Rouen, Its History and Monuments Part 4

In the reign of Richard Ist, third duke of Normandy, two ecclesiastics of Rouen made a pilgrimage to the sepulchre of Saint-Sever, bishop of Avranches. The body of the saint was deposited in the neighbourhood of _Mont-Saint-Michel_, in a church surrounded by forests. A priest lived alone in the neighbourhood. The two ecclesiastics, from an excess of devotion resolved to carry away the remains of the bishop. The priest heard of it and put a stop to their enterprise. They returned to Rouen, and humbly begged Richard, whose consent they easily obtained to authorize the removal of the remains, and in spite of the tears and remonstrances of the inhabitants, they carried off the holy relics, which they forwarded to Rouen. The procession rested at the hamlet of Emendreville (now the suburb of Saint-Sever). Here the miracle, which had already been shown several times on the road, was renewed again, that is to say, the shrine which contained the remains of the saint became so heavy, that it was impossible to raise it, until they had made a vow to build a chapel on that spot; such is the origin of the church of Saint-Sever. Till then this place had been called Emendreville. It retained that denomination about four centuries afterwards; but at last it took the name of the saint, in whose honour the parochial church had been built. The present church was consecrated on the 27th january 1538. Neither its interior or exterior offer any thing worthy of notice.

SAINT-ROMAIN.

This was the chapel of the ancient _Carmes dechausses_. Those fathers obtained letters patent on the 27th july 1624. They purchased a house at the entrance of the suburb Bouvreuil; which was then in the parish of Saint-G.o.dard, and laid the foundations of their monastery. The duke of Longueville, laid the first stone of their church on the 20th november 1643, which they demolished in 1678, to build a new one, of which the first stone was laid in the month of july 1679, by Mr Pierre de Bec-de-Lievre, first president of the _Cour des Aides_, who untill the time of his death, which took place in july 1685, paid the whole expenses of the building. After his death, his two sons MM. Pierre and Thomas-Charles de Bec-de-Lievre, finished the edifice at their own expense. This is the present church: it was consecrated on the 21st of december 1687. In 1791, it was dedicated to Saint-Romain, as one of the chapels of ease of the town of Rouen. After having been shut for a time, it was again placed amongst the chapels of ease, in 1802. It is now a parochial church. On the front, which faces the east, we find the following inscription in large, letters of gold:

SANCTO ROMANO

PATROCINANTE.

This church contains some extremely curious antiquities. The first, without doubt, is the monument of the archbishop Saint-Romain, which is of granite, and forms, if I may say so, the high altar in the choir, as the top of the high altar covers the monument, which is elsewhere very plainly seen. It was formerly in the crypt of Saint-G.o.dard, where Saint-Romain was buried. It was brought afterwards to this church on the 20th february 1804. The ashes of the ill.u.s.trious prelate had been dispersed by the calvinists, in 1562.

We may also admire the beautiful painted gla.s.s windows, which were brought partly from Saint-Maur, Saint-Etienne-des-Tonneliers, and Saint-Martin-sur-Renelle. The following is an explanation: In the first chapel, _a Transfiguration_, to the left on entering. In the next chapel _a holy Family_. This chapel contains also a beautiful small marble statue _of Saint-Louis_, and a bas-relief, by Jadoulle, representing _Tobit burying the dead_. The firsts chapel to the right, contains the font: there is a remarkable painted gla.s.s, divided into six part.i.tions, which represents _the history of Adam_. It is in this chapel that we find a very curious cover of some baptismal-fonts, which was brought from the ancient church of Saint-Etienne. The bas-reliefs, which ornament it, represent _the Pa.s.sion of Jesus-Christ_. In the sort of lantern, which surmounts the cover, is _a Resurrection_. These sculptures on wood, which are of great beauty, are of the beginning of the XVIth century. At the farther end of the chapel, is a fresco painting by Pecheux representing _the baptism of Jesus-Christ_.

In the next chapel, which is dedicated to Saint-Theresa, we see _Sainte-Genevieve_, the patroness of Paris. In her left hand she holds a book, and in her right a lighted taper. Satan tries to blow it out with a pair of bellows, while, behind the saint, an angel is ready to light it again. These different painted gla.s.ses were brought from Saint-Maur.

In the chapel of Saint-Joseph, is a painted window representing _Saint-Stephen before his judges_. In the chapel of the Virgin, which is opposite, we see _Saint-Stephen stoned_; these two painted windows belonged to the church of Saint-Etienne-des-Tonneliers.

Some gla.s.ses of the higher windows, brought from Saint-Martin-sur-Renelle, represent _the pa.s.sion of our Lord_.

