granted her by her Soveraigns from time to time and they who have been once honour'd with the Shrievalty of Lion are ennobl'd both they and their Posterity CHAP. XIV Of Burgundy and Nivernois BVrgundy is a Province with the Title of a Dutchy and Peerdom though it were formerly a Kingdom and the Title is now born by the Dauphin's eldest Son This Province extends it self from North to South above Fifty Leagues not above Forty says De la Croix and Thirty from East to West Thirty two says De la Croix The Source of the River Seine rises in a Village of Burgundy which is call'd St. Seine The Burgundians are an obliging people and love Honour but they are naturally opinionated and obstinate and you must have a great Ascendant over 'em to make 'em alter their Sentiments Dijon is the Capital of this Province and Historians report that the Emperour Aurelian having utterly raz'd and destroy'd a certain place call'd Burg-Dogne or Burgus Deorum was afraid of the Anger of the Gods to whom that place was Consecrated whereupon his Mother Priestess of the Sun advis'd him for the Expiation of his Fault to build a Temple and a Castle in the same place which were the First Foundations of this Capital City It is remarkable for the Walls which are fortify'd with Towers and Bastions the Castle flank'd with Four Great Towers and Two Ravelins a fair Charter-House wherein are the Stately Tombs of the Dukes of Burgundy the Palace of Justice the King's House Sixteen Churches two Abbies five Hospitals the Town-House and for being the Place where the States of the Country meet every Three Years This Country enriches it self by her Corn and Wine being generally call'd the Magazine of Paris St. Bernard was Born in a Village of this Province call'd Fontaine Beaune is a very ancient City with a Chancery and a Bailliage seated advantageously for every thing but most chiefly fruitful in delicious Wines Autun is also very Ancient and some there are who derive the Etymology of the Name from Augustus However it were the Romans thought it worthy of their Friendship and enter'd into an Alliance with it The Druids held their Senate in this City There are also to be seen the Ruins of a Temple of Juno which they call Janitoye And among other Antiquities there are still to be seen a Field of Mars the Mount of Jupiter and the Ruins of Triumphal Arches Pyramids Aqueducts c. The Cathedral Church and the Episcopal Palace are worth the sight of the most curious Travellers Auxerre is a very good City with an Episcopal See a Presidial Court and a Bailliage This City is very Ancient and it 's said that Julian the Apostate stopt here for some time to refresh his Army In the next Age it was taken and almost ruin'd by Attila in the Year 451. After that K. Robert took it in 1005. from Landri Count of Nevers Since which time it was govern'd by particular Counts of her own 'T is a very great Thorough-fare having a Stone Bridge Large Piazza's several Fountains beautiful Churches among which the Cathedral is very Magnificent stor'd with Reliques and adorn'd with a most beautiful Quire a Steeple remarkable for the heighth of it and a Chapter of Fifty nine Canons but the Earldom is now united to the Crown The Bishop resides in the Castle which it would be no difficult thing to fortifie in regard it stands upon a rising Ground which Commands the City There have also been two Councils held in this City the one under the Pontificate of Pelagius in 578. the other in 1147. It is seated upon the River Yonne that falls into the Seine at Montereau Nevers the Capital City of Nivernois is a considerable City not only for the goodness and fertility of the Soil but for the Advantages it receives from the River Loire which washes the Walls of it and runs by the Fortress that Commands it and over which it has a Bridge of Twenty Arches Travellers are always us'd to visit these Parts where the Inhabitants make Glasses and Earthen Pots which bring great Profit to this City The Bishoprick is under the Archbishop of Sens and one of the best in the Kingdom In the last Assembly of the States General of the Kingdom the Deputies of Nivernois appear'd under the Government of Orleanois There are in this Little Province both Iron and Silver Mines but the People make little Advantage of ' em CHAP. XV. Of Berry and Burbonnois THough the Province of Berry be of no great Extent yet is it very Rich. The Cloth which is there made is in great Esteem and the Wool in this Province is the best in the Kingdom The Inhabitants who were in Ancient Time call'd the Bituriges were very formidable And History informs us not only of the Conquests which they made in Germany and Italy but that the same People who a long time held the Empire of the Gauls were they who gave Caesar the Greatest Trouble in his Conquests The Capital City of Berry is Bourges being an Archbishoprick with the Title of a Primacy and Patriarchate having also a Presidial Court a Bailliage a Generality and a University The Situation of it is very Advantageous by reason of the two Rivers that make a kind of Bogg and fill the Moats It has seven Gates and as many Suburbs The Walls are in a good condition fortify'd with Four and twenty Towers The Ramparts are Cannon-proof the Stones being cut Diamond fashion and Nineteen Foot thick The Cathedral Church is dedicated to St. Stephen a most beautiful Structure supported by Fifty Pillars The Treasury of this Cathedral contains many Curiosities which Foreigners will be glad to see and of which I would have inserted here a Catalogue had I not unfortunately mislay'd it in my Travels This City suffer'd much by the Irruptions of the Barbarians in the Fifth Age and still it feels the furious sack of the Huguenots upon the 27th of May 1562. when the Count of Montmorancy who was their General took it Bourbonnois is separated from Burgundy by the River Loire which lyes to the East Berry bounds it to the West Auvergne and Forest to the South and Nivernois to the North. This Province is not so considerable for it self though the Soil be very fertile as for the Honour which it has to see the Illustrious House of Bourbon wear the Crown of France The City of Bourbon bequeath'd her Name to this Province though it be not the Capital which is attributed to Moulins The Castle of Bourbon is environ'd with 24 Towers which renders it extremely strong Near the Castle lies a great Marsh where are the Baths of Bourbon so renown'd all over Europe Moulins is a very large and fair City seated upon the River Allier and remarkable for the Mineral Waters and for the great Number of Cutlers Shops The Presidial Court is one of the greatest Ornaments that belong to it CHAP. XVI Of Poitou and the Country
