Verhaecht and Van Nort, and afterwards of Otto Van Veen, whom he
assisted in the decoration of Antwerp at the time of the visit of Albert
and Isabella. Rubens travelled in Italy, where he pursued his art
studies, afterwards settling in Antwerp at the beginning of the twelve
years' truce. Here he painted most of his chief pictures. The works in
the cathedral were finished in 1614.
Under the patronage of Charles I. Rubens visited England, and was
commissioned to embellish the banqueting hall in Whitehall. His fame
also reached Spain, and his "Metamorphoses of Ovid" was painted for the
royal hunting seat of that country.
Sir Joshua Reynolds, though a somewhat prejudiced critic of Dutch and
Belgian painting, visited the Low Countries more than once, and brought
back art treasures to England. In 1781, he wrote to Burke from Antwerp,
where he inspected the pictures in the churches.
The Museum contains some of the masterpieces of Rubens, and notable
examples of the work of Vandyk, Teniers, Rembrandt, and Van Eyck. Here
is the great work of Quentin Matsys, "The Descent from the Cross." For
the best-known painting by Rubens, "The Descent from the Cross," we must
visit the Cathedral of Notre Dame. It has been said that the painting of
the picture was suggested to Rubens by an Italian engraving, for there
are traces in it of Italian influence. Parts of the painting have been
restored and cleaned. It is seen to good advantage from a short
distance, for the painting was planned for a large building. "The
Elevation of the Cross" is another of the treasures in the cathedral.
This, in the opinion of Sir Joshua Reynolds, is one of the chief
pictures by Rubens. "The Assumption of the Virgin" was painted rapidly,
and decorates the choir.
The cathedral is Gothic, and one of the finest in Europe. The interior
is impressive, with its wide nave and aisles. The choir stalls are
beautifully carved, and should be carefully examined as examples of
Gothic art. The pulpit is also carved, but the work is indifferent. The
steeple, one of the highest in Christendom, is very exquisite, like lace
work rather than stone and metal. In the tower are the many tuneful
bells that ring out chimes, and one huge bell with a sonorous note.
In the churches of St Paul and St Jacques, and of the Augustines, are
paintings of great interest by Rubens, Vandyk, and Teniers.
A ramble around the fortifications will show how strong are the defences
of the city, which have been constructed since the last siege in 1832.
Walls and citadels, well provided with points of vantage for artillery
fire, begirt Antwerp to-day. The forts and barriers cost an enormous
sum. Guns and ammunition are made in the city, which is the chief
fortress of the country, and an important military centre.
In the Grande Place stands the town hall, a florid building, containing
several paintings, though none of remarkable note, except some frescoes
by Leys, one of the most eminent of modern Belgian painters.
Our tour of the city must include a visit to the house of Rubens, in the
street named after him. The archway is from the designs of the painter,
whose studio was in the grounds.
The first Exchange was erected in 1531, and destroyed by fire in 1858.
It was from this building that the plan of the London Royal Exchange
was taken. The modern Bourse is in the Rue de la Bourse.
Antwerp is architecturally a handsome city, with several fine squares,
wide promenades, and well-planned streets. The docks are extensive, and
the long quays stretch thence to the old fort on the south side. There
is a triangular park with sheets of water, beyond the great Boulevard,
and in the zoological garden is a fairly representative collection of
animals. In the Rue Leopold is the botanic garden.
The Plantin Museum, containing relics and volumes of one famous printer,
is one of the public institutions that must be visited.
Such are the chief monuments and objects of interest in the old city of
Antwerp, where the ancient and the modern are both represented side by
side in odd contrast.
AMSTERDAM
A horn of flatland, bounded by the North Sea and the Zuyder Zee, juts
northward, with Haarlem and Amsterdam at its base. Sundered by a channel
from the point of the horn is Texel, the biggest of the curious line of
islands that stretches along the coast to Friesland. This Helder, or
"Hell's Door," the tidal channel leading to the broad inlet of the
Zuyder Zee, runs like a mill-race, and the passage is deep enough to
admit large vessels travelling to the port of Amsterdam.
