INSCRIPTION DE SEPULCRE
Mon maître prend l'épi, mon lit garde la paille ; J'ai faim, devant la gerbe d'or !
Voici l'âpre vieillesse et je me sens décroître ;
Mes amours, mon cœur en lambeaux, Gisent en moi ; mes jours sont les arches d'un cloître 5
Jetant leur ombre à des tombeaux.
Ma vie est un suaire et j'en suis le squelette.
Les ans, des maux accompagnés, Me garrottent ; chaque heure est une bandelette
Sur mes ossements décharnés. 10
Suis-je une âme ? est-ce un Dieu qui m'attend ? Rien ne semble
L'explication à mes yeux ; Et ce double inconnu, sous mon grabat qui tremble,
Croise ses X mystérieux.
La blême horreur du gouffre effare mes prunelles ; 1 5
Mon jour s'éteint, pâle et terni. . . . Azur ! azur ! azur ! Dieu vivant ! j 'ai des ailes !
O bleu profond de l'infini !
26 juillet 1854 çpoute ia iyré)
GLOSSARY OF NAMES
This glossary will be found to contain words which are hardly proper names but which seemed not out of place in such a list. One will find, too, proper names hardly needing explanation but inserted to show différences between French and English orthography, to give exact dates, or the like.
Hugo makes a libéral use of proper names. He takes them from the Bible, from ancient classical history and mythology, from modem history, and, in his capacity as chronicler of the events of his own day, from the literary and political occurrences in which he himself participated. He uses thèse names in varying degrees of appositeness. Sometimes they are vague and uncertain, sometimes striking and illuminating. In many cases he has made errors ; sometimes he appears to hâve invented names. Frequently the proper name is used as a dignified method of generalization, frequently also as a vividly concrète characterization. Thèse words often add a sonorous or picturesque note ; and in satirical passages, when the poet is denouncing his enemies, the effect of a word like Cartoîiche or Mandrin as applied to Napoléon III or his ministers is sometimes powerful, although not seldom grotesque. In the case of Falù in H Guitare," Jérimadeth in M Booz endormi," Béit- Cifresil and Abdallah- Béit in M La rose de l'infante," Moganez in M La chanson des doreurs de proues," Teb in " L'océan," and Sinnagog in " Le mariage de Roland " the editors are able to give no information.
Achab : Ahab, a wicked king of Adour : a river of France flowing
Israël (918-896 b.c.) into the Bay of Biscay
Adige : an important river of Italy, Adrasté, more properly Adraste :
flowing into the Adriatic. In the Adrastus, king of Argos. He led
vicinity of this river are Arcole the expédition of the " Seven
and Rivoli, where in 1796 and against Thebes"
1797 respectively, important Afrique: Africa
military actions occurred which Alcyon: halcyon, Greek name of the
redounded to the glory of Na- "kingfisher," which, according
poleon to the ancient Greeks, builds a
GLOSSARY OF NAMKS
nest floating on the water and there broods its eggs for the fourteen shortest days of the year, the sea remaining calm so as not to disturb it
Aldébaran: a brilliant star in Taurus
Alecton : Alecto, in Greek mythology one of the Furies. Usually represented as of a grim and frightful aspect
Alep : Aleppo, a town in the north of Syria
Alexandre : Alexander the Great
(356-323 B-c-) Alhambra : the palace of the Moor-
ish kings of Granada, in south-
ern Spain ; partly ruined, but
still very beautiful
Allemagne : Germany
Alpes : Alps. Napoléon crossed the Alps on his Italian expéditions in 1797 and 1800. His crossing of St. Bernard in the latter year is a famous épisode
Amaryllis : the name given to a shepherdess by Virgil in the first and eighth Eclogues
Amérique : America
Ammon : the highest god in Egyptian mythology
Amphictyon : a member of the Amphictyonic Council, an international governing body among the states of ancient Greece
Angleterre : England
Annibal : Hannibal (247-183 b.c.), the famous Carthaginian gênerai
Antequera : a town in the province of Malaga, in the south of Spain
Antisthène : Antisthenes (444-365 iî. c), a Greek philosopher, chief of the Cynics. Ile held that virtue mainly consists in voluntary abstinence from pleasure
Apollo : in Une 6 of " Le mariage de Roland " the Apollyon of Rev.
