#St Étienne

[postcard-from-the-past]

Tomb of St. Geneviève in the Saint-Étienne-du-Mont church of Paris

French vintage postcard

[k-i-l-l-e-r-b-e-e-6-9]

𝔗𝔥𝔢 𝔄𝔟𝔟𝔢𝔶 𝔬𝔣 𝔖𝔞𝔦𝔫𝔱-É𝔱𝔦𝔢𝔫𝔫𝔢 𝔦𝔫 ℭ𝔞𝔢𝔫, 𝔯𝔢𝔟𝔲𝔦𝔩𝔱 𝔣𝔯𝔬𝔪 ℜ𝔬𝔪𝔞𝔫𝔢𝔰𝔮𝔲𝔢 𝔱𝔬 𝔊𝔬𝔱𝔥𝔦𝔠, 𝔥𝔞𝔰 𝔫𝔦𝔫𝔢 𝔱𝔬𝔴𝔢𝔯𝔰 (յՅ𝔱𝔥 𝔠𝔢𝔫𝔱𝔲𝔯𝔶)

[theodoreangelos]

The south tower of St. Stephen's Cathedral (136.7 m) from the roof, Vienna, Inner City, Austria Der Südturm des Stephansdomes (136,7 m) vom Dach aus, Wien, Innere Stadt, Österreich La tour sud de la cathédrale Saint-Étienne (136,7 m) vue du toit, Vienne, Ville intérieure, Autriche Южная башня собора Святого Стефана (136,7 м) с крыши, Вена, Внутренний город, Австрия

[histoireettralala]

"To all intents and purposes she may be counted among the kings of France"

The hour that struck the death of Louis VIII was arguably the most critical in the history of the Capetian family. The new king, one day to be St Louis, was still a child. The trend of events in the previous two reigns had brought the higher nobility to realise that its independence would soon be seriously threatened. But a unique opportunity was raised to the regency of the queen-mother, Blanche of Castile, on the pretext that she was a woman and a foreigner. Yet this was not the first occasion on which the king's widow had acted as regent, nor the first on which a queen had played a part in politics. Philip Augustus had been the first Capetian not to involve his wife in the government of his realm. Before his time the queens of France had often intervened in affairs of state. Constance of Arles, not content with making married life difficult for Robert the Pious, had wanted to change the order of succession to the throne. She had led the opposition to Henri I, provoking and upholding his brothers against him, and she was perhaps responsible for the separation of Burgundy from the royal domain, to which Robert the Pious had joined it. Anna of Kiev, after the death of her husband Henri I, had been one of the regents, and it was only her second marriage, to Raoul de Crépy, that took her out of politics. Bertrada de Montfort's influence over Philip I had been notorious, and so had her hostility to the heir to the throne, whom she had even been accused of trying to poison. Adelaide of Maurienne, despite a physical personality before which Count Baldwin III of Hainault is said to have recoiled, had held considerable sway over Louis VI, procuring the disgrace of the chancellor, Etienne de Garlande, and egging on Louis to the Flemish adventure from which her brother-in-law, William Clito, was to profit so much. Eleanor of Aquitaine- as St Bernard had complained- had more power than anyone else over Louis VII as long as their marriage lasted. Louis VII's third wife, Adela of Champagne, had appealed to the king of England for help against her son Philip Augustus when he had sought to free himself of the tutelage of her brothers of Champagne. Later, reconciled with Philip, Adela had been regent during his absence from France on crusade. From the beginnings of Capet rule, the queens of France had enjoyed substantial influence over their husbands and over royal policy.

But Blanche of Castile was to play a greater role than any of her predecessors. To all intents and purposes she may be counted among the kings of France. For from 1226 until her death in 1252 she governed the kingdom. Twice she was regent: from 1226 to 1234, while Louis IX was a minor, and from 1248 to 1252 during his first absence on crusade. Between 1234 and 1248 Blanche bore no official title, but her power was no less effective. Severe in personality, heroic in stature, this Spanish princess took control of the fortunes of the dynasty and the kingdom in outstandingly difficult circumstances. For in 1226 there arose the most redoubtable coalition of great barons which the House of Capet ever had to face. Loyalty to the crown, so constant a feature of the past, seemed to be in eclipse. This was at any rate true of the barons who revolted, for they appear to have tried to seize the person of the young king himself- an attempt without parallel in Capetian history.

Blanche of Castile threw herself energetically into the struggle over her son and his throne. Taking her father-in-law, Philip Augustus, as her model, she won over half her enemies by craft, vigorously gave battle to the rest, and enlisted the alliance of the Church, including the Pope himself, and of the burgess class, which in marked fashion took the side of the royal family. Blanche was able to fend off Henry III of England, who tried to take the opportunity of recovering his ancestral lands, lost by John to Philip Augustus. She broke up the baronial coalition and reduced to submission the most dangerous of the rebels, Peter Mauclerc, Count of Brittany, and Raymond VII, Count of Toulouse. She adroitly took advantage of her victory to re-establish- this time definitively- the royal power in the south of France: her son Alphonse was married to the daughter and heiress of Raymond of Toulouse. The way was now open for the union of all Raymond's rich patrimony with the royal domain.

