The valleys which the Vaudois have raised into celebrity, lie to the west of Piemont, between the province of Pignerol and Briançon, and adjoining on the other side to the ancient Marquisate of Susa, and that of the Saluces, The capital, La Tour, being about thirty-six miles from Turin, and fourteen from Pignerol. The extent of the valleys is about twelve Italian miles, making a square of about twenty-four French leagues. The valleys are three in number, Luzern, Perouse, and St. Martin. The former (in which the chief town is now Catholic,) is the most beautiful and extensive, and contains the five parishes of Rora, St. Jean, La Tour, Villar, and Bobbi, through the three last of which runs the rapid Pelice, which has its source near the Pra Alp, and throws itself into the Po.
The Valley of Perouse is about twelve miles long, chiefly mountainous. It is traversed by the river Cluson, and the villages* on the Italian side of that river, (Pinache, Rivoire, Great and Little Doublon, and Villard,) as well as its chief town Perouse, are entirely inhabited by Roman Catholics. The Vaudois at this time possess only Pramol, Pomaret, and St. Germain.
* All those villages were once Vaudois.
Between the valleys Luzerne and Perouse, is the parish Prarustin, comprehending Roche Platte, and St. Barthélemi, which belong to neither of them.
The Valley of St. Martin is scarcely wider than the bed of the torrent Germanasque, which runs through it, and extends from the Valley of Perouse to that of Queiras in Dauphiné; it contains the parishes of Pral, Ma-neille, and Ville Sèche, of which the former is so elevated, as to be covered with snow during nine months in the year. The other parishes contain each several small villages, and Perrier, which is the capital of the whole valley, is now inhabited by Catholics alone. This valley, which was the scene of the heroic defence of Arnaud's band, is environed by lofty mountains, and rugged rocks, forming the most formidable natural defences; indeed the only passage into it for wheels,* is by a bridge, not far from Perouse, and this pass is so narrow that a few men might defend it against a large force.
The authors of poems and romances, in giving their enchanting descriptions of pastoral life, have excited a deep feeling of regret in sensitive minds, that the originals of their pictures are no where to be found. But I can console these friends of virtue, by shewing them where they may find what they have sought in vain in other parts of the world. And this happy asylum of innocence is no other than the valley of St. Martin. I have known there shepherdesses in every sense of the word, as amiable and interesting as the heroines of these romances. And if the delightful author of Estelle and Galatée had lived among them as I have done, he might have added many a lively tint to his portraits, the more charming as it would have been copied from nature and truth. But let it not be thought that my shepherdesses resemble the smart wives and daughters of our citizens then, indeed, they would have little interest in my eyes. Imagine virtue without pretensions or vanity, grace without frivolity, and amiability devoid of coquetry, and these set off by that true modesty which their simple habits inspire, and you have a true picture of my Vaudois heroines.
* The translator saw no wheeled carriage in this valley, and
doubts if one of any description could now be used there.
** He writes at Utrecht.
Had I been born a poet, they should have formed the subject of my lays. The churches in the Valley of St Martin, as well as those of the other valleys, were formerly much more numerous. In the whole we have now but thirteen parish churches, though in the ancient records, examined by Leger, mention is made of ten other parishes to which pastors were attached; these are now annexed to the thirteen. In the valley of Cluson or Pragela, which adjoins those of St. Martin, and Perouse, were no less than six flourishing Vaudois churches, as late as 1727, when in consequence of the exchange of territory between France and the House of Savoy, all those who remained faithful to their religion, were forced into exile.* The Vaudois were also very numerous in the valleys of Queiras, Mathias, and Meane, until entirely extirpated there by Duke Charles Emmanuel in 1603. As they were in the Marquisate of Sa-luces, in 1633, where they had many churches.
* Many hundreds went to Holland.
Five villages, and the town of Luzerne, formerly attached to the parish church of St. Jean, have also been taken from them, in the valley of Luzerne; indeed, it is known that the Vaudois had churches in 1560, in Turin, Pignerol, and Quiers.