Vannes City Walls

Vannes, France

In the third century AD, the city of Vannes, called Darioritum, acquires the right to fortify. Thus, west of the Gallo-Roman city, a castrum was built. During the Middle Ages, the castrum becomes the centre of the city. Extended in the 14th century, it is reinforced in the 15th century. Over the following two centuries, the ramparts are modernised with the construction of the Garenne buttress. Several medieval gates has been survived, like Tour du Connétable and Château de l'Hermine (former castle, transformed into a palace in the 17th century). Today there is a nice view from the park Jardins des Remparts to the walls.

Comments

Your name

Website (optional)


Address

Rue du Rempart, Vannes, France
See all sites in Vannes

Details

Founded: 14-15th centuries
Category: Castles and fortifications in France
Historical period: Late Capetians (France)

More Information

structurae.net

Rating

4.5/5 (based on Google user reviews)

Interesting Sites Nearby


Vannes Cathedral (0,2 km)


Château de Josselin (36,4 km)
Carnac Stones (25,6 km)
Château de Suscinio (16,1 km)
Belle-Île-en-Mer Citadel (45,4 km)
Locmariaquer Megaliths (17,3 km)
Château de Pontivy (48,6 km)
Kerzerho Megaliths (29,5 km)
Saint-Gildas de Rhuys Abbey (18,5 km)
Château de Ranrouët (41,6 km)

User Reviews

Carlos Soto (14 months ago)
Nice place for a stroll in britanny
gregory olivier (14 months ago)
Vannes is a charming and beautiful town. The center has its traditional Brittany spirit. During the season’s greetings the city was illuminated and we had the chance to do free ice skating. Thanks to Vannes.
John Garner (2 years ago)
Brilliant place. Well worth a visit. We had only a morning there but had a good walk around. Plenty to see. Gardens are beaitiful and very well kept.
Beverley Howarth (2 years ago)
Facilities need sorting out only 2 toilets available during our stay other doors locked and they were communal
Robert (2 years ago)
A beautiful area nicely maintained and well worth walking around. The old way houses on the edge of the river are a delight and you should take time to see them. The gardens are nicely laid out and give a haven of tranquillity. It would be nice to be able to walk more of the walls but at least part of it is accessible.
Powered by Google

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

The Beauty of Cinque Terre
Photo from Flickr, copyright Frans.Sellies

Historic Site of the week

Kromeriz Castle and Gardens

Kroměříž stands on the site of an earlier ford across the River Morava. The gardens and castle of Kroměříž are an exceptionally complete and well-preserved example of a European Baroque princely residence and its gardens and described as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The first residence on the site was founded by bishop Stanislas Thurzo in 1497. The building was in a Late Gothic style, with a modicum of Renaissance detail. During the Thirty Years' War, the castle was sacked by the Swedish army (1643).

It was not until 1664 that a bishop from the powerful Liechtenstein family charged architect Filiberto Lucchese with renovating the palace in a Baroque style. The chief monument of Lucchese's work in Kroměříž is the Pleasure Garden in front of the castle. Upon Lucchese's death in 1666, Giovanni Pietro Tencalla completed his work on the formal garden and had the palace rebuilt in a style reminiscent of the Turinese school to which he belonged.

After the castle was gutted by a major fire in March 1752, Bishop Hamilton commissioned two leading imperial artists, Franz Anton Maulbertsch and Josef Stern, arrived at the residence in order to decorate the halls of the palace with their works. In addition to their paintings, the palace still houses an art collection, generally considered the second finest in the country, which includes Titian's last mythological painting, The Flaying of Marsyas. The largest part of the collection was acquired by Bishop Karel in Cologne in 1673. The palace also contains an outstanding musical archive and a library of 33,000 volumes.

UNESCO lists the palace and garden among the World Heritage Sites. As the nomination dossier explains, 'the castle is a good but not outstanding example of a type of aristocratic or princely residence that has survived widely in Europe. The Pleasure Garden, by contrast, is a very rare and largely intact example of a Baroque garden'. Apart from the formal parterres there is also a less formal nineteenth-century English garden, which sustained damage during floods in 1997.

Interiors of the palace were extensively used by Miloš Forman as a stand-in for Vienna's Hofburg Imperial Palace during filming of Amadeus (1984), based on the life of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, who actually never visited Kroměříž. The main audience chamber was also used in the film Immortal Beloved (1994), in the piano concerto scene.

Map Top Sights Tags Historical Periods City Guides About Us Sign Up Upload new site
© 2020 SpottingHistory.com. All rights reserved.