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  Musée Historique (visite)
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  50170   Le Mont Saint-Michel

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Historical Museum : Room 1

Room 1-1

Room 1 : Panel 2

Historical Museum: Room 2

Room 2-1

Room 2-2

Historical Museum : Periscope

Periscope

Historical Museum : Sound and light show

Sound and light show

Historical Museum : Dungeons room

Chamber of Dungeons 1

Dungeon Room 2

Historical Museum : Monks' Hall

Monks' Hall

Historical Museum : Wood room

Hall of woods

Roosters of monsters : In the 17th and 18th centuries:

(Coqs de monstres : Aux XVIIème et XVIIIème siècles :)

  These finely chiselled pieces served to fix and protect the circular pendulum in pocket watches, made before 1820. This museum has the largest collection of antique watch cocks. This important collection was formed by the meeting of several other collections, including that which was started in 1843 by the Breton watchmaker Yves LEROADEC. He had the idea to collect and mount them in art jewelry (horlogerie-ancienne-collections.com). This collection was fed until the middle of the XXth century, in particular by Mr. Edmond COINON (it was called by the tradesmen of Mont Saint Michel "the COINON father") who foamed the regions of France, Belgium, Netherlands and Germany to find roosters and other timepieces that were on display, or sold at the Mont Saint Michel museum.

Iron to gild: (And gilder tools of the beginning of the XVIIIth century) ...

(Fer à dorer : (Et outils de doreur du début du XVIIIème siècle)...)

  These finely chiselled pieces served to fix and protect the circular pendulum in pocket watches, made before 1820. This museum has the largest collection of antique watch cocks. This important collection was formed by the meeting of several other collections, including that which was started in 1843 by the Breton watchmaker Yves LEROADEC. He had the idea to collect and mount them in art jewelry (horlogerie-ancienne-collections.com). This collection was fed until the middle of the XXth century, in particular by Mr. Edmond COINON (it was called by the tradesmen of Mont Saint Michel "the COINON father") who foamed the regions of France, Belgium, Netherlands and Germany to find roosters and other timepieces that were on display, or sold at the Mont Saint Michel museum.

Banners :

(Les étendars :)

  These banners belonged to kings such as Charles V, Henry II and Louis XV who were deposited at Mont Saint Michel during pilgrimages. To know that most kings of France came there. Among the kings who did not come to Mont Saint Michel, two are worthy of note: Louis XIV, certainly too busy with the construction of his palace of Versailles, and Louis XVI, who had other concerns with the Revolution. (Maybe even a little head elsewhere?)

Seals and seals:

(Sceaux et cachets :)

  These objects were cultural and usual in the sixteenth, seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.
A seal is a fingerprint intended to guarantee the authenticity of a document or information, and to make obvious its possible disclosure or alteration. The term also refers to the object, the mastery that makes this imprint possible. This wax stamp is engraved in reverse on a brass support. If we melt "wax at the hiding place" and that we affix this seal on the wax still hot and soft, this stamp wax is printed in relief at the place and will harden while cooling. It is then definitive. The stamps were used by the administration, while the seals represented a person.

Cornet Powder : Knights used it in the sixteenth century.

(Cornet à poudre : Les chevaliers s’en servaient au XVIème siècle.)

Medals of Pilgrimage and coins:

(Médailles de pélerinage et pièces :)

  They were found in the tombs at Mont Saint-Michel during excavations.

Rifles:

(Les fusils :)

  This rifle collection runs on stone and flint drums. They belonged to the garrison of Mont Saint-Michel at the time of Napoleon I. Some of them are still equipped with the triangular bayonet, also called bayonet Louvois-Vauban (named after these two inventors). An injury to it is often fatal because of its triangular shape. Indeed, once removed, the wound closed and caused internal bleeding. Curiously, they were banned only very late, in 1966, during the famous Geneva Conventions, which explains why they were used for the two world wars. Each of these rifles has a weight between 5 and 7 kilos, for a significant scope, especially for the time (180 meters). Surprisingly enough, it was necessary for a well-trained soldier, about fifteen seconds to recharge. We see here the usefulness of the bayonet. This object is called "bayonet" because the first were manufactured in France in the seventeenth century in the region of Bayonne.