The capital of Holland is built upon logs driven into the firm earth
through morass and silt. It is a city of canals and dykes, spanned by
hundreds of bridges, a northern Venice, dependent for its safety upon
the proper control of sluices. The devouring sea is kept at bay by a
mighty dam. Truly, Amsterdam is one of the wonders of men's ingenuity.
The plan of its streets is remarkable; the thoroughfares are a series of
semi-circles with their points to the Zuyder Zee. The flow of the
canals and waterways that wind about the city is impelled by artificial
means. The number of the piles upon which the palace of Amsterdam stands
is reckoned at nearly fourteen thousand.
About the thirteenth century, the building of the city began around the
castle of Amstel, on a tidal marsh. During the siege of Haarlem by the
Spanish, Amsterdam depended upon its waterway for food supplies. The
Duke of Alva wrote: "Since I came into the world, I have never been in
such anxiety. If they should succeed in cutting off the communications
along the dykes, we should have to raise the siege of Haarlem, to
surrender, hands crossed, or to starve."
In 1787 when the King of Prussia brought his troops to Holland, in
favour of the stadtholder, Amsterdam surrendered its garrison. And in
1795 the French entered the city without the resistance of the
inhabitants.
Sir Thomas Overbury, who wrote in 1609, describes Amsterdam as
surpassing "Seville, Lisbon, and any other mart-town in Christendom."
The city maintained a great fleet of vessels trading to the East Indies,
the German ports, and the towns of the Baltic Sea.
The historian relates that the people were not "much wicked," though
disposed to drink; they were hard bargainers, but just, thrifty,
hardworking, and shrewd in commerce. To-day the natives of Amsterdam are
assuredly "inventive in manufactures," and eminently capable in all
affairs of trading and finance.
The fishing industry has declined seriously, but the export trade of
Amsterdam is enormous, the products being chiefly butter, cheese, cotton
goods, glass manufactures, leather goods, bread, stuffs, and gin. In
1900 the population of the city was 523,558.
Amsterdam is still a metropolis of capitalists, many of whom are of the
Jewish race, while it is a principal European centre of the diamond
trade. The famous banking system, established under guarantee of the
city, in 1609, is described at length by Adam Smith in his "Wealth of
Nations."
"Public utility," he writes, "and not revenue was the original object of
this institution. Its object was to relieve the merchants from the
inconvenience of a disadvantageous exchange." The bank was under the
control of four reigning burgomasters, who were changed every year.
The opulence of Amsterdam is apparent to the stranger who roams its
streets to-day. Factories abound, artificers are numerous, and
everywhere there are evidences of a prosperity that recalls the day when
most of the business of Europe was transacted in these narrow, twisted
streets, and a large fleet of vessels traded with the Indies.
Here several renowned printers set up their presses in the seventeenth
century, and many famous books were printed in the city. During the
following century Amsterdam still remained the great commercial capital
of Europe.
The immigration of Spanish and Portuguese Jews into Holland brought to
the city a fresh class of artisans, and gave an impulse to several
crafts. In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries there was a vigorous
intellectual development in Amsterdam. Several notable men were natives.
Spinoza was born here, in 1632, after the routing of the Spanish forces.
His parents were traders, Jewish fugitives from Spain.
Baruch, or Bendictus, Spinoza excelled even his tutors at the age of
fourteen, and the Rabbin Saul Levi Morteira was astounded by the boy's
capacity for learning. A troubled, but resplendent life lay before this
dark-eyed Hebrew youth. He was of the order of reformers, and shared
the griefs and the trials of all who strive to benefit humanity.
Persecution pursued Spinoza from the day when he conflicted with
Morteira in the synagogue, uttering opinions which were regarded as dire
heresy. We read of attempts upon his life, of excommunication, and of
ostracism. The philosopher supported himself by polishing lenses for
telescopes and optical instruments, until he was able to leave Amsterdam
for the University of Leyden. Later came recognition with the
publication of the great "Tractatus."
When offered a pension by the King of France, the philosopher refused
it, fearing that if he became a slave of the State, he might sacrifice
his liberty of thought. Spinoza lived in extreme simplicity, it is said
that he spent only twopence-farthing a day on his needs. His temper was
equable. "Reason is my delight," he declared. "A virtuous life is not a
sad and gloomy one."
