Her Brittany home lies in a hollow surrounded by gray-bearded oaks,
near the river Ranee. It is full of historical souvenirs of all kinds.
Royalty has spent many happy days beneath its high-peeked roof; parties
and festivities of all sorts taking place here.
Wednesdays have always been the reception days of the
General and Mme. de Charette, since 1883. Notabilities who came to
Brittany, made it a pleasure as well as a duty to pay their respects to
the venerable hero and his charming American wife; they enjoyed a truly
southern hospitality, inspected the various historical souvenirs, the
flags, the banners, the presentation swords (gifts of devoted admirers
all over France), walked in the beautiful park, feasted on good wine
and good cheer, and departed with a pleasant recollection of all the
charms of this old-world manor, given to the famous general by his
ardent followers, the Papal Zouaves.
Madame de Charette wanted to offer the same hospitality to her American
compatriots as was offered to European royalty and distinguished
foreigners. So every Wednesday her doors are opened to 200 Yanks.
They find an excellent "goûter," a charming hostess, surrounded by the
ladies of the nobility from the neighborhood, who put themselves out to
amuse the "doughboys."
Music, singing, dancing, fill in the hours from 3 to 8, but what they
seem to like the most is to sit in the halflight in a circle, before
the great granite chimney-place, the logs burning and snapping, casting
weird shadows over these fighters from afar, on the heavy oak beams
of the "Salle des Zouaves," flitting here and there over the dark oak
furniture, catching a sheen of light from steel helmets, of a bit of
color from some pendant war flag. They listen to the old southern tales
and the history of the general's battles, or tell, themselves, of what
they have seen or done in this war of wars.
Among the French and Italian flags is one—a poor, tattered, faded silk
American one—cherished reverently by the family; for, in 1862, Mme. de
Charette (then Miss Polk) rode on horseback by a black night to warn
General Forrest of the approach of the Union troops. After the victory,
General Forrest presented this trophy to the young girl, saying: "My
child, thanks to you, we have won the battle; to you, therefore, I give
the flag."
Mme. de Charette's only son, the Marquis de Charette, was wounded
April 16, 1917, being the only man in his tank to escape alive; he has
fighting blood in his veins, for, besides his father's, his ancestors,
General de Charette fought at Yorktown with General Lafayette—as
well as General Leonidas Polk of the Southern army. We consider it
a privilege for our Yankee boys to see such an interior; our own
entertainments for them in our modern villas at Dinard being much
inferior in interest and attractions, but it is a great pleasure to
receive them.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account