Victor Hugo: Eucation



Figure 1.--.

Victor was educated along with his brothers at home and his schools in Paris and Madrid. He was most commonly with his brother Eugéne as they were cloest in age. He and Eugéne were sent to a nursery when they were younger. The education os his brother Abel was a little different. The education of Victor was at the Pension Cordier in Paris (1815-18). His classes were mostly at the Collège Louis-le Grand. His education was quite varied, in part because of the conflict between his parents, but emphasized the classics. The first real school Vitor attended was the Feuillantines. In Madrid he and Eugéne were put in a boarding school by their father.

The Brothers

Victor was educated along with his brothers at home and his schools in Paris and Madrid. He was most commonly with his brother Eugéne as they were cloest in age. He and Eugéne were sent to a nursery when they were younger.

Abel

The education os his brother Abel was a little different. The education of Victor was at the Pension Cordier in Paris (1815-18). His classes were mostly at the Collège Louis-le Grand.

Victor and Eugéne

Victor's education was quite varied, in part because of the conflict between his parents, but emphasized the classics. The first real school Vitor attended was the Feuillantines. In Madrid he and Eugéne were put in a boarding school by their father.

Nursery (Paris--1803)

In Paris when Abel started school, Eugéne and Victor was sent to a nursery. Victor apparently was younger than the other children. He says he remembers being put in the bedroom of the master's daughter.

Feuillantines (Paris--1809-11)

The first real school Vitor attended was the Feuillantines. It is described as a dingy school. It was run by an abbé, Antonie-Claude de la Riviè. who in the anti-clerical atmmosphere of the Revolution left the clerrgy, dropping the aristocratic "de" in his name, and married a servant. Any one at the time could open a school. France did not begin to even register schools until after Napoleon's defeat (1815). The school ws run more as a day care center, but the more intelligent children were tutored. Schools at the time provided instruction in reading, writing, grammar, math, and draughtmanship. Victor's mother insisted on a focus on the classics. Thus Victor and Eugéne were soon able to do extensive recitations. School lasted 6 hours. Victor was reportedly translating Tactitus by age 9. Vivtor and Eugéne walked home. The street children would throw stones at them, according to Vivtor because their pants were not old and tattered. Hugo later in life condemned the role of priests in education. but seem to remmver the abbé more favorably when he was younger. [Robb, pp. 27-28.]

Collège de Nobles (Madrid--1811-12)

Victor and Eugéne were put in a boarding school by their father, while Abel became a page at King Jerome Napoleon's court. It was rather a srange school. By the time the boys arrived in Madrid, it was already a capital under seige. Food was short. It was the Collège de Nobles, a school for the children of the Spanish nobility, located in the Monestary of San Antonio de Abad. The school was nearly deserted. Once 500 boys attended, but only 24 boys remained--mostly boys from pro-French families. MMe. Hugo who was still embued with the Enlightenment did not want the boys to receieve religious instruction. She told the monks that the family was Protestants and would not attend mass, presumably easier then explaining their true religious beliefs. The boys were among nobility and social standing was very important. The boys called each other by their titles. As they wre the sons of a French general and also more advanced in their studies than the other boys, they were afforded a high status and were awarded the title of Viscount. Occassionally their father would drop by and take the boys for a ride in his carriage in the company of his mostress. [Robb, pp. 38-39.] As Wellington's army pushed toward Madrid, Mme. Hugo picked up the boys for the perilous trip back to France.

Feuillantines (Paris--1812-15)

Mme. Hugo returned with Eugène and Victor to their home at the Feuillantines. The boys resumed their studies with La Rivère supplement with lessons at home. Even after Napoleon abdigated, General Hugo held out at Thionville. Here Mme. Hugo launched a domestic offensive of her own to secure a financial settlement. For her efforts, her husband using his sister Mme. Martin as an agent, evicted his wife and took custody of Eugéne and Victor. Mme. Martin debveloped a string dislike for the boys, describing them as impertinent and profligate. [Robb, p. 43.]

Pension Cordier (Paris--1815- )

MMe. Hugo got her home back, but the General gained custody of the boys who were lodged in a boarding school, the Pension Cordier (March 1815). At the school the boys played Napoleon against the rest of the World (rather like Cowboys and Indians). Notably it was Victor who was often the leader of the rest of the World--an interesting position for the son of a Napoleonic gebneral. [Robb, p. 46.]

Sources

Robb, Graham. Victor Hugo: A Biography (W.W. Norton: New York, 1997), 682p.







HBC





Navigate the Boys' Historical Clothing Web Site:
[Ringlet curls] [Bangs] [Main hair page] [Main curl page] [Long hair]
[Dresses] [Smocks] [Pinafores] [Tunic] [Hair bows] [Hats and caps] [Collar bows]



Navigate the Boys' Historical Clothing Web Site:
[Return to the Main Victor Hugo page]
[Return to the Main Biographies page]
[Return to the Main Goya page]
[Introduction] [Activities] [Biographies] [Chronology] [Clothing styles] [Countries] [Girls] [Topics]
[Bibliographies] [Contributions] [FAQs] [Glossaries] [Satellite sites] [Tools]
[Boys' Clothing Home]




Created: 8:07 PM 6/13/04
Last edited: 8:07 PM 6/13/04