ix, 1 1 may be meant
Apollon: Apollo, one of the Greek gods, the impersonation of Greek life in its most beautiful form. One of his attributes is the administration of retributive justice, and in this capacity he shoots his glittering shafts at insolent offenders
Aquilon : Aquilo, the north wind
Aquitaine : a province in the south of France
Arabe : Arab, Arabian
Aranjuez : a town in Spain, seat of a royal résidence
Arche: (1) Noah's ark, Gen. viviii; (2) the Arkof the Co venant, the sacred chest, covered with gold, in which the Israélites kept their holiest record, the tables of stone with the ten commandments
Archonte : archon, a magistrate of ancient Athens
Arcole : a village of northern Italy, where Napoléon defeated the Austrians, November 15-17,
Arcturus : a brilliant star in the constellation Bootes
Argos : a city in the Peloponnesus
Argyraspides : (' silver-shielded ') a régiment of Alexander's army
GLOSSARY OF NAMES
Ariel : in Jewish tradition, a waterspirit ; introduced into Shakespeare's M Tempest " and Milton's " Paradise Lost." For other sensés of the word see Ezra viii, 16 and Isaiah xxix, 1,
Arno : a river of Italy, on whose banks Plorence is situated
Asie : Asia
Assur : Latinized form of Asshur, the country which we call Assyria
Astolphe : Astolfo, one of the heroes of Ariosto's poem " Orlando Furioso "
Asturie : Asturias, a province of northern Spain
Athènes : Athens, the famous city of Greece, a center of intellectual and artistic activity
Athos : a mountain in Macedonia.
Alexander the Great rejected a plan proposedby Dinocrates for carving this mountain into a gigantic statue
Atlas : a chain of mountains in northern Africa
Atrée : Atreus, in Greek mythology, son of Pelops and brother of Thyestes. The brothers were enemies
Attila : the famous king of the Huns, called the " Scourge of God " ; after many victories, he was defeated at Châlons-sur- Marne in 451 A. d. by an army of Romans, Franks, and Visigoths. He died in 453 in Hungary
Aude : Aida, the sister of Oliver and the betrothed of Roland.
Mentioned in various French médiéval poems ; e.g. in " La chanson de Roland," in which she does not wed Roland, but falls dead when she hears the news of his being slain
Austerlitz : a small town in Moravia near which Napoléon, on December 2, 1805, defeated the Austrians and Russians. The morning was foggy, but later in the day the sun shone brightly, a fact referred to in such expressions as M le soleil d'Austerlitz," " Austerlitz rayonnante," etc.
Autriche : Austria
Avranches : a town in the northwest of France
Baal : the suprême god of the Phœnician religion
Babel, Babylone : the greatest of ancient capitals east of the Mediterranean, situated on the Euphrates. The name is Babel in Hebrew, Pabylon in Greek.
Its gigantic walls and its hanging gardens (artificial fertile terraces supporced on pillars) were one of the seven wonders of the world. The immense pyramidal structures of its temples, with their spiral ascents, were also famous. For the story of building the first tower there see Gen. xi. The name is used of a great city, as in " A la colonne "
3io
GLOSSARY OF NAMES
Bacchus : the god of wine among the ancient Greeks and Romans
Balthazar : Belshazzar, last king of Babylon ; see Daniel v
Barberousse : Barbarossa ( 1 1 23 ? - 1190), Frederick I, emperor of Germany, one of the most popular of German heroes. One of the traditions about him is that he is asleep under a mountain, from which he will issue to help Germany in some hour of sore need
Barra (1 780-1 793): a boy who distinguished himself by his valor in la Vendée. He was killed in battle at thirteen years of âge
Barrabas : Barabbas, a robber, whom Pilate released to please the Jewish mob. See Matt.
Bathylle : Bathyllus, an exceedingly beautiful boy in the Anacreontic poems
Beauharnais : The Empress Joséphine, before her marriage to Napoléon, was Madame Beauharnais. She had by her first husband a son, and a daughter Hortense. Hortense was married to Louis, the brother of Napoléon, and had a son who became Napoléon III, the object of Hugo's denunciations.
