Tour de Montbran

Pléboulle

On a spur overlooking the valley of the Frémur, near the old Roman road from Alet to Carhaix, the tour de Montbran was raised around 1150. Octagonal on the outside, circular within, set within an earthwork rampart now almost worn away, it is, for the Mérimée record, an extremely rare specimen of medieval architecture; this motte castle was meant to command a crossing of the river. All that remains is a half-ruined keep, of granite and sandstone rubble, registered as a historic monument on 28 March 1994. Its unusual shape has often led to its being attributed to the Knights Templar, and the Inventaire du patrimoine holds this attribution to be probable; no source proves it. The written record, for its part, names in 1201 the Sainte-Croix de Montbran, which templiers.net presents as a Templerie with its chapel dedicated to the Holy Cross, a member of the commandery of la Nouée, at Yvignac. After the suppression of the Temple, in 1312, its holdings passed to the Hospitallers of Saint-Jean-de-Jérusalem; according to templiers.net, they chose as the district's chief seat la Caillibotière, at Plurien, probably after the ruin of Montbran. The chapel of Montbran, repaired in the early 15th century, is said to be in ruins as early as 1509 according to InfoBretagne, which also reports that the tower was called the 'tour sarrasine' in the 18th century. In the village, finally, a fair reputed to be very old is held, once linked to the feast of the Holy Cross, in mid-September: the foire de la Montbran is still held every year at the beginning of September.

Notice Mérimée de la tour de Montbran ↗

Getting there : The place called Montbran, 22550 Pléboulle. The tower is private property and cannot be visited; whether it can be seen from the public highway remains to be confirmed (to be checked). The foire de la Montbran is held every year at the place, on the first weekend of September according to Wikipedia (to be checked for the dates of any given year).

Opening times and access details are given as a guide only: check before you set out.

Ambient sound