Jacques-François Blondel (8 January 1705 – 9 January 1774) was an 18th-century French architect and teacher. After running his own highly successful school of architecture for many years, he was appointed Professor of Architecture at the Académie Royale d'Architecture in 1762, and his Cours d'architecture ("Course of Architecture", 1771–1777) largely superseded a similarly titled book published in 1675 by his famous namesake, François Blondel , who had occupied the same post in the late 17th century.
41-522: Born in Rouen , he initially trained under his uncle Jean-François Blondel (1683–1756), architect of Rouen. Jacques-François was in Paris by 1726 and continued his studies with Gilles-Marie Oppenord , from whom he acquired a knowledge of rococo . He also worked with Jean Mariette , contributing to the latter's L'Architecture françoise (1727, 1738), as a writer and as an architectural engraver. Blondel developed into
82-446: A "pure nature".) She wrote forty-two letters full of love and deep feelings for him; a well-known quote from these letters describes Casanova as: "My lover, my husband, my friend". Casanova's sexual passions caused him to be unfaithful, causing their three-year relationship to have numerous ups and downs. Yet she continued to share his home, found in Rue du Petit-Lion-St. Sauveur . Manon was at
123-648: A commission to produce thirteen of the engravings for the festival book commemorating the fêtes that celebrated the wedding of Madame Elizabeth of France with Dom Philippe of Spain , published in 1740. That same year he opened his own private school in Paris, the École des Arts , sanctioned by the Académie in 1743. In the ensuing years a long sequence of architects profited from his discourse: Boullée , Brongniart , Chalgrin , La Guêpière , Desprez , de Wailly , Gondoin , Ledoux , Guimard and Rondelet , and to foreigners who would bring Neoclassicism home with them:
164-450: A conservative and thorough architect, whose rationally ordered mind consolidated French classical tradition and practice. His first independent publication was the hugely influential encyclopedic work, De la Distribution des Maisons de Plaisance, et de la Décoration des Edifices en General , issued at Paris, 1737–38. It contained 155 carefully engraved plates. His Distribution des Maisons de Plaisance and other engraved work attracted
205-492: A long architectural heritage in its historical monuments, Rouen is an important cultural capital. Several renowned establishments are located here, such as the Museum of Fine Arts , Le Secq des Tournelles museum, and Rouen Cathedral . Seat of an archdiocese , it also hosts a court of appeal and a university . Every four to six years, Rouen becomes the showcase for a large gathering of sailing ships called "L'Armada"; this event makes
246-701: A population exceeding 20,000. The city council is based at the Hôtel de Ville . The main schools of higher education are the University of Rouen and NEOMA Business School (former École Supérieure de Commerce de Rouen ), Unilasalle (agronomy and agriculture), both located at nearby Mont-Saint-Aignan , and the INSA Rouen , ESIGELEC , ESITech and the CESI , the three at nearby Saint-Étienne-du-Rouvray . The main opera company in Rouen
287-553: A tram and a bus system. The tramway branches into two lines out of a tunnel under the city centre. Rouen is also served by TEOR ( Transport Est-Ouest Rouennais ) and by buses run in conjunction with the tramway by TCAR (Transports en commun de l'agglomération rouennaise) , a subsidiary of Transdev . Rouen has its own airport . The Seine is a major axis for maritime cargo links in the Port of Rouen. The Cross-Channel ferry ports of Caen , Le Havre , Dieppe (50 minutes) and Calais , and
328-529: Is a city on the River Seine , in northwestern France. It is the prefecture of the region of Normandy and the department of Seine-Maritime . Formerly one of the largest and most prosperous cities of medieval Europe , the population of the metropolitan area ( French : aire d'attraction ) is 702,945 (2018). People from Rouen are known as Rouennais . Rouen was the seat of the Exchequer of Normandy during
369-636: Is the Opéra de Rouen – Normandie. The company performs in the Théâtre des Arts, 7 rue du Docteur Rambert. The company presents opera, classical and other types of music, both vocal and instrumental, as well as dance performances. Every five years, the city hosts the large maritime exposition, L'Armada . The city is represented by Quevilly-Rouen football club, currently in the Championnat National . Officially called Union Sportive Quevillaise-Rouen Métropole ,
