Plouescat
Plouescat (; ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Finistère Departments of France, department of Brittany (administrative region), Brittany in north-western France. It is a seaside resort, complete with a casino and a large camping and cara ...
,
Finistère
Finistère (, ; ) is a Departments of France, department of France in the extreme west of Brittany. Its prefecture is Quimper and its largest city is Brest, France, Brest. In 2019, it had a population of 915,090.AFP: Les druides bretons perdent leur chef ) was a
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
**Gale ...
medical doctor, writer, and Grand
Druid
A druid was a member of the high-ranking priestly class in ancient Celtic cultures. The druids were religious leaders as well as legal authorities, adjudicators, lorekeepers, medical professionals and political advisors. Druids left no wr ...
of
Brittany
Brittany ( ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the north-west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica in Roman Gaul. It became an Kingdom of Brittany, independent kingdom and then a Duch ...
.
Biography
Gwenc’hlan was born in
Brittany
Brittany ( ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the north-west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica in Roman Gaul. It became an Kingdom of Brittany, independent kingdom and then a Duch ...
,
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
. His father was
Maurice Le Scouëzec
Maurice Le Scouezec Portrait 2.
Maurice Le Scouëzec, was born in Mans on 1 October 1881 and died at Douarnenez on the 1 May 1940. He was a French artist, engraver, illustrator and writer.
Biography
His son Gwenc’hlan Le Scouëz has written a ...
, a painter. Gwenc’hlan spent most of his childhood in
Madagascar
Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the southeastern coast of Africa, it is the world's List of islands by area, f ...
,
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
,
Landivisiau
Landivisiau (; ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Finistère Departments of France, department of Brittany (administrative region), Brittany in north-western France. The journalist Luc Le Vaillant, winner of the 1998 Albert Londres Prize w ...
and
Douarnenez
Douarnenez (, ; meaning ''douar'' (land) ''an enez'' (the island) or land of the island), is a commune in the French department of Finistère, region of Brittany, northwestern France.
It is located at the mouth of the Pouldavid River, an estua ...
, before doing his secondary studies in
Saint-Vincent de Pont-Croix
Saint Vincent may refer to:
People Saints
* Vincent of Saragossa (died 304), a.k.a. Vincent the Deacon, deacon and martyr
* Saint Vincenca, 3rd century Roman martyress, whose relics are in Blato, Croatia
* Vincent, Orontius, and Victor (died 305 ...
La Sorbonne
The University of Paris (), known Metonymy, metonymically as the Sorbonne (), was the leading university in Paris, France, from 1150 to 1970, except for 1793–1806 during the French Revolution. Emerging around 1150 as a corporation associated wit ...
in Paris.
He did military service between 1951 and 1953 in the
French Foreign Legion
The French Foreign Legion (, also known simply as , "the Legion") is a corps of the French Army created to allow List of militaries that recruit foreigners, foreign nationals into French service. The Legion was founded in 1831 and today consis ...
Algeria
Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...
. He was a teacher of
French
French may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France
** French people, a nation and ethnic group
** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices
Arts and media
* The French (band), ...
in
Crete
Crete ( ; , Modern Greek, Modern: , Ancient Greek, Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the List of islands by area, 88th largest island in the world and the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fifth la ...
and
Athens
Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...
from 1953 until 1957, when he was recalled to the French Foreign Legion at the 5th Foreign Regiment. After his military service ended in 1958, he became a professor at the
French Institute
The ; ) is a French learned society, grouping five , including the . It was established in 1795 at the direction of the National Convention. Located on the Quai de Conti in the 6th arrondissement of Paris, the institute manages approximately ...
Versailles
The Palace of Versailles ( ; ) is a former royal residence commissioned by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, Yvelines, Versailles, about west of Paris, in the Yvelines, Yvelines Department of Île-de-France, Île-de-France region in Franc ...
.
As of 1960, he started to study
medicine
Medicine is the science and Praxis (process), practice of caring for patients, managing the Medical diagnosis, diagnosis, prognosis, Preventive medicine, prevention, therapy, treatment, Palliative care, palliation of their injury or disease, ...
, and completed this with distinction in the Faculty of Medicine of Paris. He worked as a doctor at
Quimper
Quimper (, ; ; or ) is a Communes of France, commune and Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Finistère Departments of France, department of Brittany (administrative region), Brittany in northwestern France.
Administration
Quimper is the ...
from 1969 until 1985. He also initiated Skoazell Vreizh, the Breton emergency service, together with
Xavier Grall
Xavier Grall (1930–1981) was a journalist and poet from Brittany, France, who was a strong advocate of Breton nationalism during the Third Emsav. His work glorifies a mystical Brittany.