Strange that this noble and tolerant thinker should have been described
as an enemy of humanity. "The God-intoxicated man," as Novalis said of
Spinoza, was accused of atheism in a day when philosophic doubt was
synonymous with crime. It was only such thinkers as Hegel, Lessing,
Goethe and Schelling who were able to appraise Spinoza at his true
value. For the uncultured he remained for generations an enemy of
virtue.
In Amsterdam Spinoza formed at least a measure of toleration among the
citizens. He writes: "In the midst of this flourishing republic, this
great city, men of all nations and all sects live together in the most
perfect harmony."
A monument to Spinoza was unveiled by Renan at the Hague, in 1877.
Amsterdam abounds in memories of Rembrandt, though many of his paintings
are distributed in the galleries of other cities. The rich capital of
Holland encouraged painters, poets, and men of science; and in the year
when Spinoza was born, Rembrandt settled in Amsterdam, and soon became
noted as a painter of portraits. His house is in the Breestraat. In his
day, it was beautifully adorned with works of art, and he owned a large
collection of engravings. Like many great artists, Rembrandt lived
absorbed in his labours, seldom frequenting society. After a spell of
reverses he went to live on the Rozengracht, and in this house on the
quay he spent his last days.
We think of Rembrandt, in the busy Amsterdam of his day, writing to a
friend: "In this great town wherein I am, there being no man, save me,
who does not pursue commerce; everyone is so attentive to his own profit
that I might remain here all my life unseen of any." Here, leading a
life of strenuous simplicity, content with his labour, a piece of cheese
and a crust, Rembrandt painted many memorable pictures. He soon became
one of the most respected of Amsterdam's citizens. His pupils were many,
and they paid high fees for their tuition. But Rembrandt remained almost
a recluse, and seldom forsook his studio for festive company.
In the Fodor Museum in Amsterdam may be seen the "Tribute Money," some
portrait drawings, and "Mars and Venus in the Net." Several of
Rembrandt's works are in private collections in the city. The picture
gallery also contains some of the painter's famous pictures.
For a glimpse of the business life of Amsterdam, we must stroll in the
Kalver Straat, an interesting thoroughfare, running from the palace to
the sea, and then along the harbour and the quay. The great dyke
encloses a number of docks, all thronged with ships, and the fish
market should be seen. Herring-curing, by the way, was the invention of
a native of the Low Countries.
Among the public buildings that will repay inspection, are the Town
Hall, the Bourse, and two churches, the old church and the new church.
The older church dates from about 1300. Its beautiful stained windows
were painted at a later date. There are some tombs here of illustrious
naval conquerors, and these, and the magnificent organ, in its very
ornate gallery, are the chief objects of interest.
The new church is scarcely "new," for it was built in 1408. This is a
fine edifice, with a number of monuments, an interesting carved pulpit,
and metal-work screen.
Admiral De Ruyter lived here, the great adversary of Blake, and the
gallant commander who held us at bay off the coast of Suffolk, and did
such damage to our ships in the Medway.
The pictures in the Museum are representative of the Dutch school, and
the collection includes many masterpieces; the chief artists represented
are Teniers, Rembrandt, Paul Potter, Gerard Douw, and Vandyk.
The situation of Amsterdam, on a salt marsh, with a stratum of mud below
its houses, would seem dangerous to the health of the city. It is,
however, a very healthy capital, and the inhabitants do not apparently
suffer from the specific diseases that are said to flourish in low, wet
lands.
Amsterdam leaves a picture in the mind of mediæval lanes and alleys,
with curious turrets and gables, shadowing slow canals; of sunlight and
vivid colour; of ships coming and going, and bustling quays, and streets
with old and new houses quaintly jumbled.
COLOGNE
In the days of Roman dominion, a city called Civitas Ubiorum was built
by the Rhine upon the site where now stands the fortified mediæval town
of Cologne. Remains of the Roman occupation are still to be traced in
the city in the bases of walls, but the amphitheatre was demolished long
ago. Agrippina was born here, and Trajan ruled in the fortress.
In the Middle Ages Cologne was a prosperous city, with a wide trading
repute, and celebrated for its arts and learning. William Caxton came
here to learn printing, an industry which he introduced into England.
Militarism and clerical domination appear to have been the chief causes
of the long spell of misfortune that fell later upon Cologne.
