Looking for St James in Normany
Judith Bennett
| The following article first appeared in our Bulletin no. 63 in September 1998, and is included here by permission of the author and the editor. You may quote reasonable extracts without permission, though we would appreciate an acknowledgement. For more substantial use, please contact the Secretary. |
When we came to live in Dorset five years ago one of the few regrets was that we were cutting ourselves off from many Confraternity activities, but a new field soon opened up. Sturminster Newton is twinned with Montebourg, a small town some 15 miles south of Cherbourg, and on a cycling holiday in Normandy took the opportunity of staying overnight there. We found that the church is dedicated to St James, and that it has two fine statues, one on the façade, the other, of painted alabaster (Purbeck marble?) inside; our hosts told us that Montebourg was the first stop for English pilgrims who had crossed the channel to Barfleur - the very beautiful small port where we had had lunch that day, little thinking of its significance.
Correspondence with Mlle Jeannine Warcollier of the Société des Amis de St Jacques in Paris confirmed that the route from Barfleur continued via Mont-St-Michel, itself a considerable centre of pilgrimage, eventually joining the chemin from Tours. As far as we can ascertain no definite route has yet been traced, but this summer we set out to pass through some of the possible staging posts, and to seek out any evidence of St James in the region. We were to find that war, revolution and reconstruction had probably obliterated much of the Jacobean heritage.
Montebourg itself celebrates the fête de St Jacques in true French fashion, with bands, carnival and food, but of recent years there has been an attempt to incorporate in the festivities a walk along the pilgrimage route from Barfleur. With two members of the twinning association we joined a party of fifteen French walkers and set off at 8 a.m. for the 27 km to Montebourg. This was a pleasant though exhausting walk, but sportif and secular; and although we were said to be on the 'authentic' route, we found no evidence for this. On arrival at Montebourg we found the town was en fête, and outside the church an imposing group of worthies, in emerald green tunics, red cloaks, black velvet caps and scallop shells about their necks. A ladder was next propped precariously beneath St James's statue, a wreath and nosegay of red roses handed to a teenager, who clambered up, crowned St James, and placed the nosegay in his hand beside the staff. Those assembled then sang a hymn in his honour, and after a brief homily processed into church. It was an anticlimax to learn that the main function of the scarlet-cloaked was the judging of tripe and pigs-trotters, and the connection with St Jacques nowadays tenuous in the extreme!
From Montebourg, past a pilgrim cross, and through Reigneville, where, we were told, a statue of St James has been unearthed, we reached St Sauveur le Vicomte, where there is a 15th century statue of St James in the abbey church, and a nearby village is called St Jacques de Néhou. This time we were on bicycles again, and soon reached the village of Canville-La-Roque, where Mlle Warcollier had told us to look at the frescoes. The village is small, overlooking woods and farmland, and the church outwardly undistinguished, but inside are wonderful 16th century paintings of the legend of the pendu-dépendu, discovered almost by chance a few years ago: a series of twelve scenes, slightly damaged, but the colours still vibrant, tells the famous story, with the delightful touch of a tiny figure of St James supporting the hanging body of the supposed thief. Mme Roulland, the gardienne of this chapel, spoke to us at length - we were the first English people she had come across who knew of the legend, and was impressed when we told her of the activities of the Confraternity. A local saint, Thomas Hélie of Biville, is commemorated here - he had made the pilgrimage in the 13th century.
At Portbail, five miles to the south-west, the Église Notre-Dame, built in the 11th century, on an even older site, overlooks the harbour; it is sadly no longer in use, but has a fine St James in painted wood. Behind the church are the remains of a total-immersion baptistery. This is an idyllic spot. The main road south now runs a kilometre or so inland, long, straight and flat through the dunes. These sandy stretches are gradually being brought into cultivation, thanks to loads of manure from the dairy areas further north. Cyclists beware of following one of the lorry-loads - it lingers on the air! The construction of this road involved the destruction of a number of wayside crosses. A worthwhile detour from the coastal route is a visit to Lessay for its magnificent Romanesque abbey - it is hard to believe that this is not the original, but a post-war reconstruction of the building destroyed by the retreating Germans in 1944.
Continuing south, it is possible that the pilgrims would have crossed the
mouth of the Sienne by ferry, or, as we did, passed through Coutances with
its great Gothic cathedral crowned by a lantern-tower. The coast today is
dotted with small resorts, the principal being Granville, now rather smart,
but once an English stronghold. Granville marks the end of the sand-dune
coast, and the road now hugs the shore. Ten miles or so south it climbs
the modest cliffs, and here, rising serenely above the wheat fields, is
the first glimpse of Mont-St-Michel - recalling strongly the sight of Notre
Dame de Chartres seen across the Beauce. This is rural France again, away
from the seaside hustle, and the tiny town of Genêts sits sleepily
in its salt-marshes. It is from near here that pilgrims could at low tide
make their way directly across the sands to Mont-St-Michel. It is still
possible, but must only be attempted with a guide. The church of Genêts
is unremarkable, save for the most extraordinary Resurrection painting:
Christ rising from the tomb, surrounded by four figures in Victorian (or
rather IIe Empire) dress - the donor and his family?
