Plantagenet petition : the missing link of a dynasty

Angers has recently caught the attention of French and foreign medias, above all UK medias, since its town council sponsored on the town website a claim demanding the return in the capital of Anjou of the jewels of the British crown. That is aimed to compensate the murder of Edward Plantagenet, pretender to the throne and last heir of the Plantagenet, by Henry VII in 1499.

Henry VII was the first king from the Tudor dynasty. He became the England sovereign in 1485 after he defeated Richard III, the last Plantagenet king of England. Richard III had himself deposed Edward V, his predecessor in 1483. Edward V has probably the shortest reign of England history : two months and 16 days. He died at the age of 13 in uncertain circumstances. He was the son of Edward IV, king of England from 1461 to 1483.

According to Channel 4 theory, that king was not legitimate. Born in april of 1442, he shoud have been conceived in August 1441. But according to a document discovered, by chance, in the Rouen cathedral by an English historian, the official father of Henry IV, Richard Plantagenet, was far from his wife at the time of the child conception... If that theory is true, all the monarchs descendants from Edward IV are not legitimate... But who is? That's the point tackeld by the English reader of Angers Daily News.


[From top to bottom : Edward Plantagenet, Edward IV and Henry VII (National Gallery)]

The Plantagenet Petition revives a theory about the "Britains real monarch"

If the Plantagenet petition has gained the interest of many medias around the world, it has also made reappear a protest regarding the legitimacy of the present English monarch. According to a reader of Angers Daily News (whose name will not be quoted without his consent], "Elizabeth II is not the legitimate monarch". That theory was the issue of a documentary entitled "Britains Real Monach" broadcasted in on UK's Channel 4 in 2004, presented by Tony Robinson. 

In investigating, about Richard III (king from 1483-1485), last Plantagenet king of England, Channel IV "was shown evidence to suggest that the royal line was tainted by the illegitimacy of Edward IV (king from 1461 to 1470). As such, every monarch since has actually had no legitimate claim to the throne. So who did? And, perhaps more to the point, who does? Who, by the right of succession, should we have sitting on the throne today? "To find it out, Tony Robinson had gone in search of Britain's Real Monarch. 

He uncovered "a turbulent story of civil war, aristocratic feuds, religious conflict, disgrace, bankruptcy, executions and a £5.5 million bet. And in the end, he discovers Britain's real monarch, someone as far removed from the splendour of Buckingham Palace as Robinson could ever have thought possible. Having found the rightful heir to the British throne, it's then time to break the news to him..."

Angers film festival 2013 and Angers Workshops : "Action!"

The Angers film festival "Premiers Plans" is now on the forestage twice a year. The website of that cinematic event which gathers in Angers new faces of the cinemas universe, from France and abroad, had just a few days ago, published the date of the 2013 edition : January 18th-27th. It will be the twenty-fifth edition. The candidacies are possible in six competitive sections : European or French First Feature Films, European or French First Short Films, European Student Films and European Animated Films, specifies the website in a perfect English version.


A younger event will be under the spotlights soon in Angers. The eighth "Angers Workshops" initiated by the famous French actress Jeanne Moreau, "are directed toward young filmmakers with one or two short films to their credit and a first feature film in the works". The training "is designed to give them support as they take that crucial step into the world of feature films". 

Jeanne Moreau (Credit Picture : Angers Premiers Plans)

The interns could be very busy. Every day screenings, master-classes, privates interviewes and lab works are planned (it was the case during the previous workshops). The Angers film festival created in1989 is an initiative of an Angevin, Claude-Eric Poiroux, general manager of Europa Cinema.

The Angers down town retail shops could foot the bill of parking lots fares rise

If the increase of parking fares on August 1st will not please many inhabitants, more serious difficulties may be to come for Angers stores owners because many customers use to shop in down town with their car... The impact will be just as much important given that the costs in parkings lots are soaring from 20 to 100%!  For many people that raises the prices of the purchases and may lead consumers to the giant commercial complexes set up around the city, at the expenses of the retail shop keepers already weakened by more than two years of work demanded by the tramway.

