Ancient & Modern – a hymn for Rouen
The more common use of ‘Ancient & Modern’ is with reference to the Church of England hymnal songs for refreshing worship but it’s perhaps strangely appropriate to the medieval and modern facades…and character of Rouen, France. That’s not to say that one isn’t overwhelmed by religious presence within the city’s confines, called the ‘city of a hundred spires’ by Victor Hugo, what with the imposing Rouen Cathedral that...
Saint-Valery-sleepy-sur-Somme
When William the Conqueror assembled his fleet at St.Valery before sailing to attack England in 1066 and Joan of Arc took one last look from her cell within the fortifications before her fiery end in Rouen, little could they have anticipated what a peaceful destination the town would become for many of the nationalities who had previously fought over this strategic location at the mouth of the Somme estuary. Situated on the Picardy...
