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Frankreich / Elass - Andlau
seen from Rocher Sainte-Richarde
gesehen von den Rocher Sainte-Richarde
Andlau (French pronunciation: [ɑ̃dlo] [andlau]; Alsatian: Àndlöi) is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Alsace, Grand Est region of northeastern France.
The village owes its origin to Andlau Abbey which was founded in 880 by Richardis, the empress of Charles the Fat. Andlau has been a wine-growing centre and traveler destination since its earliest days.
The inhabitants of the commune are known as Andlaviens or Andlaviennes.
The commune has been awarded two flowers by the National Council of Towns and Villages in Bloom in the Competition of cities and villages in Bloom.
Geography
Andlau is located some 40 km south by south-west of Strasbourg and 20 km north of Selestat. It is a small town in the Canton of Barr located in the valley of the Andlau river in the foothills of the Vosges Mountains. The surroundings of Andlau town are entirely the Vosges, including a summit, the Stosskopf, which attains a height of 700 metres. The surrounding communes include Mittelbergheim to the north-east, Eichhoffen to the east, Bernardvillé to the south, Le Hohwald to the north-west and Barr. The commune has an area of 23.69 km² and its highest point is towards the northern tip of Niederberg and rises to 807 metres.
Access to the commune is by the D62 road from Exit 13 on the A35 autoroute which goes west to the town. There is also the D425 from just north of Eichhoffen going west to the village then continuing west to Le Hohwald.
West of the town the commune is entirely forested with an extensive network of forest roads. East of the town there is a small area of farmland.
Watercourses
The Andlau River: a small river which rises in the Vosges Mountains near the Champ du Feu which is a mountain situated at the eastern end of the Ban-de-la-Roche. It flows from west to east through Andlau, Eichhoffen, Saint-Pierre, Stotzheim, Zellwiller, Hindisheim, Lipsheim, and Fegersheim then empties into the Ill downstream of Ill commune. Further upstream the waters of the Valff and the Kirneck used to power 60 mills and other factories until the 19th century. Its course is about 45 km.
Toponymy
Andelaha
Andelelaha
Andeloïa
Andeloha (999 AD)
Andelow
Andeloa
Andelow
Andelach (1126)
Origins of the name
Andlau is a distortion of the word Andelaha from Andelaw or Andlaw. Andelaha could come from the original name of the river of which there are traces in old maps drawn in the 15th and 16th centuries. The Andlau River is 42.8 km long and flows from the Champ du Feu to the Ill and is the origin of the name of the town. On 30 July 1857 Andlau was called Andlau-au-Val to distinguish it from that of Andelot in Haute-Marne. At the beginning of the 20th century the name became Andlau.
History
An area occupied since Gallo-Roman times
The village undoubtedly already existed in Gallo-Roman times. The village developed around the abbey of nuns founded in 880 AD by Richarde de Souabe, daughter of the Count of Alsace who was known as Erchangar. Sainte Richarde later the wife of Emperor Charles the Fat who was grandson of Louis the Pious.
The foundation of the abbey
The abbey was initially placed in Saint-Sauveur following the rule of Saint Benedict and received the protection of the Pope. It was allowed to raise money until 1004. It was endowed with substantial assets and subsequently received many privileges . The Emperor Charles IV, in confirming it in 1347, declared the abbey free of all charges and contributions and granted to the abbess Adelaide de Geroldseck, and her successors, the title of Princess of the Empire. The exact date of its secularization is not known but it is believed that it took place between the 12th and 14th centuries. In addition to the charter from Emperor Charles IV many other anterior and posterior diplomas were granted to the abbey to confirm the privileges it had already obtained or to give it new ones. The recipients were required to demonstrate sixteen Quarters of nobility without misalliance and the most illustrious families of Alsace and Germany vied for the honour of admitting their girls. They were not subject to a vow and could, when they wished, return to their families and even marry.
This abbey received almost from its inception an illustration that greatly contributed to its prosperity and its status. It is known that the Emperor Charles the Fat was too weak to govern the vast empire that had been reunited under him by the death of his two brothers left in the care of the Empress Richarde, his wife. She had to advise Liutward, Bishop of Vercelli. Courtiers, jealous of the authority of the bishop and the confidence that was accorded him by the Empress, long meditated his ruin and found a way to turn the heart of the weak monarch to jealousy which piety, talents, the eminent qualities of his wife, and twenty-five years of constantly happy marriage were powerless to stop. Liutward was expelled from the court and the repudiated Empress retired to the monastery of Andlau. The legend of Saint Richarde was that she suffered the ordeal of fire and, dressed in a shirt coated with wax, was set fire in four places, she was not burned by the flames which were miraculously extinguished. In any case it was in this monastery that the wife of Charles the Fat ended her days in prayer and good works. She also found a source of consolation in letters in which she wrote with great distinction several beautiful poems which have been preserved until now where she writes of her resignation and the purity of her soul. She died before the end of the 9th century and was buried in a side chapel of the Andlau church. A century and a half later she was canonized by Pope Leo IX who was in Alsace, his homeland, and came to bless Andlau's new church built by the Abbess Mathilde, sister of Emperor Henry III.
Andlau family
The first references to the house of Andlau are in the 12th century which makes this family one of the oldest lines in France. The Andlau line forms 0.5% of the French nobility and their origins date back to the late Middle Ages so are considered old nobility – distinguished nobility or ancient nobility. The nobles of Andlau may have given their name to the town. According to some sources, the Andlau family arrived in Alsace in Roman times with another family: the Dandolo of Venice. This family had founded the castle of Bas-d'Andlau.
Another version attributes the creation of the town to a man named Balthasard d'Andolo, a native of Bologna. He would have followed Charlemagne who was heading north in the 8th century. It would then be located in the valley of Eleon and could be the origin of the foundation of the noble lineage of the Andlau family who gave their name to Andlau. Balthasard and his son founded a small monastery in the valley near the Andlau river. This theory would therefore go against the version that it was Sainte Richarde who founded the abbey.
Another proposal speaks of a knight of Andlau who helped Richarde to find a location where the bear was scratching the ground. The Andlau family acceded to the status of knights from the 9th century. They gave their name to the town and thus made bequests to the abbey. But one[who?] can also argue that the family took the name of the town which later gave them their coat-of-arms. The first character, Gunther d'Andalau, was cited in 1141 and became abbot of Saint-Blaise. The lords of Andlau won renown during the Battle of Sempach on 9 July 1386, during which the Earl of Andlau lost four of his sons. It was particularly affected by the Thirty Years' War.
The Andlau family are related to many characters in the history of France, such as Claude-Adrien Helvetius, Jacques Necker, Germaine de Staël, Jean Le Marois, Hardouin-Gustave Andlau, and Albert de Mun.
The village formed around the abbey
Gradually a small town formed around the abbey that the abbess gave in fief in 1364 to the Andlau noble family, one of the most illustrious of Alsace, whose history is mentioned for the first time in 1141 when Ganthier Andlau was abbot of Saint-Blaise. Nine years later Othon, Count of Andlau (Otto de Andelaha) appeared as a witness to a diploma from the Emperor Conrad III in favour of the Abbey of Saint-Blaise. This family has produced many distinguished men which proves the high esteem which it enjoyed under an ancient privilege which was renewed by Charles V in 1550: the eldest son bore the title of hereditary knight of the Holy Roman Empire.
Andlau as a pilgrimage town
A pilgrimage was dedicated early in its history to the Virgin Mary in the crypt of the church where the canons met every day to pray. The 14th century tower which is often confused Spesbourg Castle - is attested to belong to the nobles of Dicka. Between the 13th and 14th centuries four castles were built in Andlau. One of these was the castle of Wibelsberg-Crax of which there are a few remnants. Built between 1232 and 1249 it was first demolished by Eberhard d'Andlau then rebuilt from 1293. It was called Crax Castle but was finally demolished in 1298 by order of the Bishop of Strasbourg. The lords of Andlau fortified the town in the 15th century. In 1695 the Forest Ranger of Andlau, Frantz Ettighoffen, killed one of the last bears in the Vosges Mountains. In the middle of the 19th century Andlau had more than eighteen mills. The town is surrounded by forests and vineyards.
(Wikipedia)
Andlau est une commune française viticole située dans la circonscription administrative du Bas-Rhin et, depuis le 1er janvier 2021, dans le territoire de la Collectivité européenne d'Alsace, en région Grand Est.
Cette commune se trouve dans la région historique et culturelle d'Alsace.
Elle est une étape à la fois sur :
la Route des vins d'Alsace ;
la Véloroute du vignoble d'Alsace (EuroVelo 5) ;
la partie vosgienne (versant alsacien) du sentier de grande randonnée GR 5 et du sentier européen E2 ;
la partie alsacienne du chemin de Saint-Jacques de Compostelle.
Géographie
Andlau est une petite ville du Bas-Rhin de l'arrondissement de Sélestat-Erstein et du canton d'Obernai située dans la vallée de l'Andlau sur les contreforts des Vosges. La banlieue d'Andlau est entièrement occupée par les Vosges, dont un sommet, le Stosskopf, y atteint une hauteur de 700 mètres. Ses communes limitrophes sont Mittelbergheim au nord-est, Eichhoffen à l'est, Bernardvillé au sud, le Hohwald au nord-ouest et Barr. La commune possède une superficie de 23,69 km2 dont le point le plus haut culmine à 807 mètres vers la pointe nord du Niederberg.
Cours d'eau
L'Andlau : petite rivière qui prend sa source dans les Vosges, près du Champ du Feu, montagne située à l'extrémité orientale du Ban de la Roche ; elle coule d'ouest en est, arrose Andlau, Eichhoffen, Saint-Pierre, Stotzheim, Zellwiller, Hindisheim, Lipsheim, Fegersheim et se jette dans l'Ill en aval de cette dernière commune, après avoir reçu en amont de Valff les eaux de la Kirneck et mis en mouvement près de 60 moulins et autres usines vers le xixe siècle. Son cours est d'environ 45 kilomètres.
Urbanisme
Typologie
Andlau est une commune urbaine, car elle fait partie des communes denses ou de densité intermédiaire, au sens de la grille communale de densité de l'Insee. Elle appartient à l'unité urbaine d'Andlau, une agglomération intra-départementale regroupant 3 communes et 2 916 habitants en 2017, dont elle est ville-centre. La commune est en outre hors attraction des villes.
Toponymie
Andelaha
Andelelaha
Andeloïa
Andeloha, 999
Andelow
Andeloa
Andelow
Andelach, 1126
Origine du nom
Andlau est une déformation du mot Andelaha en Andelaw ou Andlaw. Le premier mot pourrait provenir du nom primitif de la rivière dont on trouve des traces dans les anciennes cartes établies aux xve et xvie siècles. Cette rivière de 42,8 km coule depuis le Champ du Feu jusqu'à l'Ill et se trouve être à l'origine du nom de la commune. La ville a ensuite pris le nom de la rivière. Le 30 juillet 1857, Andlau s’appelait Andlau-au-Val pour la distinguer de celui de Andelot dans la Haute-Marne. Au début du xxe siècle, le nom redevient Andlau.
Histoire
Un domaine occupé dès l'époque gallo-romaine
Le village est sans doute déjà occupé à l'époque gallo-romaine. Ensuite, c'est autour de l'abbaye de moniales fondée en 880 par Richarde de Souabe, fille du comte d'Alsace connu sous le nom d'Erchangar, que se développe le village. Sainte Richarde épouse par la suite l'empereur Charles le Gros, petit-fils de Louis le Débonnaire.
Selon la légende, Richarde est accusée d'inconduite par son mari. Afin de démontrer son innocence, elle se soumet à l'épreuve du feu : pieds nus et vêtue d'une chemise enduite de cire, elle traverse les flammes sans la moindre brûlure. Justifiée, mais meurtrie par le vil soupçon, elle quitte son château et s'en va dans la forêt. Un ange lui apparaît et lui enjoint de fonder un monastère à l'endroit que lui indiquera une ourse. À l'entrée du val d'Eléon, sur les bords du torrent, elle aperçoit la bête annoncée qui gratte la terre. C'est donc à cet endroit que s'élèvera l'abbaye d'Andlau. En souvenir de son origine, l'abbaye logera et nourrira gratuitement les montreurs d'ours de passage et entretiendra un ours vivant.
Telle est la légende. En fait, Richarde a déjà fondé Andlau depuis 7 ans quand Charles le Gros la répudie. C'est là qu'elle se retire. Elle est canonisée en 1049 par le pape Léon IX, un Alsacien. Les religieuses d'Andlau, toutes de noble naissance, avaient le droit de quitter le couvent et de se marier. Seule l'abbesse prononçait des vœux définitifs. Elle portait le titre, envié, de princesse du Saint-Empire.
La fondation d'une abbaye
Cette abbaye fut placée initialement au Saint-Sauveur et suivait la règle de saint Benoît qui reçut la protection du pape. Elle fut autorisée à battre monnaie jusqu'en 1004. Elle fut dotée de biens considérables et reçut par la suite un grand nombre de privilèges. L'empereur Charles IV, en les confirmant en 1347, déclara l'abbaye exempte de toutes charges et contributions et accorda à l'abbesse Adélaïde de Géroldseck et à celles qui lui succédèrent, le titre de princesse de l'Empire. On ne connaît pas précisément l'époque précise de sa sécularisation ; on croit qu'elle eut lieu entre les xiie et xive siècles. Outre la charte de l'empereur Charles IV, un grand nombre d'autres diplômes antérieurs et postérieurs ont été concédés à cette abbaye, soit pour confirmer les privilèges qu'elle avait déjà obtenus, soit pour lui en accorder de nouveaux. Les récipiendaires étaient obligés de faire preuve de seize quartiers de noblesse sans mésalliance, et les familles les plus illustres d'Alsace et d'Allemagne briguaient l'honneur d'y faire admettre leurs filles ; elles n'étaient assujetties à aucun vœu et pouvaient quand bon leur semblait, rentrer dans leurs familles et même se marier.
Cette abbaye reçut, presque dès son origine, une illustration qui n'a pas peu contribué à sa prospérité et à sa considération. On sait que l'empereur Charles le Gros, trop faible pour gouverner le vaste empire qu'il avait réuni sous son sceptre par la mort de ses deux frères, en laissa les soins à l'impératrice Richarde, son épouse ; elle avait pour conseiller Liutward, évêque de Verceil. Les courtisans, jaloux de l'autorité de l'évêque et de la confiance que lui accordait l'impératrice, méditaient depuis longtemps sa ruine et trouvèrent le moyen d'allumer dans le cœur du faible monarque une jalousie que la piété, les talents, les éminentes qualités de son épouse et vingt-cinq ans de mariage constamment heureux furent impuissants à écarter. Liutward fut chassé de la cour ; l'impératrice répudiée se retira dans le monastère d'Andlau. La légende de sainte Richarde porte qu'elle subit l'épreuve du feu, et que revêtue d'une chemise enduite de cire, à laquelle ont mis le feu en quatre endroits, elle ne fut point atteinte par les flammes qui s'éteignirent miraculeusement. Quoi qu'il en soit, ce fut dans cette abbaye que l'épouse de Charles-le-Gros finit ses jours dans la prière et les bonnes œuvres. Elle trouva aussi une source de consolations dans les lettres, qu'elle cultivait avec une grande distinction ; plusieurs belles poésies, qui sont parvenues jusqu'à nous, peignent sa résignation et la pureté de son âme. Elle mourut avant la fin du ixe siècle et fut enterrée dans une chapelle latérale de l'église d'Andlau ; un siècle et demi plus tard, elle fut canonisée par le pape Léon IX, qui s'étant trouvé en Alsace, sa patrie, vint à Andlau bénir l'église nouvellement construite sous l'abbesse Mathilde, sœur de l'empereur Henri III.
La famille d'Andlau
On trouve les premières références à la maison d'Andlau au xiie siècle, ce qui fait de cette famille une des lignées les plus anciennes de France. La ligne d'Andlau fait partie des 0,5 % de la noblesse française dont les origines remontent au bas Moyen Âge ; elle est ainsi considérée comme noblesse d'épée - noblesse de race ou noblesse ancienne . Les nobles d'Andlau ont peut-être donné leur nom à la ville. Selon certaines sources, la famille d'Andlau serait arrivée en Alsace à l'époque romaine avec une autre famille, les Dandolo de Venise. Cette famille aurait fondé le château du Bas-d'Andlau. Une autre version attribue à un dénommé Balthasard d'Andolo natif de Bologne la création de la ville. Il aurait suivi Charlemagne qui se dirigeait vers le nord vers le viiie siècle. Il se serait alors fixé au val d'Eléon et pourrait donc être à l'origine de la fondation de la lignée de la famille noble des Andlau qui a donné le nom à Andlau. Balthasard et son fils auraient fondé un petit couvent dans la vallée, près de la rivière Andlau. Cette théorie irait donc à l'encontre de la version qui veut que ce soit sainte Richarde qui ait fondé l'abbaye. Une autre proposition parle d'un chevalier d'Andlau qui aurait aidé Richarde à trouver l'emplacement où l'ours grattait le sol. La famille des Andlau accédera au statut de chevaliers à partir du ixe siècle. Ils prendront le nom de la cité et feront ainsi des legs à l'abbaye. Mais on peut aussi prétendre que cette famille a pris le nom de la ville, qui par la suite lui a donné ses armoiries. Le premier personnage, Gunther d'Andalau, cité en 1141, devient abbé de Saint-Blaise. Les sires d'Andlau s'illustrent durant la bataille de Sempach, le 9 juillet 1386, durant laquelle le comte d'Andlau perd quatre de ses fils. Elle est particulièrement affectée par la guerre de Trente Ans.
La famille d'Andlau est liée à de nombreux personnages de l'histoire de France, comme Claude-Adrien Helvétius, Jacques Necker, Germaine de Staël, Jean Le Marois, Hardouin-Gustave d'Andlau ou encore Albert de Mun.
Le village se forme autour de l'abbaye
Peu à peu, il se forma aux alentours de l'abbaye une petite ville que l'abbesse donna en fief, en 1364, à la famille noble d'Andlau, une des plus illustres de l'Alsace, dont l'histoire fait mention pour la première fois en 1141 : Ganthier d'Andlau fut abbé de Saint-Blaise. Neuf ans après, Othon, comte d'Andlau (Otto de Andelaha comes) paraît comme témoin dans un diplôme donné par l'empereur Conrad III en faveur de l'abbaye de Saint-Blaise. Cette famille a produit un grand nombre d'hommes distingués, et ce qui prouve la haute considération dont elle jouissait, c'est qu'en vertu d'un antique privilège, renouvelé par Charles Quint, en 1550, l'aîné portait le titre de chevalier héréditaire du Saint-Empire.
Andlau une ville de pèlerinage
Un pèlerinage fut dédié très tôt à la Vierge Marie dans la crypte de l'église où les chanoinesses se réunissaient chaque jour pour prier. Au xive siècle une tour — souvent confondue avec le château de Spesbourg — est attestée appartenir aux nobles de Dicka. Entre le xiiie et le xive siècle quatre châteaux sont édifiés à Andlau. L'un de ces châteaux est celui du Wibelsberg-Crax dont il ne subsiste que quelques vestiges. Construit entre 1232 et 1249 il est démoli une première fois par Eberhard d'Andlau, puis reconstruit à partir de 1293. Il prend alors le nom de château de Crax, mais est définitivement démoli en 1298 sur ordre de l'évêque de Strasbourg. Les sires d'Andlau fortifient la ville au xve siècle. En 1695 le garde forestier d'Andlau, Frantz Ettighoffen, tue l'un des derniers ours des Vosges. Au milieu du xixe siècle, Andlau compte encore dix-huit moulins. La commune est entourée de forêts et de vignes.
(Wikipedia)
Andlau ist eine französische Gemeinde mit 1763 Einwohnern (Stand 1. Januar 2020) im Département Bas-Rhin in der Europäischen Gebietskörperschaft Elsass und in der Region Grand Est. Sie gehört zum Arrondissement Sélestat-Erstein und zum Kanton Obernai.
Geografie
Andlau liegt am Fuß der Vogesen, am westlichen Rand der Oberrheinebene, etwa 14 Kilometer nördlich von Sélestat und 28 Kilometer südwestlich von Straßburg. Das zu neun Zehnteln bewaldete Gemeindegebiet reicht weit nach Westen in die Vogesen hinein. Durch den Ort fließt die Andlau, ein Nebenfluss der Ill.
Nachbargemeinden von Andlau sind Barr und Mittelbergheim im Nordosten, Eichhoffen im Osten, Bernardvillé im Süden, Reichsfeld und Albé im Südwesten sowie Le Hohwald im Westen.
Geschichte
Die Abtei Andlau wurde 880 von der Kaiserin Richardis gegründet. Sie war von ihrem Gatten Kaiser Karl III. verstoßen worden und wurde später heiliggesprochen. Ihr Grab in Andlau wurde zur Wallfahrtsstätte. Der Legende zufolge wurde ihr der geeignete Platz dafür von einer wilden Bärin gezeigt. In der als einem der ältesten Teile der Kirche erhaltenen, zweiräumigen Krypta aus dem Jahre 1045, gegen Osten um 1080 vergrößert, steht eine Bärenskulptur. Die Krypta ist eine der ältesten Wallfahrtsorte zur Jungfrau Maria im Elsass. Hierher kamen Rheumatismus-Geplagte und Fußkranke, um Heilung zu erhalten. Um das Kloster herum entwickelte sich der Ort. Für die weitere Ortsgeschichte war das Adelsgeschlecht Andlau von Bedeutung. Dessen Wappen wurde in umgekehrter Farbstellung zum Gemeindewappen. 1287 wurde das Benediktinerinnenstift reichsunmittelbar und 1499 in ein Damenstift umgewandelt, bevor es in der Französischen Revolution im Jahre 1791 aufgelöst wurde.
Von 1871 bis zum Ende des Ersten Weltkrieges gehörte Andlau als Teil des Reichslandes Elsaß-Lothringen zum Deutschen Reich und war dem Kreis Schlettstadt im Bezirk Unterelsaß zugeordnet.
Wirtschaft
Der Ort lebt überwiegend vom Weinanbau und Weinhandel (siehe auch Weinbaugebiet Elsass). Er liegt an der Elsässer Weinstraße. Auf dem Gemeindegebiet befinden sich die drei Alsace Grand Cru-Lagen Kastelberg, Moenchberg und Wiebelsberg.
Gemeindepartnerschaften
Seit 1961 ist Andlau mit der deutschen Gemeinde Sexau im südbadischen Landkreis Emmendingen partnerschaftlich verbunden.
(Wikipedia)
The British Columbia Legislature is a massive Richardsonian Romanesque landmark building, surrounded by manicured lawns, fountains, and statues, on the south shore of the Inner Harbour.
Heritage Value
The British Columbia Legislature is valued as the most significant political, social, and architectural landmark in British Columbia. Initiated in 1893 to boost the local economy and to ensure the city's retention of the seat of government, the Legislature is representative of the history of the political activities and governmental regulation which have occurred in Victoria since colonial times.
Constructed on the site of the 'Birdcages', a complex of colonial administrative buildings, the location of the Legislature is of key significance to its heritage value. Situated on a large portion of land and surrounded by manicured lawns, fountains, and commemorative statues, the Legislature is a monument to the beginnings of the expressive city planning which shaped the Inner Harbour Precinct. This building's prominent location on the harbour - and its juxtaposition with the Empress Hotel - express noted architect Francis Mawson Rattenbury's vision for this area, which intended to manifest Victoria's economic and governmental prestige and refinement through the development of architecture and landscape. The Legislature, as the first major building in the Inner Harbour, was designed to introduce a formal and impressive silhouette between the shoreline and the mountainous backdrop, and set the scene for subsequent monumental construction which would occur nearby in the early twentieth century.
Chosen from 65 entries in an open competition, the Legislature design is the most prestigious example of Rattenbury's work. This design, inspired by British and American mainstream governmental architecture of the time, met all stipulations for a building which was to house the Legislative Assembly, Land Registry, Printing Office and various administrative departments under one roof, and was deemed well suited to portray the reputable, broad-minded, and cultivated nineteenth century image of British Columbia. Architecturally, the 1890s section of the Legislature, and Rattenbury's subsequent 1911 east and west wings and 1915-16 library, comprise the province's most edifying building. Its monolithic stone construction, massive domes and arches, extensive exterior statuary, and the grand and lavish interior spaces and layout epitomize the sense of dignity and depth of history associated with British Columbia's governmental heritage.
Notably, the Legislature was built using, whenever possible, local people, products, and resources; its interior and exterior finishes exemplify the design virtues of such local materials as maple and cedar, and Nelson Island granite, Haddington Island andesite, and Jarvis Inlet slate.
Furthermore, it is interesting to note that the silhouette of the Legislature was illuminated with electric lighting in 1897 for Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee, one year before the building was completed, and has continued to be illuminated at night ever since.
Source: City of Victoria Planning and Development Department
In alchemy, nigredo, or blackness, means putrefaction or decomposition. The alchemists believed that as a first step in the pathway to the philosopher's stone all alchemical ingredients had to be cleansed and cooked extensively to a uniform black matter.In analytical psychology, the term became a metaphor 'for the dark night of the soul, when an individual confronts the shadow within'.For Carl Jung, 'the rediscovery of the principles of alchemy came to be an important part of my work as a pioneer of psychology'. As a student of alchemy, he (and his followers) 'compared the "black work" of the alchemists (the nigredo) with the often highly critical involvement experienced by the ego, until it accepts the new equilibrium brought about by the creation of the self'.Jungians interpreted nigredo in two main psychological senses.
The first sense represented a subject's initial state of undifferentiated unawareness, 'the first nigredo, that of the unio naturalis, is an objective state, visible from the outside only...an unconscious state of non-differentiation between self and object, consciousness and the unconscious'. Here the subject is unaware of the unconscious; i.e. the connection with the instincts'.In the second sense, 'the nigredo of the process of individuation on the other hand is a subjectively experienced process brought about by the subject's painful, growing awareness of his shadow aspects'.It could be described as a moment of maximum despair, that is a prerequisite to personal development.As individuation unfolds, so 'confrontation with the shadow produces at first a dead balance, a standstill that hampers moral decisions and makes convictions ineffective or even impossible...nigredo, tenebrositas, chaos, melancholia'.Here is 'the darkest time, the time of despair, disillusionment, envious attacks; the time when Eros and Superego are at daggers drawn, and there seems no way forward...nigredo, the blackening'.Only subsequently would come 'an enantiodromia; the nigredo gives way to the albedo...the ever deepening descent into the unconscious suddenly becomes illumination from above'Further steps of the alchemical opus include such images as albedo (whiteness), citrinitas (yellowness), and rubedo (redness). Jung also found psychological equivalents for many other alchemical concepts, with 'the characterization of analytic work as an opus; the reference to the analytic relationship as a vas, vessel or container; the goal of the analytic process as the coniunctio, or union of conflicting opposites'.
The Institut de France (French pronunciation: [ɛ̃stity də fʁɑ̃s], French Institute) is a French learned society, grouping five académies, the most famous of which is the Académie française.The Institute, located in Paris, manages approximately 1,000 foundations, as well as museums and châteaux open for visit. It also awards prizes and subsidies, which amounted to a total of €5,028,190.55 for 2002. Most of these prizes are awarded by the Institute on the recommendation of the académies.The Académie originated as a council of five humanists, "scholars who were the most versed in the knowledge of history and antiquity": Jean Chapelain, François Charpentier, Jacques Cassagne, Amable de Bourzeys, and a M. Douvrier.The organizer was King Louis XIV's finance minister Jean-Baptiste Colbert. Its first name was the Académie royale des Inscriptions et Médailles, and its mission was to compose or obtain Latin inscriptions to be written on public monuments and medals issued to celebrate the events of Louis' reign. However, under Colbert's management, the Académie performed many additional roles, such as determining the art that would decorate the Palace of Versailles.In 1683 Minister Louvois increased the membership to eight. In 1701 its membership was expanded to 40 and reorganized under the leadership of Chancellor Pontchartrain. It met twice a week at the Louvre, its members began to receive significant pensions, and was made an official state institution on the king's decree.In January 1716 it was permanently renamed to the Académie royale des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres with the broader goal of elevating the prestige of the French monarchy using physical symbols uncovered or recovered through the methods of classical erudition.The Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres is a French learned society devoted to the humanities, founded in February 1663 as one of the five academies of the Institut de France.The Académie originated as a council of five humanists, "scholars who were the most versed in the knowledge of history and antiquity": Jean Chapelain, François Charpentier, Jacques Cassagne, Amable de Bourzeys, and a M. Douvrier.The organizer was King Louis XIV's finance minister Jean-Baptiste Colbert. Its first name was the Académie royale des Inscriptions et Médailles, and its mission was to compose or obtain Latin inscriptions to be written on public monuments and medals issued to celebrate the events of Louis' reign. However, under Colbert's management, the Académie performed many additional roles, such as determining the art that would decorate the Palace of Versailles.In 1683 Minister Louvois increased the membership to eight.In 1701 its membership was expanded to 40 and reorganized under the leadership of Chancellor Pontchartrain. It met twice a week at the Louvre, its members began to receive significant pensions, and was made an official state institution on the king's decree. In January 1716 it was permanently renamed to the Académie royale des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres with the broader goal of elevating the prestige of the French monarchy using physical symbols uncovered or recovered through the methods of classical erudition.The Académie originated as a council of five humanists, "scholars who were the most versed in the knowledge of history and antiquity": Jean Chapelain, François Charpentier, Jacques Cassagne, Amable de Bourzeys, and a M. Douvrier. The organizer was King Louis XIV's finance minister Jean-Baptiste Colbert. Its first name was the Académie royale des Inscriptions et Médailles, and its mission was to compose or obtain Latin inscriptions to be written on public monuments and medals issued to celebrate the events of Louis' reign. However, under Colbert's management, the Académie performed many additional roles, such as determining the art that would decorate the Palace of Versailles.In 1683 Minister Louvois increased the membership to eight. In 1701 its membership was expanded to 40 and reorganized under the leadership of Chancellor Pontchartrain. It met twice a week at the Louvre, its members began to receive significant pensions, and was made an official state institution on the king's decree. In January 1716 it was permanently renamed to the Académie royale des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres with the broader goal of elevating the prestige of the French monarchy using physical symbols uncovered or recovered through the methods of classical erudition.The Académie originated as a council of five humanists, "scholars who were the most versed in the knowledge of history and antiquity": Jean Chapelain, François Charpentier, Jacques Cassagne, Amable de Bourzeys, and a M. Douvrier.The organizer was King Louis XIV's finance minister Jean-Baptiste Colbert. Its first name was the Académie royale des Inscriptions et Médailles, and its mission was to compose or obtain Latin inscriptions to be written on public monuments and medals issued to celebrate the events of Louis' reign. However, under Colbert's management, the Académie performed many additional roles, such as determining the art that would decorate the Palace of Versailles.In 1683 Minister Louvois increased the membership to eight. In 1701 its membership was expanded to 40 and reorganized under the leadership of Chancellor Pontchartrain. It met twice a week at the Louvre, its members began to receive significant pensions, and was made an official state institution on the king's decree.In January 1716 it was permanently renamed to the Académie royale des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres with the broader goal of elevating the prestige of the French monarchy using physical symbols uncovered or recovered through the methods of classical erudition.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Institut_de_France
Three days before his death, in March, 1661, Mazarin based a new college, intended to assure the free education of sixty young people native of four provinces which had gathered in France the treaties of Wesphalie in 1648 and the Treaty of the Pyrenees in 1659. They were Artois, Alsace, small part of the Savoie, Roussillon and Cerdanya. We called this new institution the College of Four Nations.
Comme tout homme d’État, Mazarin voulait laisser des traces de son passage. Proviseur du collège de Sorbonne, Richelieu avait fait édifier la superbe chapelle où s’élève encore aujourd’hui son tombeau. Trois jours avant sa mort, en mars 1661, Mazarin fondait un collège nouveau, destiné à assurer l’éducation gratuite de soixante jeunes gens originaires de quatre provinces qu’avaient réunies à la France les traités de Wesphalie en 1648 et le traité des Pyrénées en 1659. C’étaient l’Artois, l’Alsace, une petite partie de la Savoie, le Roussillon et la Cerdagne. On appela cette nouvelle institution le Collège des Quatre-Nations.Le cénotaphe de Mazarin. Sculpture de marbre blanc d'Antoine Coysevox (1640-1720)Le cardinal léguait quatre millions de livres pour financer la construction et une rente de soixante-cinq mille livres par an pour le fonctionnement, avant tout pour les bourses des étudiants. Son tombeau devait être placé dans la chapelle. Ce sera seulement son mausolée, le corps n’y ayant jamais été déposé.L’homme de confiance de Mazarin, Colbert, désigna l’architecte : Louis Le Vau, déjà architecte des agrandissements du Louvre. Il sera le principal architecte de Versailles. Le site choisi était prestigieux : sur l’emplacement de la porte de Nesles, face au Louvre. Le bâtiment sera une véritable scénographie urbaine : deux pavillons carrés encadrant la chapelle et sa coupole, le tout réuni en une vaste courbe.À la mort de Le Vau en 1670, François d’Orbay lui succède. C’est lui qui conçoit cette coupole haute de 44 mètres, une coupole circulaire à l’extérieur et en ellipse à l’intérieur. Le décor en est fait des médaillons des douze apôtres, des initiales de saint Louis et d’une citation du prophète Ezéchiel : "il siégera sous son ombre au milieu des nations".Trois sculpteurs, Coysevox, Tuby et le Hongre collaborent pour élever le mausolée.Le Collège accueille ses premiers élèves en 1688. Il sera prospère jusqu’à sa fermeture en 1791.Il avait reçu les quarante mille ouvrages réunis par le cardinal dans son hôtel de la rue Vivienne, celui-là même qui allait accueillir la Bibliothèque royale et où se trouve encore aujourd’hui une notable partie de la Bibliothèque nationale de France. Ces livres forment la base de la bibliothèque Mazarine, ouverte au public dès ses débuts et aujourd’hui riche d’un demi-million de manuscrits et d’imprimés.
The Fort Saint-Elme is a military fort built between 1538 and 1552 by Charles V. It is located in the district of Collioure, 30 km south-east of Perpignan, in the department of Pyrénées-Orientales. It is designated as a monument historique of the Côte Vermeille. Since 2008, the fort has been a museum with medieval and Renaissance arms collections, exhibitions and a panorama over the area from the terrace.
The fort Saint-Elme is located at the top of a hill overhanging Collioure on the west and Port-Vendres on the east. One can reach the fort following a local road linking the D114 road at the north, through the Coll d'en Raixat at the south.
Toponymy
Several assumptions exist for the origins of Saint Elme: Firstly the name of Saint-Elme may come from Erasmus of Formia, an Italian martyr of the 4th century. Secondly it could have been given in honour of the Spanish saint Peter González (1190-1246). This explains why we find this name around the western Mediterranean coasts: Saint Elme in Naples, Sant Elme in St Feliu de Guixols, Sant Helme and Santem in Provence, etc… Saint Erasmus may have become the patron saint of sailors because he is said to have continued preaching even after a thunderbolt struck the ground beside him. This prompted sailors, who were in danger from sudden storms and lightning, to claim his prayers. The electrical discharges at the mastheads of ships were read as a sign of his protection and came to be called "Saint Elmo's Fire".
By decree on 3 June 1794, during the French Revolution, the city took briefly the name of Fort-du-Rocher (Rock's fort).
History
From the origins to the Middle-Ages
The history of Fort Saint-Elme began with the edification of the watchtower in the 8th century, i.e. either during the period when Arab-Berber troops occupied Septimania between 719 and 759. Integrated to the Marca Hispanica, the tower belonged to the independent Counts of Roussillon until the death without heirs of Girard II of Roussillon in 1172. He bequeathed his county to Alfonso II, King of Aragon and Count of Barcelona. This is during the Aragonese period that the tower took its nickname "Torre de la guardia" (Watchtower).
Between 1276 and 1344, Majorca’s kings, whose summer residence was the castle of Collioure, rebuilt this signal tower on this ideal point of view. This tower was integrated in an efficient communication system including the Massane and Madeloc towers located on the heights of Collioure and funded by James II of Aragon in the 13th century. These towers communicated through smoke signals that permitted to alert the surroundings population with smoke signals (black or white, discontinuous or continuous) according to the danger. At night, some dry wood permitted to light fires to alert garrisons until Perpignan. By day, some green wood was used to emit smoke and thus communicate with the others towers and strongholds of the region. But it was the enemy of the kingdom of Majorca, the king Peter IV of Aragon, who, once he conquered the coast in 1344, made significant military works to improve the defense of the fort.
During the second part of the 15th century, the French controlled the Roussillon. In 1462, the king Louis XI took advantage of the Catalan civil war (1462-1472) to sign the treaty of Bayonne and thus took over the counties of Roussillon and Cerdagne. The French decided to strengthen the fort which took the name of Saint Elme. A part of ramparts dates from this period. The successor of Louis XI, Charles VIII, who wanted to assure the neutrality of Spain for his ambitions over the kingdom of Naples, signed with Ferdinand II of Aragon the treaty of Barcelona in 1493. The catholic king recovered thus the lost territories.
The fortification of Charles V
In the 16th century, the Roussillon is an essential piece of the Spanish kingdom. The region had a triangular shape delimitated by the cordilleras in the north, the Albera Massif in the south and the Mediterranean Sea in the east. Perpignan was an important industrial, cultural and commercial center which got important privileged links with the wealth of Italy. Perpignan was defended in the north by the Fortress of Salses and in the south by the Fort Saint-Elme. This castle protected also the Collioure and Port-Vendres ports which assured supplies and troops helpers to the regional capital of Roussillon.
The progress of the modern artillery changed profoundly the war art and the siege technics. Architects and artillerymen were converted to new war masters and advisers of sovereigns. In 1537, the Italian architect Benedetto of Ravenna caught the emperor’s attention on the weaknesses of the Collioure position. After an inspection, Benedetto obtained the agreement of Charles V. He began the works in 1538 until 1552 and transformed the fort’s appearance which took its star-shaped aspect.
A French fort
Despite this modernisation and its adaptation to the artillery, on 13 April 1642, French troops of king Louis XIII achieved to take the fort. After the signing of the Treaty of the Pyrenees in 1659, the Spanish threat remained. When Vauban, military architect of King Louis XIV, made a reconnaissance of the defensive structures in 1659 in the region of Collioure, he decided to build a counterscarp, which forms with the ramparts base a ten-meter pit where infantry and cannons could easily operate.
Around 1780, the fort’s facade was whitened to serve as landmark from the sea, with the Massane Tower, to better situate the port of Port-Vendres.[1]
During the French Revolution, more precisely during the War of the Pyrenees, between 1793 and 1795, the region was the center of violent fights. The Fort Saint Elme was conquered successively by Royalists and Republicans. In 1794, the Spanish army took the fort. Six months later, the general Dugommier crushed with 11 000 cannonballs the garrison which surrendered on 25 May 1794 after a 22-day siege. After the revolutionary period, the fort, unified with the municipality of Collioure, was transformed in military warehouse.
