“ Having studied at Havre, he went to Paris to complete his education, and whilst there lived with the family of De Pressensé. The influence of Edmond de Pressensé, a pastor and large-minded theologian, and of Madame de Pressensé, a woman of superior intellect and refined feeling, who devoted her life to educational works and charity, made a great impression on him. In 1865 he left the école normale supérieure, and went to Germany, where he studied at Göttingen and Berlin. The teaching of George Waitz definitely directed his studies towards the history of the middle ages. ”

“ Études critiques sur les sources de l’histoire carolingienne (1898, 1st part only published) ; and Bibliographie de l’histoire de France (1888) . He himself said that his pupils were his best books; he intended to teach them not so much new facts as the way to study, endeavouring to develop in them an idea of criticism and truth. ”