Secular Clergy freed these from all Episcopal Jurisdiction and Innocent III. granted them this vain Priviledge that their Abbot might take upon him the Title of Cardinal of St. Priscus In 1563. the Protestants being Masters of this Town broke down the Images and it having since followed the League the French King Henry IV. took it by Storm in 1569. and caus'd Maillé Benehard the Governour and a Franciscan Fryer to be Executed forgiving the rest of the People In this Town there is a very ancient Castle a Colledge of the Fathers of the Oratory and some Religious Houses It is distant from Paris about thirty two Leagues to the South-West Peter Ronsard a Poet famous in the last Age was Originary of Vendomois in which I find no other considerable Places but Mâ—ntoire and Ville aux Cleres Of Anjou ANjou Ducatus Andegavensis hath Maine on the North Brittany on the West Poictou on the South and Touraine on the East This Province is about 30 Leagues in length 20 in breadth It aboundeth with great Quarries of Slate wherewith most of their Houses are covered and even oft employed by Masons instead of Stones There are reckoned about 36 or 40 Rivers whereof the principal are the Loire the Sarte the Loir the Mayenne the Dive the Vienne the Couesnon the Oudon the Authion the Tonay the Layion the Eure the Guinate and such a number of Lakes Ponds Brooks and Fountains that several believe the Name of Anjou to be derived from that of Aiguade Du Chesne rejects this Conjecture as impertinent but when I consider that most of the Names of Countries have a reference to their situation that the Gascons who in their vulgar Language have preserv'd many ancient Gaulish Words call a River Gave that the Romans named the Inhabitants of Anjou Andicavi or Andegavi and that the Celtick Speech had a great affinity with the Teutonish I am apt to look on the Name Andegavi as a word compounded of three An-degaven In the Brooks to denote Men inhabiting a Country wash'd with many Rivers However it be this abundance of Water makes the Riches of Anjou both by a vast quantity of sweet Fish and the great number of Gardens and Meadows they make therewith fruitful This Province is partly Champian and has many Woods and Forrests where abound Stags Hinds Bucks Does Hares and all sorts of great and small Game and partly mountainous and cover'd with Vineyards that produce as delicate Wine as any in France most of which together with their Brandies and those of Orleanois are transported along the Loire to Nantes and thence into Forreign Country for Brittany has none or but very little of its own This Country is divided into higher and lower following the Course of the River Loire Anger 's is in the lower and Saumur in the higher The other most considerable Towns are la Fleche Montreuil-Belley Chateau-Gontier Beaufort en valée the Dutchies of Brissac Beaupreau Brezé Vaujour le Lude the Marquisates of Jarzay Bellay Touarcé the Counties of Monsoreau Maulevrier the Barrony of Craon c. the Abbies of Fontevraut and Borguéil the Castle and Convent of Verger c. The ancient Inhabitants of Anjou call'd in French Angevins and in Latin Andes Andi Andecavi or Andegavi had their own Commanders afterwards the Romans and since them the Kings of France and those of England enjoy'd it In 861. the French King and Emperor Charles the Bald bestow'd the Countries included betwixt the Seinâ— and Loire upon Robert the Strong Duke and Marquess of France on Condition that he should defend them against the Incursions of the Normans But the Posterity of Robert having obtain'd the very French Crown for his two Sons were Crown'd Kings viz. Eudes in 898. and Robert in 922. and his great Grand-son Hugh Capet began the third Race of the French Kings the Issue of Tertulle or Terculf to whom the same Charles had given some part of Anjou were accounted sole Counts of it during part of the Ninth the Tenth and the Eleventh Century They grew so potent and famous that Fulk V. became King of Jerusalem in 1131. and Henry Plantagenet Son to Godfrey III. Count of Anjou and le Mayne succeeded in the right of his Mother Mathilda to the Crown of England under the Name of Henry II. His Son Richard I. surnam'd Lions Heart enjoy'd likewise these Counties but they were Confiscated upon his Brother K. John by Philip August whose Successors gave them since several times in Portion to their Sons The French K. John erected Anjou into a Dutchy in 1360. in behalf of his second Son Lewis who became afterwards King of Naples and Sicily Count of Provence and Titular King of Jerusalem Charles the last of that Family instituted K. Lewis XI his Universal Heir and ever since this Province has been an Apannage or part of the Portion of the second Son of the French Kings as it is now enjoy'd by Philip Duke of Orleance Lewis XIV's Brother The City of Anger 's or Juliomagus Andegavorum Andegavae or Andegavi is situated on the River Mayenne after it hath receiv'd the Sarte and the Loire It 's the Capital of this Province having divers Seats of Justice Presidial Seneschalship Bailiwick Election a Mint where Money is coyn'd at the Letterâ— an University and a Bishoprick suffragan to Tours It is seated in a Plain very fertil producing delicate Fruits and very good Wine the River Mayenne divides it into 2 parts whereof the greatest which is call'd the City lyes on the steep of a little Hill where the Church of St. Maurice and the Castle of Anger 's are to be seen This Church which is the Cathedral is distinguished from all others by 3 high Steeples raised up on the body of the Church the middle of which being built on an Arch and underpropt only by the two others is accounted a Marvel On solemn Days are shewn the Relicks as the Sword of St. Maurice one of the pretended Pitchers wherein our Lord chang'd Water into Wine said to be brought from Jerusalem by Renatus K. of Sicily and resembling a Jasper Here is the Tomb of this Prince whose Body was brought hither from Aix in Provence as also his Picture drawn by himself The Chapter of the Cathedral is composed of 29 Canons a Dean a great Archdeacon a Treasurer an Arch-deacon beyond the Mayenne an Archdeacon beyond the Loire a Singer two other Treasurers and a Penitenciary This City has been beautify'd and encreas'd from time to time by its Counts but especially by our King John who built that part which lyes now beyond the Mayenne some surname it the Black City because its all covered with Slates Anger 's is much resorted unto at a Festival which the Roman Catholicks call La-Fete-Dieu the Feast of God Then you may see all the Priests and Monks and 4000 Inhabitants bearing as many kindled Torches and withall as many engraven Histories of the Holy Scripture as there are Wards in the
