Part 19

To provide a safe place of retreat in case of similar attacks in future it was resolved to erect a keep or castle on a promontory of rock which juts out into the sea at the south side of the island. Here a perpetual look-out could be kept over the sea from the watch-tower on the summit, and notice of danger given by ringing the bell (the belfry for which still exists) in time to enable the monks to take refuge with their valuables within the keep. The castle is stated to have been begun about 1073 by the Abbé Aldebert II., partly on Roman substructions and partly on the rock, and the chapel was consecrated in 1088 (_see_ “Les Iles de Lérins,” by the Abbé Allier.) In fifteen years the second floor was commenced, and in 1190 the tower was finished. Having been frequently sacked and destroyed there is some difficulty in making out the original plan. Besides, containing as it does, an open cloister, it differs so greatly otherwise

from the feudal castles of the time, that their plans give little aid in deciphering that of the monastic keep. It seems, however, to have been originally (Fig. 164) an oblong building measuring 85 feet from east to west, and 58 feet from north to south, with a wing projecting to the southwards. This block was divided into two portions by a central wall running north and south, and contained in the eastern division an open cloister, formerly three, though now reduced to two storys in height, and in the western division the refectory, dormitory, and other apartments. To the east a small projection or tower contained on the first floor the lavatory and latrines, and at the top was carried up as a watch-tower above the parapet, and

surmounted by the belfry for the alarm bell. The space at the north end of the cloister is (as we shall presently see) a

later extension of the original keep. The entrance door is in the north wall (Fig. 165), several feet above the level of the ground. It has a square lintel, with a round saving arch over it, and the door was strengthened with a sliding bar. A narrow passage at right angles, furnished with a second door, leads by a few steps up to the level of the principal floor and opens on the cloister. This is the most striking and remarkable part of the castle. It is 40 feet long by 27 feet wide, and is surrounded with a vaulted gallery (Fig. 166), supported on six columns--three on each side--leaving open to the sky a central space of 19 feet by 10 feet. The first view of this cloister is most impressive. The ancient appearance of the granite columns, with their quaint caps and bases, surmounted by bold pointed arches, above which rises an upper and lighter arcade; the rich colour of the walls; the sombre effect of the dark arcades contrasted with the bright light of the open central court; and the unusual character of the structure, all combine to produce a powerful and lasting effect on the mind. Nor does a closer inspection diminish the interest. Some of the pillars are found to be genuine Roman ones, brought from some ancient building, and here utilised in a very matter-of-fact though telling manner. The columns being generally too short, some of them have been pieced up with the yellow limestone of the district, while others have been elevated on bases of extra height. Three of the ancient shafts are of granite, one of red marble, and the remaining two of limestone. On one of the former (that at the south-west angle) can be read part of an inscription in honour of Constantine. This shaft has the appearance of having been long exposed in the open air, and many of the letters are worn away, so that some parts of the inscription are difficult to decipher. The following is the rendering of the

Abbé Allier; the letters within brackets being, however, illegible:--

IMP [CÆS] FL VAL CONSTAN TINO PF AUG [DIVIMAX IMIANI AUG] NEPOTI DIVI CON STANT AUG [PII FILIO]

Another interesting point connected with these pillars is the form and decoration of their capitals and bases (Figs. 167 and 167^_a_). At first sight they look very rude and primitive, but on careful examination they are seen to possess certain characteristics which belong to a comparatively late period, thus raising a suspicion as to their antiquity, which the evidently late vaulting of the cloister tends to confirm. One is therefore somewhat puzzled how to regard them, and what date to assign to them. But a comparison of the caps and bases of St Honorat with those of the cloister of Thoronet at once removes all difficulty. Original and quaint as both are, they are evidently (with the exception of some which are later, and will be afterwards referred to) the product of the same style and period. The Abbé Allier informs us that in 1295 the Abbot Gancelme de Mayreris did much work in the interior of the tower, and in 1315 a general chapter granted certain fines in order to raise funds for its completion. To this period probably belongs the first construction of the cloister. But in 1400 the monastery was attacked by Genoese pirates, commanded by one Salageri, who took the castle by assault, imprisoned the monks, and pillaged the monastery. These Corsairs kept possession of the castle for about a year, and were only got rid of by a general muster of the nobility of Provence, with their retainers. The invaders probably greatly destroyed the building; for we learn that after 1400 the cloisters, “L’Escalier tournant,” and other works were commenced, and carried on by one Gastolius de Grasse, who died in 1422. These facts indicate two periods of considerable operations at the castle, one in the beginning of the fourteenth and the other of the fifteenth century. Some of the caps (such as A, D, and E), which so strikingly resemble those of the cloisters of Thoronet, probably belong to the first of these periods; while others (like B) have been executed in imitation of them, but contain details which are undoubtedly of the period of the later work. The capital (B) and most of the bases are clearly of the fifteenth century; the style of the ogee and other mouldings, and the foliage of the griffes or claws at the angles and on the cap B, being of a late character. The form of the vaulting (Fig. 168), with its thin groins all dying away to one sharp point at the springing, and without caps or corbels to rest on, also corresponds with that date. The cloister arches are pointed, but have no mouldings. It was in 1394, shortly before the second of the above periods, that the body of St Honorat was