Wood and fossil footprints of the Cotentin,

(Bois et empreintes fossiles du Cotentin,)

  Wood and fossil footprints of the Cotentin, and Mont Saint-Michel strikes:
A fossil is the mineralized remains (shell, carapace, bone, tooth, seed, leaf, spore, pollen, plankton, micro-organisms) or the simple molding of an animal or plant preserved in a sedimentary rock. Fossils and processes of fossilization are studied mainly in paleontology, but also in those of geology, human prehistory and archeology.

Set of locks, and keys:

(Ensemble de serrures, et de clés :)

  This set was found in the abbey of Mont Saint Michel.

Paintings :

(Peintures :)

  These are works of Benedictine monks who resided at the abbey of Mont Saint Michel in the fifteenth, sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.

Torture instruments, in the left corner you will find:

(Instruments de torture, dans l’angle à gauche, vous trouverez :)

  - The fragments of a torture belt that was wrapped around the waist and was tightened gradually. - An iron collar called shackle: it was used to hang the criminal on a pole in a public square. This post was called the "pillory". - The leather collar with points inside for the joints. - Three small presses (thumbs), one introduced the thumbs and one squeezes gradually. It could go as far as crushing the bones. Connected with a chain they also served as handcuffs. - Two irons: the scallop and Fleur de Lys. These irons were warmed and red on the prisoner's left shoulder. This act is called withering. One and only brand was possible, in case of recurrence it was hanging. To each iron corresponded a very precise act: - The scallop shell: emblem of the pilgrim, it was reserved for criminals. - The Fleur de Lys: symbol of royalty. It was reserved for prostitution. Namely that these instruments were applied to recalcitrant prisoners of the Middle Ages, and found in the dungeons of the abbey.

Torture instruments, in the corner on the right, you will find:

(Instruments de torture, dans l’angle à droite, vous trouverez :)

  - Padlocked fetters for ankles and wrists. No doubt about it, these are the ancestors of the current handcuffs.

Painting : Left painting

(Tableaux : Tableau de gauche)

  These two paintings represent Mont Saint Michel at two different times. This painting dates from 1853. It is the work of a political prisoner. It will take three years to complete. This is because it was made entirely of pressed straw twigs, glued to egg white on cardboard. The egg white being on the glue of this time.

Painting : Right painting

(Tableaux : Tableau de droite)

  This painting dates from 1911. It is the work of a French artist named Mr. FREDON. One year needed for its design because only the backdrop was painted. It is entirely made with canceled postage stamps glued to each other. (Besides, one can always see the obliterations, for example Brussels and Saint Malo on the ramparts and Bayern in arc of circle).

Ivory, bone and mother-of-pearl carved:

(Ivoires, os et nacre sculptés :)

  They were engraved in the 17th and 18th centuries.

Collection of dolls-models:

(Collection de poupées-mannequins :)

  This collection represents the fashion of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. These dolls were on sale in the shops of Mont Saint Michel. At that time, the parades of models that we know today did not exist. Fashion was presented here and there with these dolls. (Wax / wood / shell / porcelain)

Sacristy chest :

(Coffre de sacristie :)

  This chest dates from the 18th century. It is made of solid oak, weighs 250 kilos, and was used for the storage of ceremonial clothes.

Postillion boots :

(Bottes de postillon :)

  These great diligences of the nineteenth century often require the simultaneous presence of a coachman and a postilion (carriage in half-station). In this case, the coachman always has the pre-eminence over the postilion he regards with condescension. The postillion mounts the helmsman on the left (horse called "porter", hitched closer to the car). His working conditions are rather harsh, since he has to spend long hours on horseback, in all weathers, without protection against bad weather. He puts his feet in large boiled leather boots, with which it would be impossible for him to walk, but which are fixed on the flanks of the horse and which constitute a protection in case of fall of the horse, the boots being rigid enough to support the weight of the horse.