The deputy-mayor in charge of transportation, Vincent Dulong, justifies the increase by the necessity to encourage inhabitants to use publics facilities (buses, tramway), "soft way of travelling" ( walk and bikes, even when it's raining, but it's quite unusual that year...), diversion parking lots.

If the increase of the fares, in gross value, doesn't look very important (0,20 euro), in relative figures, the impact is very different (see above). That is almost true for the overtime. So with their free parking lots, big stores will get an advantage. That situation could fuel a demand from some retail shops to open on Sundays.

England at the heart of the Angers Accroche-Coeurs

The 2012 edition of Les Accroche-Coeurs, a carnival which will take place on September 7, 8 and 9 all over Angers, is dedicated that year to the people of the North, The Anglo-Saxon touch is official : "Companies coming from Normandy, England, Ireland and Iceland" will head the field. England and its culture are one of the most visible caracteristics of the festival and are a little bit teased by Les Accroche-Coeurs. A dress-code has been edicted : every person taking part to the event will have to wear clothes refering to UK. 

Credit picture Angers city

Inhabitants are invited to the Queen Elizabeth tea party, a gathering for a "nice cup of tea" on the lawns of the Ligny bank where everybody is invited to demonstrate his "sense of British humour". Another attraction should depict Her Majesty "without the appointment" of the British monarch. Numerous myths of England culture are "invited" too : Big Ben and Jack the ripper... Of course Les Accroche-Coeurs will give a large place to the Plantagenet Petition and the terrible fate of Edward Plantagenet.

If the Accroche-Coeurs is a mix of jokes about British, these are also a little bit admired for the preservation of their culture which reflects ancient French culture. So it would be desirable England and English citizens should not be systematically denigrated because every people, even French and Angers inhabitants, have their quirks. It's true that a good dose of British humour is necessary to admit it.

The Angers library brings back a book of the 16th century which remained for 300 years in England

The links between Angers and England could be on the forestage in the weeks to come. Their importance could seem exagerated in the eyes of many people. Nevertheless, a fact had just given to the links between Angers and England an additional and disconcerting lighting. 

The municipal library of Angers will celebrate, on September 14th, the official entry in the local collections of the original and illuminated manuscript of a book written by a man called Nicolas de Houssemaine, doctor of the medecine university of Angers. The book was bought by Angers and other national and regional authorities to... England where it remainded for 300 years! The price of the acquisition has not been disclosed.That acquisition is the most important of the municipal library since 1977.

The book tells the chivalry romance of the Dammartin, a famous France family and her links with the French monarchs who ruled the country till 1789. The picture which illustrates the event is beautiful but cruel : a man with a sword hold the head of its victim. In 1499, Edward Plantagenet was beheaded on order of Henry and the book bought was written in 1500. The departure of the book for England during the 17th century is unclear but the value of that manuscript is mentionned on many websites from England and even from USA. 

The presence of the book (which will be displayed to the public during the next Heritage Days on September 15 during period of 30 mn max) looks like an involuntary allusion to the death of the last heir of the Plantagenet.

Coming soon Claveau street, "Le dix-septième" : from music high notes to bistronomy low bills

The Angers town hall should benefit in the weeks to come of a new restaurant "Le dix septieme", in Claveau street. That commercial establishment will be located in a former town house probably erected during the 17th century. Formerly a school of piano was there and numerous boys and girls of the Angers society have spending their own time on pianos benches. Instead of the notes of music, the place will be filled with the noises of plates and cutlery.

"Le dix septième" will be a "restaurant bistro-nomique" (lets' us hope that the prices will not be astro-nomical), a concept born in the 90's, allying low prices, small teams, humbler, convivial places and inventive cuisine cooked from simple and good products. The place is presently in work but could be soon, with plants, the babbling of the water flowing from a fountain, a intimate place, very different from stuffy atmospheres of top-class Michelin outfits.

That new place should increase the attractivity of that "islet" of Angers down town which attracts people found of art house films. After the pianos Steinway or Erard for pianists, pianos for chefs will take possession of the place.

A series of technological assets announced in Angers

A series of technological breakthroughs was reported recently by Angers medias which all will stimulate the development of the information economy. The most important is the arrival of the fiber optic even if it will not occur in town before 2016. If, for the households, the main result is an important increase of their high-speed (from 20 to 100 megas), the most important consequence could regard the business sector which could possibily develop the homeworking and, thus, open new opporunities for them.