that Court where their Power is very considerable since the Suppression of the Charge of Lord Constable upon whom they were formerly depending However this Power is somewhat counterballanced by their great Increase in Number of late years The Lord Chancellor is the Head of all the Courts of Justice and presides in all the King's Councils in his Absence Besides he cannot be destituted but by Death or Trespass And therefore the Kings to keep this great Minister in awe have a Lord Keeper of the Seals whom they cause to discharge the Chancellor's Functions by giving him the Seals in which Occasion the Chancellor retains no more but the bare Name of his Office He has under him the Masters of the Requests who serve quarterly judge the Differences between the Officers of the Crown and prepare such Matters as are to come before the King 's Great Council This Council is now a Soveraign Court of Justice whose Sentences are executed throughout the whole Kingdom it 's composed of the Chancellor and eight Masters of Requests From this Court issue all the Placates Ordinances and Proclamations There are also a Council of State a Council of the Exchequer a Privy-Council to determine Appeals and Contests about the Jurisdiction of Judges and the Cabinet Council who manages all the Affairs and is as the Soul of the Realm Besides the twelve ancient Peers of France there are near a hundred more created since two or three Centuries but though they have the Priviledge to sit in the Parliament at Paris and not to be judged by any other Court yet they fall short of the Lustre and Power of the first Peers The Knights of the Order of St. Michael instituted by Lewis XI in 1469 are in no extraordinary Repute and this Order is now only considered as a step to that of the Holy Ghost instituted by Henry III. in 1570 whose Knights are fewer in number and more respected it being given as a token of special Favour and to such as are already of St. Michael's Order and considered by their Birth or Merits I supersede to speak of the Lord Admiral the Vice-Admirals and Rear-Admirals Of the Generals Lieutenant Generals Masters de Camp Collonels c. Of the Masters of the Ordnance of the Lord Treasurers Counsellors and Secretaries of State of the Ambassadors Lord Almoner Under Almoners Chaplains in Ordinary and other Officers either Civil Military or Ecclesiastical who are little or nothing different from the like in England But I must not forget to speak a word of the King's Confessor who though he has originally no more Power than the Clerk of the Closet here yet through the superstitious Condescension of the late Kings and the shrewd Management of those cunning Politicians Cotton Annat and La Chaize are become so powerful as to get into their Hands the Direction of the most important Affairs of the Kingdom under pretence of Conscience When the Jesuits were recalled into France King Henry IV. was advised to take one of these Fathers for his Confessor who should be as an Hostage for the Fidelity of the whole Club. But this very Caution proved his Ruine for Father Cotton whom he pitched upon having first seduced his Queen laid his Plot so well with Spain and his Fellow-Jesuits that the King was murthered by Ravaillac And that Henry's Ghostly Father and Queen had a Hand in this horrid Business can hardly be doubted after the Insinuations the sincere Mezeray gives of it There are two Charges in France the like I don't know that we have in England or at least they are not here in such a Consideration as in that Kingdom The Officers who discharge them are always Counts or Dukes or Princes of the Blood and are called the Great Huntsman and the Great Falconer of France They have large Appointments Gifts and Profits and several Officers under them whose Places are at their Disposal The Captain General of the Hunting-Nets and the Great Wolf-Hunter keep likewise an honourable Rank and all four are sworn by the King himself I shall finish this Chapter with mentioning the Way of administring Justice in France Suits are for the most part commenced before the ordinary Judges of the Place which are called Royal or Seigneurial according as the Town or Village depends â—mmediately upon the King or a private Lord except in some particular Cases or when one of the Parties concerned is exempted from their Jurisdiction Thence â—hey are brought before the Baylives or Seâ—eschals who are Chief Justices of a certain Precinct called Baylwick Vriguory Provostship or Seneshalship These Baylives are Noble Men who bear a Sword instead of a Gown and seldom discharge their Office themselves but have two Lieutenants under them one for Civil and the other for Criminal Causes The last and Supream Jurisdiction is â—he High Court of Parliament each of which is composed of ten twelve or fifteen Presidents and well near eighty or an hundred Counsellors The Power of this Court â—s yet very great because of the many Noble and Priviledged Men whose Causes immediately resort to it But it was much greater in times past especially that of the Parliament of Paris which was in some manner a standing Assembly of the General States For no Edict or Proclamation of the King had the Force of a Law before â—t was â—enteriné or ratify'd by them and they might reject such as were not in their Judgments fit for the Publick Good A Boldness of which History furnisheth us with several Examples even under the most powerful and respected Princes as Lewis XI Francis I. and Henry IV. But the late Ministers Richelieu Mazarin Colbert and Louvois have so far undermined the Authority of these Courts that they not only dare not reject any of the King's Edicts but dare not so much as make use of the Word Enteriné their Style being now Lû verifié en Parlement That is Read and acknowledged for a true Writing or Order of the King The Intendants are the Men whom the Promoters of Arbitrary Power have made a special use of to bring down the Power of Parliaments They are a kind of Overseers whom the French Kings began to send into the several Provinces of their Dominions fifty or sixty years ago and who under pretence of setling the King's Revenues reconciling Differences about it or seeing Justice well done have considerably encroached upon the Jurisdiction of Parliaments without that the Complaints of the last were ever regarded at Court The preposterous Zeal of these Magistrates against the Reformed was none of the least Causes of their Decay for as often as any Suit wherein both Churches seemed to be concerned came before them we were sure to get an Arrêt de Partage or that the Protestant President and Counsellors would give their Voice in favour of the Defenders whereas the Roman Catholicks would decide for the Plaintiffs how ill grounded soever their Actions might be This of course brought the Decision of the