410-776: The Church of Saint Ouen (12th–15th century); the Palais de Justice , which was once the seat of the Parlement (French court of law) of Normandy; the Gothic Church of St Maclou (15th century); and the Museum of Fine Arts and Ceramics which contains a splendid collection of faïence and porcelain for which Rouen was renowned during the 16th to 18th centuries. Rouen is also noted for its surviving half-timbered buildings. There are many museums in Rouen:
451-546: The Channel Tunnel are within easy driving distance (two and a half hours or less). Rouen and its metropolitan area of 70 suburban communes form the Métropole Rouen Normandie , with 494,382 inhabitants at the 2010 census. In descending order of population, the largest of these suburbs are Sotteville-lès-Rouen , Saint-Étienne-du-Rouvray , Le Grand-Quevilly , Le Petit-Quevilly , and Mont-Saint-Aignan , each with
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#1732876719273492-682: The French Kingdom . He demolished the Norman castle and replaced it with his own, the Château Bouvreuil , built on the site of the Gallo-Roman amphitheatre. A textile industry developed based on wool imported from England, for which the cities of Flanders and Brabant were constantly competitors, and finding its market in the Champagne fairs . Rouen also depended for its prosperity on the river traffic of
533-536: The Musée d'Orsay in Paris. The Gros Horloge is an astronomical clock dating back to the 14th century. It is located in the Gros Horloge street . Other famous structures include Rouen Castle , whose keep is known as the tour Jeanne d'Arc , where Joan of Arc was brought in 1431 to be threatened with torture (contrary to popular belief, she was not imprisoned there but in the tour de lady Pucelle (since destroyed);
574-555: The Musée des Beaux-Arts de Rouen , an art museum with paintings by well-known artists such as Claude Monet and Géricault ; the Musée maritime fluvial et portuaire , a museum on the history of the port of Rouen and navigation; Musée des antiquités , an art and history museum with local works from the Bronze Age through the Renaissance, the Musée de la céramique , the Museum of Natural History, founded in 1834 and re-opened in 2007, and
615-610: The Plantagenet domains . Rouen did not go quietly: Alain Blanchard hanged English prisoners from the walls, for which he was summarily executed after the city surrendered, while Canon and Vicar General of Rouen Robert de Livet became a hero for excommunicating the English king, resulting in de Livet's imprisonment for five years in England. Joan of Arc , who supported a return to French rule,
656-541: The local dukes , until William the Conqueror moved his residence to Caen . In 1150, Rouen received its founding charter which permitted self-government . During the 12th century, Rouen was the site of a yeshiva known as La Maison Sublime . Discovered in 1976, it is now a museum. At that time, about 6,000 Jews lived in the town, comprising about 20% of the population. On 24 June 1204, King Philip II Augustus of France entered Rouen and definitively annexed Normandy to
697-487: The "Grand Poste" (rue Jeanne d'Arc), the banner is charged with a leopard (the lion passant seen on Norman and English arms). This was the official seal of Rouen at the beginning of the 12th century, before Normandy was incorporated into Capetian France. Manon Balletti Manon Balletti (1740–1776) was the daughter of Italian actors performing in France and lover of the famous adventurer Giacomo Casanova . She
738-602: The Anglo-Swedish Sir William Chambers , and the Dane Caspar Frederik Harsdorff . "Blondel was the most significant French architectural educator of the eighteenth century.....his objective was to establish design principles for domestic architecture that correspond to the classical principles already in practice for civil structures". In his clear and rational Architecture françoise , a four-volume work published from 1752 to 1756, he covered
779-630: The Boieldieu Bridge in the center of Rouen, this intentional location was chosen by the artist to magnify the historical separation of its city's citizens. Rouen Cathedral is the subject of a series of paintings by the Impressionist painter Claude Monet , who painted the same scene at different times of the day. Two paintings are in the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.; two are in
820-620: The Champs de Mars. In the centre of the Place du Vieux Marché (the site of Joan of Arc's pyre) is the modern church of St Joan of Arc . This is a large, modern structure which dominates the square. The form of the building represents an upturned Viking boat and a fish shape. Rouen was also home to the French Grand Prix , hosting the race at the nearby Rouen-Les-Essarts track sporadically between 1952 and 1968. In 1999 Rouen authorities demolished
861-682: The Earl of Essex . A brief account by an English participant has survived. See 'Memoirs of Robert Carey', (F.H.Mares (ed.), Oxford, 1972), pp. 18–21. The first competitive motor race ran from Paris to Rouen in 1894. During the German occupation in World War II , the Kriegsmarine had its headquarters located in a chateau on what is now the Rouen Business School . The city was heavily damaged during