As it was not practicable to take bicycles across the sands we made our way towards Avranches. It was here that St Aubert was visited by the Archangel Michael, who ordered him to build a chapel on the rock now known as Mont-St-Michel. Aubert, dubious at first, obeyed when the archangel thrust his thumb into Auberts skull - the holed skull was for centuries on display. At Avranches too, Henry II made public penance for the murder of St Thomas à Becket. From Avranches we diverged due south from the direct route to Mont-St-Michel in order to visit the small town of St James. This is not the only instance of our modern English spelling, for it exists also as a family name on a tombstone in Dol de Bretagne - it would be interesting to know if there were a historical or linguistic reason for this. Today this is visited most often for its American cemetery and its exclusive knitwear, but the priory once possessed relics of the Apostle, and was the scene of many miracles; the church retains a romanesque arch in the apse, and some fine cockle shells on one of the pillars. The statue and window representations are of a much later date. A little to the east is the hilltop town of Montjoie-St-Martin - a section drawn from the map shows that from here a traveller from Chartres or Tours could well have his first sight of Mont-St-Michel. Montjoie!
Between St James and Mont-St-Michel is La Croix-Avranchin, a crossroads settlement curious for celebrating in recent monument and memorial every anniversary it can lay claim to. A map at the church shows that this village and St James are on the route from Tours to Mont-St-Michel: a pilgrim coming from England could thus cross the Cotentin peninsula, visit Mont-St-Michel and then make his way towards the chemin from Paris. From here we made our way to Mont-St-Michel, the approach now lined with modern hotels. Once on the causeway, however, one falls under the spell of the Belle Ile en Terrre, St Michael in Peril of the Sea, as once it was known. Leaving our bicycles at the Porte du Roy we joined the throngs making their way steeply up to the Gothic marvel of the abbey. The building itself has had a chequered history since the 17th century, but Mass is once more said there, and we assisted at a fine sung celebration, and afterwards, at low tide, watched from the promenade long lines of walkers (pilgrims?) making their way across the sands from Genêts, and promised ourselves that next time we would come to Mont-St-Michel this way. But of St James we found nothing until we visited the parish church of St Peter, half way down the hill, where there are scallop shells on the bénitier, and a statue of St Roch, that other companion of pilgrims. And so, fortified by ice-cream, we returned over the causeway, to make our way to St-Malo for the homeward journey, looking back constantly until Mont-St-Michel finally disappeared from sight.
I am not sure what we hoped to find, but it was a fascinating journey,
one we would recommend: fine architecture, orchards, meadows, sea views;
good food, excellent cider... and the reward of the occasional scallop shell
or statue.
Postscript
The municipal library at Avranches holds the Mont-St-Michel archives, and
displays several fine manuscripts. Serious study here might reveal far more
than this desultory journey through Normandy. Evidence of a Normandy route
is not found in either Constance Storrs' or R B Tate's research, but the
former lists among pilgrims in 1280 "Matthew Johnson, parson of Chaldon"
and "Henry of Chalvedon": these both refer to the parish of East Chaldon
in Purbeck, Dorset. Research at the Dorset Record Office has so far only
produced references to the latter, as a benefactor of Bindon Abbey. But
it can be noted that the church of Poole is dedicated to St James, that
the town's arms include the scallop shell. Milton Abbey has the remains
of a fine statue, and at least two pilgrim flasks have been found in the
hinterland. There is more work to be done...
Some practical counsels
Most of the towns mentioned are hilltop towns approached by steep and very busy roads, but outside the towns traffic is not too troublesome; minor roads are idyllic for cycling, with excellent surfaces, and reasonable signposting. Accommodation in chambres d'hôtes or small hotels is plentiful, though for the former it is wise to check that there is a restaurant within reach - especially for walkers. This is probably not the best part of France for the walker, as there are few obvious footpaths. We saw no gîtes d'étape, though there are probably some on the coastal GR223.
John and Shirley Snell, also Dorset members, visited the church of Canville-la-Rocque two years ago and write as follows:
"We first heard of Canville-La-Rocque in a most unusual manner as although we had for many years either motored or cycled within a few hundred yards of the village we were unaware of the church and of the treasure it contained. Canville-La-Rocque is a small hamlet some 4.5 km east of Portbail and 10 km south-east of Barneville-Carteret along a narrow lane just off the D903 coast road.
"Returning home after following the L49 Puy route to Santiago we were cycling from Irun to Cherbourg and had decided to spend the night in Barneville-Carteret. After dinner and enjoying a leisurely stroll we met a French couple who earlier had bidden us bon appétit whilst we had been eating in the restaurant. They recognised the scallop shell pendant Shirley was wearing and immediately started a discussion and told us that they too had been pilgrims to Santiago although some years earlier on foot. They then invited us to share a bottle of champagne with them in a nearby bar to continue the conversation - aren't pilgrims generous folk!
"Our conversation was overheard by the barman who, interrupting our talk, told us that some beautiful frescoes had been discovered in the nearby church at Canville-La-Rocque which featured St James. This took place in June 1994 but we had to wait until September 1996 before we had the opportunity to visit the church. The road to the village is narrow and having our caravan behind the car we wondered if we were going to be able to get out at the far end. However, the lane soon connected to a road.
"The ceiling frescoes within the church date from about 1520 and the central area depicting images of the four evangelists were uncovered and partially restored in 1930. However, it was not until 1950 that the lower frescoes encircling the chapel were discovered. These almost exactly replicate the story commemorated by the cock and hen at Santo Domingo de la Calzada of the legend du pendu dépendu (the hung man unhung). The figure of St James is clearly to be seen supporting the young man on the gibbet and the story ends with the servant girl being sentenced to die and being led away with a rope around her neck.
"A separate display within the church shows a map with the route followed
by English pilgrims en route to Santiago sailing from the Solent to Barfleur
and then striking diagonally across the Cotentin peninsular to Canville-La-Rocque.
The route is then shown going south to Mont St Michel and then south again
to join the Paris route at Bordeaux."
Source: Confraternity of St James Bulletin Nº 63 pp. 37-42.