West coast you meet with the Souille that receives the Herouille and the Burd which go by Coutances The See and the Ardee fall both into the Bay of Avranches I would begin here the particular description of this Province were it not that I think my self Obliged to say something of the first Dukes of Normandy from whom our Kings of England are descended and by the way to show the just claim they may still lay to that Noble Dukedom their Ancient Patrimony Raoul having setled himself in Normandy not only by Conquest and force of Arms but also by the voluntary yielding of Charles the simple and his Marriage with Gisele Niece to that King gave good Laws to his Subjects Among others that the Poor might have right done to them without any Expence he ordered that any Murderer Robber Incendiary or any one that should pursue another with a naked Sword should be stop'd and brought before a Justice without any other Warrant than the Out-cry of the Wronged Person This is the Origin of what the Normans call the Clamour of Haro which they make use of when they think themselves wrong'd or oppress'd perhaps too often as they are accus'd to be of a litigious Temper Howsoever it may be Haro seems to be an abbridged word for Ha Raoul as tho' they would still implore the Justice of their first Duke Raoul took the name of Robert at his Baptism was succeeded by William I. surnamed Long-sword in 917 or 920 and was succeeded by three Princes named Richard Robert II. Son to the last of them in 1028. was Father to our William the Conquerour whom he got from Helen Grand Daughter to Edmond Ironside one of our Saxon Kings if we may believe Thomas Rudborn who quotes several Authors for this History Thus England and Normandy were quietly enjoyed by our Monarchs till the French King Philip August taking hold of the Civil War which the English Barons raised against King John deprived him of his Dutchy of Normandy under pretence that he had caused his Nephew Arthur to be murther'd It was reconquered by Henry V. but lost again under Henry VI. during the Civil Wars between the Houses of York and Lancaster However it remains uncontested that this Province has been possess'd successively by fourteen Dukes of the same Race six of whom were Kings of England I must not forget that the Normans are Witty and Ingenious especially in making Establishments which their Envious Neighbours would find fault with and on that account stain them with Treachery Their Countrey is so great and so Populous that there are reckon'd a hundred Towns and a hundred and fifty considerable Burroughs So that the Reader may not expect I should describe them all but only such as are most Eminent and of which some Particulars are come to my knowledge Norman Vexin THis Countrey was anciently inhabited by the Veliocasses Velocasses or Belocasses whose Territories reached from the Andelle to the Oysâ— but after the Normans had conquer'd the best part of Neustrie it was divided into two parts whereof that which obey'd the French King was called the French and the other the Norman Vexin De Valois relates a remarkable thing namely that the feuds between these two People are yet as great as if they were still Enemies and had not the same Master so that they seldom marry together nor will they Trade or have any thing common one with another The Norman Vexin confines upon the Isle of France from which it is separated by the River Epte The first considerable Town you meet with is Gisors scituated upon the same River fourteen leagues Northwest of Paris with a Bailiwick resorting to the Parliament of Rouen Under the Reign of Philip I. King of France William the red King of England took it from a Knight call'd Payen and fortified it in 1228. Henry III. King of England had an Interview between this Town and Trie with Philip August King of France upon the news of the taking of Jerusalem by Saladin And having consulted about the means to recover the Holy Land they resolve to take the Cross together with many other Princes in memory of which they erected a Cross in the Field where they had made this Agreement and promised one another to leave off their differences till their return Pont de l'â—rche Pons arcûs eleven leagues almost West of Gisors and seven miles South of Rouen is an important passage upon the Seyne near the fall of the Eure into it and therefore it has a particular Governour It was the first Town which surrendred it self to Henry IV. after his coming to the Crown in 1589. Dâ— Chesne esteems that Pont de l'arche is the Castle Pistae which Charles the bald built to withstand the Incursions of the Normans but most of the other Geographers believe it to be one of these tvvo neighbouring places Pistres or Poses Rouen nine leagues South-east of the mouth of the Seyne and above thirty North-west of Paris situated upon the same River and is one 〈◊〉 the biggest richest and most populous Ciâ—â—â—s in that Kingdom and the Capital of Norâ—â—â—dy It s Archbishop calls himself Primate 〈◊〉 that Province hath the six Bishops of it unâ—â—r him and does not acknowledge the Meâ—â—opolitan of Lyons since the Year 1457. The â—athedral Church under the Name of our Laâ—â— has ten Dignitaries fifty Canons eight petâ—â— Canons and a great number of Chaplains 〈◊〉 has three great Towers the first call'd the â—â—ower of St. Romain is cover'd with Lead â—â—d has one of the finest Steeples in the World â—â—ith 500 fifty steps the second is call'd the â—â—tter-Tower built out of that Money which â—ardinal George of Amboise the Pope's Legate 〈◊〉 France gather'd from the Inhabitants to give â—â—em leave of eating Butter in Lent the third â—â—ower is all made of Wood and raised upon a â—â—orch with great Art Duchesne speaks of two â—â—eat Bells the first in the Tower of St. Roâ—ain is one of the biggest in France and bears â—â—e name of George of Amboise who caus'd it to 〈◊〉 made the other is in the Wooden Tower 〈◊〉 this Church are also to be seen the Mausoleys 〈◊〉 Sepulchres of the Dukes of Normandy and 〈◊〉 the Archbishops of that City a white Marâ—â—e Statue of the French King Charles V. and â—â—at of the Count of Bedford who was Proteâ—or of France during 13 years under our Henâ—â— VI. He is represented on Horseback upon â—â—s Monument in the Chappel of the Virgin â—ary behind the great Altar Lewis XI visitâ—â—g this Church some body told him It was 〈◊〉 shame that so great an Enemy to his Crown should have so fine a Tomb and that he 〈◊〉 to be removed from thence No answered French King It is well that he lyes thâ— for if he were alive he would frighten 〈◊〉 away There is likewise a Chappel under the 〈◊〉 of the Saints Innocents where is represâ—â—â— St. Romain Archbishop of Rouen in the 〈◊〉 Century with a