whither the King goes usually twice a Month to spend two or three days during which time he gives Audience to no body unless it be to his Ministers and those that are sent for to Council which his Majesty holds there concerning the most Important Affairs of State Next to Versailles St. German on Laie may dispute for Priority before all the other Royal Houses This place is famous for the Birth of Lewis XIV upon the 5th of Septemb. 1638. He was baptiz'd in the Old Castle the 21st of April 1643. Besides the Regularity and Magnificence of the Castle there are the Gardens and Grotto's to be seen adorn'd with a Thousand Figures of Water Among the rest in one of these Grotto's there is an Orpheus playing upon his Harp and with the motion of his Head and his Body keeping time to his Instrument He is also attended by a great number of Beasts that follow him as being enchanted with the Melody of his Harp which also draws after him Rocks Trees and Plants There is likewise Paradise Hell the Sea and the Four Elements so livelily represented that you would think your self in some Enchanted Place About a League from St. Germans upon one side of Paris you meet with the Traytors Wood divided into two parts by a spacious High-Way The Branches which you break off from one side of this Wood sink but those which you break off from the other side swim in the Water In this Wood it was that the Perfidious Ganelon contriv'd his Treason against the Peers of France and all the great Captains of Charlemagne which was put in Execution at the Battel of Roncevaux so fatal to France in the Passage of the Pyreneans St. Clou is another very beautiful Royal Seat belonging to Monsieur the King 's only Brother It stands upon a Hill near the Banks of the River Seine almost half way between Paris and Versailles The Paintings are very Noble the Furniture very Rich and the Cabinet of China wherein there are an infinite number of Curiosities and vast Riches is worthy the Grandeur and Magnificence of the Prince to whom it belongs As for the Castle of Madrit Francis I. caus'd it to be built in the Wood of Boulogne in memory of his being carry'd a Prisoner into Spain to let the Spaniards understand that he held it for no shame to have been made a Prisoner of War at the Head of his Army which had never befall'n him had he contented himself to Command in his Cabinet as the Kings of Spain do They who believe this Castle to be built after the same form as that where this Monarch was kept in durance are much deceiv'd for it is little or nothing like it It is nothing so magnificent now as formerly and the little care that is tak'n to repair it shews that the King has no great Fancy for the Seat nor minds whether it go to ruin or no. The Castle of Vincennes is considerable as being the Place where Prisoners of War of great Quality are Confin'd and many times Prisoners of State witness the Princes of Conde and Conti and the Duke of Longueville in the Time of Cardinal Mazarin It is very large and flank'd with Eight great Towers Here are kept the Chains of the Streets of Paris which Charles VI. took away after he had chastiz'd that City for her Rebellion Fountainbleau is another Royal Seat so call'd from the great number of Springs in that place It lyes about Twelve Leagues from Paris and in regard it is a Country proper for Hunting the Court spends a great part of the Autumn in this Place This Castle is very large as being said to contain Nine hundred Chambers Halls Cabinets or Galleries where Art has quite exhausted her self to render every thing worthy the Residence of our Monarchs At Fontainbleau it was where Marshal Biron was disarm'd by the King's Order and where Cardinal Perron and the Sieur du Plessis-Mornai met in the Presence of Hen. 4. to Dispute upon Matters of Religion which drew thither the most Learned of both Parties and 't is said that when the two Disputants could not agree the King addressing himself to the Cardinal ask'd him Whether all those that were separated from the Roman Church were damn'd His Eminency and the rest of the Catholick Doctors assur'd him That there was nothing more certain After which the K. demanding from those of the Protestant Party whether it were a Point of their Doctrine that there was no Salvation for those that were not of their Communion They made answer 'T was none of their Opinion for that they thought the Mercy of God might extend to all Men. That being so reply'd the King ' t is my Judgment to choose the Certainty before the Vncertainty and so turn'd Roman Catholick Chantilli is a fair Seat belonging to Monsieur the Prince whither the Court often goes for the Recreation of Hunting It is an Epitome of Art and Nature 'T is observ'd that Hen. IV. being to Answer a Letter which he had receiv'd from the K. of Spain cramm'd full of Titles not only of the Kingdoms which the Kings of Spain and their Ancestors possess'd but of those they never had as also of Territories in the New World not yet discover'd took upon him no other Titles but only Citizen of Paris and Lord