See " L'expiation," p. 71, 1. 28
Bédouin : Bédouin, an Arab of the désert
Béhémot : behemoth, a monster mentioned in Job xl, 15-24
Bellérophon : Bellerophon, a Greek mythical hero, who, mounted on the winged steed Pegasus, slew the Chimera
Bélus : Belus, a legendary king of Tyre, who, says Virgil, " laid waste rich Cyprus"
Bennigssen (1745-1826): a Russian gênerai, beaten by Napoléon at Eylau
Bergare : Bergara or Vergara, a small town in the north of Spain
Berlin : the capital of Germany. Napoléon entered Berlin in triumph after the battle of Jena, in 1806
Berthier (1753-1815): a famous Napoleonic gênerai
Bertrand (1 773-1844) : the faithful attendant of Napoléon. He returned from St. Helena with the ashes of his master in 1840
Bismarck (18 15- 1898): the great Prussian statesman
Bliicher (1742-1819) : a Prussian gênerai, who fought at Waterloo against Napoléon
Bonaparte, Napoléon (1 769-1821) :
Napoleone Btionaparte is the Italian form of the name. Royalists liked to write his name Buonaparte, as if to show that he was only a Corsican and not a Frenchman. Bonaparte is the name given to him when referring to his career as a republican soldier. ATapoléon might be called the impérial form of his name. In the poem " Buonaparte " Hugo assumes a critical
GLOSSARY OF NAMES
attitude towards Napoléon which in his later poetry he abandons
Booz : Boaz ; see the Book of Ruth
Borée : Boreas, the north wind in classical mythology
Borgia : an Italian family including several notorious persons. Cesare Borgia (1476-1507) was noted for energy, ability, and unscrupulousness in ail kinds of foui play
Borysthène : Borysthenes, ancient name of the Dnieper, a river of Russia flowing into the Black Sea
Brabant : a province of Belgium, in which Brussels is situated
Bretagne : Brittany, the westernmost province of France
Brumaire : one of the months of the republican calendar, corresponding to part of October and November. On the i8th of Brumaire in the year vin of the Republic (i.e. November 9, 1799) Napoléon overturned the Directory and made himself despot of France
Brumoy (1 688-1 742) : a French Jesuit, one of the editors of the Journal de Trévotix, and known particularly for his " Théâtre des Grecs "
Burgos : a city of Spain, 225 miles north of Madrid. It has a famous Gothic cathedral, founded in 1221
Burrhus: Burrus, a Roman gênerai,
preceptor of Nero. He was poisoned in 62 a.d.
Busiris : a fabulous king of Egypt, who offered on the altars of his gods ail strangers who entered his dominions
Cacus : in classical mythology a famous robber, who stole some of the cattle Hercules had taken from Geryon. For this he was slain by Hercules
Cadix : Cadiz, a town in the Southwest corner of Spain, blockaded by the French in 1810-1812
Cain : Cain, son of Adam
Caire (le) : Cairo, a city of Egypt.
Napoléon entered Cairo on July 24, 1798
Calderon (1 600-1 681) : a celebrated dramatic poet of Spain
Caligula : Roman emperor, a halfinsane tyrant ; reigned from t,7 to 41 A.D.
Callichore : Callichorus (literally, 'beautiful for dances'), a place in Phocis where the orgies of Bacchus were celebrated
Callot (1 592—1635) : a French painter and engraver, who made burlesque scènes of low life.
He ranks high as an engraver.
Hugo speaks of him sometimes too disparagingly
Calvaire : Calvary. See Luke xxiii, 33
Calymno, or Calymjia, earlier form Calydna : an island off the coast of Troas. Also an island off the coast of Caria
GLOSSARY OF NAMES
Cambyse : Cambyses, son of Cyrus the Great ; reigned cruelly over Persia from 529 to 522 b.c.