brought to the island from Forcalquier. Altogether, at this time the monastery seems to have been in great activity, and extensive works appear to have been then carried out at the castle. The portion adjoining the north side of the cloister was at that time extended, so as to form a projection to the northward, containing the “Escalier tournant” above mentioned. The elliptical arch of the doorway to this wheel-stair (_see_ Fig. 166) is evidently a late work, and a wide joint or crack in the masonry, shewing the point from which the extension northward took place, can be distinctly seen in the exterior of the east wall (Fig. 169), where it extends from top to bottom of the castle. The style of the masonry of this portion is also smoother than the original work, which is left rough or “bossy” on the surface. The object of this addition has probably been to provide a space for a guard-room near the entrance to the castle with a wide staircase, and a broad platform on the roof for defensive purposes. Beneath the cloister is a large cistern or tank, stated by the Abbé Allier to have been constructed by Gastolius de Grasse early in the fifteenth century; it contains a supply of good water. A steep stair opposite the entrance door leads down to some small cellars, arranged in two storys (Fig. 170), under a portion only of the western part of the tower.

Ascending the “Escalier tournant,” the steps of which are four feet long, we arrive at the upper cloister (Fig. 171). This contains a gallery all round, with a parapet next the open court, on which stand twelve octagonal columns supporting as many pointed arches (Fig. 172). The whole is built in fine white marble, and the design is in the Italian-Gothic style, somewhat similar to that of the cloister arches at Fréjus. Some of the shafts and caps are evidently restorations in imitation of older ones (Fig. 173).

Allier states that the arms of the Grimaldi family

could be traced on one side of this cloister, two members of that house having been Abbots commendatory of the Lérins. This probably marks the date of the restoration--fifteenth century--but the original pillars seem to be at least a century older. Some of the tiles of the floor, which are of a plain red colour and square, still remain. Although the cloister is now roofed in over the first floor, the section (_see_ Fig. 170) indicates that there was formerly a third story. The corbels in the wall to support the beams of the roof are distinctly visible. The roof may have formed a platform nearly on the level of the battlements. The two upper floors were not vaulted, but arches were thrown across at the four angles (_see_ Fig. 172) against the outer wall so as to strengthen and steady the whole structure. On the first floor (Fig. 171) the northern addition forms a recess, covered with a plain circular vault, and lighted by a wide window provided with stone seats. The east projection also forms a recess with a small window and a locker in the wall. This was probably the sacristy, as it adjoins the chapel in the south wing.

The southern wing or projection seems to be of the same date as the original castle, and to have formed part

of it. On the ground floor it is covered with a plain semicircular tunnel vault similar in construction to that of the northern projection, but there is no indication on the exterior of there having been any extension of the masonry, such as above indicated at the northern end.

The first floor of the south wing contains the chapel, 25 feet by 26 feet with a groined vault about 28 feet high (_see_ Fig. 170). The ribs are large and of a square section, and rest on plain corbels in the angles, the construction of the whole being very simple. The windows are small and have the same recesses deeply splayed towards the outside, as occur in the old part of the east wall in the upper cloister, and which indicate an early date.

The chapel was probably part of the original design, and was restored in the fourteenth century. We read that in 1342, the Abbot Geoffrey had the “choir” constructed in Toulon. This no doubt refers to a wooden gallery or stalls, which were then fitted up, but have now entirely disappeared.