of Chantilli And there is much the same Story of Francis I. who writeing to Charles V. fill'd the first Page with only these words repeated King of France King of France adding only at the lower end Lord of Vauvre and Gonesse I shall say nothing of an Infinite Number of other Beautiful Seats and Houses of Pleasure in the Parts adjoyning to Paris as Ruel Meudon Conflans Seaux c. which are all fit for the Entertainment of Kings whether in respect of their Bigness or Magnificence It remains that I now say something of St. Denis the Burying-place of our Monarchs for which I design a particular Chapter Only before I conclude this I must not omit to tell yee that there is at Alincourt near Paris the Tomb of a Mother and her Children that gave Occasion to this Epitaph Here lyes the Son here lyes the Mother Here lyes the Daughter with the Father Here lyes the Sister and the Brother Here lyes the Husband here the Wife All but Three Body 's on my Life To Expound this Riddle you must know That a certain Young Stripling importun'd his Mothers Maid to grant him you may guess what who told her Mistress the Mother of the Young Man and a Widow She order'd the Servant to give him a Meeting in her Chamber where the Mother put her self in place of the Maid and having had the Company of her Son without discovering who she was at Nine Months end was brought to Bed of a Daughter which she put out till she came to such an Age and then sent for her home The Son in the mean time had been Travelling for several Years but
Mountains afford Mines of Sulphur and several Quarries of Alablaster and all sorts of Marble The principal Rivers that water it are the Po the Adige Adda Arno and Tiber which contribute not a little to the Fertility of it from whence it is call'd The Garden of Europe The highest Mountains are the Alpes the Apennine which runs quite through the whole length of Italy Mount Masso Mount Barboro Vesuvius and Mount Gibello 'T is said the Italians are very wicked or very honest and virtuous The People are generally polite obliging quick of apprehension ingenious crafty eloquent politic and want not worth when they have once rid themselves of a certain Reservedness which frequently begets 'em the Epithete of Knaves These good Qualities are accompanied with some bad ones to which they are a little too much enclined For they are jealous quick of their promises slow to perform but above all revengeful insomuch that many times Revenge descends from Family to Family The Italian Language is a kind of adulterated Latin which the Goths Huns Vandals Lombards and other People inhabiting Italy have much corrupted Nor do they speak it equally polite in all parts of the Kingdom It is more refined in Tuscany then any where else but the Tuscans do not pronounce it so well as the Romans which is the reason of the Italian Proverb Lingua Tuscana in Bucca Romana And it is observed that the Italians speak in the throat the Venetians in the roof of the mouth the Neapolitans between the teeth and the Genoeses between the Lips The Roman Apostolic Religion is the only Religion allowed over all the States of Italy wherein for the preservation of it there are several Tribunals of the Inquisition erected not but that there are great numbers of Lutherans and Calvenists settl'd upon the Sea-Coasts drawn thither by the conveniency of Trade And thô the Magistrates know that they are departed from the Church yet 't is their interest to take no cognizance of it The Jews enjoy much more freedom and have their Synagogues even in Rome it self upon the Payment of an Annual Tribute There are also Greeks and Armenians in some Cities who perform their Church Worship according to the customs of their Country History informs us that after the Foundation of Rome Italy was govern'd by Kings for the space of 245 Years and that Tarquin the Proud was the last of her Kings That afterwards the Romans erected themselves into a Commonwealth which under the conduct of Consuls and Senarors acquir'd Immortal Honour as well for their Policy as for an infinite number of Victories which they obtain'd over their Enemies That Commonwealth lasted till the 706th Year of Rome at what time Julius Caesar was proclaim'd Emperor and extended the Roman Empire in all the three parts of the World which were then known for America was not discover'd in those days After this Empire had mounted to the highest period of its Grandeur it declin'd in such a manner that it has left us a memorable Example of the instability and fleeting condition of all Earthly Grandeur This formidable Empire being fallen to decay was dismember'd in the Reign of Honorius who dy'd in the year of Christ 423 and 4176th after the Foundation of Rome Italy after this fell under the Dominion of the Emperors of Constantinople who sent thither their Viceroys or Governors under the Title of Exarchs who kept their Court at Ravenna But that Government which began in the year of Christ 568 lasted not above 184 years at what time those Emperors were expell'd by the Kings of Lombardy Afterwards the Emperors of the West conquer'd Italy and the Kingdom of Lombardy was quite extinguish'd in 774 by Charlemain who made great Presents to the Holy See that Monarch and the Kings of France his Successors being the only Princes who rais'd the Temporal Power of the Pope to that degree wherein we now behold it This part of Europe is at this day divided among several Potentates That is to say the Pope in the Ecclesiastical State The King of Spain who is of the House of Austria of the Branch of Burgundy possesses the Kingdoms of Naples and Sicily the State of Milan and the Island of Sardigna These two Potentates are the most considerable in Italy the next to them are The Republic of Venice The Republic of Genoa The Republic of Luca. The Grand Duke of Tuscany of the House of Medici The Duke of Savoy of the