A private museum
The Fort Saint-Elme was demilitarised in 1903 and abandoned. The tower was shattered, the (shooting place) was partly impracticable and many walls threatened to collapse. On 21 August 1913, the State decided to auction the fort. Several owners succeeded but none restoration was made. The fort was registered as Monument Historique by decree of 2 April 1927. A new owner decided thus to restore it. The works ended in 1936. During the WWII, the fort was occupied by the Kriegsmarine between 1942 and 1944. At their escape, some buildings were dynamited to block the progress of allied troops. Rebuilt partially in 1950, most restoration works began in 2004. Since 2008, the fort has been a museum.
Architecture
The interior of the fort Saint-Elme is composed of rooms edified around the exterior circumference of the tower. On the first floor, there were the troop’s dormitories, the weapons room, the throne’s room, the jail and the oven. Today, the floor is fit out historical objects which date from 15th century to 19th century: helmets, knights’ armours, chest, polished-stone and iron cannonballs, medieval and "Renaissance" weapons (culverin, falconet, crossbows, halberds, flails, hammers, lances, bows, swords, arquebus, 16th-century pistols), howitzer fragments.
Others rooms reveal the history of the monument: the genealogy and life of Charles V, the fortifications of Vauban, the inventory of 1770 and the attack of general Dugommier in 1794.
On the second floor, the flour and artillery warehouses were next to the guardroom and the bakery. Saint-Elme, a stronghold with an ingenious defensive system, has been conceived to support sieges and resist to assaults. Some walls reach up to eight-meters thick. The tower contained the powder. The shooting place could receive more than 20 cannons and howitzers. The undergrounds are not open to the public. Formerly, they were used as a warehouse for food and housing. They could also house all trades (corps de metier) necessary to the fight.
Wikipedia
The Collioure mill is a medieval mill recently brought up to date by the town. It is on the heights, on the other side of the creek coming from Perpignan. If you don't see it, look up, it's as simple as that.
The Collioure mill is a local curiosity. It is a windmill, which is quite rare in the region, most of the mills being water-powered. This one has been perfectly restored, it is very close to the city, and it is a good destination for a very short walk.
Rather than being incomplete, it is better to quote the text at its feet, which briefly explains its history. Here is :
On February 11, 1337, the Chevalier Raymond de Toulouse, prosecutor of the King of Majorca, ceded to Jacques Ermengald de Collioure direct control of a piece of land located in Collioure, at a place called "Cortines" and ceded to him the right to operate the windmill which will be built there to grind grain or crops of any kind on its own authority.
The mill ceased its activity in the 19th century to find itself gradually in a state of ruin. Became property of the city, the town undertook its restoration which was completed in June 2001, with the wooden machinery made in the traditional way by the carpenters of Bernard Gariblad. It is now in working order for crushing olives and producing Collioure oil.
Collioure is a town on the Mediterranean coast of southern France. On the sea, the medieval Château Royal de Collioure offers dramatic coastal views. The bell tower of 17th-century Notre-Dame-des-Anges Church was once a lighthouse. The Modern Art Museum includes paintings by Henri Matisse. Nearby is the Moulin de Collioure, a 14th-century windmill. South, the hilltop Fort St. Elme has a museum with medieval weapons. ― Google
Jean Joseph Weerts. 1846-1927. Paris. Pour l'humanité, pour la patrie. For mankind, for the fatherland. 1895. Paris Petit Palais (Musée des Beaux de la Ville de Paris)
L'ART ET LES IDEOLOGIES SUCCESSIVES
L'Histoire de la peinture européenne démontre une vérité : l'Art est fondamentalement idéologique et politique. L'Art est idéologique c'est à dire qu'il est le reflet, l'expression, du système de valeurs qui façonne une société donnée à une époque donnée. L'Art est politique car ce système de valeurs est toujours imposé par les puissances gouvernantes de l'époque pour manipuler les hommes. Ces puissances gouvernantes ne se confondent pas nécessairement avec les chefs politiques au pouvoir. Ce sont des Influences qui débordent souvent le cercle étroit des dirigeants manifestes, les politiciens.
L'histoire de l'art montre très évidemment la succession des idéologies, c'est à dire des idées à la mode, au nom desquelles les hommes vivent et meurent. La particularité de l'art est toutefois que son but est esthétique, du moins jusqu'aux années 1950 et l'Art Contemporain. Du fait de cet impératif esthétique qui est celui de l'art, le Beau a pour effet, toujours voulu, de magnifier certaines idées, et de masquer, de manière fort belle, émouvante, édifiante, la bêtise de certaines autres. L'art n'est pas seulement l'imitation parfaite de la nature, célébrée par Vasari. L'art est est aussi un beau déguisement du réel.
Certes, il existe des arts qui sont essentiellement poétiques, ils témoignent toujours d'une vision du monde, mais pas d'une idéologie, c'est à dire d'une conception du monde qui se veut une vérité absolue, incontestable, imposable à tous. C'est le cas de l'art paysagiste, de l'art impressionniste ou symboliste, entre autres exemples.
Il reste que l'histoire de l'art est le témoin des évolutions idéologiques commandées par "l'esprit du temps". Mais pour voir cette histoire, il faut vouloir chercher derrière le déguisement, derrière la beauté apparente des images, l'idée politique et le but de gouvernement, très pratique, souvent sinistre, pas beau du tout, qui est poursuivi par les puissants. Une volonté de domination idéologique dont l'artiste se fait l'écho, de manière plus ou moins consciente. L'artiste peut en effet participer totalement, croire en l'idéologie qu'il sert, et ne pas même s'apercevoir qu'il est conditionné, et utilisé pour jouer un rôle. Les idiots utiles sont aussi artistes, pas seulement ingénieurs.
Après les tableaux de Jean Jacques Henner (Bara) et Jean Joseph Weerts (Pour l'humanité, pour la patrie ) les oeuvres de Jean Antoine Gros (Clovis et Clotilde, La Gloire des dynasties royales et impériales devant Sainte Geneviève) sont une excellente illustration des manipulations dont l'art se fait le vecteur.
La révolution français est directement ou indirectement à l'origine des délires ultra-nationalistes qui ont coûté à la France et à l'Europe tant de millions de morts entre 1792 et 1945.
C'est d'abord le patriote républicain, jeune va-nu-pied enthousiaste, qui meurt glorieusement pour la liberté, l'égalité et la fraternité, en luttant pour les peuples opprimés contre les rois oppresseurs (Bara de Jean Jacques Henner). C'était "le nationalisme de gauche".
Napoléon 1er, puis le second empire, et encore la IIIè République, vont récupérer l'idéologie révolutionnaire de "la patrie en danger", mais en la transformant subtilement, de manière à utiliser le "nationalisme de droite". Ils vont mettre l'accent sur la continuité de la nation française, son histoire, et récupérer aussi la religion, que la révolution avait voulu éliminer. Pour preuve, les tableaux de Jean Joseph Weerts avec le soldat mort, le Christ en croix et le drapeau bleu blanc rouge. Pour preuve, les tableaux de Gros avec Sainte Geneviève, Clovis et Clotilde, et les dynasties royales et impériales.
Des idées, et de très belles images qui permettront de faire mourir des dizaines de millions d'hommes pendant quelque dizaines d'années, jusqu'en 1945. Il faut reconnaître que le sentiment du Beau est satisfait, quand on regarde les tableaux des musées pour cette période de l'histoire européenne. L'artiste peu faire de très belles images de la réalité la plus laide du monde : la guerre.
Bien sûr, tous ces tableaux sont totalement dépassés, totalement à contre courant des idéologies actuelles : le mondialisme a juré la mort de toutes les nations, et veut imposer la République Universelle du Mélange.
L'homme mourra, toujours aussi glorieusement, mais pas pour la patrie ou la nation, non, pour la Fraternité Universelle, la Société Sans Classes et la société Sans Races. L'humanité a déjà connu une bonne centaine de millions de morts entre 1917 et 1980 sur ces thèmes. Il est certain que d'autres millions suivront. Il a existé bien sûr un art du socialisme intégral, pour magnifier tout ceci. Comme il existe un art pour célébrer le mondialisme. Mais pas forcément beau. C'est la grande nouveauté.
ART AND SUCCESSIVES IDEOLOGIES
The history of European painting shows a truth: Art is fundamentally ideological and political. Art is ideological ie it is the reflection, the expression, of the value system which shapes a society at a given time. Art is political because this system of values is always imposed by the ruling powers of the time. The governing powers do not necessarily overlap with the political leaders in power, to manipulate men These are Influences that often extend beyond the narrow circle of manifest leaders, the politicians.
The art history clearly shows the succession of the ideologies, ie ideas in fashion, in whose name the men live and die. The peculiarity of art is however that its goal is aesthetic, at least until the 1950s and Contemporary Art. Because of this aesthetic imperative of art, the effect of beauty is always to magnify certain ideas, and to mask, in a very beautiful, moving and edifying manner, the stupidity of certain others ideas. Art is not only the perfect imitation of nature, celebrated by Vasari. Art is also a beautiful disguise of the reality.
Certainly, there are arts which are essentially poetic, they still reflect a worldview, but not an ideology, that is, a conception of the world that wantsto be a absolute truth, undeniable, taxable to all. This is the case for landscape art, impressionist or symbolist art, among other examples.
The history of art is the witness of the ideological evolutions ordered by the "spirit of time". But to see this story, one must seek to look behind the disguise, behind the apparent beauty of the images, the political idea and the purpose of government, very practical, often sinister, not beautiful at all, which is pursued by the powerful. A desire for ideological domination, which the artist echoes in a more or less conscious way. The artist can indeed participate fully, believe in the ideology he serves, and not even realize that he is conditioned, and used to play a role. The "Useful idiots" are also artists, not just engineers.
After the paintings by Jean Jacques Henner (Bara) and Jean Joseph Weerts (For the humanity, for the country) the works of Jean Antoine Gros (Clovis and Clotilde , The Glory of the Royal and Imperial Dynasties before Saint Genevieve) are an excellent illustration of the manipulations that art is the vector.
The French revolution is directly or indirectly responsible for the ultra-nationalist delirium which cost France and Europe so many millions of deaths between 1792 and 1945.
It is first the republican patriot, an enthusiastic young fellow, who dies gloriously for freedom, equality, and fraternity, struggling for oppressed peoples against oppressive kings (Bara de Henner). It was "left-wing nationalism".
Napoleon I, then the Second Empire, and again the Third Republic, recover the revolutionary ideology of "the country in danger", but subtly transforming it, so as to use "right-wing nationalism." They will emphasize the continuity of the French nation, its history, and also recover the religion that the revolution had wanted to eliminate.
As proof, the paintings of Jean Joseph Weerts with the dead soldier, the Christ in cross and the red white blue flag. As proof, the paintings of Jean Antoine Gros with Sainte Genevieve, Clovis and Clotilde, and the royal and imperial dynasties.
Ideas and very beautiful images that will allow the death of tens of millions of men for some decades until 1945. It must be admitted that the feeling of the Beautiful is satisfied when one looks at the paintings of museums For this period of European history. The artist can make very beautiful images of the ugliest reality in the world: The war.
Of course, all these paintings are totally outdated, totally against the current ideologies: The globalism has sworn the death of all nations, and wants to impose the Universal Republic of th e Mixture.
Human will die, always so gloriously, but not for his country or the nation, not, for the Universal Brotherhood, the Society without Classes, and the Society without Races. Humanity has already known a hundred million deaths between 1917 and 1980 on these themes. It is certain that other millions will follow. There was, of course, an art of integral socialism, to magnify all this. As there is an art to celebrate globalism. But not necessarily beautiful. This is the great novelty.
Avec l'acquisition définitive des îles de la mer Égée établie par le Traité de Lausanne de 1923 et la nomination du gouverneur Mario Lago, Benito Mussolini désire faire du Dodécanèse une vitrine de l'empire colonial italien et y met en œuvre une politique de grands travaux. De nouvelles routes, des constructions massives répondant aux critères de l'architecture fasciste, des aqueducs, des centrales électriques, des hôpitaux et divers bâtiments publics sont ainsi édifiés, parfois avec une main-d'œuvre forcée. Comme les autres îles du Dodécanèse, Léros possède encore aujourd’hui de nombreux édifices de la période italienne et restaure lentement ce patrimoine architectural.
With the definitive acquisition of the Aegean islands established by the Treaty of Lausanne in 1923 and the appointment of the governor Mario Lago, Benito Mussolini wishes to make the Dodecanese a showcase of the Italian colonial empire and implements a policy of major works. New roads, massive constructions meeting the criteria of fascist architecture, aqueducts, power stations, hospitals and various public buildings are built, sometimes with forced labor. Today, as the other islands of the Dodecanese, Leros still owns many buildings of the Italian period and slowly restores this architectural heritage.
Château de Trévarez stately home and gardens, Saint-Goazec, Brittany, France
Some background information:
Château de Trévarez is a stately home in the village of Saint-Goazec in the Breton department of Finistère. It was built from 1893 to 1898, replacing a former manor house that dated back to the 16th and 17th centuries. The château is also known as Brittany’s "pink castle" (in French "Château rose", due to the rose brick that was used for its construction. Yes, I know: In fact, it looks more reddish than pink, but it's not my fault that they still call it "Château rose". ;-)
In 1567, King Henry III of France originated the marquisate of Roche, conferring the title to Troilus de Mesgouez, who was an influential adviser at the court of Catherine de' Medici. It is said that he was also her lover. In 1578, he became governor of Morlaix and viceroy of New France, the area in North America colonialised by the French. However, due to his numerous functions, he never inhabited his newly built manor of Trévarez that was meant to become the focal point of his marquisate. Only his niece Anne de Coëtanezre, marquise de La Roche, made it her home. According to her taste, Château de Trévarez was rebuilt in the 17th century.
In 1699, a castle chapel was erected at the foot of the hill where the manor is situated now. The chapel was dedicated to Saint Hubertus who is the patron saint of the huntsmen.
Just before the beginning of the French Revolution in 1789, Trévarez entered into possession of Louise du Bot de Grégo by heritage, who was the daughter of François Jules du Bot, marquis du Grégo, and the wife of viscount Antoine-Henry d'Amphernet de Pontbellanger. Thanks to her widespread relationships, she managed to prevent the mansion and its estates from lootings at the time of the revolution.
In 1845, Francois Louis Monjaret de Kerjégu, a so-called Noble of the Robe, who had become extremely wealthy by banking and arms trade, bought both manor and estates off Louise de Grégo’s son. In 1860, he made plans to convert Château de Trévarez into a more contemporary mansion.
However, it was his heir, James de Kerjégu, whose father was baron Samuel de Haber, a rich financial tycoon of German origin, who accomplished the castle’s transformation. Some years after his wife Laura had died in childbirth of his daughter Francoise in 1885, he decided to offer Francoise a very comfortable, modern home. In 1893, he commissioned the architect Walter-André Destailleur to re-edify Château de Trévarez at its present location within the estates. Upon completion in 1898, the stately mansion was equipped with two elevators, hot water on all floors, state-of-the-art bathrooms, central heating and of course electric light in all rooms.
So that his guests could always enjoy fresh fruits and vegetable, he established great greenhouses with heating and controllable water. Furthermore, the kitchen was equipped with an electric refrigerator, a rotisserie and four stoves. After James de Kerjégu had died in 1908, it was Francoise, her husband marquis Henri de La Ferronnays and their numerous guests who appreciated the amenities of the château. During the Belle Époque period, 80 servants worked within the castle and opulent receptions for the nobility of all Europe were hosted. In the following decades more and more hunting parties in the forests belonging to the estate were organised by Henri de La Ferronnays, but World War II put a stop to all these activities.
In July 1940, Château de Trévarez was confiscated by the German occupation army. The Germans occupied the stately home for about four years, but when the British RAF shelled it in July 1944, it was already abandoned by Hitler’s troops. However, the bombing caused great damage to the building. Both west wing and kitchen were demolished by the bombs while both ball room and guest rooms went up in smoke.
When marquis Henri de La Ferronnays died in 1946, the château was in pitiable condition. Until 1968, it was left to rot, but in that year it was bought by the general council of Finistère. A gradual renovation was started then, beginning with the gardens. In 1971, they were re-opened. In 1993, the restoration of the castle’s roof was completed and subsequently the interior was transformed into a museum displaying the history of Château de Trévarez. The renovation is not finished yet and unfortunately most of the furnishings are lost forever, even so the building provides great insight into the life of the nobility in the first half of the 20th century. Since 2009, both gardens and château are listed as French national historic monuments ((in French: "monuments historique").
Everything happens for a reason. Serendipity,coincidence or whatever you call it, life blows its surprises unexpectedly. I have been encountering 22 several times a day for more than a month now and I can't help but think of the life I had in 2009.....this one's for you....
22
When powerful wings of love seize you
Resist not though its horns pierce you through
And when it promises you a life of eternity
Believe though you kneel tattered in uncertainty.
For when it summons the bravest of your intentions
So shall be born the grandest of all your illusions
For when love delights your eyes and edifies you
So shall it become the arrow that betrays you.
From among the throng of faces it chooses you
Its rudder shall define and embody you
Love will pummel you 'til you are both gentle and strong
It'll crown you with blood 'til you are broken and sifts your wrong.
...And if you slumber and spurn when your heart sings,
Your existence unfolds only a speck of your being
Because if you only long for love's ease and rapture
Hide your face then for its thrashings you will not endure
For love discloses not of beauty and wit
But of soul's nakedness bereft of deceit
Of love be known and its words be true
May they fill every fiber of your being through and through.
-cro (March 7-22, 2011)
Photography and poetry: ©crozahirah
Cologne cathedral; (Germany)
edified 1248 till 1880, masterwork Gothic architecture;
This photo is better you look large version!
My wife brought me a treat that she squirrelled away during some teacher thing or other: two little squares of nanaimo bar wrapped in a napkin.
They weren't the world's greatest nanaimo bars, but it's not like you can really go wrong with a recipe that's 80% butter, chocolate and sugar.
Those who have never had the pleasure - and may be sneering at what looks like just another mid-West, American dessert square - might be edified by perusal of the official recipe and accompanying picture.
Knole (/noʊl/) is a country house and former archbishop's palace owned by the National Trust. It is situated within Knole Park, a 1,000-acre (400-hectare) park located immediately to the south-east of Sevenoaks in west Kent. The house ranks in the top five of England's largest houses, under any measure used, occupying a total of four acres.[1]
The current house dates back to the mid-15th century, with major additions in the 16th and, particularly, the early 17th centuries. Its grade I listing reflects its mix of late-medieval to Stuart structures and particularly its central façade and state rooms. In 2019 an extensive conservation project, "Inspired by Knole", was completed to restore and develop the structures of the buildings and thus help to conserve its important collections.[2] The surrounding deer park has also survived with varying degrees of management in the 400 years since 1600.
Early-Stuart Knole and the Sackvilles
Since Dudley had originally granted a 99-year lease, Thomas Sackville could only take it back by buying out the remaining 51 years of the lease for £4000, which he did in 1603. Lennard was happy to sell, not only because of his mounting debts but also because he wished to gain the Dacre title, which he did in 1604 from a commission headed by the lord treasurer, Thomas Sackville. This is unlikely to have been a coincidence.[34] Sackville's descendants, the Earls and Dukes of Dorset and Barons Sackville have owned or lived in the property ever since.[35]
North West Front, Knole, Sevenoaks
Thomas Sackville, at that time Lord Buckhurst, had considered a number of other sites to build a house commensurate with his elevated status in court and government. However, he could not overlook the multiple advantages of Knole: a good supply of spring water (rare for a house on a hill), plentiful timber, a deer park and close enough proximity to London.[36] He immediately began a large building programme. This was supposed to have been completed within two years, employing some 200 workmen, but the partially-surviving accounts show that there was continuing, vast expenditure even in 1608–9.[30] Since Sackville had had a distinguished career at court under Elizabeth and then been appointed Lord High Treasurer to James VI and I, he had the resources to undertake such a programme. Perhaps, with his renovations to the state rooms at Knole, Sackville hoped to receive a visit by the King, but this does not seem to have occurred and the lord treasurer himself died during the building work, in April 1608, at the age of about 72.
Thomas Sackville's Jacobean great house, like others such as Hatfield and Audley End, have been called "monuments to private greed".[37] Unlike any surviving English great house apart from Haddon Hall, Knole today still looks as it did when Thomas died, having managed "to remain motionless like this since the early 17th century, balanced between growth and decay."[38]
Thomas's son, Robert Sackville, second earl of Dorset, took over the titles and estates, gave a description of his father's work on re-modelling Knole: "late re-edified wth a barne, stable, dovehouse and other edifices, together wth divers Courts, the gardens orchards and wilderness invironed wth a stone wall, well planted wth choise frute, and beawtified wth ponds, and manie other pleasureable delights and devises are situate wthin the Parke of knoll, the charge of new building of the said house and making planting and furnishing of the said ponds yards gardens orchards and wilderness about Seaven yeares past Thirty thosand pounds at the least yet exstant uppon Accounpts. All wch are now in the Earle of dorsetts owne occupacon and are worth to bee sold."[39]
The second earl did not enjoy Knole for long, since he died in January 1609.[40] His two sons, in turn, inherited the title and estates, first Richard Sackville, third earl of Dorset (1589–1624) and then the much more politically significant Edward Sackville, fourth earl of Dorset (1590–1652).[41] None of these earls lived permanently at Knole. In the first earl's case, this was no doubt due to the renovations. The third earl lived mostly at court, though he is known to have kept his hunting horses and hounds there.[42]
The wife of the 3rd Earl, Lady Anne Clifford, lived at Knole for a time during the couple's conflict over her inheritance from her father, George Clifford, third earl of Cumberland.[43] A catalogue of the household of the Earl and Countess of Dorset at Knole from this time survives. It records the names and roles of servants and indicates where they sat at dinner. The list includes two African servants, Grace Robinson, a maid in the laundry, and John Morockoe, who worked in the kitchen. Both are described as "Blackamoors".[44] In 1623, a large part of Knole House burnt down.[45]
Knole during the Civil War, Commonwealth and Restoration
Edward Sackville, in a miniature by John Hoskins, 1635
Edward, a relatively moderate royalist, was away from Knole in the summer of 1642, when he and his cousin and factotum Sir John Sackville fell under suspicion of stockpiling arms and preparing local men to fight for Charles I during the Civil War. The rumours of the cache of arms reached Parliament in an intercepted letter for which Sir John was notionally the source. On Sunday 14 August 1642, Parliament sent three troops of horse under Colonel Edwin Sandys, a member of a Kentish puritan family, to seize these arms from Knole. Sir John was in the congregation for the parish Sunday service and Sandys waited with his troops outside the church until it had finished. Local people tried to rescue him but they quickly judged that the troops were too strong for them, and Sir John was arrested and taken to the Fleet prison.[46]
Sandys's troops then moved to Knole where, according to the earl of Dorset's steward, they caused damage to the value of £186, and 'The Armes they have wholie taken awaie there being five wagenloads of them (sic passim).' [47] In fact, the arms were largely of more interest to antiquarians than to soldiers; they included, for example, thirteen 'old French pistolls whereof four have locks [and] the other nine have none'. Sandys claimed that he had seized 'compleat armes for 500 or 600 men', but this is untrue.[48] Nevertheless, the House of Lords resolved that 'such [arms] as are fit to be made use of for the Service of the Kingdom are to be employed'.[49] In addition, the House was sequestrated.[50] Edward accepted the seizures and damage to Knole as an inevitable part of the Civil War, as he explained in a speech to Charles I and his peers in Oxford, in 1642: 'For my particular, in these wars I have suffered as much as any, my Houses have been searcht, my Armes taken thence, and my sonne and heire committed to prison; yet I shall wave these discourtesies, because I know there was a necessity they should be so. Wikipedia
MUSEE BROU
"Le monastère royal de Brou est un chef-d'œuvre de l'art gothique flamboyant flamand du début du XVIe siècle. Il se compose d'un ensemble de bâtiments monastiques construits entre 1506 et 1512, et de la somptueuse église Saint-Nicolas-de-Tolentin de Brou, édifiée de 1513 à 1532 par Louis van Bodeghem.
Cet ensemble architectural rare a été commandé par Marguerite d'Autriche, duchesse de Savoie, gouvernante des Pays-Bas bourguignons, marraine et tante de Charles Quint. Elle fit édifier l'ensemble en mémoire de son époux Philibert le Beau et pour respecter le vœu fait par sa belle-mère Marguerite de Bourbon". Wikipédia
Les anciens bâtiments monastiques comprennent deux cloîtres et abritent le musée de peinture.
L'église sert d'écrin aux trois tombeaux de Philibert le Beau au centre de l'abside, de sa mère Marguerite de Bourbon à droite et de sa femme Marguerite d'Autriche à gauche.
Les deux tombeaux de Philibert le Beau et de Marguerite d'Autriche ont deux étages. A l'étage supérieur le défunt est représenté habillé en costume de cour.
A l'étage inférieur il est présenté nu dans son linceul.
A droite le tombeau de Marguerite de Bourbon mère de Philibert le Beau, dans une niche creusée dans le mur de l'église, comporte un seul étage.
"The royal monastery of Brou is a masterpiece of Flemish flamboyant Gothic art from the early 16th century and consists of a group of monastic buildings built between 1506 and 1512 and the sumptuous church of St. Nicholas. -de-Tolentin de Brou, built from 1513 to 1532 by Louis van Bodeghem.
This architectural ensemble was built on order of Marguerite d'Autriche, Duchess of Savoy, governess of the Burgundy Netherlands, godmother and aunt of Charles Quint. She built the whole in memory of her husband Philibert the Beautiful and to respect the wish made by his mother-in-law Marguerite de Bourbon. "Wikipedia
The ancient monastic buildings include two cloisters and house the painting museum.
The church serves as a showcase for the three tombs of Philibert le Beau in the center of the apse, of his mother Marguerite de Bourbon on the right and his wife Marguerite of Austria on the left.
The two tombs of Philibert the Beautiful and Margaret of Austria have two floors. On the upper floor the deceased is represented dressed in court costume.
On the lower floor he is presented naked in his shroud.
On the right, the tomb of Marguerite de Bourbon, mother of Philibert le Beau, in a niche carved in the wall of the church, has a single floor.
“Seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf…” (Jer. 29:7).
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“Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord rises upon you. See, darkness covers the earth and thick darkness is over the peoples, but the Lord rises upon you and his glory appears over you” - (Isaiah 60:1-2).
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Cultivate a Prayerfully Expectant Heart
by Denise K. Loock
Do you expect God to answer prayer? Or do you, like me, struggle to maintain a prayerfully expectant heart?
For years, maybe even decades, Simeon had been waiting for God to fulfill a promise. Was he weary of waiting? I don’t think so. Simeon was a man of faith, “righteous and devout...eagerly waiting for the Messiah to come and rescue Israel [and] the Holy Spirit was upon him” (Luke 2:25, NLT).
The Hebrew word often translated waiting in Luke 2:25 means “expectant.” The Message words the verse this way: “Simeon...lived in the prayerful expectancy of help for Israel.” By the power of the Holy Spirit who rested on him, Simeon lived in confident hope because the Spirit had said Simeon “would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah” (v. 26, NIV).
So Simeon waited. He watched. He prayed.
Simeon’s Expectancy
One day, the Spirit told him to go to the temple. Maybe that was all the information Simeon received. Just go. And he went. What did he think when he saw the young couple among the temple crowd that day? Did the Spirit say, “That’s what you’ve been waiting for. Go to them”?
The prophet Isaiah wrote that there “was nothing beautiful or majestic” about Jesus’ appearance that would have drawn people to him (53:2, NLT). Perhaps that also applied to his earthly parents. Mary and Joseph were probably dressed in the drab, coarse garments of the lower class. They brought the offering of the impoverished to the temple that day--two birds (Leviticus 12:2-6; Luke 2:24).
And yet, when the Spirit told Simeon to approach the family of three, he obeyed. When he took the baby in his arms, Simeon knew he was the Messiah. This baby would bring salvation to both Jew and Gentile (Luke 2:32). This baby would bring “salvation to the ends of the earth” (Isaiah 49:6, NIV).
Simeon’s story illustrates three principles of cultivating a prayerfully expectant heart--a heart that is content to wait in confidence for God to fulfill his promises--the kind of heart I want to cultivate, but struggle to nurture.
What Prayerful Expectancy Looks Like
First, Simeon was confident God would do what he promised. He didn’t grow discouraged and stop praying when God didn’t seem to be listening. His example prompts me to ask how patient I am when it comes to prayer. Do I continue to pray confidently when the answer is delayed?
Second, Simeon obeyed the Holy Spirit even when the reason may have seemed unclear. When the Holy Spirit nudges me to approach someone, do I? Or does fear silence me? Does doubt immobilize me?
Third, Simeon didn’t judge by appearance. If his heart’s desire was to see the Messiah, surely he had studied the Scriptures. He knew the Messiah was the heir to David’s throne. He knew the Messiah would bring deliverance. He knew the Messiah would be a mighty warrior.
I doubt Mary and Joseph looked like the parents of such a Messiah. But God continually does the unexpected. And Simeon looked beyond what the nation of Israel expected--perhaps what he himself expected--and accepted what the Holy Spirit said.
Cultivate a Prayerfully Expectant Heart
One of my goals is to cultivate a prayerfully expectant heart--a heart like Simeon’s. Here are three ways I’m going to pursue this:
Believe God’s promises.
First, I’ll focus more on the certainty of God’s promises and less on why the fulfillment of those promises might be delayed. Too often I’m exploring all the reasons God isn’t doing what I think he should do. What if I’m not obeying in some area? What if I’ve missed an opportunity that would have led to the answer?
Self-examination can be helpful. Paul told the Corinthians, “Examine yourselves to see if your faith is genuine” (2 Corinthians 13:5, NLT). But when that examination causes me to doubt God’s Word, I’m headed down a dangerous path. To help combat unhealthy examination, I’ll cling to this truth: “The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it” (1 Thessalonians 5:24, NIV).
Obey God’s Spirit.
Second, I’m asking God to make me more sensitive to the Spirit’s nudges and less resistant to risk. I’m not a risk-taker. I’m much more likely to remain silent and inactive than to speak up and do something. So this year, I’m asking God to provide an opportunity each day for me to speak or act on his behalf. Part of my prayer goes like this: “Holy Spirit, shove me in the right direction. Shout at me if you need to.” I’ll keep these words of Paul in mind: “Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity” (Colossians 4:5, NIV).
Seek God’s heart.
Third, I’m asking God to free me from my expectations and increase the clarity of my spiritual vision. I usually move through my days expecting people--friends, family, coworkers, strangers--to act in certain ways. When they don’t, I sometimes allow disappointment or anger to dictate my responses. I may lash out with unkind words or actions. Or I may seethe in silence.
So part of my daily prayer will be “Lord, help me see others through your eyes--eyes of hope, love, and patience. You’re working in and through them. How can I respond to them in a way that pleases you and edifies them?” I’ll also pray-it-forward, thanking God for the work I know he is doing in others and in me. I’ll rely on the truth that God will complete the work he has begun in me and in others (Philippians 1:6). God is “able to keep [us] from falling away and will bring [us] with great joy into his glorious presences without a single fault” (Jude 1:24, NLT).
Through the power of the Holy Spirit we, like Simeon, can cultivate a prayerfully expectant heart. What steps will you take toward that goal?
This article originally appeared on UnlockingTheBible.org. Used with permission.
Denise K. Loock is a freelance writer, editor, speaker, and Bible study teacher. She is the author of Open Your Hymnal: Devotions That Harmonize Scripture with Song and the founder of digdeeperdevotions.com, a website devoted to helping Christians dig deeper into the Word of God. She lives in Waynesville, NC, with her husband, Mace, and cat, Ginger.
Image courtesy: Thinkstockphotos.com
Publication date: February 8, 2017
Entrada Principal a l'Edifici Roger de Llúria
Universitat Pompeu Fabra
Campus Ciutadella
Barcelona
Building Jaume I
University Pompeu Fabra
Campus de Ciutadella
Barcelona
ENGLISH
It must be said that Building Roger de Llúria is a former army barracks that after the works to adapt it the building to the public in 1998.
CATALÀ
Cal precisar que l'Edific Roger de Llúria va ser originàriament construït i utilitzat com caserna militar. El 1998 es van acabar les obres de rehabilitació de l'edifici i s'obria el 1998.
CASTELLANO
Notemos que el Edificio Roger de Llúria fue originalmente construido y utilizado como cuartel militar. El 1998 se terminaron las obras de rehabilitación del Edificio y se abría al público.
Das Schaudern ist der Menscheit bestes Teil.
- Goethe, Faust II
Looking southeastward, one more time, at the Upper Falls. Taken, as I recall, from the Horton Covered Bridge.
Here's a Western naturalist's description of this scene. We're at the Douglas Fault, where the Amnicon River spills over the upthrust block of late-Mesoproterozoic Chengwatana Volcanic Group basalt, erupted 1.1 Ga ago into the Midcontinent Rift. The stream, tinted brown by high tannic-acid content derived from groundwater leaching through fallen conifer foliage, is flowing at a sufficiently high rate to form a standing splash wave at its base.
Above all this geology and hydrology, and indeed growing on it as well, is the biology. Lichens have staked out a claim on vertical basalt surfaces. Above them rise a North Woods plant community: Beaked Hazel (Corylus cornuta), Canoe Birch (Betula papyrifera), Red Pine (Pinus resinosa), Eastern White Pine (Pinus strobus), and other species highlighted in this series. And so on and so forth.
If this tick list of seemingly separate items sounds a trifle academic to you, it's because I, as a compulsively autodidactic sort of person, have never hesitated to mine academic sources like a sapper digging under a highly fortified city.
But what I always try to keep in mind is that while a place like this does not reject academic analyses of it, it does transcend them. And to an extent we can hardly imagine.
In my career I have come across so many scientists, manufactured like automobiles in almost identical graduate-program assembly lines, who actually believe—and they are indeed buying into a system of belief—that their one highly specialized type of consciousness somehow maps reality to a striking degree.
It does not. In fact, when we just use the analytical-scientific-academic sides of ourselves, we're looking at the world through one particular peephole, and we register the tiniest quantum of the greater reality. Our ape brains have evolved to recognize a few things only, and yet in our hubris we think we are demigods.
There are two emotional states that can help us see a little more clearly. One is humility. The other is awe.
Humility not of the fawning, Uriah Heep variety peddled by certain institutional religions, but rather the type that gives us that wonderful, edifying sense of smallness next to the system of nature. After all, we are newly and imperfectly evolved. There is no god that looks or acts like us.
Further, we should not regard our species as separate from nature, because nothing actually is. We should be humbled by the vast diversity of matter and life in which we're one single element. Our species is not better than others in any grand sense. Of course we have special capabilities; so do other organisms. We must put the science on a shelf long enough to frankly admit there is a certain ineffable something that not only will always elude us; it must for our own sake.
And that's where the awe comes in. In a previous post in another album I noted that "there are times in the study of nature when one must drop one's jaw in awe or be nothing more than a farmer of details." Without that spine-tingling sense of being overwhelmed by something greater than oneself, the door to reality most certainly slams shut.
So perhaps the best way to look at a lava flow, a waterfall, or a forest is to simultaneously exercise intellect, humility, and awe in a synergistic sort of way. Taken together they enrich life. But if you remove any one of that triad, you're consigning yourself to one kind of desolation or another.
You'll find the other photos and descriptions of this series in my Integrative Natural History of Amnicon Falls State Park album.
MUSEE BROU
"Le monastère royal de Brou est un chef-d'œuvre de l'art gothique flamboyant flamand du début du XVIe siècle. Il se compose d'un ensemble de bâtiments monastiques construits entre 1506 et 1512, et de la somptueuse église Saint-Nicolas-de-Tolentin de Brou, édifiée de 1513 à 1532 par Louis van Bodeghem.
Cet ensemble architectural rare a été commandé par Marguerite d'Autriche, duchesse de Savoie, gouvernante des Pays-Bas bourguignons, marraine et tante de Charles Quint. Elle fit édifier l'ensemble en mémoire de son époux Philibert le Beau et pour respecter le vœu fait par sa belle-mère Marguerite de Bourbon". Wikipédia
Les anciens bâtiments monastiques comprennent deux cloîtres et abritent le musée de peinture.
L'église sert d'écrin aux trois tombeaux de Philibert le Beau au centre de l'abside, de sa mère Marguerite de Bourbon à droite et de sa femme Marguerite d'Autriche à gauche.
Les deux tombeaux de Philibert le Beau et de Marguerite d'Autriche ont deux étages. A l'étage supérieur le défunt est représenté habillé en costume de cour.
A l'étage inférieur il est présenté nu dans son linceul.
A droite le tombeau de Marguerite de Bourbon mère de Philibert le Beau, dans une niche creusée dans le mur de l'église, comporte un seul étage.
"The royal monastery of Brou is a masterpiece of Flemish flamboyant Gothic art from the early 16th century and consists of a group of monastic buildings built between 1506 and 1512 and the sumptuous church of St. Nicholas. -de-Tolentin de Brou, built from 1513 to 1532 by Louis van Bodeghem.
This architectural ensemble was built on order of Marguerite d'Autriche, Duchess of Savoy, governess of the Burgundy Netherlands, godmother and aunt of Charles Quint. She built the whole in memory of her husband Philibert the Beautiful and to respect the wish made by his mother-in-law Marguerite de Bourbon. "Wikipedia
The ancient monastic buildings include two cloisters and house the painting museum.
The church serves as a showcase for the three tombs of Philibert le Beau in the center of the apse, of his mother Marguerite de Bourbon on the right and his wife Marguerite of Austria on the left.
The two tombs of Philibert the Beautiful and Margaret of Austria have two floors. On the upper floor the deceased is represented dressed in court costume.
On the lower floor he is presented naked in his shroud.
On the right, the tomb of Marguerite de Bourbon, mother of Philibert le Beau, in a niche carved in the wall of the church, has a single floor.
Knole (/noʊl/) is a country house and former archbishop's palace owned by the National Trust. It is situated within Knole Park, a 1,000-acre (400-hectare) park located immediately to the south-east of Sevenoaks in west Kent. The house ranks in the top five of England's largest houses, under any measure used, occupying a total of four acres.[1]
The current house dates back to the mid-15th century, with major additions in the 16th and, particularly, the early 17th centuries. Its grade I listing reflects its mix of late-medieval to Stuart structures and particularly its central façade and state rooms. In 2019 an extensive conservation project, "Inspired by Knole", was completed to restore and develop the structures of the buildings and thus help to conserve its important collections.[2] The surrounding deer park has also survived with varying degrees of management in the 400 years since 1600.
