Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The château de la Crochais is located in the territory of the former commune of Ploubalay, in the department of Côtes-d'Armor, in Brittany. This site bears witness to a centuries-old occupation, combining a 15th-century manorial house and a 18th-century neoclassical house, completed by a chapel dedicated to Saint John the Baptist and a closed courtyard. The jump-off and architectural elements, such as the triangular pediment and the circular tower housing a spiral staircase, reflect the stylistic and functional evolutions of the monument over the centuries.

According to the analyses of the Viscount Henri Frotier de La Messelière, the castle belonged to the Ladvocat families (from the 15th to the 18th century) and then to the Briot families (XIX-XXth centuries). The site is also close to an underground dating from the second Iron Age, highlighting its historical importance since ancient times. The main house, of neo-classical style, has a symmetrical five-span facade, while the primitive house, at the back, retains medieval features like a basket handle door.

The château de la Crochais is included in the general inventory of cultural heritage, recognizing its historical and architectural value. The elements such as the chapel, the missing coat of arms of the pediment, and the defensive structures (salt-de-loup) illustrate its role both residential, religious and symbolic for the noble families who succeeded them. The sketch of 1827 and the cadastral archives partially reconstruct its evolution, although some parts, such as the coat of arms, have now disappeared.

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