Capet, Hugh : king of France, founder of the Capetian dynasty in 987
Capitole : Capitol, the national temple of ancient Rome; built on Mons Capitolinus, one of the seven hills of Rome
Carlier (1799-18 58) : a French politician, aided Napoléon III in the Coup d'État of December 2, 1851
Cartouche (1 693-1 721) : a celebrated robber. Hugo often applied this. name to Napoléon
Cenis : Mont Cenis, one of the Alps, between Savoy and Piedmont. Napoléon constructed a road over the pass. A railroad tunnel pierces it now
Cerbère : Cerberus, the threeheaded dog which guarded the gâtes of the lower world
Cerdagne : a district in the eastern part of the Pyrénées, partly in France, partly in Spain
Cérès : Ceres, the Roman name of the goddess of the fruits of the earth. Aima Cérès = benign Ceres, mother Earth
César : Caesar ; especially Julius Caesar (100-44 b.c.), the great Roman. Also a gênerai name for monarchs more or less absolute
Chaix-d'Est-Ange (1800-1876): a lawyer, attorney-general under
Napoléon III, later senator and vice président of the Conseil d'État
Cham : Ham, one of the sons of Noah, progenitor of the Egyptians, the Phœnicians, etc.
Champaubert : a village in France, department of the Marne, where Napoléon defeated the allied armies on February 10, 1814
Champs-Elysées : a park and fine avenue in Paris
Charlemagne (742-814) : the great emperor of the West
Charles IX : king of France (1 560-1 574). On the occasion of the massacre of St. Bartholomew's Day, August 24, 1572, it is said Charles fired upon the Protestants from a balcony of the Louvre
Charles-Quint: Charles V (1500- 1558), king of Spain and emperor of Germany
Chénier, André (1 762-1 794) : a distinguished French poet, born at Constantinople, guillotined during " the Terror." His most famous poem is M La jeune captive "
Chéops : Cheops, builder of the largest of the Egyptian pyramids ; used by Hugo as the name of the pyramid itself
Chérubin : cherub ; used by Hugo in " La sieste " as if it denoted a personage. There is a lively page of the name of Chérubin in Beaumarchais's " Mariage de Figaro" (1784), but it is not
GLOSSARY OF NAMES
certain that this one is referred
to by Hugo Chevet : a restaurant keeper of the
period of the Second Empire Chypre : Cyprus, an island in the
eastern Mediterranean, cele-
brated for its wines Cléopâtre: Cleopatra (69-30 b.c.),
the famous luxurious and beauti-
ful queen of Egypt Closamont : in the médiéval poem
(see p. 158, note) this was the
name of a man, not of a sword
as Hugo has it Colline (porte) : the Porta Collina,
one of the gâtes of Rome Colomb: Columbus (1436 ?-i 506),
the discoverer of America Constantin : the name of several
Eastern emperors. Constantine
the Great was emperor of Rome
from 306 to 337 a.d. His actions
as emperor were not quite ap-
propriate to his profession of
Christianity Coran : the Mohammedan Bible Corse : Corsica. Corse is also the
adjective = Corsican Cosaque : Cossack, member of a
tribe belonging to the Ukraine,
famous as Russian cavalry Cyclades : islands in the Greek
Archipelago Cydnus : a river of Cilicia Cyrus (6th century b.c.): founderof
the Persian empire; he conquered
Eabylon and ail western Asia
Daniel : for the story of Daniel and the lions see Daniel vi
Dante (1 265-1321) : the great Italian poet, author of the " Divine Comedy " ; he held high office for a short period in his native city of Florence, but was driven into exile and died at Ravenna
Danube : the great river of Europe, rising in the Black Forest and flowing east into the Black Sea
Déméter : Demeter, the earth goddess in Greek mythology
Démosthène : Demosthenes (384?- 322 b.c.), the famous Greek orator
Desportes (1545-1606): a French poet, who in his day won a considérable réputation, but lacked in originality and feeling
Deutz : a man who for a reward betrayed the Duchesse de Berri to the government of Louis- Philippe after she had unsuccessfully tried to create a revolt in la Vendée (1832)
Djinns : jinn or genii, the chief race of spirits (some good, some malignant) with which Arabian mythology has peopled the world.