hundred most of whom they had the Barbarity to kill Next to Jargeau is the Castle and Garden of Jenaille with an artificial Rock made up of Shells and little glistering Stones of different colours whence spring Water-spouts that represent various figures Sully Solliacum four Leagues South-East of Jargeau on the same side of the River Loire is an antient Castle and Town with the Title of a Barony that has produced two famous Bishops of Paris in the Twelfth Century Maurice and Odon of Sully It was erected into a Dutchy and Peerdom by Henry IV. in 1606 to gratifie the Marquis of Rosny who had done him so many services This Lord was a Protestant and continu'd so all his life notwithstanding the Apostacy of his Master He has left Memoirs of what happen'd most considerable during his life that are much esteem'd The Lords of Sully have there a fine Castle Park and Garden Clery upon the Doure seven Miles South-East of Orleans is a Village noted for a Church under the name of our Lady The English plunder'd it after the taking of Meun in 1428. but the French King Lewis XI repair'd it and richly endow'd a Colledg of Canons which he fouâ—ded there chusing it for his Grave The other places in the Election of Orleans are Chateau-Neuf Ascheres Bazoches Artenay La Ferte-Seneterre a Barony with a fine Castle St. Aubin Ouzouer on the Loire and St. Benoit Baugency or Bois-jenci Balgentiacum a Town on the River Loire almost six Leagues South-West of Orleans with an Election and an Arch-Deaconship It 's seated in a most pleasant Soil fertil in Corn Wine and Fruits and abounding with Game It 's here that Lewis VII assembled the Prelates and Barons of his Kingdom to be divorc'd from Q. Eleanor his Wife says Du Chesne to which Mezeray adds That the King pursu'd the Separation vigorously I cannot but admire the blind zeal of the French Historians who to save the honour of this Prince turn him into the greatest Blockhead that ever sate upon a Throne when they make him divorce upon pretence of Consanguinity the rich Heiress of Guyenn and to restore her Dowry which did so mightily weaken him tho' he could not ignore she would deliver it into the hands of a pâ—tent Neigbour The truth is this was a trick of the C urt of Rome to put a stop to the growth of the French Monarchy lest those Kings should keep the Popes within the due limits of a Spiritual Jurisdiction as the first Emperors of France and Germany had done To compass their End those crafty Priests made use of the love of Queen Eleanor for young Henry Plantagenet Duke of Normandy Count of Anjou Maine c. and future King of England For it was the Queen who propos'd and pursu'd the Divorce at Rome as Tho. Wikes an English Historian tells us Agitata says he diutius lite inter Alienoram Reginam Francorum virum suum Regem ipsa Regina acriter petente Divortium ratione consanguinitatis quam proposuit inter se virum suum Auctoritate Apostolica celebratum est Divortium inter eos Instantius autem laborabat ad Divortium eo quod ad Nuptias Henrici Ducis Normaniae futuri Regis Angliae ferventius aspirabat Erat ipsa filia Vnica Haeres Ducis Aquitaniae quam nos Vasconiam nuncupamus Soluto quoque Matrimonio inter ipsam Regem ad Nuptias Ducis quas concupierat illico convolavit Haec secundum Historiae veritatem huic opusculo dignum inserenda judicavi Histor Angl. script Tom. II. p. 29. Here then it was that the sentence of that Divorce so fatal to France was pronounc'd on Tuesday before Palm Sunday 1152. Forty eight years before another National Synod had been held at Baugenci on occasion of King Philip I. Marrying Bertrade of Montfort against the advice of the Barons of his Realm In 1428. Baugenci was taken by the Count of Salisbury but retaken by the French after they had master'd Meun This Town has had its own Lords since the middle of the Thirteenth Century till 1544. that it was reunited to the Fr. Crown Meun or Mehun was an antient Castle built on a Hillock near the confluence of the Mauâ—e and Loire on the North-side to oppose the irruptions of the Vandals Meun Magdunum Maidunum or Maudunum is now an indifferent good Town four Leagues South-West of Orleans and two North-East of Baugenci One St. Lifard accompanied with Vrbicius laid here the Foundation of a Monastery since turn'd into a Collegiate Church After the taking of Yanville Meun surrender'd to the Count of Salisbury who put a strong Garrison in it notwithstanding which it was soon after retaken by the French This Town was one of the Country-Houses most frequented by Charles V. and the Inhabitants have a Proverb to signifie that he dy'd there in 1381 tho' Historians relate that it was in another Country-House call'd Beauty upon the Marne Whatever be of that Meun gave its name to a famous Poet a Dominican Frier call'd John Clopinel or John of Meun who flourished about the end of the XIII Century and the beginning of the XIV and finish'd the renown'd Roman of La Rose begun by William of Lorris There are two other notable Burroughs in the Election of Baugenci viz. Chaumont and Ouzouer le Marche Pluviers or rather Pithiviers is the Head oâ— another Election and Archdeaconship The Latin Authors call it diversly Petiveris Piverum c. It 's a Town and a Castle seated with a Bridge on the small River Pituere nine Leagues North-East of Orleans near to a Village call'd Pithiviers le Vieil It has an antient Priory depending on the Abby of Cluny and founded in the Seventh Century besides a Kings Court of Regal Justice resorting to the Presidial of Orleans Yanville six Leagues West of Pithiviers is another Regal Court of the Bailiwick of Orleans The Fr. King Henry IV. took it after Estampes on a Sunday November 11. 1589. and Garrison'd the Castle Yeure le Chastel a League East of Pithiviers and Neufville four Leagues South-West are two other Regal Seats of Justice The other Towns or Burroughs in this Election are Thoury Autruy Sermaizes Soizi-Males-herbes Briares and Puizeaux This last is call'd so from the abundance of Wells that are otherwise very rare in this Election and the Country of Gastinois Of Gastinois GASTINOIS Wastinensis or Vastinensis Pagus has the Isle of France on the North and North-East Bourgogne on the East Nivernois and Berry on the South and Proper Orleanois on the West reaching thirty Leagues North and South from Mont le hery in the Isle of France to Pouilly in Nivernois and about sixteen Leagues East and West where 't is broadest as from Chastenay in the Country of Chartres to Moret in the Isle of France But 't is to be observ'd that that which now bears the name of Gastinois is made up of two Countries viz. Pagus or Comitatus Milidunensis the