The western portion of the castle was divided in the centre by a wall running east and west. The northern division seems to have contained the kitchen, and the other half the original refectory. The stone sink still exists in the kitchen window to the north. The windows looking to the west are small and high, the sill being stepped up. The upper floors in this wing would contain the dormitories, being provided with fireplaces and garderobes in the walls. But this part of the building was much altered in the seventeenth or eighteenth centuries, and Mérimée mentions that when he visited the Island in 1834, the place was divided up into small rooms with plaster partitions, and, he adds, “some of the chambers are still painted in the style of the eighteenth century, several of the panels over the doors representing shepherds and shepherdesses in the style of Van Loo, decorations one would scarcely look for amongst the monks.”

At a period subsequent to the original erection of the castle, the angle contained between the southern projection and the main building was enclosed with a wall and added to the structure. The walls of this addition are much thinner than the old ones, being only about 4 feet, while those of the original castle are from 8 to 10 feet thick. That this portion is an addition is evident from the style of the masonry of the old southern wall, which is visible in the interior of the extension, and corresponds with the rough ashlar of the exterior walls generally (_see_ Fig. 174, right side).

The principal floor of this addition, entering off the lower cloister, was used as the refectory (Fig. 174). It is 47 feet long by 16 feet wide, and is roofed with a round tunnel vault strengthened with transverse ribs. This structure must belong to a comparatively late period--probably the fifteenth century--but it is noteworthy that the old Provençal style of tunnel vaulting, strengthened with transverse ribs, having a simple ovalo for the string course or impost, and “cut off” corbels, is still maintained.

The custom of reading to the monks during meals by one of their number was evidently observed here, from the semi-circular recess or pulpit, raised a few steps above the floor, which is formed in the wall at the north-east angle.

The basement of this addition may have been used as cellars and stores, and was reached by a wheel stair in the thickness of the wall. The upper floor (now destroyed) was the library, which contained a large number of valuable MSS., now dispersed and lost.

At the restoration of the fifteenth century, the top of the castle on the sides next the land (Figs. 165 and 169) was crowned with a stone parapet projected on bold corbels, with wide machicolations or apertures for defence between them.

In 1524, and again in 1536, the castle was attacked and taken by the Spaniards, who, on the latter occasion, were commanded by the famous Genoese Captain Andrea Doria, on the part of Charles V. Some additional buildings were added by the Spaniards to render the castle more defensible according to the ideas of the sixteenth century. A narrow gangway only 4 to 5 feet wide was built, by which alone access could be obtained to the entrance doorway; and this was defended by a double doorway at its outer end, where also it could only be reached by a narrow stair placed at right angles. To the north of this was a ditch and drawbridge. An outer wall seems also to have enclosed the castle on the west side, and some additional buildings were erected at the south-west angle, but these have now almost entirely crumbled away.

This ancient ruin, so interesting historically and architecturally, is not less so artistically. Whether we regard the venerable aspect of the antique cloister or the rich golden colour of the exterior, contrasting so beautifully with the dark-green of the pines and the deep blue of the southern sea and sky, nothing could be more charming or delightful.

After the above dates the castle seems to have been garrisoned by the Crown of France, and was frequently taken and retaken by the Spaniards and the French. It was at this period that the Chapel of Ste Trinité was heightened, and fortified with two cannons; while, at the same time, other batteries were erected at different points round the island.

Meanwhile the monastery had dwindled away, but the monks still retained their suzerainty over Cannes, Vallauris, Napoule, and other villages on the mainland. Finally, in 1788, the number of monks had become reduced to four, when, on the request of the Bishop of Grasse, the monastery was secularised. Thereafter the island has several times changed hands, and now it is occupied by a body of Cistertian Monks, who cultivate the soil and superintend an orphanage.

The adjoining island of STE MARGUÉRITE has but little interest architecturally. The fort, which is built on the precipitous rock on the north side of the island, facing the Croisette point at the eastern extremity of the bay of Cannes, was erected by Richelieu. Scarcely finished, it was attacked and taken by the Spaniards in 1635, who enlarged it, and after being recovered by the French, was repaired by Vauban. The view of the castle from the Croisette is picturesque and pleasing (Fig. 175); but the only point worth inspecting close at hand is the prison in which the “man with the iron mask” was confined by Louis XIV. for seventeen years. The extreme thickness of the walls (above 12 feet), the window defended by three successive gratings in the depth of the wall, the double doors covered with iron studs and secured with iron bars, give some idea of the importance of that mysterious prisoner.

