaux divers."
The other chapel was decorated by Charles de Lafosse, a pupil of Lebrun,
and the painter of the dome of the Invalides. The subjects were God,
surrounded by the four Evangelists, blessing Adam and Eve, and the
marriage of the Virgin and S. Joseph. These chapels were erected
respectively for baptisms and marriages.