Château de Tonquédec
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The Château de Tonquédec is a castle in the ''
commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...
'' of Tonquédec in the Côtes d'Armor ''
département In the administrative divisions of France, the department (french: département, ) is one of the three levels of government under the national level (" territorial collectivities"), between the administrative regions and the communes. Ninety ...
'' of France. It is one of the most visited monuments in the Côtes d'Armor. One of the most impressive French medieval sites, this ''château-fort'', stands in a pleasant green forested countryside about south of
Lannion Lannion ( ; ) is a commune in the Côtes-d'Armor department in Brittany in northwestern France. It is a subprefecture of Côtes-d'Armor, the capital of Trégor and the center of an urban area of almost 60,000 inhabitants. Climate Lannion ha ...
. The present castle was built in the 15th century, on the site of an earlier 12th-century castle.


History

From the height of a rocky cliff, the castle ruins, with its eleven towers and a closed curtain wall, dominates the valley of the Léguer. It is a genuine vestige of feudal Brittany. The 12th-century castle was the work of the Coëtmen-Penthièvre family. It was partially dismantled by order of Jean IV,
Duke of Brittany This is a list of rulers of the Duchy of Brittany. In different epochs the sovereigns of Brittany were kings, princes, and dukes. The Breton ruler was sometimes elected, sometimes attained the position by conquest or intrigue, or by hereditary r ...
, in 1395 because of a conflict between him and the Penthièvres. Indeed, Rolland II and Rolland III of Coëtmen, Viscounts of Tonquédec, had allied themselves to the rebellion of Olivier de Clisson. Reconstruction began in 1406 by Rolland IV of Coëtmen. The castle subsequently changed owners several times, before becoming an artillery base in 1577. At this time, the owning family (Goyon de La Moussaye), being
Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...
, was therefore in disagreement with the king,
Henri IV Henry IV (french: Henri IV; 13 December 1553 – 14 May 1610), also known by the epithets Good King Henry or Henry the Great, was King of Navarre (as Henry III) from 1572 and King of France from 1589 to 1610. He was the first monarc ...
. During the War of the League, the castle was a hiding place for
Huguenots The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a religious group of French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, the Genevan burgomaster Be ...
. It was finally dismantled around 1622 on the orders of the powerful Cardinal Richelieu. The castle currently belongs to descendants of the original builders (House of Coëtmen-Penthièvre): Count and Countess Bertrand de Rougé. Since 1862, it has been listed as a '' monument historique'' by the
French Ministry of Culture The Ministry of Culture (french: Ministère de la Culture) is the ministry of the Government of France in charge of national museums and the . Its goal is to maintain the French identity through the promotion and protection of the arts (visua ...
.


Visiting the castle

The entrance gate leads to an outer fortified courtyard or ''basse-cour''. Two towers, joined by a curtain wall, frame the entrance to the inner courtyard which is reached by a
postern A postern is a secondary door or gate in a fortification such as a city wall or castle curtain wall. Posterns were often located in a concealed location which allowed the occupants to come and go inconspicuously. In the event of a siege, a postern ...
, once protected by a moat and drawbridge. The keep, with walls thick, stands detached from the curtain walls, at the rear of the ensemble. The view from the top gives a good idea of the local countryside: "a wide, fertile and populous plateau is intersected by deep and wooded picturesque valleys". The ruins may be visited from April to October. They may be hired for location filming, photo shoots and other events.


See also

List of castles in France This is a list of castles in France, arranged by Region and Department. ;Notes: # The French word ''château'' has a wider meaning than the English ''castle'': it includes architectural entities that are properly called palaces, mansions or vine ...


References


External links

*
Le Château de Tonquédec


{{DEFAULTSORT:Tonquedec, chateau de Ruined castles in Brittany Châteaux in Côtes-d'Armor Monuments historiques of Côtes-d'Armor