The Capetian monarchy emerged all the stronger from a crisis which had threatened to overwhelm it. Blanche felt it her duty not to rest on her laurels. After her son came of age she continued to make herself responsible for good and stable government. By the force of her example she drove home the lessons which Philip Augustus seems to have wanted to press upon his grandson when they had talked together. To Blanche's initiative must be credited the measures taken to suppress the dangerous revolt of Trencavel in Languedoc, as also those taken to defeat the coalition broken up after the battle of Saintes. On these occasions Louis IX did no more than carry out his mother's policy. When he went off on crusade, Blanche one more officially shouldered the government of the kingdom. She maintained law and order, prevented the further outbreak of war with England, and successfully pressed on with the policy which was to lead to the annexation of Languedoc. Likewise it was she who refurnished her son's crusade with men and money, and she took all the steps necessary for the safety of the kingdom when Louis was captured in Egypt.

Robert Fawtier- The Capetian Kings of France- Monarchy and Nation (987-1328)

[fangirling-throughlife]

Planes, Cannes and a déjà vu

A/N: this occurred to me hours before catching a plane, and was a nice distraction from the exhaustion I was feeling. I love Anna and the French kiss, and ther aren't enough fics to fulfill my need to know what Anna and Étienne do after the third book.

Warnings: no content warnings, maybe just an attempt at disgustingly fluffy writing. 90℅ of this was written while I was deeply sleep-deprived.

Anna Oliphant St. Clair was, by all means, a good flier. If she was tired (which was certainly the case lately) she was out before the plane even left, and she would wake up for meals. Frequent trips to visit their friends, who were scattered around the world, turned flying into a routine and uneventful happening.

Maybe that was why Étienne looked so stunned when his wife dropped her carry-on and purse the moment they walked into the Charles de Gaulle terminal and ran to the closest toilet with her hand clasped in front of her mouth, looking greenish pale.

Anna didn’t understand it either. She had slept through the first three quarters of their flight, unaware even of the turbulence Étienne mentioned. But the moment the flight attendant arrived with their breakfast, a wave of nausea had woken her up. There was nothing she hated more than being sick, and the idea of being sick on a plane was completely unacceptable, so she didn’t touch her food and let Étienne eat it, and spent the better part of an hour practicing breathing exercises until she eventually started breathing into a paper bag, just in case. She hadn’t eaten anything since they left LAX, so she was throwing up bile, and the taste that it left in her mouth made it start again every time she thought she was done.

“Excusez-moi, madame. Ma femme est là, je veux voire si elle a besoin de quelque chose”. Étienne’s voice made it through the haze, and Anna let out a relieved sigh as she dropped her head against the bathroom stall door. Not that she could think of anything Étienne could do to make it stop, but she had the feeling that, if he held her, she would feel better. “Anna, darling, are you alright? Can I come in?” Anna unlocked the door and pushed it open as she changed positions to sit against the wall, head resting on the closed toilet seat.

“What happened, sweetheart?” Étienne asked softly. He’d been worried from the moment he had noticed her discomfort, his own less than fondness for flying forgotten. He was running his fingers through her hair, watching her eyes fill with tears. “I don’t know, but I feel like crap.” She grimaced, and he quickly moved to lift the lid, but she shook her head. “I feel like I’m all done now. It was probably the exhaustion, dehydration, the pressure changes… just a perfect storm that made me sick.” “Do you need anything?”, Étienne asked. Anna shook her head again. “How long till we have to start boarding?” “Just over half an hour. We should probably start walking there, you can eat something light by the gate”. Anna nodded and took Étienne’s outreached hand to help her stand up. Once she stood on her feet, Étienne grabbed their bags, pecked her cheek, and walked out of the women’s lavatories while she rinsed her mouth and washed her hands thoroughly. Now that she could think clearly, she winced at the idea that she had sat down on the floor of an airport bathroom stall, and that she had even touched surfaces with her face. She examined her face in the mirror, as if her reflection could answer the question running through her mind: why was she so sick?

Étienne was waiting for her just outside the toilet area. Wordlessly, Étienne got a chewing gum out of his pocket and gave it to her, which she popped into her mouth to get rid of the bad taste. He took her hand and they started walking towards their connecting flight in comfortable silence. Once they arrived at the gate, Anna sat down at a café and ordered plain toast to further ease her upset stomach, while Étienne approached the crew that was setting up for boarding.

“Hi, may I ask you for a favor?” A kind-looking woman, who sort of reminded him of his mother, turned from the screen to talk to him. “Bien sûr, young man. What do you need?”

“Well, my wife, over there” he turned lightly to point at Anna “isn’t feeling well, but our seats are on opposite sides of the plane. Would it be possible to change one of us so I can sit with her in case she needs me?” He grabbed his wallet. Another crew member chipped in “I’m afraid it’s impossible. We’re fully booked, there isn’t a single free seat. Either way, why didn’t you choose adjacent seats when you got your tickets?”

