Baedeker's Northern France: Northern France From Belgium And The English Channel To The Loire Excluding Paris And Its Environs

Leipzig: Karl Baedeker, Publisher, 1909, 1909. 5th Edition. Paperback. Good. 16mo. Red cloth. xxxvi, 454 p. : ill., maps (some folded) plans (some folded) ; 17 cm. Clean, unmarked pages. Colored fold-out maps appear in excellent shape, mostly without tears, no excessive wear. Small tear to bottom of front fold-out map, and fold-out map at p. 306. Good binding. Gutters loose. Negligible rubbing to cover. A good, solid copy.<br><br>Founded in 1827, Baedeker guides gained popularity during the second half of the 19th century (so much so that Baedekering became part of everyday language). They were an invaluable and essential part of "civilized travel" in the fin-de-siecle. Baedeker was known for both its accuracy and attention to detail. Included in each are intricate colored fold-out maps and floor plans. Baedeker's comments and recommendations open a fascinating window into the mores of a world now past. <br><br>An interesting side note: Literary references to Baedeker's abound, from E. M. Forester's A Room with a View to Mark Twain's A Tramp Abroad. T.E. Lawrence is reputed to have used Baedeker's guide to Palestine during his Doctoral work in the Levant and prompted his Allied superiors to make facsimile copies during WWI. <br><br>During the Luftwaffe's Vergeltungsangriffe the guides were important enough to be reportedly cited by Gustav Braun von Stumm, that "We shall go out and bomb every building in Britain marked with three stars in the Baedeker Guide."[3] In the so-called "Baedeker Blitz" of 1942 the English cities of Exeter, Bath, Norwich, York, and Canterbury were bombed.