The second event was the re-launch of a new Angers tv channel. Angers 7, which disappeared from screens in May 2012, could possible have an heir. Angers Loire Television, a public company constituted by Angers city and Angers Loire Métropole, is going to answer to an appeal of applications published by a national authority. A least, one hour in the daily programs must be dedicated to local news. But the main obstacle to overcome is the financial profitability of the scheme.


The most visible change (but is it the most important?) is the set-up in several places of Angers of digital screens by the street furniture provider A.Decaux. In the weeks to come 14 giant screens will display ads in town.  The inhabitants could be better connected to what is new next to or far from their town.

Angers gardens in exhibition

A recent petition on Facebook recalls to Angers inhabitants their links, or at least their connection with England history. If the Plantagenet petition is an epiphenomenon, the interest of Angevins for gardening is confirmed by recent initiatives of town hall as well as projets "gardens of expression" due to be implemented next year. During 2012, the city displays its how-know in plants. The Plants garden and above all the splendid Arboretum garden will demonstrate gardening is not only a leisure in Angers but, as in England, a form of art.

Credit Picture Angers city

An exhibition of cucurbits takes place in the Plants Garden. Those are displayed like pictures in a art exhibition. The fact the items are not set up vertically as in an art gallery but horizontaly is the only difference because all the components of a painting are gathered : the frames, the backgrounds and the foregrounds. 

In the Arboretum garden, the technic of landscaping a garden is explained : how to design them, how to choose their flowers according to shapes and colors... The only regret has to see with the number of conferences : apparently only two during the summer season. It's a little bit few...

Angers swimming pools : questionable closures during summer

July 26th was probably the hottest day of the year. At 19:00, the official thermoter of Météo France indicated 31°, a record for 2012. What could be the most appreciated leisure of Angers inhabitants that day? Of course, to take a good bath in the town swimming pools! Great! Let's go to André Bertin! Gosh! It has been closed from July 14th to August 19th! Let's go to Jean Bouin! Damned! The simming pool is closed from June 25th to September 2nd! The greatest swimming poll of the city is closed for 70 days, all the summer long!

What could be the reason of such closure? Apparently, the technic is not involved because when a swimming pool is closed for technical reasons, it's indicated on the leaflet Angers published about the summer schedules of the equipments. The most incoherent details is on those leaflets which indicate the way to go to swimming pools... which are closed!

Hopefully, the city is going to build a new aqualudic complex on the Saint-Aubin district in order to allow the Angers families who don't leave the city during the summer to benefit of leisures, sports and fun. It's desirable the Aquaviva swimming pool be opened during summer!

An international pianist, Nikolaï Luganski, will perform in Angers on November 20th at Le Grand Théâtre

Credit Nicolaï Luganski website

One of the most famous pianists in the world should perform in Angers at the beginning of the 2012-2013 season of the Angevine Société des concerts populaires. Nicolaï Louganski, is a Russian pianist, endowed with an exceptional technic, a nimble and subtle playing, wordly praised by musical critics and audiences. On November 20th, in the main red hall of the Grand Théâtre d'Angers, he will interpret pieces of Janacek, Schubert and Rachmaninov. The Société des concerts populaires considered quite rightly the evening was a exceptional concert of the season. 

Rachmaninov is precisely the composer he loves most even if his repertoire includes Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms, Debussy, Lizt, Prokofiev, Schuman, Scriabine, Chopin or Tchaikowski. He performs regularly with his fellow citizens, Boris Berezowsky or Vadim Repin. In addition, Lugansky has collaborated with conductors such as Ricardo Chailly, Christoph Eschenbach or Kurt Masur. "At the age of five, before he had even started to learn the piano, he astonished his parents when he sat down at the piano and played a Beethoven sonata by ear, which he had just heard a relative play", recalls Wikipedia. Of course, he won an impressive list of competition prizes. 