“Well, my wife is traveling for work, she’s accredited at Cannes, so her company got the tickets. I just tagged along, and I couldn’t get the seat next to hers for this flight.”

“I’m afraid you’ll have to ask for her seat neighbor if they’d mind switching, because there’s nothing we can do.” The first woman informed. “I’m so sorry we can’t help you further. I hope your wife is feeling better.”

Étienne gave her a smile. “I understand, thank you anyway.”

When he reached Anna, she had finished half her toast and had started to look pale again. “Are you alright, darling?” She looked up and half-smiled at him. “My stomach’s still upset, but I think I can keep half a toast down.” “I asked if they could change our seats so we could sit together, but it looks like we’ll have to ask for a favor.” Anna nodded, seemingly lost in thought. “Are you sure you’re okay? You start tomorrow, don’t you? If you don’t think you’re up for it, you should maybe call and ask for someone from another office to cover for you…” Anna grabbed Étienne’s arm to stop his rambling. “I’m sure I’ll be fine, Étienne, I told you it must be a perfect storm of circumstances. And I don’t really have anything to do until tomorrow evening. Plus, Julie and Patrick from the London and Sydney offices will be there as well. They’ll have their articles, just… maybe with less points of view if I’m not patched up by tomorrow.” She smiled sweetly at him, and he started rubbing circles in the palm of her hand, making her giggle.

“Passengers to Nice, please start boarding now from gate 24.”, the voice of the woman at the gate suddenly boomed across the space. “Let’s go.” They said simultaneously, light shining in their eyes. Étienne turned his palm to face hers, and entwined their fingers. “After you, Mme. Oliphant St. Clair”. Étienne expected a cheeky remark from his wife, but instead, she got a hazy look in her eyes as she stood and tried to balance herself. “Anna, you’re not okay. I’m taking you to the doctor.” “Étienne, I just stood up too quickly and got lightheaded. Besides, it’s a short flight. I promise that we’ll go to the doctor if I feel worse in the meantime, okay?” Étienne nodded, this face betraying his concern. “Come on, then.”

Anna felt lucky the magazine had booked her an aisle seat. As much as she had tried to put Étienne’s mind at ease, she didn’t feel better, and she had left half her toast uneaten when the first bites had threatened to come up. She hoped against hope that she would be okay for the 90 minutes. She kept on racking her brain for the reason of her sudden ailment, but she didn’t find any meals that could have caused it, or places she could have been infected with a stomach bug. Suddenly, her husband appeared next to her.

“Excuse me, ma’am. I’m so sorry to ask this, but would it be possible to change seats with you? This is my wife, and she’s been feeling ill this morning, and I’d like to stay close to her in case I have to hold her hair or a bag…” The woman next to her looked grossed out and had started to gather her things before Étienne was even done with his speech.

“Pardon me, but I wonder if you wouldn’t mind switching seats. You see, that’s my girlfriend there, and she’s pregnant. And since she gets a bit ill on airplanes, I thought she might need someone to hold back her hair when…well…”

The scene in front of her gave her a sense of déjà vu, and suddenly it felt as if the last piece to complete the picture fell in its place. She started listing symptoms and facts. I’ve been feeling very tired lately. There are smells I can’t stand but I haven’t had a migraine in months. I haven’t had my period since late March. That last item made her nauseated for completely different reasons (“or the same ones” her traitorous brain provided). She turned to Étienne, who was watching her face closely. Still not over the shock of the fact that she might be pregnant without having noticed a thing, she decided not to tell him yet, not until she had any confirmation. She knew he wanted kids, but she also realized they’d only been married for a year, and they’d both started their jobs less than a year ago, and they were going to talk about it, and suddenly it was a possibility and they hadn’t had the talk. Anna’s mind was racing, and she became aware of her breathing starting to speed. She tried to control her breaths, and looked into Étienne’s eyes. She immediately knew she didn’t have to be scared. Whatever challenge life would bring, they would be okay.

After promising Étienne over a hundred times that she felt okay – which was true now, coming to the realization of what might be wrong with her had calmed her system, apparently. And it was 12 pm, so it was a possibility that morning sickness was a time-limited thing for her – they finally got the rental car and left for Cannes. After a gruesome 50 minutes in high-density traffic (during which Étienne moaned about not deciding to come earlier, to which Anna had laughingly responded that he had had to wrap his last classes), they finally arrived at the hotel. Thanks to the popularity of her blog, Anna already had some fame in the critic’s circles before starting her job (and the only reason she hadn’t been invited to critic’s week was because her magazine had already one accredited critic with higher rank). Still, this meant that she had directly started at a higher position that other starters, and the hotel was proof of it. They had booked her a room for two weeks at a nice mid-sized hotel, not too far from the venue, instead of one of the dingy hotels she knew other freshmen were staying at. When Étienne confirmed he could tag along, he had upgraded the room himself, and they ended up in one of the bigger double rooms, with a nice view of the sea, and a terrace with a table, four chairs and a small sofa.

