FrenchKate

August 10: The cour de Louvre replaced the hôtel de petit-Bourbon

At least the building that replaced the hôtel Petit-Bourbon was spectacular. The cour de Louvre and especially its easternmost wing, the Colonnade, proved to be a ground-breaking departure for French architecture. The colonnade du Louvre was intended to be the newfront door to the Louvre, t has been hugely influential.

The Louvre Colonnade is considered the "foremost masterpiece of French architectural classicism" according to wikipedia.  Built between 1667 and 1674, its restrained design adhered to the rules laid down by ancient Roman architect, Vitruvius, whose works had been translated into French by one of the architects of the new building, Claude Perrault (brother of Charles Perrault.) 

In fact, the use of one central and two terminal pavilions is typically French. The plain lower level rests on a pediment that was hidden between 1674 and 1964 when the dry moat was cleared out. The second level with its loggia and paired Corinthian columns is unusual, and it had a mixed reception in its day; Vitruvius never mentions the doubling of column. Its flat-roofline design was unprecedented in France. 

In any case, if you stand and consider the Colonnade de Louvre, you are looking at a building that has remained the same for 350 years. But for 300 years before that, another palace, the hôtel de Bourbon, stood on that site. And the houses of 300 bourgeoisie occupied that same ground more than 600 years ago. Thus we find layer upon layer of history in France.

 

 

August 6: Fairy tales & Mother Goose

Towards the end of his life, in 1696, author Charles Perrault (1628 - 1703) gave life to the genre of fairy tales--Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Puss in Boots, Little Red Riding Hood--when he published "Stories or Tales from the Past:Tales of Mother Goose" (Histoires ou Contes du Temps passé: Les Contes de ma Mère l'Oye.) He was not the first to draw on folk stories for inspiration, but "Perrault turned the blunt language and earthy imagery of peasant folk stories into tales that were urbane, aristocratic, stylish and highly refined..." to quote Terri Windling whose article is cited by wikipedia and whose insights I am summarizing.

In fact, fairy tales--the term was coined by Marie-Catherine Le Jumel de Barneville, Baroness d'Aulnoy around 1690--enjoyed a certain fashion in salon society in the late 17th century. The salons were regular gatherings, typically held in the homes of aristocratic women, in which women and men gathered to discuss the issues of the day: arts and letters, politics, and social customs. The women who frequented salons, the salonnières, argued for love, kindness and equality between the sexes. They sound like modern feminists, in fact. They rejected arranged marriages, wanted control of their own money and property, and opportunity to use their intelligence and talents. The salonnières developed a witty, refined, inventive mode of conversation that Molière mocked as pretentious. With a modern ear, I hear Molière's criticism as misogyny--mocking the desire of women to be independent and intelligent. 

Some time in the middle of the 17th century, parlor games based on the plots of old folk tales became fashionable in the salons. Each salonnière would retell or rework a folk tale. The goal was not only to showcase the narrator's verbal agility and imagination--stories were delivered in a natural and spontaneous manner--but also to comment on aristocratic life. The tales were subversive, but their source material and nature  allowed them to slip past the court censors. "Critiques of court life (and even of the king) were embedded in flowery utopian tales and in dark, sharply dystopian ones..." (Windling again.) Perrault was a member of these folk-tale spinning salons, and had, in fact, led a literary movement to abandon the classic ideals of Greece and Rome, arguing that since King Louis XIV led the most advanced civilization in the world, the literature of that civilization (such as fairy tales) would be, by definition, superior to that of the ancients.

As it happened, Perrault lost the argument in his day; Louis XIV sided with the those who favored the ancients. However, three hundred years later, Perrault's fairy tales remain popular, so he seems to have won the long game. 

The photos are some fairy tale scenes--Mother Goose scenes, really--taken in 2018 at Château d'Ancy-le-Franc and at Château de Guédelon. These are visual arguments for visiting France. The last scene--swan on canal--was photographed at Fontainbleau in October, 2017.

August 2, 2022: Celtic society & Terroir

My last FrenchKate post was April 4...May, June, July, August...four months ago! At first I was derailed because I was reading and researching Irish history, not French, for a project that my Aunt has been working on. But more recently, I just have been out of the habit, and I miss it.