Credit Angers city

The Société des concerts populaires d'Angers, was founded in 1846, by Jules Bordier, pianist composer and conductor. It is presided by Janine Fumet, whose husband, Joseph Fumet was musical critic at Le Courrier de l'Ouest and himself son and grand son of Raphaël Fumet and Dynam-Victor Fumet both composers for organ.

Letter from the editor

Dear Jinny. Thank you for your kind support. I was sure I had a reader in UK! Edgar.

Letter from the editor

Dear Mr Launay, Thank you for your comment. I wouldn't say you are wrong but the likelihood for Angers to rule Britannia is slimmer than the opposite. Edgar

A Palestinian violonist trained in Angers on Arte tv channel

Angers will be the background of a documentary the tv channel Arte broadcasts on Thursday about Ramzy Abu Redwan, a Palestian violonist trained in the city conservatoire of music between 1998 and 200. 

Credit Angers city

In spite of the fact that nothing predisposed Mr Abu Redwan to play violin (he threw stones on the Israeli soldiers during the first Intifada of 1987 and recalls he was several times wounded and jailed for such actions), he watched by chance a music audition in Jordania and, with a French scholarship, came to Angers and got a gold medal in its school of music. 

Wishing to save his young fellow citizens living in the Palestinian refugees camps outside the spiral of violence, he founded in that town an association whose name doesn't sound very Angevin : "Al Kamandjâti" (which means the violonist in Arab). The aim of that association set up in 2020 is to promote the musical culture in Palestine where it started to create schools of music since 2003 "in a universe full of violence", points out Arte.

"Al Kamandjäti" didn't broke its links with its mother land. Three years ago, three young Palestinans travelled towards Angers to follow the example of their elder.

Angers-London flights : a comforting start

Credit Bruichladdich

About a little month after it has opened, the activity of the new line between Angers and London city is comforting. Each flight linking the two town is half full. It means that about forty persons would travel in both directions between Angers and London. About 700 persons went to or came from London. An element brings a little bit more confidence for the aerial link : the customers travel more for business than tourism and yet the tourism finishes at the end of the summer; while the business could go on...
 
According to the Angers Loire Aéroport, "the British love Anjou : some of them have second home here and businessmen do not loose time because the plane lands at the core of London". But, the Angers Loire Airport's manager adds that the most difficult is not to open a line but to keep it opened. At the end of the season Bristish Airways will examine is the link is worth to continue.

The current affairs seems to plead for the continuation. Recently the most famous company of Angers, Cointreau (now Remi Cointreau), made the acquisition of the Bruichladdich Distillery Company Ltd, located in Scotland. And of course, Angers city wants the British crown jewels back. Here are issues which hel the flight to last. Moreover, if the jewels come back to Angers, a daily Airbus A 380 will not be sufficient to lead the British people see them in the city of the Plantagenet!

Angers triathlon : inside the pack

For most of the onlookers of the Angers triathlon which took place along the river Maine on July 22nd, it was a nice day. The sky was, that day, empty of clouds. There was no wind. The temperature was in keeping with the seasonal average. People were relax on that Sunday and ready to enjoy a day near the coolness brought by the Maine and the shade of the giant plane-trees of the La Rochefoucauld square. Inside the competition, it was not so cool.

Just after the departure, swimmers were surprised by the good temperature of the water. Not cold at all. But the pace was instantaneously quick. Because of the invisible line choosen by the competitors to reach the yellow beacon near the Haute Chaïne bridge, the swimmers gave themselves involuntary knocks with their arms and legs. The way back was easier because the pack left spaces and the swimmers had to go with the current. 

The bike race was terribly demanding for competitors who had tourism or, worst, cross country bikes. With bikes suited to the competition, their challengers looked like dards over the streets. Some referees even complained about the presence of the rearview mirror set up to the handlebars of the bikes. The final running was hard for those which were alone. Thanks to the loops, the latecomers were able to measure the distance with the front runners. For 24 €, the pleasure of the end was great, even if the supplies had already disappeared!

Thanks to the Plantagenet petition, the Angers town hall website now speaks English

The surprising success in Angers and abroad of the Plantagenet petition launched on that town hall website on May 28th has started to trigger an unforeseen consequence. Angers city, which set up more than a year ago an englicized brand Angers Loire Valley, got suddenly, thanks to the petition (originally linked to the Accroche-Coeurs event due to take place in the city after the summer holidays), an international fame. 

