THE Abbey of St. George at Bocherville, is seated upon an eminence on the right bank of the Seine, two leagues below Rouen. Its situation amidst an ancient forest is implied in its name; and the beautiful vicinity has retained all the charms of its primitive boscy glades. The abbey was founded about the year 1050, by Ralph de Tancarville, the tutor and chamberlain to the Conqueror of England, who, with his Duchess, assisted in the pious labour, by benefactions to the infant society. vignettes.* To this volume we are indebted for the view of the Chapterhouse, which we now present to our readers; whilst the accompanying plate of architectural parts has been drawn by our own artist from casts made by the late Mr. Pugin, and we can safely add, that they are given with greater accuracy than in any of the works we have named. It is the church alone of Bocherville that has been preserved uninjured. The monastic buildings, which were built about the year 1700, have been At the French Revolution, the abba- converted into a manufactory; and the tial church was fortunately made paro- Chapter-house is described by Mr. chial, and thus escaped the ruin in Dawson Turner t as being extremely which nearly the whole of the monas- dilapidated. When he saw it, it was tic edifices throughout France were at used for a mill; and it is drawn in the that time involved. As it had pre-Voyages Pittoresques" as occupied viously sustained little injury or alter- by a stable. ation, it is now one of the most interesting and instructive of all the existing churches erected in the Norman style. The modern architectural antiquaries have paid it great attention. In Cotman's Architectural Antiquities of Normandy, seven plates are devoted to it; two being exterior views, one of the great doorway, one an interior, and the three others of parts. In the "Voyages Pittoresques et Romantiques dans l'Ancienne France," fol. Paris, the 22d livraison, consisting of fourteen plates, is occupied with this subject. Besides these, there is a separate work, entitled "Essai historique et descriptif sur l'Eglise et l'Abbaye de Saint Georges de Bocherville, par Achille Deville," printed at Rouen, in 4to, 1827, and illustrated with several lithographic prints and GENT. MAG. VOL. IV. *This work contains the best history of the Abbey; and though, on the whole, the plates of the two former works are of superior merit, yet this furnishes some subjects not given in them, particularly the le Roulx, 1535, great seals of Richard splendid gravestone of the Abbat Anthoine Coeur-de-Leon and Philippe le Hardi, and a portrait of the Abbé d'Orleans, the last of the house of Orleans-Longueville, who died at this abbey in 1694. In addition to the history of the abbey, this volume contains several charters, a list of the Abbats, and a memoir of the Chamberlains of Tancarville, the hereditary founders. One of the Abbats was Francis Duc de FitzJames, Peer of France, and Bishop of Soissons, grandson to James II. King of England. He was nominated Abbat in 1738, and died 1765. In his Tour in Normandy, and in the descriptions of Cotman's Architectural Antiquities of Normandy. 3 P Mr. Dawson Turner has added to the interest of the church of Bocherville by comparing it with the cathedral of Norwich, which it much resembles, particularly in the circular termination of its east end, which possesses the most beautiful effect from the interior. We have considered the Chapter-house to be deserving of the like attention, from its great similarity to the remains of the Chapterhouse at Rochester. The Chapterhouse at Norwich has been entirely removed. Views of the Rochester Chapterhouse will be found in the title-page to Thorpe's "Registrum Roffense," in pl. xxxiii. of that work, and in plate xxxvii. The last is a large folding plate, displaying its architectural features on a clear scale. On reference to that plate the student of ancient architecture will be interested to see how nearly the design corresponds with this of Bocherville. The central door stands between two windows, which are flanked by similar pilasters, and rise from a similar dwarf wall. Above, are three windows, as at Bocherville, but their heads are circular instead of pointed. The doorway at Rochester was more in the ordinary fashion, being narrower than the windows, and having columns descending to the ground; whilst at Bocherville, it will be perceived, the three arches are alike in size and form. The Chapter-house at Rochester is supposed to have been erected by Bishop Ernulph, who died in 1125. He was a French monk, from Beauvais, and had previously occupied the abbatial chair at Peterborough, where also he erected the Chapter-house. There is, on the whole, more sculpture about the Bocherville work than at Rochester. The two columns in front of the piers are, as it were, additional; as are the small statues placed within the arches against