AN HISTORICAL AND Geographical DESCRIPTION OF FRANCE Extracted from the best Authors both Ancient and Modern By J. De LACROSE Eccl. Angl. Presb. LONDON Printed for T. Salusbury at the King's-Arms near St. Dunstans Church in Fleet-street 1694. To His Most Excellent MAJESTY WILLIAM III. By the Grace of God King of Great Britain France and Ireland Defender of the Faith c. May it please Your Majesty THE Kingdom of France tho' never so large and powâ—rful has formerly belong'd either â—n part or in whole to Your glorious Ancestors The vast Dutchies of Normandy and Guyenn Maine Touraine Perche and Poictou the Counties of Ponthieu and Guisnes Calais Boulogne Ardres 〈◊〉 and their dependencies were thâ— Patrimonial Estates of the Kingâ— of England besides many Countieâ— and Lordships that Your Predecessors the Princes of Orange havâ— enjoy'd in Dauphine Provence Languedoc and Burgundy 〈◊〉 that tho the pretended Salick Law by which the Houses of Valois anâ— Bourbon endeavoured to maintain their usurpation should takâ— place Your Majesty has still thâ— lawful claim of inheritance to thâ— best part of the French Territories All the World knows that nâ— such motives have ingaged Youâ— Majestâ— in this present War Youâ— generous Mind aims at nothing else than to get restor'd to your Allieâ— what an ambitious Prince has usurped from them But as when Solomon prefer'd Wisdom to Riches God gave him the latter too as an Overplus So it may be that the just Distributer of Kingdoms being pleased with that act of Justice of Your Majesty will add to Your Dominions the vast Estates of Your Fore-Fathers and lâ—t us sâ—e another Henry of England Crown'd in Paris A great nâ—mber of those who appear Your inveterate Enemies are most concern'd for Your Majesty and truâ—st to Your Interest The Secular Clergy of France depriv'd of their Authority the Nobility of their Power the Gentry of their Estates the Parliaments reduc'd to be only the unworthy Ministers of the Passions and Pleasures of a few arbitrary Courtiers the Learned overloaden with Superstitions the persecuted Protestants forc'd to a Worship which they detest in their Heart most or all the French Cities or Countries robb'd of their Liberties and Privileges and even the whole Kingdom beggar'd and famish'd sigh and long for such a Deliverer as Your Majesty who is not afraid of the tempests of the Sea and bids defiance to the Fire of Canon's who has â—eceiv'd so many Wounds and looâ—'d so many Dangers in the Face for our Security May Almighty God animate Your Subjects with so â—uch Zeal and bless Your Arms with so great a Success that Your Majesty may afford an occasion to Your secret Friends to declare themselves and procure them such a settled Welfare and constant Liberty as may have no other end but the Consummation of the World Which is the earnest Desire Of Your Majesty's Most humble most obedient And most faithful Servant J. De LACROSE THE PREFACE SOme Readers may imagine that it is no hard matter to describe a Country so near so full of Learned men and so stor'd with excellent Books as France is especially for a Native of it because of the many helps an Author may meet with I have made use of all those I could come at Books Maps Memoirs Inquiries of living persons besides what I knew of my own But I was soon aware that the Description of those who have Written before me even in the middle of that Kingdom are very imperfect All the Journeys into France I have read as du Verdier Sinceri Accii Itinerarium Galliae Le Grand Tour de France les Delices de la France and the late Voyages Historiques de l'Europe observe neither order nor method confounding not only the several Counties into which each great Government is subdivided but even the great Governments themselves As to Geographers Comminges and Darity are too old and confus'd The Maps of Sanson the Father and the Son are excellent those of Du Val next to them and by comparâ—ng them together as I have done one may be pretty sure of the Longitude and Latitude situation and distance of places But neither of the Sansons has made a modern and particular Description of France and that of Du Val is too short and not methodical enough As to Antiquities Andre du Chesne in his curious Inquiries concerning the Towns of France is full of Fables and ought not to be follow'd but very cautiously tho he is a Man of a vast reading and much to be commended for having published several Historians of the middle Age that have Written of the French affairs and made use of them in his Antiquities of that Country and Monarchy Joseph Scaliger how Learned soever he may be in other things does not come near Du Chesne in this and proposes many bold conjectures concerning the ancient names of the French Cities and Countries for which he often gives no other authority but his bare saying Baudrand is but a pitiful compiler of modern Books who never look'd into ancient Authors Sanson in his Pharus Galliae Antiquae is more accurate than the fore mentioned Writers and has made many curious and useful discoveries But the most exact of all in my Judgment is Adrian de Valois in his Notitia Galliarum as to the Latin names of Places for there is hardly any thing else in that huge Folio besides some few hints of History to be gâ—ther'd here and there with great trouble I have perus'd three other modern Geographers which I must not forget viz. Robbe's Memoires Geographiques Morery's Grand Dictionnaire Historique and Geographique with the supplement of Perayre and De la Croix's Geographie Vniverselle As to the first he cannot commit many faults for he has almost nothing besides French names but as soon as he presumes to say something more for instance to determine the extent of a Government or its Latitude and Longitude one may very near be sure to find him in an error As to Morery it is pity he did not live long enough or had not the conveniency to read ancient Authors His want of Learning in Ecclesiastical History and Mysteries of State makes him too passionate when he speaks of the Protestants and leads him into many mistakes as to Latin names and other Antiquities As to De la Croix all his performance consists in having put an abâ—idgment of Morery into Robâ—e's method and a very unjudicious one too for he leaves out what is most curious and essential in the Great Dictionary and the rest he takes it word for word unless it be to corrupt and abridg it again but for the most part he is so faithful as to transcribe the very faults of the press as p. 200. l. 29. Anvers for Anâ—t Whatever he adds of his own here and there as the Latitude and Longitude and the distance of places is always falâ—e for he never took the 〈◊〉 of looking into one of Sanson's or du Val's Maâ—s For instance
