Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume IV.djvu/685

CLERMONT CLESINGER 673 tion, was pulled down in 1855, and has since been in course of restoration. The most an- cient church is Notre Dame du Port, of the i llth century, with a modern tower and the ; statue of a black Virgin, reputed to have miraculous powers. The palais de faculte contains several museums and collections, and | a public library with 30,000 volumes and cu- rious ancient MSS. In the centre of the Cours Sablon, extending along the east of the town, is a fine fountain. There are two medicinal springs. The most famous, in the suburb of St. Alyre, called la fontaine petrifiante, issues out of a volcanic tufa resting upon granite. A large stalactite forms a species of bridge, and both fountain and bridge are situated in a garden to which a bath house is attached. The town contains a society for science and fine arts, an academy, a lyceum, a medi- cal and pharmaceutical school, a normal and a theological seminary, and schools of de- sign, of trades, and of geology and botany. There is an active traffic in agricultural pro- ductions, and an important transit trade with Paris and southern France. Silk, linen, cot- ton, hemp, leather, cutlery, chemical arti- cles, lava ware, and other goods are manu- factured. Under the name of Nemetum or Nemossus, Clermont was the capital of the Arverni, and was enlarged by Augustus, who called it Augustonemetum. Subsequently it was destroyed, and on being rebuilt it re- ceived the present designation from the castle of Clarus Mons, which defended the town, and it became the capital of Auvergne, sharing the subsequent fortunes of that province. It is one of the oldest bishoprics of France. The most celebrated of the many ecclesiastical councils held here was that of 1095, when the first crusade was resolved upon, the badge of the cross worn by the crusaders being first adopted here. Clermont and Montferrand were separate towns till 1633, when they were united by avenues, 2 ra. long. CLERMONT-L'HERAULT, or Clermont-Lodeve, a town of France, in the department of Herault, 22 m. W. of Montpellier; pop. in 1866, 6,050. Cloth, silks, leather, cutlery, and pottery are manufactured here. The church of St. Guel- helm-le-Desert is a fine Romanesque structure. CLERMONT -DE-L'OISE, or Clermont-en-Bean- vaisis, a town of France, in the department of Oise, 35 m. K of Paris ; pop. in 1866, 5,743. It is pleasantly situated on the slope of a hill, and contains, besides a communal college and a public library, three remarkable architectural monuments an old castle, a h6tel de ville, and the church of St. Samson. The castle has been converted into a prison for females, with about 1,000 inmates. It was a strong fortress be- tween the 10th and 14th centuries, and was taken by the English in 1359 and 1434, and by Henry IV. in 1595. The elder Cond6 re- tired hither in 1615. The h6tel de ville was built about 1300, and is an extensive and beau- tiful edifice, of great interest to architects and antiquaries. It contains among other rare cu- riosities the funeral monument of a Greek who died in Gaul during the Roman dominion and was buried at Clermont. The church of St. Samson dates from the 14th century, and oc- cupies the highest part of the town. The ex- terior is very striking, and the interior has a curious altar of carved wood, and other in- teresting carvings, and some fine paintings. The windows of painted glass are also remark- able. Clermont was the birthplace of King Charles the Fair (1294). It has considerable trade in cattle and horses, and linen and cotton goods and hosiery are manufactured. CLKKY, Jean Baptiste, celebrated for his de- votion to Louis XVI., and as the faithful valet of the dauphin Louis XVII., born at Jardy, near Versailles, in 1759, died at Hietzing, near Vienna, May 27, 1809. Clery was one of the few attendants permitted to share the prison of Louis XVI., who a few days before his death divided a loaf of bread with him as the only proof of regard he was able to show him. Clery published the Journal de ce qui s'est passe a la tour du Temple pendant la eaptivite de Louis XVI. (London, 1798), which passed through many editions. CLESINGER, Jean Baptiste Angnste, a French sculptor, born in Besancon about 1820. He studied under his father and in Italy, and ac- quired popularity in 1844 by his bust of Scribe. His subsequent works include a " Girl Bitten by a Serpent," a statue of Louise of Savoy, colossal busts of "Liberty" and "Fraternity," a statue of Rachel as "Phaedra," and one of " Tragedy " for the theatre Francais ; eques- trian statues of Francis I. and of Napoleon I. as Roman imperator, for the Louvre ; an ad- mirable figure of a " Gypsy Girl ; " a bust of