House of Saxony The Duke of Mantua of the House of Gonzaga The Duke of Parma of the House of Farneze The Duke of Modena of the House of d'Este There are many other Sovereign Princes who have power of Life and Death over their Subjects with absolute authority to make War and Peace and to coyn Money but by reason of the small Extent of their Territories are call'd the Petty Princes of Italy Such are The Republic of St. Marin The Bishop of Trent The Duke of Guastalla The Duke of Sabionetta The Count of Novelare The Prince of Bozzolo The Duke of Mirandola The Prince of Monaco The Prince of Massera The Prince of Piombino The Duke of Bracciano And several others All the States of these Princes hold of the Church or of the Emperor of Germany Only the Territories of the Pope and the Republic of Venice are independent 'T is to be observ'd that the States that hold of the Church devolve to it again if the Proprietors happen to die without Issue Male the Daughters not being admitted to succeed their Fathers There are reckon'd to be in Italy 68 Principalities 95 Dukedoms an infinite number of Archbishoprics and Bishoprics and great store of Universities of which the most famous are those of Padua Venice Turin Pavia Siena Pisa Bologna Rome Ferrara Fermo Macerata Salerno Naples The Principal Cities of Italy are Rome which is the Metropolis of the whole Country term'd the Holy next to that Naples the Noble Florence the Fair Genoa the Proud Milan the Great Ravenna the Ancient Venice the Rich Padua the Learned and Bologna the Fat. It remains that I should speak of some Customs that are general in Italy In regard the Coasts of Italy upon the Mediterranean Sea are much infested by the Pyrates of Barbary who often Land there and carry away the Inhabitants in the Country with the best of their Goods there are little Forts built all along the Coasts about a mile distance one from another more especially upon the Riviera di Genoa and upon the Coasts of Naples and Sicily where six men keep Garrison with two Pieces of Cannon to prevent Descents These Guards every night kindle one or two Fires upon the neighbouring Mountains When there is but one it is call'd a Fire of Assurance as being a sign that no Turkish Brigantine has appear'd all that day But if they kindle two some Paces off one from another 't is to give notice to the Inhabitants to stand upon their Guards and that they
the Finances of which there are such a Number in France as Rouen Tholouse Orleans Limoges c. Jurats of Bourdeaux are as the Eschevins or Sheriffs in other Cities Mareschalship is the Office and Jurisdiction of a Marshal of France The Lord Marshals of France in the time of Francis I. were but two who having their several Provinces assign'd 'em by the King rode their Circuits into 'em and were present at all General Musters to observe how Military Discipline was observ'd to View the Fortifications and Reparations of Frontier Towns How the Arsenals were stor'd with Ammunition and Provisions and lastly to provide for the Punishment of Idle Vagrant and loose Persons But now their Number is uncertain the Marshal's Battoon of Command being given as the Reward of Prowess and Conduct Presidial Seats are Courts of Justice Establish'd in the Year 1551. in divers good Towns of France wherein Civil Causes not exceeding 250 Livres Tournois are heard and adjudg'd Soveraignly and without Appeals Seneschalship the Jurisdiction of a Seneschal who is a Chief Justice or Magistrate of a Precinct who has the same Authority which is enjoy'd by a Bailli from whom he differs only in Name Historical Voyages Travels OVER EUROPE CHAP. I. Of Europe in general THE World is usually divided into four Parts that is to say Asia Africa America and Europe This last is the smallest of all but without contradiction the most considerable in regard it is most Populous most Fertile and under the most noble and best order'd Forms of Government The Bounds of it to the North are the Northern or the Frozen Sea to the West the Atlantick Ocean the Mediterranean to the South which separates it from Africa and to the East the Aegean Sea the Streight of Gallipoli the Sea of Marmara the Streight of Constantinople the Black Sea the Palus Maeotis the Tanais c. which part it from Asia The Length of it from Cape St. Vincents in the Western part of Spain to the mouth of the River Ob in the Frontiers of Muscovy is about thirteen hundred Leagues Moreover there are always said to be in Europe besides the Territories of the Church in Italy two Empires that of Germany and that of Turky seven Kingdoms under different Soveraigns who acknowledge no Superior France Spain England Portugal Sweden Denmark and Poland The first six Hereditary the latter Elective There are now nine Electorates Mayence Treves Cologne Bohemia Bavaria Saxony Brandenburgh the Palatinate and Hanover which are all Soveraign States under the Titles of Dukedoms Marquisates c. We have also in Europe two Great Dukedomes Muscovy and Tuscany Six other Dukedoms besides those which are enclos'd within the Empire viz. Lorrain Savoy Mantoua Modena Parma and Curland Seven Republicks viz. The United Provinces otherwise call'd Holland Switzerland Venice Genoa Luca St. Marin and Ragusa And besides all this there is the Arch-Dukedom of Austria the Patrimony of the Empire who also possesses Bohemia and Hungary As for the Principalities of Transylvania Moldavia and Walachia they are possess'd by particular Princes who are tributary either to the Emperor or the Grand Signior and sometimes to both together The Principal Islands of Europe are England united to Scotland Ireland Majorca Minorca Sicily Sardignia Corfu Creet and an infinite number of others in the Archipelago And the Highest Mountains are in France the Pyreneans and the Alpes La Sierra Morena in Spain the Apennine in Italy Parnassus in Greece the Crapack in Poland