Valour and Bravery and for their being fit and as 't were born to all that they are minded to Undertake in Learning War or Mechanicks wherein they very Expeditiously imitate whatever they see perform'd by Strangers They are very cleanly in their Diet and Apparel and very apt in the one or the other to go beyond their Means Quality and Birth which by comparing them to Spaniards Italians and other Nations has been taken notice of Their Cloathing as to the Making is never certain no more as to the Mode then as to the Stuff wherein continually they change at least from year to year The Men here are Comelier and Stronger and of a finer size than Spaniards and Italians but not then the Germans Dutch or English As to the Women they are Handsomer In some Provinces than others For in Normandy Picardy and on this side the Loire they are commonly more agreeable than in the ancient Aquitain that is in Auvergne Perigord the Country of Limoges Gascony and Vpper Languedoc The other part of Guienne especially at Bourdeaux part of Dauphiné Lower Languedoc and Provence shew more pleasing Faces and even exquisite Beauties As we have said that the French Man renders himself fit for every Thing he is chiefly so in Arms and War-fare He likewise gives himself over to Study Eloquence to all Arts and to Merchandize He carries freely his Trade to Foreign Nations and there Manures the Land and knows not to be Lazy He is very Industrious and Works merrily though he is found fault with for not being Patient and willing to endure in War The French Nobility are above all most rare Horsemen and have a particular Care of their Honour even to excess witness the damnable custom of Duels which the Edicts of the present Prince have not yet been able totally to suppress The People of France are generally Meek and Good every where except in some few places where they are a little too Blunt and Rustick The Vulgar bears an extream Respect to great Persons whether they be of the Nobility Officers of Justice or of the Revenues Ecclesiasticks and other Men of Long Gown are especially Honoured And there is hardly any Nation in the World that has so many Officers of all sorts as the Kingdom of France The Merchant nay and the very Tradesman if at any time he becomes Wealthy pushes his Children to it And into several Parliaments of France and other Courts of Justice the Nobility Sues for Offices too whence comes that infinite number of literate Men though their Reward be but small and that all Offices be Sold which is not usual in other States of Europe Thence also proceeds a swarm of Advocates Sollicitors Registers Notaries and other Men of Business whose number has been extraordinarily increas'd by the late Edicts of Lewis XIV and his Creation for Money of an incredible number of new Officers which must needs impoverish the Kingdom and bring it at last to an utter Ruin For either these new Offices will be suppress'd in time of Peace and consequently a great many Families will be Ruin'd that have bestow'd their ready Money and some their Estates upon these Employments Or if they be continued the common People will be oppress'd by the multitude of Officers and the number of Merchants Trades and Husbandmen mightily diminish'd Another great Abuse that may prove at last the Ruin of France is the extraordinary increase of the Gentry For whereas in England younger Brothers even of the greatest Noblemen make no difficulty of becoming Merchants nay and Tradesmen too if they have no inclination to Learning The youngest Son of a simple Gentleman in France would account it a great Dishonour to his Birth to do any thing but to wear a Gown or a Sword which makes that the French Gentry who is almost as numerous as the other Inhabitants can hardly subsist in time of Peace Besides the Faults which the French have common with other Nations as to be too much given to Play to Women Debauchery Blasphemies and Cursings it cannot be deny'd but that they are Hasty and Cholerick However you will find amongst 'em very few instances of those secret and awful Revenges that are so often practis'd by some of their Neighbours As to their Levity we may in their behalf make use of Charles the Fifth's saying That they are Wise without making any shew of it For though they are not so Crafty as the Italians nor so Vain and Proud as the Spaniards yet do they not want Policy and Cunning. Finally the French are very Religious and have always feared their Gods and whatever Religion they Embraced they firmly stick'd to it The frequent Wars which they have Undertaken or Suffered upon this account shew the Truth of this Assertion They are very Respectful to Ladies and give them large Liberty neither do they shut them up as the Italians and Spaniards do whence it comes that they are cordially Beloved and served by their Wives and that the Visits and Practises of young Women end generally in a happy Wedlock The French Tongue for the most part is a Branch of the Latin The Romans becoming Masters of the Country and introducing their Laws in it changed the Speech of the Natural Inhabitants or by little and little made them loose it If the German Tongue had been there spoken before or the British they were at last totally routed and a kind of corrupted Latin took their place Now a days each Province has its peculiar manner of Speaking and Dialect However there is still a difference of Speech betwixt the Provinces on this side the Loire and those beyond it The first Speak French and the last Gascon taking this Word as usually taken at Paris for those of Languedoc and Dauphiné Provence and Guyenne the Latin Tongue having left deeper Footsteps of its Residence in those four Provinces than among the other French whose Language is purer especially about Blois Orleance and Paris CHAP. IV. Of the Riches Strength and Government of France THE Kingdom of France is Rich and Potent by its Situation by the great numbers of its Cities and Inhabitants and by its Wares of all Sorts of which there is a great Trade As to the Riches the King takes what he pleases in his Taxes Excise upon Salt Impositions upon Merchandises that go out and are brought into France besides his Patrimony whereupon the Kings have lived during a long time The Revenues of the Kingdom before the Dutch War of 1672 were deem'd to amount to 170000000 Livres that is about 15000000 Sterling but have ever since still diminish'd partly by the continual Taxes that impoverish the People and partly by the stop which the Wars have put to Trade but much more by the Persecution of the Protestants which has made the price of the Lands considerably fall disturb'd the Traffick of the Realm and depriv'd it of great Sums of ready Money which the French Refugees have brought over with 'em
