Re : Rollo

[Behottiere@aol.com]

Dans un courrier daté du D/7/YY 14:37:24  , vous avez écrit :
Just returned fron Rouen. Visited the Catheral Norte Dame and the L'Abbaye 
Saint-Quen De Rouen.  Found the statue of Rollon in the garden of the hotel  
DeVille.  He is a tall handsome man with a mustache dressed in a Viking quilt 
and helmet his right arn is broken off and the statue was erected in 1863. 
Proportedly on the 1000th anniversary of hs birth.  In the garden of the 
abbey there is a rune which is the proclaimation of Harald the King of the 
Danes and Noreigns who ordered in 911 that all Vikings become Christians.  
The rune is large reddish stone carved in old norse. In front of the Rune 
there is a plaque given by the Carlsberg foundation in 1907  The rune look as 
if it weights 2 to 3 Thousand Kilos.

About A. D. 260 the first bishop sent from Rome to these parts, St Mellon, 
came to preach the Gospel in the Gallo-Roman City of Rotomagus, probably at 
the cross roads of two Roman ways, which is today the Catheral Square.

A young boy, named Praecordius, climbed on the roof of his house to hear the 
preacher better; he fell down and died at his feet.  Mellon restored him to 
life.  As a token of thanks Praecordius,s father offered his house to be the 
first place of Christian worship in the city.  As related by tradition, as 
early as the 3rd century, Mellon had made Rouen the see of a diocese.

After the presecutions, Mellon's successors had a double basilica built.  In 
396, Victrice, the eigth bishop of Rouen, built the north church and later 
linked it with a gallery to the former which was placed under today's 
catheral.  Ransacked by Vikings invaders those buildings,of which there 
remain important ruins.  Around 1000A.D. Archbishop Robert the son of Duke 
Richard 1 had the church rebuilt.  On One October1063 Archbishop Maurille 
dedicated the catheral with Duke William present.
  
On 19th April 1944 allied bombing destroyed the tomb of Rollon and Richard 
Coeur de Lion on the south side of the church.  The scat remains of Rollon 
were intombed in the tomb of Henry the Younger son of Henry II King of 
England, Duke of Normandy.  Next to this tomb that of William the Long Sword 
who died in 942.

I have photoed it, will post jsq when developed. Will write more when I have 
a proper qwerty keyboard


Sinclair		



REF: 	L'Abbaye Saint-Ouen de Rouen Pascal Pottiere 1994 Rouen
	Notre Dame de Rouen A.M. Carment-Lanfry 1998 Rouen
	Coeur de Rouen Tourist Office Publication 1999
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