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- Herausgeber: Books on Demand
- Kategorie: Geisteswissenschaft
- Sprache: Englisch
Did the sexton of the Dieppe church really attend a meeting of the living dead? What was a Victorian military hero whose grave was vandalised doing in Caen? Why was an opera dedicated to the cruel and violent medieval lord whose ruined castle stands on a promontory near Rouen? When were hundreds of human skeletons piled up under the roofs? Uncover some of Normandy's most amazing historical secrets!
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Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2023
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For all history buffs and travellers
curious to discover what lies beneath the surface.
Table of Contents
FOREWORD
A NORMAN CHURCH INVADED BY THE LIVING DEAD
THE VICTORIAN MILITARY HERO WHO MYSTERIOUSLY DIED IN NORMANDY
WOULD YOU DARE TO FACE ROBERT THE DEVIL?
A TEENAGE BOY ON HIS WAY TO THE HORROR OF THE TRENCHES
A MAN THOUGHT TO BE DEAD COMES BACK TO LIFE IN FECAMP
SKELETONS PILED UP UNDER THE ROOF
EPILOGUE
FOREWORD
As a French journalist and writer specialising in historical research and heritage, living in Normandy and regularly spending a lot of time in Britain for work and pleasure, I have more than once acted as a guide for British and American friends visiting the region. This is what gave me the idea of writing this little book, which is obviously not exhaustive - it would take volumes to tell everything! - but which is simply an invitation to the historyloving reader to come and discover for himself what a fascinating land Normandy is. But precisely, there is no question here of repeating what one can read everywhere! My research has led me to unveil some surprising secrets....
The historical heritage of Normandy is truly exceptional. Didn't Stendhal write, in 1838, that "Rouen is the Athens of the Gothic genre"? Everywhere, from the largest cities to the most modest villages, the history of this extraordinary province unfolds like a long, passionate narrative that an enthusiastic storyteller would recite to his companions in the evening, in front of a crackling fire. Founded more than a thousand years ago by a handful of daring and pragmatic Viking adventurers, the Duchy of Normandy has held a special place in the ever-changing chessboard of ancient Europe for centuries.
The fates of Normandy and Britain have been intimately linked since time immemorial. The mighty winds of history have blown across these two lands, for better or for worse, and to be interested in one is to be interested in the other. Here, historical heritage is both the tragedy of Joan of Arc's trial and the laughter of Falstaff, the spectacular stone work of Rouen Cathedral and modest Bede's monastic cell in Jarrow, Napoleon's equestrian statue in Cherbourg and Nelson's Victory in Portsmouth. The Hundred Years' War and the Entente Cordiale. Voltaire in London and Oscar Wilde in Dieppe. You see, the Channel was as much a barricade as a link.
The fascinating thing about exploring bygone eras is that it allows us to bring to life this immense gallery of characters, famous or humble, without whom the world we know would not be what it is. To achieve this, one must dare to push open the door, to immerse oneself in the archives and take pleasure in it, to travel beyond the beaten track, to accept the price of patience, and to marvel at everything.
Then you find yourself, suddenly and sometimes by chance, face to face with the mystery of destiny. For your enjoyment, here are some strange, fascinating and sometimes terrifying, but always true examples!
A NORMAN CHURCH INVADED BY THE LIVING DEAD
In Normandy, popular culture offers a great wealth of extraordinary tales. This one clearly demonstrates the fears and hopes of people in ancient times.
It was a long time ago on the Normandy coast, in the port of Dieppe, in the Pollet district, the fishermen's quarter, simple and very pious people, used to hard work, aware of the harshness of life and always imminent possible death. That night a strong wind arose. At sea, the swell became powerful, rumbling, furious waves crashed on the pier with a great uproar. Then, the sky was torn, and a terrible storm spewed immense
