Château du Bois de la Motte
CastleHidden Treasure
Château du Bois de la Motte, located in Pleslin-Trigavou (Département 22), is a Renaissance château built in the 16th century. The monument is currently closed to visitors.
Key facts
- Type
- Castle
- Period
- Renaissance (16th century)
- Location
- Pleslin-Trigavou, Département 22, Bretagne
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 48.5185, -2.0891
- Mérimée Reference
- PA00089424
A 15th-century Breton island castle, Bois de la Motte rises from the waters of its pond like a medieval mirage. Its original drawbridge and the silhouette of a listed marquisate make this discreet jewel one of the most bewitching in Brittany.
History
Set on an artificial island in the heart of a moat, the Château du Bois de la Motte is one of those rare Breton buildings that seem to defy both time and reason. Its natural isolation on the calm waters of Pleslin-Trigavou, on the edge of the Côtes-d'Armor region, gives it an atmosphere of singular intensity: here, the boundary between the stone castle and its reflection in the water seems as intangible as that between history and legend. What distinguishes Bois de la Motte from so many other Breton manor houses is precisely the legibility of its medieval defensive system. The long main building is extended by a higher entrance pavilion, whose characteristic openings - designed to let the beams of the mechanism pass through - are a reminder that a functional drawbridge once controlled the only access to the island. This concrete architectural testimony to the life of a castellan in the late Middle Ages is extremely rare in Brittany. A walk around the pond reveals the dual nature of the site: a fortress designed to be impregnable and an aristocratic residence designed for pomp and ceremony. The ensemble, comprising the château, the ancient motte castrale and the seigniorial chapel, forms a picture whose spatial coherence has been remarkably well preserved. The attentive visitor will perceive in each stone the successive layers of a noble ambition carried from the châtellenie to the marquisat. The natural setting is an integral part of the experience: the vegetation surrounding the pond, the changing reflections according to the season, the serenity of a site away from the main tourist routes make Bois de la Motte a place of contemplation as much as history. Photographers will find the low-angled morning or evening light provides exceptional conditions for capturing the magic of this castle-island.
Architecture
The Château du Bois de la Motte is in the tradition of late medieval Breton castrum architecture, heir to Norman defensive models while incorporating the first concessions to residential comfort in the late 15th century. The architectural approach adopted is that of a fortified island: the pond, whose waters act as a natural moat, completely surrounds the platform on which the building stands, obviating the need for a complete masonry enclosure. The main building takes the form of a long, rectangular main building, typical of Breton seigneurial architecture at the time, built of local granite - the hard, austere stone that gives Armorican castles their distinctive grey hue. This central body is extended and dominated by a higher entrance pavilion, whose verticality deliberately marks the single point of access to the estate. The openings made in the masonry of this pavilion to allow the beams of the drawbridge mechanism to pass through are one of the most precious architectural features of the site: they provide precise documentation of the operation of this defensive device, of which few such legible examples remain in Brittany. The motte castrale, a mound of compacted earth dating from the 11th and 12th centuries, bears witness to the long period of occupation of the site, prior to the stone constructions. The seigniorial chapel completes the ensemble, giving it the spiritual dimension essential to any Breton aristocratic residence worthy of the name.
Related Figures
Seigneurs du Bois de la Motte (famille fondatrice, XVe siècle)Marquis du Bois de la Motte (titulaires du marquisat créé en 1622)Duc Jean V de Bretagne (suzerain sous le règne duquel la châtellenie fut érigée en bannière en 1433)Henri IV (roi de France sous le règne duquel le marquisat fut accordé en 1622, par lettres de Louis XIII)
Tags
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Château du Bois de la Motte located?
Château du Bois de la Motte is located in Pleslin-Trigavou, Département 22 department, Bretagne region, France.
When was Château du Bois de la Motte built?
Château du Bois de la Motte dates back to a period built during the Renaissance (16th century).
Is Château du Bois de la Motte open to visitors?
Château du Bois de la Motte is currently closed to visitors.