During the drive, Anna had already checked the location of the closest pharmacy, and had elaborated a plan to leave without alerting Étienne. While he was hanging his dress shirts in the closet and she was putting away the toiletries in the bathroom, she saw her chance. “Étienne, we forgot to take the sunscreen!” – a white lie, since she had just wrapped the four bottles of sunscreen in one of the towels. “I’m going out to the pharmacy to get a few bottles, okay?” Étienne protested as he emerged from the closet “Wait, I'm almost done here, I’ll go with you.” “No, it’s fine! It’s actually two streets over, I’ll be back before you know it!” She hurried to give him a kiss and left before he could object again.

True to the information she’d found online, she got to the store in less than 10 minutes. Figuring she should buy some sunscreen to justify the trip to the store, she took two bottles of their usual brand before gathering the courage to look at the pregnancy tests. Not for the first time, she felt happy her dad had sent her to SOAP, and that she would sometimes speak French at home so she didn’t lose the skill (and because it was hot as well, obviously), because she couldn’t imagine trying to understand the different types of products in front of her had they been labeled in any language other that English or French. She finally grabbed two different types of test and hurried to the counter. For some reason, she felt embarrassed when they scanned the tests, as if she were a teenager who’d had a slip-up, not a married adult with a paying job and a decent savings account (even though she essentially still felt like a teenager some times). She avoided eye contact as she paid, and left the store in a hurry.

Back in their room, she found Étienne sitting bare-chested on the terrace gazing at the sea, looking deep in thought. “I’m back”, she announced softly, trying not to startle him. He looked up at her with a soft smile. “Hey. I wanted to wait and see if you’re up to going out, or if you’d rather stay in and rest this afternoon. Then I’ll dress appropriately.” “We can go take a walk by the beach, and grab something light there for dinner. I’m not very hungry, but we shouldn’t go to bed yet. Jetlag.” Seeing a perfect excuse to take the tests, she added, almost as an afterthought, “I’m going to go shower and dress. I’ll be out in half an hour.” She pecked his lips and walked to the bathroom, with the pharmacy bag hanging nonchalantly from her arm.

In the bathroom, she opened both the boxes and read the instruction pamphlet. The figures were clear, and she quickly peed on the first one, leaving the second to confirm later. Since the pamphlet stated she should check after 5 minutes, she busied herself around the bathroom, too nervous to step in the shower. When the timer of her phone went off, she quickly turned the test. Pregnant. Tears sprung to her eyes, and her resolve to shower and then take the second one disappeared.

“Étienne” her voice came out weak, “Étienne”, she tried a bit louder, but her voice cracked. She heard his quick and loud footsteps, and in less that 5 seconds he opened the door wide-eyed. “What’s wrong?” He saw Anna’s face, both smiling and crying, and he looked down to the stick she was holding in her hand. It took him a few beats to realize what he was looking at, and when he did, he locked eyes with Anna, who was full-on grinning. Unable to form words, he nodded questioningly, tears forming in his eyes. Anna lifted the test to show him the word. Pregnant. He closed the gap between them, hugged her and lifted her from the ground, laughing and kissing her hair. “Sweetheart, I’m finally not nauseous anymore, I don’t want to be sick again.” Anna laughed. Étienne let her stand again, keeping his hands on her hips. “We’re going to be parents?” he asked, still unbelieving. “Apparently so. I’ll still have to make an appointment with a doctor when we’re back in California, but I’ve got another test to confirm later. I was going to make sure before I told you, but I guess I got a little overexcited.” Anna was biting her lip, her gaze a bit more guarded. “Why would you want to wait to tell me?” “Well, you know, it’s soon, and totally unplanned. We’re still young, and we haven’t really talked about it yet…” Étienne cut her off with a peck on her lips. “Anna, darling. Don’t tell me you have doubts on how I’d feel about this. You know I want to have kids with you, I’m 100% in.” He rubbed his thumb on her cheek to wipe a stray tear. “How long have you been dealing with this?” “Not long, I swear. I suddenly thought of it when you switched seats on the plane to Nice, honestly. It made me think of that first flight together, you know? When you told the man I was your “pregnant girlfriend”?” Étienne chuckled, a blush rising to his cheeks. “I realized just then that I haven’t had my period for almost 2 months, and it sort of clicked that it was a possibility. Besides, you know me too well, I don’t think I could have hidden it for long.”