In the choir, in the chapel to the left, _Tobit burying the dead_, above we see _the resurrection of Lazarus_; in the same window _Job on the dunghill_; and underneath, _the Lord's supper_.

In another chapel of the choir, opposite to the former, is _Jesus-Christ in the temple, overthrowing the tables of the money-changers_; beside it, is _the rich man at table_; Lazarus is at the outside of the door.

The stained gla.s.s of these two chapels belonged to Saint-Maur. Most of them, from the richness of their coloring, and the perfection of their execution, are very remarkable.

Under the dome at the lop of the nave, are five different fresco, paintings which represent different acts relative to the life of the patron of the church. One represents _the consecration of Saint-Romain as bishop_; in another, _he overthrows the pagan temples_; farther on, is _the miracle of the dragon or Gargouille_; next to it, is the procession of the shrine to obtain the deliverance of a prisoner, a ceremony which was inst.i.tuted after the miracle of which we have already spoken. The _apotheosis of Saint-Romain_ crowns these four paintings.

At the top of the sanctuary, behind the high altar, there is also another fres...o...b.. Pecheux, _representing the agony of Jesus-Christ_. The painting receives the light from above, by an opening made expressly for that purpose.

The organ, which was made by Mr Lebreton, of Rouen, was received on the 11th july 1830. It is composed of four keys, forty two registers, and one pedal. Although modern, the church of Saint-Romain, merits as we see, to be examined in all its details.

SAINT-G.o.dARD.

The origin of Saint-G.o.dard is unknown, all that can be affirmed is that there existed anciently on this spot a chapel dedicated to the Virgin.

This latter circ.u.mstance induced the belief for a long time, that the first Cathedral was erected on this place. It will suffice, to establish the contrary, to say that the church of Saint-G.o.dard, was included within the interior of the town only at the commencement of the XIIIth century.

In the year 533, and not 530 as Farin says, whose chronology is often erroneous, the archbishop saint G.o.dard was interred in the subterraneous chapel of this church, which then changed its ancient name for that of the holy prelate, whose remains it had received. Saint-Romain was also interred in the same chapel.

It was only after different additions that the church of Saint-G.o.dard became what we now see it. It is one hundred and fifteen feet long, by seventy eight broad. In 1556, its organ was a very small one; it was afterwards enlarged; but, in 1562, it was destroyed by the calvinists.

The present organ, which was established in 1640, is the work of a scotchman, named George Lesselie.

The church of Saint-G.o.dard, when suppressed at the second circ.u.mscription of the churches of Rouen, saw all its ornaments and riches pa.s.s to the parishes of Saint-Ouen and Saint-Patrice. Amongst the ornaments, we will mention its admirable painted windows, which were the finest in France, according to Farin and Levieil,[17] whose opinion has become an authority. A great many of these gla.s.ses were broken in the _chambre aux clercs_ of Saint-Ouen. When, reopened for religious purposes, in 1806, the church of Saint-G.o.dard became again possessed of two of its finest windows: that of the chapel of the Virgin, to the right facing the choir, and that of the chapel of Saint-Nicolas, on the opposite side. The first represents the mother of the saviour, and the kings of Judea from whom she was descended. The celestial head of the Virgin is of astonishing beauty of composition.

The window of the chapel dedicated to Saint-Nicolas represents different acts of the life of saint Romain; and the painter, one may imagine, has not forgotten the history of the _Gargouille_. These two windows are each thirty two feet high by twelve in width. Nothing can be comparable to the beauty of the colour of these two windows; from thence came the proverb, in speaking of wine of a purple colour: _It is the colour of the windows of Saint-G.o.dard_.

[Footnote 17: _The art of painting on gla.s.s_. 1774, folio, fig.]

SAINT-NICAISE.

The church, that is to say, the primitive chapel which was built on this spot, was one of those which were founded, about the middle of the VIIth century, by the ill.u.s.trious archbishop saint Ouen. It was at that time very far out of the city, since the limits on this side of the town extended only as far as the streets de l'Aumone, and Robec, during the life-time of saint Ouen. It was only six hundred years after, under saint Louis, that the church of Saint-Nicaise was comprehended within the interior of the town. The choir of this church is remarkable for the symmetry of its proportions. Its organ was placed in 1634. The remainder of the architecture of this church does not offer any thing to fix the attention. At the eastern extremities of the aisles, we perceive two mutilated painted gla.s.s windows; but which nevertheless call forth the admiration of the connaisseur. The one of them represents the three christian virtues, the other, two figures of the same description, with that of a bishop. The heads are very beautiful, and the draperies quite dazzling, from their brilliant colours.

SAINT-VINCENT.

