  In the humblest village one may reckon on obtaining good meals, but not always on having dry sheets. It is not customary to air the latter, and except in hot dry weather, it is well to be on one's guard in this matter. Water should never be drunk. Too frequently it is drawn from the well in the yard, and is contaminated. Coffee in out of the way parts, even at such headquarters as Carhaix, is not coffee at all, but roast lupin berries. Each sheet costs about 25 centimes or 2½d. The same can be had in colours at 1 franc per sheet, but there is no great advantage in these latter. In this book routes have not been given, as there is such a diversity of manner of travelling in these days, some going by train, and some by bicycle and motor car. For the latter the best map is that published by the cycling club, as it gives the roads that are suitable, and the hills are all Less details have been given relative to the Department of Ille-et-Vilaine, at least as to certain portions of it which do not offer much of interest to encourage a visit, and with regard to Loire InfÉrieure only the truly Breton region of GuÉrande and S. Nazaire has been included. The following list of headquarters is recommended, whence excursions may be made radiating on all sides. Places of little moment and regions that need not occupy a visitor's time are omitted.
|
| Arr. | = | Arrondissement. |
| C.N. | = | CÔtes-du-Nord (Department). |
| Chl. | = | Chef-lieu. |
| Com. | = | Commune. |
| F. | = | FinistÈre (Department). |
| I.V. | = | Ille-et-Vilaine (Department). |
| L.I. | = | Loire InfÉrieure (Department). |
| M. | = | Morbihan (Department). |
| N.D. | = | Notre Dame. |
| P. | = | Pardon. |
| * | = | A convenient staying place whence to make excursions, and where are tolerable inns. |
Cheflieux and Surroundings
ArgentrÉ (I.V.) chl. arr. VitrÉ. In the neighbourhood are many small lakes, forming one of the arms of the Vilaine, one of the sources of which is in the forest of PertrÉ. The chÂteau de Plessis is of the 15th cent. and has been restored. In it is a portrait of Mme. de SevignÉ by Mignard. The circular chapel is of the 17th cent.
At Primel is a chapel of the 15th cent. A calvary is in the parish churchyard.
At Etrelles the church is of the beginning of the 16th cent.
Arzano (F.) chl. arr. QuimperlÉ. An uninteresting place, but some pretty scenery on the EllÉ and Isole. The neighbourhood is best visited from QuimperlÉ.
* AUDIERNE (F.) a com. of Pontcroix. A large fishing village, at the mouth of a tidal creek, into which flows the insignificant Goujen. The entrance to the harbour is dangerous. The river front of the village or town is occupied almost wholly by buvettes. Sardines are here tinned. The church, originally dedicated to S. Rumon, the same as S. Ronan, has been transferred to the patronage of S. Raymond Nonnatus. It is well-situated, and of renaissance period, but has preserved an earlier internal arcade. The south porch is of the usual 16th cent. type in Lower Brittany, but with renaissance details. Ships are carved over the church. The tower with gallery is mean. A curious recess with stoup outside the W. end, with broken circle above it. An old house in the street bears the date 1668. Audierne swarms with children who pester the visitor with begging. It is an unattractive place, but has good inns, and forms a centre for an interesting district. See also Pont Croix.
At Primelin is the Chapel of S. Tugean (a Saint Antianus) in a hamlet, surrounded with trees. It is a noble structure throughout, in the flamboyant style. A noble south porch with statues within of six apostles. The tower without spire is early flamboyant, and has a curious side turret
Plogoff has a church of the 16th cent., but possesses remains of an earlier period, pillars with Romanesque capitals. The Chapel of S. Collodec (Kenan, B. of Duleek) has a pretty spire, and a carved granite cross. P. 1st Sunday in July. The Pardon at the Chapel of N.D. de Bon Voyage is on the 3rd Sunday in July. The Enfer de Plogoff is a chasm into which the sea enters. The Pointe du Raz rises 240 feet above the sea, which is here rarely at rest. It commands a fine view of the stretch of coast from the Pointe to S. Mathieu on the north, and to
The Baie des TrÉpassÉs takes its name from the number of dead bodies washed ashore in it after a wreck. A Byzantine writer speaks of this bay and tells a curious story about it. He says that here the boatman was called up at the dead of night to convey passengers to the Ile de Seine. He took his oars and launched his boat, and heard a sound as of people entering his barque, but saw no one. The boat settled deep in the water, and he rowed over with his invisible burden. On reaching the Isle of Seine, he could hear the passengers disembark, and coins were cast to him, but still those whom he had ferried over remained invisible. He had, in fact, conveyed the souls of the dead to the Isle of the Dead. And this strange occurrence took place repeatedly.
The Etang de Laoual is supposed to cover the cursed city of Is, where Ahes, daughter of King Grallo, carried on high revelry and debauch. The wrath of heaven was kindled, and the sea overwhelmed the city. Remains of a Roman city remain at Troguer, and this was the termination of the Roman road from Carhaix (Vorganium). At the Chapel of S. They (the Cornish S. Day) the P. is on the 1st Sunday in July.
Cleden-Cap-Sizun. The coast here is bold, and there are numerous prehistoric monuments. At Goulien is a menhir 18 ft. high, and there are remains of a Roman camp.
Beuzec-Cap-Sizun. The church (S. Budoc) has a fine 16th cent. tower. Near the hamlet of Kerbanalec is an allÉe couverte. The holy well of Ste. Azenora (the Cornish Sennara), mother of S. Budoc, is supposed to have the peculiarity of filling with milk the breasts of any man who drinks thereof. Mothers nursing their children frequent it. P. at N.D. de la ClartÉ on the Sunday after the 15th August.
* AURAY (M.) chl. arr. Lorient. On a height above the river of Auray and the harbour. The river is a tidal creek, very unsavoury when in flow or when left dry. A large export of pine logs takes place hence to Cardiff for the mines. There are several old houses in the town, especially by the bridge. The halles have a vast roof on bold timber work. The Church of S. Gildas was built in 1636, and is utterly Italian, except for the vaulting. The south entrance is not without merit. The Church of S. Goustan dates from the 16th century. In the chapel of the PÊre Eternel is rich carved stall work derived from the Chartreuse.
Within an easy stroll from Auray is the Chapel de Ste. Avoye. Here, according to legend, the Saint, who is the same as the Cornish S. Ewe, arrived in a stone boat from Britain. The chapel is surrounded by a few farmhouses
Ste. Anne d'Auray is a great pilgrimage resort, with a pretentious modern church in nondescript style intended for renaissance, 1866-75, with bad glass. In 1623 a peasant dug up an image, probably of one of the DeÆ Matres of Gallo-Roman times, so common in Brittany, at a place called Ker-anna. He jumped to the conclusion that it represented the mother of the B. Virgin.
There is here a statue of the Duc de Chambord (1891) in bronze, flanked by those of Bayard, Du Guesclin, Ste. GeneviÈve, and Joan of Arc.
The Chartreuse near the Auray railway station is now a deaf and dumb asylum. It occupies the site of the battle in which, in 1364, Jean de
The chapelle expiatoire is situated at a quarter of an hour's walk from the Chartreuse and is in the Greek style, and is on the site of the massacre. Near by is a cross commemorative of Montfort's victory over Charles de Blois.
Plougoumelin. The parish church modern and bad. The Chapel of N.D. de Becquerel has a fine west porch of the Breton commingling of flamboyant and renaissance. An unfailing spring issues from under the wall of the apse. The water is thought to cure diseases of the mouth. Several lechs are in the parish. One called the Pierre du Serment is about 4 ft. 6 in. long, is in the churchyard and lies prostrate. Another is between the parsonage and the cemetery, and a third, round, with three hollows sunk in it, is at the presbytÈre. A
Crach. Here in the commune are numerous prehistoric remains. Rather over a mile from Auray on the road to Crach is a fine dolmen, the coverer 22 ft. long, and having on it a circle of hollows. Other dolmens at Keryn, Kergleverit, and Parq-er-Gueren, near the Chapel of S. Jean. Several menhirs on the common. The ChÂteau de Plessisker is of the 17th cent. P. at Crach on the 1st S. in July. See also Locmariaquer.
Bain (I.V.) chl. arr. Redon, on the Route nationale from Rennes to Nantes. In the cemetery a cross of the 16th cent. ChÂteau de la NoÉ of the 15th cent. By a little lake are the remains of a castle converted into a farmhouse.
* BAUD (M.) chl. arr. Pontivy. A district in which much hemp is grown and cordwaining is carried on. The women wear coiffes like sunbonnets, and sabots with leather toe-pieces and straps neatly embroidered. The church, a mean structure of 1687, is about to be pulled down. It is dominated by the far more stately Chapel of N.D. de la ClartÉ of the 16th cent. Vaulted throughout with very peculiar straight groining and vaulting in the S. aisle. The
In the woods of the old chÂteau of Quinipili (guide advisable) is the rude granite statue of the famous Venus of Quinipili removed from Castannec on the Blavet. It is 6 ft. high, with the hands crossed over the breast and with a sort of stole hanging down in front, and a band about the head on which are cut IIT. The statue, which received idolatrous worship, was transferred in 1695 to Quinipili, by Count Pierre de Lannion, along with a huge granite basin that stood before it. He set it up on a pedestal in his grounds and cut a pseudo-classic inscription on the base. As the original statue was indecent, he set a sculptor to alter it, and probably the stole is due to this man's chisel.
Camors. There are two dolmens in the forest, and an allÉe couverte at Kerpenru. Of menhirs, one is on the lande of Penher, three at Kerguelen, a stone-row of twenty uprights at Kernoul. Seven menhirs in the wood at Floranges, and six in the forest of Camors. At Porhoet-er-Saleu, are the remains of the castle of Conmore, Count of Poher, and regent of Domnonia. He is regarded as the Bluebeard of Brittany, although he was actually only
GuÉnin. The church is of 1773. The Chapel of N.D. de Menez-guen is flamboyant but late, 1577, with alterations made in 1604 and 1751. It is a cross church with a central tower. One descends by several steps into the chapel. Lean and lanky girls go to it and pray for fat to be laid on. P. 1st S. in July. Pilgrims take water from the fountain to give to their cattle.
Questinic. Chapel of S. Mathurin, P. 2nd S. in May. Chapel of Locmaria, renaissance 1574, a cross church with central tower and spire, and some old glass.
Bieuzy. The station of S. Nicolas des Eaux gives access to several points of historical and
Near the Chapel of Ste. TrinitÉ a path leads to the hermitage of S. Gildas. It is advisable to obtain a child as guide. The Saint with his disciple Budoc, or Bieuzy, was wont to retire to a cave under an overhanging rock beside the Blavet during Lent, and at certain times when he desired to be private. He built up the face of the cave and divided it into two parts, one
Returning to the station, S. Nicolas des Eaux is next visited. The chapel is in a very dilapidated condition. It is a flamboyant cruciform structure (1524) with a fine double doorway and with foliage about it, and with late flamboyant tracery in some of the windows, but from most it has been hacked away.
S. NicodÈme is perhaps the most beautiful example of flamboyant in Morbihan. It was completed in 1539, and a bell bears the date 1507 which is about the date of the spire and tower. The west entrance under the tower is peculiarly bold and beautiful, with its lace work fringed arch. A flight of steps leads down to the chapel, and on the left is a singular Holy Well, composed of three gabled structures united at the back. The date on this well is 1608, but it is impossible to hold this to be the true indication of its erection, and must commemorate
The chapel itself is not equal in beauty to tower and spire. It contains a minstrel gallery of stone in the N. transept. The altarpieces are bad rococo. Two little oxen are stuck up against the N. wall of the chancel to commemorate the success of an invocation to S. CornÉly. There is a very curious retable at the side representing the Resurrection. S. Nicodemus is represented carrying a napkin, three nails and with a heraldic wreath about his head. Most of the windows have had their tracery removed. The Pardon here is very famous and largely attended. The first Saturday in August is held as a great fair here, and at it girls sell their hair. Young women wearing black caps and not coiffes are such as have parted with their natural ornament. On the Sunday following is the Pardon. An angel descends from the gallery of the spire and sets fire to a great pile of brushwood and firework hoops.
Bubry. The church is modern and bad, near
Melrand. The Chapel of Locmaria is fine. It has a bold, square tower surmounted by a spire: it is all of flamboyant work with a few details showing that the renaissance was at hand. The E. window, partly hidden by a retable of 1680, contains in twelve tableaux scenes from the Life and Passion of our Lord. In the N. transept window is a fine Jesse tree, in one of the S. transept the angelic salutation. Near the chapel is a Holy Well of 1574. P. at GuellouËt in Melrand, 1st Sunday in July.
Becherel (I.V.) chl. arr. Montfort. On high ground. In the church a Romanesque
Begard (C.N.) chl. arr. Guingamp. A Cistercian abbey was founded here in 1130 by Stephen III., Count of PenthiÈvre. It was rebuilt in the 17th century, except the Romanesque church. It is now a lunatic asylum. According to local tradition, Begard was first settled by such ragged hermits that the place was called after them, a settlement of "Beggars." A menhir is at KergouÉzennic 18 ft. high.
Kermoroch. The chapel of Langoerat, 1373, has in it stained glass and paintings. There are ruined castles at Perrier and Leshorz.
Pedernec. A ruined castle at Runangoff. The Chapel of N.D. de Lorette dates from
Belle Ile (C.N.) chl. arr. Guingamp. Prettily situated in the valley of the Guindy. The church is modern, the old church is turned into halle. The Chapel of Locmaria is made into the cemetery chapel. It stands on a rocky height above the river and the road to TrÉgrom. It is late flamboyant, the pillars are surrounded by stone seats. The W. door has boldly carved foliage in coarse granite. The roodscreen, with figures and foliage in the panels of the gallery, has been removed to the W. end.
Locquenvel. Church of 15th and 16th cents. with stained glass representing the legend of S. Envel.
Oratoire mon oeuvre adieu, dit-il pleurant,
Belz t'oublierai je? Non. Il cingla de cÉans.
P. S. after 21st Sept. Numerous megalithic remains are to be found about Belz. A menhir at Kervoen, another at MÉlionec; remains of an allÉe couverte 30 ft. long at Kernours; a dolmen in good condition at Kerlutu; others at Kerhuen, Kervoen and Kerlourd. At Crubelz in a tumulus is a chamber of masonry nearly 11 ft. high. Roman bricks were found in it, and it would seem to have been constructed in Gallo-Roman times, but in accordance with earlier traditions and usages.
Locoal, on an arm of the sea of Etel, united to the mainland by a causeway like that at S. Cadou. Locoal was a locus penitentiÆ of S.
Etel, at the mouth of the channel that connects the inland sea with the ocean, is a small port partly closed by a rock and by moving sands. Near the village is a dolmen with seven supporters. A little further on is one with five.
Erdeven (Ar deven = on the sand-downs). All this district is covered with wind-blown sands. The most remarkable prehistoric monument is the alignment of Kerzerho, which extends over two miles and a quarter, and is composed of 1030 stones, with, however, gaps caused by pilferers. Unhappily the stones are still being broken up and carried away. The lines are on the S. and S.E. of the village.
Plouhinic. Near Kerfourchen two fallen dolmens and a menhir. From the windmill to the west alignments running S.E. Near the Mill of Gueldra the lines recommence in eight rows, and may be traced to KervuÉ and KervelhuÉ.
Bourbriac (C.N.) chl. arr. Guingamp. The church is in part Romanesque, and possesses a crypt. The windows are of 15th cent. The tower 1635. At Tanvedou is a tumulus enclosing a dolmen.
S. Adrien. Chapel of Avangour, 1576, with marble retable of same period.
Cadout (S. Illtyd). Church of 14th and 15th cents., with a sculptured retable. On high ground the manor house of Bois-de-la-Roche, 15th cent. restored.
* BREST (F.) chl. d'arrond. Was a fishing village about a mediÆval castle on the site of a Roman camp, till Cardinal Richelieu resolved on giving to France the command of the seas, when he fixed on Brest for a great dockyard, 1631. His undertaking was not followed up by Mazarin, but Colbert pursued it with energy, and extensive works were executed. Thanks to this great minister and to Admiral Duquesne, Brest became a naval and military port of the first class. The Breton parliament had not relished the undertaking, and forbade the delivery of timber to the royal works, and ordered the cessation of the forging of cannon, but the royal will was supreme, and the opposition of the parliament disregarded. The port was extended, and the rocks blasted; barracks, storehouses, workshops, were created, and fine quays were constructed. Vauban fortified it, Recouvrance was united to Brest by a turning bridge. From Brest issued a fleet of 80 ships of the line under Tourville in the naval campaigns of 1690 and 1691. In 1694 an Anglo-Dutch fleet in vain attempted an attack on Brest. In the 18th cent. its quays and fortifications were extended. Granite basins were constructed capable of receiving vessels of 120 guns. Dajot, whilst engaged on the defences of the place,
After Trafalgar Napoleon abandoned the ambition of making France a great naval power, and it was not till under Napoleon III. that fresh activity was displayed at Brest.
The harbour is perhaps the finest in Europe. It is 36 kilometres in circumference, and is entered only through the channel of the Goullet, illumined by five lighthouses.
The castle of the 13th cent., on a precipitous rock, is flanked by seven towers; the two largest are on the N.E., and the entrance is between them. The tower of Azenore belongs to the end of the 12th cent., and takes its name from the mother of S. Budoc, who was daughter of the Count of LÉon, and married to the Count of Goelo. The tower of Caesar of the 12th cent., that des Anglais is of 1374, that de la Madelaine is of the 15th cent., as is also the donjon.
Brest, apart from its dockyard, is a very uninteresting place. The Church of S. Louis
Landevennec is where a very important abbey was founded by S. Winwaloe, in French GuenolÉ, at the beginning of the 6th century. The Saint had settled first in the islet of Tibidy, but finding the place too strait for him, came to Landevennec, where King Grallo granted him lands in a warm and sheltered situation, under a hill that cut off the blasts from the Atlantic. The ruins are in private grounds, but visitors are admitted. The abbey church is of the 11th cent., and is without transepts, but has a large chapel of a later date built on at one side. In a crypt is the reputed tomb of King Grallo. The monastic buildings were rebuilt in the 17th century. The GrÈve des Anglais is so called because it was here that landed an expedition against Brest which failed, because betrayed to the French Court by Marlborough and Godolphin. The consequence was that eight hundred British soldiers fell into a trap and were butchered to the last man.
Goueznou. Here is the sole church near Brest that possesses any archÆological value. But it is a really remarkable edifice. It has the finest apse in the Department, next to Lampaul-Guimiliau, containing three great gabled late flamboyant windows. The church also possesses
Guipavas. The church possesses a porch enriched internally with statues, 1565.
Le Conquet. Modern church, but with glass of the 16th cent. preserved in it. In it is the tomb of Michel de Nobletz, a famous Jesuit, born 1577, died 1654, whose beatification is proposed. He laboured in Lower Brittany to turn the people from their pagan superstitions. On the promontory of Kermorvan two dolmens and a circle of upright stones.
Plougonvelen. Fine coast scenery. Here, in an imposing position above the sea, are the ruins of the Abbey of S. Mathieu. The monastery was destroyed at the Revolution. The church (1152-1208) was much altered in the 14th and 15th cents. The abbey was founded in the 6th cent. by S. Tanguy. Near
Broons (C.N.) chl. arr. Dinan. Bertrand du Guesclin was born here in 1320. The castle has completely disappeared, but a column
Sevignac. The ChÂteau of Brondineuf of the 12th cent. is well preserved.
Cancale (I. V.) chl. arr. S. Malo. A little port, and a favourite watering place. It is noted for its oysters. During one part of the year nearly all the male population is absent on the banks of Newfoundland engaged in the cod-fisheries. The rochers de Cancale are a mass of granite rising precipitously above the sea not far from the mainland. Much granite is quarried at Cancale. The church of S. MÉen is modern.
