Château de Kérouzéré

Sibiril, France

The Château de Kérouzéré is a Breton manor castle built in granite in the first half of the 15th century for Jean and Yves de Kérouzéré, seneschal of Morlaix, and followers of the dukes of Brittany. Visible from the sea, Kérouzéré was dangerously exposed and was particularly vulnerable to English attacks. As such the duke permitted him to erect a single tower of more than twenty-four feet in width with crenellations and ditches. This construction caused a major controversy with the neighboring seigneur of Kermorvan. As a result, from 1466 the building was always unfinished and, in 1468, François II had to grant a second authorization for its completion. The original tower is the part of the manor-house located to the west of the current entry (the window of the chapel sits above it).

It was besieged in 1590 during the French Wars of Religion and seriously damaged as the southeast tower was destroyed. It was rebuilt around 1600. There are four superimposed halls: the lowest hall is on the right of the entry and the upper-hall, arranged in the roof, gives access to the covered wall-walk. The kitchen, the common rooms and the private quarters, above, are directed towards the west. There were originally four corner towers; the moat, of which vestiges remained until the last century, has been filled in. The interior of the manor-house still has some 17th century wall paintings. The roof of the northwest tower was restored at the end of the 19th century.

Today visitors to the castle can still see the armoury, chapel, stairs, wall-walk and the watchman's tower with a view over the sea. There is also a 15th-century dovecote still standing on the grounds.

References:

Comments

Your name



Address

Kermaria 253, Sibiril, France
See all sites in Sibiril

Details

Founded: 1425-1458
Category: Castles and fortifications in France
Historical period: Valois Dynasty and Hundred Year's War (France)

Rating

4.3/5 (based on Google user reviews)

User Reviews

Christophe Margerin (2 years ago)
Why is it movie makers use digital/fake sceneries and historical buildings when such gems do exist, which you can easily visit? Off some of the nicest spots on the Brittany northern coast line by only a few miles by the way...
Hyo Un Berbat (2 years ago)
Very nice but small castle
tomi fp (4 years ago)
I attended a wedding there and fell in love with it! Our guide Sophie was awesome and taught us all there is to know about the castle.
Clémentine Guérin (5 years ago)
Château majestueux et propriétaires très sympas . La visite guidée a été faite avec passion et dévotion par la fille des proprios . Le parc qui arbore le château est tout bonnement somptueux . Je recommande ++++
Clementine Guerin (5 years ago)
Château majestueux et propriétaires très sympas . La visite guidée a été faite avec passion et dévotion par la fille des proprios . Le parc qui arbore le château est tout bonnement somptueux . Je recommande ++++
Powered by Google

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Historic Site of the week

Goryokaku Fortress

Goryōkaku (五稜郭) (literally, 'five-point fort') is a star fort in the Japanese city of Hakodate on the island of Hokkaido. The fortress was completed in 1866. It was the main fortress of the short-lived Republic of Ezo.

Goryōkaku was designed in 1855 by Takeda Ayasaburō and Jules Brunet. Their plans was based on the work of the French architect Vauban. The fortress was completed in 1866, two years before the collapse of the Tokugawa Shogunate. It is shaped like a five-pointed star. This allowed for greater numbers of gun emplacements on its walls than a traditional Japanese fortress, and reduced the number of blind spots where a cannon could not fire.

The fort was built by the Tokugawa shogunate to protect the Tsugaru Strait against a possible invasion by the Meiji government.

Goryōkaku is famous as the site of the last battle of the Boshin War.