Étienne cupped Anna’s face, and they kissed, slow and sweet. “We’re going to be parents.” He whispered, smiling against her lips. “This is insane.” At that, Étienne pulled away, alarmed. “In a good way, I swear. It’s just, we’re young, and most of our friends are still in college.” “And we’ll be fine. They’ll be the luckiest child, with tons of people around them loving them. Don’t worry, darling. Baby steps.” “When did you become such a mellow guy? Baby steps.” She dropped her voice an octave, mimicking him. “I know you’re already overthinking, that makes it easier to stay grounded.” She nodded, in silence. “How about I take a shower, we go out, eat something and get back for an early night?” Étienne wiggled his eyebrows suggestively, laughing. “Isn’t that a bit overkill? I mean, you’re already pregnant.” He saw Anna’s slap coming, so he ducked just in time. “You’re in idiot, you know that, right?” She played mock-angry so successfully that he was worried for a second, until he saw a glint in her eyes. “I am, but I’m your idiot.” He said sheepishly. This made her crack the façade, and she smiled at him. “You are. I love you.” She pecked his lips and walked towards the shower. “Now get out and let me get ready. Put on a shirt.” She licked her lips to tease him, and held his gaze as she pulled off her shirt. Étienne stood staring at his wife, until the shower door closing broke his trance. “I love you, mommy-to-be!” he exclaimed from the door. Anna laughed. “I love you too, daddy-to-be!”

[leszackardises]

La vraie nature: Les invités du 19 mars 2023

(more…) “”

[debrink]

Cycles Jussy & Cie

Pneu Hartford • St. Étienne, Loire

~ Anonymous, circa 1908

[coralloid]

l'eglise catholique a des pubs sur tumblr??? what?

[auras-moonstone]

could you write something about jack and shy!reader where they’re working on a romcom together and she’s very closed off with him bc she likes him and he’s always going to her trailer to hang out despite her being very quiet

okay so i may have reached a new level of cheesiness with this one shot but i kinda love it??? hope you do too🫶🏻💓

the tower at midnight — jack champion

word count: 2,394

pairing: jack champion x shy!fem!reader

summary: jack and y/n are working on a rom-com together. because of her shyness and crush on him, y/n is really closed off and jack is determined to change that.

WHEN Y/N AUDITIONED FOR THE ROLE OF ANNA IN THE NETFLIX ADAPTATION OF ANNA AND THE FRENCH KISS, she would’ve never ever—not even in her wildest dreams—imagined that the boy who played Étienne St. Clair (the love interest) would be Jack Champion, her celebrity crush.

Jack knew he had soft spot for her from the moment they met, at the cast presentation/meeting. Y/N had been standing awkwardly by the door because, just like him, she had arrived earlier than the rest.

“Hi, you must be Y/N” he gave her a wide smile, showing his perfect teeth and cute dimples. Y/N couldn’t believe he was even more perfect in person.

“Hi… yes” she shifted awkwardly. Her nostrils caught the scent of his strong and sweet cologne, and she instantly became addicted.

“I’m Jack! Nice to meet you! I’m really excited to be working with you” Jack’s voice was the complete opposite of hers—loud, excited, confident, steady.

“Thanks, me too” she sent him a soft smile, which was enough to send Jack’s heart beats on a marathon.

“It’s your first acting role, right?” he asked, interested in knowing more about the girl. Y/N nodded shyly. “Don’t worry. I’m sure you’ll do amazing! I know it can seem very intimidating, but you’ll be okay”.

“Thank you” Y/N smiled gratefully. She was completely entranced by him, by his kindness and by his warmth.

“What are you listening to?” he asked, eyeing the earphone that hung from my neck.

“Um, the Mamma Mia soundtrack” she replied, cheeks red as she offered him one of the earphones. He beamed at her, and accepted it. They both sat together in comfortable silence, humming to the ABBA songs as they waited for the rest of the cast.

JACK THOUGHT THAT BY THE PASSING DAYS, Y/N WOULD WARM UP TO HIM AT LEAST A LITTLE. But he had been totally wrong, she even became more reserved than the day they met.

He only heard her voice when they were doing a scene, and it was weird to see the contrast between them when they were playing Anna and Étienne—two friends who were clearly into each other—and the real Y/N and Jack—two people who didn’t interact at all behind cameras. It was like living two lives, and Jack liked what he felt with Y/N when they were doing a scene together. Her eyes held a certain spark when she looked at him, and she blushed so prettily and her soft voice was just so enthralling… she was a great actress and Jack was beginning to think he was really not acting the attraction towards her at all.

Little did he know, Y/N wasn’t acting either. She liked him, a lot, and wished she wasn’t so shy because she really wanted to spend more time with Jack when the cameras weren’t near them. But Y/N knew she would make a fool of herself, and would be extremely obvious about her feelings, and weirding Jack out by her little crush was the last thing Y/N wanted. So, she stayed in her own little bubble while she enjoyed his company during the interactions between Anna and Étienne.

But Jack was not going to let it stay like that. And, one day, after they finished a scene, he followed Y/N to her trailer.

“Hey, do you mind if I stay with you?” Jack asked as she opened the door.

Y/N looked surprised “No… it’s okay” she said in a low tone. Jack smiled and held the door open for her. “Thanks” she muttered, her stomach squirming. He really was perfect.

There wasn’t a conversation at all. And one might think that would’ve been awkward as hell, but it wasn’t. Y/N felt comfortable, and Jack enjoyed her company even when they didn’t talk at all. So they did the same the next day, and the following one, and soon it became their little religion.

Y/N wondered why he kept going—not that she minded, of course. But he could spend his free time with other cast members who actually talked to him, and instead Jack sat in complete silence with her for minutes, not even attempting to make a conversation. She couldn’t help but ask.