* CARHAIX (F.) chl. arr. ChÂteaulin. An old Roman town, Vorganium, lies high and in dreary country. Scanty remains of a Roman aqueduct are pointed out. The church (S. Tremor) is modern and good, with a fine East window; the tower is of 1529-35, with a West doorway, the carving of foliage on which is deserving of notice. More interesting is the church of Plouguer, originally very early in the 11th cent., containing some arches and piers and clerestory windows. It was enlarged in the 16th cent. (1574), and was ruthlessly mutilated in the 18th when the flamboyant tracery was hacked out of the windows, and the screen was demolished. The tower is remarkably fine, with bold splayed belfry windows. It was intended to support a spire which was never added. There is a handsome old house in the town of carved stone and timber. P. at S. Roque last S. but one in August.
Carnoet on very high ground. Here is the peniti or place of retreat of Gildas with a chapel, by the river, and high up in a clump of trees under a camp that dates from the invasion of Brittany by the Northmen, is a curious chapel of S. Gildas of late flamboyant melting into renaissance. It has a W. spirelet, gallery and two bells, the spirelet sustained on an arch. Within, sunk in the pavement, is an 11th cent. sarcophagus, reputed to be the bed of S. Gildas, who died in 570. In the N. aisle is a range of six stages of fowl hutches. On the Pardon, 29th Jan., the peasants make offerings of fowls and horsehair; the former are put into these hutches where they cluck and cackle through mass, and then are sold by auction for the benefit of the chapel and its maintenance. The camp above is an admirable typical example of the Norseman fortress, consisting of a tump, hollowed out in the middle, that sustained a wooden superstructure; and a base-court.
Cleden-Poher has a large church of the middle of the 16th cent., but with alterations made in 1689, at which date the sacristy was built. It has a fine west porch, and in the apse a good flamboyant window in six bays with a column up the centre against which, within, stands a statue. In a Chapel of N.D. de Cleden the vault is covered with paintings of the 18th cent. The high altar has a retable into which are let sculptured panels of the 16th cent., and others, representing the seven sacraments, are about the apse. The venerated image of
Treffrin (C.N.) possesses a fine Roman camp at Kermoisan, with remains of a tower in it. The Church of N.D. is of 1580, the porch of 1582, richly decorated, and contains niches within containing statues of the twelve apostles; the corbels supporting them are all different in design.
Locarn. The church is of the 12th cent. with additions and alterations of the 16th. It contains the tomb of the patron, S. Harn, in granite, 14th cent. The east window has stained glass of 1572 representing scenes of the Passion. The pulpit is renaissance, syrens occupy the angles. There is a Holy Well with an early statue of the Saint above it. A Calvary, the base ornamented with sculptured dolphins. In the presbytÈre is a magnificent silver-gilt processional cross of the 16th cent. In the parish are several menhirs, at Quellence Buis, Loquevel, Grand Follezon, etc., but of no great height.
Le Moustoir (C.N.). Church of 1507, in the shape of a T. The cornice, on which rests the vault, represents grotesque figures and groups. The E. window retains its old glass, representing the Life of the Virgin. In the tracery are the four great prophets. On the N. side a fireplace for heating the water for baptism.
MaËl Carhaix (C.N.). On the Place is a
* CARNAC, com. of Quiberon. Noted for the vast numbers of its prehistoric monuments. It lies on the low flat shores of the Baie de Quiberon, and is a great place for the cultivation of oysters. To obtain a good general view of the place it is well to ascend first of all the Mont S. Michel, a huge cairn piled up over a natural elevation of granite. It is oblong in shape and rises to about 60 feet. On the summit is a chapel of the Archangel, with an old granite cross. The mound was dug into in 1863 when a dolmen was discovered that contained over a hundred polished stone axes, a necklace, and other objects of the early bronze age. Further excavation in 1890 has disclosed another dolmen, in which, along with some stone implements, were two bronze buttons. The cairn is built up carefully of stones laid in order over a sheet of pebbles, and above them more of the same and of seaweed had been spread, and then above this fresh stones have been piled. From the summit the alignments of Carnac can be seen on the north. To visit these latter the following course should be pursued. Take the road to Ker Malvezin, and in a few minutes, on a bit of rising ground on
Having retraced our steps to the road, we cross it and follow the avenues of upright stones till we reach and cross another road, that to Ploemel. The road has broken through the lines, which continue only a few yards to the east, and then are brought to a conclusion by blocking stones, that is to say, slabs set at right angles to the lines. From this point ensues a gap for about 345 yards where is a little plantation of Austrian pines, a stone quarry, and some furzy enclosures. The lines are not, however, wholly interrupted; a few upright stones and several that are prostrate testify that there was some continuation. We follow a new road through the plantation and between walls till we come abruptly on a fresh cluster of stones, and these the largest we have yet seen. This is the commencement of the Kermario group. These started from several tumuli enclosing dolmens,
Poor fragments of other alignments remain at Ste. Barbe, near a couple of windmills by the station of Plouharnel, and again, and remains of a stone circle by the dolmen of Keriaval. The dolmens are very numerous, but not in the commune of Carnac to the extent that they are in the adjoining parishes. An enumeration of them may be omitted here, as at Carnac for a franc at the MusÉe Milne may be had a serviceable little book, "Carnac et ses Monuments," by M. Le Rouzic, with a map. One word of caution must however be given—not to accept the wild theories promulgated relative to dolmens and alignments. A close and scientific comparative study of these monuments has led to a pretty certain determination as to their purposes. The dolmens and allÉes couvertes were sepulchres, family or tribal; and the alignments consist of stones erected by members of the tribe or families belonging to the tribe in honour of the several dead who were laid in the dolmens. The stone circles were either places where the dead were burned and funeral feasts were held, or were places of tribal gatherings for palavers; generally they served both purposes. Isolated menhirs were either memorials to the dead, or boundary marks between tribal lands. All dolmens were originally buried under cairns or tumuli.
The parish church at Carnac was rebuilt in 1639 and has a well proportioned tower and
The Pardon of S. CornÉly takes place on Sept. 13, and is a curious sight. Cattle are brought to the church and offered to S. CornÉly, and those thus offered are sold afterwards by auction, and are eagerly bought.
Ploemel. East of S. Cado is a menhir standing and two others fallen; east of S. Laurent by the roadside a menhir leaning, opposite a stone cross. In the tumulus of ManÉ-Bodgad near Kermarquer, a sepulchral chamber. The church has been rebuilt and is a despicable structure. In the cemetery is a lech fallen. Another found there has been trimmed and set on the top of the tower.
Plouharnel. The largest dolmen in the Department is that of Corconneau in this parish. It measures 6 feet high inside, and is 25 feet long. Four hundred paces to the east are the remains of an alignment composed of 21 menhirs. To the south the ground is strewn with ruined dolmens and menhirs either fallen or standing, relics of alignments that have been plundered. At Ste. Barbe, to which allusion has already been made, some 30 stones remain of an alignment, and the remains of a stone circle.
For Erdeven see under Belz.
Caulnes (C.N.) chl. arr. Dinan. Once a Roman station. Relics found there are preserved in the Mairie. The church has undergone great alterations. The tower was rebuilt in the 18th cent., but the old W. entrance of the 16th cent. was preserved.
GuitÉe. Alignments of quartz blocks standing on others in which are cavities that have been found to contain ashes. There are five rows and run N. and S. One has in it 15 stones fallen, and 7 standing; one of them is 11 feet high. Another, a blocking stone, is 15 feet high. The second row has 12 stones fallen, and 2 upright; one of the prostrate blocks measures 15 feet 6 inches. The third line has 11 stones, all prostrate. The fourth line consists of 7 stones standing and 4 fallen. One of those erect is 18 feet 6 inches high.
ChÂteaubourg (I.V.) chl. arr. VitrÉ. The church has a renaissance portal. There
ChÂteaugiron (I.V.) chl. arr. Rennes. Ruins of a castle. Two towers fairly well preserved.
ChÂteaulin (F.) chl. d'arr. Prettily situated on the Aulne which is canalised, so as to connect Brest with Nantes. The hills rise to a considerable height above ChÂteaulin, as here the Monts d'ArrÉe and the Montagnes Noires draw together, the latter to be prolonged into the Peninsula of Crozon. But though prettily planted, there is not much of interest in the town. The church (S. Idumet) is modern and unsatisfactory. On a rock on the right bank of the river is the site of the castle that has been completely destroyed. The chapel however remains. The piers and arches are of the 12th cent. The tower is renaissance and is beautifully proportioned. The archway into the churchyard is 16th cent., and the cross and ossuary of the same period. P. 1st Sunday in Sept. From ChÂteaulin the Menez-hom (990 ft.) may be visited for the sake of the view over the Rade de Brest and the Bay of Douarnenez. Ste. Marie du Menez-hom is a chapel (1574-91), with renaissance bell tower. The iron gate to the churchyard is of 1730, the Calvary of 1544.
S. Nic, most picturesquely situated, has a quaint granite church of the prevailing style of fusion of Gothic with renaissance.
S. SÉgal (Cadwalader). In this parish the Chapel of S. Sebastian is of the dimensions of
Loperec. The church (S. Bridget) has a spire of 1668, and an interesting Calvary of 1552. The porch dates from 1586, with niches containing statues of the twelve apostles, these carved in 1615. In the church is some fine work of the barbaric style of Louis XIV., especially the retable of the altar of the Rosary. P. last Sunday in August.
Cast. Has a Holy Well of the 15th cent., much resorted to, especially on the Pardon, 2nd Sunday in May. At Lelzach are menhirs. The Mur du Diable is a wall rudely constructed of blocks not set in mortar, probably prehistoric.
QuÉmÉnÉven (S. Ouen, who has displaced S. Eugene, B. of Ardstraw). In this parish is the Chapel of Kergoat, one of the most renowned and favourite places of pilgrimage in Lower Brittany. The great Pardon is on the Sunday after the 15th August.
* CHÂTEAUNEUF-DU-FAOU (F.) chl. arr. ChÂteaulin. A picturesquely situated town on the Aulne. The well timbered heights of the Montagnes Noires rise to the south. The castle has disappeared, and its site is occupied by the hideous modern chapel of N.D. des Portes in a parody of Romanesque.
Spezet. The interesting Chapel of N.D. du Crann is of 1502, and possesses seven magnificent stained glass windows of 1548. There are chapels of S. Tudy, P. 3rd Sunday in July, and S. Bridget, P. Sunday after the Ascension. But the P. at N.D. du Crann, the most important, is on Trinity Sunday.
Landeleau. The church (S. Theilo) is fine and has a porch of 1540. P. Monday in Whitsun Week.
ChÂteauneuf (I.V.) chl. arr. S. Malo, on the high road from S. Malo to Dinan. It is near the estuary of the Rance but is not on it. The castle has been almost wholly destroyed and a modern castle built on the site. The parish church, which is small, has a picturesque tower and some flamboyant windows.
S. Suliac possesses an interesting church of the 13th century. It contains the tomb of the Saint Tysilio, as the Welsh call him, who is the
ChÂtelaudren (C.N.) chl. arr. S. Brieuc. The castle, originally a Roman camp, was the residence of Aldor or Audrien, prince of the British colonists who settled here. The castle was destroyed in 1808. It is now in private grounds, prettily situated above a little tarn. The parish church is modern, but on the height above the town is N.D. du Tertre, a church, 2nd pointed but with a flamboyant east window. There are remains of old glass. There is a 2nd pointed stone altar of S. Margaret. The spire was added later and
Bocqueho, on the main road to Quintin, has a flamboyant Chapel of N.D. de PitiÉ with stained glass of the period representing scenes of the Passion.
ChÈse, La (C.N.) chl. arr. LoudÉac. There are halles of the 17th cent., and a church of the 18th.
La FerriÈre. The church is partly of the 13th and partly of the 14th cent. The south chapel is of the 16th, with good glass of 1546 and 1551. Ruins of the abbey of Lantenac, founded in 1150; a portion of the cloisters remain, and a chapel of the 15th cent.
PlÈmet. Chapel of S. Lubin of the 16th cent. with contemporary glass. In one window the legend of S. Lubin; in another the life of S. John the Baptist.
Cleguerec (M.) chl. arr. Pontivy. Church modern, but in the churchyard a cross of the 17th cent. In the Chapel of S. Morvan is the tomb of the Saint, a rude granite sarcophagus. Near the church, by the roadside, is a lech with crosses cut on it. In the chapel of the Baptist is 16th cent. glass. Several allÉes couvertes are in the parish. One at Parc-er-bÉ, near the hamlet of Rotherbaz, 36 ft. long. At Bod-er-Mohet remains of another, 72 ft. long, divided into compartments within. Near by a menhir 12 ft. high.
Combourg (I.V.) chl. arr. S. Malo. Church modern and very bad. The castle belongs to the ChÂteaubriant family, and is shown on Wednesdays. It is a structure of the 14th and 15th cents., and has been carefully restored. It stands above a little lake in a picturesque situation, and has good grounds and trees about it. In the dining-room is a bust of FranÇoise de Foix, who was the wife of the Count of ChÂteaubriant. The count was compelled to be at Court, but long refused to allow his wife to appear there, and only yielded when Francis I. insisted upon it. The King fell desperately in love with her, and made her his mistress. The count was forced to swallow his rage, but when the fickle king turned to Mlle. d'Helly, afterwards Duchesse d'Etampes, then he carried her back to ChÂteaubriant where he starved her to death. The castle is supposed to be haunted by an old ChÂteaubriant with a wooden leg and by his black cat. The author of RÉnÉ and Athalie spent much time here in his youth, and his room and chair are shown. A ruined dolmen is at Chevot.
S. Leger. Church of the 15th cent. A prehistoric monument goes by the name of La Chaise de Saint Leger.
Cugnon. A menhir called La Pierre longue, 20 ft. high.
Concarneau (F.) chl. arr. Quimper. A
Lanriec. Here is an allÉe couverte, here is also a cromlech, or circle of standing stones. P. 2nd Sunday in September.
TrÉgunc. Numerous prehistoric monuments. A fine menhir at Ker ar Gallon, another 30 ft. high. A stone circle 248 ft. in diameter. A dolmen on the Lande de Kerlan 24 ft. long. P. de S. Marc, the S. after 25th April. P. de
Corlay (C.N.) chl. arr. LoudÉac. Church of S. Elouan of 1576. Old Holy Well. The Chapel of S. Anne was built in 1198, destroyed in the war of the two Jeannes, and rebuilt in 1485, and dismantled in 1599. On the Lande de la Justice foundations remain of the old gallows; allÉe couverte, called Le Tombeau de Gargantua, near the hamlet of FaouËt, on the road to Uzel.
Haut Corlay. Near the village is the Men Bixiquet, a menhir 9 feet high. North of the Tertre aux Colombs, a rectangular fortification enclosing tumuli, a vast number of others are outside.
Plussulien (S. Sulien). The church is of the 16th cent. The Holy Well of S. Sulien is of the 16th cent. as well. The Chapel of the N.D. de Saleon of the 15th cent.
Croisic, Le (L.I.), chl. arr. S. Nazaire. A little port and bathing place. It is here that CÆsar stood to watch the naval fight between Brutus and the Venetian fleet, which resulted in the complete destruction of the latter. The Venetii had large vessels with leather sails, whereas the Romans had galleys. The success of the latter was wholly due to the failure of wind to fill the Venetian sails and enable the great ships to move. By this means the Roman galleys were enabled to attack each huge hulk separately, and the Venetian fleet
Batz, on the same ridge as Le Croisic, is also a sea-bathing place and in much resort. The church (S. Winwaloe) is of the 15th and 16th cents., with a stately tower rebuilt in 1677. The pillars of the earlier 13th cent. church remain. The church was restored in 1866. In Batz is a little museum in which are preserved the old costumes of the district.
Pouliquen (The White Pool), also a sea-bathing place. On the rock of PenchÂteau is a chapel containing a 15th cent. alabaster bas-relief.
Crozon (F.) chl. arr. ChÂteaulin. The bleak promontory of Crozon spreads out to the west and forms the headland of Camaret, then intervenes the bay de la ChÈvre, and to the north the headland of Crozon. The church (1602-15) contains a retable representing the martyrdom of the Theban Legion. The spire is modern. There is a stone circle at Tyahurey in the midst of a vast lande, a dolmen at
Camaret is a little port given over to the sardine fishing and to the tinning. The Chapel of Rozmadou dates from 1560. At Toulinquel is a set of stone rows. At Kerloch a little lake. The Benediction of the Sea takes place on the 3rd Sunday in June.
Lanveoc (S. Fiacc, B. of Sletty). Here are prehistoric remains. P. Sunday nearest to 26th July.
Daoulas (F.) chl. arr. Brest. An Augustinian abbey was founded here in 1170. To this period belong the body of the church and portions of the choir. A porch was added in renaissance times. Glass of the Breton school of the 16th cent. remains in the church windows. The cloister is Romanesque, and of the same date as the foundation of the abbey. Semi-circular arches rest on columns alternately single and coupled, and with early foliage in the capitals, and with ornamented bases. In the midst of the cloister is a basin also of the 12th cent. Chapel of B.V.M. 1550, and Chapel of S. Anne 1667. Daoulas is at the head of a long tidal creek, between hills, in a pretty
L'HÔpital Comfront. A commandery of the Knights of S. John was here. The church is in the common transition style between flamboyant and a renaissance, with an open bell tower for two bells and a side turret, disengaged with cupola, containing the stair. The west front has a doorway much like that at Rumengol. In the church is a statue of S. Barbe of 1511. P. Easter Monday.
Irvillac. Church with a renaissance tower and spire. P. des Reliques 3rd Sunday in July. P. des Marches, with wrestling, 3rd Sunday in October.
* DINAN (C.N.) chl. d'arrond. In a picturesque situation, 225 feet above the Rance which flows through a gorge to the sea, between granite cliffs broken by bays down which flows abundant foliage. The town is walled round on all sides save that on which is the railway station. Three gates remain, and a postern of the castle. The original castle stood in a different position, and was called the ChÂteau de Gan. It has disappeared, and a vulgar and pretentious modern house occupies its site. The present castle was erected in 1458 and 1480. Of the twenty-four towers which originally surrounded the town fifteen remain in a more or less ruinous condition. Portions of the wall date from the 13th cent. The most
LÉhon has a ruined castle on the height, and by the river the remains of a priory. The church, of the 13th cent., has been restored; the ugly east window is modern, and the stained glass is all bad. In the churchyard is the Romanesque doorway of the parish church, which was pulled down when the priory church was put in order.
Corseul. The ancient capital of the Curiosoliti, with Roman remains, notably a temple of Mars, of very peculiar construction, an apsidal chapel with a huge extended peristyle before it, like a cloister. The parish church, a wretched modern structure, contains a Roman cippus. In a picturesque situation is the ChÂteau de Montfilant, of the 12th cent., with to the N. traces of a prehistoric camp. In the farmhouse on the site of the castle are some statues, one of 16th cent., of S. Agatha carrying her amputated feet, and another of S. Anne of the 17th cent.
S. Helan. The church has some old glass in the E. window, representing the saint, who with six other Irish bishops visited S. Remigius
S. Samson. A fine menhir at La Tremblaye, in a little wood, 30 ft. high, but inclining, as it was undermined by treasure seekers. According to popular superstition, if re-erected, Dinan would perish by a flood. A delightful walk may be taken from S. Samson to Dinan, by a road that leads down to the river, and comes out by the mouth of the glen of La Fontaine. From it the grand view of Dinan with its spires and viaduct may be obtained. The Rance at this point formerly swept round a rocky peninsula, but this was cut through and the course rectified, when the river was canalised. The walk may be extended by taking in Taden, where are the neglected tombs of the Count and Countess de la Garaye. At their own desire they were buried among the poor, to whom they had devoted their lives, in the churchyard.
