Monday 25 June 1838
Fair but rain threatening morning Fahrenheit 58 1/2 at 5 40/60 off from Tours at 6 1/2 - at 6 3/4 cross the Cher good stone bridge good river - Montbazon, 1 street poor little town - nothing there like an Inn - Sorigny a farm house and 1 or 2 little cottages - from there to Ste. Maure hilly, fine country - stopt à la Poste at 9 12/60 - no Inn - I had been asleep or should have seen this - the horses put to again, and drove to the other end of the Faubourg to the Cheval Blanc at 9 20/60
A neat looking small hotel or auberge where we found ourselves très bien - Marshal Soult and his wife here 3 weeks last Xmas - he taken ill in the night, erisipelas in his face - he had sent them a great many people - the woman of the house talkative and civil - her husband faisait la cuisine when it was worthwhile - for the marshal, and would for us if we staid there, had learnt at Tours he was renommé for his cooking - we had excellent café and milk and butter just made very, good - not quite ready when we arrived
Off again at 10 3/4 - the town Ste. Maure and its goodish looking church at a little distance behind on Cheval Blanc - at 11 1/2 cross good stone bridge over the Creuse, and enter the Department of the Vienne (river) and the nice village of Port-de-Piles a fine open country, corn and grass - Aux Ormes at 11 3/4 - neat good little village
The tool-box dropt off as we stopt à la poste, and getting the strap-holders sewed on again delayed us 35 minutes - Off again at 12 3/4 - pretty river Vienne close right - fine broad woods corn (chiefly rye) and grass valley - ruins on the hill side (right) - Sandy land all hereabouts - not naturally fertile - during this stage (right) observed 2 or 3 little white flags on poles as if for rail-road - Oats and barley short and thin - handsome stone bridge over the Vienne at Châtellerault, and just after passing the bridge and the 2 old round towers at the end of it.
Stopt at the Poste which is also the hotel Du grand Monarque at 1 3/4 - one of the main-bolts of the off back spring, fixed to the bed of the under carriage, broken - what with the torment of blacksmiths to mend this and woman up against the carriage windows with cutlery, one had enough to do more especially as it rained, just began to rain, pretty smartly - went into the hotel - desired the mistress to send for the man she herself employed on these occasions and in about 1/4 hour had agreed with him to do the job for 12/- + 1/- pour boire for the workmen - to be done in 1 1/2 hour - went afterwards twice to see that all was going on right - it was 2 1/2 hours before the job was done and then the men begged so hard gave dix sols over of pour boire
Very heavy rain almost all the time - at least from 1 3/4 to 4 1/2 it rained almost incessantly - from 2 35/60 to 3 1/4 inked over my travelling accounts from Friday, 22nd. instant, up to now - then half asleep on the sofa - then at 4 went (second time) to look after the carriage then ate a plate of, large - white, strawberries Ann having had hers before
Off again at 4 3/4 - Châtellerault seems a good town - much improved - much new building since 1830 - would not be teazed into buying any cutlery, but it looks better finished and of a higher order of make than it was in 1830 - nice looking small penknives and scissors - really looking like English - en sortait entrer forest which continues far towards La Tricherie, nice, neat good little village - fine country all today - Walnut trees in good bearing along the roadside, and now from La Tricherie are fine, large, healthy, handsomely formed trees, like forest trees - along the road and at a little distance, park-like - the great quantity of poplars, Italian and others, pruned to the very top, a striking feature ever since Paris - indeed all over France? no sight of the Vienne since Châtellerault except perhaps one peep - very fine country - Clan one long row of good village houses - the Poste at the far end, a little distance from the other houses, good looking longish house - Left (en sortant) the Claim, nice little river
A few drops of rain since leaving Châtellerault - vines on the hill sides - at 7 the Vienne and its tall Italian poplars, close left, forming a high hedge, and, right, high, hoary, calcareous, picturesque rock interspersed with gardens and fine excellent trees - very picturesque approach to Poitiers on the hill just above us - at 7 10/60 pass the non grille barrier gate into the city, and pass thro' old, ill built, ill paved, with little boulders stone very slippery the horses could scarcely stand, steep, narrow streets - steep ascent to the hotel de France, at the top of the hill, near the grande Place, at 7 20/60
Off to the cathedral with a boy guide in 10 minutes and there along narrow streets on the descent, in 1/4 hour at 7 3/4 - the only one I ever saw of the kind - the 2 side aisles (only 2) very nearly as high as the nave - short church - and short transepts - the oval iron railed choir extends 3/4 breadth of transepts into the nave having the transepts, on each side of it - and the pulpit is against the great transept nave column (south side) - 4 large arcades of nave - then the large arcade between the transepts, form the choir - adossé to the third large arcade, at the back of the choir, the apse is very small, little more than as it were a swelling out, that continues the virgin's chapel - only 2 side aisles, and no side chapels - the great altar is near the entrance into the choir - and there is an altar at the end of each transept - Organ in the west end, in dark oak Tribune taking up the whole of one arcade of nave and aisles
Exterior of the cathedral plain, except west end the 3 doorways much carved as at Rheims - 7 steps down to platform 6 or 8 yards broad up to the church door then 5 steps down from the door (west end) into the church - very ancient - painted windows in the transepts and round the east end - large Marigold window over the richly carved centre doorway (west end) end open round-gothic-arched gallerying along the top between the 2 plain gothic towers
1/4 hour there then to the church of Sainte Radegonde femme de Clotaire and descended by 18 steps down from the nave and 6 steps up from there to her tomb below the Close, - nave to the Choir so that the Chapel is loftyish for a souterraine - a small very ancient looking chapel 2 candles burning over the tomb of old, dark, porphyry? polished - lying like a plain 3 sided coffin, sharp edge uppermost, on the tomb - they tried to break this in la grande revolution but could not and one of the men died in the chapel, said the young man (sacristan) who seeing us enter the church had come after us - he then shewed us the chapel of the 'Pied de Dieu' - our Saviour appearing to Sainte Radegonde foretelling her death and that she should be a pearl in his crown left the print of his on the stone which stone is encadrée and had a wire guard in the rude form of a shoe or little basket put, locked around it - the foot-mark is deepish cut - whether the man really believed or not, I know not he looked as if he did and thought I did too - the church of Sainte Radegonde is evidently very ancient and the ground has risen much about it, as at the cathedral
From St. Radegonde to the Rue des Arènes to the house that had I written around it 'Aux Antiquités Romaines' I remembered the place - went into courtyard - and thro' the stables into the garden and remains of the old Roman amphitheatre - the garden within very nice - all much done-up and cleaned out and improved since 1830 - all about is now tidy - just peeped at the fine promenade - handsome public baths and other new buildings thereabouts just out of the grillegate barrier - too dark to see very clearly - but Ann bore the walk exceedingly well - she was interested - voilà tout
Home at 9 - dinner at 9 1/4 - came to my room at 10 1/2 - fine day till heavy rain between 2 and 3 p.m. afterwards fine afternoon and evening - Fahrenheit 67 1/2 at 11 5/60 p.m.
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