Grand Tour in the XVIIIc.

“Before the development of tourism, travel was conceived to be like study, and its fruits were considered to be the adornment of the mind and the formation of judgment.”

― Paul Fussell, Abroad: British Literary Traveling Between the Wars

A short history: The Grand Tour of the 18th century

During the eighteenth century, the concept of the 'Grand Tour' spread throughout Europe. As a result of the educational system, young men were exposed to classical, Latin, and Greek culture throughout their education. When they graduated, they would travel to Italy, Greece, and other places for further studies.

A Brief resume of the Article.

Unlike other European countries, the tyrannies of the 18th century left aristocrats little room for maneuver.

However, in Britain in the 18th century, the aristocracy did play an important role in politics and diplomacy.

After a long period of political turmoil, the country had established itself as a constitutional monarchy and enjoyed political stability.

It was also undergoing rapid economic development, the result of new agricultural techniques, the beginning of industrialization, and the strengthening of trade by its navy.

The empiricist current, a branch in the classical school of philosophy, is a prevailing theory of truth, which holds that knowledge is gained through sensory experience.

It was precisely Richard Lassels, a Catholic priest who traveled several times to Italy throughout his life as a tutor, who coined the term Grand Tour for such tours in the voyage diary Voyage of Italy, published in 1670.

The idea of traveling as a form of learning was driven by the empiricist current, which advocated that the origin of knowledge is experience.

In his Essay on Human Understanding, the Englishman John Locke, father of empiricism and liberalism, argued that ideas reach man exclusively through his senses and the physical stimuli to which he is exposed.

From this point of view, the trip became an indispensable element for those who wished to develop their mind and improve their knowledge of the world.

The Route

The traditional route would last between 6 months and was very varied. The economic and social position of the aristocratic families would determine the length and the places to visit. But whatever the situation, it was generally considered mandatory to visit Italy and France.

For an English traveler, the Grand Tour used to start well in Calais, from where it departed for Paris, then the cultural center of Europe; either in the Netherlands, from where Belgium (Brussels...), was visited, and then either to Paris and France or to Germany.

However, there were also those who traveled by boat directly to Italy, then returned by land.

The visit of France used to be made by going down south from Paris, visiting the Rhône valley (Lyon, Avignon...) to Provence and Languedoc.

Visits to Switzerland, especially Geneva, near which Voltaire lived in Ferney, became popular in the 1760s and 1770s. Voltaire himself used to receive English travelers passing by, thus, given his fame, attracted a very large number of young people.

Likewise, after the publication of Rousseau's Confessions, the landscapes of Switzerland and Savoy became popular, which became a preferred gateway to Italy.

The return from Italy used to be done directly by boat, via France, or crossing the Alps and entering Switzerland, Austria, or Germany.

The route of Germany became popular after the end of the Seven Years' War (1756–1763); courtly cities were often visited, such as Hanover, Halle, Berlin, Dresden...

The French Revolution, which discouraged travel to France, and the growing literary fame of Germany, thanks in large part to the works of Schiller and Goethe, made, at the beginning of the nineteenth century, the trip to Germany became much more popular and extensive, visiting spa towns such as Baden-Baden, as well as Weimar (where the elderly Goethe was visited), Cologne, Frankfurt am Main, Mainz.

De Giovanni Paolo Panini - 1AHJFNF8OkfG9Q en el Instituto Cultural de Google resolución máxima, Dominio público, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=21996534

Although the Grand Tour was popularized by English travelers, they were not the only ones to do so. Visits to Italy were common for young Germans, French, Spaniards, and Swedes in good standing. With the rise of Russia, many Russian nobles began to make their particular Grand Tour, which used to start entering Germany through Dresden (Saxony) and then goes to France or Italy.

Although fun was part of the experience, the main aim of this Grand Tour was a highly educational one. As well as learning about the people and customs of the countries visited, young British people were exposed to what they would need to know when they went on to live in society.

Could Erasmus Program be the continuity of the Grand Tour of the 18th Century?

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Sources:

• https://tinyurl.com/y33ecrej

• https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/petworth-house-and-park/features/what-was-the-grand-tour

• https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Tour