Early-Stuart Knole and the Sackvilles
Since Dudley had originally granted a 99-year lease, Thomas Sackville could only take it back by buying out the remaining 51 years of the lease for £4000, which he did in 1603. Lennard was happy to sell, not only because of his mounting debts but also because he wished to gain the Dacre title, which he did in 1604 from a commission headed by the lord treasurer, Thomas Sackville. This is unlikely to have been a coincidence.[34] Sackville's descendants, the Earls and Dukes of Dorset and Barons Sackville have owned or lived in the property ever since.[35]
North West Front, Knole, Sevenoaks
Thomas Sackville, at that time Lord Buckhurst, had considered a number of other sites to build a house commensurate with his elevated status in court and government. However, he could not overlook the multiple advantages of Knole: a good supply of spring water (rare for a house on a hill), plentiful timber, a deer park and close enough proximity to London.[36] He immediately began a large building programme. This was supposed to have been completed within two years, employing some 200 workmen, but the partially-surviving accounts show that there was continuing, vast expenditure even in 1608–9.[30] Since Sackville had had a distinguished career at court under Elizabeth and then been appointed Lord High Treasurer to James VI and I, he had the resources to undertake such a programme. Perhaps, with his renovations to the state rooms at Knole, Sackville hoped to receive a visit by the King, but this does not seem to have occurred and the lord treasurer himself died during the building work, in April 1608, at the age of about 72.
Thomas Sackville's Jacobean great house, like others such as Hatfield and Audley End, have been called "monuments to private greed".[37] Unlike any surviving English great house apart from Haddon Hall, Knole today still looks as it did when Thomas died, having managed "to remain motionless like this since the early 17th century, balanced between growth and decay."[38]
Thomas's son, Robert Sackville, second earl of Dorset, took over the titles and estates, gave a description of his father's work on re-modelling Knole: "late re-edified wth a barne, stable, dovehouse and other edifices, together wth divers Courts, the gardens orchards and wilderness invironed wth a stone wall, well planted wth choise frute, and beawtified wth ponds, and manie other pleasureable delights and devises are situate wthin the Parke of knoll, the charge of new building of the said house and making planting and furnishing of the said ponds yards gardens orchards and wilderness about Seaven yeares past Thirty thosand pounds at the least yet exstant uppon Accounpts. All wch are now in the Earle of dorsetts owne occupacon and are worth to bee sold."[39]
The second earl did not enjoy Knole for long, since he died in January 1609.[40] His two sons, in turn, inherited the title and estates, first Richard Sackville, third earl of Dorset (1589–1624) and then the much more politically significant Edward Sackville, fourth earl of Dorset (1590–1652).[41] None of these earls lived permanently at Knole. In the first earl's case, this was no doubt due to the renovations. The third earl lived mostly at court, though he is known to have kept his hunting horses and hounds there.[42]
The wife of the 3rd Earl, Lady Anne Clifford, lived at Knole for a time during the couple's conflict over her inheritance from her father, George Clifford, third earl of Cumberland.[43] A catalogue of the household of the Earl and Countess of Dorset at Knole from this time survives. It records the names and roles of servants and indicates where they sat at dinner. The list includes two African servants, Grace Robinson, a maid in the laundry, and John Morockoe, who worked in the kitchen. Both are described as "Blackamoors".[44] In 1623, a large part of Knole House burnt down.[45]
Knole during the Civil War, Commonwealth and Restoration
Edward Sackville, in a miniature by John Hoskins, 1635
Edward, a relatively moderate royalist, was away from Knole in the summer of 1642, when he and his cousin and factotum Sir John Sackville fell under suspicion of stockpiling arms and preparing local men to fight for Charles I during the Civil War. The rumours of the cache of arms reached Parliament in an intercepted letter for which Sir John was notionally the source. On Sunday 14 August 1642, Parliament sent three troops of horse under Colonel Edwin Sandys, a member of a Kentish puritan family, to seize these arms from Knole. Sir John was in the congregation for the parish Sunday service and Sandys waited with his troops outside the church until it had finished. Local people tried to rescue him but they quickly judged that the troops were too strong for them, and Sir John was arrested and taken to the Fleet prison.[46]
Sandys's troops then moved to Knole where, according to the earl of Dorset's steward, they caused damage to the value of £186, and 'The Armes they have wholie taken awaie there being five wagenloads of them (sic passim).' [47] In fact, the arms were largely of more interest to antiquarians than to soldiers; they included, for example, thirteen 'old French pistolls whereof four have locks [and] the other nine have none'. Sandys claimed that he had seized 'compleat armes for 500 or 600 men', but this is untrue.[48] Nevertheless, the House of Lords resolved that 'such [arms] as are fit to be made use of for the Service of the Kingdom are to be employed'.[49] In addition, the House was sequestrated.[50] Edward accepted the seizures and damage to Knole as an inevitable part of the Civil War, as he explained in a speech to Charles I and his peers in Oxford, in 1642: 'For my particular, in these wars I have suffered as much as any, my Houses have been searcht, my Armes taken thence, and my sonne and heire committed to prison; yet I shall wave these discourtesies, because I know there was a necessity they should be so. Wikipedia
Actinia mediterranea (anémone de mer, Actinie rouge, Tomate de mer ...)
ile Ste Marguerite, Cannes, France
Les iles de Lérins, Ste Marguerite et Ste Honorat, occupées dès le Ve siècle av. J.-C.
Premiers forts édifiés par les espagnols puis renforcés par Vauban
Prison d'Etat dont le célèbre et énigmatique homme Masque de fer.
Des bunkers allemand y sont également construits durant la seconde guerre et n'ont pas servi car jamais équipé de canon.
Aujourd'hui un véritable paradis
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Ste Marguerite island, Cannes city, France
Lérins's islands, Ste Marguerite and Ste Honorat, occupied from the 5th century BC. J.-C.
First forts built by the spanish army then reinforced by Vauban famous military engineer
State prison including the famous and enigmatic Man in the Iron Mask
German bunkers were also built there during the WWII and were not used because they were never equipped with guns.
Today a true paradise
Sea view at Plage Centrale (in English: "Central Beach"), seen from the seaside promenade, Cabourg, Normandy, France
Some background information:
Cabourg is a French seaside resort in the Norman department of Calvados on the Cote Fleurie (in English: "Flowery Coast "). The town sits on the English Channel, at the mouth of the river Dives. The next bigger city is Caen, which is situated about 25 km (15 miles) to the south-west of Cabourg, whilst Paris is located about 120 km (74 miles) to the south-east. Cabourg’s population of about 3,700 residents increases by over 40,000 during the summers.
For many centuries Cabourg was just a small fishing village. It was founded on the left side of the Dives estuary, opposite to the already prosperous town of Dives-au-Sauveur. Nevertheless, it was exactly from this place that William the Conqueror drove the troops of Henry I of France back into the sea in 1058. However, Dives-au-Sauveur on the right side of the Dives estuary, a mile or so away from Cabourg, entered the history books with the epic of William the Conqueror in 1066, when the departure of his vessels for the Conquest of England was constantly delayed due to unfavourable winds.
In 1583, the local landlord conceded the right of way to the people of Cabourg, enabling them to cross the river Dives on a simple open-boat, in exchange for an annuity of 60 francs a year. In 1677, the boat was replaced by an inadequate wooden bridge, which had no solid central support, but was repaired continuously at an extortionate price. In 1770, the old wooden bridge was replaced by a new stronger wooden bridge and in 1869, a solid, but somewhat narrow, stone bridge was built.
Already in 1853, the Parisian lawyer and businessman Henri Durand-Morimbau, was enthralled by the natural beauty of Cabourg’s setting. He decided to develop the area, creating a seaside resort in place of the sand dunes and some grazing pastures, between the "old" Cabourg and the beach. This was how the history of "Cabourg-les-Bains" began. The paths that were to become avenues and the stairways leading to the terraces were built, all converging to one central point, the new Grand Hotel and the casino next to it.
In 1861, both the Grand Hotel and the casino were completed. Over the next twenty-five years, Cabourg steadily developed. Charming, comfortable villas were built, hidden amongst the greenery in the shade of the avenues. The sand dunes along the shore were also covered with villas and chalets. In 1884, the train service between Paris and Normandy was extended to Cabourg and in 1887 the seaside promenade was edified at a length of 1.8 km (1.1 miles).
Before World War I, Cabourg became known as "the Queen of the Beaches". The healthy, invigorating salty air enabled Cabourg to be graded as an official "Seaside Health Resort". Every summer, operetta and light opera theatrical companies, composed of artists from the most famous Parisian theatres came and played in front of the tourists. And from 1907 to 1914, the famous French author Marcel Proust lodged in Cabourg’s Grand Hotel every summer, to treat his chronic asthma problem. Proust carefully observed the tormented lives of the upper middle classes and the aristocracy and later described them in detail in his books "A la recherché du temps perdu" and "A l’ombre des jeunes filles en fleurs" where Cabourg is referred to mainly under the name of Balbec.
Despite being far from the front in World War I, Cabourg became rapidly involved. As the Grand Hotel was transformed into a war convalescent hospital, the town’s inhaitants had to face with the harsh reality of the conflict. During both World Wars Cabourg became once again the magnet of tourists, it had been in the past. But with the outbreak of World War II, all tourist activity was brought to an abrupt halt. When nearby Le Havre was bombed, the refugees that flooded in were housed in the requisitioned large summer villas.
After the French defeat was proclaimed, the town became a place for relaxation and entertainment for the German occupants from the surrounding areas. When the Germans had left, Cabourg Villas were requisitioned once again, this time to accommodate the many homeless people from the nearby city of Caen, which was heavily destroyed in the battle of Caen between the Western Allies and the Germans.
Finally Cabourg, as a seaside resort, began to revive. In the fifties, famous French stars visited the Casino, like Edith Piaf, Jean Richard and Gilbert Bécaud. And in 1964, a young woman was seen walking on the promenade, wearing a topless swimsuit for the first time in France. Today Cabourg is still a very popular tourist destination, not least because of its diverse entertainment facilities and its beautiful location between the beaches and the magnificent valley of the river Auge.
A couple of weeks back, we met a couple in a pub in Canterbury, and they had been out exploring the city and said they were disappointed by the cathedral.
Not enough labels they said.
That not withstanding, I thought it had been some time since I last had been, so decided to revisit, see the pillars of Reculver church in the crypt and take the big lens for some detail shots.
We arrived just after ten, so the cathedral was pretty free of other guests, just a few guides waiting for groups and couples to guide.
I went round with the 50mm first, before concentrating on the medieval glass which is mostly on the south side.
But as you will see, the lens picked up so much more.
Thing is, there is always someone interesting to talk to, or wants to talk to you. As I went around, I spoke with about three guides about the project and things I have seen in the churches of the county, and the wonderful people I have met. And that continued in the cathedral.
I have time to look at the tombs in the Trinity Chapel, and see that Henry IV and his wife are in a tomb there, rather than ay Westminster Abbey. So I photograph them, and the Black Prince on the southern side of the chapel, along with the Bishops and Archbishops between.
Round to the transept and a chance to change lenses, and put on the 140-400mm for some detailed shots.
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St Augustine, the first Archbishop of Canterbury, arrived on the coast of Kent as a missionary to England in 597AD. He came from Rome, sent by Pope Gregory the Great. It is said that Gregory had been struck by the beauty of Angle slaves he saw for sale in the city market and despatched Augustine and some monks to convert them to Christianity. Augustine was given a church at Canterbury (St Martin’s, after St Martin of Tours, still standing today) by the local King, Ethelbert whose Queen, Bertha, a French Princess, was already a Christian.This building had been a place of worship during the Roman occupation of Britain and is the oldest church in England still in use. Augustine had been consecrated a bishop in France and was later made an archbishop by the Pope. He established his seat within the Roman city walls (the word cathedral is derived from the the Latin word for a chair ‘cathedra’, which is itself taken from the Greek ‘kathedra’ meaning seat.) and built the first cathedral there, becoming the first Archbishop of Canterbury. Since that time, there has been a community around the Cathedral offering daily prayer to God; this community is arguably the oldest organisation in the English speaking world. The present Archbishop, The Most Revd Justin Welby, is 105th in the line of succession from Augustine. Until the 10th century, the Cathedral community lived as the household of the Archbishop. During the 10th century, it became a formal community of Benedictine monks, which continued until the monastery was dissolved by King Henry VIII in 1540. Augustine’s original building lies beneath the floor of the Nave – it was extensively rebuilt and enlarged by the Saxons, and the Cathedral was rebuilt completely by the Normans in 1070 following a major fire. There have been many additions to the building over the last nine hundred years, but parts of the Quire and some of the windows and their stained glass date from the 12th century. By 1077, Archbishop Lanfranc had rebuilt it as a Norman church, described as “nearly perfect”. A staircase and parts of the North Wall – in the area of the North West transept also called the Martyrdom – remain from that building.
Canterbury’s role as one of the world’s most important pilgrimage centres in Europe is inextricably linked to the murder of its most famous Archbishop, Thomas Becket, in 1170. When, after a long lasting dispute, King Henry II is said to have exclaimed “Who will rid me of this turbulent priest?”, four knights set off for Canterbury and murdered Thomas in his own cathedral. A sword stroke was so violent that it sliced the crown off his skull and shattered the blade’s tip on the pavement. The murder took place in what is now known as The Martyrdom. When shortly afterwards, miracles were said to take place, Canterbury became one of Europe’s most important pilgrimage centres.
The work of the Cathedral as a monastery came to an end in 1540, when the monastery was closed on the orders of King Henry VIII. Its role as a place of prayer continued – as it does to this day. Once the monastery had been suppressed, responsibility for the services and upkeep was given to a group of clergy known as the Chapter of Canterbury. Today, the Cathedral is still governed by the Dean and four Canons, together (in recent years) with four lay people and the Archdeacon of Ashford. During the Civil War of the 1640s, the Cathedral suffered damage at the hands of the Puritans; much of the medieval stained glass was smashed and horses were stabled in the Nave. After the Restoration in 1660, several years were spent in repairing the building. In the early 19th Century, the North West tower was found to be dangerous, and, although it dated from Lanfranc’s time, it was demolished in the early 1830s and replaced by a copy of the South West tower, thus giving a symmetrical appearance to the west end of the Cathedral. During the Second World War, the Precincts were heavily damaged by enemy action and the Cathedral’s Library was destroyed. Thankfully, the Cathedral itself was not seriously harmed, due to the bravery of the team of fire watchers, who patrolled the roofs and dealt with the incendiary bombs dropped by enemy bombers. Today, the Cathedral stands as a place where prayer to God has been offered daily for over 1,400 years; nearly 2,000 Services are held each year, as well as countless private prayers from individuals. The Cathedral offers a warm welcome to all visitors – its aim is to show people Jesus, which we do through the splendour of the building as well as the beauty of the worship.
www.canterbury-cathedral.org/heritage/history/cathedral-h...
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History of the cathedral
THE ORIGIN of a Christian church on the scite of the present cathedral, is supposed to have taken place as early as the Roman empire in Britain, for the use of the antient faithful and believing soldiers of their garrison here; and that Augustine found such a one standing here, adjoining to king Ethelbert's palace, which was included in the king's gift to him.
This supposition is founded on the records of the priory of Christ-church, (fn. 1) concurring with the common opinion of almost all our historians, who tell us of a church in Canterbury, which Augustine found standing in the east part of the city, which he had of king Ethelbert's gift, which after his consecration at Arles, in France, he commended by special dedication to the patronage of our blessed Saviour. (fn. 2)
According to others, the foundations only of an old church formerly built by the believing Romans, were left here, on which Augustine erected that, which he afterwards dedicated to out Saviour; (fn. 3) and indeed it is not probable that king Ethelbert should have suffered the unsightly ruins of a Christian church, which, being a Pagan, must have been very obnoxious to him, so close to his palace, and supposing these ruins had been here, would he not have suffered them to be repaired, rather than have obliged his Christian queen to travel daily to such a distance as St. Martin's church, or St. Pancrace's chapel, for the performance of her devotions.
Some indeed have conjectured that the church found by St. Augustine, in the east part of the city, was that of St.Martin, truly so situated; and urge in favor of it, that there have not been at any time any remains of British or Roman bricks discovered scattered in or about this church of our Saviour, those infallible, as Mr. Somner stiles them, signs of antiquity, and so generally found in buildings, which have been erected on, or close to the spot where more antient ones have stood. But to proceed, king Ethelbert's donation to Augustine was made in the year 596, who immediately afterwards went over to France, and was consecrated a bishop at Arles, and after his return, as soon as he had sufficiently finished a church here, whether built out of ruins or anew, it matters not, he exercised his episcopal function in the dedication of it, says the register of Christ-church, to the honor of Christ our Saviour; whence it afterwards obtained the name of Christ-church. (fn. 4)
From the time of Augustine for the space of upwards of three hundred years, there is not found in any printed or manuscript chronicle, the least mention of the fabric of this church, so that it is probable nothing befell it worthy of being recorded; however it should be mentioned, that during that period the revenues of it were much increased, for in the leiger books of it there are registered more than fifty donations of manors, lands, &c. so large and bountiful, as became the munificence of kings and nobles to confer. (fn. 5)
It is supposed, especially as we find no mention made of any thing to the contrary, that the fabric of this church for two hundred years after Augustine's time, met with no considerable molestations; but afterwards, the frequent invasions of the Danes involved both the civil and ecclesiastical state of this country in continual troubles and dangers; in the confusion of which, this church appears to have run into a state of decay; for when Odo was promoted to the archbishopric, in the year 938, the roof of it was in a ruinous condition; age had impaired it, and neglect had made it extremely dangerous; the walls of it were of an uneven height, according as it had been more or less decayed, and the roof of the church seemed ready to fall down on the heads of those underneath. All this the archbishop undertook to repair, and then covered the whole church with lead; to finish which, it took three years, as Osbern tells us, in the life of Odo; (fn. 6) and further, that there was not to be found a church of so large a size, capable of containing so great a multitude of people, and thus, perhaps, it continued without any material change happening to it, till the year 1011; a dismal and fatal year to this church and city; a time of unspeakable confusion and calamities; for in the month of September that year, the Danes, after a siege of twenty days, entered this city by force, burnt the houses, made a lamentable slaughter of the inhabitants, rifled this church, and then set it on fire, insomuch, that the lead with which archbishop Odo had covered it, being melted, ran down on those who were underneath. The sull story of this calamity is given by Osbern, in the life of archbishop Odo, an abridgement of which the reader will find below. (fn. 7)
The church now lay in ruins, without a roof, the bare walls only standing, and in this desolate condition it remained as long as the fury of the Danes prevailed, who after they had burnt the church, carried away archbishop Alphage with them, kept him in prison seven months, and then put him to death, in the year 1012, the year after which Living, or Livingus, succeeded him as archbishop, though it was rather in his calamities than in his seat of dignity, for he too was chained up by the Danes in a loathsome dungeon for seven months, before he was set free, but he so sensibly felt the deplorable state of this country, which he foresaw was every day growing worse and worse, that by a voluntary exile, he withdrew himself out of the nation, to find some solitary retirement, where he might bewail those desolations of his country, to which he was not able to bring any relief, but by his continual prayers. (fn. 8) He just outlived this storm, returned into England, and before he died saw peace and quientness restored to this land by king Canute, who gaining to himself the sole sovereignty over the nation, made it his first business to repair the injuries which had been done to the churches and monasteries in this kingdom, by his father's and his own wars. (fn. 9)
As for this church, archbishop Ægelnoth, who presided over it from the year 1020 to the year 1038, began and finished the repair, or rather the rebuilding of it, assisted in it by the royal munificence of the king, (fn. 10) who in 1023 presented his crown of gold to this church, and restored to it the port of Sandwich, with its liberties. (fn. 11) Notwithstanding this, in less than forty years afterwards, when Lanfranc soon after the Norman conquest came to the see, he found this church reduced almost to nothing by fire, and dilapidations; for Eadmer says, it had been consumed by a third conflagration, prior to the year of his advancement to it, in which fire almost all the antient records of the privileges of it had perished. (fn. 12)
The same writer has given us a description of this old church, as it was before Lanfranc came to the see; by which we learn, that at the east end there was an altar adjoining to the wall of the church, of rough unhewn stone, cemented with mortar, erected by archbishop Odo, for a repository of the body of Wilfrid, archbishop of York, which Odo had translated from Rippon hither, giving it here the highest place; at a convenient distance from this, westward, there was another altar, dedicated to Christ our Saviour, at which divine service was daily celebrated. In this altar was inclosed the head of St. Swithin, with many other relics, which archbishop Alphage brought with him from Winchester. Passing from this altar westward, many steps led down to the choir and nave, which were both even, or upon the same level. At the bottom of the steps, there was a passage into the undercroft, under all the east part of the church. (fn. 13) At the east end of which, was an altar, in which was inclosed, according to old tradition, the head of St. Furseus. From hence by a winding passage, at the west end of it, was the tomb of St. Dunstan, (fn. 14) but separated from the undercroft by a strong stone wall; over the tomb was erected a monument, pyramid wife, and at the head of it an altar, (fn. 15) for the mattin service. Between these steps, or passage into the undercroft and the nave, was the choir, (fn. 16) which was separated from the nave by a fair and decent partition, to keep off the crowds of people that usually were in the body of the church, so that the singing of the chanters in the choir might not be disturbed. About the middle of the length of the nave, were two towers or steeples, built without the walls; one on the south, and the other on the north side. In the former was the altar of St. Gregory, where was an entrance into the church by the south door, and where law controversies and pleas concerning secular matters were exercised. (fn. 17) In the latter, or north tower, was a passage for the monks into the church, from the monastery; here were the cloysters, where the novices were instructed in their religious rules and offices, and where the monks conversed together. In this tower was the altar of St. Martin. At the west end of the church was a chapel, dedicated to the blessed Virgin Mary, to which there was an ascent by steps, and at the east end of it an altar, dedicated to her, in which was inclosed the head of St. Astroburta the Virgin; and at the western part of it was the archbishop's pontifical chair, made of large stones, compacted together with mortar; a fair piece of work, and placed at a convenient distance from the altar, close to the wall of the church. (fn. 18)
To return now to archbishop Lanfranc, who was sent for from Normandy in 1073, being the fourth year of the Conqueror's reign, to fill this see, a time, when a man of a noble spirit, equal to the laborious task he was to undertake, was wanting especially for this church; and that he was such, the several great works which were performed by him, were incontestable proofs, as well as of his great and generous mind. At the first sight of the ruinous condition of this church, says the historian, the archbishop was struck with astonishment, and almost despaired of seeing that and the monastery re edified; but his care and perseverance raised both in all its parts anew, and that in a novel and more magnificent kind and form of structure, than had been hardly in any place before made use of in this kingdom, which made it a precedent and pattern to succeeding structures of this kind; (fn. 19) and new monasteries and churches were built after the example of it; for it should be observed, that before the coming of the Normans most of the churches and monasteries in this kingdom were of wood; (all the monasteries in my realm, says king Edgar, in his charter to the abbey of Malmesbury, dated anno 974, to the outward sight are nothing but worm-eaten and rotten timber and boards) but after the Norman conquest, such timber fabrics grew out of use, and gave place to stone buildings raised upon arches; a form of structure introduced into general use by that nation, and in these parts surnished with stone from Caen, in Normandy. (fn. 20) After this fashion archbishop Lanfranc rebuilt the whole church from the foundation, with the palace and monastery, the wall which encompassed the court, and all the offices belonging to the monastery within the wall, finishing the whole nearly within the compass of seven years; (fn. 21) besides which, he furnished the church with ornaments and rich vestments; after which, the whole being perfected, he altered the name of it, by a dedication of it to the Holy Trinity; whereas, before it was called the church of our Saviour, or Christ-church, and from the above time it bore (as by Domesday book appears) the name of the church of the Holy Trinity; this new church being built on the same spot on which the antient one stood, though on a far different model.
After Lanfranc's death, archbishop Anselm succeeded in the year 1093, to the see of Canterbury, and must be esteemed a principal benefactor to this church; for though his time was perplexed with a continued series of troubles, of which both banishment and poverty made no small part, which in a great measure prevented him from bestowing that cost on his church, which he would otherwise have done, yet it was through his patronage and protection, and through his care and persuasions, that the fabric of it, begun and perfected by his predecessor, became enlarged and rose to still greater splendor. (fn. 22)
In order to carry this forward, upon the vacancy of the priory, he constituted Ernulph and Conrad, the first in 1104, the latter in 1108, priors of this church; to whose care, being men of generous and noble minds, and of singular skill in these matters, he, during his troubles, not only committed the management of this work, but of all his other concerns during his absence.
Probably archbishop Anselm, on being recalled from banishment on king Henry's accession to the throne, had pulled down that part of the church built by Lanfranc, from the great tower in the middle of it to the east end, intending to rebuild it upon a still larger and more magnificent plan; when being borne down by the king's displeasure, he intrusted prior Ernulph with the work, who raised up the building with such splendor, says Malmesbury, that the like was not to be seen in all England; (fn. 23) but the short time Ernulph continued in this office did not permit him to see his undertaking finished. (fn. 24) This was left to his successor Conrad, who, as the obituary of Christ church informs us, by his great industry, magnificently perfected the choir, which his predecessor had left unfinished, (fn. 25) adorning it with curious pictures, and enriching it with many precious ornaments. (fn. 26)
This great undertaking was not entirely compleated at the death of archbishop Anselm, which happened in 1109, anno 9 Henry I. nor indeed for the space of five years afterwards, during which the see of Canterbury continued vacant; when being finished, in honour of its builder, and on account of its more than ordinary beauty, it gained the name of the glorious choir of Conrad. (fn. 27)
After the see of Canterbury had continued thus vacant for five years, Ralph, or as some call him, Rodulph, bishop of Rochester, was translated to it in the year 1114, at whose coming to it, the church was dedicated anew to the Holy Trinity, the name which had been before given to it by Lanfranc. (fn. 28) The only particular description we have of this church when thus finished, is from Gervas, the monk of this monastery, and that proves imperfect, as to the choir of Lanfranc, which had been taken down soon after his death; (fn. 29) the following is his account of the nave, or western part of it below the choir, being that which had been erected by archbishop Lanfranc, as has been before mentioned. From him we learn, that the west end, where the chapel of the Virgin Mary stood before, was now adorned with two stately towers, on the top of which were gilded pinnacles. The nave or body was supported by eight pair of pillars. At the east end of the nave, on the north side, was an oratory, dedicated in honor to the blessed Virgin, in lieu, I suppose, of the chapel, that had in the former church been dedicated to her at the west end. Between the nave and the choir there was built a great tower or steeple, as it were in the centre of the whole fabric; (fn. 30) under this tower was erected the altar of the Holy Cross; over a partition, which separated this tower from the nave, a beam was laid across from one side to the other of the church; upon the middle of this beam was fixed a great cross, between the images of the Virgin Mary and St. John, and between two cherubims. The pinnacle on the top of this tower, was a gilded cherub, and hence it was called the angel steeple; a name it is frequently called by at this day. (fn. 31)
This great tower had on each side a cross isle, called the north and south wings, which were uniform, of the same model and dimensions; each of them had a strong pillar in the middle for a support to the roof, and each of them had two doors or passages, by which an entrance was open to the east parts of the church. At one of these doors there was a descent by a few steps into the undercroft; at the other, there was an ascent by many steps into the upper parts of the church, that is, the choir, and the isles on each side of it. Near every one of these doors or passages, an altar was erected; at the upper door in the south wing, there was an altar in honour of All Saints; and at the lower door there was one of St. Michael; and before this altar on the south side was buried archbishop Fleologild; and on the north side, the holy Virgin Siburgis, whom St. Dunstan highly admired for her sanctity. In the north isle, by the upper door, was the altar of St. Blaze; and by the lower door, that of St. Benedict. In this wing had been interred four archbishops, Adelm and Ceolnoth, behind the altar, and Egelnoth and Wlfelm before it. At the entrance into this wing, Rodulph and his successor William Corboil, both archbishops, were buried. (fn. 32)
Hence, he continues, we go up by some steps into the great tower, and before us there is a door and steps leading down into the south wing, and on the right hand a pair of folding doors, with stairs going down into the nave of the church; but without turning to any of these, let us ascend eastward, till by several more steps we come to the west end of Conrad's choir; being now at the entrance of the choir, Gervas tells us, that he neither saw the choir built by Lanfranc, nor found it described by any one; that Eadmer had made mention of it, without giving any account of it, as he had done of the old church, the reason of which appears to be, that Lanfranc's choir did not long survive its founder, being pulled down as before-mentioned, by archbishop Anselm; so that it could not stand more than twenty years; therefore the want of a particular description of it will appear no great defect in the history of this church, especially as the deficiency is here supplied by Gervas's full relation of the new choir of Conrad, built instead of it; of which, whoever desires to know the whole architecture and model observed in the fabric, the order, number, height and form of the pillars and windows, may know the whole of it from him. The roof of it, he tells us, (fn. 33) was beautified with curious paintings representing heaven; (fn. 34) in several respects it was agreeable to the present choir, the stalls were large and framed of carved wood. In the middle of it, there hung a gilded crown, on which were placed four and twenty tapers of wax. From the choir an ascent of three steps led to the presbiterium, or place for the presbiters; here, he says, it would be proper to stop a little and take notice of the high altar, which was dedicated to the name of CHRIST. It was placed between two other altars, the one of St. Dunstan, the other of St. Alphage; at the east corners of the high altar were fixed two pillars of wood, beautified with silver and gold; upon these pillars was placed a beam, adorned with gold, which reached across the church, upon it there were placed the glory, (fn. 35) the images of St. Dunstan and St. Alphage, and seven chests or coffers overlaid with gold, full of the relics of many saints. Between those pillars was a cross gilded all over, and upon the upper beam of the cross were set sixty bright crystals.
Beyond this, by an ascent of eight steps towards the east, behind the altar, was the archiepiscopal throne, which Gervas calls the patriarchal chair, made of one stone; in this chair, according to the custom of the church, the archbishop used to sit, upon principal festivals, in his pontifical ornaments, whilst the solemn offices of religion were celebrated, until the consecration of the host, when he came down to the high altar, and there performed the solemnity of consecration. Still further, eastward, behind the patriarchal chair, (fn. 36) was a chapel in the front of the whole church, in which was an altar, dedicated to the Holy Trinity; behind which were laid the bones of two archbishops, Odo of Canterbury, and Wilfrid of York; by this chapel on the south side near the wall of the church, was laid the body of archbishop Lanfranc, and on the north side, the body of archbishop Theobald. Here it is to be observed, that under the whole east part of the church, from the angel steeple, there was an undercrost or crypt, (fn. 37) in which were several altars, chapels and sepulchres; under the chapel of the Trinity before-mentioned, were two altars, on the south side, the altar of St. Augustine, the apostle of the English nation, by which archbishop Athelred was interred. On the north side was the altar of St. John Baptist, by which was laid the body of archbishop Eadsin; under the high altar was the chapel and altar of the blessed Virgin Mary, to whom the whole undercroft was dedicated.
To return now, he continues, to the place where the bresbyterium and choir meet, where on each side there was a cross isle (as was to be seen in his time) which might be called the upper south and north wings; on the east side of each of these wings were two half circular recesses or nooks in the wall, arched over after the form of porticoes. Each of them had an altar, and there was the like number of altars under them in the crost. In the north wing, the north portico had the altar of St. Martin, by which were interred the bodies of two archbishops, Wlfred on the right, and Living on the left hand; under it in the croft, was the altar of St. Mary Magdalen. The other portico in this wing, had the altar of St. Stephen, and by it were buried two archbishops, Athelard on the left hand, and Cuthbert on the right; in the croft under it, was the altar of St. Nicholas. In the south wing, the north portico had the altar of St. John the Evangelist, and by it the bodies of Æthelgar and Aluric, archbishops, were laid. In the croft under it was the altar of St. Paulinus, by which the body of archbishop Siricius was interred. In the south portico was the altar of St. Gregory, by which were laid the corps of the two archbishops Bregwin and Plegmund. In the croft under it was the altar of St. Owen, archbishop of Roan, and underneath in the croft, not far from it the altar of St. Catherine.
Passing from these cross isles eastward there were two towers, one on the north, the other on the south side of the church. In the tower on the north side was the altar of St. Andrew, which gave name to the tower; under it, in the croft, was the altar of the Holy Innocents; the tower on the south side had the altar of St. Peter and St. Paul, behind which the body of St. Anselm was interred, which afterwards gave name both to the altar and tower (fn. 38) (now called St. Anselm's). The wings or isles on each side of the choir had nothing in particular to be taken notice of.— Thus far Gervas, from whose description we in particular learn, where several of the bodies of the old archbishops were deposited, and probably the ashes of some of them remain in the same places to this day.
As this building, deservedly called the glorious choir of Conrad, was a magnificent work, so the undertaking of it at that time will appear almost beyond example, especially when the several circumstances of it are considered; but that it was carried forward at the archbishop's cost, exceeds all belief. It was in the discouraging reign of king William Rufus, a prince notorious in the records of history, for all manner of sacrilegious rapine, that archbishop Anselm was promoted to this see; when he found the lands and revenues of this church so miserably wasted and spoiled, that there was hardly enough left for his bare subsistence; who, in the first years that he sat in the archiepiscopal chair, struggled with poverty, wants and continual vexations through the king's displeasure, (fn. 39) and whose three next years were spent in banishment, during all which time he borrowed money for his present maintenance; who being called home by king Henry I. at his coming to the crown, laboured to pay the debts he had contracted during the time of his banishment, and instead of enjoying that tranquility and ease he hoped for, was, within two years afterwards, again sent into banishment upon a fresh displeasure conceived against him by the king, who then seized upon all the revenues of the archbishopric, (fn. 40) which he retained in his own hands for no less than four years.
Under these hard circumstances, it would have been surprizing indeed, that the archbishop should have been able to carry on so great a work, and yet we are told it, as a truth, by the testimonies of history; but this must surely be understood with the interpretation of his having been the patron, protector and encourager, rather than the builder of this work, which he entrusted to the care and management of the priors Ernulph and Conrad, and sanctioned their employing, as Lanfranc had done before, the revenues and stock of the church to this use. (fn. 41)
In this state as above-mentioned, without any thing material happening to it, this church continued till about the year 1130, anno 30 Henry I. when it seems to have suffered some damage by a fire; (fn. 42) but how much, there is no record left to inform us; however it could not be of any great account, for it was sufficiently repaired, and that mostly at the cost of archbishop Corboil, who then sat in the chair of this see, (fn. 43) before the 4th of May that year, on which day, being Rogation Sunday, the bishops performed the dedication of it with great splendor and magnificence, such, says Gervas, col. 1664, as had not been heard of since the dedication of the temple of Solomon; the king, the queen, David, king of Scots, all the archbishops, and the nobility of both kingdoms being present at it, when this church's former name was restored again, being henceforward commonly called Christ-church. (fn. 44)
Among the manuscripts of Trinity college library, in Cambridge, in a very curious triple psalter of St. Jerome, in Latin, written by the monk Eadwyn, whose picture is at the beginning of it, is a plan or drawing made by him, being an attempt towards a representation of this church and monastery, as they stood between the years 1130 and 1174; which makes it probable, that he was one of the monks of it, and the more so, as the drawing has not any kind of relation to the plalter or sacred hymns contained in the manuscript.
His plan, if so it may be called, for it is neither such, nor an upright, nor a prospect, and yet something of all together; but notwithstanding this rudeness of the draftsman, it shews very plain that it was intended for this church and priory, and gives us a very clear knowledge, more than we have been able to learn from any description we have besides, of what both were at the above period of time. (fn. 45)
Forty-four years after this dedication, on the 5th of September, anno 1174, being the 20th year of king Henry II.'s reign, a fire happened, which consumed great part of this stately edifice, namely, the whole choir, from the angel steeple to the east end of the church, together with the prior's lodgings, the chapel of the Virgin Mary, the infirmary, and some other offices belonging to the monastery; but the angel steeple, the lower cross isles, and the nave appear to have received no material injury from the flames. (fn. 46) The narrative of this accident is told by Gervas, the monk of Canterbury, so often quoted before, who was an eye witness of this calamity, as follows:
Three small houses in the city near the old gate of the monastery took fire by accident, a strong south wind carried the flakes of fire to the top of the church, and lodged them between the joints of the lead, driving them to the timbers under it; this kindled a fire there, which was not discerned till the melted lead gave a free passage for the flames to appear above the church, and the wind gaining by this means a further power of increasing them, drove them inwardly, insomuch that the danger became immediately past all possibility of relief. The timber of the roof being all of it on fire, fell down into the choir, where the stalls of the manks, made of large pieces of carved wood, afforded plenty of fuel to the flames, and great part of the stone work, through the vehement heat of the fire, was so weakened, as to be brought to irreparable ruin, and besides the fabric itself, the many rich ornaments in the church were devoured by the flames.
The choir being thus laid in ashes, the monks removed from amidst the ruins, the bodies of the two saints, whom they called patrons of the church, the archbishops Dunstan and Alphage, and deposited them by the altar of the great cross, in the nave of the church; (fn. 47) and from this time they celebrated the daily religious offices in the oratory of the blessed Virgin Mary in the nave, and continued to do so for more than five years, when the choir being re edified, they returned to it again. (fn. 48)
Upon this destruction of the church, the prior and convent, without any delay, consulted on the most speedy and effectual method of rebuilding it, resolving to finish it in such a manner, as should surpass all the former choirs of it, as well in beauty as size and magnificence. To effect this, they sent for the most skilful architects that could be found either in France or England. These surveyed the walls and pillars, which remained standing, but they found great part of them so weakened by the fire, that they could no ways be built upon with any safety; and it was accordingly resolved, that such of them should be taken down; a whole year was spent in doing this, and in providing materials for the new building, for which they sent abroad for the best stone that could be procured; Gervas has given a large account, (fn. 49) how far this work advanced year by year; what methods and rules of architecture were observed, and other particulars relating to the rebuilding of this church; all which the curious reader may consult at his leisure; it will be sufficient to observe here, that the new building was larger in height and length, and more beautiful in every respect, than the choir of Conrad; for the roof was considerably advanced above what it was before, and was arched over with stone; whereas before it was composed of timber and boards. The capitals of the pillars were now beautified with different sculptures of carvework; whereas, they were before plain, and six pillars more were added than there were before. The former choir had but one triforium, or inner gallery, but now there were two made round it, and one in each side isle and three in the cross isles; before, there were no marble pillars, but such were now added to it in abundance. In forwarding this great work, the monks had spent eight years, when they could proceed no further for want of money; but a fresh supply coming in from the offerings at St. Thomas's tomb, so much more than was necessary for perfecting the repair they were engaged in, as encouraged them to set about a more grand design, which was to pull down the eastern extremity of the church, with the small chapel of the Holy Trinity adjoining to it, and to erect upon a stately undercroft, a most magnificent one instead of it, equally lofty with the roof of the church, and making a part of it, which the former one did not, except by a door into it; but this new chapel, which was dedicated likewise to the Holy Trinity, was not finished till some time after the rest of the church; at the east end of this chapel another handsome one, though small, was afterwards erected at the extremity of the whole building, since called Becket's crown, on purpose for an altar and the reception of some part of his relics; (fn. 50) further mention of which will be made hereafter.
