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Doigt de Jean Bart
chocolate and almond ‘finger’
This coffee and almond chocolate finger made at the chocolate shop Aux Doigts de Jean Bart celebrates Dunkirk’s famous native son, the privateer Jean Bart (1650—1701), whose statue dominates the city centre.
Despite his lowly birth, Jean Bart’s skill and courage saw him rise to become an Admiral in the French fleet. He clobbered the Dutch in the Nine Years’ War, capturing 368 ships and destroying many more; at the Battle of Texelat in 1694 he saved Paris from starvation with the capture of a convoy of Dutch grain ships—an act that saw him rewarded with a peerage.
His statue holds pride of place in Dunkirk, brandishing his sword high, calling his men to action.
Text © Dana Facaros
Images by Jean-Léon Gérôme , La Voix du nord