them with abundance of Butter and Milk and their Sea-ports make them the best Fishers and Mariners in France The Inhabitants appear Clownish but are really shrewd and cunning Tho' Pliny asserts l. 4. c. 17 19. That the Galli call'd in their own Language Aremorica the Countrey included between the Garumne the Sea and the Pyrenean Mountains which the Romans nam'd afterwards Aquitain yet it appears that Caesar and other Ancient Geographers understood by Armorica and Armorici the Nations and Cities bordering upon the Ocean from the mouth of the Seyne to that of the Loire so that the Ancient Armorique comprehended all Brittany and a good part of Normandy that is all the third Lyonnoise and about one half of the second but this Name deriv'd from an old Gaulish word Armor Ad mare or near the Sea became in process of time proper to Britanny Beda relates l. 1. c. 1. That in old times some Armoricans came over into our Island and master'd the Southern parts of it however 't is not from them that our Ancestors got the Name of Brittains since these Gauls were only known by that of Armorici whereas it cannot be doubted but that our Brittains gave their Name to Brittanny Annal. Egin ad An. 786. For Eginhard testifies that about the Year 441. at the beginning of Valentinian's Empire the English and Saxons having invaded our Island a great part of the Inhabitants put to Sea and Landing on the borders of Vannes and Cornouaille made themselves Masters of the Countrey Accordingly we find one Mansuetus Bishop of these Brittains subscribing to the Council of Tours in 461. Our Refugees made not long since a great Figure in the World for about the end of the fifth Age their King â—â—othimas having made a League with the Emperor Anthemius against the Goths was defeated by them on the borders of Berry before he could joyn with his Confederates and lost in that Battle the best part of 12000 men So great a loss however was not able to run them altogether down for we find that even in the following Century they were a Terror to the French so that Clovis the Great 's Grand-Children Theodebert and Thierry were forc'd to keep Counts and Marquesses on the Frontiers to oppose the Incursions of the Brittains into the Territory of Nants They being so Warlike and their Castles and Forts being surrounded with Woods and Marshes the Captains of Charlemaign were not like to have subdued them as they did about the end of the eighth Century had they not divided themselves into several petty principalities notwithstanding they recover'd their liberty under Charles the Bald by the Valour of Nomenoius and Herispoius his Son to whom Charles yielded the Territories of Rennes Nantes and Retz when he saw that he could not recover them Others relate the Settlement and Adventures of our Brittains somewhat differently They say that about the Year 393. a Brittish Captain called Conan Meriadoc Lieutenant to Maximus who had been saluted Emperor in England in 382. obtained leave of his Master to erect a Kingdom in Little Brittain which his Successors enjoyed independently from any other till about the Year 570. that Chilpric I. King of France made them Tributary After the Death of Judicael about the Year 700 This Kingdom was rent into several petty Principalities so that Charlemaign had no great trouble to subdue them as he did in 787. Neomenes or Nomenoius descended from the Ancient Kings of Brittany was made Lieutenant to the Emperor Lewis the Meek but he revolted against him took the Title of King and dyed in 852. Heruspeus or Herispoius his Successor maintain'd the War against the French King till 866. that he was kill'd by his Cousin Solomon This last reigned 12 years and was murdered in 878. After his Death this Province was rent again by several Lords who made themselves Soveraigns in their respective Countries This lasted to the Year 930 or 935. that Alain I. subdued the whole Province and enjoyed it under the Title of County He was succeeded by twelve or thirteen more who possesesed it under the same Title but in all Soveraignty till a French Prince called Peter of Dreux Grandson to the French King Lewis the Burly having married Alix Heiress of this County in 1213. consented to acknowledge the French King Lewis IX for his Liege Lord who in recompense gave him the Title of a Duke And for having thus betray'd the Liberties of the Brittains he was surnamed by them the Duke Mauclerc that is The Ignorant or unskilful Duke Philip the fair King of France made John II. Grand-child to Peter Mauclerc Duke and Peer of France After the Death of John III. surnamed the Good in 1341. there hapned a long and bloody War between two pretenders to this Dutchy John IV. surnamed of Monfort and Charles of Blois John was Son to Arthur II. by a second Wife Charles had Spoused Jane Countess of Ponthievre Grand Daughter to the said Arthur The French King Philip of Valois maintained Charles and Edward III. King of England took the part of John This Quarrel lasted about 14 or 15 Years till John V. Son to the said John of Montfort totally routed and killed his Competitor Charles at the Battel of Aury in 1364. This Great Duke surnamed the Warlike and the Conqueror was succeeded by six others the last of whom Francis H. left but one Daughter Ann Dutchess and Heiress of Brittain Married to the French King Charles VIII and then to Lewis XII She had a Daughter by the last called Claudia Married to the French King Francis I. whose Son Henry II. was the first King of France that was Duke of Brittain by Succession and United that Dutchy inseparably to his Crown The chief Rivers of Bretagne besides the Loire of which we have spoken in the General Description are the Vilaine Vicenonia which comes from a Place in the Maine called la Croisille washes Vitrey receives the Pinelle mixes with the Lille at Rennes then encreased with the waters of Seiche Bonau and Sevonne St. Aubin Ouste Adon falls into the Sea near the Isle of Mai t six leagues South-west of Vennes and four North of the mouth of the Loire The Blavet comes from the Bishoprick of Quimpercorentin runs thrô the Bishoprick of Vennes washes Pontivy and Hennebont and having received the Elle at his mouth discharges it self into the Sea at the bay of Blavet The Laita separates the Bishopricks of Vennes and Quim percorentin and having received the Isotte at the Abby of St. Croix runs into the Sea at the Abby of St. Maurice three or four leagues West of the Bay of Blavet The Rivers of Oder and Benaudet meet at Quimpercorentin and run into the Ocean at a Village called Benaudeâ— The River Ausen or Auen washes the greatest part of this Bishoprick and falls into the Bay of Brest on the South-side which on the North-side receives the River Eloen The River of Morlaix washes the Town
