FrenchKate

August 21:Toulouse builds a facade for its town hall

In 1750, ninety years after the Colonnade du Louvre introduced the classical (or neoclassical) style --columns, a central pavilion and two terminal pavilions, lower pediment, flat roof with balustrade--to the fashionable world, the city fathers of Toulouse decided to dress up their medieval town hall. Architect Guillaume Cammas designed a beautiful building--with columns, a central pavilion and two terminal pavilions, lower pediment, flat roof with balustrade.

The Capitole of Toulouse was clearly influenced by the Colonnade du Louvre.

I read that when Napoleon was asked what he thought of the Capitole on a visit to Toulouse in 1808--no doubt by a proud town poobah--he responded that the building was beautiful but very squat. But I wonder about the veracity of that comment--"squat" --in light of the Colonnade du Louvre. All the fashionable buildings had these proportions.

Aug 19: Château de Blois, four hundred years of French architecture

The royal château of Blois provides a wonderful map of French architecture.

In the first photo, note (on the right) the classical wing constructed in 1634 by Gaston, Duke of Orleans, the reckless, rebellious brother of Louis XIII, whose expectations were dashed when Louis XIV was born in 1638, knocking Gaston to younger brother status, not heir apparent.

In the middle of the panorama one finds a French Renaissance wing--with its fancy spiral staircase-- built for François I in 1515.

Tucked into the corner on the right is a plain building from the 13th century, containing the “Estates General Room” (Salle des États Généraux in French), one of the oldest seignoral rooms preserved in France. Plain on the outside, fancy on the inside. For centuries it served as a court of law for the counts of Blois and their successors, the Dukes d'Orleans.

And finally, on the right, is the Louis XII wing, constructed around 1500. Though built just fifteen years before the François I wing, it was clearly pre-Italian.

Blois had been the principal seat of the counts of Blois and Dukes d'Orleans since the ninth century, and when Duke Louis II succeeded Charles VIII (his second cousin, once removed) to become became King Louis XII of France in 1398, Blois became the center of his royal court.

 

August 18: Napoleon's farewell address

Napoleon's disastrous invasion of Russia led to his downfall. In 1813, a new coalition, the Sixth Coalition, was formed; Austria, Prussia, Sweden, Russia, Great Britain, Spain and Portugal joined forces against France. The Coalition offered peace terms, and Napoleon refused to accept them.

In January, 1814, the British army led by the Duke of Wellington pressed from the southwest; half of Napoleon's army (about 100,000 men) were tied up there. The other coalition forces attacked from the north east. By the middle of January, Prussian and Austrian troops were marching on Paris. Though Napoleon's army was much reduced--around 70,000 soldiers and a few cavalry--in mid-February, he was able to rack up a series of victories during the Six Days' Campaign. This delayed the inevitable fall of Paris for a brief time, but Napoleon had decided to take his defense to the country and leave Paris to the allies. So his brother, Joseph Bonaparte, led a defense of Paris, but, as expected, his army of 30,000 French soldiers--facing 150,000 coalition soldiers--was defeated. The leaders of Paris surrendered to the Coalition on March 31, 1814, and on April 2, the Sénat passed the Acte de déchéance de l'Empereur that deposed Napoleon

Napoleon received the news of the fall of Paris at Fontainebleau. His initial reaction was to march on Paris with what was left of his army, but his senior officers confronted him and refused, and without his senior officers, the campaign was impossible. Bowing to the inevitable, Napoleon announced his unconditional abdication on April 6, 1814.

On April 20, 1814, he descended the horseshoe staircase at Fontainebleau, and gave a farewell address to his soldiers: 

"Soldiers of my Old Guard, I bid you farewell. For twenty years you have been my constant companions on the road to honour and glory. In these latter times, as in the days of our prosperity, you have never ceased to be models of courage and fidelity. With men such as you our cause would not have been lost; but the war would have been interminable; it would have been a civil war, and France would only have become unhappier still. I have therefore sacrificed all of our interests to those of the Nation.

I shall depart. But you, my friends, continue to serve France. Her happiness was my only thought; it shall continue to be the object of my desires. Do not lament my fate; the only reason I have allowed myself to survive was so that I could further serve our glory. I want to write down the great deeds which we have done together. Adieu, my children! I wish I could press you all to my heart. Let me at least embrace your standard...!"

At these words, General Petit, seized the aigle and stepped forward. Napoleon took the general in his arms and kissed the standard. The silence which this great scene imposed was broken only by the sobs of the soldiers. Napoleon, visibly moved, pulled himself together and began again with a stronger voice:

"Once again, adieu, my old companions! May this last kiss pass to your hearts!"

