Brittany
Brittany is the westernmost region of France (and Europe) and comprises the departments of Côtes-d’Armor (22), Finistère (29), Ille-et-Vilaine (35) and Morbihan (56).
With 3,000km of Atlantic coast (over 25 per cent of the French coastline) Brittany is characterised by dramatic cliffs and rock formations. In the north there are attractive coves and tiny harbours and the south has wide estuaries and long, sandy beaches.
Brittany is popular with sailors, although the sea is not without its dangers – all those who die at sea are supposed to meet in the Baie des Trépassés (‘Bay of the Departed’) near Douarnenez, from where they’re ferried to a mythical island of the blessed!
More than a third of French lighthouses are in Brittany – most of them in Finistére. The inland region, known as the Argoat (‘land of woods’), is almost flat; only two ridges and a solitary peak rise above 250m (800ft), although the Bretons call them mountains – the Montagnes noires (Black Mountains), the Monts d’Arrée (Arée Mountains) and the Montagne de Locronan. Inland Brittany is also largely agricultural, unspoiled (some would say rather barren) and scenic, with delightful wooded valleys, lakes and moors.
Vegetables and fruit are the two main agricultural products of Brittany and the department of Ille-et-Villaine was France’s biggest cider producer until the mid 20th century.
The average Breton is reputed to drink over 300 litres of cider per year! Hic!
Brittany is also a major producer of pork, poultry, milk and fish, as well as seaweed, which is used in food additives, fertilisers and cosmetics. Cancale is reputed to be a gastronomic Mecca, and the entire region is a paradise for seafood lovers. Local culinary specialities include croes and galettes (different types of pancake used for sweet and savoury fillings respectively), cotriade, a sort of paella without the rice (the Breton equivalent of bouillabaisse) and cervoise, a beer reputed to be the favourite drink of the Gauls (or Vikings, according to which history you read).
The regional capital, Rennes, is Brittany’s largest city. The next largest town is Brest with around 155,000. Other main towns include Dinan, Dinard, Lorient, Quimper, Saint Brieuc, Saint-Malo, Vannes and Vitré.
The local people (Bretons) are of Celtic origin with a rich maritime tradition and a unique culture (preserved mainly in the more isolated west). Proud and independent (they claim that Brittany is a country apart), they even have their own language which has been revived in recent years. Rennes University is a centre of Breton studies. Like Ireland, Brittany is a land of legend and folklore – the jagged coastline is said to have been carved out by the giant Gargantua, and the Forest of Broceliande is claimed to have been the hide-out of the Arthurian sorcerer Merlin. Traditional Breton costume is still worn on special occasions; one of the most colourful of these is the Fête des Filets bleus (‘Festival of the Blue Nets’), which is held in the fishing village of Concarneau in August.
Brittany was founded by Cornish settlers fleeing Anglo-Saxon invaders in the fifth century. They took their language with them (curiously, Breton survives but Cornish doesn’t) and remain proudly Celtic. It wasn’t until 1532 that Brittany officially became part of France.
To view some Gites in Brittany, please visit Gites in Brittany.
All the best