the Rhipheans in Muscovy and Mont Gibel in Sicily This part of the World is water'd with an infinite number of fair Streams and vast Rivers which contribute not a little to the Fertility of it The most considerable are the Seine the Loire the Garonne the Rhone in France the Duero the Tagus the Guadiana the Guadalquivir the Ebro in Spain the Po and Tibur in Italy the Danaw the Rhine the Elbe the Order in Germany the Vistula and Niepor in Poland the Volga and Don in Muscovy the Thames Severn and Trent in England the Tay in Scotland and the Shanon in Ireland CHAP. II. Of France in general FRance is to Europe as Europe is to all the other parts of the World for number of Inhabitants for the Ingenuity of the People the Fertility of the Soil the Temper of the Climate and the Excellency of the Wine The Government is Monarchical but too severely Absolute tho the Nobility are brave and Warlike This Kingdom is seated between the forty second and fifty first degree of Latitude and the fifteenth and nineteenth of Longitude It is bounded to the West by the Great Ocean to the East by the Rhine and the Alpes that separate it from Germany and Italy to the South by the Mediterranean Sea and the Pyreneans that divide it from Spain and to the North by St. Georges-Channel which the French call La Manche that parts it from England But these Bounds have not hinder'd the Kings from frequently extending their Dominions beyond these Limits and without searching past Ages for Examples no body can be ignorant that in our days neither the Rhine the Alpes nor the Pyreneans could stop the Rapidness of the Conquests of Lewis the XIV France is about two hundred and sixty Leagues in length if we take it from the Coasts of Britany to the Frontiers of Switzerland and two hundred and forty in breadth from Dunkirk ro Perpignan The Kingdom is compos'd of Three Estates the Clergy the Nobility and the People In 1614. the States General of the Kingdom being summon'd to meet at Paris appear'd there under Twelve great Governments which are Picardy Normandy Champagne the Island of France Britany Orleanois Burgogne Lionois the Dauphinate Provence Languedoc and Guienne and under these Governments are comprehended Le Maine Anjou Tourain Poictou Xaintoin Perigort Limozin Querci Rovergne Auvergne Gevodan Albigeois Bearne Bigorre Foix Cominges Armagnac Vivarez Le Forest Beaugelois Bugeay Valcomay La Bresse Nivernois Bourbonnois Berri Salogne Gatinois Beauce c. All this shews us that France must needs be a very Potent Kingdom since it includes so great a number of Fair Provinces some of which contain more Cities Burroughs and Villages then many Soveraign Kingdoms and Principalities But if you add to these the Conquests of Lewis the XIII and XIV you will find the Limits of this Kingdom to be of a much larger Extent since those two Monarchs subdu'd Franche Contè Lorraine Alsatia Artois part of Flanders Hainault Luxemburgh c. France which was known to the Ancients under the name of Gaul is a Hereditary Kingdom the Crown of which cannot descend to the Female Sex by vertue of the Salique Law It always belongs to the Eldest Son and for want of Male Issue to the next of Kin. France has beheld upon the Throne Kings of three Races The first was that of Meroveus the second that of Charlemaigne and the third that of Hugh Capet Pharamond was the first King of France
will always do 'em Justice Tholouse is the Capital City of this beautiful and spacious Province seated upon the Garonne and so antient that 't is said that Tholo one of the Sons of Japhet was the Founder of it Certain it is however that when the Romans Invaded the Gauls they found Tholouse to be a very considerable City and therefore beautify'd it with a Capitol Amphitheaters and Aqueducts the Remainders of which besides her Churches and other Structures are sufficient Testimonies of her Antiquity Afterwards it was the Metropolis of the Kingdom of the Visigoths and after that of the Kingdom of Aquitain It is the seat of a Famous Parlament an Arch-bishoprick a Generality a Chamber of Accounts and a University The Cathedral is dedicated to St. Stephen and that of St. Saturnin is a beautiful Pile where 't is said they have the Bodies of no less then seven of the Apostles and one of the Thorns of our Saviour's Crown There is a vast Treasure which could never be taken away whether it be by reason of the noisomness of the Water or whether it be guarded as they say by Prodigious Serpents that threaten to devour all those that disturb their Rest However it were History tells us that the Gauls making War with the Inhabitants of Delphos brought away vast Riches and that the share of the Tectosages who inhabited Languedoc came to a hundred and ten thousand pound weight in Gold and five millions of pounds weight in Silver that their Priests enforc'd 'em to throw the Riches into the Lake of Tholouse whence Cepio the Roman Consul caus'd it to be carri'd away sometime after having put the Lake to Sale by Outcry and there is some reason to believe that a great deal of it might be left behind but I am not certain whether it lies in that part where the Church of St. Saturnin is built In the Church of the Observantin Friers is a Vault which consumes the Flesh of Dead Bodies without hurting the Skin or Dislocating their Members In the Church of the Jacobins is to be seen a Pillar that supports after a wonderful manner five or six Vaults one above another I forbear to mention the rest of their Monasteries in some of which there are several Reliques and Curiosities The University of Tholouse is accountted one of the most famous in Europe except the two Universities in England and the second in France for which reason perhaps it was that Ausonius calls it the City of Pallas and that it generally bears the Epithete of Tholouse la Savante or Tholouse the Learned Castres is another very antient