Then he climbed into a carriage and departed for Elba.

August 17: The Horseshoe staircase at Fontainebleau

The famous horseshoe staircase at Fontainebleau was commissioned in 1632 by King Louis XIII; over the centuries has seen many historic moments: Royal princes meeting their brides, Napoleon's farewell to his troops in 1814. But when we visited Fontainebleau in 2017, the horseshoe staircase showed its age. It was dark, encrusted with moss, fungi and lichen, its surface pitted and somewhat slimey. It was rather nasty to run your hand along the handrail.

A project to restore the steps was undertaken between the time we were there and today. In this cleansing, the steps were soaked with a biocide, steamed under high-pressure, blasted with micro-particles and vacuumed with special vacuums.

After three years of work, the scoured and stabilized staircase had a grand son-et-lumiére re-opening on 21 May, 2022. The stairs lead directly to the royal apartments and royal chapel so the stairs were made for grand entrances, and at least for opening weekend, visitors could enter Fontainebleau like the king, up the stairs and in.

Looking for photos of the horseshoe staircase for this post, I came across one from 1970. This one suggests to me that the past 50 years have been particularly hard on an old sandstone staircase. The descriptions of its degradation do not suggest air pollution as a cause, but I wonder.

 

 

August 16: Fontainebleau

 The palace of Fontainebleau had long served as a royal residence and hunting lodge--the earliest mention of it dates to 1137--but when François I decided to move his court from the Loire Valley to the Île de France, he set about upgrading the existing medieval castle in the fashionable French Renaissance style.

Around 1528, the medieval donjon of the older castle (shown in the middle of the first photo) was converted into the royal bedroom, and given a fancy roof and new windows. An enclosed oval courtyard was created when wings (in the Renaissance style, of course) were built on the foundation of the former castle.

One could enter the Oval courtyard via the French Renaissance Porte D'Orée. 

François I's successors built another wing with a new front entrance (its horseshoe staircase was added by Louis XIII) to the east of the oval courtyard; a long gallery linked the  older oval courtyard and the newer structure and created another courtyard overlooking a pretty lake.

I found Fontainebleau to be charming for a vast royal residence that evolved over time; I am not surprised to learn that it was a favorite of the rulers of France (including Napoleon I) because its meandering floorplan creates a relaxed, informal air. 

You can see how the architectural style is developing: the high roof, the dormer windows capped by a pediment, the regular facade.

Images 1, 2, & 3: The Oval courtyard showing the Donjon preserved from the medieval castle and the French renaissance wings built on the foundation of the earlier castle.

image 4 is the Porte d'Orée with three levels of loggia, dormer windows and pediments

image 5 is the new wing with its horseshoe staircase and the cour d'honneur. This was taken in October 2017, and, as is normal in France, construction is happening.

Image 6 is the long gallery of François I in the link between the Oval courtyard and the new wing.

Image 7 is a plan of the site. The oval courtyard is on the center left, the cour d'Honeur is on the right. 

August 15: Royal château of the French Renaissance

The first château in the French Renaissance style was the château d'Amboise, constructed around 1495 by Charles VIII after he was exposed to Italian architecture during the first Italian War of 1495-1495. He brought Italian architects home with him. What we see today, however, is just a remnant of the royal palace==most of which was knocked down after the revolution.

The royal château that is considered the finest example of the French Renaissance style is château de Chambord, that great white elephant of a hunting lodge in the Sologne. Construction began in 1519 and has never been fully completed. François I, who ordered its construction, spent only 72 days there between 1519 and his death in 1547.

Louis XIV continued the construction of Chambord which though vast and unfurnished, was spacious enough to accommodate a royal party of 2,000 courtiers and staff.

 

 

August 14: Before the Italian wars brought classical architecture to France...

The château de Fenelon, one of the first châteaux that we visited when we lived in France in 2007, is a pretty standard châteaux-fort style building, built for defense. It is in Aquitaine, that part of modern France that was under English control ("the Angevin empire") until the 15th century.

The second château, château de Saint-Fargeau, was given a facelift in the 16th century so it is nowadays classified as "Renaissance" but the five round towers are a tell that this began as a château-fort. 

The third château is the château d'Anjony, built in 1430 by Louis d'Anjony, a companion of Joan of Arc, whom King Charles VII had made his representative in the region (Cantal/Auvergne), an act that caused serious feuds with the noble family already established in town, the Tournemire. The chateau d'Anjony has been inhabited by Louis's descendents ever since--almost 600 years! This was a site that got away from me--when we were in the area we didn't have time to visit. 

