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Château des Forges de Lanouée dans le Morbihan

Patrimoine classé
Patrimoine défensif
Demeure seigneuriale
Château d'apparat
Morbihan

Château des Forges de Lanouée

    La Valoirie 
    56120 Forges de Lanouée
Château des Forges de Lanouée
Château des Forges de Lanouée
Château des Forges de Lanouée
Château des Forges de Lanouée
Château des Forges de Lanouée
Château des Forges de Lanouée
Château des Forges de Lanouée
Château des Forges de Lanouée
Château des Forges de Lanouée
Château des Forges de Lanouée
Château des Forges de Lanouée
Château des Forges de Lanouée
Château des Forges de Lanouée
Château des Forges de Lanouée
Château des Forges de Lanouée
Château des Forges de Lanouée
Château des Forges de Lanouée
Château des Forges de Lanouée
Château des Forges de Lanouée
Château des Forges de Lanouée
Crédit photo : Pymouss - Sous licence Creative Commons

Timeline

Temps modernes
Révolution/Empire
XIXe siècle
Époque contemporaine
1800
1900
2000
années 1760
Initial construction
1802
Acquisition by the Baron of Janzé
vers 1850
Expansion of the castle
1864
Closing of forges
1887
Construction of the farm
1895
Expansion of the chapel
1908
Court facilities
1925
Sale to Mr. Lebreton
1932
Hydropower plant
24 août 2007
Registration for historical monuments
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui

Heritage classified

The castle, i.e., for facades and roofs, the house, the buildings surrounding the courtyard called "ambulance" and "the small house", the foreman's house, the chapel, the houses of the working-class city, the hydroelectric plant and the guardian's house, the farm body (house of dwelling, kennel and operating buildings), as well as the regular gardens, the basin and the nymphaeum (cf. A 35, 36; H 1064-1066, 1068-1086, 10, 13, 26, 83-88, 90-94, 952): inscription by order of 24 August 2007

Key figures

Baron Louis Henri de Janzé - Owner in 1802 Acquiert castle and forges.
Baronne de Janzé - Last family owner Sell the castle in 1925.
M. Lebreton - Entrepreneur in Lorient Buyer of the castle in 1925.
Louis Renault - Industrial in Angers Mr. Lebreton's Gendre.
Commandant Pierre Levesque - Owner until 1945 Installed the hydroelectric plant in 1932.
Architecte paysagiste Killian - Manufacturer not achieved Garden project in 1888.

Origin and history

The castle of the Forges of Lanouee came into being in the 1760s, when it was built as the house of the master of forges on the industrial site of the Forges of Lanouee, in the present department of Morbihan. This original, modest building was profoundly transformed in the 19th century to adopt a neo-Louis XIII style, with a depth and length widening around 1850, followed by the addition of two symmetrical pavilions at the end of the century. These changes reflect the social and economic development of the site, from intensive steelmaking to gradual conversion into residential and agricultural areas.

In 1802, Baron Louis Henri de Janzé acquired the castle and forges, marking the beginning of a transitional period for the site. Janzé's family, then the following owners such as M. Lebreton (from 1925), entrepreneur in Lorient, and his descendants (including Louis Renault, industrialist in Angers), preserve and adapt the estate. The chapel was enlarged in 1895, and ancillary buildings, such as a farm (1887) or social services (1908), were erected to structure the surrounding working-class city. These developments illustrate the desire to maintain a community organization around the castle, even after the forges were stopped in 1864.

The 20th century saw the permanent conversion of the site into an agricultural and landscaping area, with the creation of a garden in boxwork beds (circa 1910) and the installation of a hydroelectric plant in 1932 by Commander Pierre Levesque. The blast furnace, a symbol of past industrial activity, is transformed into a water reservoir, while the houses of the blacksmiths, aligned perpendicular to the commons, bear witness to the workers' heritage. The castle, registered as a historical monument in 2007, retains a mixed architecture of brick and stone, with a central wooden staircase and reception rooms organized around a vestibule.

The architectural ensemble, completed by a working-class city, a Latin cross-shaped chapel, and regular gardens with basin and nymph, reflects a history of both industrial, social and residential. The materials used (brick, limestone) and the decorative elements (lucarns, corner chains) highlight the mixing of the eras, while buildings such as "ambulance" (medical service) or "small house" (offices) recall the nineteenth century paternalist organization. Today, the castle remains a unique testimony of the evolution of a productive site into a preserved heritage estate.

External links