''Noémi: A Story of Rock-dwellers'' is an historical novel by

Sabine Baring-Gould Sabine Baring-Gould (; 28 January 1834 – 2 January 1924) of Lew Trenchard in Devon, England, was an Anglican priest, hagiographer, antiquarian, novelist, folk song collector and eclectic scholar. His bibliography consists of more than 1,240 pu ...

, published in 1895.Bassett 2022.

Characters

* Le Gros Guillem * Ogier del' Peyra * Jean del' Peyra * Noémi

Synopsis

This is a tale of

Aquitaine Aquitaine (, ; ; ; ; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Aguiéne''), archaic Guyenne or Guienne (), is a historical region of southwestern France and a former Regions of France, administrative region. Since 1 January 2016 it has been part of the administ ...

, during the English occupation, in the early fifteenth century. The country was in a state of civil war; and free companies, nominally fighting for French or English, but in reality for their own pockets, mere plunderers and bandits, flourished mightily. The most dreaded freebooter in the valley of the

Dordogne Dordogne ( , or ; ; ) is a large rural departments of France, department in south west France, with its Prefectures in France, prefecture in Périgueux. Located in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region roughly half-way between the Loire Valley and ...

was Le Gros Guillem, who from his stronghold at Domme sweeps down upon the farms and hamlets below; till at length the timid peasants, finding a leader in Ogier del' Peyra, a petty

sieur Lord of the manor is a title that, in Anglo-Saxon England and Norman England, referred to the landholder of a historical rural estate. The titles date to the English feudal (specifically baronial) system. The lord enjoyed manorial rights (the ...

of the neighbourhood, rise up against their scourge, destroy his rocky fastness, and put his men to death or flight. Guillem's daughter, Noémi, a madcap beauty, joins her father's band of ruffians; but soon sickens of their deeds, and risks her life to save Ogier from the

oubliette A dungeon is a room or cell in which prisoners are held, especially underground. Dungeons are generally associated with medieval castles, though their association with torture probably derives more from the Renaissance period. An oubliette (fr ...

, because she loves his son.Keller 1924, p. 612.

Appraisal

Helen Rex Keller writes, "The book is filled with thrilling and bloody incident, culminating in the storming of L'Eglise Guillem, as the freebooter's den is ironically called, and the strange death of the robber chieftain. The descriptions of the wild valley of the Dordogne, and the life of the outlaws, are striking; and the pretty love story, set against this background, very attractive. As a picture of a fierce and horrible period, it is hardly less vivid than the ' White Company' of Conan Doyle."

References

Sources

* Bassett, Troy J. (18 August 2022)
"Noémi"
''At the Circulating Library: A Database of Victorian Fiction, 1837–1901''. Retrieved 9 November 2022. Attribution: * Keller, Helen Rex (1924)

In
The Reader's Digest of Books
'. The Library of the World's Best Literature. New York: The Macmillan Company. p. 612.

External links

* Ockerbloom, John Mark, ed
"Noémi"
''

The Online Books Page The Online Books Page is an index of e-text books available on the Internet. It is edited by John Mark Ockerbloom and is hosted by the library of the University of Pennsylvania. The Online Books Page lists over 2 million books and has several fe ...

''. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
"Noémi"
''

Project Gutenberg Australia Project Gutenberg Australia, abbreviated as PGA, is an Internet site which was founded in 2001 by Colin Choat. It is a sister site of Project Gutenberg, though there is no formal relationship between the two organizations. The site hosts free ebo ...

''. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
"Noémi"
''

Project Gutenberg Project Gutenberg (PG) is a volunteer effort to digitize and archive cultural works, as well as to "encourage the creation and distribution of eBooks." It was founded in 1971 by American writer Michael S. Hart and is the oldest digital li ...

''. Retrieved 9 November 2022. {{Authority control 1895 British novels