Trigavou, between this place and Pleslin, is a wrecked series of alignments. Though a monument historique, the peasants have been recently blowing up the stones with gunpowder, and the remains are in too great disorder to be planned. In the church on a beam is a carving that represents a hare which when pursued by hunters took refuge in the sacred edifice.
Le HinglÉ, a walk of a mile and a half from the station, takes to the ChÂteau of Chalonge, with a tower and picturesque gables. It is being well restored by the proprietor.
Dinard-Saint Enogat (I.V.) chl. arr. S. Malo. Picturesquely situated on an indented coastline opposite S. Malo, and connected by a tramline with S. Lunaire and S. Briac. It is a favourite resort for wealthy Americans during the summer, and has a casino, where those who like to lose their money may do so. Bathing is best obtained at S. Lunaire where are good sands. Scanty remains of a priory founded in 1324. The chapel in ruins contains a colossal statue of the Virgin and child of the 15th cent. An old house, traditionally supposed to have been once occupied by the Black Prince, has a couple of picturesque towers with conical roofs and gables. A house quaintly decorated with numerous statues of saints.
S. Lunaire has an excellent beach. Lodging houses are extending rapidly along the coast from Dinard to S. Briac, and in process of time there will be a continuous line of houses. The modern church is portentously vulgar, but the
S. Briac. Situated above a picturesque bay partly closed by an islet. It has a little port. The church is modern except the tower, which is renaissance. An extensive alignment existed
On the further side of the river is Lancieux; the church contains a Roman cippus but is otherwise destitute of interest and will shortly be rebuilt. The vast bay west of Lancieux is divided in twain by the tongue of land on which is S. Jacut. Here the tide goes out as much as 5 kilometres. To the north of the promontory of S. Jacut are the islands of Les Ebbiens on which is a battery.
Off Dinard is the fortified isle of CÉzambre, but visitors are not suffered to land there. Here was a monastery founded by S. Brendan about 524, and when S. Malo arrived from South Wales, he was hospitably received by Festivus, the Irish monk left there in charge. A Chapel of S. Brendan was much resorted to by girls in want of husbands, who vowed candles
Dol (I.V.) chl. arr. S. Malo. A dull town, formerly a cathedral city, and for three hundred years seat of an archbishop. The few old houses in the town are not particularly interesting. The former cathedral, now parish church (S. Samson), belongs for the most part to the 13th cent. The west part is flanked by two towers of the 14th and 15th centuries. That to the south has retained some remains of the original Romanesque church. King John of England burnt the church. At the crossing of the transepts a third tower of the 13th cent. was begun but never completed. The N. side of the church formed part of the fortifications of the town, and the wall of the chapels of the choir is surmounted by a crenilated parapet. The choir has a square east end like an English church, and with a magnificent 2nd pointed or geometrical E. window full of glass of the same period, badly restored. It represents the Last Judgment, scenes of the Passion, and the Life of S. Samson. The pillars of the nave belong to the original Romanesque church. After it was burnt they were retained, but disengaged columns were grouped about them and bound to the cylinders by bands of iron. Those in the side aisles are meaningless, supporting nothing. Behind the high altar is the Chapel of S. Samson. In the
About a mile and a half out of Dol on the Combourg road is the Pierre du Champ Dolent, a menhir 27 feet high above ground and sunk nearly as many feet beneath the surface. It is dwarfed by a huge crucifix planted on the top. Near by is Carfeuntin with a hideous modern church replacing one of the 13th that has been wantonly destroyed. Here is the Holy Well of S. Samson.
Mont Dol is a height rising out of the great marsh of Dol, that was overflowed by the sea in 709. This was a prehistoric site and numerous flint weapons are there found. The church of the 11th, 12th and 15th centuries contains curious mural paintings.
Douarnenez (F.) chl. arr. Quimper. Prettily situated on a tidal creek that has its mouth almost closed by the Isle of Tristan. The railway station is high above the town and the ravine is crossed by a viaduct. The town
PloarÉ, where is a fine church very late flamboyant resolving itself into renaissance, and typical of a style very general throughout FinistÈre. A singular feature is to be noted in the pinnacles about the spire. Two of these have tall crocketed spirelets, but taste was changing whilst the tower was approaching completion, and the two other pinnacles are truncated Italian lanterns. The tower was
Poullan. The church (S. Cadvan) is flamboyant verging into renaissance. It has a thin tower with two galleries, and a pretty porch. The side aisles are peculiarly narrow. The capitals of the pillars are quaintly carved. The octagonal vestry is of the 17th cent. Several dolmens. A menhir near the seamark at Kermenhir. P. 1st S. in September.
Guengat. A small late flamboyant church. Ossuary adjoining the porch 1557. Owing to the fall of the tower in 1700, the church was restored in 1706. It contains some fine glass of the 16th cent. representing the Last Judgment and the Passion. The date is 1571. The porch flamboyant. Curious uncouth and late tracery in two gabled windows beside the porch. The third has flamboyant tracery. A
Kerlaz. Church (S. Germain) picturesque and interesting. It has a crocketed spire with subsidiary turrets and spirelets partially detached. The church contains old glass in the east window representing scenes of the Passion and S. John the Baptist presenting the donor and a canon. Font of 1567, tower 1660, Calvary 1645, lychgate 1558.
Elven (M.) chl. arr. Vannes. The Chapel of S. Germain is of the 16th cent. At the door is a sarcophagus supposed to be that of S. Germain. This Germanus is probably not the Great Bishop of Auxerre, but the nephew of S. Patrick, who was tutor of S. Brioc, and finally apostle of the Isle of Man. Elven is a good place whence to explore the Lande de Lanvaux. This upland ridge is strewn with prehistoric remains, dolmens and menhirs, notably La Loge aux Loups, a dolmen; an allÉe couverte Le LÉty, a menhir at Carhaix, another at Villeneuve. An allÉe couverte at Villepierre, two dolmens in the wood at Coetby and two menhirs called Baboun et Baboune at the outskirts of the wood of Lanvaux. At S. Guyomard a menhir 22 feet high. At Plaudren beside the road, La Quenouille, about 18 feet high. Near it numerous remains of dolmens and fallen menhirs. Another group at Plaudren, a fallen menhir, 16 feet high,
Etaples (C.N.) chl. arr. S. Brieuc. A watering-place in some repute with good sands. The church is of the 15th cent., but with a tower of 1786. Etaples is in the ancient county of Goelo.
Lantec. The parish church (S. Oswald) is a mean modern structure. How the great Northumbrian king should come to be here commemorated is hard to understand. He is represented over the altar as a chubby, smirking boy. The Chapel of N.D. de la Cour is a noble structure of 1460, of the finest and purest flamboyant, before it became degenerate and adulterated with Italian detail. Chancel and side aisles are vaulted. The nave has modern wood vaulting. The superb east window is filled with the finest stained glass, silvery in tone, with the colour set in it as jewels, after the English school, and entirely different from the prevailing Breton character of glass which, like the French, is overladen with colour. The modern glass in some of the windows is bad as bad can be. The tracery of the chancel windows is admirable. There is a second stained window, old, in the S. transept. In the chapel is the tomb of Guillaume de Rosmadec, 1608, in kersanton stone. P. 16th August, when pilgrim fishermen make the circuit of the chapel barefooted and in their shirts alone.
S. Quay is a watering place.
Le Faou (F.) chl. arr. ChÂteaulin, at the head of a long arm of the sea. It is reached from Henvec station. The church is of the 16th cent. late flamboyant, with a slender unsatisfactory tower, 1626-40. The porch is of 1593, with statues of the apostles.
Rumengol. The story goes that as King Grallo was riding with S. Winwaloe from Is, which had been overwhelmed by the sea, and reached the hill that commanded the valley, he saw a fire on the height opposite, and found that the pagan inhabitants were holding a sacrifice on the rou-men-goulon, the Red Stone of the Dawn. He vowed to build there a church. This is represented in the E. window. The church is late flamboyant with renaissance detail. The porch is of the usual type and contains, over the door, an adoration of the Magi. A hundred paces to the east is the Holy Well. In the little structure is a bas-relief of the Annunciation, and statues of S. Winwaloe and S. Fiacre. One of the most largely attended Pardons of Brittany takes place here on Trinity Sunday, the pilgrims arrive over night and sleep in the church.
* LE FAOUËT (M.) chl. arr. Pontivy. Fine timber and slate Halles. The church of the 16th cent. is of little interest, but the chapels of Ste. Barbe, S. Fiacre, and S. Nicolas in Prisiac, are well deserving of a visit and a study. Ste. Barbe is planted on a rock above a pretty valley, and is reached by a staircase of stone. A bridge connects the upper platform with
S. Fiacre is a superb example of the architecture of the 15th cent. The main spire, with its flamboyant gallery, is corbelled out on the west gable and is tied by two flying buttresses to two smaller towers with spirelets. The S. porch is vaulted and has niches within. The chapel contains very fine glass of 1550, but falling to pieces and fragments detaching themselves with every storm. The subjects represented are the Nativity, the Passion, and the legend of S. Fiacre. A roodscreen of 1480 has been badly "restored" and painted. The condition of the magnificent glass is disgraceful. The chapel is a "monument historique," so that the curÉ can do nothing to it, and the State will do nothing for its preservation. The foliage carving in granite is admirable for its boldness. The Chapel of S. Nicolas in Prisiac has a very fine roodscreen, quite perfect and untouched, covered with curious paintings; it is, however, later than that at S. Fiacre. There is here also some good old glass. The chapel is in a sad condition of neglect. It possesses a
* FOUESNANT (F.) chl. arr. Quimper, with nice sands. A pleasant holiday resort. The costumes of the women are very pretty. The church is Romanesque, but was frightfully maltreated in the 18th cent., when large round-headed windows were introduced. The tower was struck by lightning and rebuilt at the same time. The piers are 11th cent. From above them rise pilasters that sustain relieving arches under which are the clerestory windows. The capitals have byzantine-looking work on them. The Chapel of Ste. Anne, in the midst of trees, was built in 1685, and has a tower for two bells and spire between two detached turrets surmounted by cupolas. This chapel is the object of visit when the Pardon takes place on July 28. Peasants and girls in white arrive by water in boats with their crosses and banners.
S. Evarzec. Here was a commandery of the Knights of Malta at Moustoir (13th cent.). A dolmen and menhir.
Goueznach. A ruined allÉe couverte. Chapel of N.D. de Bonsecours, P. Sept. 8. Chapel of S. Cado, P. Sept 25; that of Ste. Barbe, P. June 5.
Benodet. A favourite bathing resort. The church (S. Thomas À Becket) was erected in
Perguet (S. Bridget) was formerly the mother church of Benodet, but now the relations are reversed. Externally, on the N. side may be seen Romanesque work, and the small windows of the period. The S. side has been completely transformed by the addition of a little ossuary and a porch and a transept of the 16th cent. But on entering the church the early character of the building becomes manifest. The arcades of the nave and the chancel arch are of the 12th cent. The three bays on the north are bold and rectangular, and, as at Fouesnant, support relieving arches that enclose the clerestory windows. This is all 11th cent. But the chancel arch shows distinct signs of the coming on of the reign of the pointed style. The choir is flamboyant. Here also the Byzantine character of the ornamentation of the 11th cent. capitals may be observed. The east window contains 16th cent. glass, and represents the Crucifixion. Among the statues in the church are S. Bridget and S. Patrick, but the latter has been altered into S. Paternus. In this church is a fireplace for warming baptismal water. The tower is of 1595. On the highway from Quimper to Benodet is the Holy Well of N.D. de Drenec. The basin is
La Forest Fouesnant. This pretty little church is planted near the sea. The spire is bracketed out above the west gable, and contains a stone cage for bells. The Calvary is the earliest in the Department and is of the 16th cent. In the presbytÈre is a noble chalice of the first half of the 16th cent.
* FOUGÈRES (I.V.) chl. d'arrond. Picturesquely situated on a hill above the NanÇon. Originally a frontier town between Brittany and France, it has preserved its venerable fortifications, but they are crowded in by buildings. The castle was founded in the 11th cent., destroyed in 1166, rebuilt in 1176, has been restored. It is planted on a rock, and was flanked by ten towers including those that commanded the entrance. It is divided into four distinct portions, the avantcour, the main court, the donjon, and the postern court. The entrance is between three towers of the 12th cent. The keep was destroyed in 1630. It rose in the midst of the second court, flanked by three towers that still remain, that of Melusine dates from 1242. The Church of S. Sulpice was rebuilt in 1410, but the nave and tower were not completed till 1490. The slate spire leans. The choir, begun in the 16th cent., was not completed till 1765. The Church
In the Forest of FougÈres is a fallen dolmen, Pierre du Tresor, also an alignment of 80 stones, called Le Cordon des Druides, near the ruins of a convent founded in 1440.
La Gacilly (M.) chl. arr. Vannes. Near the town on the road to Malestroit, a menhir 15 ft. high, La Roche PiquÉ, and near it another of the same height but fallen. On the Lande de SignÉ E. of Gacilly a circular camp and the slope of the hill is pitted with excavations. The parish church was formerly chapel to the castle and was of 14th cent., but was altered and enlarged 1626-31.
The Chapel of S. Jugon, 4 kilometres W.N.W. Jugon was a peasant boy who led a devout life. P. Whitsun-Monday. Peasants take little bags of seed to have it blessed at the end of Mass. This is then mingled with what is to be sown.
Cournon. A fine dolmen, La Tablette. One of the coverers was broken in 1820. W. is a menhir 9 ft. high, further W. other blocks that may be the remains of an alignment.
Les FougerÊts. A pretty gorge with grottoes in the sides called Les Chambres du Coucou.
S. Congard (Cyngar) near Bignac. An allÉe couverte measuring 43 ft. long and 4 ft. 6 in. high within. It has five coverers, of which one only has fallen. A menhir near the wood of Misny. The Chapel of N.D. de Quimper
* GUINGAMP (C.N.). A pleasantly situated town in green surroundings, with the little river Trieux flowing through it. The finest view of the town with the towers of the church is from the garden of the HÔtel de France, whence water, foliage and old buildings group admirably. The Church of N.D. de Bonsecours is indebted to a miraculous image for the lavish expenditure upon it. This image stands in the N. porch, and has been accorded a gold crown from the Pope, and has been profusely "indulgenced." The church was formerly the chapel of the Counts of PonthiÈvre. It was rebuilt in the 14th and 15th cents. and added to in the 16th. The church consists of a nave with four aisles, double transepts and an ambulatory round the choir. The transept and S. transept front are of the 12th cent. The central tower and spire of the 13th. To the same period belong the tower and turret on the N.W. The arcade on the N. of the nave is of the 13th cent. On the S. side the arcade is renaissance. In the spandrils are the cardinal virtues sculptured in relief, and corbels support statues. Above the arcade is a triforium consisting of three ranges. Above the arcade on the north side the triforium is of the 14th cent. The choir is composed of
GrÂces. The church is entirely flamboyant of 1508, and a typical specimen. All the aisle windows are under gables. The baptistery is of the end of the 16th cent. The relics of Charles de Blois are preserved here.
Pedernec. A menhir 25 ft. high. On one face three cup-hollows. The church was rebuilt in 1847, but the S. side aisle and arcade and a good rose window in the transept, of the 16th cent., have been preserved. Also a delicately carved roodscreen, out of its proper place.
Coadout. An allÉe couverte at Pen-poul-ar-hus, destroyed in 1863, except for three stones, has one much polished. On this, according to local tradition, S. Illtyd and S. Briac were wont to meet and pray together, and it contains hollows supposed to have been worn by their knees.
Pommeret-le-Vicomte. Remains of a dolmen at Kerbic, one coverer and four supports still in situ. The church is of various periods. The oldest portion is the east end, and is of the 14th cent. with a large window. The tower and spire of 1712. In the graveyard a Calvary of the 15th cent. with a pulpit at its base. The Chapel of N.D. du Paradis is interesting, 16th cent., with a Calvary of the same period, with the apostles carved in relief on the octagonal base.
Gourin (M.) chl. arr. Pontivy. An unattractive spot with poor hotel accommodation. Hence conveyances may be had to Le FaouËt. At Kerbiguet a menhir 12 feet high and two others prostrate. The parish church is of 1500 with a tower of 1745. Numerous chapels are scattered over the parish: that of S. HervÉ to the N.E. is of the 16th cent. and has stained glass representing saints, and scenes in our Lord's life.
Langonnet. A menhir at BodÉro, 13 feet high. The parish church has flamboyant windows and doorways, but a few pillars of the 12th cent. remain. The tower is modern. On the S. side of the church is an ossuary. In the cemetery a lech. The chapel of the Trinity, 1500-68, with fine old glass representing the Jesse tree, the Passion, and the Last Judgment, and the Life of the Virgin. The abbey of Langonnet was founded in 1130 and is on the bank of the EllÉ. It is converted into a reformatory. Chapel of N.D. de la PitiÉ, P. 15th Aug.
Le Saint (S. Samuel). Partly Romanesque, but with flamboyant windows. The chapel of S. Adrian is an object of pilgrimage.
Grand-Champ (M.) chl. arr. Vannes. On the north the Lande de Lanvaux, which was once crowded with megalithic remains. Many still are to be seen. A fine dolmen is on a rocky elevation a kilometre N. of Locperet. The capstone measures 16 feet long. Numerous menhirs further on in the direction of Croix-de-bois, perhaps the relics of an alignment. The church (S. Tugdual) has been destroyed and replaced by a structure of 1866. At Locperet is a flamboyant Chapel of S. Bridget. Another of N.D. de Burgo is of 1528 and 1538, and near it a Holy Well. P. at Locmaria-Grandchamp on Aug. 10th; at Moustoir des Fleurs on the 4th S. in August. At Grand-Champ itself on the 2nd S. in Sept.
Locqueltas. A menhir, called Le Fuseau de la Femme de Gargantua, 15 feet high. At Plaudren another 18 feet high, and bearing the same name. It is near the road to Josselin on the Lande. The whole neighbourhood is strewn with remains of dolmens and with fallen menhirs.
GuÉmÉnÉ (M.) chl. arr. Pontivy. Anciently Kemenet-Guegnant, owes its origin to a castle of Guegnant, nephew of Alan Canhart, who erected it. The fief passed to the family of Rohan. The castle was converted into a prison for English soldiers in 1792. It is now a ruin.
Silfiac. A Chapel of S. Laurent of the 16th cent. with curious carvings; near it the Holy Well of S. Nodez, which is supposed to cure corns, and other maladies of the feet.
Langoelan. A dolmen on the E. of the hamlet of Villeneuve and in an islet of the Scorff. The church is flamboyant. Le Merzer marks the spot where Selyf or Solomon, King of Devon and Cornwall, coming to Armorica to see his domains there, encountered the pagan natives and was murdered by them. He was son of Geraint, who fell at Langport in Somersetshire in 522, fighting against the Saxons. His wife was S. Gwen, sister of Nonna, mother of S. David, and he was the father of S. Cuby. The Chapel of S. Solomon has been destroyed.
* GUÉRANDE (L.I.) chl. arr. S. Nazaire. An interesting town surrounded by its machicolated
S. Lyphard was a Roman station at the point where the lake of La BriÈre formerly discharged into the sea. The church is of the 11th cent. The peasants of the BruyÈre wear a peculiar costume, and are true Bretons.
La Guerche (I.V.) chl. arr. VitrÉ. The church, of which portions belong to the 13th and 14th cents., contains some old stained glass.
Guichen (I.V.) chl. arr. Redon. Old chateaux at Gaylieu and Gressillonnoye.
HÉdÉ (I.V.) chl. arr. Rennes. Ruins of the castle on a rock. The church is Romanesque. S. Gaudran, good glass of the 17th cent. in the church, and two silver reliquaries of the 12th cent.