“Why do you do this?” her question surprised him, and he paused the game he was playing on his phone.

“What?” Jack asked confused.

“You know, sit with me everyday, when I’m the most boring person to hang out” her voice was little.

Because I like you, he was tempted to say. But he didn’t want her to run away “You’re not boring. Sometimes conversations are overrated, you know? And it feels nice to hang out with you, you make me feel at peace”.

Y/N blushed. No one had ever said that to her ‘make me feel at peace’. Most people left her alone when they got the memo that she didn’t want to talk. Jack didn’t. “I… feel the same about you. I’m comfortable with you, and it’s… funny to watch you furrow your eyes when you are struggling at your game” she admitted, letting out a small laugh.

Jack’s smile appeared almost as a reflect. She had no idea how much he liked her “And I think it’s funny how you squirm whenever a kissing scene comes up in your book”.

Y/N’s body grew hot. “I just like when the characters finally kiss. I get invested a lot”

“Have you read Anna and the french kiss before the adaptation was announced?” Jack asked.

The girl smiled, she loved talking about rom-coms. “Of course. It’s one of my favorite romances. In fact, it enters my top five”.

“Oh, let’s see. Tell me your top” he asked, moving to sit next to her.

“At number five, Kisses and croissants—which like Anna, is set on Paris—, then The Happy Place—it’s really heart wrenching but it’s so good—, The do-over—I love it, it’s very original—, Anna and the french kiss—I absolutely love the whole Paris exploration and the romance and friendship between Anna and St. Clair is impeccable… and then, my absolute favorite is-“

“Wait! Drumrolls” he interrupted her, before making the sound.

Y/N laughed “Better than the movies, of course. Best romance I’ve ever read”.

“Oh, I know that one! I’ve been fan casted as the main character” Jack said.

As if I didn’t know, she said internally. He was the perfect Wes Bennet, and now that she actually knew him, she couldn’t deny it. “I know” she confessed.

“Really? What do you think?”

“The fans clearly make a good point” she said. How was he getting her to talk so much? She never felt like that towards someone. When she was around Jack, she wanted to make conversation.

Jack saw how passionate Y/N was about books, so he hold onto that topic. He loved hearing her voice, and her enthusiasm. “Tell me about this character. I’ve never read the book”.

And so Y/N talked about Wes, about how similar he was to Jack. And said boy was on cloud nine, not only was Y/N talking to him, but he was complimenting him. Well, she complimented Wes, but she mentioned lots of times how he and Jack were literally the same person—so the compliments were towards him too, right? And he loved it.

THEIR DYNAMIC COMPLETELY CHANGED EVER SINCE THAT DAY ON THE TRAILER. Jack noticed Y/N had grown more comfortable and confident around him, though she did have moments of shyness—especially when he threw praises at her. That’s another thing that changed: Jack wouldn’t pass the opportunity to shower her with compliments. The first one had slipped out of his mouth, she just looked so gorgeous on that skirt and top, that he couldn’t shut up. At first, he cursed at himself thinking it was going to make her uncomfortable, but then she blushed and gave him a little smile and Jack knew he had to tell her at least one nice thing every day. He realized that flattering her was his favorite activity, and he was very addicted to her reactions.

Maybe it was all in his imagination, but he had the feeling that Y/N liked him back. The blushing, the glances, her little stiffness whenever he got too close—it could be just her shyness, he knew it, but the hopeful part of him told him it was more than that.

“Y/N/N?” he interrupted her reading. That was a new activity they had—Jack asked Y/N if she could read him ‘Better than the movies’, and she couldn’t say no when he pouted. So she read to him during their breaks at the trailer.

“Yes?” she looked down at her lap, where Jack’s head was resting.

“Are you doing something tonight?” he asked.

Y/N frowned “No, why?”

“I just realize, we are in Paris and we didn’t get to explore much. Just the places we have filmed at, and it sucks because it is such a beautiful city”

“So…?”

“Right. Well, I was wondering if you wanted to explore with me tonight. We leave the set earlier today, so it’s a great opportunity. We can have dinner, and then visit some touristic places” he tried to speak confidently, but he was practically screaming on the inside.

“Yes, that sounds really nice, actually” she nodded, not thinking much of it. Jack cursed at her calmness, guess she didn’t understand he was actually asking her on a date.

“Great. It’s a date” Jack said, paying attention to her reaction. Her jaw fell open, and the grip on the book loosened letting it fall to her lap—or Jack’s face to be exact. “Ouch!”.

“Shit. Shit. I’m so sorry, Jack” Y/N apologised, body turning warm with embarrassment.

“You could’ve just said no, you know? Didn’t have to hit me with your book” he joked.

“No, no. I want to… I want it to be a date” she said softly. “Did I hurt you?” she touched his nose carefully.

“Not anymore. The pain is now long forgotten” Jack said looking her in the eyes. She turned her head away, they were too close and he was making her extremely nervous “I love it when you blush, did you know that? I… I like you”

“I got the hint ever since you randomly started to tell me compliments every day” she confessed.