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#1732876719273902-553: The Jewish community of Rouen, then numbering some five or six thousand. In 1389, another urban revolt of the underclass occurred, the Harelle . It was suppressed with the withdrawal of Rouen's charter and river-traffic privileges once more. During the Hundred Years' War , on 19 January 1419, Rouen surrendered after a long siege to Henry V of England , who annexed Normandy once again to
943-583: The Middle Ages. It was one of the capitals of the Anglo-Norman and Angevin dynasties, which ruled both England and large parts of modern France from the 11th to the 15th centuries. From the 13th century onwards, the city experienced a remarkable economic boom, thanks in particular to the development of textile factories and river trade. Claimed by both the French and the English during the Hundred Years' War , it
984-542: The Musée Le Secq des Tournelles, which houses various collections of objects. The Jardin des Plantes de Rouen is a notable botanical garden once owned by Scottish banker John Law , dating from 1840 in its present form. It was the site of Élisa Garnerin 's parachute jump from a balloon in 1817. There is also a park and garden at the Champs de Mars, to the east of the city centre. The Paris–Rouen motor race of 1894, Le Petit Journal Horseless Carriages Contest, ended at
1025-619: The Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts in Moscow; one is in the National Museum of Serbia in Belgrade. The estimated value of one painting is over $ 40 million. This may be rendered, "On a red background a haloed white pascal lamb looking back over its shoulder ( contorny ) holds a white banner bearing a gold cross; above, a broad blue band across the top bears 3 gold fleurs de lis". On the front of
1066-562: The Seine, on which it enjoyed a monopoly that reached as far upstream as Paris . In the 13th and 14th centuries urban strife threatened the city: in 1291, the mayor was assassinated and noble residences in the city were pillaged. Philip IV reimposed order and suppressed the city's charter and the lucrative monopoly on river traffic, but he was quite willing to allow the Rouennais to repurchase their old liberties in 1294. In 1306, he decided to expel
1107-549: The city an occasional capital of the maritime world. Rouen was founded by the Gaulish tribe of the Veliocasses , who controlled a large area in the lower Seine valley. They called it Ratumacos ; the Romans called it Rotomagus . It was considered the second city of Gallia Lugdunensis after Lugdunum ( Lyon ) itself. Under the reorganization of Diocletian , Rouen was the chief city of
1148-811: The city at Stade Saint Exupéry. The local team, Huskies de Rouen play in the top French tier, they also play some games in European competition. Rouen was the birthplace of: Rouen is twinned with: During the second half of the 20th century, several sculptures by Jean-Yves Lechevallier were erected in the city. Inaugurated in 2010, the Rouen Impressionnée hosted the contemporary urban (re)development installation sculpture 'Camille' by Belgian artist Arne Quinze . Quinze's use of interlocking systems in sculpture employ wood, concrete, paint and metal. The Quasi-Quinze method of sculpture utilizes structural integrity and randomness as key elements for 'Camille'. Located on
1189-467: The club play at the 12.018 capacity Stade Robert Diochon in nearby Le Petit-Quevilly . Rouen Normandie Rugby represent the city in Rugby Union. One of few professional rugby teams from northern France, Rouen Normandie Rugby , currently play in the second-tier Pro D2 . Dragons de Rouen , an ice hockey club, play in the top-tier Ligue Magnus at the Île Lacroix arena. Baseball is also played in
1230-534: The divided province Gallia Lugdunensis II and reached the apogee of its Roman development, with an amphitheatre and thermae of which foundations remain. In the 5th century, it became the seat of a bishopric and later a capital of Merovingian Neustria . From their first incursion into the lower valley of the Seine in 841, the Normans overran Rouen. From 912, Rouen was the capital of the Duchy of Normandy and residence of
1271-578: The first four were published. The work brought him to official notice; he was inducted into the Académie Royale d'Architecture in 1755 and appointed architect to Louis XV . Though his executed body of work was small, mostly confined to work he executed at Metz under commission of the duc de Choiseul , his approach was soundly grounded: for Diderot's Encyclopédie he wrote the article on masonry, as well as architecture, and contributed nearly 500 articles between 1751 and his death in 1774. In 1762, he