Hennebont (M.) chl. arr. Lorient. Prettily situated on the river Blavet. The town is divided into the Ville Clos within its ancient walls and the new town. A bridge connects them. The old town was fortified by Duke Jean I. (1237-86). It played a signal part in the War of Succession. Jean de Montfort had secured the place. At the end of May 1342, Charles of Blois laid siege to it. Within was the Countess Jeanne, who held out with determination, set fire to the camp of the enemy, and leaving the town unperceived threw herself into Auray, where she gathered reinforcements which she introduced into Hennebont without the feeble Charles being aware what she was about. At last provisions failed, and the magistrates insisted on capitulation. The countess entreated for a couple of days' delay, and at the last moment saw gleaming in the west on the sea the sails of an English fleet sent to her relief. Charles hastily retreated, but again a few months later laid siege to the place. He was, however, again repulsed. The parish church (N.D. de Paradis) on the further side
Kervignac. A fine dolmen near the road from Hennebont to LandÉvant. On the south, near Kermadio, is another. A third, small, near Lopriac. This is one of the most ancient parishes in the diocese of Vannes. It is mentioned as early as the 6th cent. At this time a cloud of locusts came down on the country, and the Count Weroch, fearing famine, sought Gunthiern, a refugee king of Gwent, who had settled at QuimperlÉ and was in great repute for his austerities. Gunthiern gave water he had blessed to the envoys of Weroch, and this drove the locusts away. In return for this favour, Weroch granted to Gunthiern the plou of Vineac. The Chapel of N.D. de la ClartÉ is of the 15th cent. That of S. Laurent contains some remains of the screen. A Holy Well of S. Gildas is still in request in the hamlet of Kanden.
* HUELGOAT (F.) chl. arr. ChÂteaulin. A picturesquely situated townlet at the extremity
S. Herbot. A chapel in the parish of Loqeffret is a picturesque structure at the roots of the Monts d'ArrÉe. A stream here falls in a pretty cascade 400 feet over rocks, and at no great distance from the chapel are the inconsiderable remains of the renaissance ChÂteau de Rusquec. The Chapel of S. Herbot is actually a large church and merits attentive study. It possesses a fine square tower without spire or pinnacles. The date is 1516. The W. front is fine. Throughout, the carving of the granite is admirable, the foliage is treated with great boldness. The tower of S. Herbot seems to have served as a model for that of Carhaix, which is a few years later. On the south is a deep porch also well sculptured, with the apostles within, and 24 little statues in the arcade of the
Brennilis has a church with tower and W. faÇade of 1485. There are two windows of good old glass representing the Conception, S. Christopher, and a monk. Also the life of
JanzÉ (I.V.) chl. arr. Rennes. The church is partly Romanesque. In the suburbs a menhir with a hole cut in the face to receive an image of the B.V.M.
EssÉ. Here is one of the finest covered avenues in Brittany. It consists of a main structure with an ante-chamber, and is divided within into compartments. The total length is 43 feet.
The priory church of Ste. Croix is of the 11th cent. Romanesque. S. Martin's was erected in the 12th cent. and is now a ruin. In 1793 the Republican garrison of Josselin swept the country to capture the priests, and was fallen upon and defeated by the exasperated peasantry. In 1795 they burned the church of Guegon and smashed the Calvary, but were again attacked and driven off by the peasants.
The famous Battle of the Thirty took place on the Lande de Mi-Voie, between Ploermel and Josselin. The English-Bretons were under Captain Bramber or Bemborough, and the French-Bretons under the Sire de Beaumanoir, governor of Josselin. Although it has been regarded as a battle between English and French, there were actually but three or four of English
The country around is well-wooded and pretty. The town is dirty and ruinous.
Guegon. The church is in the late Romanesque of the 12th cent., when the style was in transition to 1st pointed. The south aisle is of 1560 and late flamboyant. In a window is stained glass representing the apostles; it is of 1563. The tower and spire were the loftiest in the diocese, but were struck by lightning in 1705.
S. Servan. To this parish Gobrian, Bishop of Vannes, retired in 717 and here died in 725. He was buried in his oratory. A village grew up about his tomb that bore his name. This is now a chapelry, and the chapel is of the 11th cent. with additions of the 15th cent. The nave is floored, forming an upper chamber which served as a hospital for the sick seeking health at the tomb of the Saint.
Jugon (C.N.) chl. arr. Dinan. A prettily situated town at the junction of two valleys, each occupied formerly by a lake and dominated by a strong castle at the fork. One of the lakes has been drained and the castle has been destroyed. The church has nave and S. tower, 2nd pointed and good. There is a
Lamballe (C.N.) chl. arr. S. Brieuc. A little town in a plain dominated by a ridge of granite that runs to the east and is crowned at its W. termination by the beautiful Chapel of Notre Dame, and by a windmill at the E. termination. In Lamballe are some picturesque old houses, and there is a haras for the improvement of the breed of horses in Brittany. The town possesses three churches, one of which is Notre Dame, and was a chapel of the counts of PenthiÈvre, and is by far the finest in the town, but it is now only occasionally that divine service is performed in it.
The parish church of S. Jean is of the late middle pointed style, 1425, with an octagonal tower of 1420 at the base, but much later at the crown. The church has been atrociously mutilated, all the tracery cut out of the windows in the 18th cent. to be replaced by an iron framework to sustain the glass. The Church of S. Martin was of early Romanesque of the beginning of the 11th cent., but the arches to the east show the beginning of the pointed style. The S. transept possesses a good middle pointed geometric window. The tower was begun in 1551 and became purely renaissance before completion. The quaint wooden porch was added in 1519.
The Church of Notre Dame is a magnificent
S. Aaron. On the Lande du ChÊne-hut is an allÉe couverte composed of 13 stones, three of which are coverers, and two others lie in the soil. The whole is 30 feet long.
Meslin. Five allÉes couvertes on the Lande du Gras. One is in the middle of the Lande, one just below the mill, a third in the Champ des Caves, a fourth at Bourdonnais. In the Lande du Gras is a menhir 10 feet high.
* Landerneau (F.) chl. arr. Brest. An excellent centre for many interesting excursions. The town is commercial and thriving. It possesses a few old houses and a quaint mill. The Church of S. Houardon has been rebuilt,
Pencran. A steep ascent of a mile leads to this very interesting church, with fine porch and two calvaries and a spire. The date of the porch is 1553. The sculpture here in Kersanton stone is peculiarly rich and delicate. Among the groups of figures may be distinguished Adam and Eve, and the serpent, the expulsion from Paradise, Cain and Abel, Adam delving whilst Eve spins, the Ark and the drunkenness of Noah. In the tymphanum is the Nativity, much mutilated. Within the church are the Descent from the Cross and the Mater dolorosa, groups carved in 1517.
La Roche Maurice. In a most picturesque situation, the church embowered in trees on a height above the river, and a ruined castle on a rock of white quartz. The castle belonged to the dukes of Rohan whose eldest sons bore the title of Princes de LÉon, on account of the large family possessions in LÉon. The church has a slim tower with double galleries and two sets of open bell cages, and is an excellent typical example of a style very common in the Department of FinistÈre. Its date is 1589. The porch with some fine foliage in Kersanton stone is of 1530-40. In the churchyard is a good ossuary of 1640. On it is represented Death darting at all sorts and conditions of men, with the inscription "Je vous tue tous." At the entrance to the churchyard are three pillars that support the cross of Christ and the two thieves. Within the church the magnificent east window with its stained glass of 1539 at once arrests the eye. It represents the story of the Passion and reproduces that in S. Mathieu at Quimper, and that in the church of Tourch. After the stained glass, the screen attracts attention. It is renaissance and is the sole example left in its proper position in a parish church in the dioceses of LÉon and Quimper. P. Ascension Day. But at Pontchrist, a ruined renaissance church by the river in a picturesque situation, on the 4th S. in July.
La Martyr. This was the scene of the murder of Solomon, King of Brittany, in 874. Solomon had assassinated his cousin Erispoe,
S. Divy. This church possesses a ceiling painted with a series of subjects from the life of S. David. P. Sunday after Ascension and 2nd S. in September.
Dirinon (S. Nonna). The name signifies the steps of Nonna. The church stands on very high ground. It is in the usual style of transition between flamboyant and renaissance (1588-93). A chapel in the churchyard contains the tomb of S. Nonna, mother of S. David, and wife of Sandde, grandson of Ceredig, who drove the Irish out of S.W. Wales and gave its name to Cardigan. The tomb, however, is a work of the 15th cent. At a little distance from the village is her well (1623). At the further end of the village is that of S. David. P. 2nd S. after Trinity.
Plougastel. The costumes of this district are very picturesque. The men wear blue or violet jackets and three waistcoats and sashes. The church is modern, but in the churchyard is a marvellous Calvary (1602-4) consisting of an arcade under a platform crowded with statues, and a frieze surrounds it, carved with subjects in
* LANDIVISIAU (F.) chl. arr. Morlaix. A small town on the high road from Morlaix to Brest. It forms an excellent starting point for several interesting excursions. The church is modern, but has a tower and spire of 1590, partaking of the fault of all those in LÉon and Cornouailles of this period. It is thin and pinched. The date of the superb porch is 1554. It is an interesting study, as it serves as a link between those of pure flamboyant and such as are true renaissance. About the great arch are subjects from the Old Testament. Within are the twelve apostles; the corbels supporting them are curious and varied; symbolical. For instance, one represents two drunken soldiers carrying off two girls, one carrying a mirror, another a sceptre, signifying that damsels with vanity or arrogance fall an easy prey. In the cemetery outside the town is an ossuary, date about 1620. In the town is the Holy Well of S. Divisiau, almost buried among houses. It supplies a large public washing basin. Two ranges of an arcade surmount it, containing ten panels that have come from some tomb of the 16th cent. Landivisiau, with its comfortable hotel, is a good starting-place for excursions to places where the accommodation is not all that could be desired.
S. ThÉgonnec. This place is richly deserving of a visit with its church, and churchyard overcrowded with piles of granite, Calvary and ossuary and triumphal arch. The last mentioned is of 1587 and is cumbrous but effective. These triumphal arches first made their appearance at the close of the Gothic period. This is wholly Italian in character. The ossuary adjoins it and belongs to a later period, but is far purer in design, 1676-7. The faÇade is very rich and beautiful. Within in a crypt is a Holy Sepulchre, life sized figures of 1702. The Calvary dates from 1610 and represents scenes of the Passion. The oldest portion of the church is the west doorway with the little bell-turret rising above it; this dates from 1563. At a later date the huge tower was erected on the south with a porch in its basement, built between 1599 and 1610, the statues added in 1632. Above the porch is the statue of S. ThÉgonnec (To-quessnac, a disciple of Paul of LÉon). The window tracery is modern and does not faithfully represent the old tracery. The nave was built in 1777. The furniture of the church is interesting. The pulpit, though late, is fine. A niche with shutters painted with scenes from the Saint's life contains a statue of the patron. Opposite is another statue of the B.V.M. with painted shutters. The tower is heavy, and the effect of chamfering the angles very unpleasing. To support the gallery the angles of the tower are very massive, buttresses are added and between them the wall is reduced,
Locmelar is reached by ascending a pretty valley that contains an affluent of the Elorn. The church is late flamboyant, with apse and gables. The porch is of the common type of the period and contains statues of the apostles. There is a Calvary. The tower dates from 1656. Over a side altar is a painting representing in a series of groups the legend of S. HervÉ, a blind bard saint who contributed greatly to the downfall of Conmore, acting in conjunction with Gildas and S. Samson.
Bodilis. The tower of this church was erected when Gothic architecture was in its decline. It is surmounted by a spire with spirelets at the angles rising from a gallery. The porch is of 1570, and is of unusual beauty. Within are the apostles; below the niches runs a band of marvellous richness of sculpture and great variety. The font is surmounted by a baldachin in Kersanton stone of 1680. P. on Ascension Day.
S. Servais. This church has an early renaissance tower with double galleries and two bell cages, the whole surmounted by a spire and pinnacles. The body of the church is of the latter half of the 17th cent. The graveyard
There is a Holy Well of S. Miliau outside the village.
Lampaul-Guimiliau. The great tower of this church (S. Paul of LÉon) was founded in 1573, and is very lofty and surmounted by a spire which has remained incomplete. The porch is fifty years older. Within are the apostles in very quaint niches. The sculpture of the Holy Water Stoup and of the inner doorway is remarkably rich. The font is of 1651, and is surrounded and surmounted by a baldachino of 1650. The pulpit, that is late, is a fine piece of wood carving. The east end of the choir terminates in an apse with gables. The Calvary, triumphal arch, and ossuary belong to 1668. P. 1st S. in May. At the Chapel of S. Anne, S. after 15th August.
See also Lambader and Plouneour-Menez.
* LANMEUR (F.) chl. arr. Morlaix. The church surmounts a crypt that is very curious and rude, and is attributed to the 10th cent. In this crypt was once the tomb of S. Melor (see under Guimiliau), whose body was transferred in the 9th cent. by refugee Bretons to Amesbury. There is a fountain in the crypt. Of the upper church only four piers and a small door belong to the original building. Near the church is the Romanesque Chapel of Kernitron (12th cent.). It is a cross church with a bold
S. Jean du Doigt is a complete and interesting collection of structures such as were wont to be grouped about a parish church. There is first the monumental church itself, in the midst of a graveyard entered by a triumphal arch, a Holy Well, a Calvary, an ossuary, and an open oratory, where mass is celebrated before an enormous crowd on the occasion of the Pardon, and, finally, the church possesses a rare collection of precious ornaments, such as belong to no other parish in the diocese. The triumphal arch is of the 15th cent. The Holy Well is in the churchyard, and is a noble renaissance structure composed of a large basin, with two superposed vessels, from which heads of angels spout water. The whole is surmounted by a group representing the Baptism of Christ. Almost in face of this is a pretty oratory of 1574, very elaborately and quaintly sculptured. The tower is surmounted by spire and spirelets covered with lead. The east end of the church has in it a noble rose window. At the foot of the tower is an ossuary, and a second of 1618 is on the S.W. The S. porch has a parvise chamber above the doorway. The interior is rich, and the inner doorway is surmounted by a statue of the Baptist in a Gothic niche with wings. The church was commenced in 1440, and was completed in 1513, so that it belongs to an excellent period of flamboyant, of which unfortunately examples are few. Internally the exaggerated height of the pillars as
Plougasnou has an interesting church on a storm-beaten coast. The interior is Romanesque, but the exterior dates from 1574. It has a tower of 1582. A curious Chapel of N.D. de Lorette with caryatides is shaped like an old Lycian tomb.
Guimaec. Here are two cromlechs or stone-circles.
Lannilis (F.) chl. arr. Brest. The church modern and bad. The tower is of 1774, in the true LÉon style, and interesting as showing to how late a date the style continued. It has two galleries for four bells, and spire with ample spirelets. The line is carried on to the sea, where there is a watering place at Abervach. The coast is not remarkable, but there are good sands.
Plouguerneau. On the east is the site of Tolente, a town that was completely destroyed by the Northmen in 875. P. of TrÉminach
LocbrÉvelaire. The valley of the Abervach is here pretty. The place is mainly of interest to the geologist. The whole hill on which LocbrÉvelaire stands is composed of Tertiary Oligocene, the ruins of granite, and is of a spongy nature, full of kaolin and with lumps and bands of quartz undissolved, and much mica. It is quarried for road-making, but the quartz alone is of value for that purpose. Almost certainly below this spongy mass a bed of kaolin would be found. The church (S. Brevelaire = S. Brendan) lies on one side of the valley in a lap of the hills, and opposite are the noble woods and park of the ChÂteau de Liscoat. The church contains an arcade of the 11th cent., very rude. The S. wall is 17th cent. The tower of the same. There is, in the churchyard wall, a Holy Well surmounted by a statue of the Saint. S. Brendan, afterwards Abbot of Clonfert, was forced to leave Ireland in 520, owing to his having unintentionally caused the death of one of his pupils, and he spent seven years away from it, during which time he founded a monastery on the island of CÉzambre, opposite S. Malo, and another in a different part of Brittany. This latter may be LocbrÉvelaire.
*
Loquivy is in a charming situation. The church (S. David) is interesting. In the churchyard is a noble renaissance fountain, and outside the graveyard a Holy Well, flamboyant, surmounted by a statue of the patron saint of Wales. The church is of the 16th cent. An old carved oak retable representing the Adoration of the Magi and a crowd of other figures is in the baptistery.
Ploubezre. The church was rebuilt in 1851, but the fine tower is of 1577. Within have been preserved two Romano-byzantine capitals from the old church, and one window of the 14th cent. remains. The chapel of Kerfons is flamboyant, and is in the form of a T. One of the gables bears the date 1559. The magnificent roodscreen is of 1533. It is a beautiful example of good flamboyant work, with apostles and other figures on the gallery on one side, and tracery on the other. The castle of Coetfrec occupies the summit of a hill above the Guer. Four towers remain, and the castle is in a tolerable condition. The court is looked into by the windows of the state apartments, in one of these, a fireplace with bold chimney-piece, remains. The ChÂteau de Kergrist is a ruin, complete. Tonquedec is another old castle in a most picturesque situation. On the N. is the donjon, which is reached by a door high up in the wall. The Chapel of S. Gildas is of 15th cent., with the legend of the Saint within in sculptured oak.
Lanvollon (C.N.) chl. arr. S. Brieuc. Reached by carrier from ChÂtelaudren, is a dull town with one curious old house in it at the junction of two streets; it is of wood and plaster, the wood covered with carving. The church (S. Vollon = Foelan) belongs internally to the 14th cent., and has a good E. window, but externally the church has been sadly maltreated by incompetent "restorers."
* LESNEVEN (F.) chl. arr. Brest. An
The branch line is carried on to Brignogan, which is a watering-place, and where there is a fine menhir 30 ft. high, the most remarkable in the Department. At PlounÉour-trez the church is new, but the old tower and spire are retained till they also can be pulled down and replaced by something more in proportion with the new church. The windows represent scenes in Breton history. The coast is not fine, the sandy shore slopes very gently into the waves. But the good bathing is an advantage.
FolgoËt. This famous pilgrimage church was founded in the 14th cent. when an imbecile youth died who could say no other words than Ave Maria, Salaun a zepre bara, or Salaun wants bread. A lily grew out of his grave and it was concluded accordingly that he was a saint. This was in 1358. At the west end are two towers. That on the north is admirably proportioned with spire and angle spirelets of the period, 1365, when Jean de Montfort laid the first stone. That on the S. was never finished. It is surmounted by an upper stage with Ionic pillasters added in the 17th cent. The S. side has a noble porch and transept, the E. wall of which is a continuation of that of the choir. The E. and S. transept windows are examples of the geometric style in Brittany, a rose resting on a transom. Within the stone screen is formed of three compartments, and though fine, is certainly inferior to such as are in wood. A spring wells up under the high altar and is conveyed to a Holy Well outside. La Doyenne is a picturesque building with turrets erected by Anne of Brittany, converted into Mairie and school. The P. is on the 7th and 8th September, and begins with vespers and a procession bearing candles; many beautiful costumes may be seen on this occasion.
The processions arrive with banners for High Mass, singing this hymn.
Patronez dous ar Folgoat, Hor mam ak non
Itroun, An dour en non daoulagat Ni noped a gatoun!
Harpit an Iliz santel! Aveldirolla
ra Tenn ok hir eo ar brezel! Ar peoc'h, O maria!
Goulven. The church is late flamboyant with a fine renaissance tower and porch within which are the apostles. Side by side may be seen a doorway of the earlier and of the later periods. There is a fine painted 16th cent. reredos in the church to a side altar. The gallery of the roodscreen has been made into a west gallery. About a mile distant is the Holy Well, with a stone trough at the side in which patients were placed and given a bath in the miraculous water. No such an attempt to recover health has however been made of late years. There is a chapel at the Peniti of S. Goulven at a little distance. A double dolmen at a junction of two lanes has been much injured, several of the stones that composed one of the chambers, and perhaps an enclosing circle, have been employed for the hedge. The P. is on
Treflez. Tomb of 16th cent. of S. Elfleda or Ediltruda, daughter of Oswy, King of Northumberland, and Abbess of Whitby. She died in 715, but how her body comes to be at Treflez passes knowledge.