Persecution was one of the principal occupations of a number of the
people at this period; and much zeal was expended in expelling heretics,
Jews and Protestants from the city.
Cologne also suffered decline through the closing of the Rhine as a
navigable waterway by the Dutch, and it was not until 1837 that the
river was re-opened to trading vessels plying to foreign ports. To-day
the city is an important commercial and industrial centre.
Perhaps the best general view of Cologne is from the opposite bank of
the Rhine. The city is a forest of spires and towers; there were at one
time over two thousand clerics within the walls, and religious buildings
were more numerous then than to-day.
The wide river is spanned by two bridges; the more important is a
wonderful structure, over thirteen hundred feet in length, and made of
iron.
The Cathedral was begun in the thirteenth century, but it remained for a
considerable time in an unfinished state, and portions fell into decay.
Frederick William III. restored the building, and added to it; and since
this time the work has been continued in several parts of the edifice.
Externally the Cathedral is a stately building with its flying
buttresses, host of pinnacles, and splendid south doorway. The
architecture is French--rather German--Gothic.
[Illustration: COLOGNE.
ST. MARTIN'S CHURCH, 1826.]
In the choir are very brilliant stained windows, some mural pictures,
and numerous statues of Scriptural characters. The painted windows
here, and in the aisles, are extremely gorgeous examples of this art.
Among the objects of interest in the chapels are memorials of the
archbishops of the city, and an early painting, known as the Dombild,
depicting the saints of Cologne.
The Church of St Ursula and of the Eleven Thousand Virgins is remarkable
for its treasury of the bones of the adventurous virgins of the famous
legend. These relics are embedded in the walls of the choir. There are a
few pictures, but none of note, in this church.
St Maria Himmelfahrt, the church of the Jesuits, is highly flamboyant in
its embellishments. Amongst its treasures are the rosary of St Ignatius
and the crozier of St Francis Xavier. In St Gereon's Church is a
collection of the bones of the martyrs killed during the persecution by
the Romans. Architecturally, this church deserves careful attention for
it has ancient portions, and presents several styles. The baptistery and
sacristy are very ornate in design.
One of the works of Rubens is in St Peter's Church. This is the
well-known altar picture of "The Crucifixion of St Peter." Sir Joshua
Reynolds and Wilkie have both recorded their impressions of this great
work. Rubens esteemed this as the best picture that he ever painted; but
Reynolds thought the drawing feeble, and surmised that it was finished
by one of the pupils of Rubens, after the master's death.
The Church of Santa Maria is on the site of the Roman capital, and on
the same ground stood a palace at a later date. It is interesting for
its decorated choir, and the old doorways. There are several other
churches in Cologne that should be visited.
In the museum there are many pictures, including one by Durer, "St
Francis," by Rubens, "A Madonna," by Titian, and a work by Vandyk.
The paintings of the Cologne school are numerous, and demand attention,
as they represent the art of the period when painting began to flourish
in Germany. Some of the pictures were painted as early as the thirteenth
century. There are many modern paintings in the museum. A number of
Roman antiquities, statuary, and pottery, are also preserved here.
Among the secular buildings of note are the Rathaus, with varied
architectural styles, and the Kaufhaus, where the Imperial councils
were held in former days.
The noble historic stream upon which the city stands, "Father Rhine,"
flows through its finest scenery above Cologne, among the Siebengebirge
heights.
"Beneath these battlements, within those walls
Power dwelt amidst her passions; in proud state
Each robber chief upheld his armed halls,
Doing his evil will, nor less elate
Than mightier heroes of a longer date.
What want these outlaws conquerors should have?
But history's purchas'd page to call them great?
A wider space and ornamented grave?
Their hopes were not less warm, their souls were full as brave."
So wrote Byron in his verses upon the majestic river, whose "castle
crags," and wooded glens have been described again and again by poets of
many nations.
The Rhine has a life and a population of its own. On its banks are the
homesteads of vine-growers and farmers, while fishermen ply their craft
in its prolific waters. Upon the river itself float the voyagers in sea
vessels, and the enormous timber-rafts, which are one of the curious
sights of the Rhine. A steamboat trip on the river will delight the
tourist, but he should leave the boat at Bonn, for below that old town
the stream flows through a tame, featureless country.