City of Languedoc with a Bishoprick Lavaur Pamiers a Bishops See Mirepoix a Bishops See and some other Cities in the Parts adjoining are very pleasant places where the People feast and make good chear at a cheap rate which is the reason that 't is a common saying among 'em that they have more good Victuals then Money Carcasson is commanded by a Cittadel which is very strong both by reason of the scituation of it and the Works about it and before you enter into it you must leave your Sword at the Gate The City is considerable for the Woollen Manufactures for the neatness and uniformity of the Streets and the sweet temper and civility of the Inhabitants We must not remove far from Languedoc without visiting Perpignan in Roussillon where the Men go after the French Fashion and the Women after the Spanish Mode The Cittadel is compos'd of Five Bastions commanded by a Fort which is call'd the Donjon Some Leagues from thence you meet with a Fountain of Salt Water which springs out of a Rock in such abundance that about six or seven Paces from thence it forms a River over which there is built a Bridge of several Arches Narbonne disputes the Point of Antiquity with all the other Cities of France for they pretend that Narbo K. of the Country was the Founder of it long before the Birth of Christ But that which we find most certain is that it was in great Request in the time of the Romans who grac'd it with a Capitol and an Amphitheater erected Municipal Schools within it adorn'd it with a Bath and Aqueducts and all the marks of Roman Grandeur as being the Seat of the Proconsuls and their first Colony out of Italy in Europe in acknowledgment of which Favours the Inhabitants set up a Statue to Augustus So that Rome and Narbonne were leagu'd to each other under the Title of Sisters and 't is said that the Sympathy between 'em was so great that in the Year 145. Rome and Narbonne were afflicted both at the same time with a dreadful Conflagration that happen'd by Accident But the greatest part of the Roman Antiquities were ruin'd by the Goths and Vandals This being a Frontier Town is regularly fortifi'd and the Canal of Conjunction between the two Seas a Royal Undertaking becoming a great Prince derives the beginning of it from Narbonne It is the Seat of an Archbishoprick and the Archbishop is Primate of the Province President born of the States of Languedoc and dignifi'd with the Title of Lord of the Sea Bezieres is a City not far distant from Narbonne seated upon a Hill the Avenues to which are somewhat difficult It is both Large and Ancient and greatly valu'd by the Romans who erected there two famous Temples to Augustus and Julia. It is still one of the most Delightful Places of Abode in France Insomuch that the beauty of the place and the fertility of the soil have begot a Proverb among the People of the Country Que si Dieu habitoit sur la Terre il choisiroit Bezieres pour sa Sejour That if God were to live upon the Earth he would make choice of Bezieres for his Place of Residence The City of Pesenas is no less pleasant and the Inhabitants are much more civil and courteous and no question but the Residence of several Princes there from time to time as the late Prince of Conti deceas'd and Monsieur de Montmoranci contributed not a little to infuse into 'em the Air of the Court. Though I shall end this Chapter with the Cities of Montpellier and Nimes 't is not because they are less considerable the contrary rather may be said that Travellers tarry longer at Montpellier then in any other City of Languedoc by reason of the Variety of Divertisements which they meet with in the Place good Chear good Company Familiarity Galantry and Learning all which Advantages they meet with there in a Superlative Degree The University is accounted the most famous for Physick in all France And it is to be observ'd that no Dr. in that Faculty is to be admitted till he has first receiv'd seven times the Robe and Bonnet of Rabelais in the Castle of Monac In such Veneration is that Doctor among those that govern this Academy The reason of it is this The Scholars having committed some Disorders in the City
Bridge and stands where the Red Bridge stood before There are moreover several other Bridges very considerable as the Change Bridge St. Michael's the Bridge of Nostredame and Pont Marie which have Houses on both sides so high that they cannot be perceiv'd to stand over the Water The French Academy is become so famous over Europe that all Men have a particular Esteem for all the Learned Men who have the Honour to be Members of it It was not Confirm'd by the King's Edict till the Year 1635. though it were set up five or six Years before and was instituted by Chance For that in the Year 1620. certain Learned Persons that Lodg'd in several parts of the City resolv'd to meet once a Week at one of their Houses by Turns that so they might with more ease confer together And this was that which gave a Beginning to this Academy which was at first under the Protection of Cardinal Richlieu Now the Number of the Academies is fix'd to Forty Besides this Academy Paris has also Three others The Academy Royal of Painting which owes the Beginning of it to M. de Noyers Secretary of State and Surveyor of the King's Buildings in the Reign of Lewis XIII They met at first in the Palais Royal but were afterwards remov'd into the Galleries of the Louvre at what time it was settl'd by a Decree of Council in the Year 1648. The Academy Royal of Sciences compos'd of a great number of Learned Physicians Philosophers and Mathematicians settl'd by Mr. Colbert Minister of State at the Sollicitation of M. du Clos and the Abbot of Bonzaisi And for the sake of these Learned Men it is that the King has erected an Observatory in the Suburb of St. James for the making new Experiences and discovery of new Secrets in Physick and Mathematicks