The home of our ancestor, from which he fled, a Huguenot refugee in
1685, is a small town on the right bank of the Seine, about midway
between Havre and Rouen. At this point the river St. Gertrude,
flowing down between the two mountain peaks Mt. Calidee and Mt.
Vignette, empties into the Seine.
Caudebec, the capital of Caux, is within a triangle, its base the
bank of the Seine on which is a wharf 13.78 ft. above sea level and
on which runs the government road toward Havre. The apex of the
triangle lies at a point along the St. Gertrude river between the
mountain peaks which have an altitude of about 500 ft.
The region has a light, alluvial, productive soil--soft, mild
temperature and is most healthful.
The valley of the Seine through Normandy is one of the most beautiful
in France, rich in memories, a paradise for the artist and
archaeologist.
For centuries Caudebec was a seaport. The incoming tide, a wall of
water 5 or 6 ft. high, was forced upstream with great rumbling. This
alternating with the natural flowing downstream has caused the river
to become shallow. These factors together with the building of larger
ships have caused the abandonment of Caudebec as a seaport.
As to the origin of the name Caudebec, authorities differ. It is
thought to be of Norse or Icelandic origin, coined by the Normans.
Kalder--Kalt--cold, and Bek meaning a rivulet--Kalt bek (Caudebec)
meaning cold brook and applying it to the St. Gertrude river as it
flows into the Seine.
Traces of former occupation of this region and of varying degrees of
civilization are abundant. For centuries the land was occupied by
barbarous, wandering tribes of various origin. They were continually
disputing, fighting and exterminating one another. About 49 B. C. the
Romans were attracted to this region. They conquered and subdued the
tribes and continued to control that part of Normandy for about five
centuries. There are yet evidences of Roman occupation in and about
Caudebec and of the occupancy of it by barons, dukes and other
royalties. Fragments of Gallo-Roman potteries are found at Caudebec,
also coins stamped with Calidu upon them. Calidu was the chief tribal
town of the Caletes at the time of the Roman conquests of France.
Julius Caesar conquered these people and constituted a Roman colony
on the site of Caudebec about 648 A. D. St. Vandrille founded a
monastry "near a sparkling stream in the forest" which under the
influence of Charlemange grew rapidly. It had many students, at one
time over three hundred. The village of Caudebec was formed below it
and the town developed rapidly in population and importance. This
condition continued until late in the 9th century.
Following this the Franks gained control and established their first
monarchy and with their feudal rules controlled the country and the
people. In the ninth century the Norsemen--Northmen (Normans)
established their colonies and took possession of the fertile valleys
of northern France, where their aggressive industry and assertive
ways enabled them to possess the land. They adopted civilized
manners, language, customs and pursuits and became an energetic,
skillful, warm-hearted, patriotic people--the best sailors, fishermen,
agriculturists, and manufacturers in all France.
In the 11th century Caudebec became the commercial town and the
central market in the land of Caux.
In the 16th century tanneries were established and the manufacture of
gloves and hats developed extensively, becoming the chief industry.
The black hat of Caudebec with the large black feather was made here
as was most of the headgear worn in France. The French court adopted
this Caudebec hat, a large black beaver with a long feather, and
later it was used almost universally in France.
The church at Caudebec is said to be one of the finest in Normandy.
It has suffered greatly by reason of the sectional wars that have
repeatedly devastated the country, especially those of the 16th and
17th centuries. It was built originally in the 11th century and has
been enlarged and repaired repeatedly. The splendid tower was
completed in 1491.
On August 15th, 1415, Henry V of England caused the land of Caux to
be the seat of war, which lasted several years. In May, 1418, the
town of Caudebec, besieged by the English army under generals Warwick
and Talbot, made a heroic defence, but surrendered in September. It
remained in English hands until 1435 when the peasantry of Caux
rebelled against English rule. A protracted war followed which caused
famine and plague and the land was reduced almost to a desert. The
province remained the seat of war until 1499 when Charles VII took
Rouen by storm and later made triumphal entry into Caudebec with an
army of 12,000 men. The country prospered, Caudebec grew--most of the
houses in the town date to that period of the 15th century.
[Illustration: Caudebec, France]
[Illustration: Caudebec, France]
[Illustration: Market Place, Caudebec]
There are few changes in them, as new windows, new doors, but they
remain the same old wooden buildings with wooden galleries suspended
over the narrow, irregular, oddly paved streets. Today in Caudebec
one breathes the air of the middle ages.
The Reformation--the great religious awakening of the 16th
century--developed great sympathy in Caudebec. The Protestants, the
Huguenots (a term borrowed from Switzerland, meaning bound together
by oath) were quite numerous. Religious wars followed. The English
assisted the Protestants--the Spanish, the Catholics. Rival dukes and
princes sought to take advantage of these conditions and conflicts
followed from which pillage, incendiarism, and destruction resulted.
On April 24, 1592, Caudebec capitulated to the Duke of Palma, On May
15th it capitulated a second time to Henry IV of France amid the
cheers of the people.
On April 15th Henry IV issued the "Edict of Nantes" and established
universal liberty and equality as to religious professions and
worship. Great general prosperity followed, especially in manufacture
and agriculture.
On Oct. 17, 1685, Louis XIV revoked "the Edict of Nantes." This was
followed by persecution, pillage, and destruction of property and
people, especially of the Huguenots. Great numbers of people fled
from France and among them our progenitor Jacques Caudebec.
On Sept. 19, 1749, Louis XV visited Caudebec with all the splendor of
the French court. With their enthusiastic Royalist spirit the people
unharnessed the horses and they themselves drew the royal carriage.
Caudebec is to-day a noted summer resort with a population of about
2,000, with fairs three times a year, with annual boat regattas, with
provision for pleasure and entertainment. The people of nearby cities
may thus enjoy its healthful climate and its hospitality.
A recent traveller has thus viewed Caudebec as approached from the
sea by river. "Between the great forest of Maulevrier on our left and
the green meadows on our right is the great broad Seine, fringed with
shady arbors and with rows of modest homely hotels. The graceful
church spire dominates the town which is in the midst of rising green
hills. The old Caudebec, one of the oldest of Norman towns, with its
medieval houses, narrow, crooked, ill-paved streets, was built on the
site of the Roman settlement, Lotum and gives unmistakable evidence
of its antiquity. The quaint windows and doorways, the overhanging
and irregular roofs almost against one another are everywhere visible
and are covered with creeping vines and climbing flowering plants."
[Illustration: View. Entrance to the Church, Caudebec]
[Illustration: Street Scene. Caudebec, France]
[Illustration: VIEW OF CAUDEBEC ALONG RIVER FRONT]
"A LITTLE THING IS A LITTLE THING, BUT FAITHFULNESS IN LITTLE
THINGS IS A GREAT THING."
MAY SOME MEMBER OF THE FAMILY COMPLETE AND CONTINUE THIS RECORD,
AND MAY THE STERLING WORTH AND CHARACTER OF OUR ANCESTORS ENDURE
THROUGH THE COMING GENERATIONS.
"RIGHT LIVING IN ITS SILENCE IS MORE POWERFUL THAN WORDS, AND
CHARACTER, WHEN TOUCHED, RINGS OUT TRUE SWEET MUSIC."
Port Jervis, N. Y.,