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$Unique_ID{COW01376}
$Pretitle{416}
$Title{France
Itinerary-Northern France}
$Subtitle{}
$Author{French Embassy, Washington DC}
$Affiliation{French Embassy, Washington DC}
$Subject{fine
gothic
church
town
cathedral
notre-dame
abbey
france
museum
old}
$Date{1990}
$Log{}
Country: France
Book: A Paradise For Lovers.
Author: French Embassy, Washington DC
Affiliation: French Embassy, Washington DC
Date: 1990
Itinerary-Northern France
The north provides the key to a great deal of the history of France and
this itinerary, which includes all that Paris has to offer, leads you through
Rouen and the industrial north and takes in the great port of Le Havre, the
splendid coastline and the major commercial centre of Lille. The Valing while
Dieppe is quite the most attractive of the Channel ports.
Les Andelys - In its delightful setting on the Seine, Notre-Dame church
has Renaissance organs and some fine stained glass. St-Sauveur is built in
the form of a Greek cross.
Chateau-Gaillard - This huge fortress, overlooking Les Andelys and the
valley of the Seine, belonged to Richard the Lion Heart, Duke of Normandy and
King of England. The ruins are most impressive and it is easy to understand
the layout of the fortifications, bombarded in 1204 by the forces of Philip
Auguste, King of France.
Rouen - This great sea and river port on the Seine is also a remarkable
art city, Notre-Dame cathedral is a fine example of Gothic style and Claude
Monet often painted it. In historical Rouen you should visit the Place du
Vieux-Marche, where Joan of Arc was burnt at the stake in 1431, and her statue
by Maxime Real del Sarte, the Bourgtheroulde Hotel, the belfry in simple
Gothic and the Renaissance Great Clock. There are also the beautiful Treasury,
the vaulted passage in the Cours de Comptes and the facade of the
Archbishopric. St-Maclou's intricately carved facade looks almost like lace
while the former abbey church of St-Ouen, a 14th-century gem, has a fine
choir. There is a representative collection of French and foreign paintings
and traditional Rouen pottery in the Fine Arts Museum. Cavelier who, with
Marquette, discovered the Mississipi, was born in Rouen.
Jumieges - The majestic ruins of a huge abbey church with two fine
towers, it originally comprised two churches. St-Pierre, partly Carolingian,
and Notre-Dame where the nave remains intact.
St-Wandrille - The ruins of the old abbey church represent, with
Bec-Hellouin the Benedictine influence in Normandy. The cloister has four
galleries and the church was incorporated into a 13th-century granary, the
little St-Saturnin chapel is very old indeed.
Le Havre - In 1945 Auguste Perret undertook the complete reconstruction
of the most heavily damaged port in Europe. He built the splendid Avenue
Foch, the Ocean Dock, the Town Hall and St-Joseph's church, with its hollow
tower rising to 106m. The former Graville abbey, with a Lapidary Museum in the
convent, lies to the east. There is a magnificent view from the Ste-Adresse
Fort over the harbour, town, the Seine estuary. Honfleur and the Cote de
Grace On a clear day you can see as far as the mouth of the Orne. The Fine
Arts Museum contains a major collection of 16th-century paintings as well as
300 pictures, sketches and drawings by Eugene Boudin, who was born in
Honfleur, and works by Raoul Dufy. There are regular car-ferry services from
Le Havre to England.
Etretat - The cliffs of Aval and Amont are very well known as the
subjects of countless posters and photographs
Fecamp - The Gothic trinity abbey is almost equal in size to Notre-Dame
in Paris and there is often a whiff of cod around the harbour!
You should visit the Benedictine Museum and Distillery and climb the
cliffs to the little sailors' chapel of Notre-Dame-du-Salut.
Dieppe - Dieppe, the nearest seaside resort to Paris, is also a
cross-Channel ferry port. The massive castle, with its fine collection of
Dieppe ivory, stands high above the town. There are also two important
churches, St-Jacques and St-Remy. There is a simple memorial at the foot of
the castle to the men, many of them Canadians, who gave their lives in the
August 1942 commando raid.
Abbeville - There are some old houses here and Hocquet specialises in
the manufacture of hosiery. Bagatelle, beautifully furnished and lovingly
maintained by its owners, is a delight ful 18th-century folly. Prehistoric and
scientific exhibits are housed in the Boucher de Perthes Museum.
Amiens - The capital of Picardy is justly proud of its splendid Gothic
Notre-Dame cathedral which you should certainly visit before strolling through
the Rue Hocquet, Rue des Bondes and Rue du Don and along the banks of the
Somme. There is a fine view of the cathedral from the Place Parmentier.
Arras - There is an imposing group of buildings around the Grand-Place,
the Rue de la Taillerie and the Petit-Place (also called the Square of
Heroes). With the Gothic Town Hall and belfry it provides the best example of
Flemish architecture in France The St-Vaast cathedral is in classical style.
Douai - Corot painted and Victor-Hugo described the imposing Gothic
towered belfry with its 49 bell carillon now the Town Hall, with its Gothic
Council Chamber. White Room and 15th-century storerooms.
Lille - The most important town in northern France, at the heart of a
huge built-up area, still has its 17th-century brick and stone Stock Exchange,
the Paris and Roubaix gates and the Vauban citadel. The Hospice Comtesse has
a beautiful old hospital ward and St-Maurice church is late Gothic. The Fine
Arts Gallery has a rich collection of primitives and all major schools of
painting. A 106m high belfry, built in 1930, dominates the town.
Valley of the Meuse - The Meuse Valley, running up to the Belgian
frontier, has some unusual natural curiosities, the indented ridge of the
Quatre Fils Aymon and the Ladies of the Meuse. This is the best route through
the French Ardennes with some marvellous views of Chateau Regnault, Montherme
and Revin.
Laon - Set on a bluff overlooking the plain, Notre-Dame cathedral is a
masterpiece of religious art and the Hotel-Dieu, the Bishops' Palace, the
fortifications to the south and a Templars' chapel are other important
monuments. Marquette, co-discoverer with Cavelier of the Mississipi, lived
and died in Laon.
Soissons - In this old capital of the Francs, the St-Gervais and
St-Protais cathedral is remarkable for the purity of its Gothic but only the
facade and the lovely bell tower of St-Jean-des-Vignes are still standing.