English
To understand why there were so many poets, writers, artists and well-to-do people in Rome in the late eighteenth century, we need to look at the concept of the ‘grand tour’. In essence, this largely British, but also to a lesser extent French and German, phenomenon was something between an end of university holiday and a tour of initiation. It was assumed that anyone who wanted to be a gentleman (though there was also the occasional inquisitive lady) had to first take a long trip through Southern Europe.
The final destination was Italy, but some travelled as far as Greece or Spain, and the French poet, Chateaubriand, even made it to Jerusalem. The intention of these young travellers was to complete their academic training by visiting the remains of the Roman Empire and seeing for themselves the great works of Renaissance art. They wanted to increase both their knowledge and their strength of character. The trip was long (depending on the debutante’s family, it could be from three months to two years), hard (the trip was made by horse or carriage) and uncomfortable (there wasn’t the basic infrastructure that travellers know today), but it was certainly exciting. Accompanied by a chaperone, these young people venturing into Europe were provided with letters of recommendation for the local nobility, who gladly welcomed these gentlemen and ladies into their sometimes dilapidated palaces. As a result of these trips, books of all kinds were written.
Of all these works, one that stands out in terms of its influence is The Sentimental Journey by Laurence Sterne, published between 1765 and 1768. The book was a vital guide for poets such as Mary and Percy Shelley who published their History of a Six Weeks’ Tour in 1817, writing in the subjective and impressionistic style that was trademark of romanticism. But if there is one book that is most often referred to as the definitive Grand Tour memoir, is definitely Goethe´s Italian Journey, published in 1786. The experience was so decisive for the German that it led him to revise his flagship works, including Faust. Goethe was greatly inspired by the remnants of the lost civilization of Rome. He was captivated by the pagan art forms, by the strength of the classical nude sculptures, and by the magic of the ruins of the Forum. Even today, some visitors to the Eternal City come with a copy of Goethe´s Roman Elegies under their arm.
The Englishmen Keats, Ruskin and Byron, and the Frenchman Stendhal (whose fainting fit at the entrance of the Uffizi Gallery in Florence gave rise to the term Stendhal syndrome) visited Rome in search of traces of the past. They would stop in the vicinity of the Piazza di Spagna, which was filled with specially designed accommodation for these illustrious visitors. Today, close to the luxury shopping street, Via Condotti, is the Keats and Shelley Museum, which houses a sumptuous collection of nineteenth-century books.
Candela Vizcaíno
If you want to follow in the footsteps of such illustrious poets, find apartments in Rome that are close to the ancient ruins.
Translated by: Ben Palmer