In order to enhance the effect of the petition, the city website is now led to speak English! "1,800 people have already signed [the petition], our objective 800,000" write its responsibles before reminding, in the same language, the historical origin of The Plantagenet Petition (the murder of the last heir of the Plantagenet dynasty). The website takes an unusual tone : "More than 500 Facebook fans on our pages and you?". Legitimately proud of the success, its editors list all the websites, daily newspapers and magazines which recounted the event with a bilingual title "What does the press say about it?" quoting several medias (among them Angers Daily News!).

It's not sure the petition will get the return to Angers of the Queen Elizabeth II jewels crown but the attempt looks to have triggered the realization of the historical links of Angers with UK what could help the city to call attention on itself. This will maybe the most important result of the petition : the "jewels" Angers was looking for since a long time in its attempt to get a larger fame in France and abroad is its English touch.

Night train to nightmare

Was the weather the same over Angers 70 years ago? Had it the same pale colors, a mix of blue and grey, an association of unobstructed sky and, further, a gate of grey clouds? Had the "travellers" leaving Angers the same vision of the quiet atmosphere of the city only troubled by shouts of birds? What those travellers had in mind watching through little holes of the wagons ordinary scenes of a summer evening when their train left the quiet midwestern town? 

Seventy years ago, on July 20th of 1942, at about 08.35 pm, a convoy n° 8 of 824 persons, men, women and children, all aged from 13 to about 90 years old left the Saint-Laud railway station en route to Drancy. All the "passengers" were Jews. They started from there a long and horrible journey of three never ceasing days in livestock wagons till Auschwitz where for most of them the travel through life would take end... 

The atmosphere was normal at Saint-laud on that special day, at that special hour in a normal year. The plaforms were empty, no train was due to leave. Silence wrapped the tracks and the plaforms from time to time. Leaving the rememberance for these martyrs taking possession of the place. Seventy years, is the souvenir of the "travellers" who left and never came back still alive?

The Angers tourism activity is to free from weather conditions

The intentions of Angers town hall to increase the number of tourists in the city has room to apply. The loca professionnals are worry about the low level of the frequentation of tourists in Angers. The explaination is obvious : the gloomy weather over the city since the beginning of July is the origin of this lack of interest. Consecuently, one of the aims of a new policy in tourism would be to free that activity from the meteorological evolution.

But such a move would need to devise a policy which could be implemented all year long. But that cannot be improvised. A few weeks ago, when the first visitors arrived from London to Marcé with the inaugural flight it was noticed that no bus service had been planned between the airport and down town... At the same time, the bikes for rent located in front of the Angers railway station have difficulties to find customers.

 So the city and its tourism bureau should work on a project to attract tourists for short stayings all year long. That relies on the combination of points of interest. Within a few weeks, Angers will display the 2012 edition of Les Accroches-Coeurs which relies on the widening petiton for the return to Angers of the UK crown jewels. At the same time, the royal home of a part of the Plantagenet dynasty. For a first try, professionnals and officials could devise weekends for people interested by the English part of French history.

The Angers stoneheart

Designed to be at the core of the city life, the Ralliement square, even enlivened with trees in pots, is nothing more, at a time of the day propicious to gatherings and at a period of the year auspicious for long evenings, than a geometrical figure with a flat surface soiled by cigarettes buts, marks of gums and wrapping papers... 

The disappointment of a part of inhabitants is moreover emphasized by the mobile kiosk set up in the middle of the site inviting people to take advantage of down town and putting forward that "Angers becomes lively in Ralliement square". That one is far from being overcrowed. 

Outside the cafes, customers look quite lonely and do not pay attention to the pedestrians to the contrary of most of those sitting at terraces. The architecture of the place is not to discover few by few. A single glance and one or two seconds are sufficient to notice the coolness of that anonymous place. One of the trees is collapsing and the boards indicating flats are "for sale" add a note of dreariness. 


The babbling of the water flowing from the fountains has not for the cafes customers the charm that such places engender when flowers and greenery are set up. As cows in the field, these can only watch the trolley go.