In the environs of Cannes there are numerous delightful walks and excursions amongst the olives and vines of the valleys, or by footpaths over the pine-clad hills. One of the most favourite of these is to the town of VALLAURIS, famous for its fine pottery ware. It may be reached by a road through a rocky valley, which branches off the main road to Antibes, at Golfe Juan, or by a footpath, forming a pleasant walk of some four miles across the hills, past the wayside chapel of St Antoine, which crowns the “col” between the two valleys. From this point a splendid view is obtained over Vallauris and its surrounding hills, above which, in the distance, rise the snowy peaks of the Maritime Alps. At Vallauris there still exists an interesting architectural relic, being the original chapel of the summer palace of the Abbot of the Lérins. This residence, situated as it is amongst the hills some way inland from the sea, enjoys in summer a more temperate climate than the Island of St Honorat, which is said to be the hottest place in Provence. The property was acquired by the monastery in 1042, under a charter of Aldebert, Bishop of Antibes, and here the abbots built their seignorial castle. The chapel probably dates from the thirteenth century. The remainder of the palace was demolished in the end of the fourteenth century by a famous brigand, Raymond de Turenne, who devastated the whole coast of Provence. In the beginning of the sixteenth century one of the monks of the Lérins, Régnier de Lascaris, rebuilt the town on a regular plan, with good streets placed at right angles, presenting a very striking contrast to the network of

narrow tortuous lanes which form the usual streets of Provençal towns. The houses were constructed for the accommodation of the workmen employed at the celebrated potteries of the valley, which were well known even in Roman times, and are still of world-wide fame. The palace was probably rebuilt about the same time, and possesses some picturesque features (Fig. 176). The chapel is (Fig. 177) like that of Cannes, a simple nave,

31 feet long by 16 feet wide, with round apse about 10 feet deep. It is roofed in two bays (Fig. 178), with a pointed barrel-vault, having one square transverse rib in the centre, supported by a simple pilaster on each side, with a string course at the wall-head, and impost “cut off,” all as at the Mont du Chevalier. The apse is round, and has a pointed semi-dome instead of a round one, as at the latter. The windows are small and pointed, and have the deep external splay so common in all these buildings. There are two doors, also pointed, one of which enters at the south side from the castle court, and the other at the west end from the outside. The pointed arches in the doors and windows probably indicate a somewhat later date than the round ones of the “Mont du Chevalier.”

The chapel is now occupied as an oil mill.

A wide boulevard has recently been constructed, leading from the centre of Cannes straight northwards for a distance of about two miles, through the only ground near the town which is at all level, to the village of LE CANNET. Here an ancient machicolated tower (Fig. 179), called the “Maison du brigand” (now crowned with a

peaceful photographer’s studio), contrasts strangely with the new houses rapidly rising around it, along the recently constructed and improved roads; but on the higher ground some of the more antique houses and narrow lanes are still preserved near the quaint old church of Notre Dame des Anges (Fig. 180). Le Cannet forms an agreeable promenade from Cannes; and it is well worth while to continue the walk or drive northwards for about two miles through the magnificent groves of olives which here clothe the valley, as far as the base of the hill, on the summit of which stands the ancient town of MOUGINS. Whether viewed from below, or from the hill above on the right close by the ancient and picturesque church of Notre Dame de Vie (Fig. 181), the effect of the old town crowning its rocky and olive-clad height is always striking. The climb up the steep and many-stepped mule path to the habitations on the summit is no small task, but the labour is well repaid by the splendid

views thence obtained in all directions, especially towards Grasse, and by the picturesque vistas which meet the eye at every turn in the ancient narrow streets. One of the original gateways of the town (Fig. 182) is still preserved, with its machicolated parapet and the grooves for the portcullis behind its plain pointed arch. It is supposed that Mougins is the Mons Ægitna to which the native tribes retired, and where they fortified themselves after being driven from Cannes (or Ægitna) by the Romans. In returning to Cannes, the route may be delightfully varied by a walk over the hills, past Notre Dame de Vie, and along the footpath beside the aqueduct, which brings the water supply from the sources of the Siagne (some twenty miles off by road, but double the distance measured round the windings of the canal) to Cannes and Antibes.

Castellaras, about a couple of miles north from Mougins, is another splendid point of view. An ancient castle here occupies the summit of a hill, and is partly surrounded with its old wall of enceinte, but the most of the buildings connected with it are modern.