I must not forget the celebrated perfume for which Cologne is famous.
The spirit known as Eau de Cologne was the invention of Farina in the
seventeenth century. It is still manufactured in the city, and provides
an industry for a large number of people. George Meredith's novel,
"Farina," comes to mind as we wander in Cologne, and note the name of
the discoverer of the world-famous scent.
Every visitor to the city should read "Farina," for its vivid
description of the life there, "in those lusty ages when the Kaisers
lifted high the golden goblet of Aachen, and drank, elbow upward, the
green-eyed wine of old romance."
Here is Meredith's picture of Cologne, on the eve of battle: "The
market-places were crowded with buyers and sellers, mixed with a
loitering swarm of soldiery, for whose thirsty natures wine-stalls had
been tumbled up. Barons and knights of the empire, bravely mounted and
thickly followed, poured hourly into Cologne from South Germany and
North. Here staring Suabians, and red-featured warriors of the East
Kingdom, swaggered up and down, patting what horses came across them,
for lack of occupation for their hands. Yonder huge Pomeranians, with
bosks of beard stiffened out square from the chin, hurtled mountainous
among the peaceable inhabitants."
HEIDELBERG
To think of Heidelberg is to think of learning. One of the first of
European universities was established in this town by the Elector
Rupert; and here culture has flourished for centuries, in spite of
repeated sieges and a long history of disasters. What a grim story is
that of yonder old grey castle that frowns upon Heidelberg across the
River Neckar. Wars and rumours of wars form the chief chronicles of this
ancient town from the days of the Electors Palatine of the Rhine to the
invasion of the French.
Besieged by Tully after a protracted siege, held by the Imperialists,
seized by the Swedish troops, burnt by the French, who ravaged it again
a few years later--Heidelberg has been the scene of many calamities and
much bloodshed.
Again and again has the castle been bombarded and fired. The last
catastrophe happened in 1764, when the fortress-palace was struck by
lightning, set on fire, and almost destroyed. It is now a great ruin;
the part least injured dates from the sixteenth century. The massive
tower, with walls over twenty feet thick, was hurled down by the French
in their last assault.
Such architectural details as remain are of great interest. The chief
gateway has parts of the old portcullis; there are some statues of the
sixteenth century, and a triumphal arch. From whatever point of view the
Castle of Heidelberg is seen, it is a striking red pile, proudly
dominating the surrounding country, and overshadowing the Neckar.
A part of the castle is known as the English Palace. Here lived
Elizabeth Stuart, daughter of James I. and grand-daughter of Mary Queen
of Scots, who was united to the Elector Frederick V. This palace was
built in 1607, and the garden was made about this time for the enjoyment
of the young bride.
The celebrated great Tun of Heidelberg is in one of the cellars of the
castle. This prodigious cask was originally made in the fourteenth
century, and contained twenty-one pipes of Rhenish wine. A second tun
was constructed in 1664, and this held six hundred hogsheads. The French
emptied this, and demolished it. A third cask was made to hold eight
hundred hogsheads, and when filled, the citizens held a dance upon a
stage erected on its top.
Viewed as a work of architecture, the University is not an inspiring
structure. It stands in a small square about the middle of the town. In
the library are missals and a large collection of books. Attached are
the botanic gardens of the college. The vandal Tully, during his
campaign, ravaged the university, and destroyed a number of valuable
volumes and manuscripts.
One of the greatest names associated with the University of Heidelberg
is the philosopher George Frederick William Hegel, born in 1770. He was
a native of Stuttgart, and at eighteen years of age he entered the
University of Tübingen. There Hegel met Schelling, for whom he had a
deep admiration. After a time of struggle as a tutor, the philosopher
came to Heidelberg, in 1816, as professor. His theses do not seem to
have attracted the students of that date, for we read that only four
persons attended his opening courses of lectures.
Hegel found time during two years in Heidelberg to write a part of his
"Encylopædia of Philosophical Science," a great work, which obtained
for the author a chair at the University of Berlin, where he lectured
for about thirteen years. He died of cholera, in 1831, at the age of
sixty-one.
Another illustrious man of Heidelberg was the poet Viktor Von Scheffel,
to whose memory a monument stands in the terrace of the castle.