Long ago, a few steps from this grand Normandy manor house in Bellou, stood a tumble down cottage, the smallest in the village. In this modest home Rose Harel was born to a mother but no father, on 9 April 1826. Nothing about Rose’s start in life suggested she would
Writers
The perils of pretty English girls, for a Frenchman in Étretat
We are delighted to introduce as our guest blogger this week Guy de Maupassant! Here he interviews old friend Henri Sidoine on the Havre-Trouville ferry. Henri has a terrible warning for his fellow Frenchman. Over to Guy... "Discovery" By Guy de Maupassant The steamer was crowded with people and the crossing promised to
Guest post! Cures for princesses in Bagnoles de l’ Orne
Our guest blogger has travelled across time from 1909 to be with us today. Here she writes about her visit to the glamorous spa town of Bagnoles-de-l'Orne, but first a quick introduction: Introducing Mary Alsop King Waddington Mary Alsop King was born on 29 April 1833 into a well-connected New York family; her
The curious incident of the poet in the sea, at Étretat
A vintage postcard led us to a story about English eccentrics and French unflappability, at Étretat. A less daffodilly direction Algernon Charles Swinburne was a poet and quite possibly for his time, a genius. To the delight of biographers he was also a little unusual. Algernon was born in 1837 to a time that
Becoming Zola, in Saint-Aubin-sur-Mer
If you fancy writing a gritty, realistic novel that doesn't hold back revealing the murkier underbelly of human nature, try a holiday in charming Saint-Aubin-sur-Mer on the northern coast of Normandy. It worked for Émile Zola. Like Émile you can settle yourself into a charming villa overlooking Saint-Aubin-sur-Mer’s pretty beach or linger