Frano-Countois were the cause of a second coming of the Romans The Sequani being too weak for the Aedui had invited the Germans and with their Succors defeated 'em twice Upon this Divitiacus an Autunois Lord was deputed to Rome and Prevailed easily with the Senate to send an Army into the Gaules The Great Caesar was chosen for this expedition who knew to make a good use of the Friendship of the Aedui and of the Dissensions of the Gaules so that he overcame them all one after another The Autunois perceiv'd but too late they had been mistaken in their Politicks and would feign have been rid of the imperious Master they had given to themselves and their Country-men but the Gaules were already exhausted in a manner of Men and Mony neither had they learn'd the War-Stratagems and Military Discipline of their Conquerors so that their League with Vercingentorix for the relief of the Alesia one of their Towns avail'd nothing but to bring them into the contempt of the Romans who deprived them insensibly of their Countries and Priviledges and made Lyons head of the Celtick Gaules The Autunois rais'd a third time under the Emperor Tiberius but with as little success as before They could never since recover their Liberty and much less their Empire but were always subject either to the Romans the Burgundians or to the French But the greatest losses the Autunois suffer'd were by the rebellion of the Bagaudes or Gaulish Peasants who plundered the Country and all the Towns they could Master under the Conduct of one Amanâ— and Elian but were at last defeated by Herculius Maximian associated to the Empire by Diocletian The two Emperours at the sollicitations of Constantius Chlorus Caesar and afterwards Emperour of the Gaules England and Spain began to repair Auâ—un which Constantius and Constantine his Son finished For this reason the Senate of Autun made a Decree that their City should be called Flavia and the Inhabitants Flavienses from the proper Name of these two Emperours Flavius but this lasted only as long as the Family of the Flavians sat upon the Throne for they retook afterwards their former Name of Augustodunum In the mean while since Augustodunum is compound of a Gaulish and Latin word signifying the Mountain of Augustus it remains unknown what was the name of the Capital of the Aedui before that Emperour for Bibracte was a considerable Town not far from Autun but not Autun it self In Constantius and Constantine's times there was a Capitole dedicated to Jupiter Juno and Minerva a Temple of Apollo and a famous School for Rhetorick and Humane Learning Before the Auntunois were reduced into a Roman Province they govern'd themselves as a Common-wealth chusing every Year a Sovereign Magistrate call'd Vergo-brete who had absolute Power of Life and Death and over their Goods They had then a Senate of Druides an Accademy for the Nobility of the Gaules and a School for the younger Sort. Autun lies now on the confluence of the Aâ—oux and Tavernay 37 Miles South-west of Dijon St. Lazare of old Nazaire is the Cathedral Church and very considerable both for iâ—s Structure and Chapter This City is divided into two Parts Higher and Lower The Diocese contains 24 Archpriests and above 600 Parishes The Bishop presides at the States of Burgundy Besides the Cathedral Autun harh a great number of other Churches as alâ—o many Abbies and other religious Houses Bourbon l'Ansi Burbo Anselli is a Town and a Bayliwick with a Castle in the Diocese of Autun about a Mile from the Loire whiâ—h separates it from Bourbonnois The Territory of Bourbon towards the Frontiers of Burgundy is encompassed with fertiâ— Mountains the Town it self is built upon the top of a little Hill its Castle is guarded with a Ditch hewen out of the Rock During the Civil Wars it could never be taken being defended by Sieur d' Amanze The Mineral Waters of Bourbon were in great esteem even in the Time of the Romans and are as much now priz'd since the Reign of Henry the III. who preferr'd them to all other Waters There are few other places worth to be mentioned save Vianges Blanot Chissey Lucenay-l'Eveque Icy-l'-Eveque La-Motte-S Jean le-Mont-Ceny Brandons and Drapâ—y-S Loup Of CHALONOIS THis Diocese called also Bresse Chalonoise was of the dependencies of Autun It is included betwixt the County of Burgundy Bresse Maconnois Charolois and Autunois The City of Chalon Cabillo Aeduorum or Cabillonum is situated on the Saone with the Title of a County a Bayliwick and a Bishoprick Suffragan to Lyons between Verdun and Tenare 15 Leagues South of Dijon The antiquity of this City appeareth from the great number of Statues and Inscriptions in the ruins of an Amphitheatre and of many other publick Buildings Here it was that the Romans made Magazines of Corn for their Armies and afterwards the Emperours appointed the Rendevouze of their Forces at this place It was almost ruined by Aittila but soon after repair'd The French King 's Gontran and Thierry made their Residence here This City is very spacious and fine the Saone makes here an Isle which they term Fauxbourg Saint Laurence between two Bridges one of Stone and the other of Wood. The most remarkable things in this City are the Palace of the Prince the Cathedral Church of St. Vincent formerly of S. Stephen consisting 25 Canons whereof 7 are Dignitaries the Dean the Singer the Treasurer and four Arch-Deacons S. Marcel is esteemed to be the Apostle of Chalon St. Donatian was Bishop of it in the 4th Century and was at the Council of Cologne Anno 346. Besides the Cathedral Church there are many Parishes as St. George S. Laurence S. Mary which is a Commandership of S. Antony and a fine College of Jesuits The Cittadel of Chalon is fortified with four Royal Bastions The Town of Verdun is upon the Doux nigh its fall into the Saone about 4 Leagues North-East of Chalon The other places of some note are Chaigny Rully Givry la Ferte-Sur-Grosne Tenare Cuzery Branges Sagy Savigny Bojana Beluvre Paigny and Seure de Belle-garde a Dutchy Of the Country of La Montagne THE Country of la Montagne is situated toward the North of the Dutchy of Burgundy about the origin of the Seine betwixt Franche County Champaign Anxerrois Auxois and Dijonnois and depends upon the Bishop of Langres as well as Dijonnois The Capital is Chatillon Castellio ad Sequanam situated on the Seine between Aisei-le-Duc and Bar-sur-seine 31 Miles North-west of Dijon It 's a pretty good Town and the seat of the Baily of la Montagne the River divides it into two Parts one call'd the Bourg and the other Chaumont Here are to be seen the ruins of an old Castle It was the Native Country of William Philander who has made learned Commentaries on the X Books of Vitruvius Bar-sur-seine Barrum ad Sequanam is upon the River Seine where it receives the Ourse the Arse and the Leigne towards the Frontiers of Champaign about 7