But here is something I have learned that combines French and Irish history. The Celts (...as they called themselves) or the Gauls (the Roman name for them) displaced Ireland's original neolithic population around 2500 BC--about the same time Celts overran the rest of Europe, including France--but in Ireland, they were able to preserve their traditions and culture for over three thousand years. They evolved without the waves of conquest and settlement--Roman, Germanic, Visigoth, Frank, Hun, Vandal--that ravaged and transformed Celtic societies in Europe. Thus, the alien, barbarian and incomprehensible Irish society encountered by Europeans in the middle ages was a pure Celtic culture. And this Celtic society is interesting because it suggests (to me, at least) that certain Celtic traditions may have survived in France. 

The Irish society encountered by Europeans consisted of dispersed communities defined by their túath, the land that was collectively shared by the people who lived there. Each túath--there were as many as 150--covered roughly 300 or 400 square miles, and the tribal identity of its roughly 6,000 - 9,000 inhabitants derived from their commitment to the land. Thus, Celtic tribes were based on territory, not kin. In some tribes, the kings would be inaugurated by ritually “wedding” their domains.

Each túath was self-contained. Each had its own chieftain, council, courts and defense; within the túath, the social structure was hierarchical. Leadership and tribal kings came from an aristocratic warrior class. Below the nobility were the learned--druid priests, judges, lawyers, historians, poets, physicians, bards--who offered specialized instruction on sacred rites, interpreted the law, or commemorated cultural achievements in song and poetry. The third stratum, the commoners, consisted of both free and enslaved men. Freemen owned cattle and grew crops; master craftsmen created remarkable art in bronze, copper and gold. Slaves--men, women and children seized in battle or raiding parties--did the work. While it resembled the society of medieval Europe and could comfortably co-exist with Europe’s feudal structure, a great difference was the temporary nature of authority in Irish society. Authority and property were redefined every generation. This fluidity seemed chaotic to the English.  

All of Irish society was ordered by Gaelic law--the “Brehon law”--which was passed orally from generation to generation. This law took great care to define the social status of each man, and specified the rights and duties required of him, as well as the recompense (the honor-price) he could receive if a crime was committed against him. Women, slaves, children and the insane had no honor-price. 

In addition to sharing the Brehon law, Irish society also shared a common language, common customs and common social organization. However, each tribe put its own interest first. While on occasion tribes would join forces against a common enemy, when the threat was gone, the tribes would disperse, and life would go on. There were no towns. Families lived in isolated farmsteads, gathering only for protection in times of war or for ritual celebrations. There was no effective central government and nothing resembling national unity. While in theory, a High King ruled all Ireland, the position of High King was largely ceremonial; he ruled only over the realm of which he was actually king.  Warfare between tribes to acquire or repossess land, seize cattle, avenge insults to honor, and enslave captives gave purpose to life and was celebrated in verse. Honor was the name of the game, and warfare and cattle raids were blood sports with a long literary tradition. 

So what do I see in French culture that might descend from that Celtic culture? First and foremost, the French sense of terroir, a word that has no equivalent in English. Lucy Wadham, author of "The Secret Life of France" observes that the word--which refers to the "ground, terrain, land, soil, earth"-- is "charmed", inducing "a dewy-eyed yearning in most Parisians" for rural life. She notes the "deep love for and identification with the land" in rural France.

The French Wikipedia describes the "terroir as being a "concrete, tangible, and mappable space" with "a cultural dimension that directly reflects the human society that exploits it and its history," and supports my hunch that the concept derives from the clans "of the ancient Gallic and Gallo-Roman civitas."

The first three images were taken at Bibracte on a foggy day in November 2019. Bibracte was once a flourishing Gallic hilltop settlement; Caesar spent the winter of 52 BC there writing his Commentaries on the Gallic War. The last two images--a Roman defensive fortification and a battle--were taken at Alesia, site of the decisive battle in which the Romans defeated a united Gallic force in 52BC, in November 2019.

