Wednesday 20 June 1838

Damp rainy disagreeable morning

Off from Paris, hotel de la Terrasse, rue de Rivoli, tenu per Madame Veuve Lemoyne - Drouet gone 2 or 3 years ago having fait mauvaises affaires

Off from Paris at 6 40/60 - changed horses at Sèvre and at 8 7/60 alighted to breakfast à l'hotel de Rennes about opposite the post at Versailles - wish we had come here before for civil people - a good enough little room to breakfast in (waited 20 minutes) and a little room close by that just suited us - 2 baskets strawberries 4/- + breakfast 4/- + garcon -/50 very well for Versailles

Our servants began on board wages at 4/- a day each - George said he would do just as I liked - could not live as Josephine did I said he might change - and give up the board wages whenever he liked

En route again at 9 3/4 very small recollection of the road to Rambouillet no peep at the old chateau we had hardly got 200 or 300 yards out of Epernon when the pole-end came off it on and fastened our volet as well as we could

Coignères small good village
Epernon picturesque little place
tied off from Maintenon at 3 p.m.

Maintenon picturesque little town - from the bridge leading out of it nice view of the nice old chateau, in its chapel Louis XIV married Madame de Maintenon, and along the little river thro' the tall arches of Louis 14th’s. ruined or never finished aqueduct - at 3 1/2 1st. view of the cathedral of Chartres and its 2 tall sharp pointed spires - alight at La Poste near the boulevard in a large Place the highest ground of, and at one extremity of the town, where seem to be all the Inns, one looking as good as another - all Diligence houses

At Chartres at 4 35/60
Hotel de la Poste.

The cathedral at no great distance - go across the Place, and past the little theatre and at the cathedral at 5 10/60 not aware it was disroofed by fire in 1836 by the negligence of a plumber, whose fire-pan set fire to wood-roof where it was standing, and, the wind being strong, the whole of the Spanish Chestnut wood Charpentre was consumed in 1/2 hour - midway the nave (northside) is a sort of Tribune or large pew containing 2 or 3 lay benches with backs to them - opposite the pulpit - and over this tribune fixed against the great pillar is a very well carved Oak pannel (done by a mensuisier of Chartres) representing the virgin holding down at her right foot the devil in a chain, and on her left a kneeling angel praying to her for help - the cathedral is carved in the distance behind her, and little angels are hovering round her in the clouds - below this piece of excellent modern carving, just finished, is the following inscription on a block marble slab also fixed against the pillar

Dæmonem in hanc ædem sacram flammas

Jamque per turnes et tabulata horrifice debacchatum ejaculatem

Maria, injecto fræno, coercet Angelus, urbis custos, ut sibi liceat

illam contra ignes tutari a virgine rogat, annuitque Deipara

Misericordiæ Domini quia non sumus consumpti

Thren[i] c.3.v.22

Prædictum incenium accidit die iv Junii MDCCCXXXVI

The nave of this cathedral said to be so dark, one cannot see to read by daylight except by a very strong light - the painted windows are certainly very dark - very much dark colours particularly blue - but yet I can see to write my pencil notes at this hour 5 1/2 p.m. and do not dislike the sombre aspect of the church interior - the screen is much admired - that fronting the nave tho' the figures may be good is too solid - too white, marble I suppose, too much a blocus - one can only see into the choir thro' the grille of the gate - but the old gothic time-darkened white marble de Carrara, round the sides and back of the choir, is very beautiful - in the style of the York minster screen - the figures in very high relief - representing divers scenes in the life of our Saviour &c. . . It was here that St. Bernard preached the second crusade in 1145. - the organ is perched up in the nave over the top of the second arch (south side) from the transcript - blocks one of the large windows - only on the aisle on each sides the nave - east end an apse croisée + aisled round

As usual had the sacristan who shewed us the Eglise souterraine it goes all under the present church - 15 feet French deep - 30 steps down - here we saw lying the lead of the roof molten into sand (cerussite) looking like white gritty sand in 2 great heaps very handsome church but not to be compared with Reims

Great many workmen getting up and fixing the new charpenter stood 10 minutes by 2 workmen in one of the west towers getting up thro' great holes made in the arching 2 great stones pulled by a windlass worked at the top - could not imagine the use of a pile of common red hollow pot cylinders about 14 or 16 or 18 inches long the closing on one end being like a thin square plate, about 1 inch thick to arch with a new plan from Paris - for fear of common stone work being too heavy - the interstices to be filled up with plâtre - Inquired about this in Paris

Dinner at 7 5/60 - sat leaning some time on the bed 1/2 asleep - had Josephine - at 8 1/2 - rainy day till about 5 p.m. afterwards pretty fine -  

WYAS: SH:7/ML/E/21/0125