Initial construction 1825 (≈ 1825)
Masonry turret on the Turkish bench
1865
New granite tower
New granite tower 1865 (≈ 1865)
3rd order fixed red light installed
1893
Distinguishing painting
Distinguishing painting 1893 (≈ 1893)
Black and white bands added
1907
Installation of a siren
Installation of a siren 1907 (≈ 1907)
Deleted in 1986
1935
Lantern fire
Lantern fire 1935 (≈ 1935)
Change of aircraft after disaster
2011
Historical monument classification
Historical monument classification 2011 (≈ 2011)
Official MH registration
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui Aujourd'hui (≈ 2025)
Position de référence.
Key figures
Chatoney - Engineer
Co-builder of current lighthouse
Leferme - Engineer
Co-builder of current lighthouse
Origin and history
The Banche Lighthouse is a maritime building located on a rocky plateau off La Baule-Escoublac, in the Loire-Atlantique. Originally built in 1825 as a masonry turret, it was replaced in 1865 by a granite tower equipped with a fixed red light. His black and white stripes, added in 1893, distinguished him from other nearby lighthouses such as that of the Four plateau.
In 1896, its light system evolved into a fire with three occultations every 18 seconds, and in 1907, a mermaid was installed there (deactivated in 1986). After a fire in 1935, his optics were modernized, and in 1944 his fire was lit with a new optic and an aerogenator. The lighthouse, the last inhabited of the department before its automation in 1986, was listed as a historic monument in 2011.
Architecturally, the current lighthouse is a truncated tower in masonry, surmounted by a stone balustrade. Its 1930 historical perspective is now exposed to the siege of the autonomous port of Nantes-Saint-Nazaire. The National Archives also maintains plans dated 1905, illustrating its technical and structural evolution.