And lastly The Royal Academy of Architecture settl'd by the same Mr. Colbert in 1671. As for the Divertisements of Paris no body can be ignorant that there are wanting neither Exquisite Voices for Opera's nor good Actors for French and Italian Comedies nor any sort of excellent Company whether for Conversation Play or Courtship And for Places of Meeting and Walking there are the Tuilleries the Queen's Court and the Groves of Boulogne and Vincennes But I perceive this Chapter has carried me too far which obliges me to omit a Thousand Wonderful Things which Paris encloses and only to tell Forreigners That they can never be able to understand the Beauty and Magnificence of it till they have made a considerable stay in the Place and that the most elevated Idea's which I could give 'em by a more Copious Description and better Study'd would come short of what they really are CHAP. XXI Of the Places adjoyning to Paris AFter what I have said of the Grandeur Beauty and Magnificence of Paris 't will be no hard matter to believe that the parts about it are extreamly well peopled There being Ten Thousand Boroughs Villages or Castles within Ten Leagues round it I shall only say something of the most Considerable places not much caring for the Criticisms of those who shall censure me for not reporting faithfully all their Beauties For I declare to 'em before hand that I shall not engage to satisfie 'em with a Piece of Perfection For in short if a Man should go about to examine all the Wonders Magnificence and Riches of the Royal Seats not far from Paris it would be enough to dazle his Eyes nor can any Man Contemplate 'em without being ravish'd into Extasie Since the Reign of Lewis the Just Versailles was no more then an Ordinary Castle consisting of a Body of Lodgings accompani'd with two Wings and ending in four Pavillons But in 1661. the King proposing to himself to make some stay there enlarg'd this Building with another much more Magnificent At length in 1678 the Old Castle not appearing worthy the State and Grandeur of so Great a Monarch it was pull'd down to make room for another more Superb for the rearing of which all the most Famous Masters in Europe for Architecture Sculpture and Painting were sent for to display their utmost Skill So that the Magnificence of every Apartment out-does whatever there is of most rare in Forreign Countries Even the Stables of Versailles are more Magnificent and Nobler then the Palaces of several Princes of Europe There is a City built on two sides of the Castle with extraordinary Symmetry The Castle is of so large Extent that not only all the Princes and Princesses of the Blood have Large and Convenient Lodgings within it but also all the Ministers and Secretaries of State and a great number of other Lords The Soil about Versailles is naturally dry and unpleasant But Lewis the Great has enforc'd Nature as I may so say to be more favourable to that Part which he had made choice of for his Residence For the Earth not only produces all the Plants the Fruits the Flowers that grow in the most fertile places in the World but by the benefit of the Aqueducts this place abounds so much in Water that you would take it rather for a Sea when all the Engins play then for a Garden of Pleasure And what is more particular and almost incredible those Engins throw the Water up into the Air in different Figures You shall perceive Galleries of Water Triumphal Arches Pavillions Arbors Theatres Mountains c. The fairest Receptacles for Water are those of Ceres Flora Apollo and Bacchus The Banqueting-Hall the Labyrinth the Walk of Water are Machines worthy the Curiosity of Strangers All this Water is drawn from the Sein by the Assistance of a great number of Pumps ranvers'd and carry'd to Versailles by the only Engin which is to be seen in Europe being the Invention of the Sieurs de Ville and Ranequin This Piece of Workmanship which may contend with the Seven Wonders of the World consists of Fourteen Wheels that have Eight and twenty Motions which are caus'd by Twenty Chains and Eight Water Engins with which they force up the Water into an Aqueduct of Thirty six Arches seated upon the Top of a Mountain and Five hundred and seventy Foot from the side of the River All these Motions work Night and Day there being no more then 18 Men in three different Divisions to look after ' em All people admire the Effects of the King's Glory and Grandeur and the large extent of the Genius of those Artists who invented this Engin to the highest degree of Perfection They who will visit the Apartments of Versailles the Gardens the Park the Place where all sorts of Strange Creatures are kept the Grotto's the Labyrinths and the Castle of Trianon which is a real Jewel all wrought within and without with Marble of divers colours have need of Eight days time neither will that suffice to view all these Wonders that surpass Imagination The Castle of Merli but a small League from Versailles is another Royal Seat
Atchievements that Fame upon other occasions accustom'd to multiply proves deficient in this not being able should she lessen 'em to render your Great Actions credible to Posterity Prerogatives so sublime that they enforce all States to look upon 'em with a most profound Obsequiousness and have particularly induc'd my Republick to distinguish her self above all others to manifest it in such a manner that all the World may be apparently convinc'd of it And the most terrible and fatal Accident that ever befel her is this of incurring your Majesties high displeasure I cannot therefore proportionably display her extream Sorrow to have offended your Majesty though she is apt to flatter her self that this is befallen through an effect of pure Misfortune nevertheless she is desirous that whatever may have dissatisfy'd your Majesty may be cancell'd at any rate not only from your Memory but