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1312-866: The grandstands and other remnants of Rouen's racing past. Today, little remains beyond the public roads that formed the circuit. Rouen has an opera house , whose formal name is "Rouen Normandy Opera House – Theatre of Arts" (in French: Opéra de Rouen Normandie – Théâtre des arts ). Rouen has an oceanic climate ( Cfb in the Köppen climate classification). Mainline trains operate from Gare de Rouen-Rive-Droite to Le Havre and Paris, and regional trains to Caen , Dieppe and other local destinations in Normandy . Daily direct trains operate to Amiens and Lille , and direct TGVs (high-speed trains) connect daily with Lyon and Marseille . City transportation in Rouen consists of
1353-519: The last volumes were seen through the press by his disciple Pierre Patte . His Cours d'architecture is sometimes referred to as the "Petit Blondel" to distinguish it from the "Grand Blondel", his Architecture françoise . Blondel's practical, encyclopedic approach, largely ignoring the excesses of Rococo , had survived changes in taste and remained in the mainstream of French architectural training for several decades more. Blondel married Marie Anne Garnier in 1729. Their son, Georges-François Blondel, who
1394-470: The past century and more of French buildings in and near Paris, setting them in their historical context and providing a wealth of detailed information that would otherwise have been lost. In the preface, he remarked, "I have used simple terms and a popular style with the intention of being understood by layman and artist alike; having noticed that recent books about architecture are either badly organised or overlong." He originally planned eight volumes, but only
1435-407: The same war on D-day , and its famed cathedral was almost destroyed by Allied bombs. Rouen is known for Rouen Cathedral , with its Tour de Beurre ( butter tower ) financed by the sale of indulgences for the consumption of butter during Lent . The cathedral's gothic façade (completed in the 16th century) was the subject of a series of paintings by Claude Monet , some of which are exhibited in
1476-403: The time engaged to her clavichord teacher, but broke it off at Casanova's request, thus starting a new engagement with him. This did not keep him from having various sexual relations with other women, yet Manon remained faithful to him. His memoirs record his regret for being unkind to her when having these affairs. Once Casanova was imprisoned after he was sued by creditors in Paris. Manon sent
1517-524: Was burned at the stake on 30 May 1431 in this city, where most inhabitants supported the duke of Burgundy, the French king's enemy. The king of France, Charles VII , recaptured the town in 1449. Rouen was staunchly Catholic during the French Wars of Religion , and underwent an unsuccessful five-month siege in 1591/2 by the Protestant King Henry IV of France and an English force commanded by
1558-407: Was appointed Professor of Architecture at the Académie, closing his own school and introducing his comprehensive curriculum to the Académie. His Cours d'architecture ou traité de la décoration, distribution et constructions des bâtiments contenant les leçons données en 1750, et les années suivantes began appearing in 1771 and ran to nine volumes by 1777, a volume of plates to each two volumes of text;
1599-746: Was born in 1730, became an architectural engraver. They also had a daughter, Claudine Angelique. After his first wife's death in 1755, Jacques-François married Manon Balletti in 1760. Their son, Jean-Baptiste Blondel, who later became an architect for the city of Paris, was born in 1764. During his final illness, Jacques-François requested to be taken to his classrooms at the Louvre , where he died surrounded by his books, his architectural models, and his students. Notes Sources Rouen Rouen ( UK : / ˈ r uː ɒ̃ , ˈ r uː ɒ n / , US : / r uː ˈ ɒ̃ , r uː ˈ ɒ n / ; French: [ʁwɑ̃] or [ʁu.ɑ̃] )
1640-466: Was on its soil that Joan of Arc was tried and burned alive on 30 May 1431. Severely damaged by the wave of bombing in 1944 , it nevertheless regained its economic dynamism in the post-war period thanks to its industrial sites and its large seaport, which merged with the ports of Le Havre and Paris in 2021 to form the HAROPA Port. Endowed with a prestige established during the medieval era , and with
1681-497: Was ten years old when she first met him; she happened to be the daughter of Silvia Balletti , an actress of the Comédie Italienne company and younger sister of Casanova's closest friend. The lovers started their relationship when Casanova was thirty-two years old and Manon was seventeen. (Although Manon's mother was associated with acting, considered disreputable at the time, mother and daughter were observed by Casanova to be of