A Land Disputed

A bronze model of the Old Town of Strasbourg

Along the Rhine River, west of the Black Forest and northwest of Switzerland, lies a land whose inhabitants have been French, then German, then French, then German, and now French.

Strasbourg is the capital of Alsace, a region which has changed hands several times during the ages.  Today it is French, and has been since the end of WWII.  The old town lies on an island between the Ills River and a branch that splits off and rejoins the main river, giving the city some protection from ancient raiders.

Today the Cathedral towers over the city and is its main attraction.  Parts of the building are in the Romanesque style with rounded arches; the remainder and larger part is Gothic, with pointed arches, thinner walls, and flying buttresses to support the walls.


















In the square by the cathedral, a gargoyle leans back and stares in awe at the massive building.  He is surrounded by carvings of all the stonemasons's symbols which can be found in cathedrals across the western parts of Europe and England.  Stone masons were paid by the number of blocks they made, so each developed a special carving to identify his work.  Some were as simple as a cross, but others showed chisels, curves and intricate design.  The same designs can be found in cathedrals across the country, showing how these skilled craftsmen traveled to wherever a building was going on.

As in all the cathedrals we have seen, the interior as well as the exterior has detailed carvings.  Sometimes whimsical features have been added, like the preacher's dog sleeping under the pulpit. 





The most striking part of this cathedral is the Astronomical Clock which gives the local time, the astronomical time, the seasons, the position of the stars and lessons in life as seen at the time it was created.  There are several cog wheels or gears visible, as well as springs which control the movements.  In at least two places there are figures which move around a track as time passes, so you see different figures at different times.  The most striking of these is a skeleton with a hammer.  It represents the end state of all mankind.  To its left is a figure of a person.  When we saw it, it was an old man. As the astronomical hour approached, he moved over to the bell in front of the skeleton, struck it with his stick and moved on past the skeleton.  The skeleton then struck the bell for the number of the hour.  Meanwhile, a child appeared from the left and took the place of the old man.  This process repeats on the hour as youth is replace by middle age and old age before the process repeats itself.  All this was made several hundred years ago, still works and only has to be rewound twice a year.

Street of the 3 gates

 Local "nationalism" is strong in this part of the country.  Street signs are always in two languages, French naturally, but we were puzzled by the second language.  It did not seem quite like German, and it is not.  It is the local Alsatian, which is not strictly a written language but is passed on in families.







Unlike most of the river cruises we have taken, our ship was not docked in the downtown area.  There are only specific places on the Rhine where docking is allowed, and the city itself is not directly on the Rhine, so we had a long walk to get to the bus which took us closer to the city center.  However, no buses are allowed in the city center, so it was a long walk from the bus parking area to the cathedral in the city center.  By the time we got back to the ship, this statue by the river expresses how I felt.