The modern imagination adores this style of castle, but with the advent of artillery in the 15th century, the château-fort lost its defensive value and the style was no longer built.

But pay attention to those round towers...

August 9: Théâtre du Petit-Bourbon in Paris.

Though a minor point in the larger history of France, I was curious about the théâtre du Petit-Bourbon in Paris where Moliére debuted "Les Précieuses Ridicules" in 1659.

Turns out it was a remnant of the Hôtel de Bourbon, the luxurious town home of Dukes of Bourbon, just to the east of the Louvre. The Hôtel de Bourbon was originally constructed around 1390 by Louis II, duc de Bourbon. It wasn't the first construction on the site. The Bourbons had acquired and demolished the houses of around 300 people to clear the property.

When Charles de Bourbon, 1490 - 1527, the husband of Louis II's great-great granddaughter, Suzanne (1491 - 1521) led a rebellion against King François I in 1523, the Hôtel Petit-Bourbon was confiscated by the King and mostly demolished. Maybe not just demolished. According to wikipedia, "Salt was strewed upon the ground which it occupied; the armorial ensigns of the offender were effaced, and the windows and doors that remained were smeared by the executioner with yellow ochre." 

However, the chapel and the Grande Salle were spared, and the Grande Salle would become the theatre du Petit-Bourbon. It was larger than any hall in the Louvre or in Paris: 45 feet wide and 105 feet long, with a 40 foot apse at one end. The apse could be easily converted to a stage, and with two tiers of balconies to accommodate the general public, it was a natural space for performances and court functions.

The Estates General of 1614 and 1615 were held there as were numerous ballets and Italian operas. These productions had elaborate stage scenery, set changes, special effects and music. One ballet du cour in 1617 began with an overture performed by "sixty-four voices, twenty-eight viols, and fourteen lutes"."

The Ballet de la Nuit took place in the Salle de Petit-Bourbon in 1653. This was the famous ballet in which 14-year-old Louis XIV appeared as "the Sun brilliant with light." It took 13-hours to perform.

The Hôtel de Bourbon took the name Petit-Bourbon when Henri IV, duc de Bourbon, became King of France in 1589, and acquired the Louvre as his primary Paris residence.

The theatre du Petit-Bourbon was demolished in 1660 to make way for the Louvre Colonnade.

Molière's troupe of ten actors had shared the hall with a troupe of Italian comedians from 1658 - 1660, performing on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday.

When the theatre du Petit-Bourbon was demolished, Molière and his troupe moved to a performance space in the Palais-Royale.

 

 

 

Aug 4: Three reasons to visit the Musée de Carnavalet

The first reason to visit the Musée de Carnavalet is because it is the museum of the history of Paris since prehistoric times. Why would someone not want to spend hours there? Particularly, because in the words taken from the museum website, "since the beginning, the museum has been dedicated to collecting authentic objects “having belonged to” a well-known person and with a strong individual and collective emotional resonance.  The Carnavalet Museum features, among others, the campaign kit belonging to Napoleon I, mementos of the French royal family and the revolutionaries, Zola’s watch and the bedroom and personal affairs of Marcel Proust." In any case, the history of Paris is not the history of France, but Paris has certainly has played an important part.

A second reason to visit the Musée de Carnavalet is architectural The building in which the collection is housed is a rare example of a Renaissance hotel particuliére. It was built 1548 - 1560 for a nobleman, Jacques des Ligneris, President of the Paris Parliament, but its most distinguished resident was Madame de Sévigné, the writer, who lived there from 1677 to 1694. I don't know how much of the interior has survived, however, especially after the recent renovation that was done to improve circulation and "visitor experience."  But many other historic rooms and facades--some preserved from from Hausmann's mid-19th century destruction of medieval Paris--are installed here. One room I remember from my previous visit was a beautiful art nouveau shop--the jewelry shop of Georges Fouquet. There are many exquisite rooms from the 17th, 18th, 19th & 20th centuries. For someone who has always loved historical rooms...well, obviously I have to visit.

A third reason to visit the museum is curiosity about the museum experience itself. The French design extraordinary museums, and the renovation of the Carnavalet was done specifically to bring the collection and visitor experience up to speed. New staircases were installed to provide a "vertical experience," interactive exhibits were created, a cafe was opened...the best museums I have visited have been in France, and I would like to see what they have done to the Museum of Paris.

 

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.