The eastern parts of this church, as Mr. Gostling observes, have the appearance of much greater antiquity than what is generally allowed to them; and indeed if we examine the outside walls and the cross wings on each side of the choir, it will appear, that the whole of them was not rebuilt at the time the choir was, and that great part of them was suffered to remain, though altered, added to, and adapted as far as could be, to the new building erected at that time; the traces of several circular windows and other openings, which were then stopped up, removed, or altered, still appearing on the walls both of the isles and the cross wings, through the white-wash with which they are covered; and on the south side of the south isle, the vaulting of the roof as well as the triforium, which could not be contrived so as to be adjusted to the places of the upper windows, plainly shew it. To which may be added, that the base or foot of one of the westernmost large pillars of the choir on the north side, is strengthened with a strong iron band round it, by which it should seem to have been one of those pillars which had been weakened by the fire, but was judged of sufficient firmness, with this precaution, to remain for the use of the new fabric.
The outside of this part of the church is a corroborating proof of what has been mentioned above, as well in the method, as in the ornaments of the building.— The outside of it towards the south, from St. Michael's chapel eastward, is adorned with a range of small pillars, about six inches diameter, and about three feet high, some with santastic shasts and capitals, others with plain ones; these support little arches, which intersect each other; and this chain or girdle of pillars is continued round the small tower, the eastern cross isle and the chapel of St. Anselm, to the buildings added in honour of the Holy Trinity, and St. Thomas Becket, where they leave off. The casing of St. Michael's chapel has none of them, but the chapel of the Virgin Mary, answering to it on the north side of the church, not being fitted to the wall, shews some of them behind it; which seems as if they had been continued before, quite round the eastern parts of the church.
These pillars, which rise from about the level of the pavement, within the walls above them, are remarkably plain and bare of ornaments; but the tower above mentioned and its opposite, as soon as they rise clear of the building, are enriched with stories of this colonade, one above another, up to the platform from whence their spires rise; and the remains of the two larger towers eastward, called St. Anselm's, and that answering to it on the north side of the church, called St. Andrew's are decorated much after the same manner, as high as they remain at present.
At the time of the before-mentioned fire, which so fatally destroyed the upper part of this church, the undercrost, with the vaulting over it, seems to have remained entire, and unhurt by it.
The vaulting of the undercrost, on which the floor of the choir and eastern parts of the church is raised, is supported by pillars, whose capitals are as various and fantastical as those of the smaller ones described before, and so are their shafts, some being round, others canted, twisted, or carved, so that hardly any two of them are alike, except such as are quite plain.
These, I suppose, may be concluded to be of the same age, and if buildings in the same stile may be conjectured to be so from thence, the antiquity of this part of the church may be judged, though historians have left us in the dark in relation to it.
In Leland's Collectanea, there is an account and description of a vault under the chancel of the antient church of St. Peter, in Oxford, called Grymbald's crypt, being allowed by all, to have been built by him; (fn. 51) Grymbald was one of those great and accomplished men, whom king Alfred invited into England about the year 885, to assist him in restoring Christianity, learning and the liberal arts. (fn. 52) Those who compare the vaults or undercrost of the church of Canterbury, with the description and prints given of Grymbald's crypt, (fn. 53) will easily perceive, that two buildings could hardly have been erected more strongly resembling each other, except that this at Canterbury is larger, and more pro fusely decorated with variety of fancied ornaments, the shafts of several of the pillars here being twisted, or otherwise varied, and many of the captials exactly in the same grotesque taste as those in Grymbald's crypt. (fn. 54) Hence it may be supposed, that those whom archbishop Lanfranc employed as architects and designers of his building at Canterbury, took their model of it, at least of this part of it, from that crypt, and this undercrost now remaining is the same, as was originally built by him, as far eastward, as to that part which begins under the chapel of the Holy Trinity, where it appears to be of a later date, erected at the same time as the chapel. The part built by Lanfranc continues at this time as firm and entire, as it was at the very building of it, though upwards of seven hundred years old. (fn. 55)
But to return to the new building; though the church was not compleatly finished till the end of the year 1184, yet it was so far advanced towards it, that, in 1180, on April 19, being Easter eve, (fn. 56) the archbishop, prior and monks entered the new choir, with a solemn procession, singing Te Deum, for their happy return to it. Three days before which they had privately, by night, carried the bodies of St. Dunstan and St. Alphage to the places prepared for them near the high altar. The body likewise of queen Edive (which after the fire had been removed from the north cross isle, where it lay before, under a stately gilded shrine) to the altar of the great cross, was taken up, carried into the vestry, and thence to the altar of St. Martin, where it was placed under the coffin of archbishop Livinge. In the month of July following the altar of the Holy Trinity was demolished, and the bodies of those archbishops, which had been laid in that part of the church, were removed to other places. Odo's body was laid under St. Dunstan's and Wilfrid's under St. Alphage's; Lanfranc's was deposited nigh the altar of St. Martin, and Theobald's at that of the blessed Virgin, in the nave of the church, (fn. 57) under a marble tomb; and soon afterwards the two archbishops, on the right and left hand of archbishop Becket in the undercrost, were taken up and placed under the altar of St. Mary there. (fn. 58)
After a warning so terrible, as had lately been given, it seemed most necessary to provide against the danger of fire for the time to come; the flames, which had so lately destroyed a considerable part of the church and monastery, were caused by some small houses, which had taken fire at a small distance from the church.— There still remained some other houses near it, which belonged to the abbot and convent of St. Augustine; for these the monks of Christ-church created, by an exchange, which could not be effected till the king interposed, and by his royal authority, in a manner, compelled the abbot and convent to a composition for this purpose, which was dated in the year 1177, that was three years after the late fire of this church. (fn. 59)
These houses were immediately pulled down, and it proved a providential and an effectual means of preserving the church from the like calamity; for in the year 1180, on May 22, this new choir, being not then compleated, though it had been used the month be fore, as has been already mentioned, there happened a fire in the city, which burnt down many houses, and the flames bent their course towards the church, which was again in great danger; but the houses near it being taken away, the fire was stopped, and the church escaped being burnt again. (fn. 60)
Although there is no mention of a new dedication of the church at this time, yet the change made in the name of it has been thought by some to imply a formal solemnity of this kind, as it appears to have been from henceforth usually called the church of St. Thomas the Martyr, and to have continued so for above 350 years afterwards.
New names to churches, it is true. have been usually attended by formal consecrations of them; and had there been any such solemnity here, undoubtedly the same would not have passed by unnoticed by every historian, the circumstance of it must have been notorious, and the magnificence equal at least to the other dedications of this church, which have been constantly mentioned by them; but here was no need of any such ceremony, for although the general voice then burst forth to honour this church with the name of St. Thomas, the universal object of praise and adoration, then stiled the glorious martyr, yet it reached no further, for the name it had received at the former dedication, notwithstanding this common appellation of it, still remained in reality, and it still retained invariably in all records and writings, the name of Christ church only, as appears by many such remaining among the archives of the dean and chapter; and though on the seal of this church, which was changed about this time; the counter side of it had a representation of Becket's martyrdom, yet on the front of it was continued that of the church, and round it an inscription with the former name of Christ church; which seal remained in force till the dissolution of the priory.
It may not be improper to mention here some transactions, worthy of observation, relating to this favorite saint, which passed from the time of his being murdered, to that of his translation to the splendid shrine prepared for his relics.
Archbishop Thomas Becket was barbarously murdered in this church on Dec. 29, 1170, being the 16th year of king Henry II. and his body was privately buried towards the east end of the undercrost. The monks tell us, that about the Easter following, miracles began to be wrought by him, first at his tomb, then in the undercrost, and in every part of the whole fabric of the church; afterwards throughout England, and lastly, throughout the rest of the world. (fn. 61) The same of these miracles procured him the honour of a formal canonization from pope Alexander III. whose bull for that purpose is dated March 13, in the year 1172. (fn. 62) This declaration of the pope was soon known in all places, and the reports of his miracles were every where sounded abroad. (fn. 63)
Hereupon crowds of zealots, led on by a phrenzy of devotion, hastened to kneel at his tomb. In 1177, Philip, earl of Flanders, came hither for that purpose, when king Henry met and had a conference with him at Canterbury. (fn. 64) In June 1178, king Henry returning from Normandy, visited the sepulchre of this new saint; and in July following, William, archbishop of Rhemes, came from France, with a large retinue, to perform his vows to St. Thomas of Canterbury, where the king met him and received him honourably. In the year 1179, Lewis, king of France, came into England; before which neither he nor any of his predecessors had ever set foot in this kingdom. (fn. 65) He landed at Dover, where king Henry waited his arrival, and on August 23, the two kings came to Canterbury, with a great train of nobility of both nations, and were received with due honour and great joy, by the archbishop, with his com-provincial bishops, and the prior and the whole convent. (fn. 66)
King Lewis came in the manner and habit of a pilgrim, and was conducted to the tomb of St. Thomas by a solemn procession; he there offered his cup of gold and a royal precious stone, (fn. 67) and gave the convent a yearly rent for ever, of a hundred muids of wine, to be paid by himself and his successors; which grant was confirmed by his royal charter, under his seal, and delivered next day to the convent; (fn. 68) after he had staid here two, (fn. 69) or as others say, three days, (fn. 70) during which the oblations of gold and silver made were so great, that the relation of them almost exceeded credibility. (fn. 71) In 1181, king Henry, in his return from Normandy, again paid his devotions at this tomb. These visits were the early fruits of the adoration of the new sainted martyr, and these royal examples of kings and great persons were followed by multitudes, who crowded to present with full hands their oblations at his tomb.— Hence the convent was enabled to carry forward the building of the new choir, and they applied all this vast income to the fabric of the church, as the present case instantly required, for which they had the leave and consent of the archbishop, confirmed by the bulls of several succeeding popes. (fn. 72)
¶From the liberal oblations of these royal and noble personages at the tomb of St. Thomas, the expences of rebuilding the choir appear to have been in a great measure supplied, nor did their devotion and offerings to the new saint, after it was compleated, any ways abate, but, on the contrary, they daily increased; for in the year 1184, Philip, archbishop of Cologne, and Philip, earl of Flanders, came together to pay their vows at this tomb, and were met here by king Henry, who gave them an invitation to London. (fn. 73) In 1194, John, archbishop of Lions; in the year afterwards, John, archbishop of York; and in the year 1199, king John, performed their devotions at the foot of this tomb. (fn. 74) King Richard I. likewise, on his release from captivity in Germany, landing on the 30th of March at Sandwich, proceeded from thence, as an humble stranger on foot, towards Canterbury, to return his grateful thanks to God and St. Thomas for his release. (fn. 75) All these by name, with many nobles and multitudes of others, of all sorts and descriptions, visited the saint with humble adoration and rich oblations, whilst his body lay in the undercrost. In the mean time the chapel and altar at the upper part of the east end of the church, which had been formerly consecrated to the Holy Trinity, were demolished, and again prepared with great splendor, for the reception of this saint, who being now placed there, implanted his name not only on the chapel and altar, but on the whole church, which was from thenceforth known only by that of the church of St. Thomas the martyr.
On July 7, anno 1220, the remains of St. Thomas were translated from his tomb to his new shrine, with the greatest solemnity and rejoicings. Pandulph, the pope's legate, the archbishops of Canterbury and Rheims, and many bishops and abbots, carried the coffin on their shoulders, and placed it on the new shrine, and the king graced these solemnities with his royal presence. (fn. 76) The archbishop of Canterbury provided forage along all the road, between London and Canterbury, for the horses of all such as should come to them, and he caused several pipes and conduits to run with wine in different parts of the city. This, with the other expences arising during the time, was so great, that he left a debt on the see, which archbishop Boniface, his fourth successor in it, was hardly enabled to discharge.
¶The saint being now placed in his new repository, became the vain object of adoration to the deluded people, and afterwards numbers of licences were granted to strangers by the king, to visit this shrine. (fn. 77) The titles of glorious, of saint and martyr, were among those given to him; (fn. 78) such veneration had all people for his relics, that the religious of several cathedral churches and monasteries, used all their endeavours to obtain some of them, and thought themselves happy and rich in the possession of the smallest portion of them. (fn. 79) Besides this, there were erected and dedicated to his honour, many churches, chapels, altars and hospitals in different places, both in this kingdom and abroad. (fn. 80) Thus this saint, even whilst he lay in his obscure tomb in the undercroft, brought such large and constant supplies of money, as enabled the monks to finish this beautiful choir, and the eastern parts of the church; and when he was translated to the most exalted and honourable place in it, a still larger abundance of gain filled their coffers, which continued as a plentiful supply to them, from year to year, to the time of the reformation, and the final abolition of the priory itself.
www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-kent/vol11/pp306-383
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Edward of Woodstock, known to history as the Black Prince (15 June 1330 – 8 June 1376),[1][a] was the eldest son of King Edward III of England, and the heir apparent to the English throne. He died before his father and so his son, Richard II, succeeded to the throne instead. Edward nevertheless earned distinction as one of the most successful English commanders during the Hundred Years' War, being regarded by his English contemporaries as a model of chivalry and one of the greatest knights of his age.[2]
Edward was made Duke of Cornwall, the first English dukedom, in 1337. He was guardian of the kingdom in his father's absence in 1338, 1340, and 1342. He was created Prince of Wales in 1343 and knighted by his father at La Hougue in 1346.
In 1346 Prince Edward commanded the vanguard at the Battle of Crécy, his father intentionally leaving him to win the battle. He took part in Edward III's 1349 Calais expedition. In 1355 he was appointed the king's lieutenant in Gascony, and ordered to lead an army into Aquitaine on a chevauchée, during which he pillaged Avignonet and Castelnaudary, sacked Carcassonne, and plundered Narbonne. The next year (1356) on another chevauchée he ravaged Auvergne, Limousin, and Berry but failed to take Bourges. He offered terms of peace to King John II of France, who had outflanked him near Poitiers, but refused to surrender himself as the price of their acceptance. This led to the Battle of Poitiers, where his army routed the French and took King John prisoner.
The year after Poitiers, Edward returned to England. In 1360 he negotiated the Treaty of Brétigny. He was created Prince of Aquitaine and Gascony in 1362, but his suzerainty was not recognised by the lord of Albret or other Gascon nobles. He was directed by his father to forbid the marauding raids of the English and Gascon free companies in 1364. He entered into an agreement with Kings Peter of Castile and Charles II of Navarre, by which Peter covenanted to mortgage Castro de Urdiales and the province of Biscay to him as security for a loan; in 1366 a passage was secured through Navarre. In 1367 he received a letter of defiance from Henry of Trastámara, Peter's half-brother and rival. The same year, after an obstinate conflict, he defeated Henry at the Battle of Nájera. However, after a wait of several months, during which he failed to obtain either the province of Biscay or liquidation of the debt from Don Pedro, he returned to Aquitaine. Prince Edward persuaded the estates of Aquitaine to allow him a hearth tax of ten sous for five years in 1368, thereby alienating the lord of Albret and other nobles.
Prince Edward returned to England in 1371 and the next year resigned the principality of Aquitaine and Gascony. He led the commons in their attack upon the Lancastrian administration in 1376. He died in 1376 of dysentery[b] and was buried in Canterbury Cathedral, where his surcoat, helmet, shield, and gauntlets are still preserved.
Jean Antoine Gros. 1771-1835. Clovis et Clotilde. 1811
Paris Petit Palais (Musée des Beaux de la Ville de Paris)
Esquisse de détail pour la coupole de l'Eglise Sainte Geneviève de Paris,
devenue depuis le Panthéon.
Detailed sketch for the dome of the Church of Saint Genevieve of Paris,
Which has since become the Pantheon.
L'ART ET LES IDEOLOGIES SUCCESSIVES
L'Histoire de la peinture européenne démontre une vérité : l'Art est fondamentalement idéologique et politique. L'Art est idéologique c'est à dire qu'il est le reflet, l'expression, du système de valeurs qui façonne une société donnée à une époque donnée. L'Art est politique car ce système de valeurs est toujours imposé par les puissances gouvernantes de l'époque pour manipuler les hommes. Ces puissances gouvernantes ne se confondent pas nécessairement avec les chefs politiques au pouvoir. Ce sont des Influences qui débordent souvent le cercle étroit des dirigeants manifestes, les politiciens.
L'histoire de l'art montre très évidemment la succession des idéologies, c'est à dire des idées à la mode, au nom desquelles les hommes vivent et meurent. La particularité de l'art est toutefois que son but est esthétique, du moins jusqu'aux années 1950 et l'Art Contemporain. Du fait de cet impératif esthétique qui est celui de l'art, le Beau a pour effet, toujours voulu, de magnifier certaines idées, et de masquer, de manière fort belle, émouvante, édifiante, la bêtise de certaines autres. L'art n'est pas seulement l'imitation parfaite de la nature, célébrée par Vasari. L'art est est aussi un beau déguisement du réel.
Certes, il existe des arts qui sont essentiellement poétiques, ils témoignent toujours d'une vision du monde, mais pas d'une idéologie, c'est à dire d'une conception du monde qui se veut une vérité absolue, incontestable, imposable à tous. C'est le cas de l'art paysagiste, de l'art impressionniste ou symboliste, entre autres exemples.
Il reste que l'histoire de l'art est le témoin des évolutions idéologiques commandées par "l'esprit du temps". Mais pour voir cette histoire, il faut vouloir chercher derrière le déguisement, derrière la beauté apparente des images, l'idée politique et le but de gouvernement, très pratique, souvent sinistre, pas beau du tout, qui est poursuivi par les puissants. Une volonté de domination idéologique dont l'artiste se fait l'écho, de manière plus ou moins consciente. L'artiste peut en effet participer totalement, croire en l'idéologie qu'il sert, et ne pas même s'apercevoir qu'il est conditionné, et utilisé pour jouer un rôle. Les idiots utiles sont aussi artistes, pas seulement ingénieurs.
Après les tableaux de Jean Jacques Henner (Bara) et Jean Joseph Weerts (Pour l'humanité, pour la patrie ) les oeuvres de Jean Antoine Gros (Clovis et Clotilde, La Gloire des dynasties royales et impériales devant Sainte Geneviève) sont une excellente illustration des manipulations dont l'art se fait le vecteur.
La révolution français est directement ou indirectement à l'origine des délires ultra-nationalistes qui ont coûté à la France et à l'Europe tant de millions de morts entre 1792 et 1945.
C'est d'abord le patriote républicain, jeune va-nu-pied enthousiaste, qui meurt glorieusement pour la liberté, l'égalité et la fraternité, en luttant pour les peuples opprimés contre les rois oppresseurs (Bara de Jean Jacques Henner). C'était "le nationalisme de gauche".
Napoléon 1er, puis le second empire, et encore la IIIè République, vont récupérer l'idéologie révolutionnaire de "la patrie en danger", mais en la transformant subtilement, de manière à utiliser le "nationalisme de droite". Ils vont mettre l'accent sur la continuité de la nation française, son histoire, et récupérer aussi la religion, que la révolution avait voulu éliminer. Pour preuve, les tableaux de Jean Joseph Weerts avec le soldat mort, le Christ en croix et le drapeau bleu blanc rouge. Pour preuve, les tableaux de Gros avec Sainte Geneviève, Clovis et Clotilde, et les dynasties royales et impériales.
Des idées, et de très belles images qui permettront de faire mourir des dizaines de millions d'hommes pendant quelque dizaines d'années, jusqu'en 1945. Il faut reconnaître que le sentiment du Beau est satisfait, quand on regarde les tableaux des musées pour cette période de l'histoire européenne. L'artiste peu faire de très belles images de la réalité la plus laide du monde : la guerre.
Bien sûr, tous ces tableaux sont totalement dépassés, totalement à contre courant des idéologies actuelles : le mondialisme a juré la mort de toutes les nations, et veut imposer la République Universelle du Mélange.
L'homme mourra, toujours aussi glorieusement, mais pas pour la patrie ou la nation, non, pour la Fraternité Universelle, la Société Sans Classes et la société Sans Races. L'humanité a déjà connu une bonne centaine de millions de morts entre 1917 et 1980 sur ces thèmes. Il est certain que d'autres millions suivront. Il a existé bien sûr un art du socialisme intégral, pour magnifier tout ceci. Comme il existe un art pour célébrer le mondialisme. Mais pas forcément beau. C'est la grande nouveauté.
ART AND SUCCESSIVES IDEOLOGIES
The history of European painting shows a truth: Art is fundamentally ideological and political. Art is ideological ie it is the reflection, the expression, of the value system which shapes a society at a given time. Art is political because this system of values is always imposed by the ruling powers of the time. The governing powers do not necessarily overlap with the political leaders in power, to manipulate men These are Influences that often extend beyond the narrow circle of manifest leaders, the politicians.
The art history clearly shows the succession of the ideologies, ie ideas in fashion, in whose name the men live and die. The peculiarity of art is however that its goal is aesthetic, at least until the 1950s and Contemporary Art. Because of this aesthetic imperative of art, the effect of beauty is always to magnify certain ideas, and to mask, in a very beautiful, moving and edifying manner, the stupidity of certain others ideas. Art is not only the perfect imitation of nature, celebrated by Vasari. Art is also a beautiful disguise of the reality.
Certainly, there are arts which are essentially poetic, they still reflect a worldview, but not an ideology, that is, a conception of the world that wantsto be a absolute truth, undeniable, taxable to all. This is the case for landscape art, impressionist or symbolist art, among other examples.
The history of art is the witness of the ideological evolutions ordered by the "spirit of time". But to see this story, one must seek to look behind the disguise, behind the apparent beauty of the images, the political idea and the purpose of government, very practical, often sinister, not beautiful at all, which is pursued by the powerful. A desire for ideological domination, which the artist echoes in a more or less conscious way. The artist can indeed participate fully, believe in the ideology he serves, and not even realize that he is conditioned, and used to play a role. The "Useful idiots" are also artists, not just engineers.
After the paintings by Jean Jacques Henner (Bara) and Jean Joseph Weerts (For the humanity, for the country) the works of Jean Antoine Gros (Clovis and Clotilde , The Glory of the Royal and Imperial Dynasties before Saint Genevieve) are an excellent illustration of the manipulations that art is the vector.
The French revolution is directly or indirectly responsible for the ultra-nationalist delirium which cost France and Europe so many millions of deaths between 1792 and 1945.
It is first the republican patriot, an enthusiastic young fellow, who dies gloriously for freedom, equality, and fraternity, struggling for oppressed peoples against oppressive kings (Bara de Henner). It was "left-wing nationalism".
Napoleon I, then the Second Empire, and again the Third Republic, recover the revolutionary ideology of "the country in danger", but subtly transforming it, so as to use "right-wing nationalism." They will emphasize the continuity of the French nation, its history, and also recover the religion that the revolution had wanted to eliminate.
As proof, the paintings of Jean Joseph Weerts with the dead soldier, the Christ in cross and the red white blue flag. As proof, the paintings of Jean Antoine Gros with Sainte Genevieve, Clovis and Clotilde, and the royal and imperial dynasties.
Ideas and very beautiful images that will allow the death of tens of millions of men for some decades until 1945. It must be admitted that the feeling of the Beautiful is satisfied when one looks at the paintings of museums For this period of European history. The artist can make very beautiful images of the ugliest reality in the world: The war.
Of course, all these paintings are totally outdated, totally against the current ideologies: The globalism has sworn the death of all nations, and wants to impose the Universal Republic of th e Mixture.
Human will die, always so gloriously, but not for his country or the nation, not, for the Universal Brotherhood, the Society without Classes, and the Society without Races. Humanity has already known a hundred million deaths between 1917 and 1980 on these themes. It is certain that other millions will follow. There was, of course, an art of integral socialism, to magnify all this. As there is an art to celebrate globalism. But not necessarily beautiful. This is the great novelty.
MUSEE BROU
"Le monastère royal de Brou est un chef-d'œuvre de l'art gothique flamboyant flamand du début du XVIe siècle. Il se compose d'un ensemble de bâtiments monastiques construits entre 1506 et 1512, et de la somptueuse église Saint-Nicolas-de-Tolentin de Brou, édifiée de 1513 à 1532 par Louis van Bodeghem.
Cet ensemble architectural rare a été commandé par Marguerite d'Autriche, duchesse de Savoie, gouvernante des Pays-Bas bourguignons, marraine et tante de Charles Quint. Elle fit édifier l'ensemble en mémoire de son époux Philibert le Beau et pour respecter le vœu fait par sa belle-mère Marguerite de Bourbon". Wikipédia
Les anciens bâtiments monastiques comprennent deux cloîtres et abritent le musée de peinture.
L'église sert d'écrin aux trois tombeaux de Philibert le Beau au centre de l'abside, de sa mère Marguerite de Bourbon à droite et de sa femme Marguerite d'Autriche à gauche.
Les deux tombeaux de Philibert le Beau et de Marguerite d'Autriche ont deux étages. A l'étage supérieur le défunt est représenté habillé en costume de cour.
A l'étage inférieur il est présenté nu dans son linceul.
Le tombeau de Marguerite de Bourbon mère de Philibert le Beau, dans une niche creusée dans le mur de l'église, comporte un seul étage.
"The royal monastery of Brou is a masterpiece of Flemish flamboyant Gothic art from the early 16th century and consists of a group of monastic buildings built between 1506 and 1512 and the sumptuous church of St. Nicholas. -de-Tolentin de Brou, built from 1513 to 1532 by Louis van Bodeghem.
This architectural ensemble was built on order of Marguerite d'Autriche, Duchess of Savoy, governess of the Burgundy Netherlands, godmother and aunt of Charles Quint. She built the whole in memory of her husband Philibert the Beautiful and to respect the wish made by his mother-in-law Marguerite de Bourbon. "Wikipedia
The ancient monastic buildings include two cloisters and house the painting museum.
The church serves as a showcase for the three tombs of Philibert le Beau in the center of the apse, of his mother Marguerite de Bourbon on the right and his wife Marguerite of Austria on the left.
The two tombs of Philibert the Beautiful and Margaret of Austria have two floors. On the upper floor the deceased is represented dressed in court costume.
On the lower floor he is presented naked in his shroud.
The tomb of Marguerite de Bourbon, mother of Philibert le Beau, in a niche carved in the wall of the church, has a single floor.
MUSEE BROU
"Le monastère royal de Brou est un chef-d'œuvre de l'art gothique flamboyant flamand du début du XVIe siècle. Il se compose d'un ensemble de bâtiments monastiques construits entre 1506 et 1512, et de la somptueuse église Saint-Nicolas-de-Tolentin de Brou, édifiée de 1513 à 1532 par Louis van Bodeghem.
Cet ensemble architectural rare a été commandé par Marguerite d'Autriche, duchesse de Savoie, gouvernante des Pays-Bas bourguignons, marraine et tante de Charles Quint. Elle fit édifier l'ensemble en mémoire de son époux Philibert le Beau et pour respecter le vœu fait par sa belle-mère Marguerite de Bourbon". Wikipédia
Les anciens bâtiments monastiques comprennent deux cloîtres et abritent le musée de peinture.
L'église sert d'écrin aux trois tombeaux de Philibert le Beau au centre de l'abside, de sa mère Marguerite de Bourbon à droite et de sa femme Marguerite d'Autriche à gauche.
Les deux tombeaux de Philibert le Beau et de Marguerite d'Autriche ont deux étages. A l'étage supérieur le défunt est représenté habillé en costume de cour.
A l'étage inférieur il est présenté nu dans son linceul.
A droite le tombeau de Marguerite de Bourbon mère de Philibert le Beau, dans une niche creusée dans le mur de l'église, comporte un seul étage.
"The royal monastery of Brou is a masterpiece of Flemish flamboyant Gothic art from the early 16th century and consists of a group of monastic buildings built between 1506 and 1512 and the sumptuous church of St. Nicholas. -de-Tolentin de Brou, built from 1513 to 1532 by Louis van Bodeghem.
This architectural ensemble was built on order of Marguerite d'Autriche, Duchess of Savoy, governess of the Burgundy Netherlands, godmother and aunt of Charles Quint. She built the whole in memory of her husband Philibert the Beautiful and to respect the wish made by his mother-in-law Marguerite de Bourbon. "Wikipedia
The ancient monastic buildings include two cloisters and house the painting museum.
The church serves as a showcase for the three tombs of Philibert le Beau in the center of the apse, of his mother Marguerite de Bourbon on the right and his wife Marguerite of Austria on the left.
The two tombs of Philibert the Beautiful and Margaret of Austria have two floors. On the upper floor the deceased is represented dressed in court costume.
On the lower floor he is presented naked in his shroud.
On the right, the tomb of Marguerite de Bourbon, mother of Philibert le Beau, in a niche carved in the wall of the church, has a single floor.
my bag when in a different city (summer / tropical countries), this time, Hong Kong.
*
yowza! second anniversary already!
seems like the last year zoomed by so fast, it's unbelievable.
a few things have happened since the first flickrversay, like i finally went PRO in august and a few weeks ago, the GRD took it's 50,000th pic. the former has affected my life in good & bad ways. am learning to use flickr to store loads more notes for future reference but this also means i am more addicted, argh!
the highlights have been mostly closer relationships & "meeting" new flickrites through their comments & faves, being blogged in a few of my fave reading spots like Boing Boing and Slash Food and a very surprising thing happened when i was lucky enough to have one used for a Nortel campaign in Chicago
spotted at Clark & Lake station by the superniceburtonwood + holmes
and next to Wrigley Field by the lovely maomau .
very much looking forward to the next 365 days. ^^
Sonoma Barracks (édifiés à l'époque de la Californie Mexicaine)
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonoma_Barracks
>
Sonoma
California
I've heard all the requests. And despite them, I'll share pretty much the same view I have everyday. At least when I'm not working on a box.
Let's mosey around, basically from the left onward.
First up, my trusty Deejo "letter opener" plus a damascus Japanese folder for back up. You know, just in case. They're laying on a very nice leather organizer from Orvis.
Above them, many remotes, for the tee vee machine, Blu-ray player and the ceiling lights and fan (not shown, stop looking!).
Big ass Samsung curved monitor, flanked by Bose desktop speakers. Mandatory yelo pad (scribble scribble), tiny grumpy Buddha I've had forever, and some Claw Hammer brand Hot Cinnamon mints for sustenance.
That little keyboard is a RecZone Password safe, on account of I'm old. And I don't wanna hear about no automatic password rememberer doo hick on my computer, 'cause I got that too. On account of.... oh, you know...
Now that big flashy keyboard, that's an Azio Retro Classic, which advertises it self (right there, look, on the label) as "Elegantly Classic". I would have to agree. It's real easy for me to type with and it's satisfyingly noisy.
Let's see, then there's an oversized mouse pad, with a round Jellows wrist rest. More comfortable for me than the standard poof wrist rest, and it's always cool to the touch
Above that is part of an ancient aircraft's altitude indicator which sat upon my drawing board and held my X-acto knife, Rapid-o-graphs and non-reproducing blue pencils when I was working as a commercial artist, doin' the old cut and paste way before computers took over the graphics business. Now it handles a couple of pens and, yes, dammit, a yellow duckie mechanical pencil.
Over there on the edge, the remote for my Edifier speakers for when I wish for bigger sound and the unsung workhorse, a tiny but mucho powerful Intel NUC8i3BEK Mini PC/HTPC, Intel Dual-Core i3-8109U Upto 3.6GHz, 32GB DDR4, 1TB m.2 SSD, WiFi, Bluetooth, Thunderbolt 3, 4k Support, Dual Monit (Computers & Accessories).
I copied and pasted that last part. On a computer.
MacBook Pro + Samsung p2370h + Edifier C2.1 + Nikon D3200 @ Nikon 18-55mm @ Nikon 35mm f1.8 + PlayStation4 Slim
Dear Hughes ,
Right now, you still have the opportunity to claim an extremely rare sword for your energy alignment and transformation...
The sword I'm referring to can give you the ability to transform negative energies, protect you from psychic attacks, and safely align your chakras to your deepest desires...
...Your Energy Transfiguration Sword, and all its mystical powers...
Now, the window to claim how this powerful sword is closing - quickly. It's high in demand, and we're running out very soon.
I know you might be on-the-fence right now, but let me share with you a sword healer's story...
"Been wearing this (energy transfiguration sword) for a week now. I can feel it clearing my negative vibrations in my sleep.
So much wonderful stuff keeps happening to me. Kind of like magic! Which is weird thing to say, but it's true!! I have a healing session 3 days from now, really excited to show it off to my class!! :) Thank you so much!"
Just like you, Michael was on-the-fence at first. He wasn't certain that this was going to work, or make any difference for that matter.
But now that you're aware of her story, I'm sure you're starting to see with greater clarity the opportunity that stands before you.
You can dissolve energy blockages, align your chakras, and become the abundant and enlightened ruler you were meant to be, Hughes !
This vibrational sword can be your greatest weapon in your spiritual arsenal.
If you'd like to experience the same kind of "vibrational magic" just as Michael did...
You can claim your energy transfiguration sword now
Best regard
Michael
Exegesis on Michael the cosmo-telluric elevator..Michael is Metatron like a double-flow mercury elevator or Tesla's flying saucer with his flying men coming from the afterlife... based on Hughes Songe's readings.
The tip of this sword is used to find the man who is him, obtaining universal medicine is to become universal medicine oneself. Closer to the most precious skies
Metals are dead because they are covered with a gangue, to see them is to pierce, to pierce and you will see, to perceive, what makes you dead is our evil eye, fixed and stable eye and does not move, it is the ego... fear of death, we project it into the world around us, all you see is what the ego wants you to see, perspective is like a spider's web. Link between microcosm and macrocosm.
We do not see what is swarming everywhere because everything is alive, if we want to be in contact with our lives, we have to die to accept a loss of ego.
This verb is the truth, no one wants to renounce illusions, the protocol of the work in the black is a descent to destroy illusions, fast track is brutal, attack the dragon brutal dry track, attack too quickly your guardian of the threshold can drive you crazy. It will be better for you to choose the long, wet way (snake legs), instead of killing him by the dry way (wings),
you polish his scales, file his nails; confront the guardian of the threshold to find a spirit that makes hearts beat
Way of dissolution, death of the soul. Great medicine does not kill the spirit of disease. The metaron-michel is here to reveal to you what the evil has said, the disease is this virus in the form of a polyhedron. Gnosticism associates Michael l with the Metatron and the fall of Lucifer, the second guardian of the Temple or the Stargate or the second Sphinx. Metatron (in Hebrew מטטרון or מיטטרון) is the name of a power of the divine world according to Jewish tradition. It appears in the Talmud, the midrash and especially in Jewish mystical literature where it is linked to the biblical patriarch Enoch. In Metatron Michael's legend we find Lucifer falling from the Celestial Temple or the Celestial Jerusalem, he is associated with the emerald he wears on his forehead and a stone that fell from heaven, it is the stone rejected by the ignorant builders and fallen from the cosmic building, it goes back to the messianics. This corner stone or foundation stone rested on a column, a thousand central which carries a box containing a polyhedron with a large number of facets such as the tower of the town hall and especially the metaron. The polyhedron is directly associated with the symbolic function of the demon of darkness, that is, the guardian of the threshold, such as the oiler at the entrance to the temple or tower.
The metaron is like a window open to time and space as a whole, it is the key to its opening and resembles the camera obscura, the dark room, the invisible lodge; the absence of light designates a mysterious paradox and refers you to the higher darkness of non-being, it is one of the explanations of the band that covers the candidate for initiation. The candidate is facing Michel with his curved sword and the dragon is indeed this darkness useful to find the light, the initial spark that lives in him. Lightning seems black and darkness seems to be light...light is black and black is light. The apprentice will look for a passage with the metaron, a hole to open the passage to the celestial ray that the golden Michael symbolizes well at the top of the Church ( destroyed today).
As the bonds are established with your Angel, you build, within you, an immaculate cathedral (The Temple) where you can meditate with Hahaiah, where you can talk to him and where he will teach you... It will help you to become aware of what needs to be changed, sometimes radically, in your being or your surroundings.
The abyssal darkness actually confronts us with the feminine principle symbolized by Lilith ( Goethe's Green Serpent speaks to us of Lili, the princess who kills as soon as she is kissed, it should also be noted that Lily in English and German is a water lily that the Egyptians used to create a coma to promote an astral journey, that is, an exit from the body as those who lived in the dark of a coma from an accident can tell it). Lilith or Malkuth are under the feets of Michael. The column of the meddle is like the philosophical tree, or the tree of knowledge of paradise. The two cherubs who protect him are Michael and Lucifer. Lucifer is the dragon inside the Earth, like Lilith they are the Dark Side of our personality, the part of shadow with Carl Jung named Nigredo.
It seems that historians have passed the salt of legend to make us stories of sulphur and mercury, but they may have forgotten the gnosis? Stargate? To be familiar with this gateway is to realize that we are not captive of the Earth. It is possible to leave it at any time, at least in conscience.
The dream has always been a journey at night into another world, but never before had he realized how he could do it. It is by asking friends from elsewhere that he was simply revealed to him, very amused, that it is by activating his Heart Chakkra that he goes through a "Wormhole" - or "Snakehole" - that his consciousness crosses the web of Space/Time (here called "Spandex Web").
Michael the spark hunter in the heavens, as we seek this spark in us wakes up on March 21, the sun crosses the sword of the statue.The statue could contain messages from heaven, we can understand that in its structure are inscribed the adventures of the future world, it is through astrology, royal science, that the architect of this apocalypse (revelation in Greek, which I suggest you read later in this summary of gnosis) of stone, drawn as a band of premonitory concept, it is also logical that the Ark of Covenant is placed here in Saint Roch.
Why Michael? What does Michael mean by that? Is there a relationship between the elevator or Michael's sword as a lifter down there and as an acrobat up there! Why does he have a sword in both cases? Is it to control Stargate smugglers? I promise you that I have not invented anything and everything I suggest to you is taken from very serious books but unreadable by most of our brothers and sisters. "Through the relationships that man can now forge with those who have left the earth, he not only has material proof of the existence and individuality of the soul, but he understands the solidarity that connects the living and the dead of this world, and those of this world with those of the other worlds. He knows their situation in the spirit world; he follows them in their migrations; he is a witness to their joys and sorrows; he knows why they are happy or unhappy, and the fate that awaits him himself according to the good or evil he does. These relationships initiate him to the future life, which he can observe in all its stages, in all its adventures; the future is no longer a fuzzy hope: it is a positive fact, a mathematical conviction. Then death is no longer frightening, for it is for him the deliverance, the door to true life. »
I understand well the terrible inconvenience of those who threw anathema on Allan Kardec and above all I wonder how to remain frozen in this esotericism that sticks so well with the images?
I would like to continue this game of comparison but I am afraid to do too much when perhaps you have already felt a saturation when reading this summary of Gnosticism to try to enter the Belfry, which of course I could not do as a good tourist that I am here below. the visible part of man manifests to us the invisible part as the receiver of the telephone reproduces the news sent from afar. we must not consider man, either individually or collectively, as isolated from the rest of visible and invisible Nature. This is the mistake of the materialists.
