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Last Updated: 03. Mai 2000
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France
A Cultural Exploration into Medieval France
Bayeux
Mont Saint Michel
Bayeux
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On this day, we traveled back in time to learn about another war between France and England. It was the Battle of Hastings. The Bayeux Tapestry told us the story through a long series of cartoons created with wool embroidery thread on a medium weight linen cloth.
Of course, the story was from the French perspective rather than an English perspective as we learned in American History class. It was interesting to learn the details of this story as well as see examples of how people lived in the 10th and 11th centuries. The year of 1066 is a very memorable date in English history. This is the year that William of Normandy earned the title "William the Conqueror" by uniting Northern and Southern England into one nation. No longer would England be a large island with little kingdoms scattered about but rather grow into a strong nation, as we know it today.
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Mont Saint Michel
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We approached Mont Saint Michel near sunset. The island rises up from the coast of Brittany and can be seen from many miles away. It is easy to see why early medieval people and the crusaders thought that Mont Saint Michel was a magical place. According to legend, Michael the Archangel told the Benedictine monks to build an abbey on this island. So, on the church's steeple, there is a gilded copper statue of Michael the Archangel slaying a dragon. It's point reaches 80 feet above sea level.
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Mont St. Michel is a very striking sight. Surrounded by walls, this old abbey has the appearance of a fortified castle. The bay that surrounds Mont Saint Michel has extraordinary tides. The tides have a considerable rise and fall - up to 12 meters. At low tide, it is possible to walk around the island on a vast expanse of sand while at high tide - only 6 hours later - the huge expanse of tideland will be under water.
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Although the weather was beautiful in the evening and we enjoyed a beautiful sunset over the coast, by morning it was pouring rain and very cold. We waited until the afternoon, hoping that the rain would stop or at least slow down to a drizzling rain. But by the afternoon it was still raining. So we walked the narrow cobblestone alleys and climbed the 350 steps to reach the abbey in a heavy rainfall and strong winds.
After arriving at the Abbey, we had a very pleasant tour with a lovely French woman who told us many interesting facts about the architecture and the history of the abbey. The abbey has excellent examples of Romanesque, Early Gothic, and Flamboyant Gothic architecture. Our informative guide helped us to compare and contrast the styles, so that even Erika was able to identify and understand the architectural differences. The abbey has some of the earliest examples of Gothic architecture. The architects tried new styles and techniques while building during the 13th century. So we were able to see technical advances that were not perfect examples of the Flamboyant Gothic style. It was interesting to see how technical innovation occurs. The architects designed a building with more light than earlier examples of Gothic architectural. This building was both architecturally successful and aesthetically beautiful.
After visiting the abbey, we had a short walk down the steps in drizzling rain. In order to warm ourselves, we enjoyed a warm cup of coffee and hot chocolate with dessert crepes. That night, after getting dry, we enjoyed a lovely French dinner at a nearby restaurant. I think that I will always remember the delicate taste of the fish that we ate that evening. It was a very memorable day.
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Die Fotogalerie von der Frankreich
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See you all later.
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