" Eccentric movements of a dust whirlwind are supposed to be the visible signs of a battle between two clans of jinn" (Thompson, " Semitic Magic ")
Dupin (1783-1865) : a French lawyer and politician under the Second Empire
Durandal : the famous sword of the hero Roland, nephew of Charlemagne ; mentioned in médiéval poems
GLOSSARY OF NAMKS
Ecbatane : Ecbatana, capital of ancient Media
Ecosse : Scotland
Egine : Aig'ma, one of the islands of Greece, famous for its artistic productions
Égisthe: /Egisthus, king of Mycenae. He married Clytemnestra and slew her husband Agamemnon. Orestes and Electra, children of Agamemnon, avenged his murder by slaying yEgisthus and Clytemnestra
Eglé : ^Egle, name of several nymphs. One of this name triumphed over the love of Ariadne in the heart of Theseus
Egypte: Egypt
Elbe : Elba, an island in the Mediterranean. It was the place of Napoleon's exile f rom May, 1 8 1 4, to February, 181 5
Elbe : a river of Germany, which rises in Bohemia, and flows through Saxony and Prussia into the North Sea. In the région of the Elbe, e.g. at Dresden and Leipzig, there were important contests during the Napoleonic period
Electre : Electra, daughter of Agamemnon, sister of Iphigenia and Orestes. ^Egisthus, having killed her father, inflicted great hardships on Electra for seven years, while her brother Orestes was growing up abroad ; then Orestes returned to Mycenae, and upon hearing her complaint he killed ^gisthus
Élie : Elijah
Elis : Elis, one of the ancient divisions of the Peloponnesus. It contained Olympia, the site of the sanctuary of Zeus and of the Olympic games
Elysée : a palace in Paris, built in 17 18, to which Napoléon came after Waterloo. It is at présent the résidence of the Président of the Republic
Encelade : Enceladus, the most powerful of the giants who conspired against Jupiter
Enos : see Gen. iv, 26
Eole : ^Eolus, in classical mythology the god of the winds
Ephèse : Ephesus, once a great city in Asia Minor. Its temple of Diana was one of the seven wonders of the world
Epicure: Epicurus (242?-2jo b.c.), a
• famous Greek philosopher, who taught that happiness was the suprême good, and that it was to be attained by tempérance, tranquillity, and intelligence
Escaut : Scheldt, a river of the Netherlands, on which Antwerp is situated
Eschyle : yEschylus (525-456 b.c), the father of Greek tragedy
Escurial : a royal palace, mausoleum, and monastery; 27 miles northwest of Madrid
Espagne : Spain
Essling : a village in Austria, at which on May 21 and 22, 1809, the French won a victory over the Austrians
GLOSSARY OF NAMES
Étéocle : Eteocles, son of Œdipus and brother of Polynices. The brothers were enemies
Etna : ALtna., a volcano in Sicily
Euphrate : Euphrates, a famous river of western Asia, on whose banks Babylon was situated
Europe : Europa, a Phœnician princess, whom Zeus, in the form of a bull, bore over the waters to Crète
Eve : Eve, the mother of men.
Certain sectaries hâve held that the eating of the fruit in Eden, as recorded in Genesis, was a figurative expression for the first expérience of love in the physical sensé
Eylau : a small town in eastern Prussia, where on February 8, 1807, Napoléon defeated the Russians and Prussians. The battle was fought in a snow storm. Hugo several times speaks of the brume which prevailed
Ézéchiel : Ezekiel, the Hebrew prophet. For his vision of dry bones see Ezekiel xxxvii, 1-10
Fakir : a mendicant priest of the East
Falstaff : a fat, unblushing débauchée in Shakespeare. See " King Henry IV," Parts 1 and 2, and " The Merry Wives of Windsor"
Fausta : wife of Constantine the Great ; she was dissolute and was put to death
Flandre : Flanders, a part of the Low Countries, now divided between France, the Netherlands, and Belgium
Florence : a famous city of Italy
Fougères : a town in the north of France
Fould (1 800-1 867): a French financier and statesman under the Second Empire
Friedland : a town in eastern Prussia, where Napoléon defeated the Russians on June 14, 1807
Fulton, Robert (1 765—181 5) : the first to apply steam successfully to navigation
Gabriel : one of the seven archangels of the Jews
Galgacus : an ancient Gaelic hero, who struggled against the Romans ; mentioned by Tacitus.
