Château de la Touche et son enceinte
CastleHidden Treasure
Château de la Touche et son enceinte, located in Trébry (Département 22), is a medieval landmark built in the Middle Ages. The monument is currently closed to visitors.
Key facts
- Type
- Castle
- Period
- Medieval (11th-15th century)
- Location
- Trébry, Département 22, Bretagne
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 48.3570, -2.5714
- Mérimée Reference
- PA00089674
A granite sentinel in the heart of medieval Penthièvre, Château de la Touche has preserved its original towers and walls since the 14th century, a rare example of Breton feudalism in the Côtes-d'Armor region.
History
Nestling in the Côtes-d'Armor bocage at Trébry, Château de la Touche is one of those fortified Breton dwellings that have managed to survive the centuries without losing the essence of their medieval soul. Far from the main tourist routes, it offers those who take the trouble to stop off for an intimate encounter with the feudal system of the Breton interior, at a time when the Duchy of Brittany was asserting its independence in the face of the appetites of the Kingdom of France. What makes La Touche truly unique is the remarkable preservation of its original walls. In a region where most rural fortresses have been dismantled, redeveloped or ruined by wars and the Revolution, the castle has kept its curtain walls and defensive works in a state that still allows the military logic to be read. Attentive visitors can easily make out the corner reinforcements, the lookout points and the concentric organisation characteristic of the fortified manor houses of the Penthièvre region. The visit begins from the outside, by walking around the perimeter of the enclosure to grasp the intelligence of the site: a slightly dominant position in the undulating landscape around Trébry, a narrow entrance that reminds us how much security took precedence over comfort at the end of the Middle Ages. The robustness of the local granite, dark and siliceous, gives the whole a typically Armorican austerity, far removed from the châteaux of the Loire carved out of light-coloured tufa stone. The hedged farmland that surrounds La Touche adds to the charm of the place. Hundred-year-old hedgerows, sunken lanes and damp meadows make up a natural setting that has hardly been altered by the centuries. For photographers and lovers of medieval history, the low-angled morning light and autumn mists transform the grey stones into a setting worthy of the illuminations of the period.
Architecture
Château de la Touche belongs to the category of fortified Breton manor houses dating from the 14th century, an architectural type that is as much a fortified house as a manor house. Its original layout revolved around a rectangular main dwelling flanked by towers, the whole surrounded by a granite enclosure that followed the natural contours of the land. This concentric layout, inherited from medieval defensive principles, allowed for defence in depth despite the limited number of soldiers. The materials used are those of the Armorican building tradition: grey granite extracted from local moors and quarries, cut into blocks of varying sizes, with particular care given to the corner ties and window surrounds. The thick, lightly perforated walls of the enclosure reveal their original military purpose; a few archways remain, testifying to the original defensive equipment. The roof of the dwelling, which was redone or restored in a later period, probably takes the form of Breton slate, which is ubiquitous in the architecture of the region. The sober ornamental style of the building is typical of Breton military architecture of the late Middle Ages: no exuberant decorative sculptures or sophisticated mullioned windows, but a geometric rigour and robustness that give the building an undeniable physical presence. A few details - lintel modellations, stone corbels - nevertheless make it possible to date certain phases of construction and to perceive changes in taste between the 14th and 16th centuries.
Related Figures
Seigneurs de la Touche (XIVe-XVIe siècle) — famille noble du Penthièvre, bâtisseurs et premiers défenseurs du châteauJean de Montfort (1295-1345) — prétendant au duché de Bretagne dont les guerres de succession ont conditionné la construction des fortifications localesCharles de Blois (1319-1364) — rival de Montfort, dont le conflit armé a façonné le paysage militaire du centre-BretagneAnne de Bretagne (1477-1514) — duchesse dont le règne marque la fin de l'indépendance bretonne et la transformation progressive des forteresses rurales en demeures de prestigeÉrudits et archéologues bretons du XIXe siècle — responsables de la redécouverte et de la mise en valeur du château avant son inscription aux Monuments Historiques
Tags
Nearby castles
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Château de la Touche et son enceinte located?
Château de la Touche et son enceinte is located in Trébry, Département 22 department, Bretagne region, France.
When was Château de la Touche et son enceinte built?
Château de la Touche et son enceinte dates back to a period built in the Middle Ages (11th-15th century).
Is Château de la Touche et son enceinte open to visitors?
Château de la Touche et son enceinte is currently closed to visitors.