“So you knew that I liked you?” Jack asked surprised. She nodded shyly “Why didn’t you say anything?”

Y/N shrugged “I’m not good at making the first move”

“Well, I am” he smiled smugly, leaning closer to her. He was going to kiss her. She had even closed her eyes, waiting for the feeling of his lips. “No”

Y/N opened her eyes in confusion “What?”

“You like romance, don’t you?” Jack asked, she affirmed with her head “We are in one of the most romantic cities in the world and you’re a fan of romantic comedies. Wouldn’t it be a shame if we have our first kiss in a trailer when there are so many beautiful places where we could have it?” he left Y/N completely speechless. “I’ll pick you up at 8, gorgeous”.

Y/N swooned. This guy was taken out of a romantic novel, there’s no other explanation.

WALKING AROUND THE CITY OF PARIS WITH JACK FELT LIKE A FAIRYTALE. They bought a disposable camera and took pictures of everything—when they went to The Louvre, to Le arc de Triomphe, the Luxembourg Gardens. And now, they were at their final stop before heading back to the hotel. Of course, they had to end their little exploration with Paris’ most iconic monument—the Eiffel Tower.

“Holy shit” Y/N said in complete awe. It was completely dark—as it was midnight already—so the tower shone brightly. The warm flashing lights of the monument reflected on Y/N’s starry eyes and Jack was completely taken by the view—her, of course. “This is completely mesmerising, Jack”.

“I know” eyes never leaving her eyes.

“Excuse moi” the voice of an old woman interrupted them. Y/N turned around and smiled warmly at her. She asked something in french that Jack couldn’t understand, but Y/N nodded and took the phone the woman held in her hands.

Y/N took a picture of the lady in front of the tower, and smiled at her as she handed the phone back. The unknown female looked at Jack, who was watching them with a grin, and said something to Y/N that made her blush and laugh.

“What did she say?” Jack asked curiously when Y/N came back to his side.

“She said that you were very handsome and that we make a great couple” Y/N admitted, smiling lightly but not quite looking at him from embarrassment.

“That was a wise woman, then” Jack smirked. “I didn’t know you spoke french”

“I studied it at school, so I can speak it quite well” she told him.

“Can you say something to me in french?” he was dying to hear her voice in that accent.

Y/N turned around to face him and, with an air of confidence, she said “Tu es le plus beau garçon que J'ai jamais vu. Je t'aime beaucoup et je suis amoureuse de ton sourire et de tes beaux yeux”.

With his jaw almost reaching the floor, his eyes roamed from her eyes down to her mouth, completely bewitched by the sound of her voice and the movement of her lips. He didn’t recognise one word that she had said, yet his heart felt like jumping out of his chest.

“Wha-what does that mean?” he whispered breathlessly.

“I said… You’re the most beautiful boy I’ve ever seen. I like you very much and I’m in love with your smile and your beautiful eyes”

“And-and how do you say ‘Can I kiss you?’ in french?” he asked, fingertips caressing her full lips.

“Je peux t'embrasser?” she answered.

Jack smiled “Yes, of course you can”

Y/N laughed “Dork” she whispered before pressing her lips against his.

Y/N didn’t quite know how Jack manages to make her feel absolutely fearless. But she was in love with the feeling, she was so in love with him that she might stop breathing. She was in love with his cheeky smile, his sweet disposition, his understanding self, his silly jokes, his touch and his loving gaze, and now, one hundred percent, with his kisses.

“I’m in love with you too” Jack said against her lips.

[hopefulkidshark]

Saint-Étienne-du-Mont Church, Paris, France: Saint-Étienne-du-Mont is a church in Paris, France, on the Montagne Sainte-Geneviève in the 5th arrondissement, near the Panthéon. It contains the shrine of St. Geneviève, the patron saint of Paris. The church also contains the tombs of Blaise Pascal and Jean Racine. Jean-Paul Marat is buried in the church's cemetery. Wikipedia

[transmutationisms]

ur username has always been so cool to me im curious where u got it/the idea for it from

thank you :3 transmutationism or 'transmutation of species' is one of several outmoded English terms for theories of biological evolution commonly used prior to the 'Darwinian revolution' sparked by the publication of the Origin of Species in 1859. 'transmutationism', so-named for the suggestion that novel life-forms appear when one species 'transmutates' into a new one, was particularly associated with circles of materialist, atheist, usually republican medical students and teachers in and around Edinburgh in the 1820s–30s, though the term was applied in varying places and times during the first half of the 19th century.