Dec 5: the Renaissance court

The French court during the Renaissance (between 1483 and 1589) differed from the later court of Louis XIV (which is more familiar to us.) Although significant politically, socially and culturally, the court itself was still evolving. It was nomadic (not based in Paris) and a microcosm of French society. All social classes (except the peasants) were represented, including women. It was also--as a contemporary put it--"in the image of the prince." 

The Italian goldsmith and sculptor, Benvenuto Cellini--who had gone to France in hopes of a rich commission--described his visit to the court of King François I in 1540, a court on the move:

"We were following the court with the weariest trouble and fatigue; the reason of this was that the train of the King drags itself along with never less than 12,000 horse behind it; this calculation is the very lowest, for when the count is complete in times of peace, there are some 18,000 which makes 12, 000 less than average....we had to journey after it through places where sometimes there were scarcely two houses to be found; and then we set up canvas tents like gipsies, and suffered at times very great discomfort."

Finding accommodation for the court was a major challenge for the court quartermasters. At its largest, the court would swell to the size of an average French town, between 8,000 and 10,000 people. The king and his court would journey from royal châteaux (Blois, Amboise, Chambord, Fontainebleau)-- carrying the royal furnishings with them--to the châteaux of wealthy courtiers (such as the Duc de Montmorency at Écouen), religious houses, or inns. On some occasions, the countryside was unoccupied and even the king would sleep in a tent. Whenever the king stopped for the night, the court would scramble for shelter; their accommodations could extend over several square miles. Sometimes, the king and court would be received and accommodated as honored guests in a town.

Finding food for the court was another major challenge. The court scavenged food along the way; it was a vast hunting party. One ambassador complained to Cosimo de' Medici that "this court is like no other. Here we are completely cut off from business, and if by chance there is any business, no hour, day or month is aside for certain to deal with it. Here one thinks of nothing but hunting, women, banquets and moving house." 

August 28: Abbaye Saint-Sauveur in Figeac

In my virtual compostelle Saint-Jacques, I have reached Figeac, and, as is my custom, I began to scout the sites and history of the town.

Several things struck me.  

Figeac grew up around the Benedictine abbey of Saint-Sauveur founded by Pepin I of Aquitaine in 838.

According to a 19th century French historian, this abbey was built on the site of an earlier abbey. Vikings had destroyed this abbey and massacred sixty monks and refugees who had sought shelter in the church prior to 838AD. I am skeptical about this account. Its specificity gives me pause--sixty monks and refugees murdered by Vikings prior to 838--but I wonder how--if-- the Vikings could have gotten so far into the heart of France. In fact, why would they bother? Much richer pickings were more easily available. To reach the Abbey of Saint-Saveur in Figeac, the Vikings would have to travel up the Garonne (Toulouse was attacked in 844AD), then up the Lot, and then finally up the Célé. If I were in Figeac, I would try to learn more about this.

As I delved into google's resources on Viking raids in France to see what I could find from home, I came upon a surprisingly hot research controversy. An independent French historian--Joel Supery--argues that the Vikings had more extensive settlements in southwestern France than previously acknowledged. In fact, Supery points out that French scholarship has never researched the possibility of Viking settlements south of the Loire; for French historians, the Vikings settled in Normandy only. 

However, Supery noted that in Normandy, place names classified as Norman have Scandinavian names as their roots--Bjorn, Asgeir, Stein--with the Latin "ville" tacked on at the end. For example, the modern Benneville can be understood as the modern French form of Bjorn-ville, the lands of Bjorn. He applied the same logic to placenames that end in "-os." These placenames are found uniquely in southwestern France (or ancient Gascony,) and they have stumped linguists; maybe the names were Basque? Maybe Indo-European? Maybe a sign of resistance to the Roman occupiers? However, Supery pointed out that because French historians and linguists ignored the possibility of Scandinavian settlements south of the Loire, they never thought to examine at the possibility that "os" might indicate a word of Scandinavian origin. In particular, Supery observed that the Scandinavian parallel to "ville" is "hus." From "hus" to "os" is an easy jump.

When Supery looked at southwestern place-names ending in "os," he found that nearly 100% took the same form as the names that were identified as Norman: a Scandinavian name name plus "os" (rather than ville.) Thus, Bayonnes derived from "Bjorn-hus", the lands of Bjorn. 