Fils de Galgacus = Englishmen
Galgala : Gilgal. See Joshua iv,
Gange : Ganges, a great river of
India Garin : Garin de Monglane, a
French médiéval epic hero Géhenne : Gehenna, a place of
forment Gênes : Genoa, a city of northern
Italy Gépide : belonging to the Gepi-
dae, a Germanie people, who
appear in history from the
third to the sixth century of
our era Gérard or Girart : the hero of the
epic poem " Girart de Vienne,"
GLOSSARY OF NAM1.S
the chief épisode of which is the siège of Vienne by Charlemagne. During this siège occurs the fight between Oliver and Roland which Hugo has imitated in the " Mariage de Roland "
Géryon : Geryon, a three-bodied and three-headed monster of classical mythology, whose cattle Hercules seized and drove away
Gethsémani : Gethsemane, a small farm at the foot of Mount Olivet, about half a mile from Jérusalem. It was the scène of our Saviour's agony on the night before his Passion
Gibraltar : the famous rock that guards the entrance to the Mediterranean
Gomorrhe : Gomorrah, one of the cities of the plain destroyed by fire from Heaven. See Gen.
Gorgone: Gorgo or Gorgon. There were three Gorgons, one of whom was Médusa, who was slain by Perseus
Goth : an ancient nation of Germans. (In the pronunciation of the word in French th is silent)
Grec : Greek ; used also in the sensé of ' thief,' ' sharper '
Grouchy (i 766-1847) : a French gênerai, who, after much distinguished service under Napoléon, failed to render his master the expected aid at Waterloo
Hanovrien : Ilanoverian
Harfleur : a small seaport near Havre
Harz (le) : the Harz, a mountainous région, about fifty miles long and twenty wide, lying near the center of Germany. The Brocken (or Blocksberg), made famous by Goethe's Faust, is the highest point in the région.
The scène of many weird, legendary taies is laid hère
Haute-Claire : the name of a sword in the poem " Girart de Vienne"
Hébrides : Hébrides, islands west of Scotland
Héliogabale : Heliogabalus, a profligate Roman emperor ; reigned from 218 to 222 a.d.
Hénoch : Enoch; see Gen. iv, 17
Hercule : Hercules, the mightiest hero of Greek mythology
Hermès : Hermès, according to Greek mythology the son of Zeus. He was identified with Mercury by the Romans. The Hermès mentioned in the "Épopée du ver" is the Egyptian god Thoth, who was regarded as the originator of Egyptian culture. He was called by the Greeks Hermès Trismegistos, and round the name there gathered a considérable bulk of literature, treating of religion, art, and science, to which the name ' Hermetic ' has been given
Hésiode : Hesiod, a Greek poet of the eighth or ninth century b.c.
GLOSSARY OF NAMES
Hobbes (1 588—1679) : a celebrated English philosopher
Homère : Homer, the father of poets
Homérique : Homeric. In " Le retour de l'empereur," the phrase spectacle homérique has the sensé of ' tragically grand spectacle.'
Hongrie : Ilungary, an important country of Europe
Horace (65-8 b.c.) : the famous Latin poet. In two of his odes (1.23; 3.9) he mentions Chloë
Huss, Jean (1369- 14 15) : the celebrated Bohemian reformer
Hydre : hydra, a many-headed swamp serpent in Greek mythology. It was slain by Hercules
Hymette : Hymettus, a mountain of Attica, in Greece ; famous for its honey
Iblis : Iblees, Eblis, the greatest of the jinn (see Djinns) in the Mohammedan demonology ; corresponds to Satan
Icare : Icarus, son of Dsedalus.
The two escaped from Crète by using wings fastened vvith wax ; but Icarus came too near the sun, the wax melted, and he fell into the ^Egean Sea. He gave his name to the part into which he fell
Iéna : Jena, a city of Germany ; near this town Napoléon defeated the Prussians on October 14, 1806
Inde : India
Indus : a river of India
Invalides : a vast building in Paris, built by Louis XIV. It takes its name from the fact that it is a home for old soldiers. Under its dôme, which crowns the chapel, Napoleon's remains were placed in 1840. In "Napoléon II "there is a référence to its containing the foreign flags captured by the French army, and another to the cannon placed on the esplanade in front of the building
Irun : a Spanish town near the French frontier
Ischia : an island to the north of the entrance to the Bay of Naples
Ispahan : a famous city of Persia
Ithaque : Ithaca, one of the Ionian islands, the home of Ulysses
Ivan III (1440-1505): surnamed the Great, ruler of Russia
Jabel : Jabal ; see Gen. iv, 20 Jacob : Jacob. For the statement
that the " God " of Gen. xxxii,