medical schools at this time throughout Europe tended to nurture more radical and heterodox thinking than many other scientific institutions, particularly those with state patronage. the 'Edinburgh transmutationists' included figures like Robert Grant, who helped disseminate the 'freethinking' and atheistic ideas of French biologists like Jean-Baptiste Lamarck and Étienne Geoffroy St.-Hilaire; early French evolutionary ideas were often repurposed by working-class radicals who interpreted ideas of biological malleability as providing a basis to challenge the rigid social and economic hierarchies of English society (much as some of the French revolutionaries had tried to do in the 1790s). the arguments of the Edinburgh transmutationists were largely marginalised among the London scientific set by the 1840s–50s for a number of reasons, supplanted by more conservative theories of evolution such as that of Robert Chambers (published anonymously in 1844) and eventually Charles Darwin (who was himself more than incidentally 'Lamarckian' but whose supporters tended to minimise this fact in favour of a rhetorical strategy positioning Darwin's work as a singular breakthrough theory and a novel supercession of Christian and teleological thinking in biology). also the involvement of famous transmutationist Robert Knox with the infamous Burke and Hare corpse-procurement murders in 1828 was not particularly helpful for evolutionary/transmutationist theory as far as PR went.

some other non- and pre-Darwinian terms for evolution that you may see include 'transformation' or 'transformism' (from the French transformisme, favoured in Lamarck's work in the 1800s–20s and later revived by the neo-Lamarckians of the Third Republic), the 'developmental hypothesis', or sometimes more euphemistically the 'species question'. the term 'evolution', although used as early as 1811 in the Edinburgh Review to refer to Lamarck's theory of species transformation, was in the 18th and early 19th centuries primarily used in biology to refer to an unrelated theory in embryology (see: recapitulation) and didn't become a consensus term in the way we now use it until after the publication and institutional adoption of (certain versions of) Darwin's theory of species development.

[postcard-from-the-past]

Interior of the St. Étienne-du-Mont church of Paris

French vintage postcard

[napoleonic-sexyman-tournament]

The updated list of nominees so far:

France:

Jean Lannes

Josephine de Beauharnais

Thérésa Tallien

Jean-Andoche Junot

Joseph Fouché

Charles Maurice de Talleyrand

Joachim Murat

Michel Ney

Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte (Charles XIV of Sweden)

Louis-Francois Lejeune

Pierre Jacques Étienne Cambrinne

Napoleon I

Marshal Louis-Gabriel Suchet

Jacques de Trobriand

Jean de dieu soult.

François-Étienne-Christophe Kellermann

Louis Davout

Pauline Bonaparte, Duchess of Guastalla

Eugène de Beauharnais

Jean-Baptiste Bessières

Antoine-Jean Gros

Jérôme Bonaparte

Andre Masséna

England:

Richard Sharpe (The Sharpe Series)

Tom Pullings (Master and Commander)

Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington

Jonathan Strange (Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell)

Captain Jack Aubrey (Aubrey/Maturin books)

Horatio Hornblower (the Hornblower Books)

William Laurence (The Temeraire Series)

Austria:

Klemens von Metternich

Friedrich Bianchi, Duke of Casalanza

Franz I/II

Archduke Karl

Marie Louise

Poland:

Wincenty Krasiński

Józef Antoni Poniatowski

Józef Zajączek

Maria Walewska

Russia:

Alexander I Pavlovich

Alexander Andreevich Durov

Prince Andrei (War and Peace)

Pyotr Bagration

Mikhail Miloradovich

Levin August von Bennigsen

Prussia:

Louise von Mecklenburg-Strelitz

Gebard von Blücher

Carl von Clausewitz

Frederick William III

Gerhard von Scharnhorst

Louis Ferdinand of Prussia

Friederike of Mecklenburg-Strelitz

The Netherlands:

Ida St Elme

Wiliam, Prince of Orange

The Papal States:

Pius VII

[theodoreangelos]

Cathedral and Metropolitan Church of St Stephen and All Saints, in short St Stephen's Cathedral, Vienna, Austria Dom- und Metropolitankirche zu St. Stephan und allen Heiligen, kurz Stephansdom oder Steffl, Wien, Österreich Собор Святого Стефана, Вена, Австрия Cathédrale Saint-Étienne de Vienne, Autriche November 24th, 2022

[victusinveritas]

30 July 1915

Zouaves manning a St. Étienne Mle 1907 machine gun in anti-aircraft role at the St. Etienne Aerodrome, Le Bourget.

Image: IWM (Q 115199)

Colourised by Doug

[microcosme11]

Saint-Denis is a bit perturbed at Longwood

At Longwood, Napoleon assigned two tables for the servants for their meals. He put Marchand at Table 1 and Mameluke Ali at Table 2. Saint-Denis was mortified by this demotion (Translation by google and me):

The next day the opportunity presented itself. I approached the Emperor and explained my reasons to him. His Majesty, seeing that my self-esteem was deeply hurt in view of my complaint, readily consented to my eating at the first table. "Diable!" said the Emperor, looking at me with both eyes, "You aren't like Desaix. I would have made him eat in the kitchen with the dog or the cat and he would not have made any comments to me. All right, go!" I made a slight inclination of the head in sign of thanks and walked away.

Souvenirs du mameluck Ali (Louis-Étienne Saint Denis) sur l'empereur Napoléon by Louis-Etienne Saint-Denis, Intro by Gustave Michaut, 1926, available at google books.

This book is translated into English: With Napoleon from the Tuileries to St. Helena and one can borrow it at archive.org