This church was formerly called _Saint-Vincent-sur-Rive_, because it was situated on the bank of the river. The treasurers of Saint-Vincent had the salt measures in their keeping, they were deposited in a small tower at the entrance of the church, for that purpose. When the boats loaded with salt pa.s.sed by the church, they had to give a certain quant.i.ty to the parish, which has been since replaced by an annual sum of 140 livres. Saint-Vincent, like most other catholic temples, was pillaged in 1562 by the calvinists.

Saint-Vincent is a handsome production of the _renaissance_. The architecture of the interior is light and gracious, if we except the ornaments, which are not in very good taste, and which have been fastened on the pillars of the choir, in the middle of the last century, after the designs of the architect De France.

The painted glases of this church are very remarkable. At the lower extremity of the right aisle, in looking towards the choir, we perceive a pane of gla.s.s, a part of which is done on pasteboard by Albert-Durer, representing the virgin kneeling beside several of the apostles. The draperies of the former are in admirable gothic style; the heads of the others are also very fine.

In the northern aisle, that is to say, to the left on entering by the great porch, opposite the choir, we remark a window representing the history of saint John the baptist. The lower pannel represents the _Decapitation_ of the saint, whose head they are carrying to Herod, who is seated at table with Herodias. In the next window, in going towards the eastern extremity, there is a view of the church of Saint-Ouen, but it is unfortunately broken. We can only now distinguish its tower.

In the chapel to the left of the choir, there is a window representing the miracle attributed to Ferdinand, better known under the name of saint Anthony of Padua, and taken from the lives of the saints, by the reverend father Francois Giry.

The interior of Saint-Vincent, and especially the southern aisle, still offers some very fine painted windows which are unfortunately very much injured.

SAINT-VIVIEN.

This church has given its name to the street in which it is situated. It was formerly but a chapel in the midst of meadows and marshes. In the year 1209, it was situated, without the town. It was formerly low and dark; in 1636, the roof was raised to a greater height. Before the year 1661, the organ was placed, in the left aisle: at this period, it was placed in its present situation. This church does not offer any thing very remarkable, unless perhaps its lofty steeple, in the form of a sugar loaf.

CHAPELS OF EASE.

SAINT-GERVAIS.

Saint-Gervais was perhaps after the virgin, the first person to whom an altar was erected in Rouen. Neither Pommeraye, Farin, Toussaint-Duplessis, nor several other modern writers, have spoken of the origin of this church; the following is a sketch of it.

In 386, saint Victrice, then archbishop of Rouen, received from Saint-Ambroise a box of relics, amongst which were the remains of Saint-Gervais. Saint-Victrice caused a church to be erected in which were to be deposited those venerable remains. The archbishop tells us that he worked with his own hands, and that he even helped to carry the stones on his shoulders. Should not the temple where the remains of Saint-Gervais had been deposited, have been named after this martyr? Was it natural to give another name? Certainly not; and we may conclude therefore that the present church of Saint-Gervais has been erected on the ground where that formerly stood, which Saint-Victrice had caused to be built; and which afterwards was raised into an abbey, and is at the present time a chapel of ease. The church of Saint-Gervais suffered considerably during the religious contests: in the year 1591, it was almost destroyed. At that time the royal army had taken possession of it and had established a battery near to it, which caused great havoc in the town of Rouen, this army was commanded by the Marquis de Villars, for the league.

Strangers should not forget to visit an extremely curious ancient monument, the crypt of Saint-Gervais. It is immediately under the choir of the church. The descent is by a stair-case composed of twenty eight stone steps. The length of this subterranean chapel is thirty five feet, by sixteen in breadth and fifteen in height. The two first archbishops of Rouen, saint Mellon and saint Avitien, are buried under the two arcades, which we perceive on the right and left at the foot of the stair-case. These arcades had been walled up at the time of the religions troubles; in 1723, they were opened again. The monument of saint Mellon is that to the left on entering. We here discover the only vestiges of roman architecture, which are to be found in this town. The roman road, which existed sixteen centuries ago, between the ancient _Rothomagus_ and _Juliobona_, pa.s.sed close to this church.

William the Conqueror, when mortally wounded by the pummel of his saddle, on his way to Paris, caused himself to be carried to the priory of Saint-Gervais, where he died on the 9th of september 1087.

SAINT-HILAIRE.

In the year 1562, the calvinists entered by force into the town of Rouen, by the suburb of Saint-Hilaire, and destroyed at the same time the church of that name. It was rebuilt twenty eight or thirty years after. Like the church of Saint-Vivien, it has given its name to the quarter in which it is situated; and like it also, offers nothing worthy the attention of the antiquary.

SAINT-PAUL.

Farin and some other authors have said that this had been an ancient temple of _Adonis_; nothing however proves, or justifies such an a.s.sertion; and we only see in this, a popular tradition on which we must not rely.