The controversy arose because French academic historians did not take kindly to Supery's insight. They rejected Supery's basic argument--that the Vikings had more extensive settlements and trade routes in southwestern France than previously understood--and ridiculed his methodology and training. It was heated, but by 2018, evidently the credentialed academics were admitting that someone with the proper training should look at the possibility. 

The first photo shows the abbey church of Saint-Sauveur today. Like most churches in France, this one has sustained damage--of the original 12th century monastery, only the church and the chapter house remain--but unlike most, the damage was inflicted during the 16th century Wars of Religion rather than during the 19th century, post-revolution.

The second image is a map of Vikings activity from wikipedia. Figeac is nowhere on that map, but neither is Toulouse so the map is too general. Supery's argument is that the Vikings had settlements in southern France that would trade with Vikings in southern Italy, and looking at the map, you can see his point.

Feb 21: Three centuries at a glance

Sometimes one sees a jumble of eras. In Troyes I came across is a pair of heavy doors from--I think--the 17th century next to a 15th-century half-timbered building. Signs of modernity separate them. A drain pipe was installed sometime in the mid-20th century during a huge civil engineering project to bring running water and modern plumbing to these ancient buildings. The lopsided red-and-blue traffic sign signals to modern drivers that this is a "no parking" zone.

April 11: Update on Coronavirus in France

According to Wikipedia, as of April 11, France has 93,790 confirmed cases of Covid-19, 13,832 deaths, and 26,391 recoveries. That number is high because France began to count suspected cases and deaths in retirement home as of April 2 (unlike many countries)--a decision that added 30, 902 cases to the national tally. They had just--just!--1561 cases when I wrote about the pandemic in France a month ago, a sixty-fold increase. France now has the fifth largest number of cases in the world, after the USA, China, Spain and Italy.

Though the USA has nothing to boast about. The USA had 1100 cases a month ago, fewer than the French, but now we have 528, 301 cases, an increase of 480%.

A church gathering in late February in Mulhouse in northeastern France appears to have been been a significant factor in the spread of disease. Over 2,000 of the roughly 2,500 people who attended have contracted covid-19, but, they had returned to their homes unaware, and spread it throughout France. One nurse who attended the event launched a secondary cluster of 250 Strasbourg University Hospital employees. Five returnees brought coronavirus to French Guiana, and five others brought it to Corsica.

French President, Emmanuel Macron, announced the closing of all schools and universities on March 12. On March 13, the prime minister banned gatherings of more 100 people, and the following day, he closed all non-essential public places--restaurants, cafés, cinemas and nightclubs. On 16 March, President Macron announced mandatory home confinement for 15 days, a lockdown that has been extended to at least April 15. Fashion Week shows were cancelled, the football season was suspended, the Paris half-marathon scheduled for March 4 (with 44,000 participants) was cancelled, French cultural institutions--the Louvre, Centre George Pompidou, Musée d"Orsay, Versailles--closed on March 14. 

As of March 23, all residents are required to complete and carry legal documentation to leave their homes. While essential journeys are permitted--shopping for food, traveling for work, accessing healthcare and exercising within 1 km of their home--residents can be fined for non-essential journeys. 

These strict measures seem to be working, and I sincerely hope so. ICU admissions have been declining, and France seems to be stabilizing new cases, but the French already have lost .02% of their population, and that loss will grieve the country. If .02% of US population die of covid-19-- that would be 68,000 people. It is unthinkable.

Note: When I first posted this, I calculated that France had lost 2% of her population. But my math was wrong, and I realized my error overnight.  I have made corrections now.

April 1: Back to Liselotte's letter...

In 1701, Elizabeth Charlotte, Duchess d' Orléans wrote that gossipy letter to her half sister. 

"King William changes his favorites often; he has another, they say, in place of Albermale. It is not surprising that the queen, his wife, had no rivals during her lifetime. Those who have such tastes aren't picky about women. I have become so wise about this custom in France that I could write books about it."

The King William referred to here is William III, King of England and Prince of Orange, her second cousin. The "custom" she references is homosexuality. King William was suspected of fancying men to women. 