Remember that the invisible part of man consists of two main principles: the astral body and the psychic being on the one hand, and the conscious Spirit on the other. The invisible part of man consists of two great principles: the astral body and the psychic being, and the conscious Spirit.
Nature conceived as a special entity also includes, in its invisible part, an astral plane, a psychic plane on the one hand, and a divine plane on the other.
Knowledge of the astral plane is essential if we want to understand the alchemical theories, the alchemical symbolism and the symbols of Saint Michael; here below all the apparently strange phenomena, likely to be produced by man, are developed in such a particular way, so you can imagine that this small summary is indispensable to just explain the portal of the entrance to this initiation in Saint Roch church which ended in Ark of Convenient. Michael in the guardian of this journey inside supernatural space, Michael is like the Sphinx, he guaranteed the quality of our soul.
The following description is only indicative, I suggest another way in contrast to that of the alchemists who describe Saint Michael and the dragon as the Great Work of the experienced alchemist and who generally tell us about the three colors of the work: black, white, red and gold, colors of the coat of arms of Saint Roch but also of many regions and cities in the World. The alchemists began the journey at the northern gate of the church of Saint Roch, which they considered to be the Sphinx, the key to access the Temple. They walk in the nave, starting with Saint Michael and ending with the Holy Grail in the Ark of the Covenant.
Are you still reading, my friend? If yes!!!!! Well done, something is happening that relies as much as possible on the constitution of the human being to understand what remains to be exposed. What is meant by this term, which seems so strange, of the astral plane? To make an idea of what is meant in occultism by the second property of the astral plane: the creation of forms. Everything is first created in the divine world in principle, that is, in the power of being, analogous to the idea in man. This principle then passes into the astral plane and manifests itself "in negative" - that is, everything that was luminous in the principle becomes obscure, and conversely everything that was obscure becomes luminous; it is not the exact image of the principle that manifests itself, it is the transfer of this image. - Once the transfer is obtained, the "astral" creation is finished.
The transmutation of your body is carried out with the, creative fluids of the Archetype (both psychological and chemical character that Paracelsus and Jung use to classify humans into seven categories, you will find that seven is everywhere here in Saint Roch).
Inside the conservative fluids of the Astral, there are particular agents that activate the fluids. Here it is Saint Michael with his flaming and fluid sword, his metal undulating at the entrance of the temple.
Are you still visible here in front of his smoky lines? my friend? I try to simplify as much as possible what alchemists and mystics use in their daily work. Are you looking at Michel's face? Take a good look at his blindfolded eyes! It is also the initiation of the apprentice! To modify the form, it will be necessary to create a new mold, this is what God will be able to do immediately and man meditatingly, to better say in the middle. Since all that is visible is the manifestation and realization of an invisible idea as indicated by Michel's head.
The Alchemist symbolism teaches you that there exists, in Nature, a hierarchy of psychic beings, just as there exists in man, from the bone cell to the nerve cell, via red blood cells, a true hierarchy of figurative elements. The red blood cells are precisely in the Dragon's blood under Michel's feet.
The psychic beings who inhabit the area in which the physico-chemical forces act have been given the name elementals or elemental spirits. They are similar to blood cells and especially to human leukocytes. You see, we still have the idea of the dragon's blood.
Elementals act in the lower layers of the astral plane in immediate relationship to the physical plane.
The elementals, obey the good or bad will that directs them, who are irresponsible for their actions while being intelligent, could raise curious controversies in these times of doubt about the European construction... It is so much to kill the dragon of extremists who act under the impulse of the prehistoric ego, then dead to the dragon and live The Red Devils....
To master the basics, not to let them get away with it, especially never to keep quiet and to take stock of military discipline. The army chief was able to gather around him through the devotion or fear of the conscious and responsible beings, who were willing or forced to enslave their will to that of the chief. This second action is much more difficult than the action on the dog. The dog is represented in the head of the dragon killed by Saint Georges, it is this faithful force that acts on the orders of its master. Saint Michael in the middle way, on the other hand, he tames the elementary ones, he tramples on a kind of devil that I suggest you suggest as the homonculus, a famous being created by Paracelsus but also omnipresent among the alchemists.
The same is true in the astral plane, where the elementary obeys only out of devotion or fear, but always remains free to resist the will of the Necromancer.
To give this difficult subject as much clarity as possible, it is not useless to clearly specify the term strength often used in this study, as representing a being, without us having had the opportunity to define it. It is necessary to imagine that according to the principles set out here, everything in nature is personified, even if it is spiritual. As well as the atom, the soul is a monad, and we know that matter is only a game of resistance of the monads. Forces here are called monadic beings who are devoid of power (i. e. movement, therefore) but without initiative, left to the initiative of others: we can say that they are like slaves in the world of monads.
Friend, I believe that we must humbly seek the meaning of monads, this is what I quickly propose to you apart from our imaginary conversation or my soliloquy inspired by several books that I would not hesitate to show you at the end of our discussion on the human spirit. Since the discovery of the informational energy field, a level of matter where all particles and forces are unified, modern science has begun to move towards a different perception of the Universe. The material we believe to be stable is in a state of constant flow and comes entirely from a single source, and will eventually return to that source. From this new paradigm there is little left to hang on to in terms of a belief in materialism.
This primordial energy can include an infinite number of levels that can drop deeper and deeper to the last mysterious level because they are non-manifest. This level has the characteristics of a Cosmic Intelligence (Cosmic Apex) that acts continuously by expressing itself creatively through the energy field, in order to create our visible world and thus become aware of its existence. Our purely materialistic vision of a frozen world where consciousness is only a phenomenon of cerebral physico-chemical activity is collapsing.
The question about the true nature of consciousness is now becoming more relevant to science. Universal Consciousness: The occult philosophies of all times have always taught that all things are underpinned by a single invisible cause, a common thread runs through them all, Unity, Consciousness as the cornerstone of this Unity.
The teaching to the Shade of the Right Hand teaches us that this primary cause from which man springs is threefold by nature: the Unified Spiritual Triad, the Monad, the One in All, the All, the Creative Intelligence of the world. The starting point of all creation, the Unified Triad is: the creative intelligence, the creative medium and the result of creation.
We find this Unified Triad in the quantum description of the informational energy field or Unified Field: The Cosmic Apex: the creative intelligence; the informational energy field: the creative medium; the physical world of matter: the result of creation.
The Unified Triad is the gemstone of most of the great religious, philosophical and spiritual traditions
If we refer to the human constitution, we may better understand this definition by noting that each of the three trinities includes a spontaneity, a force and an instrument of information (each of these elements being composed of a set of atoms, therefore of monads). For example, in the case of a sensation for the physical body, spontaneity is external and appears through the material body, is transmitted by the vital force, and translated by the astral body. For the soul, spontaneity is in the mind; it is transmitted by the power of the inner mind and is translated into desire in the ancestral soul. For the spiritual body, spontaneity is sometimes in the ghost, sometimes in the ancestral soul (depending on the meaning). Kama is always the force. 229 According to the previous definition of force, one can imagine the potential force as the ethereal atom that has received some defined, special impulse, but currently prevented by a more powerful opposite force. To continue the same comparison, they are slave monads entrusted with a mission that they cannot immediately accomplish but to which they do not renounce: faithful representatives of the will that led them, they will accomplish it as soon as they find the ability to do so.
These ethereal beings can receive from their creator, under certain conditions, a precise goal: this is what explains, for example, the effect of blessings, curses, spells of all kinds. But, most of the time, this direction specifies their lack; they have only an indefinite impulse that leaves them wandering, so to speak, in the astral crowd, among the living whom they covet, capable only, by their origin, of being attracted by desires, forces and elementals of the same kind. Thus thoughts are beings endowed with an existence of their own as long as they are expressed, that is, externalized by their author. Gathered by analogical sympathies, according to the mechanical law of force of the same direction, they multiply by concentrating into a common resultant. It is then that everyone feels, with a more or less obscure consciousness, that an idea is in the air, or that at least the sensitives perceive it and sometimes state it as a reality already assured, but which, for the present, is still invisible, still in power to be. We then receive from them a hunch, a forecast of future things, an oracle. Human desires are not the only ones to form such elementals; most animals express desires adapted to the nature of their desires, perhaps also inspired by the sight of the more sophisticated organs they see functioning in other earthly beings. This can explain the abundance of these isolated organs and these monstrous organ couplings that appear floating in the astral to almost all clairvoyant beginners. These are the desires, not yet fulfilled by the Universal, of the inferior being in ideal aspiration towards new perfectionings; the efforts of Nature to rise towards the power and unity of the Being, efforts that will translate into the differential modifications that Darwin has so well revealed to us. It is almost useless to add that we can project out of ourselves a magnetic force charged with vital force only (i. e. borrowed from the body alone), or with astral body, excluding desire, we then make pure magnetism or the exteriorization of more or less diffuse astral body (the latter being especially the case of mediums). Finally, the astral sea that shelters this countless population is agitated, at the same time, itself, in all directions, by undulating movements from the same source. The acts, the emotions of the incarnated beings, the very desires and the subsequent movements of the ethereal beings, produce as many luminous, calorific, electric, magnetic vibrations especially, which propagate, as we know, in this environment, by crossing each other without destroying each other, which are kept there, partly reflected by the envelope of the upper tourbillon and persist there for a time measured on their intensity and finesse. Thus the ethereal form, or the act that carries it out, in matter, have only a finite duration like them: the force that created them is exhausted by exercising itself in the mass into which it is immersed; they perish gnawed, so to speak, by the waves of the immense sea in which they are born, absorbed in the astral fire; but the influence that they have generated their survival propagated in the astral in the form of vibrations of a personal character; they modify the regime of this common environment by creating lines of force, new habits, and, with them, new desires. In this way it is not to be, no gesture, no act, no particular thought that does not contribute to transform the astral body of the planet and, by it, the aspirations of its inhabitants. This is how the astral records all our vital manifestations, making, in the biology of our star, a function of memory, for the greatest benefit of the evolution that we come to achieve there.
The mass production of increasingly human children and frustration, from the first months of life, of basic needs that only a balanced, fully available mother could have filled. These unmet needs are still expressed in the form of various neuroses in most "adults" (biologically adults, but psychologically frustrated children) and precipitate the modern societies that these infantile adults find in increasingly unbalanced imbalances. - Mediocre, and in a violence without brake erected in theological value and fueling the revolt in perpetuity. This "desert" repression of the maternal function and of feminine values in general, is the temporary triumph of the Dragon, which, driven out of the sky by Michael, can freely exercise its ravages on the land where it was precipitated (we will see the modalities from this exercise in the wings of Michael), with the emergence of the two Beasts.) That is to say that, cut off from its divine source (the sky) the human mind becomes entirely destructive, only escape, those who overcame him "by the blood of the Lamb and because of their testimony", that is to say, by the acceptance (the sacrifice of the Lamb) replacing the revolt, and by the capacity to see in a neutral way what happens (the testimony), without being carried away by the emotion and the refusal . The Dragon is designated as the "devil", and we saw at the beginning of this book the Greek etymology of this word: Dia-ballin, that is to say, cut, separate, Interpose, between our depth feminine 2 (which becomes unconscious: repressed in the desert) and the multiple identifications constituting our conscious but illusory, unstable and inconsistent self.
THE MENTAL DRAGON
The Dragon is thus the mind of modern man, made of reflexive thoughts cut off from any transcendent source, of increasingly coarse and childish emotions, thoughts and emotions that lead him into activities increasingly destructive for himself, for others and for the cosmos. The imposition of more and more intense emotions and sensations on the man by the dragon is symbolized by his fiery red color (this is the devouring side of the fire that is underlined) and their empire over the whole world. humanity by its ten horns its seven crowns. This absolute power of the Dragon-mind over humanity has been able to spread and expand, as we have seen, only thanks to this fascination with images imposed by the media, and particularly animated images of the cinema. and television, which imposed themselves in a dictatorial way on the psyche of human beings previously deprived of any defense by the disappearance of the stable reference points offered them by their doctrines and liturgies. (The Dragon "dropped 3. What Lanza Del Vasto expresses when he says:" The great artist is one who does not raise more emotions than he can purify. from heaven one third of the stars ".) This fascinating hold of pervelous images is evoked, as we will see in the next chapter, by the image of the beast to whom he was given a spirit, so that the image of the Beast parlar ". This is the most complete subversion of the normal role of the image as it was exercised in any traditional society, and especially in the Christian Middle Ages. The images then exerted their power over the psyche not by the fascination of artificial animation and the strong sensations it raises, but by the "numinous", sacred quality of their form and content. They played a considerable part in the education of men, most of whom were illiterate, and who received education only by the words of clerics and by these symbolic images: architectures, paintings, sculptures of churches and cathedrals, and especially stained-glass windows whose medallions recounted the edifying life of Christ, the Virgin, and the saints with low windows, and whose great archetypal figures of high windows transmitted in the light to the cut consciousness, still awakened at that time, spiritual influences. heavenly. It is by the "war made to the descent of the woman", conscience cut hunted in the desert, the Dragon has been able to destroy in a few centuries (and especially the last fifty years) these media of refined emotions giving a high the idea of man, and to substitute for them a world of images carrying the most gross emotions and destructive sensations for the psyche. But this war, the Dragon could only carry it through two creatures devoted to his orders, of which he has aroused the existence, and which are the two beasts which will now be described to us in next stage.
. . work & work again
. . think & sink
. . build & edify
. . snapshot & photoshop
. . squabble & squircle
. . stir & move
. . cut & paste
. . etc, . . . but don't forget to upload.
Jheronimus Bosch (Joen van Aken) 1450-1516. Hertogenbosch.
Le Chariot de Foin.The Hay Cart. Escorial
Hertogenbosch Jheronimus Bosch Art Center
Le Chariot de Foin : Au centre l'humanité habitée par le Mal se dirige vers les Enfers du volet de gauche. L'amour physique, la poésie et la musique qui voyagent tout en haut n'échapperont pas au sort commun qui concerne aussi les Papes, les Empereurs et les Rois. Tout comme la foule avide et violente des hommes ordinaires, qui cherchent à arracher au passage quelques bribes de paille.
La signification des personnages tout en bas du tableau est plus énigmatique. Ils semblent échapper à la folie des hommes. Mais est ce bien certain ?
L'Enfer du volet de droite voit des diables édifier une tour de grande hauteur tout à fait semblable à nos buildings géants contemporains. Ces tours, parodie de la Tour de Babel, s'effondreront dans le feu comme rappelé en arrière plan du tableau. N'est ce pas ?
Le Chariot de Foin arrive du volet de gauche qui représente la chute des Anges Rebelles, la création d'Eve, le Péché Originel, et l'Expulsion du Paradis. Rappel d'un fait certain : le Mal existe dès la création de l'Univers.
The Hay Cart: In the center of humanity inhabited by Evil goes to the hells of the left pane. The physical love, the poetry and the music which travel at the top will not escape the common destiny which also concerns the Popes, the Emperors and the Kings. Just like the greedy and violent crowd of ordinary men, who try to snatch a few pieces of straw in the process.
The meaning of the characters at the bottom of the painting is more enigmatic. They seem to escape the madness of men. But is this certain?
The Hell of the right wing sees devils build a tower of great height quite similar to our contemporary giant buildings. These turns, parody of the Tower of Babel, will collapse in the fire as recalled in the background of the painting. Is not it ?
The Hay Cart comes from the left wing, which represents the fall of the Rebel Angels, the creation of Eve, the Original Sin, and the Expulsion from Paradise. Reminder of a certain fact: Evil exists from the creation of the Universe.
MUSEE BROU
"Le monastère royal de Brou est un chef-d'œuvre de l'art gothique flamboyant flamand du début du XVIe siècle. Il se compose d'un ensemble de bâtiments monastiques construits entre 1506 et 1512, et de la somptueuse église Saint-Nicolas-de-Tolentin de Brou, édifiée de 1513 à 1532 par Louis van Bodeghem.
Cet ensemble architectural rare a été commandé par Marguerite d'Autriche, duchesse de Savoie, gouvernante des Pays-Bas bourguignons, marraine et tante de Charles Quint. Elle fit édifier l'ensemble en mémoire de son époux Philibert le Beau et pour respecter le vœu fait par sa belle-mère Marguerite de Bourbon". Wikipédia
Les anciens bâtiments monastiques comprennent deux cloîtres et abritent le musée de peinture.
L'église sert d'écrin aux trois tombeaux de Philibert le Beau au centre de l'abside, de sa mère Marguerite de Bourbon à droite et de sa femme Marguerite d'Autriche à gauche.
Les deux tombeaux de Philibert le Beau et de Marguerite d'Autriche ont deux étages. A l'étage supérieur le défunt est représenté habillé en costume de cour.
A l'étage inférieur il est présenté nu dans son linceul.
Le tombeau de Marguerite de Bourbon mère de Philibert le Beau, dans une niche creusée dans le mur de l'église, comporte un seul étage.
"The royal monastery of Brou is a masterpiece of Flemish flamboyant Gothic art from the early 16th century and consists of a group of monastic buildings built between 1506 and 1512 and the sumptuous church of St. Nicholas. -de-Tolentin de Brou, built from 1513 to 1532 by Louis van Bodeghem.
This architectural ensemble was built on order of Marguerite d'Autriche, Duchess of Savoy, governess of the Burgundy Netherlands, godmother and aunt of Charles Quint. She built the whole in memory of her husband Philibert the Beautiful and to respect the wish made by his mother-in-law Marguerite de Bourbon. "Wikipedia
The ancient monastic buildings include two cloisters and house the painting museum.
The church serves as a showcase for the three tombs of Philibert le Beau in the center of the apse, of his mother Marguerite de Bourbon on the right and his wife Marguerite of Austria on the left.
The two tombs of Philibert the Beautiful and Margaret of Austria have two floors. On the upper floor the deceased is represented dressed in court costume.
On the lower floor he is presented naked in his shroud.
The tomb of Marguerite de Bourbon, mother of Philibert le Beau, in a niche carved in the wall of the church, has a single floor.
A couple of weeks back, we met a couple in a pub in Canterbury, and they had been out exploring the city and said they were disappointed by the cathedral.
Not enough labels they said.
That not withstanding, I thought it had been some time since I last had been, so decided to revisit, see the pillars of Reculver church in the crypt and take the big lens for some detail shots.
We arrived just after ten, so the cathedral was pretty free of other guests, just a few guides waiting for groups and couples to guide.
I went round with the 50mm first, before concentrating on the medieval glass which is mostly on the south side.
But as you will see, the lens picked up so much more.
Thing is, there is always someone interesting to talk to, or wants to talk to you. As I went around, I spoke with about three guides about the project and things I have seen in the churches of the county, and the wonderful people I have met. And that continued in the cathedral.
I have time to look at the tombs in the Trinity Chapel, and see that Henry IV and his wife are in a tomb there, rather than ay Westminster Abbey. So I photograph them, and the Black Prince on the southern side of the chapel, along with the Bishops and Archbishops between.
Round to the transept and a chance to change lenses, and put on the 140-400mm for some detailed shots.
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St Augustine, the first Archbishop of Canterbury, arrived on the coast of Kent as a missionary to England in 597AD. He came from Rome, sent by Pope Gregory the Great. It is said that Gregory had been struck by the beauty of Angle slaves he saw for sale in the city market and despatched Augustine and some monks to convert them to Christianity. Augustine was given a church at Canterbury (St Martin’s, after St Martin of Tours, still standing today) by the local King, Ethelbert whose Queen, Bertha, a French Princess, was already a Christian.This building had been a place of worship during the Roman occupation of Britain and is the oldest church in England still in use. Augustine had been consecrated a bishop in France and was later made an archbishop by the Pope. He established his seat within the Roman city walls (the word cathedral is derived from the the Latin word for a chair ‘cathedra’, which is itself taken from the Greek ‘kathedra’ meaning seat.) and built the first cathedral there, becoming the first Archbishop of Canterbury. Since that time, there has been a community around the Cathedral offering daily prayer to God; this community is arguably the oldest organisation in the English speaking world. The present Archbishop, The Most Revd Justin Welby, is 105th in the line of succession from Augustine. Until the 10th century, the Cathedral community lived as the household of the Archbishop. During the 10th century, it became a formal community of Benedictine monks, which continued until the monastery was dissolved by King Henry VIII in 1540. Augustine’s original building lies beneath the floor of the Nave – it was extensively rebuilt and enlarged by the Saxons, and the Cathedral was rebuilt completely by the Normans in 1070 following a major fire. There have been many additions to the building over the last nine hundred years, but parts of the Quire and some of the windows and their stained glass date from the 12th century. By 1077, Archbishop Lanfranc had rebuilt it as a Norman church, described as “nearly perfect”. A staircase and parts of the North Wall – in the area of the North West transept also called the Martyrdom – remain from that building.
Canterbury’s role as one of the world’s most important pilgrimage centres in Europe is inextricably linked to the murder of its most famous Archbishop, Thomas Becket, in 1170. When, after a long lasting dispute, King Henry II is said to have exclaimed “Who will rid me of this turbulent priest?”, four knights set off for Canterbury and murdered Thomas in his own cathedral. A sword stroke was so violent that it sliced the crown off his skull and shattered the blade’s tip on the pavement. The murder took place in what is now known as The Martyrdom. When shortly afterwards, miracles were said to take place, Canterbury became one of Europe’s most important pilgrimage centres.
The work of the Cathedral as a monastery came to an end in 1540, when the monastery was closed on the orders of King Henry VIII. Its role as a place of prayer continued – as it does to this day. Once the monastery had been suppressed, responsibility for the services and upkeep was given to a group of clergy known as the Chapter of Canterbury. Today, the Cathedral is still governed by the Dean and four Canons, together (in recent years) with four lay people and the Archdeacon of Ashford. During the Civil War of the 1640s, the Cathedral suffered damage at the hands of the Puritans; much of the medieval stained glass was smashed and horses were stabled in the Nave. After the Restoration in 1660, several years were spent in repairing the building. In the early 19th Century, the North West tower was found to be dangerous, and, although it dated from Lanfranc’s time, it was demolished in the early 1830s and replaced by a copy of the South West tower, thus giving a symmetrical appearance to the west end of the Cathedral. During the Second World War, the Precincts were heavily damaged by enemy action and the Cathedral’s Library was destroyed. Thankfully, the Cathedral itself was not seriously harmed, due to the bravery of the team of fire watchers, who patrolled the roofs and dealt with the incendiary bombs dropped by enemy bombers. Today, the Cathedral stands as a place where prayer to God has been offered daily for over 1,400 years; nearly 2,000 Services are held each year, as well as countless private prayers from individuals. The Cathedral offers a warm welcome to all visitors – its aim is to show people Jesus, which we do through the splendour of the building as well as the beauty of the worship.
www.canterbury-cathedral.org/heritage/history/cathedral-h...
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History of the cathedral
THE ORIGIN of a Christian church on the scite of the present cathedral, is supposed to have taken place as early as the Roman empire in Britain, for the use of the antient faithful and believing soldiers of their garrison here; and that Augustine found such a one standing here, adjoining to king Ethelbert's palace, which was included in the king's gift to him.
This supposition is founded on the records of the priory of Christ-church, (fn. 1) concurring with the common opinion of almost all our historians, who tell us of a church in Canterbury, which Augustine found standing in the east part of the city, which he had of king Ethelbert's gift, which after his consecration at Arles, in France, he commended by special dedication to the patronage of our blessed Saviour. (fn. 2)
According to others, the foundations only of an old church formerly built by the believing Romans, were left here, on which Augustine erected that, which he afterwards dedicated to out Saviour; (fn. 3) and indeed it is not probable that king Ethelbert should have suffered the unsightly ruins of a Christian church, which, being a Pagan, must have been very obnoxious to him, so close to his palace, and supposing these ruins had been here, would he not have suffered them to be repaired, rather than have obliged his Christian queen to travel daily to such a distance as St. Martin's church, or St. Pancrace's chapel, for the performance of her devotions.
Some indeed have conjectured that the church found by St. Augustine, in the east part of the city, was that of St.Martin, truly so situated; and urge in favor of it, that there have not been at any time any remains of British or Roman bricks discovered scattered in or about this church of our Saviour, those infallible, as Mr. Somner stiles them, signs of antiquity, and so generally found in buildings, which have been erected on, or close to the spot where more antient ones have stood. But to proceed, king Ethelbert's donation to Augustine was made in the year 596, who immediately afterwards went over to France, and was consecrated a bishop at Arles, and after his return, as soon as he had sufficiently finished a church here, whether built out of ruins or anew, it matters not, he exercised his episcopal function in the dedication of it, says the register of Christ-church, to the honor of Christ our Saviour; whence it afterwards obtained the name of Christ-church. (fn. 4)
From the time of Augustine for the space of upwards of three hundred years, there is not found in any printed or manuscript chronicle, the least mention of the fabric of this church, so that it is probable nothing befell it worthy of being recorded; however it should be mentioned, that during that period the revenues of it were much increased, for in the leiger books of it there are registered more than fifty donations of manors, lands, &c. so large and bountiful, as became the munificence of kings and nobles to confer. (fn. 5)
It is supposed, especially as we find no mention made of any thing to the contrary, that the fabric of this church for two hundred years after Augustine's time, met with no considerable molestations; but afterwards, the frequent invasions of the Danes involved both the civil and ecclesiastical state of this country in continual troubles and dangers; in the confusion of which, this church appears to have run into a state of decay; for when Odo was promoted to the archbishopric, in the year 938, the roof of it was in a ruinous condition; age had impaired it, and neglect had made it extremely dangerous; the walls of it were of an uneven height, according as it had been more or less decayed, and the roof of the church seemed ready to fall down on the heads of those underneath. All this the archbishop undertook to repair, and then covered the whole church with lead; to finish which, it took three years, as Osbern tells us, in the life of Odo; (fn. 6) and further, that there was not to be found a church of so large a size, capable of containing so great a multitude of people, and thus, perhaps, it continued without any material change happening to it, till the year 1011; a dismal and fatal year to this church and city; a time of unspeakable confusion and calamities; for in the month of September that year, the Danes, after a siege of twenty days, entered this city by force, burnt the houses, made a lamentable slaughter of the inhabitants, rifled this church, and then set it on fire, insomuch, that the lead with which archbishop Odo had covered it, being melted, ran down on those who were underneath. The sull story of this calamity is given by Osbern, in the life of archbishop Odo, an abridgement of which the reader will find below. (fn. 7)
The church now lay in ruins, without a roof, the bare walls only standing, and in this desolate condition it remained as long as the fury of the Danes prevailed, who after they had burnt the church, carried away archbishop Alphage with them, kept him in prison seven months, and then put him to death, in the year 1012, the year after which Living, or Livingus, succeeded him as archbishop, though it was rather in his calamities than in his seat of dignity, for he too was chained up by the Danes in a loathsome dungeon for seven months, before he was set free, but he so sensibly felt the deplorable state of this country, which he foresaw was every day growing worse and worse, that by a voluntary exile, he withdrew himself out of the nation, to find some solitary retirement, where he might bewail those desolations of his country, to which he was not able to bring any relief, but by his continual prayers. (fn. 8) He just outlived this storm, returned into England, and before he died saw peace and quientness restored to this land by king Canute, who gaining to himself the sole sovereignty over the nation, made it his first business to repair the injuries which had been done to the churches and monasteries in this kingdom, by his father's and his own wars. (fn. 9)
As for this church, archbishop Ægelnoth, who presided over it from the year 1020 to the year 1038, began and finished the repair, or rather the rebuilding of it, assisted in it by the royal munificence of the king, (fn. 10) who in 1023 presented his crown of gold to this church, and restored to it the port of Sandwich, with its liberties. (fn. 11) Notwithstanding this, in less than forty years afterwards, when Lanfranc soon after the Norman conquest came to the see, he found this church reduced almost to nothing by fire, and dilapidations; for Eadmer says, it had been consumed by a third conflagration, prior to the year of his advancement to it, in which fire almost all the antient records of the privileges of it had perished. (fn. 12)
The same writer has given us a description of this old church, as it was before Lanfranc came to the see; by which we learn, that at the east end there was an altar adjoining to the wall of the church, of rough unhewn stone, cemented with mortar, erected by archbishop Odo, for a repository of the body of Wilfrid, archbishop of York, which Odo had translated from Rippon hither, giving it here the highest place; at a convenient distance from this, westward, there was another altar, dedicated to Christ our Saviour, at which divine service was daily celebrated. In this altar was inclosed the head of St. Swithin, with many other relics, which archbishop Alphage brought with him from Winchester. Passing from this altar westward, many steps led down to the choir and nave, which were both even, or upon the same level. At the bottom of the steps, there was a passage into the undercroft, under all the east part of the church. (fn. 13) At the east end of which, was an altar, in which was inclosed, according to old tradition, the head of St. Furseus. From hence by a winding passage, at the west end of it, was the tomb of St. Dunstan, (fn. 14) but separated from the undercroft by a strong stone wall; over the tomb was erected a monument, pyramid wife, and at the head of it an altar, (fn. 15) for the mattin service. Between these steps, or passage into the undercroft and the nave, was the choir, (fn. 16) which was separated from the nave by a fair and decent partition, to keep off the crowds of people that usually were in the body of the church, so that the singing of the chanters in the choir might not be disturbed. About the middle of the length of the nave, were two towers or steeples, built without the walls; one on the south, and the other on the north side. In the former was the altar of St. Gregory, where was an entrance into the church by the south door, and where law controversies and pleas concerning secular matters were exercised. (fn. 17) In the latter, or north tower, was a passage for the monks into the church, from the monastery; here were the cloysters, where the novices were instructed in their religious rules and offices, and where the monks conversed together. In this tower was the altar of St. Martin. At the west end of the church was a chapel, dedicated to the blessed Virgin Mary, to which there was an ascent by steps, and at the east end of it an altar, dedicated to her, in which was inclosed the head of St. Astroburta the Virgin; and at the western part of it was the archbishop's pontifical chair, made of large stones, compacted together with mortar; a fair piece of work, and placed at a convenient distance from the altar, close to the wall of the church. (fn. 18)
To return now to archbishop Lanfranc, who was sent for from Normandy in 1073, being the fourth year of the Conqueror's reign, to fill this see, a time, when a man of a noble spirit, equal to the laborious task he was to undertake, was wanting especially for this church; and that he was such, the several great works which were performed by him, were incontestable proofs, as well as of his great and generous mind. At the first sight of the ruinous condition of this church, says the historian, the archbishop was struck with astonishment, and almost despaired of seeing that and the monastery re edified; but his care and perseverance raised both in all its parts anew, and that in a novel and more magnificent kind and form of structure, than had been hardly in any place before made use of in this kingdom, which made it a precedent and pattern to succeeding structures of this kind; (fn. 19) and new monasteries and churches were built after the example of it; for it should be observed, that before the coming of the Normans most of the churches and monasteries in this kingdom were of wood; (all the monasteries in my realm, says king Edgar, in his charter to the abbey of Malmesbury, dated anno 974, to the outward sight are nothing but worm-eaten and rotten timber and boards) but after the Norman conquest, such timber fabrics grew out of use, and gave place to stone buildings raised upon arches; a form of structure introduced into general use by that nation, and in these parts surnished with stone from Caen, in Normandy. (fn. 20) After this fashion archbishop Lanfranc rebuilt the whole church from the foundation, with the palace and monastery, the wall which encompassed the court, and all the offices belonging to the monastery within the wall, finishing the whole nearly within the compass of seven years; (fn. 21) besides which, he furnished the church with ornaments and rich vestments; after which, the whole being perfected, he altered the name of it, by a dedication of it to the Holy Trinity; whereas, before it was called the church of our Saviour, or Christ-church, and from the above time it bore (as by Domesday book appears) the name of the church of the Holy Trinity; this new church being built on the same spot on which the antient one stood, though on a far different model.
After Lanfranc's death, archbishop Anselm succeeded in the year 1093, to the see of Canterbury, and must be esteemed a principal benefactor to this church; for though his time was perplexed with a continued series of troubles, of which both banishment and poverty made no small part, which in a great measure prevented him from bestowing that cost on his church, which he would otherwise have done, yet it was through his patronage and protection, and through his care and persuasions, that the fabric of it, begun and perfected by his predecessor, became enlarged and rose to still greater splendor. (fn. 22)
In order to carry this forward, upon the vacancy of the priory, he constituted Ernulph and Conrad, the first in 1104, the latter in 1108, priors of this church; to whose care, being men of generous and noble minds, and of singular skill in these matters, he, during his troubles, not only committed the management of this work, but of all his other concerns during his absence.
Probably archbishop Anselm, on being recalled from banishment on king Henry's accession to the throne, had pulled down that part of the church built by Lanfranc, from the great tower in the middle of it to the east end, intending to rebuild it upon a still larger and more magnificent plan; when being borne down by the king's displeasure, he intrusted prior Ernulph with the work, who raised up the building with such splendor, says Malmesbury, that the like was not to be seen in all England; (fn. 23) but the short time Ernulph continued in this office did not permit him to see his undertaking finished. (fn. 24) This was left to his successor Conrad, who, as the obituary of Christ church informs us, by his great industry, magnificently perfected the choir, which his predecessor had left unfinished, (fn. 25) adorning it with curious pictures, and enriching it with many precious ornaments. (fn. 26)
This great undertaking was not entirely compleated at the death of archbishop Anselm, which happened in 1109, anno 9 Henry I. nor indeed for the space of five years afterwards, during which the see of Canterbury continued vacant; when being finished, in honour of its builder, and on account of its more than ordinary beauty, it gained the name of the glorious choir of Conrad. (fn. 27)
After the see of Canterbury had continued thus vacant for five years, Ralph, or as some call him, Rodulph, bishop of Rochester, was translated to it in the year 1114, at whose coming to it, the church was dedicated anew to the Holy Trinity, the name which had been before given to it by Lanfranc. (fn. 28) The only particular description we have of this church when thus finished, is from Gervas, the monk of this monastery, and that proves imperfect, as to the choir of Lanfranc, which had been taken down soon after his death; (fn. 29) the following is his account of the nave, or western part of it below the choir, being that which had been erected by archbishop Lanfranc, as has been before mentioned. From him we learn, that the west end, where the chapel of the Virgin Mary stood before, was now adorned with two stately towers, on the top of which were gilded pinnacles. The nave or body was supported by eight pair of pillars. At the east end of the nave, on the north side, was an oratory, dedicated in honor to the blessed Virgin, in lieu, I suppose, of the chapel, that had in the former church been dedicated to her at the west end. Between the nave and the choir there was built a great tower or steeple, as it were in the centre of the whole fabric; (fn. 30) under this tower was erected the altar of the Holy Cross; over a partition, which separated this tower from the nave, a beam was laid across from one side to the other of the church; upon the middle of this beam was fixed a great cross, between the images of the Virgin Mary and St. John, and between two cherubims. The pinnacle on the top of this tower, was a gilded cherub, and hence it was called the angel steeple; a name it is frequently called by at this day. (fn. 31)
This great tower had on each side a cross isle, called the north and south wings, which were uniform, of the same model and dimensions; each of them had a strong pillar in the middle for a support to the roof, and each of them had two doors or passages, by which an entrance was open to the east parts of the church. At one of these doors there was a descent by a few steps into the undercroft; at the other, there was an ascent by many steps into the upper parts of the church, that is, the choir, and the isles on each side of it. Near every one of these doors or passages, an altar was erected; at the upper door in the south wing, there was an altar in honour of All Saints; and at the lower door there was one of St. Michael; and before this altar on the south side was buried archbishop Fleologild; and on the north side, the holy Virgin Siburgis, whom St. Dunstan highly admired for her sanctity. In the north isle, by the upper door, was the altar of St. Blaze; and by the lower door, that of St. Benedict. In this wing had been interred four archbishops, Adelm and Ceolnoth, behind the altar, and Egelnoth and Wlfelm before it. At the entrance into this wing, Rodulph and his successor William Corboil, both archbishops, were buried. (fn. 32)
Hence, he continues, we go up by some steps into the great tower, and before us there is a door and steps leading down into the south wing, and on the right hand a pair of folding doors, with stairs going down into the nave of the church; but without turning to any of these, let us ascend eastward, till by several more steps we come to the west end of Conrad's choir; being now at the entrance of the choir, Gervas tells us, that he neither saw the choir built by Lanfranc, nor found it described by any one; that Eadmer had made mention of it, without giving any account of it, as he had done of the old church, the reason of which appears to be, that Lanfranc's choir did not long survive its founder, being pulled down as before-mentioned, by archbishop Anselm; so that it could not stand more than twenty years; therefore the want of a particular description of it will appear no great defect in the history of this church, especially as the deficiency is here supplied by Gervas's full relation of the new choir of Conrad, built instead of it; of which, whoever desires to know the whole architecture and model observed in the fabric, the order, number, height and form of the pillars and windows, may know the whole of it from him. The roof of it, he tells us, (fn. 33) was beautified with curious paintings representing heaven; (fn. 34) in several respects it was agreeable to the present choir, the stalls were large and framed of carved wood. In the middle of it, there hung a gilded crown, on which were placed four and twenty tapers of wax. From the choir an ascent of three steps led to the presbiterium, or place for the presbiters; here, he says, it would be proper to stop a little and take notice of the high altar, which was dedicated to the name of CHRIST. It was placed between two other altars, the one of St. Dunstan, the other of St. Alphage; at the east corners of the high altar were fixed two pillars of wood, beautified with silver and gold; upon these pillars was placed a beam, adorned with gold, which reached across the church, upon it there were placed the glory, (fn. 35) the images of St. Dunstan and St. Alphage, and seven chests or coffers overlaid with gold, full of the relics of many saints. Between those pillars was a cross gilded all over, and upon the upper beam of the cross were set sixty bright crystals.
Beyond this, by an ascent of eight steps towards the east, behind the altar, was the archiepiscopal throne, which Gervas calls the patriarchal chair, made of one stone; in this chair, according to the custom of the church, the archbishop used to sit, upon principal festivals, in his pontifical ornaments, whilst the solemn offices of religion were celebrated, until the consecration of the host, when he came down to the high altar, and there performed the solemnity of consecration. Still further, eastward, behind the patriarchal chair, (fn. 36) was a chapel in the front of the whole church, in which was an altar, dedicated to the Holy Trinity; behind which were laid the bones of two archbishops, Odo of Canterbury, and Wilfrid of York; by this chapel on the south side near the wall of the church, was laid the body of archbishop Lanfranc, and on the north side, the body of archbishop Theobald. Here it is to be observed, that under the whole east part of the church, from the angel steeple, there was an undercrost or crypt, (fn. 37) in which were several altars, chapels and sepulchres; under the chapel of the Trinity before-mentioned, were two altars, on the south side, the altar of St. Augustine, the apostle of the English nation, by which archbishop Athelred was interred. On the north side was the altar of St. John Baptist, by which was laid the body of archbishop Eadsin; under the high altar was the chapel and altar of the blessed Virgin Mary, to whom the whole undercroft was dedicated.
