Manoir des Fossés
ManorHidden Treasure
Manoir des Fossés, located in Plélan-le-Petit (Département 22), is a Renaissance château built in the 16th century. The monument is currently closed to visitors.
Key facts
- Type
- Manor
- Period
- Renaissance (16th century)
- Location
- Plélan-le-Petit, Département 22, Bretagne
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 48.4395, -2.2267
- Mérimée Reference
- PA00089771
On the outskirts of Dinan, the manor house-porch of Les Fossés boasts 16th-century facades adorned with three-lobed geminated bays and cruciform archways, a rare example of Breton seigneurial architecture at the crossroads of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance.
History
Nestling in the Breton bocage near Dinan, the Manoir des Fossés is one of those discreet buildings whose austere stonework and meticulous detailing reflect several centuries of seigneurial history. Its manor-porch architecture - typical of inland Brittany - gives it an instantly recognisable silhouette: a rectangular building pierced by a carriage entrance and a pedestrian gate, like a sentinel keeping watch over the estate it has governed since the end of the 16th century. What sets Les Fossés apart from so many other Breton manor houses is the quality of its sculpted decoration. The facades feature three-lobed geminated bays - a late Gothic detail that persisted in Brittany long after the Renaissance - and cruciform archways, a reminder that these manor houses were also symbolic defence posts. This coexistence of ornamental refinement and military vocabulary paints a portrait of a Breton nobility rooted in its traditions. The most beautiful surprise of the interior is to be found on the first floor: a large room covered by an exposed wooden framework, the structure of which testifies to the skills of Breton carpenters at the end of the 16th century. These frameworks, veritable architectural sculptures, are one of the lesser-known treasures of France's rural heritage. The manor house is set in the gentle landscape of the Dinan region, between hedgerows and sunken lanes, in a Breton countryside that has preserved much of its medieval character. For the attentive traveller, a visit to Les Fossés is an ideal complement to a visit to nearby Dinan, offering a rural counterpoint to the large fortified historic town.
Architecture
The Manoir des Fossés is of the manor-porch type, a Breton architectural style in which the seigneurial dwelling directly incorporates the entrance to the estate. Rectangular in plan, the building has two superimposed openings: a carriage entrance for horse-drawn vehicles and a more modest pedestrian entrance, a hierarchy of thresholds typical of the social organisation of the Ancien Régime. The façades are the most striking decorative feature of the complex. The three-lobed geminated bays - two windows joined under the same frame and topped by trefoil arches - bear witness to a loyalty to the late Gothic vocabulary that Breton master builders continued to use long after the Renaissance had triumphed in the Loire Valley. These bays coexist with cruciform archways, cross-shaped firing slots that theoretically allowed the use of crossbows or harquebuses, giving the building its residual military character. This tension between civilian ornamentation and defensive features is characteristic of Breton manor houses from the late 16th century. The interior reveals its jewel on the first floor: a large room occupying the entire width of the building, covered by an exposed period timber frame. These trusses and purlins, sometimes adorned with mouldings or sculpted modillions, are one of the most precious technical legacies of Breton domestic architecture from the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. The materials used are those of the local area: granite for the masonry and sculpted frames, slate for the roofs.
Related Figures
Famille Le Borgne — premiers seigneurs connus des Fossés (XIVe siècle)Famille de la Bouexière — propriétaires aux XVe-XVIe siècles, vraisemblablement commanditaires du manoir actuelFamille des Nos — seigneurs des Fossés au XVIIe siècle, puis aux XVIIe-XVIIIe sièclesFamille Le Doyen — propriétaires intermédiaires entre les deux périodes des NosFamille de Kergorlay — derniers seigneurs nobles du domaine sous l'Ancien Régime
Tags
Nearby castles
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Manoir des Fossés located?
Manoir des Fossés is located in Plélan-le-Petit, Département 22 department, Bretagne region, France.
When was Manoir des Fossés built?
Manoir des Fossés dates back to a period built during the Renaissance (16th century).
Is Manoir des Fossés open to visitors?
Manoir des Fossés is currently closed to visitors.
