Sarzeau (; br, Sarzhav) is a

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 ...

in the

Morbihan Morbihan ( , ; br, Mor-Bihan ) is a department in the administrative region of Brittany, situated in the northwest of France. It is named after the Morbihan (''small sea'' in Breton), the enclosed sea that is the principal feature of the coastli ...

department Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

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 north-western

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. It is located on the Rhuys peninsula between the

Gulf of Morbihan The Gulf of Morbihan is a natural harbour on the coast of the department of Morbihan in southern Brittany, France. Its English name is taken from the French version, ''le golfe du Morbihan'', though it would be more precisely called 'the Mo ...

and the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

History

The area around the

has been occupied since

neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several parts ...

times. Prehistoric monuments remaining include the

menhirs A menhir (from Brittonic languages: ''maen'' or ''men'', "stone" and ''hir'' or ''hîr'', "long"), standing stone, orthostat, or lith is a large human-made upright stone, typically dating from the European middle Bronze Age. They can be foun ...

of Kermaillard and Largueven, as well as the

dolmen A dolmen () or portal tomb is a type of single-chamber megalithic tomb, usually consisting of two or more upright megaliths supporting a large flat horizontal capstone or "table". Most date from the early Neolithic (40003000 BCE) and were somet ...

s of Kergillet and Brillac. The town itself was first mentioned in the 11th century in reference to an abbey at the sit

The nearby

Château de Suscinio The Château de Suscinio or de Susinio is a Breton castle, built in the late Middle Ages, to be the residence of the Dukes of Brittany. It is located in the commune of Sarzeau in the département of Morbihan, near the coast of the Atlantic ocean. ...

was built in the 13th century and fortified in the 15th century. The castle was a favorite spot of the Dukes of Brittany who often came for the hunting in the surrounding regio

During the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

, because of its size the town was divided into seven local divisions, a situation that still exists to some extent. The town officially became a commune during the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...

. Sarzeau was the birthplace of

Alain-René Lesage Alain-René Lesage (; 6 May 166817 November 1747; older spelling Le Sage) was a French novelist and playwright. Lesage is best known for his comic novel '' The Devil upon Two Sticks'' (1707, ''Le Diable boiteux''), his comedy ''Turcaret'' (170 ...

(1668–1747), the author of novel '' The Devil upon Two Sticks'' (1707), his comedy ''

Turcaret ''Turcaret'' (or ''Le Financier'') is a comedy by Alain-René Lesage, first produced on 14 February 1709 at the Comédie-Française in Paris. It is considered one of Lesage's most important works. The play shows clear signs of having been writte ...

'' (1709) and his

picaresque novel The picaresque novel ( Spanish: ''picaresca'', from ''pícaro'', for "rogue" or "rascal") is a genre of prose fiction. It depicts the adventures of a roguish, but "appealing hero", usually of low social class, who lives by his wits in a corru ...

Gil Blas ''Gil Blas'' (french: L'Histoire de Gil Blas de Santillane ) is a picaresque novel by Alain-René Lesage published between 1715 and 1735. It was highly popular, and was translated several times into English, most notably as The Adventures of G ...

'', (1715–1735).

Population

Inhabitants of Sarzeau are called in French ''Sarzeautins''.

Sights

* The

is a 13th-century castle that has recently been restored. Inside there is also a museum on the history of the area. * The Château de Kerlevenan is an 18th-century castle with large gardens. * Museum of Arts et Métiers and Cider Museum. *

Menhirs A menhir (from Brittonic languages: ''maen'' or ''men'', "stone" and ''hir'' or ''hîr'', "long"), standing stone, orthostat, or lith is a large human-made upright stone, typically dating from the European middle Bronze Age. They can be foun ...

of Kermaillard and Largueven, and the

s of Kergillet and Brillac. * Beaches, especially along the Atlantic side.

Sport

Stage four of the

2018 Tour de France The 2018 Tour de France was the 105th edition of the Tour de France, one of cycling's three Grand Tours. The -long race consisted of 21 stages, starting on 7 July in Noirmoutier-en-l'Île, in western France, and concluding on 29 July with the ...

finished in the town.

Breton language

The municipality launched a linguistic plan through

Ya d'ar brezhoneg (french: Oui au breton, en, Yes to Breton) is a campaign started in the 21st century by the ( en, Office of the Breton language) to promote and stimulate the use of the Breton language in daily life in Brittany, northwestern France. Breton is a ...

on December the 20th of 2006. In 2008, there was 4,59% of the children attended the bilingual schools in primary education. ''Ofis ar Brezhoneg''
''Enseignement bilingue''
/ref>

History

Population

Sights

Sport

Breton language

See also