The Château de Kerduel, known as Kastell Kerduel in
Breton
Breton most often refers to:
*anything associated with Brittany, and generally
** Breton people
** Breton language, a Southwestern Brittonic Celtic language of the Indo-European language family, spoken in Brittany
** Breton (horse), a breed
**Ga ...
, is a castle off the coast of northern
Brittany
Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, Historical region, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known ...
, in the commune of
Pleumeur-Bodou
Pleumeur-Bodou (; ) is a commune in the Côtes-d'Armor department of Brittany in northwestern France.
Population
Inhabitants of Pleumeur-Bodou are called ''pleumeurois'' in French.
Sister town
Pleuveur-Bodoù is twinned with Crosshaven, a vil ...
and the wider
Canton of Tréguier The canton of Tréguier is an administrative division of the Côtes-d'Armor department, northwestern France. Its borders were modified at the French canton reorganisation which came into effect in March 2015. Its seat is in Tréguier.
It consists ...
. The castle and chapel are situated next to a small stream and lake, and the castle grounds have a large forest surrounding the property. The castle used to have fortified walls, but like many castles, they were removed over time.
History
The oldest part of the castle was built in the 12th century. Other parts of the castle were constructed in the 14th and late 19th centuries, so the castle has different styles.
Legend
Legend has it that King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table lived at this castle, hence the name of the lodge in the oldest part of the pink granite castle: "Chamber of King Arthur ". In fact, the name of the castle, Kerduel, is thought to be associated with the
Castle of "Carduel" ( xcb, Caer Luel), known today as
Carlisle
Carlisle ( , ; from xcb, Caer Luel) is a city that lies within the Northern England, Northern English county of Cumbria, south of the Anglo-Scottish border, Scottish border at the confluence of the rivers River Eden, Cumbria, Eden, River C ...
. A castle some believe to be
Camelot
Camelot is a castle and court associated with the legendary King Arthur. Absent in the early Arthurian material, Camelot first appeared in 12th-century French romances and, since the Lancelot-Grail cycle, eventually came to be described as the ...
, the mythical seat of King Arthur's court. According to 14th century arthurian literature, one of King Arthur's knights,
Sir Gawain, took the Castle from the
Greene knight, the Carle (churl - old norse meaning freeman) of Carduel ( xcb, Caer Luel). By some accounts, in cold winter nights, when the tide is low at sea, King Arthur rises from his tomb on the island of Avalon (nearby island of
Aval
''Aval'' () may refer to:
* ''Aval'' (1967 film)
* ''Aval'' (1972 film)
* ''Aval'' (2017 film)
* ''Aval'' (TV series), a 2011 Indian Tamil-language family soap opera
{{disambiguation ...
) to haunt the grounds of the Castle astride his white horse.
Art
Gustave Jean Jacquet depicted the castle in the background of "La danse."
References
{{reflist
Côtes-d'Armor
Castles in Brittany
Locations associated with Arthurian legend