Guiseny. Church of S. Sezni (Setna or in Cornwall, Sithney) renaissance. There is a N. late flamboyant porch. Curious early Calvary with four figures on the branches. P. 3rd Sunday in September.
LÉzardrieux (C.N.) chl. arr. Lannion, on a little tidal port, between Pampol and TrÉguier. An excursion may be made to the Ile Modez. See BrÉhat.
LocminÉ (M.) chl. arr. Pontivy (Locus Monachorum). A considerable district was here made over to Gildas who founded a monastery where now stands the village of Moustoir. Owing to the ravages of the Northmen the monks of S. Gildas de Rhuys and of LocminÉ fled into Berry. They returned in 1001, and set about restoring their ruined monasteries, but the old site at Moustoir was not rebuilt upon; the abbey was transferred to LocminÉ. The parish church and the Chapel of S. Columbanus are side by side, in communication through an arch. The latter owes its origin to some relics of S. Columbanus having been brought hither. The chapel is late flamboyant, but has a 17th cent. tower, under it an earlier doorway with mutilated tracery above it. The parish church has a slated spire, that of S. Columbanus is surmounted by a small cupola. A quaint ossuary of good renaissance work is on the N. side. The east window of the chapel contains 16th cent. glass representing the life of S. Columbanus in four groups, but in a very poor condition. East of the chapel is the beautiful Chapel of N.D. de Plasquer, of the finest flamboyant work. The W. doorway has disengaged pinnacles and some curious carving. The E. window tracery forms three fleurs-de-lys. Within is a pretty flamboyant credence in the N. chapel under the tower. In a corner thrown aside is a noble carved oak statue of S. Gildas of the 15th cent. with his symbol, a snarling dog, at his side. P. 31st June, but that of
Remungol has a Holy Well near the church, a work of the 16th cent.
Lorient, chl. d'arr. A port. The town is composed of Lorient itself, a fortified place, and the Faubourg of KÉrentrech, where a suspension bridge crosses the Scorff. Lorient owes its origin to the East India Company. That company, created in 1664, was in quest of a port. The Duc de la Meilleraye offered Port Louis, and in 1666 royal authority was granted to the company to form there quays, factories and storehouses. The village founded by La Compagnie de l'Orient took thence its name. The company having got over a financial crisis in 1669 bought up land in the neighbourhood. In 1712 the settlement comprised 700 families; it was raised to be a parish in 1709. In 1717 the company began to build and lay out quays and form basins on a grand scale, and in 1739 Lorient attained the dignity of being accounted a town. In 1745, the company had reached its highest point of prosperity, and had become a veritable maritime power, with 35 frigates in the harbour. Its flag was blue charged with a fleur-de-lys or, and it had as device Florebo quocunque ferar. English jealousies were aroused, and in 1746 an English fleet anchored in the Bay of Pont-du. Seven thousand men were disembarked under General Sinclair and summoned the town to surrender. As this was refused it was besieged, but after a few
Port Louis. The Church of N.D., 1665. The citadel of the 18th cent., at one time served as a prison to Louis Napoleon.
Ploemeur. A circle of standing stones 20 ft. in diameter surrounds a tumulus, on the top of which is a dolmen fallen, thrown down by clumsy excavators. Near Kerroch a dolmen, the table sustained by three uprights, and near it the supporter of another. On the S. some menhirs, the remains of an alignment. At Kerpape, near the powder mill, another dolmen. At the Pointe du Tallut a menhir 12 ft. high, and near it another fallen. Ploumaur, the Great Tribe, was one of the largest parishes in the diocese; it was settled by S. Ninnoc, supposed to have been a daughter of the King of Brecknock. Her double monastery for both sexes was destroyed by the Northmen, and it was not rebuilt till the 12th cent. The church contains Romanesque work, but the tower was built in
Plouhinec. On the N. near Kerfourches two ruined dolmens and a menhir. The W., near the mill of Keronsine, alignments running parallel with the coast. Near Kersur a small menhir and four dolmens. At the mill of Gueldro the alignments recommence in seven or eight rows, and run on to KerouÉ and KervelhuÉ. At Magouer a tumulus with a dolmen and a group of menhirs, most of them fallen, and others have been split and used for building purposes.
Kervignac. On the N. a fine dolmen near the road to Hennebont. Another to the south near Kermado.
Nostang. S. of the village near the river Etel an alignment of 19 menhirs. For Ile de Groix, see under Pont-aven.
LouvignÉ du Desert (I.V.) chl. arr. FougÈres. Church (S. Padarn) of the 15th cent. with a tower of 1702. A circle of upright stones. The ChÂteau of Monthorion with tombs of Raoul II. de FougÈres (1194) and FranÇoise de Foix in the chapel.
Malestroit (M.) chl. arr. Ploermel. The castle is on an islet of the Saudraye; it was
Matignon (C.M.) chl. arr. Dinan. The parish church is modern but the Chapel of S. Germain is the old parish church and has a Romanesque doorway.
S. Cast, a watering place with good sands. In 1758, the English fleet under Admiral Howe, after having bombarded S. Malo and burnt Dol, disembarked a body of men here. The Duc d'Aiguillon, then governor of Brittany, hastened to the spot, and in spite of the fire of the fleet defeated and almost exterminated the invaders. A monument marks the site of the windmill in which the duke watched the engagement.
PlÉboulle. The Templar church is of the
PlÉvenon. In this commune is the noble headland of Cap FrÉhel, of old red sandstone. Here is a lighthouse. The Fort de Latte is on a point of rock in the sea 5 kilometres from Cap FrÉhel, and entered by two bridges cast over precipices 300 ft. deep. Facing the fort is a rude stone 9 ft. high surmounted by a cross, probably a menhir.
Mauron (M.) chl. arr. Ploermel. Stands on high ground, watered by the Yvel and Doeft, which unite above Ploermel in the pretty lake of Le Duc. In 1352 the Castle of Mauron was held by Bentley with a body of Anglo-Bretons. The Marshal d'Offemont, at the head of an army of the adherents of Charles de Blois, resolved on taking the place. Bentley marched out against him and obtained a complete victory. Thirteen lords fell, among them the Marshal and the Viscount de Rohan. A hundred and forty knights also succumbed. The Parish Register, 1591, is headed:—"Baptismal Register of Mauron made after the Prince of Darkness with the English and the lancequenects of his company had passed. They spent the Sunday here, September 8, 1591, pillaged and plundered all they could lay hands on in the church, and carried off the baptismal register—on which account this book is now begun." The church is modern but retains
S. Lery. A church of the 15th cent. except the chancel which is modern. In a chapel of the S. transept of flamboyant date is some fine old glass representing the marriage of the Duchess Anne with Charles VIII. of France. On the north of the nave is the tomb of S. Lery, and on it the Saint is represented with a pastoral staff in his hand, a book in the other, and his feet resting on a hare. S. Lery was a native of Wales who crossed over to Armorica and was well received by Judicael. As he desired a retreat, the Queen turned Ilogan, an Irish saint, out of his, and gave his lair warm to Lery, who had no compunction in receiving it. He died in the 7th cent.
Merdignac (C.N.) chl. arr. LoudÉac, stands on the road from LoudÉac to S. MÉen. West of the town is the fortified enclosure of the Vielle Court. Excavations have shown that the wall was vitrified.
S. Launeuc near a pretty lake. Here are the ruins of the Castle of Hardouinaye almost destroyed, where Gilles de Bretagne was starved to death in 1450. Gilles had been left by his father a sum of money, and he complained to his brother, Duke Francois I., and asked to be given some fief in the duchy. But Francis refused his request and threw in his teeth that he favoured the English rather than the French.
Muzillac (M.) chl. arr. Vannes. Church of Bourg Peaul with side aisles, Romanesque, and with a slated tower. Chancel 1505. The very rich and curious Calvary was restored in 1894.
Billiers. Here are the remains of the Cistercian Abbey of N.D. de PriÈres, founded in 1252. The church was pulled down in 1715 to make way for a hideous structure in the taste of the period.
Noyal Muzillac. The church (S. Noyala) was rebuilt in 1850, but the transepts and chancel of the 15th cent. remain. The tower was struck by lightning in 1630 and rebuilt. The ChÂteau de Keralio, of the 15th cent., is in ruins.
Montauban (I.V.) chl. arr. Montfort. A modern church. The castle on the edge of the forest is of the 14th and 15th cents., and was once the seat of a powerful family to which it gave its name.
Montcontour (C.N.) chl. arr. S. Brieuc, still possesses remnants of its ancient walls. The church (S. Mathurin) is mainly of the 16th cent.; the spire is covered with lead. Six windows retain magnificent old glass representing the life of the Saviour, that of S. John Baptist, the legend of S. Barbara, that of S. Yves, remains of a Jesse tree, and the legend of S. Mathurin (1535). Montcontour lies on very high ground, and commands a magnificent view. S. Mathurin is much sought by pilgrims who have the highest belief in his powers. The P. is on the eve of Whitsunday with procession carrying lights, and on Whitmonday, with dancing.
TrÉbry. A dolmen at Ville-Valen, consisting of four supports and a coverer.
TrÉdaniel. The Chapel of N.D. du Haut is mainly of the 14th cent., and has a fine porch of the 16th.
Montfort (I.V.) chl. d'arr. At the junction of the Mieu and the Garun. A great round tower of the 15th cent. and a portion of wall adjoining are all that remain of the ancient ramparts. The Church of S. Jean Baptiste is modern, but contains retables of the 17th cent. The remains of the Abbey of S. Jacques, founded in 1152, has a church of the 14th cent. and
Mordelles (I.V.) chl. arr. Rennes, on the Meu.
* MORLAIX (F.) chl. d'arr., is situated in a deep cleft valley at the junction of the Jarlot and Qufflent, and has a tidal port. The town is spanned and dwarfed by the magnificent viaduct of the railway to Brest. The town has only one interesting church, S. Melaine (1489-1574). A flight of steps leads to the west door. The S. porch is fine. The baldachino of the font is of 1660, and the organ and gallery are of about the same date and rich. Morlaix contains a number of picturesque houses with galleries about interior courts. The newels of the stairs are often effectively carved. Admission to some may be obtained by application at the door. In the Rue des Nobles is the house of the Duchesse Anne, erected in 1500. The church of the Dominican Convent, founded in 1237, is desecrated. A floor has been introduced at the height of the capitals of the pillars, the basement is made into a lumber chamber, and the upper storey into a museum. It possesses a beautiful window of the 13th cent., a transom sustaining a rose, lights below the transom cusped and sustaining trefoils. This window deserves a study. By descending the Rue des Vignes and turning to the right, the
For objects of interest in the neighbourhood, see under TaulÉ.
Mur (C.N.) chl. arr. LoudÉac. Two menhirs by the road from Mur to Corlay, one at Botrain is a rude quartz block, square and tapering to a point 12 ft. high. The church is modern. The Chapel of Ste. Suzanne, 1760, has the legend of the Saint painted on the ceiling.
Caurel. By the road from Pontivy to Guingamp, at the hamlet to Belaire, is a menhir of slaty schist 15 ft. high. On the Lande de Caurel another slate menhir 10 ft. high, and five others prostrate. Another on the same Lande 15 ft. high and shaped like a rectangular
S. Guen. Church of the 18th cent. A Calvary of the 15th cent. with a stone seat at the foot. The Chapel of S. Tugdual of the 14th cent. contains the remains of a rood screen.
Paimpol (C.N.) chl. arr. S. Brieuc. An important fishing place, the headquarters of the Iceland fleet. The whole of this portion of CÔtes-du-Nord facing east formed anciently the county of Goelo. The "Icelanders" fleet starts on February 20, and is absent till the autumn. As many as 180 vessels leave Paimpol and the other little ports on the Bay of S. Brieuc for this annual fishing in the polar seas. The blessing of the fleet takes place with solemnity before it departs. Paimpol is the scene of Pierre Lotti's novel, "PÉcheur d'Islande." The church of 1525 has a fine flamboyant east window. There are several old houses in the streets. The isle of BrÉhat may be visited, see under BrÉhat.
Kerfot. The oldest parts of the church are of the 14th cent., but the rest from 1514 to 1682. Remains of the roodscreen have been converted into a pew.
Kerity. Fine ruins of the Abbey of Beauport, an unique example in Brittany of a monastic
Le Palais (M.) chl. arr. Lorient, in the island of Belle Ile. It has a citadel constructed by Vauban. The old walls remain. A military hospital and a reformatory for young criminals are at Le Palais. The castle of Foulquet commands the little port of that name. The church (S. GÉran) bears as its dedication the name of the heroic king of British Domnonia, who fell at Langport in Somersetshire in 522 fighting the Saxons. He had a fleet in the Severn, and his wife was the beautiful Enid, whose story has been revived by Tennyson in the Idylls of the King. The Bretons having forgotten who he was have identified him now with S. Senan of Iniscathy and then with S. Curig, and represent him as a bishop.
* PERROS GUIREC (C.N.) chl. arr. Lannion. The church has a Romanesque nave with semi-circular arches resting on the N. side on capitals with cable mouldings. The arcade on the S. side is somewhat later. The chancel is early pointed, with an extraordinary east window of the 17th cent., an instance of the complete extinction of the skill to design and
N.D. de la ClartÉ is a delightful example of flamboyant work at its best, 1414. The little harbour of Perros Guirec is illumined by five lighthouses on account of its dangerous character, and there are five more on the Sept Iles. The sandy cove of Trestraou has a town built round its lap that lives only in the bathing season, at all other times it is uninhabited.
S. Quay. The church has no side aisles but double transepts, and is good 2nd pointed. The W. tower is good renaissance of 1732.
Ploumanach, a fishing village among rocks, is only curious on account of the oratory of S. Kirec (Curig) on a rock in the bay, surrounded at every tide. The pillars and pillasters are of the 11th cent.
TrÉgastel. The village is situated about a mile from the coast, which is composed of masses of weather-worn granite in strange forms, among and against which modern residences have been run up for the accommodation of lodgers during the bathing season. On the highest point of ground inland a Calvary has been erected of masses of granite piled up, surmounted by a cross, whence a fine view is obtained of the coast and the Sept Iles. The Church of TrÉgastel is of the 13th cent. with
Pleumeur-Bodou. Beside the road from the village to Ile Grande is a fine menhir 24 ft. high, the summit shaped into a cross, and the face sculptured with the instruments of the Passion. In the Ile Grande is an allÉe couverte, composed of fourteen supporters and two coverers. It is surrounded by a circle of stones. The Chapel of S. Samson is of the 16th cent. with a spirelet on an octagonal turret. The E. window is flamboyant.
TrÉbeurden. Nine menhirs within sight of one another. One is a hundred paces (S.) from the windmill of TrÉvern, and is 7 ft. high; another is on the Lande de VÉades of the same height; a third is a hundred paces from this, and is 12 ft. high; a fourth at the ChÂteau de Kerrariou, 7 ft. 6 in. high; a fifth between Kerrariou and the windmill, broken; a sixth near Bologne, 10 ft. high; a seventh W. of the preceding and at the edge of the shore, 10 ft. high; the eighth near Bonne Nouvelle, 7 ft.; the last is near the peninsula of ToËnnou, about the same height. There is a fine dolmen on the Ile Milliau, measuring 28 ft. long, covered by three slabs on eleven supporters; another is on the shore at Prajou-menhir, half fallen, 34 ft. long, composed of twenty-one supporters and four coverers; a third is at Kevellec, four stones support a single coverer; a fourth in
TrÉvou-TrÉguignec. Three menhirs in the Ile Balanec, and a partly ruined dolmen near the modern ChÂteau de Boisriou. Seven uprights support two coverers.
Pipriac (I.V.) chl. arr. Redon. A dull, uninteresting place.
Guipry. At FougÈres is an alignment of seven upright stones. In the Lande de Godier is an ancient camp. N.D. de Bon-Port, 1644, is resorted to by pilgrims.
Saint Just. On the Lande de Cojoux several megalithic monuments, and on that of TrÉal an allÉe couverte, called La Grotte aux FÉes, 40 ft. long.
Plancoet (C.N.) chl. arr. Dinan. Pleasantly situated on the tidal Argenton, which above the turn flows through a pleasant picturesque valley. Plancoet (Plou-lann-coet = the Clan of the Church in the Wood), has a modern vulgar church. In a little lake 3 kilometres from the town are the scanty remains of the ChÂteau de la Tour de la Vache, 13th cent., consisting of one square tower. From Plancoet several interesting excursions may be made.
Crehen. The allÉe couverte of La Ville-GÉnouan is 42 ft. long, and is composed of eleven supporters on the N. and twelve on the S., and five covering stones. It is the finest example in the Department, and is in private grounds.
Landebia. The church has been restored.
The visitor will probably start from Landebia to visit the ChÂteau de la Hunaudaye in the parish of PlÉdeliac. The ruins of this magnificent castle are extensive. The castle dates from 1578, except one tower that is over a century earlier. It is a pentagon flanked by five towers at the angles, and surrounded by deep ditches. Why so strong a pile should have been planted where the ground does not in any way lend itself to defence is hard to see. The state hall and staircase were especially fine, but are far gone in ruin. The earliest tower has about the entrance from the court some rude carvings, executed perhaps by a prisoner on the jamb of the door on which light fell. The date of this carving is early 17th cent. Near the hamlet of Hazardine is a coarse menhir 16 ft. high and 30 ft. in circumference. The ruins of the Abbey of Saint Aubin des bois are scanty. The chapel is of the end of the 15th cent.
Pleine-FougÈres (I.V.) chl. arr. S. Malo. Destitute of interest.
PlÉlan le Petit (C.N.) chl. arr. Dinan. On high bleak country, mostly moor and only partially reclaimed.
PlÉneuf (C.N.) chl. arr. S. Brieuc, reached
Erguy. An old Roman station, Rheginea, and numerous substructures of Gallo-Roman times have been uncovered here, also a mosaic pavement found and destroyed in 1835 by the boor to whom the land belonged. Numerous finds of Roman coins are made here. At the northern headland of the Lande de la Garenne is a prehistoric coast castle.
Planguenoual. The church is partly Romanesque, partly 13th cent. The bÉnitier shows signs of having been systematically employed as a knife-sharpener.
* PLESTIN LES GRÈVES (C.N.) chl. arr. Lannion. Fine sands. The tide recedes here to a great distance. Plestin (Plou-Jestin) owes its origin to an Irish emigrant Efflam, who settled here with a colony of his countrymen in the 6th cent. He found that a British settler was there before him, Jestin, probably the son of Geraint, prince of Devon. He came to terms with him without a quarrel, the arrangement being that one should rule the secular and the other the ecclesiastical tribe. Plestin before this would seem to have been a Gallo-Roman town, as numerous remains as well as coins indicate. The church, much altered, contains the tomb of S. Efflam, of the 16th cent. The porch is of 1575, and contains statues of the twelve apostles. The Chapel of S. Jacut of the 16th cent. has some old glass.
Plou Miliau was the plebs or tribal land of Miliau, King of Cornouaille, who was murdered by his brother Rivold. The church is in debased Gothic of 1602.
PlouzÉlambre. The church is of the 15th and 16th cents., with flamboyant windows. The tower of 1753. In the church a fine renaissance carved oak retable, with seven groups of figures on it, representing scenes of the Passion. In the churchyard a pretty ossuary of granite of the 17th cent. An oratory, consisting of a vault sustained by four columns, is called Le RÉposoir. Ruins of the ChÂteau of KerbanÉ of the 15th cent.