Sculpture: SALON 1909 - The Crab Fisherman, by F. BENNETEAU

(Sculpture : SALON 1909 – Le Pêcheur de Crabes, par F. BENNETEAU)

  SALON 1909 - The Crab Fisherman, by F. BENNETEAU 1st Grand Prix of Rome for sculpture in 1909. (Offered by the author at the Museum of Mont Saint Michel)

Sculpture of a bogeyman : (E. CAPELLANI)

(Sculpture d'un enlisé : (E. CAPELLANI))

  The last fatal accident in our bay dates back to 1948. There are still quicksand in the bay, but essentially behind the Rock of Tombelaine (rocky islet at 2,800 kilometers). It is the meeting point of the three rivers of our bay: Couesnon, Sélune and Sée. A moving sand is an underground river, which, when we walk on it, sucks us and engulfs us. Only solution, lie down and roll to a much firmer ground. Of course, easier said than done! Nowadays, the greatest danger of our bay is the tides; the strongest in Europe.

Bathtub :

(Baignoire :)

  This bath belonged to the Benedictine monks of the 16th century. It was carved in a single block of stone. The same principle as our current baths. Inside ; the slope for the flow, at the bottom; a hole for emptying, and a second on the side for the overflow. Generally, since it is stone, it added a thick cloth to make it more comfortable. But they used it only for the big ceremonies, between five and six times a year, which is to say that they washed about once every two months (hoping they knew the perfume! ) You must also know that there were a dozen monks to wash in the same water ... With a subtlety, when there were three or four people washed, we removed the sheet and replaced it with another, this allowed to filter and purify the water. It was all the comfort of the monks at that time ...

Sailing ship

(Voilier)

Welcome to periscope !

(Bienvenue au périscope !)

  This is the principle of submarines: on the roof of the room is a set of ice, a prism (triangle of glass with a mirror) that projects everything that happens outside on an enamel table (located at inside). This principle was invented by Leonardo da Vinci, but the construction of this invention was in 1870 by an optician engineer named Rousseau (not to be confused with the philosopher!) He never had any strategic interest. It was installed here after the Second World War, in the 50's. The first use was simply the drawing: it was enough to put a sheet on the table and to trace.

Operation :

(Fonctionnement :)

  After visualizing the inside of the periscope, and the rules to follow once returned, close the door to see the picture. - To open the door. - To sit around the table. - Close the door. - Turn the metal cone slowly 360 degrees. - The picture will appear on the table.

For the French language : Plug in your headphones, and select

(Pour la langue Française : Branchez vos écouteurs, et sélectionnez)

For the English language : Plug in your headphones, and select

(Pour la langue Anglaise : Branchez vos écouteurs, et sélectionnez)

The prison from the fifteenth century to the revolution (1)

(La prison du XVème siècle à la révolution (1))

  It was at this time that Mont Saint Michel increased these vocations by becoming a strategic site to detain prisoners. 1472: Louis XI returns to the site to bring an iron cage in which he likes to enclose his political opponents. 17th century: The prison serves as a correctional house where young nobles are locked up for misbehavior. Until the French Revolution, the prisoners were mainly pamphleteers and Jansenists. In general, it seems that the prisoners are treated rather well because the religious ensured that the prisoners do not miss anything. The famous iron cage, which was very frightening at the time, was destroyed in 1777. The prisoners were only detained for a short time. Mid-seventeenth century: Renovation of the gothic heart of the prison which is in a state of considerable decay. Eighteenth century: The Mount is nicknamed "Bastille of the seas. 1776: Eighteen prisoners are locked up in the dungeons or the iron cage. Following the Revolution, the properties of the church are declared "national property". 1793: The "Free Mount" becomes a prison for refractory priests. The monks of the Mount are hunted. 1811: An imperial decree transforms the abbey into a house of strength to shelter mainly common law prisoners and some political prisoners such as Armand BARBES, Auguste BLANQUI and Martin BERNARD. 1863: Abolition of the prison by Napoleon III. It has had the merit of saving the abbey from destruction. However, the monument remains in a state of disrepair. Isolated by the sea, the mountain is attached to the continent at the end of the 19th century by a dike-road.

