Château de Callac
CastleHidden Treasure
Château de Callac, located in Plumelec (Département 56), 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
- Plumelec, Département 56, Bretagne
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 47.8153, -2.5669
- Mérimée Reference
- PA00091538
Built on a Roman road as far back as the 10th century, Château de Callac's round towers and 17th-century woodwork are set in the green heart of Morbihan. An exceptional Breton manor house, guardian of centuries of history.
History
Nestling in the heart of the commune of Plumelec, in the Morbihan region of Brittany, Château de Callac is one of those Breton buildings that carry several millennia of history with them without ever yielding to gravity. Its composite silhouette, a blend of medieval masses and 17th-century classical refinements, stands out with aristocratic discretion in a landscape of moorland and hedged farmland characteristic of inland Brittany. What distinguishes Callac from many other Breton châteaux is precisely its stratification: stone by stone, we can see the evolution of a seigneurial residence from its medieval foundations to the fittings of a more sumptuous era. The angled main building, flanked by four round towers on one wing and a square tower on the other, bears witness to a long and patient architectural accumulation, typical of the great noble houses of the region. The interior is full of surprises for the attentive visitor: antique parquet floors with gilded highlights, carved woodwork from the early 17th century and, above all, a large drawing room with a painted ceiling that bears rare witness to Breton aristocratic interior decoration from this period. These carefully preserved ornaments offer a window onto the tastes and splendours of a cultured provincial nobility. The seventeenth-century terraces, which surround the ensemble on two sides, invite you to take a contemplative stroll, while the forecourt surrounded by its outbuildings gives a clear idea of the organisation of a seigneurial estate in full activity. The whole picture is coherent and lively, far removed from the cold museification that sometimes afflicts over-restored monuments. Classified and listed as a Historic Monument since 1971, the Château de Callac will appeal as much to enthusiasts of medieval and classical architecture as it will to lovers of regional history, from ducal Brittany to the dark and heroic days of the Revolution and the Resistance.
Architecture
The château at Callac has an angled plan typical of the great Breton seigneurial residences that underwent several phases of construction. One wing is flanked by four round towers, a defensive device inherited from medieval military architecture but here harmoniously integrated into a complex that gradually evolved into a noble residence. The other wing has a square tower, probably from a slightly different period or function, which pleasantly breaks the symmetry of the whole and gives it that composite character so endearing of Breton châteaux. Two remarkable staircases provide access to the interior: one is a so-called "angel staircase", a Breton architectural term for a corner staircase housed in a tower or recess, and the other is a spiral staircase, an elegant spiral typical of staircases in medieval and Renaissance castles. These two staircase systems reflect the different phases of construction and the successive tastes of the builders. The interior reveals the particular care taken with the décor in the early 17th century: the painted ceiling in the grand salon, the carved woodwork and the antique parquet flooring form a coherent ensemble of early French modernist decorative arts applied to a Breton residence. The seventeenth-century terraces, built on two sides of the château, structure the immediate surroundings of the building and reflect a desire for geometric order in the living environment, a provincial echo of the great landscape designs of the period. The outbuildings, organised around the forecourt, complete the picture of a well-ordered seigneurial estate.
Related Figures
Seigneurs de Callac (Xe siècle) — premiers bâtisseurs de l'édifice en pierre sur les ruines de la forteresse de bois brûlée par les NormandsNobles constructeurs du XVIIe siècle — commanditaires des terrasses, boiseries et du plafond peint du grand salonChouans du Morbihan (1793-1800) — résistants royalistes dont le château de Callac fut le témoin pendant les soulèvements de la RévolutionRésistants bretons (1940-1944) — hommes et femmes liés au réseau de résistance opérant dans la région de Plumelec durant l'Occupation
Tags
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Château de Callac located?
Château de Callac is located in Plumelec, Département 56 department, Bretagne region, France.
When was Château de Callac built?
Château de Callac dates back to a period built during the Renaissance (16th century).
Is Château de Callac open to visitors?
Château de Callac is currently closed to visitors.