Table Of ContentFrance and the Grand Tour
Jeremy Black
France and the Grand Tour
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France and the Grand Tour
Jeremy Black
Professor of History
University of Exeter
© Jeremy Black 2003
Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 2003 978-1-4039-06 90-8
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First published 2003 by
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For
Paul and Yvonne Harvey
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Contents
Preface ix
Abbreviations xi
Notes on Dates and Currency xii
1. Introduction 1
2. Into France 7
3. Paris 18
4. The Rest of France 29
5. Accommodation 55
6. Food and Drink 62
7. Transport 74
8. Finance and Cost 91
9. Hazards 102
10. Activities 119
11. Political and Social Reflections 140
12. Religion 159
13. Culture 169
14. The Impact of Travel to France 185
15. Revolution 192
16. Conclusions 196
Notes 199
Bibliography 221
Index 227
vii
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Preface
In the eighteenth century, the nation’s enemy was one of the major
destinations for British tourists. This book sets out to describe their
experiences and to assess the impact of tourism to France. The charac-
teristic feature of my work, which provides a distinctive voice, is that I
rely heavily on archival sources in order to provide the real tourist
experience, rather than an account that is essentially based on travel
literature, which is the characteristic of most work on the subject. By
focusing on the mechanics of tourism, I try to bring the whole thing to
life. This approach is not without its problems. Many tourist letters are
scattered in general family correspondence and therefore difficult to
find. Some of the surviving material is anonymous, or provides only
isolated items of information, frequently concerning tourists about
whom little else is known. As also with the printed material, much is
repetitive.
Yet, there is also much of value, not least because of its spontaneity.
Letters written on the spot and at the time are a more accurate guide to
experience than the published prose of calm recollection. John
Holroyd, later 1st Earl of Sheffield, had promised to send ‘an History of
my travels with all the minute particulars you desired. I find it impossi-
ble to do it in the manner I intended such an infinity of occurrences
assault me, but shall crowd into this paper all manner of circumstances
just as I recollect them which certainly will form a noble chaos, yet
perhaps you may be able to find a few particulars that will amuse you’.1
New material from the archives gives a fresh ‘warts-and-all’ feel,
which sheds light on how travel was perceived at the moment of expe-
rience. This is linked to the gap between ideal and reality: what people
were meant to do and what they actually did; what was talked up in
the guide books as exemplary or splendid, and how people responded.
Thus this book moves beyond the conventional expectations of eigh-
teenth-century tourism. It also seeks to reverse the common pattern of
treating the Grand Tour as a whole. While that approach has its uses, it
is also important to emphasise the specific characteristics of tourism to
France, the state that vied with Britain for dominance of the European
world. For the purposes of this book, that means France within its
present frontiers. That includes areas that were not part of France in
1700, particularly the Duchy of Lorraine, annexed in 1766, Avignon
ix