To return now, he continues, to the place where the bresbyterium and choir meet, where on each side there was a cross isle (as was to be seen in his time) which might be called the upper south and north wings; on the east side of each of these wings were two half circular recesses or nooks in the wall, arched over after the form of porticoes. Each of them had an altar, and there was the like number of altars under them in the crost. In the north wing, the north portico had the altar of St. Martin, by which were interred the bodies of two archbishops, Wlfred on the right, and Living on the left hand; under it in the croft, was the altar of St. Mary Magdalen. The other portico in this wing, had the altar of St. Stephen, and by it were buried two archbishops, Athelard on the left hand, and Cuthbert on the right; in the croft under it, was the altar of St. Nicholas. In the south wing, the north portico had the altar of St. John the Evangelist, and by it the bodies of Æthelgar and Aluric, archbishops, were laid. In the croft under it was the altar of St. Paulinus, by which the body of archbishop Siricius was interred. In the south portico was the altar of St. Gregory, by which were laid the corps of the two archbishops Bregwin and Plegmund. In the croft under it was the altar of St. Owen, archbishop of Roan, and underneath in the croft, not far from it the altar of St. Catherine.
Passing from these cross isles eastward there were two towers, one on the north, the other on the south side of the church. In the tower on the north side was the altar of St. Andrew, which gave name to the tower; under it, in the croft, was the altar of the Holy Innocents; the tower on the south side had the altar of St. Peter and St. Paul, behind which the body of St. Anselm was interred, which afterwards gave name both to the altar and tower (fn. 38) (now called St. Anselm's). The wings or isles on each side of the choir had nothing in particular to be taken notice of.— Thus far Gervas, from whose description we in particular learn, where several of the bodies of the old archbishops were deposited, and probably the ashes of some of them remain in the same places to this day.
As this building, deservedly called the glorious choir of Conrad, was a magnificent work, so the undertaking of it at that time will appear almost beyond example, especially when the several circumstances of it are considered; but that it was carried forward at the archbishop's cost, exceeds all belief. It was in the discouraging reign of king William Rufus, a prince notorious in the records of history, for all manner of sacrilegious rapine, that archbishop Anselm was promoted to this see; when he found the lands and revenues of this church so miserably wasted and spoiled, that there was hardly enough left for his bare subsistence; who, in the first years that he sat in the archiepiscopal chair, struggled with poverty, wants and continual vexations through the king's displeasure, (fn. 39) and whose three next years were spent in banishment, during all which time he borrowed money for his present maintenance; who being called home by king Henry I. at his coming to the crown, laboured to pay the debts he had contracted during the time of his banishment, and instead of enjoying that tranquility and ease he hoped for, was, within two years afterwards, again sent into banishment upon a fresh displeasure conceived against him by the king, who then seized upon all the revenues of the archbishopric, (fn. 40) which he retained in his own hands for no less than four years.
Under these hard circumstances, it would have been surprizing indeed, that the archbishop should have been able to carry on so great a work, and yet we are told it, as a truth, by the testimonies of history; but this must surely be understood with the interpretation of his having been the patron, protector and encourager, rather than the builder of this work, which he entrusted to the care and management of the priors Ernulph and Conrad, and sanctioned their employing, as Lanfranc had done before, the revenues and stock of the church to this use. (fn. 41)
In this state as above-mentioned, without any thing material happening to it, this church continued till about the year 1130, anno 30 Henry I. when it seems to have suffered some damage by a fire; (fn. 42) but how much, there is no record left to inform us; however it could not be of any great account, for it was sufficiently repaired, and that mostly at the cost of archbishop Corboil, who then sat in the chair of this see, (fn. 43) before the 4th of May that year, on which day, being Rogation Sunday, the bishops performed the dedication of it with great splendor and magnificence, such, says Gervas, col. 1664, as had not been heard of since the dedication of the temple of Solomon; the king, the queen, David, king of Scots, all the archbishops, and the nobility of both kingdoms being present at it, when this church's former name was restored again, being henceforward commonly called Christ-church. (fn. 44)
Among the manuscripts of Trinity college library, in Cambridge, in a very curious triple psalter of St. Jerome, in Latin, written by the monk Eadwyn, whose picture is at the beginning of it, is a plan or drawing made by him, being an attempt towards a representation of this church and monastery, as they stood between the years 1130 and 1174; which makes it probable, that he was one of the monks of it, and the more so, as the drawing has not any kind of relation to the plalter or sacred hymns contained in the manuscript.
His plan, if so it may be called, for it is neither such, nor an upright, nor a prospect, and yet something of all together; but notwithstanding this rudeness of the draftsman, it shews very plain that it was intended for this church and priory, and gives us a very clear knowledge, more than we have been able to learn from any description we have besides, of what both were at the above period of time. (fn. 45)
Forty-four years after this dedication, on the 5th of September, anno 1174, being the 20th year of king Henry II.'s reign, a fire happened, which consumed great part of this stately edifice, namely, the whole choir, from the angel steeple to the east end of the church, together with the prior's lodgings, the chapel of the Virgin Mary, the infirmary, and some other offices belonging to the monastery; but the angel steeple, the lower cross isles, and the nave appear to have received no material injury from the flames. (fn. 46) The narrative of this accident is told by Gervas, the monk of Canterbury, so often quoted before, who was an eye witness of this calamity, as follows:
Three small houses in the city near the old gate of the monastery took fire by accident, a strong south wind carried the flakes of fire to the top of the church, and lodged them between the joints of the lead, driving them to the timbers under it; this kindled a fire there, which was not discerned till the melted lead gave a free passage for the flames to appear above the church, and the wind gaining by this means a further power of increasing them, drove them inwardly, insomuch that the danger became immediately past all possibility of relief. The timber of the roof being all of it on fire, fell down into the choir, where the stalls of the manks, made of large pieces of carved wood, afforded plenty of fuel to the flames, and great part of the stone work, through the vehement heat of the fire, was so weakened, as to be brought to irreparable ruin, and besides the fabric itself, the many rich ornaments in the church were devoured by the flames.
The choir being thus laid in ashes, the monks removed from amidst the ruins, the bodies of the two saints, whom they called patrons of the church, the archbishops Dunstan and Alphage, and deposited them by the altar of the great cross, in the nave of the church; (fn. 47) and from this time they celebrated the daily religious offices in the oratory of the blessed Virgin Mary in the nave, and continued to do so for more than five years, when the choir being re edified, they returned to it again. (fn. 48)
Upon this destruction of the church, the prior and convent, without any delay, consulted on the most speedy and effectual method of rebuilding it, resolving to finish it in such a manner, as should surpass all the former choirs of it, as well in beauty as size and magnificence. To effect this, they sent for the most skilful architects that could be found either in France or England. These surveyed the walls and pillars, which remained standing, but they found great part of them so weakened by the fire, that they could no ways be built upon with any safety; and it was accordingly resolved, that such of them should be taken down; a whole year was spent in doing this, and in providing materials for the new building, for which they sent abroad for the best stone that could be procured; Gervas has given a large account, (fn. 49) how far this work advanced year by year; what methods and rules of architecture were observed, and other particulars relating to the rebuilding of this church; all which the curious reader may consult at his leisure; it will be sufficient to observe here, that the new building was larger in height and length, and more beautiful in every respect, than the choir of Conrad; for the roof was considerably advanced above what it was before, and was arched over with stone; whereas before it was composed of timber and boards. The capitals of the pillars were now beautified with different sculptures of carvework; whereas, they were before plain, and six pillars more were added than there were before. The former choir had but one triforium, or inner gallery, but now there were two made round it, and one in each side isle and three in the cross isles; before, there were no marble pillars, but such were now added to it in abundance. In forwarding this great work, the monks had spent eight years, when they could proceed no further for want of money; but a fresh supply coming in from the offerings at St. Thomas's tomb, so much more than was necessary for perfecting the repair they were engaged in, as encouraged them to set about a more grand design, which was to pull down the eastern extremity of the church, with the small chapel of the Holy Trinity adjoining to it, and to erect upon a stately undercroft, a most magnificent one instead of it, equally lofty with the roof of the church, and making a part of it, which the former one did not, except by a door into it; but this new chapel, which was dedicated likewise to the Holy Trinity, was not finished till some time after the rest of the church; at the east end of this chapel another handsome one, though small, was afterwards erected at the extremity of the whole building, since called Becket's crown, on purpose for an altar and the reception of some part of his relics; (fn. 50) further mention of which will be made hereafter.
The eastern parts of this church, as Mr. Gostling observes, have the appearance of much greater antiquity than what is generally allowed to them; and indeed if we examine the outside walls and the cross wings on each side of the choir, it will appear, that the whole of them was not rebuilt at the time the choir was, and that great part of them was suffered to remain, though altered, added to, and adapted as far as could be, to the new building erected at that time; the traces of several circular windows and other openings, which were then stopped up, removed, or altered, still appearing on the walls both of the isles and the cross wings, through the white-wash with which they are covered; and on the south side of the south isle, the vaulting of the roof as well as the triforium, which could not be contrived so as to be adjusted to the places of the upper windows, plainly shew it. To which may be added, that the base or foot of one of the westernmost large pillars of the choir on the north side, is strengthened with a strong iron band round it, by which it should seem to have been one of those pillars which had been weakened by the fire, but was judged of sufficient firmness, with this precaution, to remain for the use of the new fabric.
The outside of this part of the church is a corroborating proof of what has been mentioned above, as well in the method, as in the ornaments of the building.— The outside of it towards the south, from St. Michael's chapel eastward, is adorned with a range of small pillars, about six inches diameter, and about three feet high, some with santastic shasts and capitals, others with plain ones; these support little arches, which intersect each other; and this chain or girdle of pillars is continued round the small tower, the eastern cross isle and the chapel of St. Anselm, to the buildings added in honour of the Holy Trinity, and St. Thomas Becket, where they leave off. The casing of St. Michael's chapel has none of them, but the chapel of the Virgin Mary, answering to it on the north side of the church, not being fitted to the wall, shews some of them behind it; which seems as if they had been continued before, quite round the eastern parts of the church.
These pillars, which rise from about the level of the pavement, within the walls above them, are remarkably plain and bare of ornaments; but the tower above mentioned and its opposite, as soon as they rise clear of the building, are enriched with stories of this colonade, one above another, up to the platform from whence their spires rise; and the remains of the two larger towers eastward, called St. Anselm's, and that answering to it on the north side of the church, called St. Andrew's are decorated much after the same manner, as high as they remain at present.
At the time of the before-mentioned fire, which so fatally destroyed the upper part of this church, the undercrost, with the vaulting over it, seems to have remained entire, and unhurt by it.
The vaulting of the undercrost, on which the floor of the choir and eastern parts of the church is raised, is supported by pillars, whose capitals are as various and fantastical as those of the smaller ones described before, and so are their shafts, some being round, others canted, twisted, or carved, so that hardly any two of them are alike, except such as are quite plain.
These, I suppose, may be concluded to be of the same age, and if buildings in the same stile may be conjectured to be so from thence, the antiquity of this part of the church may be judged, though historians have left us in the dark in relation to it.
In Leland's Collectanea, there is an account and description of a vault under the chancel of the antient church of St. Peter, in Oxford, called Grymbald's crypt, being allowed by all, to have been built by him; (fn. 51) Grymbald was one of those great and accomplished men, whom king Alfred invited into England about the year 885, to assist him in restoring Christianity, learning and the liberal arts. (fn. 52) Those who compare the vaults or undercrost of the church of Canterbury, with the description and prints given of Grymbald's crypt, (fn. 53) will easily perceive, that two buildings could hardly have been erected more strongly resembling each other, except that this at Canterbury is larger, and more pro fusely decorated with variety of fancied ornaments, the shafts of several of the pillars here being twisted, or otherwise varied, and many of the captials exactly in the same grotesque taste as those in Grymbald's crypt. (fn. 54) Hence it may be supposed, that those whom archbishop Lanfranc employed as architects and designers of his building at Canterbury, took their model of it, at least of this part of it, from that crypt, and this undercrost now remaining is the same, as was originally built by him, as far eastward, as to that part which begins under the chapel of the Holy Trinity, where it appears to be of a later date, erected at the same time as the chapel. The part built by Lanfranc continues at this time as firm and entire, as it was at the very building of it, though upwards of seven hundred years old. (fn. 55)
But to return to the new building; though the church was not compleatly finished till the end of the year 1184, yet it was so far advanced towards it, that, in 1180, on April 19, being Easter eve, (fn. 56) the archbishop, prior and monks entered the new choir, with a solemn procession, singing Te Deum, for their happy return to it. Three days before which they had privately, by night, carried the bodies of St. Dunstan and St. Alphage to the places prepared for them near the high altar. The body likewise of queen Edive (which after the fire had been removed from the north cross isle, where it lay before, under a stately gilded shrine) to the altar of the great cross, was taken up, carried into the vestry, and thence to the altar of St. Martin, where it was placed under the coffin of archbishop Livinge. In the month of July following the altar of the Holy Trinity was demolished, and the bodies of those archbishops, which had been laid in that part of the church, were removed to other places. Odo's body was laid under St. Dunstan's and Wilfrid's under St. Alphage's; Lanfranc's was deposited nigh the altar of St. Martin, and Theobald's at that of the blessed Virgin, in the nave of the church, (fn. 57) under a marble tomb; and soon afterwards the two archbishops, on the right and left hand of archbishop Becket in the undercrost, were taken up and placed under the altar of St. Mary there. (fn. 58)
After a warning so terrible, as had lately been given, it seemed most necessary to provide against the danger of fire for the time to come; the flames, which had so lately destroyed a considerable part of the church and monastery, were caused by some small houses, which had taken fire at a small distance from the church.— There still remained some other houses near it, which belonged to the abbot and convent of St. Augustine; for these the monks of Christ-church created, by an exchange, which could not be effected till the king interposed, and by his royal authority, in a manner, compelled the abbot and convent to a composition for this purpose, which was dated in the year 1177, that was three years after the late fire of this church. (fn. 59)
These houses were immediately pulled down, and it proved a providential and an effectual means of preserving the church from the like calamity; for in the year 1180, on May 22, this new choir, being not then compleated, though it had been used the month be fore, as has been already mentioned, there happened a fire in the city, which burnt down many houses, and the flames bent their course towards the church, which was again in great danger; but the houses near it being taken away, the fire was stopped, and the church escaped being burnt again. (fn. 60)
Although there is no mention of a new dedication of the church at this time, yet the change made in the name of it has been thought by some to imply a formal solemnity of this kind, as it appears to have been from henceforth usually called the church of St. Thomas the Martyr, and to have continued so for above 350 years afterwards.
New names to churches, it is true. have been usually attended by formal consecrations of them; and had there been any such solemnity here, undoubtedly the same would not have passed by unnoticed by every historian, the circumstance of it must have been notorious, and the magnificence equal at least to the other dedications of this church, which have been constantly mentioned by them; but here was no need of any such ceremony, for although the general voice then burst forth to honour this church with the name of St. Thomas, the universal object of praise and adoration, then stiled the glorious martyr, yet it reached no further, for the name it had received at the former dedication, notwithstanding this common appellation of it, still remained in reality, and it still retained invariably in all records and writings, the name of Christ church only, as appears by many such remaining among the archives of the dean and chapter; and though on the seal of this church, which was changed about this time; the counter side of it had a representation of Becket's martyrdom, yet on the front of it was continued that of the church, and round it an inscription with the former name of Christ church; which seal remained in force till the dissolution of the priory.
It may not be improper to mention here some transactions, worthy of observation, relating to this favorite saint, which passed from the time of his being murdered, to that of his translation to the splendid shrine prepared for his relics.
Archbishop Thomas Becket was barbarously murdered in this church on Dec. 29, 1170, being the 16th year of king Henry II. and his body was privately buried towards the east end of the undercrost. The monks tell us, that about the Easter following, miracles began to be wrought by him, first at his tomb, then in the undercrost, and in every part of the whole fabric of the church; afterwards throughout England, and lastly, throughout the rest of the world. (fn. 61) The same of these miracles procured him the honour of a formal canonization from pope Alexander III. whose bull for that purpose is dated March 13, in the year 1172. (fn. 62) This declaration of the pope was soon known in all places, and the reports of his miracles were every where sounded abroad. (fn. 63)
Hereupon crowds of zealots, led on by a phrenzy of devotion, hastened to kneel at his tomb. In 1177, Philip, earl of Flanders, came hither for that purpose, when king Henry met and had a conference with him at Canterbury. (fn. 64) In June 1178, king Henry returning from Normandy, visited the sepulchre of this new saint; and in July following, William, archbishop of Rhemes, came from France, with a large retinue, to perform his vows to St. Thomas of Canterbury, where the king met him and received him honourably. In the year 1179, Lewis, king of France, came into England; before which neither he nor any of his predecessors had ever set foot in this kingdom. (fn. 65) He landed at Dover, where king Henry waited his arrival, and on August 23, the two kings came to Canterbury, with a great train of nobility of both nations, and were received with due honour and great joy, by the archbishop, with his com-provincial bishops, and the prior and the whole convent. (fn. 66)
King Lewis came in the manner and habit of a pilgrim, and was conducted to the tomb of St. Thomas by a solemn procession; he there offered his cup of gold and a royal precious stone, (fn. 67) and gave the convent a yearly rent for ever, of a hundred muids of wine, to be paid by himself and his successors; which grant was confirmed by his royal charter, under his seal, and delivered next day to the convent; (fn. 68) after he had staid here two, (fn. 69) or as others say, three days, (fn. 70) during which the oblations of gold and silver made were so great, that the relation of them almost exceeded credibility. (fn. 71) In 1181, king Henry, in his return from Normandy, again paid his devotions at this tomb. These visits were the early fruits of the adoration of the new sainted martyr, and these royal examples of kings and great persons were followed by multitudes, who crowded to present with full hands their oblations at his tomb.— Hence the convent was enabled to carry forward the building of the new choir, and they applied all this vast income to the fabric of the church, as the present case instantly required, for which they had the leave and consent of the archbishop, confirmed by the bulls of several succeeding popes. (fn. 72)
¶From the liberal oblations of these royal and noble personages at the tomb of St. Thomas, the expences of rebuilding the choir appear to have been in a great measure supplied, nor did their devotion and offerings to the new saint, after it was compleated, any ways abate, but, on the contrary, they daily increased; for in the year 1184, Philip, archbishop of Cologne, and Philip, earl of Flanders, came together to pay their vows at this tomb, and were met here by king Henry, who gave them an invitation to London. (fn. 73) In 1194, John, archbishop of Lions; in the year afterwards, John, archbishop of York; and in the year 1199, king John, performed their devotions at the foot of this tomb. (fn. 74) King Richard I. likewise, on his release from captivity in Germany, landing on the 30th of March at Sandwich, proceeded from thence, as an humble stranger on foot, towards Canterbury, to return his grateful thanks to God and St. Thomas for his release. (fn. 75) All these by name, with many nobles and multitudes of others, of all sorts and descriptions, visited the saint with humble adoration and rich oblations, whilst his body lay in the undercrost. In the mean time the chapel and altar at the upper part of the east end of the church, which had been formerly consecrated to the Holy Trinity, were demolished, and again prepared with great splendor, for the reception of this saint, who being now placed there, implanted his name not only on the chapel and altar, but on the whole church, which was from thenceforth known only by that of the church of St. Thomas the martyr.
On July 7, anno 1220, the remains of St. Thomas were translated from his tomb to his new shrine, with the greatest solemnity and rejoicings. Pandulph, the pope's legate, the archbishops of Canterbury and Rheims, and many bishops and abbots, carried the coffin on their shoulders, and placed it on the new shrine, and the king graced these solemnities with his royal presence. (fn. 76) The archbishop of Canterbury provided forage along all the road, between London and Canterbury, for the horses of all such as should come to them, and he caused several pipes and conduits to run with wine in different parts of the city. This, with the other expences arising during the time, was so great, that he left a debt on the see, which archbishop Boniface, his fourth successor in it, was hardly enabled to discharge.
¶The saint being now placed in his new repository, became the vain object of adoration to the deluded people, and afterwards numbers of licences were granted to strangers by the king, to visit this shrine. (fn. 77) The titles of glorious, of saint and martyr, were among those given to him; (fn. 78) such veneration had all people for his relics, that the religious of several cathedral churches and monasteries, used all their endeavours to obtain some of them, and thought themselves happy and rich in the possession of the smallest portion of them. (fn. 79) Besides this, there were erected and dedicated to his honour, many churches, chapels, altars and hospitals in different places, both in this kingdom and abroad. (fn. 80) Thus this saint, even whilst he lay in his obscure tomb in the undercroft, brought such large and constant supplies of money, as enabled the monks to finish this beautiful choir, and the eastern parts of the church; and when he was translated to the most exalted and honourable place in it, a still larger abundance of gain filled their coffers, which continued as a plentiful supply to them, from year to year, to the time of the reformation, and the final abolition of the priory itself.
Heraldic window in honour of the great humanist and neo-Latin poet George Buchanan (died 1582) in:-
Greyfriars Kirk, today Greyfriars Tolbooth & Highland Kirk,
(Scout/Explore no. 349 on 5th November 2006)
George Buchanan (humanist)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
George Buchanan, BA, MA (February, 1506 - September 28, 1582) was a Scottish historian and humanist scholar.
Contents
* 1 Biography
* 2 Works
* 3 Modern Publications and Influence
* 4 References
[edit] Biography
His father, a younger son of an old family, owned the farm of Moss, in the parish of Killearn, Stirling, but he died young, leaving his widow and children in poverty. George's mother, Agnes Heriot, was of the family of the Heriots of Trabroun, East Lothian, of which George Heriot, founder of Heriot's Hospital, was also a member. Buchanan is said to have attended Killearn school, but not much is known of his early education. In 1520 he was sent by his uncle, James Heriot, to the University of Paris, where, according to him, he devoted himself to the writing of verses "partly by liking, partly by compulsion (that being then the one task prescribed to youth)."
In 1522 his uncle died, and Buchanan was unable to continue longer in Paris; he returned to Scotland. After recovering from a severe illness, he joined the French auxiliaries who had been brought over by John Stewart, Duke of Albany, and took part in an unsuccessful foray into England. In the following year he entered the University of St Andrews, where he graduated B.A. in 1525. He had gone there chiefly for the purpose of attending the celebrated John Mair's lectures on logic; and when that teacher moved to Paris, Buchanan followed him in 1526. In 1527 he graduated B.A., and in 1528 M.A. at Paris. Next year he was appointed regent, or professor, in the College of Sainte-Barbe, and taught there for over three years. In 1529 he was elected "Procurator of the German Nation" in the University of Paris, and was re-elected four times in four successive months. He resigned his regentship in 1531, and in 1532 became tutor to Gilbert Kennedy, 3rd Earl of Cassilis, with whom he returned to Scotland early in 1537.
At this period Buchanan assumed the same attitude toward the Roman Catholic Church that Erasmus maintained. He did not repudiate its doctrines, but considered himself free to criticise its practice. Though he listened with interest to the arguments of the Reformers, he did not join their ranks until 1553. His first production in Scotland, when he was in Lord Cassilis's household in the west country, was the poem Somnium, a satirical attack on the Franciscan friars and monastic life generally. This assault on the monks was not displeasing to James V, who engaged Buchanan as tutor to one of his natural sons, Lord James Stewart (not the son who was afterwards regent), and encouraged him in a more daring effort.
The poems Palinodia and Franciscanus et Fratres, although they remained unpublished for many years, made the author the object of bitter hatred to the Franciscan order, and put his safety in jeopardy. In 1539 there was bitter persecution of the Lutherans, and Buchanan among others was arrested. He managed to effect his escape and with considerable difficulty made his way to London and thence to Paris. In Paris, however, he found his enemy, Cardinal David Beaton, who was there as ambassador, and on the invitation of André de Gouvéa, proceeded to Bordeaux. Gouvéa was then principal of the newly founded College of Guienne at Bordeaux, and by his influence Buchanan was appointed professor of Latin. During his residence here, several of his best works, the translations of Medea and Alcestis, and the two dramas, Jephthes (sive Votum) and Baptistes (sive Calumnia), were completed.
Michel de Montaigne was Buchanan's pupil at Bordeaux and acted in his tragedies. In the essay Of Presumption he classes Buchanan with Aurat, Theodore Beza, Michel de l'Hôpital, Montdore and Turnebus, as one of the foremost Latin poets of his time. Here also Buchanan formed a lasting friendship with Julius Caesar Scaliger; in later life he won the admiration of Joseph Scaliger, who wrote an epigram on Buchanan which contains the couplet, famous in its day: "Imperii fuerat Romani Scotia limes; Romani eloquii Scotia limes erit?"
In 1542 or 1543 he returned to Paris, and in 1544 was appointed regent in the college of Cardinal le Moine. Among his colleagues were the renowned Muretus and Adrianus Turnebus.
In 1547 Buchanan joined the band of French and Portuguese humanists who had been invited by Gouvéa to lecture in the Portuguese University of Coimbra. The French mathematician Elie Vinet, and the Portuguese historian, Jeronimo de Osorio, were among his colleagues; Gouvéa, called by Montaigne le plus grand principal de France, was rector of the university, which had reached the summit of its prosperity under the patronage of King John III. But the rectorship had been coveted by Diogo de Gouvéa, uncle of André and formerly head of Sainte-Barbe. It is probable that before André's death at the end of 1547 Diogo had urged the Inquisition to attack him and his staff; up to 1906, when the records of the trial were first published in full, Buchanan's biographers generally attributed the attack to the influence of Cardinal Beaton, the Franciscans, or the Jesuits, and the whole history of Buchanan's residence in Portugal was extremely obscure.
A commission of inquiry was appointed in October 1549 and reported in June 1550. Buchanan and two Portuguese, Diogo de Teive and Joao da Costa (who had succeeded to the rectorship), were committed for trial. Teive and Costa were found guilty of various offences against public order, and the evidence shows that there was ample reason for a judicial inquiry. Buchanan was accused of Lutheran and Judaistic practices. He defended himself with conspicuous ability, courage and frankness, admitting that some of the charges were true. About June 1551 he was sentenced to abjure his errors, and to be imprisoned in the monastery of São Bento in Lisbon. Here he was compelled to listen to edifying discourses from the monks, whom he found "not unkind but ignorant." In his leisure he began to translate the Psalms into Latin verse. After seven months he was released, on condition that he remained in Lisbon; and on February 28, 1552 this restriction was lifted. Buchanan at once sailed for England, but soon made his way to Paris, where in 1553 he was appointed regent in the College of Boncourt. He remained in that post for two years, and then accepted the office of tutor to the son of the Maréchal de Brissac. It was almost certainly during this last stay in France, where Protestantism was being repressed with great severity by King Francis I, that Buchanan took the side of Calvinism.
In 1560 or 1561 he returned to Scotland, and by April 1562 was installed as tutor to the young Queen Mary I of Scotland, who read Livy with him daily. Buchanan now openly joined the Protestant, or Reformed Church, and in 1566 was appointed by the earl of Murray principal of St Leonard's College, St Andrews. Two years before he had received from the queen the valuable gift of the revenues of Crossraguel Abbey. He was thus in good circumstances, and his fame was steadily increasing. So great, indeed, was his reputation for learning and administrative capacity that, though a layman, he was made Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1567. He had sat in the assemblies from 1563. He was the last lay person to be elected Moderator until Alison Elliot in 2004, the first female Moderator.
Buchanan accompanied the regent Murray into England, and his Detectio (published in 1572) was produced to the commissioners at Westminster. In 1570, after the assassination of Murray, he was appointed one of the preceptors of the young king, and it was through his tuition that James VI acquired his scholarship. While discharging the functions of royal tutor he also held other important offices. He was for a short time director of chancery, and then became Keeper of the Privy Seal of Scotland, a post which entitled him to a seat in the parliament. He appears to have continued in this office for some years, at least till 1579.
His last years had been occupied with completion and publication of two of his most important works, De Jure Regni apud Scales (1579) and Rerum Scoticarum Historia (1582). He died in Edinburgh in 1582 and is buried in Greyfriars Kirkyard (rather ironically, considering that his old foes had been the greyfriars).
[edit] Works
For mastery of the Latin language, Buchanan has seldom been surpassed by any modern writer. His style is not rigidly modelled on that of any classical author, but has a freshness and elasticity of its own. He wrote Latin as if it were his mother tongue. Buchanan also had a rich vein of poetical feeling, and much originality of thought. His translations of the Psalms and of the Greek plays are more than mere versions; his two tragedies, Baptistes and Jephthes, enjoyed a European reputation for academic excellence.
In addition to these works, Buchanan wrote in prose Chamaeleon, a satire in Scots against Maitland of Lethington, first printed in 1711; a Latin translation of Linacre's Grammar (Paris, 1533); Libellus de Prosodia (Edinburgh, 1640); and Vita ab ipso scripta biennio ante mortem (1608), edited by R. Sibbald (1702). His other poems are Fratres Fraterrimi, Elegiae, Silvae, two sets of verses entitled Hendecasyllabon Liber and Iambon Liber; three books of Epigrammata; a book of miscellaneous verse; De Sphaera (in five books), suggested by the poem of Joannes de Sacrobosco, and intended as a defence of the Ptolemaic theory against the new Copernican view.
There are two early editions of Buchanan's works: (a) Georgii Buchanani Scoti, Poetarum sui seculi facile principis, Opera Omnsa, in two vols. fol. edited by Thomas Ruddiman (Edinburgh, Freebairn, folio, 1715): (b) edited by Burman, quarto 1725. The Vernacular Writings.
The first of his important late works was the treatise De Jure Regni apud Scales, published in 1579. In this famous work, composed in the form of a dialogue, and evidently intended to instil sound political principles into the mind of his pupil, Buchanan lays down the doctrine that the source of all political power is the people, that the king is bound by those conditions under which the supreme power was first committed to his hands, and that it is lawful to resist, even to punish, tyrants. The importance of the work is proved by the persistent efforts of the legislature to suppress it during the century following its publication. It was condemned by act of parliament in 1584, and again in 1664; and in 1683 it was burned by the University of Oxford.
The second of his larger works is the history of Scotland, Rerum Scoticarum Historia, completed shortly before his death (1579), and published in 1582. It is of great value for the period personally known to the author, which occupies the greater portion of the book. The earlier part is based, to a considerable extent, on the legendary history of Boece. Buchanan's purpose was to "purge" the national history "of sum Inglis lyis and Scottis vanite" (Letter to Randolph). He said that it would "content few and displease many".
[edit] Modern Publications and Influence
Polygon Books have published the poet Robert Crawford's selection of Buchanan's verse in Apollos of the North: Selected Poems of George Buchanan and Arthur Johnston (ISBN 1904598811) in 2006, the 500th anniversary of Buchanan's birth.
In the lead-up to the anniversary Professor Roger Mason of the University of St Andrews has published A Dialogue on the Law of Kingship among the Scots, a critical edition and translation of George Buchanan's 'De Iure Regni apud Scotos Dialogus (ISBN 1859284086).
The Stirling Smith Museum and Art Gallery is hosting an exhibition and event programme over winter 2006-7 to commemorate the anniversary, including performances of musical settings of Buchanan's psalms, due to be published in 2007.
Jheronimus Bosch (Joen van Aken) 1450-1516. Hertogenbosch.
Le Chariot de Foin.The Hay Cart. Escorial
Hertogenbosch Jheronimus Bosch Art Center
Le Chariot de Foin : Au centre l'humanité habitée par le Mal se dirige vers les Enfers du volet de gauche. L'amour physique, la poésie et la musique qui voyagent tout en haut n'échapperont pas au sort commun qui concerne aussi les Papes, les Empereurs et les Rois. Tout comme la foule avide et violente des hommes ordinaires, qui cherchent à arracher au passage quelques bribes de paille.
La signification des personnages tout en bas du tableau est plus énigmatique. Ils semblent échapper à la folie des hommes. Mais est ce bien certain ?
L'Enfer du volet de droite voit des diables édifier une tour de grande hauteur tout à fait semblable à nos buildings géants contemporains. Ces tours, parodie de la Tour de Babel, s'effondreront dans le feu comme rappelé en arrière plan du tableau. N'est ce pas ?
Le Chariot de Foin arrive du volet de gauche qui représente la chute des Anges Rebelles, la création d'Eve, le Péché Originel, et l'Expulsion du Paradis. Rappel d'un fait certain : le Mal existe dès la création de l'Univers.
The Hay Cart: In the center of humanity inhabited by Evil goes to the hells of the left pane. The physical love, the poetry and the music which travel at the top will not escape the common destiny which also concerns the Popes, the Emperors and the Kings. Just like the greedy and violent crowd of ordinary men, who try to snatch a few pieces of straw in the process.
The meaning of the characters at the bottom of the painting is more enigmatic. They seem to escape the madness of men. But is this certain?
The Hell of the right wing sees devils build a tower of great height quite similar to our contemporary giant buildings. These turns, parody of the Tower of Babel, will collapse in the fire as recalled in the background of the painting. Is not it ?
The Hay Cart comes from the left wing, which represents the fall of the Rebel Angels, the creation of Eve, the Original Sin, and the Expulsion from Paradise. Reminder of a certain fact: Evil exists from the creation of the Universe.
++++ from Wikipedia ++++++
Montmajour Abbey, formally the Abbey of St. Peter in Montmajour (French: Abbaye Saint-Pierre de Montmajour), was a fortified Benedictine monastery built between the 10th and 18th centuries on what was originally an island five kilometers north of Arles, in what is now the Bouches-du-Rhône Department, in the region of Provence in the south of France.
The abbey complex consists of six sections:
the hermitage, dating from the 11th century, which includes the Chapel of St. Peter;
the cloister, built during the 12th and 13th centuries;
the adjacent Chapel of the Holy Cross, built during the 12th century;
the fortified Monastery of St. Peter, built during the 14th century;
the Tower of Abbot Pons de l'Orme, dating from the same period;
the Maurist monastery, built in the 17th century.
The abbey is noted for its 11th–14th-century graves, carved in the rock, its subterranean crypt, and its massive unfinished church. It was an important pilgrimage site during the Middle Ages, and in the 18th century it was the site of a large Maurist monastery, now in ruin. The abbey and the landscape around it were frequently painted and drawn by Vincent van Gogh.
Today the ruins of the abbey are cared for as a historic monument by the Centre des monuments nationaux.
Early history and legends of Montmajour
Until the late Middle Ages, Montmajour was an island, 43 meters above the surrounding terrain, protected by marshes and accessible only by boat. As early as the 3rd millennium BC the island was used as a cemetery, with individual graves carved into the rock. In the 9th and 10th centuries the island also served as a sanctuary for the local residents during invasions of the Saracens and the Normans.[1] During the Middle Ages, several legends arose about Montmajour and its founding. One legend said that the island had been the sanctuary of St. Trophimus, who had been sent from Rome by St. Peter to convert the Gauls. After coming to Arles in 46 AD, he took shelter in one of the caves on the island and received disciples there. A rock cell under the church is called "The Confessional of St. Trophimus." Until 943 the island belonged to the Church of St. Trophime in Arles.
Another legend said that the graves were those of soldiers of Charlemagne, who had fought against the Saracens. A third legend said that the first church was founded by King Childebert I, the son of Clovis, when he saw the fervor of a group of hermits on the island.
Chronology
949 - A Frankish noblewoman, Teucinde of Arles, acquires the island from the Archbishop of Arles, and leaves it in her will to a group of hermits already residing on the island, with instructions to create a monastery following the Rule of St. Benedict.
963 - Pope Leo VIII puts the monastery under his direct patronage and raises it to the status of an abbey.
11th century - The first Abbey Church of Mary, Mother of the Lord (French: Marie la mère du seigneur) is built between 1030-69. The Chapel of St. Peter is excavated into the rock on the south side of the hill, near the cemetery. The crypt of the church is consecrated by Pons de Marignane, Archbishop of Arles, on 3 May, most likely in 1019, at the insistence of Rambert, the 7th Abbot of Montmajour. The abbey church becomes the resting place of the Counts of Provence.
1030 - The abbey acquires what is believed to be a fragment of the True Cross obtained from a larger piece which had been venerated in Arles since the 4th century. The Chapel of St. Benedict is dedicated to the relic, and the abbey thereby becomes a major pilgrimage site. It was dedicated in that year by the Archbishop of Arles, who proclaimed the "Pardon of Montmajor" for all those seeking absolution from their sins who went to that remote location on May 3, the obsolete feast day of the Finding of the True Cross known as "Roodmas", and who left a donation for the completion of the abbey church. By the 12th century the shrine has become so popular with pilgrims that the abbey has to build a separate church for the relic, the Chapel of the Holy Cross, located outside the abbey walls.
12th century - The second abbey church is built, possibly on the site of the previous one. The abbey is at the peak of its influence and wealth. It possesses vineyards, cornfields, olive groves, waterways, mills, fisheries and forests, and had dependent priories and land all over Provence, and as far away as Fréjus, Sisteron and Grenoble. The rulers of Provence give the abbey land, castles, and even entire towns, such as Pertuis.
Construction of the Abbey Church of Our Lady is begun, but because of a shortage of money, only the first two bays are completed.
13th century - The abbey has 60 resident monks, a large number for the period. By then it is the motherhouse of a network of 56 priories, subject to the Abbot of Montmajour.
1348 - The Black Plague reduces by half the population of Provence.
1357 - The Free Company, armies of French soldiers left unpaid after the defeat of France by the English army at Poitiers during the Hundred Years War, ravage the countryside. It is pillaged again by marauders in 1357, and by the soldiers of Raimond de Turenne of Les Baux, who wage war against Arles from 1386 to 1398. The Abbot of Montmajour, Pons de L'Orme, then fortifies the monastery with a massive tower. Starvation and destruction become widespread in Provence.
1593 - During the Wars of Religion, the abbey is occupied by soldiers of the Catholic League, and the monks are forced to move to Arles for two years. When they return, they find the monastery ruined.
1639 - Against the wishes of the majority of monks, the abbey is given to a new Benedictine congregation, the Maurists, a Benedictine reform based at the Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés in Paris. Despite the hostility of the "old" monks, and of the commendatory abbot, Charles Bichi, whose family had purchased his title from the king and who does not reside at the abbey and refuses to pay for its upkeep, the Maurists begin a program of restoration and construction.
Though the Maurists monks number only 30, their construction program is grandiose - they begin a classical building designed to have 25 bays along its north and south facades. Sixteen bays are completed by the time of the French Revolution.
1786 - The titular abbot, Cardinal Louis de Rohan, refuses to pay anything further for the upkeep of the abbey, and it was officially secularized.[clarification needed]
1789 - At the time of the French Revolution, only nine monks remain at Montmajour.
1791-1793 - The monastery is sold for 62,000 livres to Elizabeth Roux-Châtelard, who strips the Maurist building and leaves it in ruins. The property is then divided and resold to twenty different owners. The medieval part is used for a sheep farm and haylofts.