the piers, two of which will be seen remaining in the view. These statues are very remark able. They resemble in style those at the great west door of the church at Rochester. We may probably recall the attention of our readers to them; and we shall only add at present, that they are very extraordinary allegorical representations of Mors, Disciplina, &c. identified by the inscriptions which they hold in scrolls before them. The capitals of the columns are carved with very curious bas-reliefs. Of these, specimens are given in our second plate; one of the subjects being Abraham offering up Isaac, his sword being arrested by an Angel, and a ram appearing in the thicket below; the other is, apparently, Lot and his family conducted from Sodom. The subjects of, God appearing to our first parents in the Garden, and the angel driving them out of Paradise, occur in capitals in other places; as does the Temptation by the Serpent, on one of the capitals of the great west door of the curiosity, representing, in six compart ments, the Annunciation, the Salutation, the Nativity, the Angel appearing to the Shepherds, the Massacre of the Innocents, and the Presentation in the Temple. Of the last a representation will be found in the Essai Historique, pl. v. bis; and both of them were also the subjects of plates in the Recueil de la Societé d'Emulation de Rouen pour l'année 1826. The archivolt, or commencement of the rising of one of the sculptured arches, will be seen in the fourth figure of our second plate. It is the same to which Mr. Turner (Tour, vol. ii. p. 11) draws attention for its singularity, and as being engraved in Mr. Cotman's eleventh plate; but, in justice to our own artist, we must say that Mr. Cotman's representation is very incorrect, doubtless from having mistaken, on his return home, a sketch hastily made on the spot. The first figure in our second plate represents a boss at the centre of the groining of the arches. The second figure is part of the entablature or cornice running round the sides of the apartment, small portions of which are seen in the view. A whole side (not that from which this portion is taken) is drawn in the Voyages Pittoresques. MEMORIALS OF LITERARY CHARACTERS, No. X.. THREE LETTERS OF CHARLES (THE PROUD) duke of someRSET, TO TONSON THE BOOKSELLER, RESPECTING AN INTENDED ENGAGEMENT OF MR. ADDISON AS TRAVELLING TUTOR. AT the date of these letters, Algernon Earl of Hertford, the Duke's eldest son, was nineteen years of age. Addison was thirty-one, and out of place, his political friends not being in power. He appears, however, not to have considered the Duke's offer as sufficiently advantageous; and he therefore remained unemployed until brought forward by his former patron, Lord Halifax. It may be added that these letters show that Addison was then abroad, and not at home, as is particularly stated in his life.* Friday night, 10 a clock. Mr. Manwaring told mee you had now received a letter from Mr. Addison wherein hee seemes to embrace the proposal, but desires to know the particulars; soe if you please to come to mee to-morrow morning about nine or ten a clock, wee will more fully discoarse the wholle matter together, that you may be able at your arrivall in Holland to settle all things with him. I could wishe hee would come over by the return of this convoy. But more of this when wee meett: in the mean time beleive mee your very humble SOMERSET. servant, For Mr. Jacob Tonson, at Gray's-inn. * Qu. At what period was Addison tutor to the young Earl of Warwick, afterwards his stepson? London, June the 4th, 1703. I received yours of the 21st of May yesterday, and am very glade, after soe long a time, you are at last safely arriv'd with the D. of Grafton at the Hague. As to what you writte of Mr. Addison, I shall bee very glade to see him here in England, that wee may more fully discoarse together of that matter; but at the same time I should have been much better satisfy'd, had hee made his own proposalles, that hee then would have been on more certain tearmes of what hee was to depend on, especially since hee did not intend to leave Holland soe soon on any other account; therefore I think 1 ought to enter into that affair more freely, and more plainly, and tell you what I propose, and what I hope hee will comply with, viz. I desire hee may bee more on the account of a companion in my son's travells then as a gover nour, and as such shall account him: my meaning is that neither lodging, travelling, or dyett shall cost him six pence, and over and above that, my son shall present him at the year's end with a hundred guineas, as long as hee is pleas'd to continue in that service to my son by taking great care of him, by his personall attendance and advice, in what hee finds necessary during his time of travelling. My intention is at present to send him over before August next to the Hague, there to remayne |