besieged Caen. It is still unrestored, and
if you peep inside the open doors you will see the interior filled with
ladders, boxes, brooms, and a thousand odds and ends, this most beautiful
structure being used as a municipal workshop.
We have more than once referred to the church of St Pierre, but as yet we
have made no reference to its architecture. The tower and graceful spire
needs no detailed description, for it appears in the coloured illustration
adjoining, and from it one may see what a strikingly perfect structure this
is for such an early date as 1308. It is a marvel of construction, for the
spire within is hollow, and without any interior framework or supports at
all. Although it is so seemingly frail, it was used during the sixteenth
century for military purposes, having been selected as a good position for
firing upon the castle, and it naturally became a target for the guns
inside the fortress. You cannot now see the holes made by the cannon balls,
but although they were not repaired for many years the tower remained
perfectly stable, as a proof of the excellent work of Nicholas, the
Englishman who built it.
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