The prison from the fifteenth century to the revolution (2)

(La prison du XVème siècle à la révolution (2))

  In this room we have reconstructed dungeons as they have existed in the Abbey for nearly four centuries. (1472 to 1863). 1472: Prisons established by Louis XI. He built his famous iron cage: the "girl" of King Louis XI. She is so named because of her small size. In fact, an adult inside could neither stand up nor lie down. This iron cage is made of wood, but it is still covered with a few slats of iron. It was imported from Germany by the Prime Minister of Louis XI, Cardinal Jean BALUE. 1469: BALUE, the bishop of Verdun, Guillaume De HARANCOURT, and in concert with Charles the Bold. BALUE tried to organize against Louis XI a new league of the great lords, however he was imprisoned for ten years. It is even said that the cardinal was shut up in one of the cages which he had, by irony of fate, himself invented. 1480: Jean BALUE was released on the authority of the Holy See. This cage had only one point of fixation, generally suspended in the middle of a room, and at the slightest movement of the prisoner, it swayed. It was meant that the prisoners lose their sense of balance, and sometimes, are not won by madness. Prisoner lying: it is about Victor de la Cassagne. He signed his writings under the name of DUBOURG. He was condemned to starve for criticizing the government of King Louis XV. More exactly, criticized the favorite, the mistress of the King: Antoinette POISSON; in his writings entitled Poissonnades. This lady is much more known under the name of the Marquise De POMPADOUR. August 1745: Arrest of DUBOURG. He wore only a summer coat, too light for the damp and cold dungeon he was destined for. The religious were obliged to make him make a "robe de chambre de calmande" and a vest, or camisole of a strong cloth to spend his winter. As for his lodging, it was a dark and humid underground, a real cage. August 26, 1746: It was in the cold weather that alive, DUBOURG allowed himself to die of inanition and despair, perhaps even furious madness, after having torn up all his clothes. According to the religious, he remained twelve days without taking any food, even the broth that the monks vainly tried to make him swallow with a funnel. This miserable end, these physical and moral tortures are absolutely out of proportion to the fault that DUBOURG had committed. He was the victim of the atrocious force with which press offenses were punished in the eighteenth century.

Dungeon Room : Panel 2

(Salle des cachots : Panneau 2)

  June 6, 1811: Imperial Decree of Napoleon I. The abbey of Mont Saint Michel is transformed into a central house of detention. Under the July Monarchy, political opponents are numerous and very active. May 12, 1839: The Republicans rebelled in order to overthrow Louis-Philippe. They are arrested, imprisoned and sent for the most part to "Bastille des Mers". July 16, 1839: Armand BARBES and Martin BERNARD: Politicians are transported by cell cart to Mont. BARBES will remain there until January 26, 1843 to be transferred to the prison of Nîmes. Released in 1848, he will participate in the Republican insurrection and will be arrested again. Martin BERNARD will remain there until July 28, 1844 then transferred to the citadel of Doullens. Louis Auguste BLANQUI did not arrive until 1840, to leave again on 18 March 1844 at the prison of Tours until 1847. He spent half of his life in prison. At Mont Saint Michel, the political convicts were housed in a special district called "le petit exil", located in the Perrine Tower to the east of the monastery. This tower was built by the abbot Pierre Le Roy in the 14th century in order to defend the abbey from English attacks during the Hundred Years War. The Knights' Hall transformed into a cotton spinning workshop: Up to 600 prisoners were simultaneously locked up at Mont Saint Michel. In order to occupy these prisoners, to earn them a little money to improve the ordinary, and to be able to provide for the maintenance of the premises (the abbey), have had it set up cotton spinning workshops, Rouenneries, weavers, straw hats and varnished hats in the great halls of the abbey. The food is disgusting: stagnant water and spoiled meats. Packages are allowed but searched, sent only by families (those of friends are refused). The rounds of the guards are held every two hours, noisy and sound day and night. In addition, detainees are forbidden to talk to guards, to say a word when passing in front of other cells, to write letters other than those addressed to parents or simply to communicate between prisoners. The punishment: the dungeon. Political prisoners will have the privilege of being able to read and write, a candle of wax will be provided in this regard. They will have the choice to work or not in the workshops, but generally refuse, unlike common law prisoners and what Martin BERNARD described in "10 years in prison at Mont Saint Michel", the prisoners were well fed. Armand BARBES: French politician, born in 1808 in Pointe-à-Pitre (Guadeloupe). Untiring, the activist of the cause of the Social Republic, he took part in the insurrection of May 12, 1839 against Louis-Philippe I, sentenced to life imprisonment. He was released during the 1848 Revolution. Accusing the new leaders of treason, he was sentenced again for wanting to overthrow the government. Amnestied in 1854, he went to The Hague in the Netherlands, where he died on June 26, 1870, at the age of 61, a few months before the re-establishment of the Republic. Louis Auguste BLANQUI: Politician and theoretician, French socialist. He is the son of the deputy of the Convention Jean Dominique BLANQUI (1757-1832). He voted for the death of Louis XVI. After studying law and medicine, he started very early in politics, defending revolutionary republicanism. He was nicknamed "the locked up" because he spent thirty-five years of his life in prison, including four at Mont Saint Michel. Martin BERNARD: French politician and typographer. Born in 1808 in Montbrison (Loire), died October 22, 1883 in Paris. He spent ten years in prison, including five at Mont Saint Michel.