TrÉdez. A menhir 13 ft. high, with another near it that has fallen, that measured 24 ft. Near the ChÂteau de Coatredrez another, 19 ft. high. At Lan Saliou another of about the same height. In the church is a triptych representing a Jesse tree. The font has a fine baldachino of carved oak, of the 17th cent. The Chapel of LoquÉmeau is of the 16th cent., except one window in the N. transept, of the 14th. The frieze within is fantastically carved.
TrÉmel. A menhir at Kerguiniou, 16 ft. high, and near by a dolmen. The church is of the 16th cent., with apse; the porch has within statues of the apostles.
Plufur. Church of 1764; but it retains remains of a retable of the 16th cent. Sculptured scenes in relief of the Passion. In the
S. Michel-en-GrÈves. The Chapel of S. GeneviÈve has an early rude altar, and remains of a 16th cent. screen.
Pleyben (F.) chl. arr. ChÂteaulin. The noble church (S. Germain) of 1564 exhibits the transition from Gothic to Italian style. The church is regarded as one of the most beautiful ecclesiastical monuments in FinistÈre. From whatever point of view seen, the grouping of the towers, though so different in character, is most pleasing. The principal tower is tall and square, with a balustrade to the platform on the summit, and on this platform rises a cupola crowned by a lantern, and there are four lesser lanterns at the corners. The tower exhibits the renaissance style fully developed, yet it was constructed only twenty years after the rest of the church, which is instinct with Gothic feeling. The second tower was raised in 1588-91, and is in the late flamboyant style. It is graceful and quaint. The stair to the bellcage is carried up in a turret detached save for a flying gallery supported on a couple of arches. The fine porch dates from 1588-91, and contains statues of the apostles. It is surrounded by a cordon of niches, shallow but lofty, and forming an exterior enrichment. The statuary is stiff, but not without character. The east end of the church is an apse, with gables over the windows, which
* PLOERMEL (M.) chl. d'arr. The town stands but a little distance from the pretty lake of Le Duc, surrounded with trees. It occupies rising ground and has in its midst a magnificent church (1511-1602) chiefly remarkable for its collection of 16th century glass. This represents—1. Jean l'Epervier, Bishop of S. Malo, kneeling before the B.V.M. and S. Michael; 2. dated 1533 is Pentecost, a superb piece of colouring; 3. the Life of S. Armel; 4. a Jesse tree, the finest of all; 5. the Passion; 6. the Death and Assumption of the B.V.M.; 7. a window of 1602 contains diverse subjects; and 8. the Last Supper. Beside these old windows some modern glass is "a thing to shudder at not to see." Indeed the French do
Ploeuc (C.N.) chl. arr. S. Brieuc. Several menhirs, but some of them are broken. The church is of 1752. Ploeuc lies high.
Plaintel. A remarkable menhir 15 feet high planted point downward. Church of 1759.
Plouagat (C.N.) chl. arr. Guingamp, near ChÂtelaudren. In the churchyard a Christian lech bearing the inscription VORMVNI. Ruins of the priory of N.D. des Fontaines, some portions of which go back to Romanesque, but the major portion belongs to the 15th cent.
Goudelin. The Chapel of N.D. de l'Ile was founded in the 15th cent. and contains a statue of S. Eligius dressed in Breton bragou-bras.
Lanrodic. Le Vieux ChÂteau de Perrun is a good example of a camp, probably of the Northmen invaders and devastaters of Brittany or of the Merovingians. The embankment was revetted with blocks of quartz not set in mortar. The new chÂteau is a fine mediÆval ruin. It is surrounded by a deep moat and possesses a cylindrical tower with machicolation. All the rest of the original castle has disappeared, but in the midst of the court is a chÂteau built at the time of the renaissance, but that was burnt and gutted at the Revolution. It has, however, preserved its faÇade and some of its fine chimney-pieces. Among the fallen masses of sculpture may be seen a fragment of a verse of Virgil. "Quid pius Æneas tanto dabit indole dignum."
S. Pever. Ruins of the ChÂteau of Avauguer on a promontory above the Trieux and the lake. The chapel is of the 13th and 14th cents. and contains remains of an alabaster retable of the 16th cent.
* PLOUARET (C.N.) chl. arr. Lannion, at the junction of the branch line to Lannion.
Loquivy-Plougras. The fine Chapel of S. Emilion, the largest example of its kind in the Department, is of the 16th cent. It was begun in 1516 and the tower added in 1566.
For the beautiful chapel of Keramanachx, see under Plonevez Moedec, and for Tonquedec, see Lannion.
TrÉgrom. At Keranscot is a menhir 19 feet high called Menbras. At 300 paces from it is another 10 feet high. The church (S. Brendan of Clonfert) has been judiciously
Vieux MarchÉ. The church is a huge modern flamboyant structure, successful except
Ploubalay (C.N.) chl. arr. Dinan. Modern church. Ruins of the ChÂteau de Crochais.
S. Jacut-de-la-Mer. The site of an ancient abbey founded by Gwethenoc and Jacut, brothers of S. Winwaloe, at the beginning of the 6th cent. The brothers in Breton mythology replaced the Heavenly Twins of classic mythology, and were wont to be seen when invoked steering a vessel that was in danger of being overwhelmed and wrecked at sea. The abbey was given over in commendam to favourites at court, and the few monks left in it without supervision led such idle and worthless lives that the feeling of the country
TrÉgon. An allÉe couverte called Les Vielles HautiÈres is near the high road, and is 48 ft. long. Fourteen uprights sustain seven capstones. About 400 paces from this is a fallen dolmen. A vulgar modern church takes the place of an early Romanesque structure.
ChÂteau de Guildo. The old Castle is a ruin, in which Gilles de Bretagne was playing a game of tennis when snatched away, by order of his brother, Francis I., to be starved to death at La Hardouinais.
* PLOUDALMEZEAU (F.) chl. arr. Brest. The church was rebuilt in 1857, but the tower remains of 1775. Ploudalmezeau is in the old Pays d'Ach, and the British refugees swarmed hither, landing in the estuaries of the Aber Vrach, Aber Benoit, and the Aber Iltut. P. of S. Bridget, 15th August.
Lampaul Ploudalmezeau. Remains of an allÉe couverte, and by the roadside from Ploudalmezeau a menhir trimmed into shape and surmounted by a cross between two others of very early character. The church (S. Pol de LÉon) is very charmingly situated among trees, and the tower is not of the type of renaissance so common. It more resembles
Landunevez. La Four is a rock rising 200 ft. above the sea, and is supposed to indicate the point where the Ocean begins and the Channel ends. Fine ruins of the castle of TrÉmazan, where was born Tanguy du ChÂtel, who died 1449. He was one of the Generals of Charles VI. and Charles VII. After the Battle of Agincourt, things did not run as smoothly as represented by Shakespeare. The French Court was torn by factions. At the head of one was Jean sans Peur, Duke of Burgundy; at the head of the other the Armagnacs, the partisans of the Dauphin. In place of combining against the victorious English, they were engaged in murderous affrays between themselves. One night the Burgundians fell on and slaughtered the Armagnacs in the streets of Paris, and the
Plourin. The church (S. Budoc) is entirely modern, but excellent, the tower and spire are specially well proportioned. The E. flamboyant window is very good. Two old picturesque houses are near the church. Within the church is the pulpit from the old church of carved oak representing scenes from the legend of S. Azenore and her son Budoc. At Kergraden are two
Plouguin. Modern church. The chÂteau of Lesven possesses a painting over the altar in which is represented S. Gwen, her three breasts disguised by the central breast being made into a gilded disc, dressed in the costume of a lady of the beginning of the 17th cent. presenting her son Winwaloe to S. Corentin, who gives him the habit. Fragan, husband of Gwen Teirbron, is also represented in the painting as a knight in armour. The parish takes its name from Gwen, and her husband gives his name to the neighbouring parish of S. Fragan. In a marsh are the ruins of an oratory, where, according to local tradition, Winwaloe as a child practised the ascetic life. For LanrivoarÉ see S. RÉnan.
Plouescat (F.) chl. arr. Morlaix. A menhir, 21 ft. high.
Plounevez Lochrist. In this parish is the interesting chapel of Lochrist with its 13th cent. tower, bold and massive, and surmounted by a spire very different in character from the flimsy barley-sugar constructions of the 16th cent. and the beginning of the 17th. The chapel itself is modern.
Plouguenast (C.N.) chl. arr. LoudÉac. New and bad parish church, but happily the old one has been left, and contains some old glass, representing the Crucifixion, Entombment, and Pentecost. The altar rails are made out of the old roodloft gallery front, and bear representations of the apostles. Chapel of the Rosary
PlÉmy. A menhir, 12 ft. high, near DrÉny, on the road to Uzel. Two more of 9 ft. high at 300 paces thence. An old maison forte of the 16th cent. at Vaucles. At Ville Pierre remains of an Huguenot preaching station, a platform sustained on cylindrical pillars. Some of the great nobles of Brittany, casting covetous eyes on the church property, embraced the reform and encouraged the Calvinist preachers. But the people would have none of them.
Langast. The Church (S. Gall) of the 16th cent. has some old glass in the east window.
Plouha (C.N.) chl. arr. S. Brieuc. Modern uninteresting church. Four kilometres off is the Chapel of Kermaria, erected at different times. The first four arches belong to the 13th cent. The others as well as the S. porch and transept are flamboyant. This chapel contains a Dance of Death, in fresco, but now sadly faded. There are twenty-two subjects, each figure is attended by a skeleton. Above the Dance are eight prophets, seated. The chandeliers are of hammered iron.
Lanleff has a circular Romanesque church in ruins. It belongs to the 11th or early 12th cent. A portion of the external wall has fallen, exposing the arcade. Much fanciful stuff was published relative to this church early last century. It was supposed to have been a pagan temple. Near it is a well, the water issues from a three-lobed opening. Above is a stone
Plouigneau (F.) chl. arr. Morlaix. A menhir and a prehistoric camp. P. Ascension Day followed by dancing and a fair. P. at the chapel of S. Eloi 3rd Sunday in June.
Plougonven. A calvary of the 17th cent. A fallen dolmen and three menhirs.
PlouzÉvede (F.) chl. arr. Morlaix. In this commune is the very interesting chapel of Berven, with a beautiful tower. It stands by the highway from S. Pol de LÉon to Lesneven, which runs mainly over the old Roman road, and was that taken by S. Paulus Aurelianus when he came from the land of Ach to the town that now bears his name. The entrance to the churchyard is by a triumphal arcade, the arches separated and sustained by Corinthian pillars. The beautiful tower and spire were built in 1567. The rood screen is late, 17th cent., and on it are four panel paintings. The tower sustains two galleries and superposed bell chambers. The whole surmounted by a lantern. It is of the same type as that of Rorcoff, but is more elegant. It is later than the church.
Plouvorn. The church is modern, but the chapel of
S. Vougai. Church (S. Fiacc of Stetty) of the 16th cent. The chÂteau of Kerjean is a fine example of a late flamboyant and renaissance castle. After having been in ruins, it has been repurchased by a descendant of the ancient family to which it originally belonged, and is being gradually restored. One wing was destroyed by fire in the 18th cent., the rest was wrecked at the Revolution. It is called the Versailles of FinistÈre.
Pluvigner (M.) chl. arr. Lorient. This was the centre of a vast district comprising nine parishes, that formed the "plou" of Fingar, an Irish settler, who, after having established himself here with a number of colonists, returned to Ireland to fetch more, but was carried by contrary winds into S. Ives' Bay in Cornwall, where the native prince Tewdrig fell on him and murdered most of the party. The place where he was killed is Gwinear. The church of Pluvigner is a vast building erected in 1545. The tower and spire, however, date from 1781. Numerous lechs are in the churchyard, and one is at the door of the mairie. The Holy Well of S. Guinger (Fingar) is of the 16th cent., a little way out of the village. According to the legend Fingar was hunting when he came to the well, and looking in saw his face reflected in the water. "On my word," said he; "I'm an uncommonly handsome
*
Nizon. Here are the fine 15th cent. ruins of the castle of RustÉphan flanked by turrets. Several dolmens are scattered over the neighbourhood, and menhirs as well, of which one is 21 feet high.
Nevez. About two miles to the east of the village are the important remains of the chÂteau of HÉnan, of the 15th cent., much altered in the 16th cent., with a keep some 75 feet high, machicolated. A dolmen is here whose capstone measures 45 feet in length, and 27 feet in breadth, and 6 feet thick. It has been converted into a smith's shop. At Nizon there are two Pardons, that of N.D. de Kergomet on the 1st Sunday in May; the other at N.D. de TrÉmalo on the 2nd Sunday in September. At Pont-aven the patronal feast is on the 3rd Sunday in September, and the P. of S. Mathurin on the 2nd Sunday in May. At Nevez the patronal feast is on the 2nd Sunday after Easter; the Pardon de S. Barbe, the 2nd Sunday in August; that of S. Nicolas the 1st Sunday of September; that of TrÉmorvÉzen the 2nd Sunday in September. The P. of S. Mathieu on the last Sunday in September: that of the Rosary Sunday in October, and there are fÊtes and a fair on the
Le Pouldu (the Black Pool) is a bathing place, where the climate is singularly warm, and plants that flourish in the south of France here stand the winter.
*
A walk or drive may be taken to N.D. de Confort on the Quimper road; it is 16th cent. with a graceful spirelet above a double gallery and a turret at the side to give access to the bells. The Calvary is of the same period, purer in design and better in detail than the overcrowded Calvaries of Guimiliau and Plougastel. In the chapel is a Wheel of Fortune set with bells, which the pilgrims set in motion so as to summon the Saint to hearken to their prayers. At Meilars is another Calvary, also a dolmen. Half-way between N.D. de Confort and Poullan is the admirable Chapel of Kerinec with its Holy Well and a Calvary consisting of a cross above a preaching platform. The great charm of this chapel lies in its interior, which is very beautiful. Further on is Poullan buried in trees (S. Cadvan), a transition church between flamboyant and renaissance, with a thin oblong tower and a good porch. There is no chancel arch. Nave and aisles have boarded ceilings. The granite capitals are rudely carved. The
* PONTIVY (M.) chl. d'arr. A busy town, very modern and vastly ugly in its modern portion, but with a few picturesque bits in the old town. In the new Pontivy is the hideous Church of S. Joseph, about as bad in architecture as the perversity of ignorance could design. The church in the old town in decadent flamboyant, is bad of its kind. The tracery had been removed from the windows, and has been replaced by new stuff of no character except feebleness. The W. tower is octagonal with a spire surmounting it. The castle has been in part destroyed, but two faces remain with singularly low drums of towers. In it is now the museum. The costume of the neighbourhood of Pontivy in the women is not remarkable, but that of the men is picturesque, white jackets bordered and ornamented with black velvet.
In the cemetery outside Pontivy is a menhir
Noyal-Pontivy. The church has a 14th cent. tower and spire. The porch is flamboyant. On one side within are apostles, on the other, curious subjects, The Baptism, an Angel holding a pair of blue breeches whilst Christ is in the water, a naked man carrying his head upside-down, and some other subjects not easily made out. The church has been carefully restored. The early flamboyant E. window has the date cut on the splay. The vaulting of nave and chancel is modern. In the N. transept is fine old glass representing the Annunciation, Nativity, Shepherds and Angels, Adoration of Shepherds, Circumcision, Flight into Egypt, Massacre of the Innocents; also the Bearing of the Cross, the Veronica, Crucifixion and Entombment from another window. In the nave is a curious painted retable of S. Maurice de Clohars, who d. 1191, and who was born in this parish. Noyala was one of the largest parishes in the diocese of Vannes, and Pontivy was a chapelry in it. S. GÉran, now a daughter church, was probably originally the head of a plou of Geraint, King of Domnonia. But now he is forgotten and
Stival. At the entrance to the village is the Holy Well of S. Meriadoc, late flamboyant to renaissance. The church is cross-shaped with a slated spire, and has no aisles. It has a boarded and painted roof, and the chancel is covered with paintings representing the legend of S. Meriadoc. The fine stained glass is in a deplorable condition. The E. window contains a Jesse tree. There are saints in the other windows. In the churchyard are a large late cruciform chapel and an ossuary.
Locmalo. The superb Chapel of N.D. de Quelven is an object of one of the most popular
Pont Scorff (M.) chl. arr. Lorient. The Scorff divides the town into two parts, the upper and the lower towns, united by two bridges. The Church of S. Albin is of 1610 with additions in 1710. One town was the religious, the other the secular. The religious one was Les-Albin (the Court of Albin), and here was born S. Albinus, who became Bishop of Angers in 529 and died in 550. P. 1st S. in March. P. of S. Yves, Sunday after 10th May. P. of S. NicodÈme 3rd Sunday in September.
Quevin (Coet-quen, the white wood). A menhir 16 ft. high, to the west a Calvary with fifteen figures. A Holy Well, and Chapel of S. Eloi, 16th cent., in the village, but altered in
Port Louis (M.) chl. arr. Lorient. The Church of N.D. was built in 1665. The Chapel of S. Pierre contains a statue of S. Elisha found in the sea at the beginning of the 17th cent., to which the Pope accorded sundry indulgences. Port Louis was but a small fishing village called Locperan till the beginning of the 17th cent. It possesses a citadel and a marine hospital. P. at Locmalo 26th July.
Questembert (M.) chl. arr. Vannes. Here, in 888, Alan I., Count of Vannes, encountered the Northmen and slaughtered 12,000 of them. Hardly 400 escaped to their ships. In consequence of this victory, Alan was proclaimed Duke of Brittany. Some crosses mark the spot where the battle raged. La Croix Rochue has a weapon like a halbert cut on it. La Croix Tuaint is marked with five nail heads and a small cross. La Croix À la PoÈle also has nail heads. The parish church is modern, 1863. In the churchyard a fine Calvary. The Chapel of S. Michel is flamboyant. In the Chapel of N.D., an old Templar church, is a Romanesque font employed as a bÉnitier. The town possesses some old houses and halles of 1675; also a cylindrical tower with two heads on it called Quest and his wife.
Quiberon (M.) chl. arr. Lorient. A favourite watering place on a sandy strip of land,
* QUIMPER (F.) chl. d'arr. This beautiful town is situated at the junction of the Stier and the Odet, and is the seat of a bishop. The diocese of S. Pol de LÉon has been united to that of Quimper. It is at a distance of fifteen miles from the sea, but has a small port. It is a bright and thriving city,
Locmaria is only a stroll down the left bank of the Odet, and there may be seen a very beautiful example of a Romanesque church with central tower, transepts and apse.
Quimper forms an admirable centre for a number of excursions, as branch lines run thence to Pont l'AbbÉ and to Pont Croix and
Plogonnec, a very interesting late flamboyant church with a renaissance tower. It has magnificent old glass in the windows, representing the Last Judgment, the Story of the Cross, the Transfiguration, and some Celtic Saints, S. Cadoc with a bell, S. Edern, son of Vortigern, riding on a stag, and S. Theilo, Bishop of Llandaff, also mounted on a stag. There is a pretty flamboyant Chapel of S. Theilo in the parish, and this last window was removed from it. P. at S. Thegonnec's Chapel, Ascension Day; at that of Loretto, 2nd Sunday in August; at that of S. Albin on the last Sunday in September; the P. at the parish church on the last Sunday in July.
Locronan. Once a thriving little town living on its looms, but since weaving has been done by steam, its prosperity has gone, and many houses are in ruins. Those that remain occupied are all of granite, and some, if not all, old. The church has the Chapel of S. Ronan on its south side opening out of it by a couple of arches. All is flamboyant. The church had a spire that was struck by lightning in 1806 and fell, carrying away pinnacles and the lace-like parapet on the N. side. On this N. side is a little chapel with a graceful flamboyant window in the gable, and saints in niches at the sides. The E. window of the chancel is full of old
Plonevez-Porzay has a very villainous modern church that has replaced one that was old and full of interest. The porch has however been preserved. P. 2nd Sunday in August. Ste. Anne-de-la-Palue in this parish is a great resort of pilgrims, and the Pardon there is largely attended. It is on the last Sunday in August. The P. of N.D. de la ClartÉ is on the 2nd Sunday in September.