1797 - The painter Jacques Réattu buys the Pons de l'Orme tower, saving it from destruction.
1822 - The city of Arles buys the Chapel of the Holy Cross from a fisherman, and preserves it.
1840 - The writer Prosper Mérimée, Inspector of Ancient Monuments for the French government, puts the abbey on the first list of French historical monuments which should be preserved. Restoration begins on some of the buildings in 1862, and continues for decades.
1859 - The last of the Romanesque and Gothic properties are purchased by the state. The Maurist building is not purchased until 1921.
1944 - A major fire breaks out inside the abbey church, which is being used by the German Army as an arms depot.
St. Peter's Chapel (11th century)
Nave of St. Peter's Chapel (11th century)
St. Peter's Chapel is the oldest existing part of the abbey, probably built between 1030 and 1050.[2] It consists of a narthex and two parallel naves, the older one cut into the rock on the south side of the hill, and an arcade of rounded Romanesque arches resting on columns, creating openings to the rock cemetery. The columns are older than the church, and probably come from Roman buildings in Arles; but the capitals of the columns are carved with Romanesque floral designs. The southern nave is complete with a choir and a semi-circular apse.
Inside the church a passage leads to what appears to be a natural cave, with a small window, which according to tradition was the home of St. Trophimus and the first monks to live on the island.
The chapel was severely vandalized in 1976, with restoration due by 2012.
Rock Cemetery (11th-14th century)
The rocky slope near St. Peter's Chapel has more than a dozen tombs cut into the rock in the shape of human bodies, with places for the head, shoulders and feet. The more recent tombs (14th century) were rectangular, and were probably covered with stone slabs. Most of the tombs are oriented with the feet toward the east, the direction of the sunrise and the Resurrection.
Chapel of the Holy Cross (12th century)
Chapel of the Holy Cross
The Chapel of the Holy Cross (French: Chapelle de Sainte-Croix) was built to contain the most valuable relic of the abbey, a piece of the True Cross. It is located a few hundred meters from the abbey church, outside the monastery walls, to provide the monks with greater separation from the crowds of pilrims.
It was dedicated on 20 April and is in the shape of a cross, with a vestibule on the north side, and four semicircular apses with semicircular domes around a square bay with a cloister vault. The vault is crowned by a perfect stone square, topped by triangular pediments and a small tower. The cornices and pediments are decorated with dentils. The building, with its dignity, simplicity, symmetry and perfect craftsmanship, is considered a masterpiece of Romanesque architecture.
Crypt of St Benedict (12th century)
Crypt of St. Benedict Rotunda (12th century)
The crypt of St Benedict is partly dug into the rock of the hill and partly built of massive stone walls, perfectly cut. It features a transept with two absidioles, or small chapels, and a passage which leads to a small rotunda which is crowned with a cupola. The rotunda is surrounded by an ambulatory a tall, narrow hemicircular corridor with a stone barrel vault. On its outer side, the ambulatory opens into five radiating chapels, each with its own window catching the eastern light, and its own small barrel-vaulted choir bay and semi-domed apse. The large number of small chapels allowed the large number of monks in the monastery to quickly celebrate the morning mass. A striking feature of the crypt is the smooth quality of the stone work- the stones are perfectly cut and fitted, and their only texture is the slight rippling caused by dressing the stone with the help of a toothed hammer.[3]
Nave and choir of the Abbey Church of Notre-Dame (12th century)
Apse of the abbatial church (12th century)
The massive church on top of the crypt has a single nave fourteen meters wide. It was designed to have five bays, but apparently because of a shortage of funds only two bays were constructed, and the west end was left unfinished.
The nave is covered with slightly pointed barrel vaults supported by projecting traverse arches resting upon cruciform piers.
The apse, at the east end of the church, is semicircular, and has the same diameter as the width of the nave. It has an imposing semi-spherical dome with five flat ribs, and three small windows, slightly offset to one side. Perhaps because of the strong mistral and tramontane winds from the north, the nave has no windows on the north side.
The church has a relatively short transept, each wing ending in a small apsidiole.
There are three doorways on the south side of the church; one leading to the rock cemetery, one to abbot's lodging (now ruined); and one to the chapter house and the spiral stairway to the bell tower.
Two new chapels were added to the north side of the nave in the 15th century. One, which served as the sacristy, contains the 18th century lavabo, or washing basin, and the other protected the charters of the Abbey.
The cloister (12th century)
View of the cloister from the watchtower
The cloister was built to the south of the church. It was meant to reinforce the walls of the first four bays of the church, but these bays were never built. It is rectangular, 27 meters long and 24 meters wide. In the center is a cistern which collected rainwater through pipes and channels from the roofs of the monastery buildings.
The north gallery is the oldest part of the cloister. The traverse arches are supported by brackets decorated with carvings of real and mythological beasts, including a tarasque. Some of the foliage-decorated columns show human heads looking through the foliage. The original sculpted capitals were repaired in the 19th century.
At the beginning of the east gallery is the tomb of the Counts of Provence, built to hold the remains of Count Raymond Berenger IV (died 1181). The only original Romaneque capitals are in this arcade, representing the Temptation of Christ by a small devil with flaming hair; on the other side is an acrobat performing splits, and an apple, the symbol of temptation.
The west gallery was extensively altered by the Maurist monks in the 18th century, but the brackets have some of the most vivid carvings, showing the Mistral wind, the moon, the sun and fire, and a mythical amphibious beast devouring a man. It also has 13th century graffiti depicting sailing ships and horses.
The south gallery is the most recent, and the carvings are the most realistic; a donkey, a monkey, a camel and an eagle are depicted on the brackets, and the columns show the Annunciation the crowning of the Virgin, and knights fighting.
The Chapter House was connected with the east gallery- here the monks gathered each morning to hear a chapter of the Rule of St. Benedict followed by a brief teaching on it by the abbot, and also discussed the management of the abbey. It is lit by a single oculus, or round window, and connected with the nave and by a stairway to the dormitory.
The Refectory, or dining room, connected with the south gallery through a Romanesque door decorated with a grotesque head of Tantalus,
The dormitory of the monks occupied the entire floor over the refectory, and was connected to it by two staircases.
The west gallery formerly connected to the cellar, bakery, bread oven, and guest rooms, which no longer exist.
The Tower of Pons de l'Orme (14th century)
The tower was built by the abbot and cardinal, Pons de l'Orme, beginning in 1369 to protect the abbey from the rampaging Free Company (see chronology.) The tower is 26 meters high, and contained a well and a storeroom for provisions, having three stories in the upper level. The top is equipped with battlements, arrow slits and machicolation, designed to drop unpleasant things on the heads of attackers. The coat of arms of the abbot, an elm tree with two angel-monks, is carved on the outside of the tower.
The Maurist monastery (18th century)
Ruins of the Maurist monastery (18th century)
The ruined Maurist Monastery was built in the classical Piranesian style on a huge scale; the building was originally five stories high, covering eight thousand square meters, with sixty windows and two grand staircases. The monks, lay brothers and novices lived on the top two floors, with their library, classrooms and archives. The building was largely demolished after the French Revolution for its building materials (see Chronology.)
Vincent van Gogh at Montmajour Abbey
The painter Vincent van Gogh, who lived in nearby Arles, frequently painted and drew the Abbey and the landscape around it. In a letter to his brother in July 1888, he said he had been at Montmajour at least fifty times "to see the view over the plain." He wrote on July 5, 1888: "Yesterday, at sunset, I was on a stony heath, where very small, twisted oaks grow, in the background a ruin on the hill, and wheat fields in the valley. it was romantic, and couldn't be more so."
A painting that van Gogh had done on July 4, 1888, Sunset at Montmajour, long considered a fake, was authenticated and placed on display in the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam in September 2013. [4]
L'abbaye Saint-Pierre de Montmajour, attesté sous la forme latinisée Monsmajoris1, est une abbaye bénédictine fondée en 9482 à environ quatre kilomètres au nord-est du centre historique d'Arles dans le département des Bouches-du-Rhône (France). Dès la fin du Xe siècle elle devient l'une des abbayes les plus riches de Provence et le monastère se développe, entre le XIe siècle et le début du XVIIIe siècle, par la construction d'une série de bâtiments religieux et militaires. Abandonné à la fin du XVIIIe siècle, puis fortement dégradé après la Révolution, cet ensemble architectural fait l’objet d’un classement au titre des monuments historiques par la liste de 18403,4, les bâtiments annexes étant classés en 1921.
Sommaire
1 Histoire
1.1 Le Moyen Âge
1.1.1 Sa création
1.1.2 Son rayonnement
1.1.3 Le début du déclin
1.2 L'Ancien Régime
1.3 Les Temps modernes
2 Description
2.1 La première église Notre-Dame
2.2 L'ermitage Saint-Pierre
2.3 Le monastère Saint-Pierre
2.3.1 L'église abbatiale Notre-Dame
2.3.1.1 La crypte Saint-Benoît
2.3.1.2 L'église haute
2.3.2 Le cloître et les autres bâtiments conventuels
2.3.3 Le Pardon de Montmajour et la chapelle Sainte-Croix
2.4 La tour Pons de l'Orme et les fortifications
2.5 Le monastère Saint-Maur
3 Abbés
3.1 Les premiers abbés
3.2 L'époque des archevêques
3.3 Après le concordat de Bologne de 1516
4 L'abbaye et les arts
5 Sources
5.1 Bibliographie
6 Voir aussi
6.1 Articles connexes
6.2 Liens externes
7 Notes et références
7.1 Notes
7.2 Références
Histoire
Le Moyen Âge
Sa création
Le cimetière des moines.
En octobre 949, Teucinde, une femme de l’aristocratie bourguignonne qui a suivi Hugues d'Arles en Provence, également sœur du prévôt du chapitre Gontard, achète l’île de MontmajourN 1 qui appartient à l'archevêque d'Arles Manassès et en fait donation aux religieux qui y vivent ; l’abbaye est fondée5,6. Teucinde confirme sa donation en 977. Dès 960, de nombreuses autres donations sont effectuées en faveur de l’abbaye à l’époque de son premier abbé Mauring et de son premier prieur Pons. Une donation particulièrement importante est celle de 961, effectuée par la comtesse Berthe, nièce d’Hugues d'Arles et épouse de Raimond, comte de Rouergue et marquis7 ; elle donne à la nouvelle communauté quelques-unes de ses res proprietatis, certaines situées à l’est du Rhône, in regno Provinciae, et d’autres à l’ouest jusqu’au comté d’Agde, in regnum Gociae8. En 963, signe de la prospérité et notoriété naissantes de cette abbaye, le pape Léon VIII place le monastère sous son autorité directe.
Son rayonnement
Enfeu des comtes de Provence.
Dès 10059, voulant être enseveli à Montmajour, Franco de Marignane, père de l'archevêque Pons de Marignane, offre à l’abbaye, après son décès, une série de biens dont une manse dans la villa de Marignane, la moitié d’une dîme de la pêcherie de Bolmon… et en 10139, il offre également à Montmajour les biens de sa femme Gala de Baux situés sur Marignane. Mais en ce XIe siècle l'abbaye devient surtout la nécropole des comtes de Provence. En 1018 a lieu l'inhumation du comte Guillaume II, en 1026, celle de la comtesse Adelaïde et en 1063, celle du comte Geoffroy. Tous les trois sont inhumés initialement dans la crypte du XIe siècle avant d'être transférés au XIIe siècle de la crypte au cloître.
Construite sur un rocher entouré de marais par des moines bénédictins, la petite abbaye Saint-Pierre étend rapidement son influence à Arles et en Provence grâce à un vaste réseau de prieurés (jusqu'à cinquante-six au XIIIe siècle) et au pèlerinage de la Sainte-Croix. Un 3 mai, probablement en 101910, le pèlerinage de Montmajour appelé Pardon de Montmajour est en effet créé ; ce pardon est institué sous l’abbé Lambert, lors de la consécration de la première église Notre-Dame, en cours de construction, par l’archevêque d’Arles Pons de Marignane qui accorde à cette occasion la première indulgence historiquement attestée. Pendant tout le Moyen Âge, l'abbaye draine tous les 3 mai de nombreux fidèles de la région, jusqu'à 150 000 pèlerins d'après Bertrand BoyssetN 2, un chroniqueur arlésien de la fin du XIVe siècle. En 1426, on compte 12 à 15 000 pèlerins venant par le Rhône jusqu'à Arles pour le pèlerinage de Montmajour11.
De plus, l’abbaye, réputée, reçoit de nombreux dons et vers 1100, 112 églises et prieurés dépendent d’elle en Provence12. Du XIe au XIVe siècles, l'abbaye entretient avec la ville d'Arles des rapports conflictuels, en particulier en ce qui concerne les limites de son territoire, les marais et les droits de pêche et de chasse. Mais paradoxalement Arles, où l'abbaye possède deux églises paroissiales, représente un marché financier et une cité où les moines trouvent leurs fournisseurs, marchands et artisans. Les Arlésiens constituent également pour le monastère un réservoir de main-d'œuvre. Au XIIIe siècle, l'abbaye de Montmajour est très riche et son abbé a le train de vie d'un grand seigneur. Toutefois à partir du XIIIe siècle, si le Pardon de Montmajour continue d'avoir du succès, l'abbaye n'attire plus les aumônes des fidèles.
Le début du déclin
En 1357 quand les Grandes compagnies ravagent la Provence, puis entre 1389 et 1399, lors du conflit avec Raymond de Turenne, les moines menacés protègent leur monastère par des ouvrages militaires : un mur d’enceinte aujourd’hui disparu et une tour encore appelée tour de Pons de l’Orme, du nom de l’abbé.
En 1405, l'abbaye perd l'indépendance de son abbatiat et se trouve rattachée à l'archevêché d'Arles. Ressurgit alors un long conflit avec son prieuré de Saint-Antoine-en-Viennois qui réussit même à s'annexer temporairement Montmajour en 1490. Les dissensions portent en particulier sur les reliques de saint Antoine disputées par les deux monastères. La querelle apaisée, l'abbaye est mise en commende et ses prieurés ne cessent de régresser. Beaucoup passent à d'autres ordres ou à des laïcs contre un cens versé à l'abbaye-mère.
L'Ancien Régime
En 1593, lors des guerres de religion, l’abbaye est occupée par les soldats de la Ligue catholique et les moines doivent se retirer pendant deux ans à Arles. À leur retour ils retrouvent une abbaye dévastée.
L'abbaye à la fin du XVIIe siècle.
Au XVIIe siècle, l'archevêque d'Arles, Jean Jaubert de Barrault y introduit la réforme bénédictine de Saint-Maur, mais il se heurte à une forte opposition des moines. Il doit faire appel en 1638 à des lettres patentes du roi l'autorisant si nécessaire à recourir à l'Intendant de Provence pour imposer le concordat de 1639. Les Mauristes prennent possession de ce monastère à la Saint-Michel 163913.
Sous la direction des nouveaux moines, des extensions sont entreprises : le lundi de Pâques 1703 l'archevêque d'Arles, François de Mailly pose la première pierre des nouveaux bâtiments conventuels de l'abbaye14. En 1726, un incendie très important nécessite des travaux de reconstruction, dirigés par l'architecte Jean-Baptiste Franque. Le dernier abbé de Montmajour est le cardinal de Rohan, connu par l'Affaire du collier de la reine15. L’abbaye est sécularisée en 1786.
Les Temps modernes
À la Révolution, l'ensemble monastique est vendu comme bien national. Les bâtiments, pour la plupart fort dégradés ou partiellement détruits, sont rachetés par la ville d’Arles en 1838. L'abbaye est classée Monument historique à partir de 184016 et les bâtiments restaurés sous le Second Empire, sous la direction d'Henri Antoine Révoil. Depuis 1945, l’abbaye est propriété d’État.
Description
L'ensemble de Montmajour est composé d'un ermitage (XIe siècle) essentiellement représenté par la chapelle Saint-Pierre, d'un couvent de type médiéval (XIIe siècle & XIIIe siècle) : le monastère Saint-Pierre, d'un donjon défensif (XIVe siècle) : la tour de l'abbé Pons de l'Orme et d'un édifice classique (début XVIIIe siècle) : le monastère Saint-Maur.
La première église Notre-Dame
Cette première église Notre-Dame aujourd'hui disparue, est édifiée, côté est, entre 1016 et 106917 peut-être à l'emplacement de l'église du XIIe siècle.
Les documents du XIe siècle évoquent des constructions nouvelles. Le moine et historien bénédictin de Montmajour, Dom Chantelou, indique, dans un texte dont l’original a été perdu et qui mentionne l’année 1016, une basilique en l’honneur de Marie la mère du seigneur18. Un autre texte conservé à la bibliothèque d’Arles institue le jour de l’Invention de la Sainte-Croix, à laquelle une crypte est consacrée. Il s’agit d’un Pardon dont les aumônes étaient destinées à la construction de l’église Notre-Dame18. Cet acte, non daté mais souscrit par l’archevêque d’Arles, Raimbaud de Reillanne(1030-1069), est postérieur à la consécration de la crypte effectuée par son prédécesseur Pons de Marignane (1003-1029), un 3 mai probablement en 1019, à la demande du septième abbé de Montmajour, l’abbé Rambert.
L’église Notre-Dame est donc en cours de construction en 101619. Elle reçoit dès 1018 le corps du comte Guillaume II qui y est inhumé dans ses fondations, ainsi qu’en 1026, le corps de la comtesse Adélaïde, la femme de son père le comte Guillaume Ier. L’acte de fondation du Pardon de Montmajour indique qu'entre 1030 et 1062, l’église Notre Dame est toujours en construction. En revanche, en 1069, date de l’acte par lequel l’archevêque d’Aix, Rostaing, renonce à des biens en faveur de Montmajour, l’église de Notre-Dame est terminée18. Cet édifice appartiendrait donc à la vague de constructions du XIe siècle, presque totalement disparues lors des reconstructions du XIIe siècle20.
L'ermitage Saint-Pierre
Montmajour, l'église Saint-Pierre (XIe siècle).
Il est constitué pour l'essentiel d'une chapelle semi-troglodyte, installée sur le flanc sud de la colline de Montmajour entre 1030 et 1050, et représente le plus ancien témoin architectural du site. Cette datation résulte de la comparaison stylistique des douze chapiteaux avec ceux du cloître de l'abbé Ardain à Tournus datés entre 1028 et 105221.
Ces chapiteaux, de style corinthien, pourraient provenir de deux ateliers, celui de Montmajour - Venasque et celui de Saint-Victor de Marseille - Vaison-la-Romaine22. Cette présence de chapiteaux corinthiens annonce la résurrection des chapiteaux corinthiens antiques au XIIe siècle en Provence22. D'une manière générale, le décor sculpté est remarquable par la persistance d'éléments stylistiques carolingiens associés à des motifs, tels les rosaces et palmettes, proches de l'art roman22.
La chapelle, précédée d'un vestibule utilisé pour des inhumations rupestres, comprend deux vaisseaux parallèles dont celui du fond, le plus ancien, est intégralement taillé dans la roche; c'est un mode de construction traditionnel en Provence calcaire où un élément bâti en appentis contre la paroi naturelle s'ajoute à la partie troglodytique de l'édifice. Même s'il est de faibles dimensions, le vaisseau méridional, couvert d'une voûte en berceau, est une véritable église avec nef, travée de chœur et abside semi-circulaire. Le mur sud présente des arcatures appareillées retombant sur des colonnes à chapiteaux encadrant, pour chaque travée, une fenêtre ouvrant sur le jardin. La menace d'écroulement de ce mur dominant la plaine a nécessité, au fil des âges notamment au XVe et XVIIIe siècles, la pose de puissants contreforts qui compliquent la vision chronologique des modifications apportées depuis le XIe siècle23. En face la liaison avec le vaisseau rupestre se fait par trois grandes arcades retombant sur de robustes piliers carrés, aux angles cantonnés d'une colonne à chapiteau décoré. Toutes les colonnes sont des remplois, souvent antiques, alors que les chapiteaux, d'origine, ont en commun d'énormes rosaces, des corbeilles végétales ou d'entrelacs torsadés, des astragales au ruban de dents-de-loup, qui évoquent le cloître de Saint-Philibert de Tournus, décoré avant 105624.
La chapelle Saint-Pierre renferme la pierre tombale du comte de Provence Geoffroy, mort en 1061 ou 106222.
Un étroit passage conduit à une sorte de grotte naturelle figurant, aux yeux de certains, les cellules des premiers ermites ; on trouve également la « chaire de Saint-Trophime » et, dans un réduit éclairé par une lucarne, son « confessionnal ».
Même si la chapelle Saint-Pierre a été vandalisée en juillet 197625, sa restauration est en voie d'achèvement fin 2012.
Le monastère Saint-Pierre
Même si leur mise en œuvre a été bien sûr échelonnée dans le temps, le cloître, comme la salle capitulaire et la section réfectoire-dortoir, fait partie avec l'abbatiale Notre-Dame du plan d'ensemble originel. En témoignent les murs communs entre ces éléments se contrebutant les uns les autres, notamment le mur séparant les deux travées de l'église du chapitre d'abord puis du début de la galerie nord, et se prolongeant tout le long de cette aile en montrant sur sa face nord les piles en attente pour les trois travées de nef projetées mais non encore réalisées et qui ne le seront jamais26.
L'église abbatiale Notre-Dame
Notre-Dame a été édifiée en deux campagnes : entre 1130-1150 puis entre 1153-1182, la crypte et la partie nord étant construites en premier27. Un texte rapporté par des historiens du XVIIe siècle28, mais dont l'original est aujourd'hui perdu, signale l'entrée des moines dans l'église en 1153. Cette date marquerait donc la fin de la première campagne. Toutefois l'église n'est pas achevée, probablement en raison de problèmes techniques liés à la déclivité du terrain ou à cause de difficultés financières29. Complété au XVe siècle par deux autres chapelles adjointes au nord, l'ensemble de l'église Notre-Dame, contemporain de la cathédrale Saint-Trophime d'Arles, est resté en bon état et a été peu affecté par les restaurations entreprises dès le XIXe siècle27.
Chevet de l'abbatiale
Abbaye de Montmajour vue côté cloître par Corroyer, Édouard (1835-1904) in l'architecture romane 1888
Cette église abbatiale placée sous le vocable de Notre-Dame a été édifiée probablement à l'emplacement de la première église sur le versant nord de la colline, la déclivité du terrain se trouvant compensée par la présence d'une crypte, véritable église inférieure23, servant de fondation à l'église haute.
La crypte Saint-Benoît
Elle a très probablement joué un rôle liturgique lié au pèlerinage de la Sainte-Croix jusqu'à la construction de la chapelle dédiée de même nom30. Adaptée à la configuration du terrain, elle est presque entièrement troglodytique du côté sud alors qu'à l'opposé elle repose sur de fortes substructions.
Cas unique en Provence, elle présente un plan concentrique avec un transept, muni de deux absidioles orientées, ouvrant sur une rotonde centrale entourée d'un déambulatoire desservant cinq chapelles rayonnantes, un des chefs-d'œuvre architecturaux de Montmajour31.
Ce déambulatoire est un couloir semi-circulaire haut et étroit dont la voûte assisée en berceau continu aspire le regard grâce à la concavité de son volume courbe à peine distrait par les corbeaux ayant servi à porter les cintres d'échafaudage31. Au centre de la nef une travée rectangulaire conduit à la rotonde, coiffée d'une coupole, et dont les épais murs sont percés de cinq baies en plein cintre ouvertes chacune dans l'axe des cinq chapelles rayonnantes, conférant à l'ensemble une transparence symbolique imprégnée de mystère31. Chacune de ces chapelles ou absidioles constitue un petit sanctuaire miniature avec son petit autel secondaire au centre d'une brève travée de chœur en berceau ouvrant sur l'abside principale voûtée en cul-de-four; elles sont logées chacune dans un saillant rectangulaire de la couronne extérieure polygonale et reçoivent les premières lueurs du jour pour éclairer leur autel grâce à une étroite fenêtre axiale31.
Dans toute cette église basse, on ne peut qu'admirer l'extrême qualité de l'appareillage, avec la finesse des layages, ses tailles pointillées ou en feuilles de fougère ; mais c'est surtout dans le transept que s'impose un art de bâtir hérité du mode de construction des grands monuments gallo-romains provençaux. Du côté sud ce transept a été creusé dans la roche dont le front de taille est resté brut sur les parois, alors qu'au nord il repose sur de massives fondations, accrochées au flanc de la colline, remarquables par la spectaculaire inégalité de largeur des quatre arcs-doubleaux supportant les voûtes. Leur épaisseur croit en effet de façon importante depuis le sud où le premier, ancré directement dans le roc, n'a qu'un mètre de large, jusqu'au quatrième, à l'extrême nord, qui atteint trois mètres quatre-vingts.
L'église haute
Caractéristique de l'architecture romane provençale à son apogée au milieu du XIIe siècle : simplicité du plan, plénitude des volumes, nudité des parements pratiquement sans décor30, puissance des murs gouttereaux doublés de profondes arcatures, élégance des voûtes en berceau légèrement brisé et renforcé de doubleaux à ressauts retombant sur des piles cruciformes à arêtes vives ; cette vaste église à nef unique de presque 14 mètres de large devait originellement comprendre cinq travées, mais, pour des raisons financières, deux seulement furent réalisées, restreignant quelque peu ses impressionnantes proportions pour un édifice roman32.
Son abside, de plan semi-circulaire, au diamètre égal à la largeur de la nef, est remarquable par sa couverture en cul-de-four magnifiquement appareillée et sous-tendue par cinq nervures très plates issues du cordon de la naissance de la voûte et s'amortissant en demi-cercle contre le bandeau de la travée du chœur32. Afin de se protéger du redoutable Mistral et de ne pas affaiblir les murs nord édifiés sur la crypte, toute la façade nord est aveugle et les trois larges baies en plein cintre ébrasées vers l'intérieur et éclairant le chœur sont disposées asymétriquement de part et d'autre de l'axe médian : deux au sud-est, l'autre au nord-est.
Illustrant une fois de plus l'influence des modèles antiques sur l'architecture romane provençale, la travée de chœur, logée entre l'abside et l'arc triomphal, comme souvent en Provence et comme dans les salles chaudes des thermes romains arlésiens, est singulièrement étroite32.
Le transept, relativement court et étroit, comporte sur chacun de ses croisillons une absidiole orientée, semi-circulaire voûtée en cul-de-four. Au sud trois portes donnaient accès au logis abbatial aujourd'hui ruiné et au cimetière rupestre, à l'escalier à vis menant au clocher, et à la salle capitulaire, seul passage encore en service. Le croisillon nord s'ouvre sur une chapelle gothique, édifiée en hors-œuvre au début du XIVe siècle, sous le vocable de Notre-Dame-la-Blanche du nom d'un groupe en marbre représentant entre autres la Vierge dont on peut encore voir quelques vestiges. Elle fut construite pour abriter la sépulture de l'abbé Bertrand de Maussang, dont les armes sont sculptées sur l'enfeu adossé au mur nord et sur la clé de voûte, ainsi que celle de sa sœur dont le tombeau est adossé au mur ouest. Dans la tombe de l'abbé furent trouvés en 1799 une crosse du XIIIe siècle dont la volute représente l'Annonciation et un ciboire de la fin du XIIe siècle signé «maître Alpais», tous deux exposés au département des Objets d'Art du Louvre à Paris. Dans le mur ouest de cette chapelle, une porte permet d'entrer dans deux chapelles en enfilade, bâties au XVe siècle sur le flanc nord de la nef par la famille arlésienne de Loys : la première ayant servi par la suite de sacristie avec un beau lavabo en pierre du XVIIIe siècle et la seconde ayant abrité le trésor des chartes de l'abbaye, malheureusement rongées par l'humidité dès le XVIIe siècle.
La croisée du transept, de plan barlong (rectangle assez allongé) à cause de la grande largeur de la nef, a été remontée au XIIIe siècle comme le prouve sa voûte d'ogives dont la clé s'orne d'un quatre-feuilles ou quadrilobe avec au centre un Christ bénisseur, et qui retombe sur deux colonnettes surmontées de chapiteaux gothiques à crochets, seuls éléments de décoration tardive de l'église avec les colonnes voisines supportant l'arc triomphal. Au sud, sa partie haute a été percée de deux larges baies éclairant largement l'emplacement jadis occupé par le maître-autel, ceci à l'époque (vers 1180) de la construction de la salle capitulaire et de la galerie nord du cloître qui a entraîné l'obturation des ouvertures primitives du flanc sud de la nef. D'ailleurs une ligne de reprise d'ouvrage, visible sur le premier pilier nord de cette nef, indique que deux campagnes successives ont été nécessaires : vers 1150 crypte, abside et croisillon nord, puis avant 1180 croisillon sud et deux travées de la nef ainsi que le mur provisoire fermant l'église à l'ouest devenu définitif par manque de moyens financiers32.
Le cloître et les autres bâtiments conventuels
Le cloître, précédé à l'est de la salle capitulaire, s'insère dans l'angle formé par le bras sud du transept et la nef. Il adopte la forme d'un rectangle de 24 mètres sur 27 et ses galeries spacieuses (4,30 mètres de large) délimitent une cour centrale abritant une citerne, accessible par un puits, recueillant l'eau de pluie collectée par l'impluvium formé par des dalles de toiture imbriquées26. Chaque galerie du cloître, voûtée en berceau, est divisée en trois travées par des arcs-doubleaux s'amortissant sur des consoles sculptées, éléments les plus authentiques subsistant de nos jours du décor roman originel. Chaque travée s'ouvre sur le patio par une large baie, encadrée, sauf au sud, de fortes piles de section rectangulaire plaquées de panneaux aux longues cannelures, et étayée par une arcature en plein cintre soulignée d'une archivolte et retombant sur des colonnettes géminées reposant sur un haut mur bahut, quadruple au nord et au sud, triple à l'est, l'aile ouest ayant quant à elle perdu cette disposition originelle au XVIIIe siècle. Le tout est doublé à l'extérieur, selon une disposition assez fréquente en Provence, d'un grand arc surbaissé bandé entre des piliers massifs encore renforcés par des contreforts externes comme on peut en voir dans les cryptoportiques du forum arlésien33.
En fonction des études stylistiques et historiques, il est possible de dater le cloître et sa construction. Le cloître est construit entre 1140 et 1290 et se trouve pratiquement terminé en 1182. La galerie nord, le début de la galerie est et la salle capitulaire auraient été terminés avant 1182. La galerie ouest suivrait de peu et précèderait l’achèvement de la galerie est. Enfin, la galerie sud serait la plus tardive et aurait été achevée au cours du XIIIe siècle34. Toutefois, le décor de ce monument reste inachevé à l’époque romane et se poursuit tout le long du XIIIe siècle35 et du XIVe siècle36. Enfin, le cloître est restauré au XIXe siècle par Henri Révoil une première fois en 1865-1866, puis en 1872-1873.
La galerie nord, la plus ancienne, a donc été édifiée lors de la deuxième campagne de construction en même temps que la nef de l'abbatiale, la salle capitulaire et la majeure partie de la galerie orientale. Sur le plan stylistique, son décor s'apparente beaucoup à celui du cloître Saint-Trophime d'Arles, avec la même ambiance antiquisante37, caractéristique du XIIe siècle arlésien. Près de la porte menant à l'abbatiale, un enfeu de style flamboyant abrite le tombeau de l'abbé Jean Hugolen (mort en 1430). Au sol on peut remarquer d'autres éléments funéraires : dalles du XIIIe siècle, pierre tombale de dom Victor Capucy (mort en 1621), infirmier de l'abbaye, dalles portant la date de décès de religieux mauristes des XVIIe et XVIIIe siècles.
La galerie orientale s'ouvre avec l'enfeu des comtes de Provence: sous un fronton à deux rampants, un arc segmentaire orné de fleurons retombe sur deux chapiteaux à tête de monstres. C'est là qu'a été déposée en 1182 la dépouille du comte de Provence Raimond-Bérenger III, mort le 5 avril 1181, rejoint par les restes de Guillaume et Adélaïde, bienfaiteurs du monastère, comme probablement ceux de Geoffroy Ier38, tous trois préalablement inhumés dans la toute première église Notre-Dame. On y trouve également les seuls chapiteaux romans épargnés par les saccages successifs, à décor végétal, comme ceux du cloître Saint-Trophime, hormis celui représentant la Tentation du Christ, en face de la porte de la salle capitulaire. La voûte de la travée la plus méridionale est traversée par un curieux arc (XIVe siècle) sans fonction porteuse, creusé d'une gouttière, et qui est en fait un petit aqueduc conduisant une partie de l'eau recueillie par l'impluvium vers une citerne extérieure au cloître près de la tour-donjon39.
La salle capitulaire, parallèle au bras sud du transept, est un long rectangle, à moitié rupestre (parois méridionale et orientale), éclairé au sud par un grand oculus, communiquant au nord avec l'abbatiale ; elle est couverte d'une voûte en berceau soutenue par trois doubleaux reposant sur des consoles sauf celui du centre s'amortissant sur un pilastre.
La galerie ouest, profondément remaniée au XVIIIe siècle afin de pouvoir supporter les deux étages prévus par la reconstruction mauriste, a néanmoins conservé son ordonnancement intérieur mais perdu sa belle façade sur cour. Les trois baies à triple arcature sur colonnettes géminées ont été remplacées par trois hautes fenêtres encadrées de massifs piliers fortifiés par des contreforts extérieurs. Heureusement la voûte et son décor roman ont été préservés, notamment les consoles évoquant les quatre éléments (Mistral pour le Vent, Lune, Soleil, Feu) mais aussi la lutte contre le Péché (bêtes féroces dont la fameuse Tarasque, évocation provençale de Jonas et la baleine). D'autre part, sur le mur du fond, des graffiti médiévaux ont été mis en évidence par Albert Illouze en 1994 : différents navires du XIIIe siècle et des chevaux40. À l'extrémité nord de cette galerie on trouve un modeste autel de pierre, seul vestige d'un espace dédié à la Vierge Marie. D'autres bâtiments conventuels et leurs annexes, adossés à cette galerie, ont disparu lors de la reconstruction mauriste afin d'aménager la liaison avec le nouveau monastère Saint-Maur.
La galerie sud, de construction plus récente, si elle conserve une structure romane, diffère des autres par ses éléments décoratifs. Les consoles arborent un bestiaire plus réaliste : âne, singe, dromadaire, aigle ; les arcs-doubleaux d'angle retombent sur des colonnes dont le fût porte une bague ; les chapiteaux décorés de feuilles de chou ou historiés sont taillés deux par deux dans un même bloc de pierre, et datent de la deuxième moitié du XIVe siècle, probablement contemporains du bâtisseur de la tour-donjon, l'abbé Pons de l'Orme, moine de l'abbaye marseillaise Saint-Victor. Les chapiteaux historiés rappellent par leurs thèmes (Annonciation, Couronnement de la Vierge, Pentecôte, Repas chez Simon le lépreux à Béthanie, combats de chevaliers) ceux des galeries gothiques du cloître Saint-Trophime39. Au-dessus de la porte de l'escalier à vis menant au dortoir, on remarque les armoiries du cardinal Pierre de Foix, archevêque d'Arles et abbé de Montmajour de 1450 à 146341.
Au centre de la galerie sud s'ouvre l'accès au réfectoire par une magnifique porte romane, remaniée au XIIIe siècle, surmontée d'une tête grotesque louchant vers la salle : Tantale, et flanquée de deux bas-reliefs romans, en pierre de Beaucaire, très mutilés, dans lesquelles certains voient le roi Salomon et la reine de Saba, d'autres les premiers bienfaiteurs du monastère, le comte Guillaume II de Provence et sa mère la comtesse Adélaïde d'Anjou42. Ce réfectoire, de plan quasi rectangulaire, servant de contrefort à la galerie méridionale, est, comme le chapitre, aménagé en partie sur le rocher complété par des murs et est éclairé par des baies en plein cintre ménagées dans la façade sud ; il communique, à son extrémité ouest, par un escalier à vis dont on peut encore aujourd'hui voir l'implantation, avec le dortoir bâti au-dessus de lui et dont il ne reste qu'un petit pan de mur sud, un autre un peu plus grand au nord et la moitié du mur ouest.
Le Pardon de Montmajour et la chapelle Sainte-Croix
Selon la tradition, un fragment de la Vraie Croix, parvenu à Arles dès le IVe siècle, serait à l’origine de la relique que possédaient les moines de Montmajour. La vénération solennelle en aurait été établie en 1030 lorsque l’archevêque d’Arles consacra à la Sainte-Croix la première crypte de l’église primitive de Montmajour, accordant l’absolution de leurs péchés aux fidèles qui viendraient en pèlerinage le 3 mai, fête de l’Invention de la Sainte-Croix, et qui laisseraient une offrande pour l’achèvement de l’édifice. Malgré les difficultés d’accès à travers les marais, le Pardon de Montmajour eut un tel succès qu’au XIIe siècle les moines, pour préserver leur sérénité, durent faire construire à l’extérieur de la clôture une chapelle-reliquaire sous le vocable de la Sainte-Croix pour cantonner la foule des fidèles à l'écart du monastère43. De plus ce pardon était une source considérable de revenus pour l’abbaye mais aussi pour la ville d’Arles qui logeait les pèlerins et organisait le même jour une foire aux moutons sur la place de la Croisière44.
Situé à peu de distance (200 m environ), à l'est de la clôture du monastère, ce petit chef-d’œuvre de l’art roman provençal se dresse isolé au cœur d’un cimetière rupestre dont les tombes orientées envahissent tout l’espace disponible jusqu’aux marches de l’escalier menant à l’entrée. Conçu sur le modèle d’un reliquaire, le petit édifice adopte un plan rayonnant en forme de quatre-feuilles ou quadrilobe symbolisant la Croix. L'ensemble du bâtiment est contrebuté de minces contreforts et entouré d'un cimetière laïc de tombes creusées dans la roche43. Son unité architecturale montre qu'il fut construit en une seule phase. À l'intérieur, précédées à l’ouest d’un vestibule formant narthex, les quatre absides semi-circulaires voûtées en cul-de-four s’articulent sur une travée carrée voûtée en arc de cloîtreN 3. À l’extérieur les quatre absidioles entourent le massif cubique dominant la croisée dont chaque côté se termine par un fronton triangulaire bordé d’une corniche elle–même soulignée par une file de denticules décorés de motifs végétaux ou géométriques en taille de réserveN 4, traités avec une rare plénitude45.
D'après les marques retrouvées sur le parement intérieur et que l'on retrouve également dans la galerie nord du cloître, la chapelle aurait été érigée au moment de la mise en place du décor de cette galerie, c'est-à-dire vers 1170-1180, à la suite de la seconde phase de construction de l'abbatiale Notre-Dame.
Au XVe siècle on a essayé d'accréditer une légende rattachant la création de cette chapelle à Charlemagne sur les tombes de chevaliers francs morts contre les Sarrasins. Un faux a même été fabriqué par Jean de Pomo : l'inscription attestant la fondation, écrite en caractères du XVe siècle, se trouve encore au linteau de la porte d'entrée de la nef46.