from the Remembrance of all Men she not knowing any way to alleviate her Afflictions till she beholds her self restor'd to your Majesties inestimable Favour Therefore that she may become worthy of obtaining it she assures your Majesty that all her most intent Applications and most sollicitous Cares shall be imploy'd to procure not only the preservation of it but also to habituate her self to increase it In order to which not content with expressions the most proper and most obsequious she resolv'd to make use of unusual and singular forms sending her Duke and four Senators in hopes that by such special Demonstrations your Majesty will be fully convinc'd of the most high esteem which my Republick has of your Favour and Good Will As for my own part Sir I acknowledge it for my greatest good fortune to have the Honour of declaring these my most sincere and most respectful Sentiments and prize above all things this Opportunity of appearing in the presence of so great a Monarch who invincible for his Valour and reverenc'd for his unparallel'd Magnanimity and Grandeur as you have surmounted all others in Ages Past so you secure the same Prosperity to your Progeny From so happy an Augury I assume the Confidence that your Majesty to make known to the Universe the singularity of your most Generous Soul will incline your Heart to look upon these Remonstrances no less just then sincere as Testimonies not only of the Integrity of my Heart as of the Minds of these Illustrious Senators and Citizens of my Country who with Impatience attend the reciprocal Marks that your Majesty will vouchsafe to grant 'em of your Benignity and Kindness CHAP. V. Of the States of the Dukes of Parma and Modena THE Duke of Parma is a Vassal to the Holy See to which he pays a Tribute of Ten Thousand Crowns for his Dutchies of Parma and Piacenza This State has undergone several Revolutions since the Decay of the Empire till the Church being in peaceable Possession of it Alexander Farneze being advanc'd to the Pontificate under the name of Paul III. erected Parma into a Dukedom and gave it his Son Peter Farneze in the year 1545. But the Emperor Charles V. disputed the Possession of it with him till the death of the said Duke who died Two years after However Octavio Farneze his Son being powerfully protected by the King of France secur'd that State to his Successors by the Marriage of Margaret of Austria natural Daughter of the same Emperor The Country adjoyning is very Ferril in Corn Wine Fruit but more especially in Cheese the excellency of which is sufficiently known 'T is sufficient to say that they make some of these Cheeses that weigh a Hundred and fifty pound and that they are esteem'd for so great Delicacies among the Turks that they are usually serv'd up to the Great Turk and his Visiers at their Banquets There are likewise several Wells of Salt Water in the adjacent parts out of which they draw White Salt and some Iron and Copper Mines The Revenue of the Duke of Parma amounts to Five hundred thousand Roman Crowns a year which make Seventeen hundred and fifty Livres of France and at a pinch of necessity he is able to bring into the Field Eighteen thousand Foot of his own Subjects The City of Parma Capital of the Dntchy and where the Duke keeps his Court is divided into three Parts by the River Parma over which are built Three Bridges that joyn the whole together It is adorn'd with a Bishoprick under the Arch-Bishop of Bologna and a Famous University Founded in the year 1599 by Ranuccio Farneze The Citadel consisting of Five Bastions is one of the strongest and best fortifi'd in Italy Foreigners always visit the Dukes Palace which is a most Magnificent Structure wherein there was no spare made of Marble Jasper or Porphyrie The Gardens belonging to the Palace and the Cathedral Church are the Rarities which next the Palace are worthy Observation Piacenza is the Second City in the Duke of Parma's Territories bearing the Title of a a Dutchy with a Bishoprick Suffragan to Bologna 'T is thought that it deriv'd the name of it from the Situation which is in a Plain extreamly Fertile It stands not far from the River Po being about Five Miles in circuit Near the City to the West they shew ye the Place where St. Anthony call'd down Fire from Heaven upon the Soldiers that derided his Name Thô what is more considerable is the Fountain in the great Piazza of Piacenza which Augustus caus'd to be brought to the City and the Statue of Alexander Farneze the First a Horseback in Brass MOdenois or the State of Medena lies to the East of Parma It was erected into a Dukedom by the Emperor Frederick III. in 1452. in favour of Borso d'Este The Country abounds with Plenty of all things As for the Dutchy it self it holds of the Emperor to whom the Duke of Modena pays a yearly Tribute of 4000 Crowns The Revenue of it amounts to about a Million of Italian Livres which make Seven hundred and fifty thousand Livres of France and in a time of Need the Duke is able to Arm Five and twenty thousand Men. Modena the Capital of the Dutchy is the usual Residence of the Duke It is seated between the Rivers of Sechia and Panaro and altho the Streets are somewhat narrow yet it is a very pleasant Habitation Foreigners go to see the Duke's and the Bishop's Palaces the Cathedral and the Citadel where there is nothing however very remarkable History informs us that Modena was formerly a Roman Colony and that after the death of Julius Caesar Brutus was there in vain Besieg'd by Marc Antonie in the year of Rome 710. That the City was afterwards ruin'd by the Goths and Lombards and rebuilt under the Reign of the Sons Charlemain and that it was near Modena that in the year of Rome 711 Hirtius and Pansa were defeated by Marc Antonie The Steeple of Modena is one of the Highest Towers in Italy CHAP. VI. Of the Territories of the Duke of Mantua THE Duke