QuÉmÉnÉven. The Chapel of Kergoat is an object of pilgrimage, and the Pardon there is very greatly thronged, and interesting costumes may be seen there. The P. is on the Sunday after August 15.
S. Venec, a chapel half-way between Quimper and ChÂteaulin, is interesting. It contains a statue of the Threebreasted Gwen, and of her sons, Gwethenoc, represented as a Knight, and
ErguÉ Gaberic. A fine menhir. A chapel of the Templars. The P. at Kerdevot is greatly frequented. It is on the 2nd Sunday in September.
Pluguffan. Only deserving of a visit on the occasion of its Pardon, which is on the 2nd Sunday in September, where fine costumes may be seen.
* QUIMPERLÉ (F.) chl. d'arr. An interesting and picturesque town on the LaÏta formed of the junction of the EllÉ and the Isole. The abbey church of Ste. Croix and the town about it is in the basin, but the Church of S. Michel and the upper town is on the hillside with steep streets, some ascended by steps. The buildings of the abbey have been converted into municipal offices and Mairie. The church is circular and Romanesque. A tower had been constructed on the four central drums, but they showed signs of giving way, and the tower had to be taken down and the church rebuilt, but exactly on the ancient lines. There is a crypt beneath the lady-chapel. The carved corbels outside the apse are curious. A fine renaissance retable has been mutilated and plastered against the west wall. In the crypt is the tomb of S. Gurlois. S. Michel stands up boldly on the summit of the hill, on the right side of the LaÏta, sustained on massive substructures. The nave is 2nd pointed. There are no aisles to the nave. The grand central tower and choir with its aisles are
Some quaint bits of street architecture may be found by penetrating into the narrow lanes. The Church of S. Columbanus is in ruins. A pretty walk out of the town leads to the little chapel of the ChÂteau of Rosgrande, with apse at each end. It contains a renaissance roodscreen, with subjects from sacred history and pagan mythology indiscriminately carved on it. In the chapel are two 14th cent. statues of S. Cadoc and S. Yhuel, the grandson of Gildas, afterwards Bishop of Llandaff, who spent his youth in Brittany. Fishing and charming walks are to be had in the valleys of the EllÉ and Isolle. The visitor will find this the best headquarters for excursions to Le FaouËt, 21 kilometres, and down the river to Pouldu. Patronal Feast at QuimperlÉ on the 2nd Sunday in May and on the 3rd September. P. at Lothea, Easter Tuesday and Trinity Sunday. Pardon des Oiseaux at Toulfouen, Whitsun Monday.
The forest of Clohars-Carnoet envelops the ruins of one of Conmore's castles, but it was rebuilt in the 15th cent. On the right bank of the LaÏta, in a sheltered position, are the fine ruins of the Abbey of S. Maurice, founded in
* QUINTIN (C.N.) chl. arr. S. Brieuc. In pretty woodland country. A menhir called La Roche-longue in a field near the town, 21 ft. high. The church is modern, but it retains some old glass. In the street of N.D. is a granite house of 1611. Another old house dates from 1560. Remains of the castle built in the 15th cent., which was replaced by another, never completed, in the 17th cent. The modern chÂteau contains a fine gallery of family portraits and Gobelin tapestries. In the cemetery is an ossuary of the 17th cent.
Redon (I.V.) chl. d'arrond. Above the junction of the Vilaine and Oust, at the foot of a hill, commanded by the ruined ChÂteau de Beaumont. Redon was a great abbey founded by King Nominoe and S. Convoyon. Here was held the council that deposed the Frank bishops of Rennes, Nantes and Vannes. The church was ruined at the Revolution, and all that remains of it are the W. tower and spire and the choir with a portion only of the nave. The tower now stands isolated. The nave is of the 14th cent. It was originally Romanesque. A transept is of the 12th cent. and there is a stunted central tower at the crossing. The choir ends in an apse and is of the 13th cent. and is fine. The high altar and the pulpit were
The centre of the chestnut trade, the "marron." The trees are kept small and pruned, and are not suffered to exhaust themselves in producing a superabundance of fruit. The marron is much larger than the common "chÂtain."
* RENNES (I.V.). Capital of the Department, and the ancient capital of the duchy of Brittany. It is composed of two towns separated by the Vilaine. On the right bank is the Upper Town. Rennes was burnt down in 1720, and was rebuilt in the ugly style of the period, and in grey granite. The river has been embanked and carried in a straight course through the town. There are no fine buildings on the embankments. The most pretentious structure on the left bank, between the station and the river, is the lycÉe, with a chapel in a nondescript style. Several bridges, all mean in character, cross the river. On the right bank are the most important buildings. The cathedral is a hideous structure commenced in 1787 and completed in 1844. The two side doors and the niches at the west end belong to the earlier building and are renaissance. Within, the arch has been studiously avoided. Eight enormous
One of the old gates of the town, the Porte Mordelaix, remains, but it is not particularly picturesque, and a few old houses escaped the fire and have not yet been pulled down. To the east of the cathedral is the Church of S. Sauveur, even more ugly than the former. In a small street opening from the river opposite the Hotel Moderne is the one architectural gem possessed by the town, the Chapel of S. Yves, now desecrated into a store-house. It is of the end of the 15th cent., and all the details, where not broken, are of exquisite beauty. Observe the N. door with its niches and the W. front. The Church of S. Germain is late and poor flamboyant, much altered in late renaissance times. The springing of the nave vaulting remains, and has been grotesquely finished off with scrolls. There is fine old glass, but in utter confusion, in the E. window. The large window of the S. transept contains fine glass representing the life of the Virgin below and saints and legendary incidents above in a series of 24 subjects.
S. Melaine is the church of a once famous abbey. Transepts and choir-arch are early Romanesque. The nave is 2nd pointed. The base of the tower is early 1st pointed, but has been refaced in the worst taste in baroque times; to
Retiers (I.V.) chl. arr. VitrÉ. Four miles
La Roche-Derrien (C.N.) chl. arr. S. Brieuc, is prettily situated on the Jaudy, at the highest point to which the tide reaches. Of the castle hardly anything remains. The church has a spire of late 13th cent. The S. porch, formerly adorned with statues, is bold. The church has vast double transepts of 1435, and flamboyant windows and extraordinary gargoyles. Inside is a barbarous elaborately carved oak altarpiece of late renaissance and of no merit. La Roche was the scene of the battle fought in 1347, when Charles de Blois was taken prisoner by the English.
Near La Roche is Langoat, the church like a converted railway station, but it contains the tomb of Alma Pompeia, the mother of S. Tugdual, who died in the 6th cent., but the tomb was erected in 1470. She is represented on it recumbent; and at the sides are subjects in bas-relief relative to her story. These have been reproduced in bad modern glass in the E. window. In the church may be seen a statue of S. Tugdual habited as a pope. This is due to a curious blunder. His monks were wont to call him Pabu, or father. A late writer of his legend supposed that this meant that he was papa—the pope, and so fabricated a story to explain it, how that Tugdual went to Rome and arrived when the see was vacant, and was elected pope; how that after a very few years he wearied of the burden, and a flying horse was
Prat. The ChÂteau of Coatelan is a rectangular building of the beginning of the 16th cent., and is an interesting, well-preserved example of a maison forte of the period. Within are some good chimney-pieces. At the top of one of the turrets is an oven for baking bread.
Pommerit Jaudy. On the Coat-nevez, a conical hill, is a camp, probably of the Northmen invaders. The chÂteau is mainly of the 16th cent, and has granite chimney-pieces.
Cavan. The church (S. Cheron) is of the 15th cent, and has a spire flanked by two stair-turrets surmounted by domes. This is of 1684.
Berhet. The church (S. Bridget) is modern. The Chapel of N.D. de Confort has flamboyant windows, the tracery in those at the side forms hearts. Within is a carved oak retable representing the Passion, Resurrection and Assumption. In the chapel is a Sant-e-roa, or Holy Wheel, hung with bells, and this is rung during mass, and by pilgrims desirous of calling the B.V. Mary's attention to their petitions. Similar wheels are at Quemperven, Locarn, Laniscat in the CÔtes-du-Nord, at S. Nicolas de Prissiac in Morbihan, and at N.D. de Confort, near Pontcroix in Morbihan. P. last Sunday in September.
* ROCHEFORT EN TERRE (M.) chl. arr. Vannes. A picturesquely situated little town on schist rocks above the Arz.
Pluherlin on the Lande de Haut Branbien, N. of Rochefort, has many of these strewn over the commune. A menhir 15 feet high is in the Lande de Lanvaux beside the road to Pleucadeuc. Great havoc has been wrought throughout this neighbourhood among the churches; the interesting old structures have
Rosporden (F.) chl. arr. Quimper. In a pretty situation by a lake that is, however, traversed by the line from Quimper to Vannes, and that from Rosporden to Carhaix. The church has a fine tower and well-proportioned spire of the 13th cent. On the S. side is a porch, one of the oldest in FinistÈre. The church contains a rude statue of Our Lady, much venerated. It was turned out of the church into the graveyard in 1870, to make way for one more artistic; but the parishioners rose in indignation and forced the curÉ to replace it. A statue of S. Barbara is erected on a fragment of the ancient Calvary that has been destroyed. P. of S. Eloi, 2nd Sunday in July. Patronal Feast, Aug. 15.
Rostrenen (C.N.) chl. arr. Guingamp, on the slope of a hill, with a great square in the midst, about which are old houses of the 16th and 17th cents. The parish church is modern, but retains a transept of the 14th cent. and a choir and tower of the 18th. The S. porch has in it statues of the apostles.
Glomel. The finest menhir in the Department is near the hamlet of Menhir, and is 25 feet high. Another is in the Bois de Coatcourcaral, 10 feet high. The church is of the 14th cent. with a flamboyant east window. Side windows under gables. N.D. de TrÉgernan has lost its tower, pulled down in 1842.
Kergrist-Moelo. The parish church is of the 16th cent., with a square pinnacled tower and a rich porch of 1554.
Saint Aubin d'AubignÉ (I.V.) chl. arr. Rennes. On the line from Dol to Rennes, a place devoid of interest.
Saint Aubin de Cormier (I.V.) chl. arr. FougÈres. The church has a nave of the 14th cent. The rest is of the 16th. This was the scene of the battle fought in 1488, which dealt the last blow to the independence of Brittany. The Sire d'Albret at the head of 14,000 men entered the duchy as one of the suitors for the hand of Anne of Brittany, and he was supported by Henry VII. of England. Maximilian, King of the Romans, another pretender, hastened to enforce his claims as well. The King of France sent an army into the duchy which took ChÂteaubriant and FougÈres and encountered that of Francis II. of Brittany at S. Aubin on the 28th July 1488. The French cavalry broke the ranks of the Breton infantry. Six thousand of these latter fell. The Duke of Orleans, afterwards Louis XII. and the Prince of Orange were taken prisoners. They were shut up in a cellar still shown under the HÔtel du Commerce.
Saint Brice-en-Cogles (I.V.) chl. arr. FougÈres. Here are two chÂteaux, one La Roche Portal of the time of Henry IV.
* SAINT BRIEUC. Capital of the
The chapel and fountain of S. Brieuc, on the height to the N.W., are flamboyant and picturesque. On the S. side of the altar is a descent to the cave to which the Saint was wont to retire for prayer. Brioc was the son of an Irish occupant of Cardigan and a Saxon wife. He was educated by the Armorican S. Germain, a nephew of S. Patrick, who afterwards became Apostle of the Isle of Man. On the expulsion of the Irish from S.W. Wales Brioc left with a large number of followers and arrived at the mouth of the Gouet, where a kinsman, by marriage, Rigual had already settled, and he gave him the land where is now the city of S. Brieuc, and where had been a Gallo-Roman town. He died about the middle of the 6th cent. In the Rue Fardel is a house dated 1572. The modern churches in the town are architectural monstrosities. The Chapel of N.D. de l'Esperance is vastly pretentious, but wretched architecturally. The clerestory is filled with stained glass representing Breton Saints. Patronal Feast, S. Brieuc, 1st May. The valley of the Gouet may be followed down to the mouth,
At Ploufragan is an allÉe couverte, buried in brambles. The church is modern with a spindly tower and spire.
At La MÉaugon is a fine railway viaduct in two stages. The church has in one window a small but admirably drawn representation of the patron saint S. Meugaint, and a carved granite Calvary in the churchyard. Some remains of the screen removed to the west end.
Pledran. A vitrified fort. The vitrification was done by fires lighted in the depth of the wall. As the result was not satisfactory, the face outwards was subsequently banked up.
Saint Jean BrÉvelay (M.) chl. d'arr Ploermel. On the side of the road to Vannes, near Kerdramel, are two menhirs. A kilometre west of le Moustoir, on the Lande de Coh-Coet, a large dolmen formed of three blocks only; the coverer is 18 feet long. It has the ruins of an allÉe couverte leading to it. A kilometre south of it is a menhir 18 feet high. The natives of this district fled to England from the Northmen in the 9th cent., and brought back with them, when returning some relics of S. John of Beverley, Archbishop of York, who died in 721.
Plumelec. Between TrÉgoËt and Kersimon is an allÉe couverte. In the coppice of ChÂteau BÉauce a large dolmen called Migourdy, which on being explored yielded fragments of a figure
GuÉhenno. A modern church, but the porch of 1547 has been preserved. In the graveyard is a fine Calvary of the 16th cent., the finest in Morbihan. On it are numerous single figures as well as groups. It was taken down and buried at the time of the Revolution, so as to preserve it, and was restored in 1855. The Republican ruffians burnt the church. P. on 1st Sunday in September.
Saint Malo (I.V.) chl. d'arr. Occupies the old island of S. Aaron. It is now united to Rocabey by an embankment, the Sillon, along which runs a tramline. The town is walled in and a pleasant walk is on them; the circuit of the walls may thus be made. The castle is of the 15th cent.; it is square with flanking towers. Six gates give admission to the town, in which the streets are very narrow and odorous, and the houses lofty. At the highest point of the island, but smothered among houses, is the Chapel of
S. Servan. The citÉ marks the site of the
ParamÉ is a watering place, with a low shelving shore, facing north and miserably cold in winter, dusty in summer, and detestable at all times, except to such as frequent the gaming tables.
Saint MÉen (I.V.) chl. arr. Montfort. A dull town in uninteresting country. It was the seat of an abbot, head of an important abbey in the Middle Ages. In 1554, S. Samson of Dol, who was engaged in working up a revolt against Conmore the Regent of Domnonia, sent his nephew Mevan across the great central forest to Vannes, probably to consult with Gildas, and to ascertain whether any assistance could be obtained from Count Weroch. On his way, Mevan lighted on a clearing in the forest, where now stands the little town bearing his name. In this clearing lived a British colonist, named Cadvan, who welcomed him and invited him to establish a lann hard by and take over the religious charge of his colony. Mevan agreed, and when Cadvan died, as he had no children, he bequeathed the whole of his plou to Mevan as well as the lann already granted. This was the origin of the abbey, and around the abbey grew the town. The abbey is now turned into
* SAINT NAZAIRE (L.I.) chl. d'arr. Is the seventh most important port in France and is situated at the extremity of a promontory of a gneiss rock that runs along the bank of the Loire. There is nothing of antiquity in the place, which is wholly modern and built on a stiff and formal plan, the houses rivalling each other in ugliness. But there is one curious object in it, an enormous dolmen in the midst of a square, that has been spared, and has given its name to the street leading to it. Five lighthouses guard the entrance of the Loire. From S. Nazaire a visit may be paid to La Grande BriÈre, a vast turf deposit, once an inland lake. The peculiar costume has almost disappeared, only the women retaining their coiffe. The population of all this district is British, and the descendants of the very earliest immigrants. The hair is for the most part fair, the eyes grey or blue. Formerly the Breton tongue was spoken throughout this district, but it is now spoken by only about 400 persons in the neighbourhood of Batz by Croisic. Curiously enough, the villagers of Batz regard themselves as of different blood from the rest, and to be descendants
Saint Nicolas du PÉlem (C.N.) chl. arr. Guingamp. A menhir in the forest of Kerhuel, and another near Kerhuel, 9 ft. high. In the valley of Prat-roury another, fusiform, about 11 ft. high. The old Roman road from Aleth to Carhaix ran through this parish, and it remains in fairly perfect condition in several places. On a height is the camp of Dzillon near Kerimard, circular with a tump hollowed out within, certainly a Norseman burh. The ChÂteau de PÉlem is in ruins, but two of the towers are standing. The Church of S. Nicolas has got very fine restored stained glass of the 14th cent., representing in twenty-four medallions scenes from the gospel story; at the bottom of the window the donors are represented kneeling. Another window contains fragments of medallions representing the life of the Baptist. The roodscreen was wantonly destroyed in 1861. The Chapel of S. Eloi has a fine flamboyant east window with remains of stained glass in it. The Chapel of Riolon is mainly of the 15th cent., and has an east window of the renaissance with stained glass in it representing the Eternal Father seated in the midst of a rose, surrounded by the
Canihuel. A huge menhir called Coz-resto, 23 ft. high, has been split by lightning. It is in a line with other menhirs at Kergornec, Saint Gilles-Pligeaux, and Crech Ogel in the old bourg of Quintin. At Botquelen is another menhir 13 ft. high.
The parish church was built in 1474, burnt in 1595 and repaired in 1598; it is almost wholly of the 16th cent. with a flamboyant E. window.
Kerpert. Church of the flamboyant period; in the E. window glass of the 16th cent. representing the life of S. Peter; ossuary.
Lanrivain. Ossuary and Calvary of 1548. On the platform are several figures; there are three crosses, the principal one sustains a group of eleven figures carved in one block.
Peumerit-Quintin. Near the hamlet of Pempoul a ruined allÉe couverte. The Chapel of S. Jean du Loch is mainly of the 15th cent. but retains some portions of the earlier 12th cent. building.
S. Connan.. Near the Mill of Kerdic a ruined allÉe couverte. Dolmen in the Parc-an-Neurn.
S. Gilles Pligeaux. Two menhirs at Kergornec, one in the Parc-er-PÉlem, is 22 ft. high and leans. The other at four hundred paces from it, near the bottom of the valley in Parc-ar-golven, is 13 ft. high. They seem to belong to a system of which only some remain,
* S. POL DE LÉON (F.) chl. arr. Morlaix. An ancient cathedral town, but the diocese has been united to that of Quimper. The cathedral has two western towers and spires and faÇade of 1st pointed. The nave is entirely 2nd pointed and has a very beautiful arcade. The cleristory is quite simple, mostly with 1st pointed windows. The side aisles have an arcade under the windows. The transepts are double, i.e. with aisles to the east, fine 2nd pointed. The E. aisle of the S. transept contains very bad flamboyant windows. The choir, ending in an apse, is flamboyant 1431-50, and contains fine carved oak stalls of 1512. The choir has double aisles, N. and S. On the N. side is the Chapel of S. Paul, with his skull, hand, and bell in shrines. The pillars and vaulting of the S. aisle may be noticed.
The Chapel of Kreisker possesses a tower and spire that are supposed by Bretons to be the glory of FinistÈre. It is badly proportioned; the spire and spirelets overload the summit of the tower. It may be regarded as curious and a clever bit of architecture, but it is not pleasing.
Roscoff is a quaint place, with an old house or two, situated near the sea, and commanding the Island of Batz. The church has a very remarkable renaissance tower and spire (1550), more fantastic than pleasing, with ships carved on it and cannons or culverins as gargoyles. It is in three stages with galleries. The church is late flamboyant. There are two ossuaries; one is very rich. In the church are preserved the panels of an alabaster retable of the 15th cent. of Flemish work. The Chapel of S. Ninian in the street is in ruins; it was erected by Mary Stuart to commemorate her landing at Roscoff, 1548. The hospital dates from 1573. A Chapel of Ste. Barbe is on a height. P. of Santec, 2nd Sunday after Trinity. P. of Ste. Barbe, 3rd Monday in July. P. in the parish church, August 15.