Chapelle Sainte-Croix
Côté sud
Plan
Coupe longitudinale
Nef en quatre-feuilles
Toiture absidiole sud
La tour Pons de l'Orme et les fortifications
Montmajour, la Tour dite de Pons de l'Orme, construite au moment des grandes compagnies (XIVe siècle).
Château-fort abbatial, dit donjon-de-l'abbé, édifié vers 1365-137047, 48. La tour et les constructions des XIVe et XVe siècles sont des édifices construits par le maître d'œuvre Guillaume Helinc à l'initiative de l'abbé cardinal Pons de l'Orme (1368-1380) à partir de l'année 1369 c'est-à-dire à l'époque où les grandes compagnies, puis les troupes de Du Guesclin ravageaient la Provence. Aujourd'hui, le mur d'enceinte de l'époque a totalement disparu.
Véritable donjon, c'est une tour appareillée en bossages, de 26 mètres de haut, sur plan barlong avec ressaut à l'ouest correspondant à l'escalier à vis desservant les différents niveaux. Les armoiries de l'abbé (un orme porté par deux moines-anges) sont sculptées sur les deux faces opposées ouest et est alors qu'un autre bas-relief à l'étage supérieur représente Saint-Pierre. À l'intérieur, le rez-de-chaussée, creusé dans le rocher et voûté d'ogives, abrite un magasin à vivres et un puits-citerne ; l'étage supérieur était originellement divisé en trois niveaux grâce à des planchers en bois ; une voûte identique porte la terrasse défendue par un crénelage à mâchicoulis (restauré en 1946), lui-même supporté par des consoles à ressaut, les angles étant renforcés par des ouvrages courbes en encorbellement percés d'archères49.
Le monastère Saint-Maur
Angle sud-est
De nouveaux lieux réguliers (réfectoire, dortoir, bibliothèque et logis pour les hôtes) sont édifiés au couchant par la congrégation de Saint-Maur à partir de 1703, sur les plans de Pierre II Mignard. Ils sont reliés aux bâtiments médiévaux au moyen d'un « grand arceau » qui enjambe hardiment l'ancienne basse-cour. Endommagés lors d'un violent incendie en 1726, ils sont immédiatement réparés puis encore amplifiés à partir de 1748. Vendus comme bien national sous la Révolution en 1791, ils sont démantelés et servent de carrière au début du XIXe siècle ; en mauvais état, les parties « sauvables » ont été restaurées en 2012.
D'esprit résolument moderne avec sa conception verticale à niveaux superposés50, cette construction témoigne d'un grand classicisme, s'imposant plus par ses proportions que par l'exubérance de sa décoration. Sa façade sud rythmée par de grandes arcades était ornée de pilastres à chapiteaux ioniques couronnés par un entablement à denticules, la toiture, charpentée, étant en tuiles canal. Sa façade nord est décorée de tables en saillie séparant les fenêtres des deux derniers niveaux. Les façades latérales comportaient deux grandes baies en plein cintre éclairant le couloir central desservant les cellules des moines.
Le monastère mauriste s'ordonne sur cinq étages, les deux premiers, sis en entresol par rapport à la grande terrasse sud et au niveau de la l'ancienne basse-cour, abritaient les communs : cellier, boulangerie, four à pain, salon pour les hôtes, et communiquaient avec les trois étages résidentiels par un petit escalier de service. De plain pied avec la terrasse sud par une galerie à voûtes d'arêtes bordée de grands arcs, le premier étage résidentiel, séparé des communs par un bandeau plat ceinturant la terrasse et la face sud du sommet du grand arceau, abritait la cuisine, le lavabo, le réfectoire et trois salons (vert, du Roi et d'hiver). Les deux étages supérieurs étaient réservés aux cellules des moines, des convers et des novices ainsi qu'aux pièces d'étude (bibliothèque, salles d'étude, archives). Une nouvelle abbatiale devait compléter le bâtiment à l'ouest mais ne fut jamais mise en chantier, et des vingt-cinq travées prévues en façade méridionale, seize furent réalisées (70 mètres de long) dont deux seulement subsistent de nos jours50.
Cet ensemble « monobloc » totalisait à l'origine une superficie de 8 000 mètres carrés cumulés sur cinq étages, avec plus de soixante fenêtres, et deux cages d'escalier monumentales, ce qui en faisait le plus vaste monastère mauriste du sud-est de la France avec l'abbaye Saint-André de Villeneuve-lès-Avignon50.
C'est au cours de cette même campagne de construction que l'ancien dortoir, situé au-dessus du réfectoire médiéval, est transformé en « infirmerie » destinée à recueillir les religieux malades ou trop âgés. Il ne reste presque rien de ces dispositions.
Arceau monumental entre les parties médiévale et mauriste
Escalier monumental
Vue d'ensemble depuis la tour
Mur de soutènement de la terrasse sud
Façade est des deux derniers étages
Façade nord
Abbés
Selon la règle de saint Benoît, l'abbé doit être élu par la communauté des moines, toutefois cela ne fut pas toujours le cas. Dans un premier temps on trouve ainsi des abbés nommés par le comte, l'archevêque ou le pape, ou encore en provenance d'autres monastères tels celui de Saint-Victor ou du Mont-Cassin. Au XVe siècle, le titre d'abbé est porté par les cardinaux-archevêques d'Arles et à partir du XVIe siècle, à la suite du concordat de Bologne de 1516, le titre abbatial est décerné par le roi.
L'abbaye et les arts
Cette section est vide, insuffisamment détaillée ou incomplète. Votre aide est la bienvenue ! Comment faire ?
Elle est en 1967 le principal lieu de tournage du film Le Lion en hiver réalisé par Anthony Harvey, adapté de la pièce éponyme créée à Broadway par James Goldman, avec Peter O'Toole, en Henri II Plantagenêt, Katharine Hepburn, en Aliénor d'Aquitaine, et deux acteurs apparaissant pour la première fois au cinéma : Anthony Hopkins, jouant Richard avant qu'il ne devienne Richard Cœur de Lion, et Timothy Dalton, dans le rôle de Philippe II Auguste. L'abbaye et ses ruines ont inspiré de nombreux artistes.
Knole (/noʊl/) is a country house and former archbishop's palace owned by the National Trust. It is situated within Knole Park, a 1,000-acre (400-hectare) park located immediately to the south-east of Sevenoaks in west Kent. The house ranks in the top five of England's largest houses, under any measure used, occupying a total of four acres.[1]
The current house dates back to the mid-15th century, with major additions in the 16th and, particularly, the early 17th centuries. Its grade I listing reflects its mix of late-medieval to Stuart structures and particularly its central façade and state rooms. In 2019 an extensive conservation project, "Inspired by Knole", was completed to restore and develop the structures of the buildings and thus help to conserve its important collections.[2] The surrounding deer park has also survived with varying degrees of management in the 400 years since 1600.
Early-Stuart Knole and the Sackvilles
Since Dudley had originally granted a 99-year lease, Thomas Sackville could only take it back by buying out the remaining 51 years of the lease for £4000, which he did in 1603. Lennard was happy to sell, not only because of his mounting debts but also because he wished to gain the Dacre title, which he did in 1604 from a commission headed by the lord treasurer, Thomas Sackville. This is unlikely to have been a coincidence.[34] Sackville's descendants, the Earls and Dukes of Dorset and Barons Sackville have owned or lived in the property ever since.[35]
North West Front, Knole, Sevenoaks
Thomas Sackville, at that time Lord Buckhurst, had considered a number of other sites to build a house commensurate with his elevated status in court and government. However, he could not overlook the multiple advantages of Knole: a good supply of spring water (rare for a house on a hill), plentiful timber, a deer park and close enough proximity to London.[36] He immediately began a large building programme. This was supposed to have been completed within two years, employing some 200 workmen, but the partially-surviving accounts show that there was continuing, vast expenditure even in 1608–9.[30] Since Sackville had had a distinguished career at court under Elizabeth and then been appointed Lord High Treasurer to James VI and I, he had the resources to undertake such a programme. Perhaps, with his renovations to the state rooms at Knole, Sackville hoped to receive a visit by the King, but this does not seem to have occurred and the lord treasurer himself died during the building work, in April 1608, at the age of about 72.
Thomas Sackville's Jacobean great house, like others such as Hatfield and Audley End, have been called "monuments to private greed".[37] Unlike any surviving English great house apart from Haddon Hall, Knole today still looks as it did when Thomas died, having managed "to remain motionless like this since the early 17th century, balanced between growth and decay."[38]
Thomas's son, Robert Sackville, second earl of Dorset, took over the titles and estates, gave a description of his father's work on re-modelling Knole: "late re-edified wth a barne, stable, dovehouse and other edifices, together wth divers Courts, the gardens orchards and wilderness invironed wth a stone wall, well planted wth choise frute, and beawtified wth ponds, and manie other pleasureable delights and devises are situate wthin the Parke of knoll, the charge of new building of the said house and making planting and furnishing of the said ponds yards gardens orchards and wilderness about Seaven yeares past Thirty thosand pounds at the least yet exstant uppon Accounpts. All wch are now in the Earle of dorsetts owne occupacon and are worth to bee sold."[39]
The second earl did not enjoy Knole for long, since he died in January 1609.[40] His two sons, in turn, inherited the title and estates, first Richard Sackville, third earl of Dorset (1589–1624) and then the much more politically significant Edward Sackville, fourth earl of Dorset (1590–1652).[41] None of these earls lived permanently at Knole. In the first earl's case, this was no doubt due to the renovations. The third earl lived mostly at court, though he is known to have kept his hunting horses and hounds there.[42]
The wife of the 3rd Earl, Lady Anne Clifford, lived at Knole for a time during the couple's conflict over her inheritance from her father, George Clifford, third earl of Cumberland.[43] A catalogue of the household of the Earl and Countess of Dorset at Knole from this time survives. It records the names and roles of servants and indicates where they sat at dinner. The list includes two African servants, Grace Robinson, a maid in the laundry, and John Morockoe, who worked in the kitchen. Both are described as "Blackamoors".[44] In 1623, a large part of Knole House burnt down.[45]
Knole during the Civil War, Commonwealth and Restoration
Edward Sackville, in a miniature by John Hoskins, 1635
Edward, a relatively moderate royalist, was away from Knole in the summer of 1642, when he and his cousin and factotum Sir John Sackville fell under suspicion of stockpiling arms and preparing local men to fight for Charles I during the Civil War. The rumours of the cache of arms reached Parliament in an intercepted letter for which Sir John was notionally the source. On Sunday 14 August 1642, Parliament sent three troops of horse under Colonel Edwin Sandys, a member of a Kentish puritan family, to seize these arms from Knole. Sir John was in the congregation for the parish Sunday service and Sandys waited with his troops outside the church until it had finished. Local people tried to rescue him but they quickly judged that the troops were too strong for them, and Sir John was arrested and taken to the Fleet prison.[46]
Sandys's troops then moved to Knole where, according to the earl of Dorset's steward, they caused damage to the value of £186, and 'The Armes they have wholie taken awaie there being five wagenloads of them (sic passim).' [47] In fact, the arms were largely of more interest to antiquarians than to soldiers; they included, for example, thirteen 'old French pistolls whereof four have locks [and] the other nine have none'. Sandys claimed that he had seized 'compleat armes for 500 or 600 men', but this is untrue.[48] Nevertheless, the House of Lords resolved that 'such [arms] as are fit to be made use of for the Service of the Kingdom are to be employed'.[49] In addition, the House was sequestrated.[50] Edward accepted the seizures and damage to Knole as an inevitable part of the Civil War, as he explained in a speech to Charles I and his peers in Oxford, in 1642: 'For my particular, in these wars I have suffered as much as any, my Houses have been searcht, my Armes taken thence, and my sonne and heire committed to prison; yet I shall wave these discourtesies, because I know there was a necessity they should be so. Wikipedia
The Fort Saint-Elme is a military fort built between 1538 and 1552 by Charles V. It is located in the district of Collioure, 30 km south-east of Perpignan, in the department of Pyrénées-Orientales. It is designated as a monument historique of the Côte Vermeille. Since 2008, the fort has been a museum with medieval and Renaissance arms collections, exhibitions and a panorama over the area from the terrace.
The fort Saint-Elme is located at the top of a hill overhanging Collioure on the west and Port-Vendres on the east. One can reach the fort following a local road linking the D114 road at the north, through the Coll d'en Raixat at the south.
Toponymy
Several assumptions exist for the origins of Saint Elme: Firstly the name of Saint-Elme may come from Erasmus of Formia, an Italian martyr of the 4th century. Secondly it could have been given in honour of the Spanish saint Peter González (1190-1246). This explains why we find this name around the western Mediterranean coasts: Saint Elme in Naples, Sant Elme in St Feliu de Guixols, Sant Helme and Santem in Provence, etc… Saint Erasmus may have become the patron saint of sailors because he is said to have continued preaching even after a thunderbolt struck the ground beside him. This prompted sailors, who were in danger from sudden storms and lightning, to claim his prayers. The electrical discharges at the mastheads of ships were read as a sign of his protection and came to be called "Saint Elmo's Fire".
By decree on 3 June 1794, during the French Revolution, the city took briefly the name of Fort-du-Rocher (Rock's fort).
History
From the origins to the Middle-Ages
The history of Fort Saint-Elme began with the edification of the watchtower in the 8th century, i.e. either during the period when Arab-Berber troops occupied Septimania between 719 and 759. Integrated to the Marca Hispanica, the tower belonged to the independent Counts of Roussillon until the death without heirs of Girard II of Roussillon in 1172. He bequeathed his county to Alfonso II, King of Aragon and Count of Barcelona. This is during the Aragonese period that the tower took its nickname "Torre de la guardia" (Watchtower).
Between 1276 and 1344, Majorca’s kings, whose summer residence was the castle of Collioure, rebuilt this signal tower on this ideal point of view. This tower was integrated in an efficient communication system including the Massane and Madeloc towers located on the heights of Collioure and funded by James II of Aragon in the 13th century. These towers communicated through smoke signals that permitted to alert the surroundings population with smoke signals (black or white, discontinuous or continuous) according to the danger. At night, some dry wood permitted to light fires to alert garrisons until Perpignan. By day, some green wood was used to emit smoke and thus communicate with the others towers and strongholds of the region. But it was the enemy of the kingdom of Majorca, the king Peter IV of Aragon, who, once he conquered the coast in 1344, made significant military works to improve the defense of the fort.
During the second part of the 15th century, the French controlled the Roussillon. In 1462, the king Louis XI took advantage of the Catalan civil war (1462-1472) to sign the treaty of Bayonne and thus took over the counties of Roussillon and Cerdagne. The French decided to strengthen the fort which took the name of Saint Elme. A part of ramparts dates from this period. The successor of Louis XI, Charles VIII, who wanted to assure the neutrality of Spain for his ambitions over the kingdom of Naples, signed with Ferdinand II of Aragon the treaty of Barcelona in 1493. The catholic king recovered thus the lost territories.
The fortification of Charles V
In the 16th century, the Roussillon is an essential piece of the Spanish kingdom. The region had a triangular shape delimitated by the cordilleras in the north, the Albera Massif in the south and the Mediterranean Sea in the east. Perpignan was an important industrial, cultural and commercial center which got important privileged links with the wealth of Italy. Perpignan was defended in the north by the Fortress of Salses and in the south by the Fort Saint-Elme. This castle protected also the Collioure and Port-Vendres ports which assured supplies and troops helpers to the regional capital of Roussillon.
The progress of the modern artillery changed profoundly the war art and the siege technics. Architects and artillerymen were converted to new war masters and advisers of sovereigns. In 1537, the Italian architect Benedetto of Ravenna caught the emperor’s attention on the weaknesses of the Collioure position. After an inspection, Benedetto obtained the agreement of Charles V. He began the works in 1538 until 1552 and transformed the fort’s appearance which took its star-shaped aspect.
A French fort
Despite this modernisation and its adaptation to the artillery, on 13 April 1642, French troops of king Louis XIII achieved to take the fort. After the signing of the Treaty of the Pyrenees in 1659, the Spanish threat remained. When Vauban, military architect of King Louis XIV, made a reconnaissance of the defensive structures in 1659 in the region of Collioure, he decided to build a counterscarp, which forms with the ramparts base a ten-meter pit where infantry and cannons could easily operate.
Around 1780, the fort’s facade was whitened to serve as landmark from the sea, with the Massane Tower, to better situate the port of Port-Vendres.[1]
During the French Revolution, more precisely during the War of the Pyrenees, between 1793 and 1795, the region was the center of violent fights. The Fort Saint Elme was conquered successively by Royalists and Republicans. In 1794, the Spanish army took the fort. Six months later, the general Dugommier crushed with 11 000 cannonballs the garrison which surrendered on 25 May 1794 after a 22-day siege. After the revolutionary period, the fort, unified with the municipality of Collioure, was transformed in military warehouse.
A private museum
The Fort Saint-Elme was demilitarised in 1903 and abandoned. The tower was shattered, the (shooting place) was partly impracticable and many walls threatened to collapse. On 21 August 1913, the State decided to auction the fort. Several owners succeeded but none restoration was made. The fort was registered as Monument Historique by decree of 2 April 1927. A new owner decided thus to restore it. The works ended in 1936. During the WWII, the fort was occupied by the Kriegsmarine between 1942 and 1944. At their escape, some buildings were dynamited to block the progress of allied troops. Rebuilt partially in 1950, most restoration works began in 2004. Since 2008, the fort has been a museum.
Architecture
The interior of the fort Saint-Elme is composed of rooms edified around the exterior circumference of the tower. On the first floor, there were the troop’s dormitories, the weapons room, the throne’s room, the jail and the oven. Today, the floor is fit out historical objects which date from 15th century to 19th century: helmets, knights’ armours, chest, polished-stone and iron cannonballs, medieval and "Renaissance" weapons (culverin, falconet, crossbows, halberds, flails, hammers, lances, bows, swords, arquebus, 16th-century pistols), howitzer fragments.
Others rooms reveal the history of the monument: the genealogy and life of Charles V, the fortifications of Vauban, the inventory of 1770 and the attack of general Dugommier in 1794.
On the second floor, the flour and artillery warehouses were next to the guardroom and the bakery. Saint-Elme, a stronghold with an ingenious defensive system, has been conceived to support sieges and resist to assaults. Some walls reach up to eight-meters thick. The tower contained the powder. The shooting place could receive more than 20 cannons and howitzers. The undergrounds are not open to the public. Formerly, they were used as a warehouse for food and housing. They could also house all trades (corps de metier) necessary to the fight.
Wikipedia
The Collioure mill is a medieval mill recently brought up to date by the town. It is on the heights, on the other side of the creek coming from Perpignan. If you don't see it, look up, it's as simple as that.
The Collioure mill is a local curiosity. It is a windmill, which is quite rare in the region, most of the mills being water-powered. This one has been perfectly restored, it is very close to the city, and it is a good destination for a very short walk.
Rather than being incomplete, it is better to quote the text at its feet, which briefly explains its history. Here is :
On February 11, 1337, the Chevalier Raymond de Toulouse, prosecutor of the King of Majorca, ceded to Jacques Ermengald de Collioure direct control of a piece of land located in Collioure, at a place called "Cortines" and ceded to him the right to operate the windmill which will be built there to grind grain or crops of any kind on its own authority.
The mill ceased its activity in the 19th century to find itself gradually in a state of ruin. Became property of the city, the town undertook its restoration which was completed in June 2001, with the wooden machinery made in the traditional way by the carpenters of Bernard Gariblad. It is now in working order for crushing olives and producing Collioure oil.
Collioure is a town on the Mediterranean coast of southern France. On the sea, the medieval Château Royal de Collioure offers dramatic coastal views. The bell tower of 17th-century Notre-Dame-des-Anges Church was once a lighthouse. The Modern Art Museum includes paintings by Henri Matisse. Nearby is the Moulin de Collioure, a 14th-century windmill. South, the hilltop Fort St. Elme has a museum with medieval weapons. ― Google
Jheronimus Bosch (Joen van Aken) 1450-1516. Hertogenbosch.
Le Chariot de Foin.The Hay Cart. Escorial
Hertogenbosch Jheronimus Bosch Art Center
Le Chariot de Foin : Au centre l'humanité habitée par le Mal se dirige vers les Enfers du volet de gauche. L'amour physique, la poésie et la musique qui voyagent tout en haut n'échapperont pas au sort commun qui concerne aussi les Papes, les Empereurs et les Rois. Tout comme la foule avide et violente des hommes ordinaires, qui cherchent à arracher au passage quelques bribes de paille.
La signification des personnages tout en bas du tableau est plus énigmatique. Ils semblent échapper à la folie des hommes. Mais est ce bien certain ?
L'Enfer du volet de droite voit des diables édifier une tour de grande hauteur tout à fait semblable à nos buildings géants contemporains. Ces tours, parodie de la Tour de Babel, s'effondreront dans le feu comme rappelé en arrière plan du tableau. N'est ce pas ?
Le Chariot de Foin arrive du volet de gauche qui représente la chute des Anges Rebelles, la création d'Eve, le Péché Originel, et l'Expulsion du Paradis. Rappel d'un fait certain : le Mal existe dès la création de l'Univers.
The Hay Cart: In the center of humanity inhabited by Evil goes to the hells of the left pane. The physical love, the poetry and the music which travel at the top will not escape the common destiny which also concerns the Popes, the Emperors and the Kings. Just like the greedy and violent crowd of ordinary men, who try to snatch a few pieces of straw in the process.
The meaning of the characters at the bottom of the painting is more enigmatic. They seem to escape the madness of men. But is this certain?
The Hell of the right wing sees devils build a tower of great height quite similar to our contemporary giant buildings. These turns, parody of the Tower of Babel, will collapse in the fire as recalled in the background of the painting. Is not it ?
The Hay Cart comes from the left wing, which represents the fall of the Rebel Angels, the creation of Eve, the Original Sin, and the Expulsion from Paradise. Reminder of a certain fact: Evil exists from the creation of the Universe.
In this part of Wisconsin we saw several towns that edified their local folk heroes with a mural. It is very quaint but appealing and honest. Wittenberg, WI, USA.
MUSEE BROU
"Le monastère royal de Brou est un chef-d'œuvre de l'art gothique flamboyant flamand du début du XVIe siècle. Il se compose d'un ensemble de bâtiments monastiques construits entre 1506 et 1512, et de la somptueuse église Saint-Nicolas-de-Tolentin de Brou, édifiée de 1513 à 1532 par Louis van Bodeghem.
Cet ensemble architectural rare a été commandé par Marguerite d'Autriche, duchesse de Savoie, gouvernante des Pays-Bas bourguignons, marraine et tante de Charles Quint. Elle fit édifier l'ensemble en mémoire de son époux Philibert le Beau et pour respecter le vœu fait par sa belle-mère Marguerite de Bourbon". Wikipédia
Les anciens bâtiments monastiques comprennent deux cloîtres et abritent le musée de peinture.
L'église sert d'écrin aux trois tombeaux de Philibert le Beau au centre de l'abside, de sa mère Marguerite de Bourbon à droite et de sa femme Marguerite d'Autriche à gauche.
Les deux tombeaux de Philibert le Beau et de Marguerite d'Autriche ont deux étages. A l'étage supérieur le défunt est représenté habillé en costume de cour.
A l'étage inférieur il est présenté nu dans son linceul.
Le tombeau de Marguerite de Bourbon mère de Philibert le Beau, dans une niche creusée dans le mur de l'église, comporte un seul étage.
"The royal monastery of Brou is a masterpiece of Flemish flamboyant Gothic art from the early 16th century and consists of a group of monastic buildings built between 1506 and 1512 and the sumptuous church of St. Nicholas. -de-Tolentin de Brou, built from 1513 to 1532 by Louis van Bodeghem.
This architectural ensemble was built on order of Marguerite d'Autriche, Duchess of Savoy, governess of the Burgundy Netherlands, godmother and aunt of Charles Quint. She built the whole in memory of her husband Philibert the Beautiful and to respect the wish made by his mother-in-law Marguerite de Bourbon. "Wikipedia
The ancient monastic buildings include two cloisters and house the painting museum.
The church serves as a showcase for the three tombs of Philibert le Beau in the center of the apse, of his mother Marguerite de Bourbon on the right and his wife Marguerite of Austria on the left.
The two tombs of Philibert the Beautiful and Margaret of Austria have two floors. On the upper floor the deceased is represented dressed in court costume.
On the lower floor he is presented naked in his shroud.
The tomb of Marguerite de Bourbon, mother of Philibert le Beau, in a niche carved in the wall of the church, has a single floor.
Le site du jardin des Tuileries, inscrit en 1991 sur la Liste du patrimoine mondial de l'UNESCO, est intégré en 2005 au domaine national du musée du Louvre.
Plusieurs fabriques de tuiles se tenaient à l'endroit où Catherine de Médicis fit édifier à partir de 1564 le palais des "Tuileries", pourvu d'un somptueux jardin compartimenté, parallèle à la Seine.
En 1664, LE NOTRE le redessine à la française et fait ouvrir la perspective à l'ouest qui deviendra les Champs-Elysées. Créé à la fin du XIXème siècle à l'emplacement du palais des Tuileries, incendié pendant la Commune (1871), le jardin du Carrousel vient d'être redessiné par Jacques Wirtz et reconstruit sur dalle au-dessus des galeries du Louvre.
Le plan actuel des Tuileries s'organise autour d'une large allée centrale marquant la perspective du Grand Axe qui s'étend aujourd'hui du Louvre à la Grande Arche de la Défense.
De très beaux arbres représentent plus de vingt essences (pin larcicio, mûrier blanc, arbre de Judée etc...). Une riche statuaire orne les différents secteurs des lieux. Mises en place en 1964 et 1965, à l'initiative d'André Malraux, dix-huit statues de Maillol sont installées dans le jardin du Caroussel. L'on découvre aussi des oeuvres de Coustou, de Rodin, de Coysevox, de Carpeaux, mais aussi de sculpteurs modernes comme Max Ernst, Henri Laurens, Giacometti et bientôt des oeuvres contemporaines.
______________________________________
In the early 16th century the area was a clay quarry for tiles (tuilerie in French, hence the name). After the death of her husband Henri II in 1559, Catherine de Médicis had a Palace built at the tuileries, the Palais de Tuileries. The palace featured a large garden in Italian style, reminding her of her native Tuscany.
Between 1660 and 1664 the garden was redesigned in French formal style by André Le Nôtre, the celebrated gardener of the Sun King, best known for his design of the gardens at the Versailles Palace. Le Nôtre built a terrace along the riverbank and opened up a central axis which he extended three years later with the creation of the Champs-Elysées.
The Jardin des Tuileries was one of the first parks to open to the public and it quickly became a place to see and be seen. Even in the 18th century the park featured amenities such as cafes, kiosks, deck chairs and public toilets.
The Palais des Tuileries, situated near the Arc du Carrousel, was razed in 1871 by the Communards, opening up the view from the Louvre to the Arc de Triomphe.
Most recently renovated in 1990, Le Nôtre's formal design of the Tuileries garden has been kept intact. At the same time the park was separated from car traffic. Many modern sculptures were added and in 1999 the Passerelle de Solférino (now the Passerelle Léopold-Sédar-Senghor), a footbridge across the Seine opened, linking the Tuileries with the Musée d'Orsay.
Like the Jardin du Luxembourg, Jardin des Tuileries is one of those parks where you can grab a chair for free and sit wherever you like.
It also features several fountains, two large basins, numerous sculptures and two museums, the Galerie Nationale du Jeu de Paume and the Musée de l'Orangerie, which displays Claude Monet's large water lily paintings . Those two buildings are the only remains of the original Palais de Tuileries.
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Détection du degré d'exposition+0.7 EV
Clic ! - See it in large on black - Clic !
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Jheronimus Bosch (Joen van Aken) 1450-1516. Hertogenbosch.
Le Chariot de Foin.The Hay Cart. Escorial
Hertogenbosch Jheronimus Bosch Art Center
Le Chariot de Foin : Au centre l'humanité habitée par le Mal se dirige vers les Enfers du volet de gauche. L'amour physique, la poésie et la musique qui voyagent tout en haut n'échapperont pas au sort commun qui concerne aussi les Papes, les Empereurs et les Rois. Tout comme la foule avide et violente des hommes ordinaires, qui cherchent à arracher au passage quelques bribes de paille.
La signification des personnages tout en bas du tableau est plus énigmatique. Ils semblent échapper à la folie des hommes. Mais est ce bien certain ?
L'Enfer du volet de droite voit des diables édifier une tour de grande hauteur tout à fait semblable à nos buildings géants contemporains. Ces tours, parodie de la Tour de Babel, s'effondreront dans le feu comme rappelé en arrière plan du tableau. N'est ce pas ?
Le Chariot de Foin arrive du volet de gauche qui représente la chute des Anges Rebelles, la création d'Eve, le Péché Originel, et l'Expulsion du Paradis. Rappel d'un fait certain : le Mal existe dès la création de l'Univers.
The Hay Cart: In the center of humanity inhabited by Evil goes to the hells of the left pane. The physical love, the poetry and the music which travel at the top will not escape the common destiny which also concerns the Popes, the Emperors and the Kings. Just like the greedy and violent crowd of ordinary men, who try to snatch a few pieces of straw in the process.
The meaning of the characters at the bottom of the painting is more enigmatic. They seem to escape the madness of men. But is this certain?
The Hell of the right wing sees devils build a tower of great height quite similar to our contemporary giant buildings. These turns, parody of the Tower of Babel, will collapse in the fire as recalled in the background of the painting. Is not it ?
The Hay Cart comes from the left wing, which represents the fall of the Rebel Angels, the creation of Eve, the Original Sin, and the Expulsion from Paradise. Reminder of a certain fact: Evil exists from the creation of the Universe.
This picture is #19 in my 100 strangers project. Find out more about the project and see pictures taken by other photographers at the 100 Strangers Flickr Group page
Callum and Amy sat down at the same table as me outside a pub in central Manchester, because there was room to sit down and I didn't mind! We chatted about a whole heap of things for about an hour; most enjoyable! It was edifying for me to hear a lot of commonsensical opinion from two young adults who had a pretty good grip on their priorities and their place in the world around them.
Callum noticed the Canon so with that cat out of the bag I asked if I could take his photo and he readily agreed. I moved a little to get a better background and as you can see the wind was up a little; most welcome on this occasion as it was hot! I was already setup for hand-held work with ISO400 & f8 so adjusted the shutter & fired away without noticing that at 1/100th I was pushing my luck; I should have opened the aperture to get more speed, ideally, and a couple of shots were lost to motion-blur introduced by slow shutter speed. Using the wide angle made things much easier, as expected, so a modest crop in Post completed the job. I could have bossed Callum about a bit more but didn't want to spoil what was a comfortable moment. Cheers Guys! ;-)
Knole (/noʊl/) is a country house and former archbishop's palace owned by the National Trust. It is situated within Knole Park, a 1,000-acre (400-hectare) park located immediately to the south-east of Sevenoaks in west Kent. The house ranks in the top five of England's largest houses, under any measure used, occupying a total of four acres.[1]
The current house dates back to the mid-15th century, with major additions in the 16th and, particularly, the early 17th centuries. Its grade I listing reflects its mix of late-medieval to Stuart structures and particularly its central façade and state rooms. In 2019 an extensive conservation project, "Inspired by Knole", was completed to restore and develop the structures of the buildings and thus help to conserve its important collections.[2] The surrounding deer park has also survived with varying degrees of management in the 400 years since 1600.
Early-Stuart Knole and the Sackvilles
Since Dudley had originally granted a 99-year lease, Thomas Sackville could only take it back by buying out the remaining 51 years of the lease for £4000, which he did in 1603. Lennard was happy to sell, not only because of his mounting debts but also because he wished to gain the Dacre title, which he did in 1604 from a commission headed by the lord treasurer, Thomas Sackville. This is unlikely to have been a coincidence.[34] Sackville's descendants, the Earls and Dukes of Dorset and Barons Sackville have owned or lived in the property ever since.[35]
North West Front, Knole, Sevenoaks
Thomas Sackville, at that time Lord Buckhurst, had considered a number of other sites to build a house commensurate with his elevated status in court and government. However, he could not overlook the multiple advantages of Knole: a good supply of spring water (rare for a house on a hill), plentiful timber, a deer park and close enough proximity to London.[36] He immediately began a large building programme. This was supposed to have been completed within two years, employing some 200 workmen, but the partially-surviving accounts show that there was continuing, vast expenditure even in 1608–9.[30] Since Sackville had had a distinguished career at court under Elizabeth and then been appointed Lord High Treasurer to James VI and I, he had the resources to undertake such a programme. Perhaps, with his renovations to the state rooms at Knole, Sackville hoped to receive a visit by the King, but this does not seem to have occurred and the lord treasurer himself died during the building work, in April 1608, at the age of about 72.
Thomas Sackville's Jacobean great house, like others such as Hatfield and Audley End, have been called "monuments to private greed".[37] Unlike any surviving English great house apart from Haddon Hall, Knole today still looks as it did when Thomas died, having managed "to remain motionless like this since the early 17th century, balanced between growth and decay."[38]
Thomas's son, Robert Sackville, second earl of Dorset, took over the titles and estates, gave a description of his father's work on re-modelling Knole: "late re-edified wth a barne, stable, dovehouse and other edifices, together wth divers Courts, the gardens orchards and wilderness invironed wth a stone wall, well planted wth choise frute, and beawtified wth ponds, and manie other pleasureable delights and devises are situate wthin the Parke of knoll, the charge of new building of the said house and making planting and furnishing of the said ponds yards gardens orchards and wilderness about Seaven yeares past Thirty thosand pounds at the least yet exstant uppon Accounpts. All wch are now in the Earle of dorsetts owne occupacon and are worth to bee sold."[39]
The second earl did not enjoy Knole for long, since he died in January 1609.[40] His two sons, in turn, inherited the title and estates, first Richard Sackville, third earl of Dorset (1589–1624) and then the much more politically significant Edward Sackville, fourth earl of Dorset (1590–1652).[41] None of these earls lived permanently at Knole. In the first earl's case, this was no doubt due to the renovations. The third earl lived mostly at court, though he is known to have kept his hunting horses and hounds there.[42]
The wife of the 3rd Earl, Lady Anne Clifford, lived at Knole for a time during the couple's conflict over her inheritance from her father, George Clifford, third earl of Cumberland.[43] A catalogue of the household of the Earl and Countess of Dorset at Knole from this time survives. It records the names and roles of servants and indicates where they sat at dinner. The list includes two African servants, Grace Robinson, a maid in the laundry, and John Morockoe, who worked in the kitchen. Both are described as "Blackamoors".[44] In 1623, a large part of Knole House burnt down.[45]
Knole during the Civil War, Commonwealth and Restoration
Edward Sackville, in a miniature by John Hoskins, 1635
Edward, a relatively moderate royalist, was away from Knole in the summer of 1642, when he and his cousin and factotum Sir John Sackville fell under suspicion of stockpiling arms and preparing local men to fight for Charles I during the Civil War. The rumours of the cache of arms reached Parliament in an intercepted letter for which Sir John was notionally the source. On Sunday 14 August 1642, Parliament sent three troops of horse under Colonel Edwin Sandys, a member of a Kentish puritan family, to seize these arms from Knole. Sir John was in the congregation for the parish Sunday service and Sandys waited with his troops outside the church until it had finished. Local people tried to rescue him but they quickly judged that the troops were too strong for them, and Sir John was arrested and taken to the Fleet prison.[46]
Sandys's troops then moved to Knole where, according to the earl of Dorset's steward, they caused damage to the value of £186, and 'The Armes they have wholie taken awaie there being five wagenloads of them (sic passim).' [47] In fact, the arms were largely of more interest to antiquarians than to soldiers; they included, for example, thirteen 'old French pistolls whereof four have locks [and] the other nine have none'. Sandys claimed that he had seized 'compleat armes for 500 or 600 men', but this is untrue.[48] Nevertheless, the House of Lords resolved that 'such [arms] as are fit to be made use of for the Service of the Kingdom are to be employed'.[49] In addition, the House was sequestrated.[50] Edward accepted the seizures and damage to Knole as an inevitable part of the Civil War, as he explained in a speech to Charles I and his peers in Oxford, in 1642: 'For my particular, in these wars I have suffered as much as any, my Houses have been searcht, my Armes taken thence, and my sonne and heire committed to prison; yet I shall wave these discourtesies, because I know there was a necessity they should be so. Wikipedia
MUSEE BROU
"Le monastère royal de Brou est un chef-d'œuvre de l'art gothique flamboyant flamand du début du XVIe siècle. Il se compose d'un ensemble de bâtiments monastiques construits entre 1506 et 1512, et de la somptueuse église Saint-Nicolas-de-Tolentin de Brou, édifiée de 1513 à 1532 par Louis van Bodeghem.
Cet ensemble architectural rare a été commandé par Marguerite d'Autriche, duchesse de Savoie, gouvernante des Pays-Bas bourguignons, marraine et tante de Charles Quint. Elle fit édifier l'ensemble en mémoire de son époux Philibert le Beau et pour respecter le vœu fait par sa belle-mère Marguerite de Bourbon". Wikipédia
Les anciens bâtiments monastiques comprennent deux cloîtres et abritent le musée de peinture.
L'église sert d'écrin aux trois tombeaux de Philibert le Beau au centre de l'abside, de sa mère Marguerite de Bourbon à droite et de sa femme Marguerite d'Autriche à gauche.
Les deux tombeaux de Philibert le Beau et de Marguerite d'Autriche ont deux étages. A l'étage supérieur le défunt est représenté habillé en costume de cour.
A l'étage inférieur il est présenté nu dans son linceul.
Le tombeau de Marguerite de Bourbon mère de Philibert le Beau, dans une niche creusée dans le mur de l'église, comporte un seul étage.
"The royal monastery of Brou is a masterpiece of Flemish flamboyant Gothic art from the early 16th century and consists of a group of monastic buildings built between 1506 and 1512 and the sumptuous church of St. Nicholas. -de-Tolentin de Brou, built from 1513 to 1532 by Louis van Bodeghem.
This architectural ensemble was built on order of Marguerite d'Autriche, Duchess of Savoy, governess of the Burgundy Netherlands, godmother and aunt of Charles Quint. She built the whole in memory of her husband Philibert the Beautiful and to respect the wish made by his mother-in-law Marguerite de Bourbon. "Wikipedia
The ancient monastic buildings include two cloisters and house the painting museum.
The church serves as a showcase for the three tombs of Philibert le Beau in the center of the apse, of his mother Marguerite de Bourbon on the right and his wife Marguerite of Austria on the left.
The two tombs of Philibert the Beautiful and Margaret of Austria have two floors. On the upper floor the deceased is represented dressed in court costume.
On the lower floor he is presented naked in his shroud.
The tomb of Marguerite de Bourbon, mother of Philibert le Beau, in a niche carved in the wall of the church, has a single floor.