Grand Tour
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- For other uses, see Grand Tour (disambiguation).
The Grand Tour was a European travel itinerary that flourished from about 1660 until the arrival of mass rail transit in the 1820s. It was popular amongst young British upper-class men and served as an educational rite of passage for the wealthy. Its primary value lay in the exposure both to the cultural artifacts of antiquity and the Renaissance and to the aristocratic and fashionable society of the European Continent. A grand tour could last from several months to several years.
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[edit] Travel itinerary
The most common itinerary of the Grand Tour<ref>See Fussell (1987), Buzzard (2002), Bohls & Duncan (2005)</ref> began in Dover, England, and crossed the English Channel to Calais in France. From there the tourist, usually accompanied by a tutor and if wealthy enough a league of servants, acquired a coach—which would be resold on completion—and other travel and transportation necessities, such as a French-speaking guide, and set off for Paris. In Paris the traveler might undertake lessons in French, dancing, fencing and riding. The appeal of Paris lay in the sophisticated language and manners of high French society, including courtly behavior and fashion. Ostensibly this served the purpose of preparing the young British nobleman for a leadership position at home, often government-related or diplomatic in nature.
From Paris he would typically go to Geneva and experience Switzerland for a while. Then a difficult crossing over the Alps into northern Italy (such as at St. Bernards Pass), which included dismantling the carriage and luggage, and if wealthy enough he might be carried over the hard terrain by servants. Once in Northern Italy the tourist might spend a few months in Florence and Pisa studying Renaissance art, then move on to Bologna and Venice to do the same. From Venice it was on to Rome to study the classical ruins, with perhaps a visit to Naples for music, and to appreciate the recently discovered archaeological sites of Herculaneum and Pompeii and for the adventurous a thrilling ascent of Mount Vesuvius. From here it was back north through the Alps to the German speaking parts of Europe. The traveler might stop first in Innsbruck before visiting Berlin, Dresden, Vienna and Potsdam, with perhaps some study time at the universities in Munich or Heidelberg. Then it was on to Holland and Flanders, with more gallery-going and art appreciation, before returning across the channel to England.
[edit] History
The idea of travel for the sake of curiosity and learning was a developing idea in the 18th century. With John Locke's Essay Concerning Human Understanding (1690) it was argued, and widely accepted, that knowledge comes entirely from the external senses, that what one knows comes from what physical stimuli one has been exposed to. Thus one could "use up" the environment, taking from it all it had to offer, requiring a change of location. Travel therefore was an obligation for the person who wanted to further develop the mind and expand knowledge. The typical 18th century sentiment was that of the studious observer traveling through foreign lands reporting their findings on human nature for those less fortunate who stayed at home. Traveling observation became a duty, an obligation to society at large to increase its welfare. The Grand Tour flourished in this mindset.<ref>Paul Fussell (1987), pg. 129</ref>
The Grand Tour not only provided a liberal education, it provided those who could afford it the opportunity to buy things that were otherwise not available at home, and thus to increase prestige and standing. Grand Tourists would return with crates of art books, pictures, sculpture and other items of culture which would be displayed in libraries, cabinets, gardens and drawing rooms. The Grand Tour became a symbol of wealth and freedom.
Critics of the Grand Tour derided its lack of adventure. "The tour of Europe is a paltry thing", said one 18th century critic, "a tame, uniform, unvaried prospect". The Grand Tour was said to re-enforce the old preconceptions and prejudices about national characteristics, as Jean Gailhard's Compleat Gentleman (1678) observes: "French courteous. Spanish lordly. Italian amorous. German clownish."
After the arrival of mass transit around 1825 the custom of a Grand Tour continued, but it was of a qualitative difference - cheaper to undertake, less risky, easier, open to anyone. During much of the 19th century, most educated young men of privilege took the Grand Tour. Later, it also became fashionable for young women. A trip to Italy with a spinster aunt as chaperon was part of the upper-class lady's education.
Thomas Coryat's travel book Coryat's Crudities (1611) was an early influence on the Grand Tour. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the first recorded use of the term (and perhaps its introduction into the English language) was made by Richard Lassels in his book An Italian Voyage (1670).
Some contemporary sociologists view the Grand Tour as the prototype for modern tourism.[citation needed]
[edit] See also
[edit] Notes
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[edit] References
- Elizabeth Bohls and Ian Duncan, ed. (2005). Travel Writing: An Anthology. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-284051-7
- James Buzzard (2002), "The Grand Tour and after (1660-1840)", in The Cambridge Companion to Travel Writing. ISBN 0-521-78140-X
- Paul Fussell (1987), "The Eighteenth Century and the Grand Tour", in The Norton Book of Travel, ISBN 0-393-02481-4