Early career
Xavier Grall was born in Landivisiau in Fin ...
and Yann Choucq in the 1970s. He was a participant of the "Colloque Bretagne" in 1973. He wrote the preface in Morvan Lebesque's book ''Comment peut-on être Breton?'' (How can we be Breton?). In 1985, he founded the publishing business Beltan. He promoted the work of his father, the painter Maurice Le Scouëzec.
Neo-Druidism
He became Deputy Grand Druid within the "Poellgor" (executive committee of the Gorsedd) on 1 April 1979, then he became the Grand Druid of
Brittany
Brittany ( ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the north-west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica in Roman Gaul. It became an Kingdom of Brittany, independent kingdom and then a Duch ...
, succeeding Per Loisel, on 1 November 1980. The association
Goursez Vreizh
Goursez Vreizh (officially Breudeuriezh Drouized, Barzhed hag Ovizion Breizh) is the national gorsedd of Brittany ("Breizh" in Breton). It often has delegates from the Welsh gorsedd and Gorsedh Kernow in Cornwall. The Breton organisation is its ...
(Gorsedd of Brittany), also known as "Breudeuriezh Drouized, Barzhed hag Ovizion Breizh" in Breton or "Fraternité des druides, bardes et ovates de Bretagne" in French (
Fraternity
A fraternity (; whence, "wikt:brotherhood, brotherhood") or fraternal organization is an organization, society, club (organization), club or fraternal order traditionally of men but also women associated together for various religious or secular ...
of the Druids,
Bards
In Celtic cultures, a bard is an oral repository and professional story teller, verse-maker, music composer, oral historian and genealogist, employed by a patron (such as a monarch or chieftain) to commemorate one or more of the patron's an ...
and
Ovates
In modern English, the nouns vates () and ovate (, ), are used as technical terms for ancient Celtic bards, prophets and philosophers. The terms correspond to a Proto-Celtic word which can be reconstructed as *''wātis''.Bernhard Maier, ''Dictio ...
of Brittany), represents
neo-druidism
Druidry, sometimes termed Druidism, is a modern spiritual or religious movement that promotes the cultivation of honorable relationships with the physical landscapes, flora, fauna, and diverse peoples of the world, as well as with nature de ...
most regularly.
Gwenc’hlan is the fifth Grand Druid of our time, according to the Gorsedd de Bretagne. In November 1993 he united a group of
Freemasons
Freemasonry (sometimes spelled Free-Masonry) consists of fraternal groups that trace their origins to the medieval guilds of stonemasons. Freemasonry is the oldest secular fraternity in the world and among the oldest still-existing organizati ...
, forming the "loge maçonnique de la pierre"(freemason lodge of the stone), to preserve the masonic forest rites.
Bibliography
* ''L’Encyclopédie de la divination'' (edited by René Alleau). Tchou, 1963.
* ''Guide de la Bretagne mystérieuse'' (1966, re-released under the title ''Le Guide de la Bretagne''). Tchou, 1966.
* ''La Bretagne'' (''Brittany''). Sun, 1967.
* ''Histoire du Mouvement breton, Que sais-je?''. 1971
* ''Bretagne terre sacrée'' (''Brittany: Sacred Land'') 1977
* ''La Médecine en Gaule'' (''Medicine in Gaule'') Guipavas, Ed. Kelenn. 1976
* ''Brasparts: une paroisse des monts d’Arrée''. Le Seuil, 1980.
* ''Le peintre Le Scouëzec'', Brasparts, Alrea, 1984.
* ''Maurice Le Scouëzec, L’aventure de peindre'', Brasparts, Beltan, 1993.
* ''Le peintre Le Scouëzec, mon père'', Brasparts, Beltan, 1995.
* ''Le Scouëzec, 1881–1940: Montparnasse, la Bretagne, l'Afrique''. Cénomane, 1998.
* ''Dictionnaire de la Tradition Bretonne'', Paris, Editions du Félin, Philippe Lebaud, 1999.
* ''Guide des calvaires bretons'', Spezet, Coop Breizh, 1999.
* ''Itinéraire spirituel en Bretagne'', Paris, La Table Ronde, 2000.
* ''La tradition des druides, trois tomes'', Beltan, 2001.
* ''Le grand druide était innocent''. Editions Beltan. (François Taldir-Jaffrenou)
* ''Arthur, roi des bretons d'Armorique'', Le Manoir du Tertre.
In collaboration with Jean-Robert Masson
* ''Pierres sacrées de Bretagne : calvaires et enclos paroissiaux'' (1982)
* ''Pierres sacrées de Bretagne: croix et sanctuaires'' (1983)
* ''Bretagne mégalithique'' (1987)
* ''Enez Eusa, Ouessant mystérieux'' (avec Maï-Sous Robert-Dantec). Quimper : Élisart Éditeur, 2001.
* ''Entretiens avec un druide nommé Gwenc'hlan'' (de Régis Blanchet aux Editions Du Prieuré) (1993).