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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

Roscervo Manor House, located in Lampaul-Ploudalmezeau in Finistère, was built in 1617, as evidenced by the date engraved on its façade. It was the archetype of the fortified mansion of Upper Leon, a historical region of Brittany. Its entrance was protected by a double gate flanked by two crenellated turrets, while its house, now extinct, once housed a room with carved sandstones and monumental armored chimneys. The estate was organized around four enclosures delimited by walls, three of which still remain.

Destroyed at the end of 1982, the manor house lost all of its main house, already partially razed in 1925 (deletion of the first floor and decorated room). Despite this disappearance, the remaining elements – common, dovecote with stands, and wall of enclosures – testify to its defensive and seigneurial importance. The site was partially classified as a Historic Monument in 1984, thus preserving the facades of the communes, the dovecote, and the walls of the enclosure with their fortified entrance.

Originally, the mansion was at the heart of a defensive system characteristic of the noble houses of Brittany of the seventeenth century. The murderers of the turrets and the enclosing organization reflected the social tensions of the time, where the lords had to both display their power and protect themselves. The date of 1617 coincided with a period of relative stability in Brittany, after the League wars, but where local rivalries persisted.

The current, though fragmentary, remains offer an overview of the manorial architecture of the country: use of local stone, carved decorations (corbels, coat of arms), and symmetrical layout of agricultural buildings around the courtyard. The dovecote, emblematic of seigneurial estates, emphasizes the social status of the owners, the only ones authorized to own this type of construction under the Old Regime.

The inscription in the Historical Monuments in 1984 aims to protect the last testimonies of this heritage. The preserved elements – gates, walls and dovecote – allow us to study the evolution of Breton manors, from medieval fortresses to more open residences in the Renaissance. The destruction of 1982 remains an example of property losses that occurred prior to increased awareness of preservation.

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