Monks' Hall

(Salle des moines)

  708: Bishop Aubert raises a first shrine on the Mont-Tombe in honor of the Archangel. 966: Benedictine monks settle on the Mount at the request of the Duke of Normandy, Richard I. At the origin of the rise of the new monastery, these monks, under the authority of the abbot, respect the rule of Saint Benedict. Soon, the abbey became a major pilgrimage site of the Christian West, but also a center of medieval culture where were produced, preserved, and studied a large number of manuscripts. Mont Saint Michel took the nickname "City of books". At once a political and intellectual crossroads, the abbey was visited by a large number of pilgrims over the centuries, including several kings from France and England. 1622: Reform of the congregation of Saint-Maur. She installs new religious in the abbey. They will redevelop the place and try to revive monastic life and pilgrimages. These monks must also deal with the arrival of prisoners imprisoned by lettres de cachet in an abbey that has become the "Bastille des Mers". Following the Revolution, the properties of the church are declared "well national", the monks of Mont Saint Michel are hunted. 1969: A small community of Benedictine monks comes to settle at the abbey. 2001: The community is replaced by the monastic fraternities of Jerusalem. The welcome of the pilgrim. The monks had the mission of welcoming, caring for and feeding the pilgrims. The copyist monks copied books by hand for the literate population (small minority). They worked in the scriptoriums. The copyist could also adorn his illuminated text. He worked in a workshop called the scriptorium, under the command of an armarius (librarian). The prayer: Main mission of the monks, the prayer rhythm, the daily life of the monks. The day was divided into eight times of prayer (the canonical hours). - Matins (or vigils) at midnight. - Lauds, at dawn. - Prime, 1st hour of the day. (Around 6h, current time) - Third, 3rd hour of the day. (Around 9:00 am, current time) - Sext, 6th hour of the day. (Around noon, current time) - None, 9th of the day. (Around 15h, current time) - Vespers in the evening. (Around 18h, current time) - Compline. (After the evening meal)

Hall of woods

(Salle des bois)

  1) Beam stud: Beam main house that was left outside the facades and that was carved in the form of an animal until the seventeenth century. 2) Fragments of furniture: In the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries, they were recovered after the sacking of the Revolution of 1789 in the abbey. 3) Saint Michael slaying the dragon: Work attributed to Charles LEBRUN, official painter of Louis XIV. 4) Sets of weapons: Swords of the ducalist of the fifteenth century, hunting knife of the seventeenth, swords venison of the seventeenth, blunderbuss of the eighteenth, hatchet of the nineteenth, cuirasses and helmet of the nineteenth. The trident was used to repel the scales of the invaders along the ramparts, spears of the Middle Ages.

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