Elizabeth Charlotte was the second wife of Philippe, Duke d' Orléans, whose first wife--pretty, vivacious Henrietta of England--died when she was only 26 years old. Philippe was a notorious homosexual--extremely pretty and effeminate as a young man, he would attend balls in women's clothing, carried on open romantic affairs with German nobles despite being married, and promoted his favorites at court. One, Antoine Coiffier, the captain of Philippe's hunt, stayed in his household until Philippe's death in 1701.

So Liselotte probably could write books about this custom.

In any case, William III did seem to favor men though he was not as overt as Philippe d'Orléans in his fancies. The "Albermarle" whom Liselotte mentions was a Dutch nobleman, Arnold Joost van Keppel, (1669 - 1718.) His relationship with William III created the most contemporary comment. Twenty years younger than William, Keppel became William's page of Honor when Keppel was a teenager in the 1680s. By the 1690s, William was showering Keppel with honors and land. He became Groom of the Bedchamber and Master of the Robes in 1695, and was created Earl of Albemarle in 1697. The gifts and recognition continued after William's death; William III bequeathed him £200,000 and the lordship of Bredevoort.

Keppel married and had children. His son married a granddaughter of Charles II, and over the next three hundred years, their descendants continued to have roles in the royal households as advisors, royal attendants, soldiers, huntsmen, and lovers. In fact, both of Prince Charles's wives--Princess Diana and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall--are descended from Arnold Joost van Keppel.

So that's striking.

Image 1 is Liselotte, Duchess d'Orléans, around 1700 when she wrote this letter.

Image 2 shows William III of Orange and Mary around the time they became co-rulers of England (c1685).

Image 3 is the pretty Arnold Joost van Keppel around 1700

 

March 22: FrenchKate in the time of Coronavirus

Thanks to the coronavirus pandemic, my husband, sister and I have been isolated since Friday, March 13. That's ten days ago.  

We decided to quarantine ourselves because the virus is spreading rapidly. Above all we want to avoid catching the virus; we are in a higher risk group. At the same time, we want to help "flatten the curve"--to keep infection rates low enough that medical staff, hospital beds and supplies remain available for those who do contract the disease. 

I haven't left the house at all; my husband went out to the grocery store once, but returned so shocked by empty shelves and general group anxiety that he hasn't ventured out again.  My sister has left three or four times on various errands--to pick up supplies, pick up dinner, drop off compost--that kind of thing. She also took a gift to the staff at the Willows, where our mother lives. We can't see mother--the building is under a complete lock-down to protect the vulnerable residents, but we are grateful to the staff. I figure I can begin to associate with others who have been staying away from the world once 14 days have passed (to confirm that I don't have the disease.) In the meantime, I have lots of time--in theory--to putter, read, write, exercise, practice French, practice the piano, chat with friends, cook and clean, organize. It is an introvert's holiday!

Not that I am doing all that much; I am mostly glued to my news sources from morning to bedtime. I read that Newton developed the theory of gravity when he was isolated during one plague, and Shakespeare wrote King Lear when in isolation during another. Talk about raising the stakes high!

In mid-February, before all this emerged, I was planning to take up the French Revolution, but I find myself distracted by the pandemic. So I have decided to set Revolution aside for the time being and return tomorrow with lighter topics.

"For God is deaf nowadays, and will not hear us,
And for our guilt he grinds good men to dust."
              --William Langland, Piers Plowman, circa 1370
                Translated Siegfried Wenzel

March 10: Covid-19 in France

The novel Covid-19 has reached France, and although all eyes are on Italy--which has "locked down" itself down--the disease in France is following a similar course. Italy identified its first case on Feb 21, and sixteen days later--March 10--they had over 10,000 cases (in  a population of 60 million.)

Although France's first case was identified in late January, the disease began to spread in late February. Thirteen days later--March 10--they had 1561 cases (in a population of 67 million.) At this rate of growth, they will surpass 10,000 cases in three  weeks.

In addition, the disease is showing up all over France. I got these maps of the spread of Covid-19 from Le Figaro.  If the course of Covid-19 in the US follows this same path, we will see 55,000 cases by the end of March, and over 13 million by the end of April. It's sobering.