Sibiril. The ChÂteau of KeronzÉrÉ erected in 1458 was restored in 1602.
Ile de Batz. It takes a quarter of an hour to cross from Roscoff to the island, and is only to be attempted when the sea is calm. The tide here rises 30 ft. But a visit hardly repays the trouble. When Paulus Aurelianus, a native of Glamorganshire, landed on the west coast of FinistÈre, he heard that a kinsman, Withur, was living in these parts, and had made himself count or chieftain. He went to visit him, and found him on the Isle of Batz, very old, busy making a copy of the Gospels with his own hand. Withur received him cordially, and advised him to settle among the ruins of an old Roman town on the mainland. Paulus did so, and hence the city of S. Pol de LÉon. Legend says that there was a dragon on the island, which S. Paul tamed by binding his stole about its neck and then bidding it precipitate itself into the sea. This is an allegorical way of saying that he put an end to paganism in Batz. The Toul-ar-Sarpant, where the dragon is supposed to have haunted, is pointed out, and the stole of S. Paul, a piece of Byzantine work, is preserved in the church. It is a silk tissue, with a blue ground worked over with white and yellow, to figure a set of warriors facing each other, with a sort of turban head-dress and holding falcons on their wrists, and with a dog between the legs of each horse. A Romanesque chapel stood on the site of S. Paul's monastery on the island. This is called the Peniti; the chapel is ruinous and half-buried
LanrivoarÉ. The church has a tower in two stages and spire of the usual type but erected in 1727. The church itself is flamboyant. The chancel is Italian. In the N. transept is a singularly uncouth flamboyant window. Above the arches into the choir, transept and nave, the twelve apostles are painted. On the south side of the church is a walled-in quadrangular space where, according to tradition, a whole Christian population was massacred by pagans. No certain details exist, and it is probable that the pagans were the Northmen, who committed frightful atrocities in Brittany in the 10th cent. In the midst of the enclosure is the graveyard of the unnamed saints, laid down with polygonal and various shaped pieces of granite. It is enclosed by a dwarf wall overlaid with pieces of slate. At the east end is a sort of altar sustaining a cross and some fragments of carving. Before the altar lie eight rolled boulders. These are popularly supposed to have been loaves turned into bread. S. HuarvÉ asked a woman to give him bread, and she refused. As a judgment for her hardheartedness all her loaves were petrified. Actually these pebbles are "cursing stones,"
Saint Servan (I.V.) chl. arr. S. Malo; see S. Malo.
Sarzeau (M.) chl. arr. Vannes. Sarzeau is the principal village or town on the peninsula that bears its name, which divides the sea of Morbihan from the ocean. That peninsula is some 20 miles long and 6 across, but it has been much diminished in width by the sea which has eaten away much of the coast. It is granitic on the west, and schist on the east, and the granite is of a soft quality, allowing the sea to decompose and break it up. Thus a parish church of S. Demetri has been engulfed. A second was built further inland, and that is now almost entirely surrounded by the sea and threatens shortly to disappear in the waves. Formerly a forest covered the promontory, now it is sparsely wooded and trees only flourish on the side toward the inland sea. But the climate is equable, and vines are cultivated; this is the most northern point reached by vineyards. Yet wine can only be made once in about three years, and is not of a good quality. At Cohports is a menhir 12 ft. high, and a circle of standing stones at Croen-Linden, and dolmens, more or less ruined, at NoÉdic, Prat-FetÉn, Trest, KergilÉt, Brillac, and Kerbley. An allÉe couverte 30 ft. long at Clos-Rodus. Gildas coming from Glastonbury about 520 founded a monastery at Rhuys, and a cell or peniti at Coetlann, afterwards called the Priory of S. Pabu, but this has disappeared. In the town is the house in which Le Sage was born, the author of "Gil Blas" (b.
The Castle of Sucinio was occupied in 1218 by Duke Pierre de Dreux, and in 1238 their son, Jean I., confined within it the baron Olivier de Lanvaux, who had rebelled against him. This prince was fond of the place and several of his children were born there. He took in the forest about the priory of Coetlann or Saint-Pabu, and the greater part of the castle that now stands was erected by him. His son John II. continued the works, and put his treasure in its vaults. During the War of Succession it was occupied by Charles de Blois, then taken by Jean de Montfort, and retaken by Du Guesclin. John IV. greatly repaired the castle, and within its walls was born Arthur of Richemond, future Constable of France. In 1474 the Earls of Pembroke and Richemond were imprisoned within its walls. The castle forms an irregular pentagon. It had eight towers, but of these only six remain. The entrance to the east is preceded by a drawbridge, and is defended by two large towers, one of which contains the chapel. The castle, occupied in 1795 by the Royalists, was sold as national property, and the peasant who purchased it despoiled it of its roof and staircases, and let it fall into complete ruin.
S. Gildas de Rhuys. Near the ocean; here precipitous cliffs receive the lashing of the Atlantic rollers. Near the drained marsh of Kerver is a menhir 12 ft. high. Near the hamlet of Net four others, and the remains of an allÉe couverte 70 ft. long and 12 ft. wide; at Clos-er-BÉ a dolmen called Meen-platt, and near Largneven a fallen menhir 15 ft. long. The Abbey of S. Gildas was founded about 520. Gildas was the son of Cau, prince of Alcluyd or Dumbarton; Cau and all his family were driven south by the Picts and Saxons, and took refuge in N. Wales, where Maelgwn Gwynedd gave them lands, and the sons for the most part entered into religion. Not so Hywel, the eldest, a quarrelsome man, who fell out with King Arthur, and lost his life in the quarrel. Arthur was forced to surrender some lands in Radnorshire to the family as blood-money, and then Gildas gave him the kiss of peace. Gildas was a married man and had several sons, amongst whom the most noted was Kenneth, hermit of Gower, but who came to Brittany with his father and became a founder there. When aged thirty Gildas settled at Rhuys, and here he wrote his scurrilous letter against the princes and clergy and people of Britain, reviling in it in outrageous terms Maelgwn, who had treated his family with kindness and generosity. Gildas was on good terms with Weroch, Count of
By following the road behind the church, along the convent walls, the Chapel of S. Bieuzy is reached, and a path to the right leads to the little Baie de Portas, where in the rock is an impression like that of a horse's hoof. Legend says that Gildas left the Isle of Houat on a flying horse that landed at this spot. A stair cut in the rock leads to the Baie de Saint Gildas, where is a spring and over it a statue of the Saint.
Arzon has a modern church surmounted by a spire, and two stained glass windows recording a vow made in 1673 by some sailors of the place to S. Anne, during the war with Holland. The Chapel of Er Hroez marks the spot where the body of Gildas was found. There are circles of stones at Er-Lannig, and a good many fallen menhirs. At Graniol is a tumulus containing an allÉe couverte. Another at BilgroÉz. The Butte de Tumiac was explored and a covered avenue found in it, but was so slovenly dealt with that the stones have collapsed.
Scaer (F.) chl. arr. QuimperlÉ. A dull town, with a vulgar modern church. At S. Jean, about two miles distant, on a lande, is a fine menhir. An abundant spring of Ste. Candide supplies the town, but it has no architectural
Le Sel (I.V.) chl. arr. Redon, is without much interest. The church is modern. The tumulus of Chalonge is covered with trees and surrounded by a moat.
Sizun (F.) chl. arr. Morlaix. The church (S. Sulien) has a fine spire of more simple character than those usually met with in FinistÈre. The porch is renaissance. There are in the parish chapels of S. Cadoc and S. Illtyd. The great Pardon is on the last Sunday in July. The P. of S. Cado the last Sunday in September, and at Loc Ildut on Corpus Christi Day. The Chapel of S. Cado is on the Monts d'ArrÉe.
Commana. A fine allÉe couverte measuring 50 ft. A dolmen and a menhir. In the church are some gorgeously barbaric altarpieces, a mass of carving, gilding and colour, of very late renaissance or baroque. P. last Sunday in July. Those interested in prehistoric remains would do well to investigate the Monts d'ArrÉe, over which many are scattered. A map of the district with the monuments thereon is published in the Bulletin de la Soc. d'emulation des CÔtes-du-Nord, T. xxxv. (1897).
TintÉniac (I.V.) chl. arr. S. Malo. Reached by a tramline from Rennes. Prettily situated. The church is modern. There are some old houses. A menhir called La Roche du Diable.
At TrÉversien is the ChÂteau de la Fosse aux Loups, where the scene is laid of Paul FÉval's novel "Rollan Pied de Fer."
Les Iffs and the ChÂteau of Montmuran may be visited from TintÉniac (see Becherel).
* TRÉGUIER (C.N.) chl. arr. Lannion. An old cathedral city at the junction of the Jaudy and the Guindy. The town is on rising ground but runs down to the water side to a little point. On the highest ground is the cathedral, of nave and side aisles and two transepts. The church was almost altogether constructed in the 14th cent. It was begun in 1339. It has, however, preserved an 11th cent. tower on the N. side called de Tour de Hasting.
The chapel of the old manor house of
Portblanc, in the parish of Penvenan, is hoping to develop into a watering-place. The situation is very pleasing, the sea is studded with islands and bristles with rocks. The largest island is that of S. Gildas, to which that Saint occasionally retired. It is rocky and has been planted with Austrian pines. On it is a chapel of the Saint. There is an abundant freshwater spring in the sands between the coast and the island, only accessible at low tides. On the island is a dolmen, called Le Lit de S. Gildas; it consists of four uprights sustaining a coverer that measures 7 ft. by 4 ft. Near this is a rocking-stone. On another islet the musical composer Ambrose Thomas built himself a chÂteau, that is completely surrounded by the waves at high tide. Portblanc was at one time far more important than it is now. It is alluded to in Richard II. act ii. sc. i. On the road from Penvenan, opposite to the entrance of a chÂteau, is a small menhir, 8 ft high, built into the hedge. Another 13 ft high is near the village of Penvenan. There is also a demi-dolmen in the parish. Penvenan church is modern and execrable, but the little chapel at Portblanc is interesting. Internally it possesses an arcade that appears to be Romanesque, but as pillars and arches are thickly plastered with whitewash it is not easy to determine their
Plougrescent, a fallen menhir 19 ft. long, is near MaznoË. The parish church is modern and very creditable. But the main object of interest in the parish is the chapel of S. Gonery. The tower is early 1st pointed, and was never completed. Above it is now a leaning wood and lead spirelet. The chapel consists of a single nave, with chancel and two chapels, one on each side of the chancel. The glory of the chapel is its magnificent painted ceiling in ten lower ranges, representing on one side the incidents of the Nativity, on the other those of the Passion. Above these ten more compartments give the life of Our Lord in glory. These subjects are curious; the most remarkable perhaps is the reception of Adam and Eve into Heaven by Christ. In the body of the church is a noble carved oak buffet, to serve as cupboard to the relics of S. Gonery. It has on it the Twelve Apostles and the Annunciation. The church, with the exception of the tower, is 15th cent., and the paintings are of the same period. Unhappily through neglect of attention to the roof, those near the tower are seriously injured by the wet. On the N. side of the chancel is the fine renaissance monument of Bishop Guillaume de HalgoËt, 1599; on it is a recumbent figure of the prelate. Some fragments
TrinitÉ-Porhoet (M.) chl. arr. Ploermel. This place takes its name from the county of Porhoet, which was formed after the expulsion of the Northmen in the 10th cent. Josselin afterwards became the seat of the Count. There was a priory here founded by the monks of S. Jacut, in or about 1050. The old parish church was pulled down in 1806 and 1807 to
Henvic has in its church paintings representing the story of S. Maudetus (Mawes) and his sister S. Juvetta.
Uzel (C.N.) chl. arr. LoudÉac, is not a place of much interest. The church is of the 17th cent., altered in the 18th. The Chapel of Bonne Nouvelle is of the 16th cent. Some ruins of the old chÂteau of Uzel remain, and there is a house of 1620.
MerlÉac has a Chapel of S. Jacques of the 14th cent. at the village of Saint LÉon. The central east window is perhaps the finest in the Department; the tracery is all in granite, and it contains stained glass representing eight scenes in the Life of the Virgin, and eight scenes from that of S. Jacques. There are other windows representing the Conception and the Assumption. The ceiling is painted (15th cent.) with subjects from the Life of our Lord and the legend of S.
Quillio. The church contains the woodwork transported thither from the abbey of Bon-repos. Above the altar is a suspended Pyx.
GrÂce. An allÉe couverte at the hamlet of Bois, running N. and S. and 18 ft. long. It is composed of blocks of quartz. There are eight supporters on each side and five coverers, but only one of these latter is in place.
* VANNES (M.) chl. d'arr. Capital of the Department, and seat of a bishop. The town is not remarkably picturesque. The walls remain in places but built into, and only two gates with flanking towers have been spared. The cathedral is very disappointing, and there are few picturesque old houses. Vannes was the capital of the warlike Veneti, whom CÆsar crushed in B.C. 57, when he butchered all the chiefs and leading nobles, and sold their families into slavery. It became a Roman town, called Duriorigum, and six Roman roads struck over the country from it to Locmariaquer, Hennebont, Corseul, Rennes, Rieux, and Arzal. A Roman necropolis has been found on the site of the artillery barracks. At the beginning of the 5th cent. many towns dropped their particular names and assumed those of the peoples to which they formed centres, and then the place took the name which it has since borne in Breton, Gweneth. Christianity having made some progress among the Veneti, in
Vannes is situated at the distance of 5 kilometres
This inland sheet of water is cut off from the ocean by two great crab's claws, the peninsula of Sarzeau and that of Locmariaquer. The scenery is by no means bold; sandy shores and low islets, and mud banks at the fall of the tide. The archipelago is, however, very interesting because of the numerous prehistoric remains on the islands.
The Isle of Arz is about two miles long. Here was formerly a priory dependent on S. Gildas, and it possesses a Romanesque church, unhappily repaired and remodelled at various epochs. Near the little Cap de Brohel and in the islet of BoËdic are megalithic monuments. At Penraz, south-east of the village, is half of a cromlech or circle of stones 60 ft. in diameter. At Cap Brohel, ruined dolmens and fallen menhirs; at Pen-lious three fallen dolmens and some menhirs. P. 8th September.
Ile aux Moines is separated from the Ile
Gavrinis lies to the east of the Ile aux Moines. Although less important than those already described, it is the most interesting of all in the Morbihan, on account of its tumulus, 25 ft. high, that covers a fine covered gallery, the stones of which are elaborately carved with mysterious signs like the tattoo-marks of New Zealanders. A gallery 40 ft. long leads to the central chamber, which is 5 ft. high and 6 ft. 6 in. wide. The blocks are of a fine grained
Er-lanic is situated half a kilometre to the south-east of Gavrinis, and here are the two cromlechs already mentioned, one dipping into the sea, the other already in deep water. They are juxtaposed, forming an 8, and lie on the S. E. of the island. The first circle consists of 180 stones, but several are fallen, and it can only be seen complete when the tide is out. One stone is 16 ft. high. The second circle can only be seen at low tides.
Ile longue contains a cairn that also covers a gallery. It has not been fully examined.
Saint AvÉe. The church is poor and uninteresting, but in the churchyard is a curious cross, with platform from which, according to local tradition, capital sentences were pronounced. On one side is the crucifix, on the other the B.V.M. On the sides S. John the Baptist and S. Peter. In the church are two windows middle pointed. There is a lech in the churchyard at the east end of the church. But what is of far higher value than the parish church is the remarkable chapel in the Bourg-bas, which is flamboyant (1475-94), except the N. transept that is 2nd pointed. Between the nave and the choir and transepts is a tall crucifix enriched with niches, with railing and gates at the side, a
The Vallon de Poignan is within an easy stroll from Vannes. The road to Pontivy is followed as far as the Chapel of S. Guen, and then a lane to the right leads to some curious rocks, one of which is fancifully called a Druid altar. The road to Josselin is then entered, and a lane to the right conducts to the picturesque, rocky valley of Poignan, at the end of an avenue of oaks.
Plescop. Of little interest; it has a couple of lechs in the churchyard, and a flamboyant chapel, without much character, to S. Amon, possibly the father of S. Samson, who came from the neighbourhood of Vannes, but usually supposed to have been a returned crusader who asked at Plescop for milk, and as he was refused, cursed the place that its cows should never yield good milk and butter. As he was found dead in a furze-brake next morning he has received cult as a saint. Part of his skull is in a carved oak bust in the chapel, but is not exposed to veneration, as authenticating documents are non-extant. P. 4th Sunday in October.
Surzur. Three menhirs 15 ft. high are near the hamlet of Begard, and two ruined allÉes couvertes are in the coppice of Talhoet. A dolmen and two fallen menhirs near it at the hamlet of Vinihy. The parish church of S. Symphorian is a Romanesque building but altered later. The arcades, the doors and windows are semi-circular. There is a central tower at the crossing of the transepts surmounted by a slate spire. The Chapel of N.D. de Recouvrance is of the 16th cent.
S. Nolff. The church is partly of the 16th cent. It has been restored not wisely but too well. The Chapel of S. Anne, 1493, has a fine east window with stained glass representing Our Lord and seven saints. The other windows are filled with glaring modern glass.
Sulniac. The parish church dates from several periods. Four pillars and arches are Romanesque, as well as a window near the porch; the other windows and arcades are later. The nave was rebuilt in fancy Romanesque in 1893.
* VITRÉ (I.V.) chl. d'arr. A very picturesque town, rivalling FougÈres in objects of interest. It stands on a hill above the Vilaine, and notwithstanding the destruction of a portion of its ramparts, is one of the French towns that has best retained the features of the Middle Ages. But on the side of the railway station all is modern and uninteresting. To see the old VitrÉ it is necessary to enter and pursue the ancient and narrow streets, which form an inextricable tangle. The houses are mostly slated in front. On the N. side the town assumes a feudal character. Here the walls stand on the black schist rock, and are only pierced by a single postern that gives access to a steep descent by steps into the valley. The castle, on a triangular plan, was founded at the close of the 11th cent. and was reconstructed in the 14th and 15th. The entrance is flanked by two towers. The castle is used partly as a prison and partly as a museum. The Church of Notre
ChÂteau des Roches was formerly the residence of Mme. de SÉvignÉ, who lived in it repeatedly between 1654 and 1690. It consists of two blocks of buildings of the 16th cent., and is situated in a pretty park. Visitors are only admitted to the grounds, to the chapel, and to the room of Mme. de SÉvignÉ, which contains copies of family portraits in the private apartments and some objects believed to have belonged to the marquise; among others a book of accounts for the garden signed by her. The bed and chairs are of wood painted white and covered with yellow silk damask.
Champeaux. The church is of the 14th and 19th cents., and has fine glass of the renaissance (1530-5) and tombs of the same period. About a mile and a half S.W. a menhir 12 ft. high called La Haute Pierre.
Pont l'AbbÉ (F.) chl. arr. Quimper. Here
Penmarch was once a thriving seaport, rivalling Nantes, but for various causes declined, and is now reduced to a couple of hamlets. The church (S. Non = Ninidh, an Irish Bishop) is an interesting late flamboyant structure, the tracery in the windows affecting the forms of fleurs-de-lys. Beneath the E. window is a treasury surmounted by a gallery. At the junction of the chancel with the nave is a spirelet supported by turrets, connected with it by flying buttresses. At the S.W. a pretty little triumphal
Tronoen. A chapel of the same date as that at Penmarch, with a fine Calvary. Two stages of sculptured groups.
Lambour. A flamboyant church, with colonade of the 13th cent.
Loctudy. A Romanesque church, with an Italian 18th cent. faÇade. It much resembles S. Gildas de Rhuys. It has been restored. Ile Tudy may be visited, but does not contain much of interest.
