Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Château du Pérennou, in Plomelin (Finistry), replaces a former mansion linked to a Breton seigneury. Its name derives from pear trees (Perennù in Breton) which once marked the domain. Until the French Revolution, it was a classic manor house with French-style gardens, but was abandoned for a decade before being deeply transformed by the Marhallac Anybody family.

At the beginning of the 19th century, the mansion underwent a first renovation in a classical style, followed by a second transformation at the end of the century, adopting the romantic neo-Gothic style. Four circular towers, a corbelled dungeon, a domestic chapel and schauguers were added, giving the castle its current majestic appearance. The gardens, originally in French, were redesigned in English by Denis Bülher in the 1840s, incorporating rare species such as redwoods or ginkgos.

The estate is inextricably linked to the family of Marhallac, including Jacques Charles, Jean-Félix and Auguste, who made it their main residence after the Revolution. The discovery of Gallo-Roman ruins in 1833 and the preservation of the ancient thermal baths strengthened the historical interest of the site. The park, classified as Historic Monument in 2017, extends to an exceptional natural site, while the castle blends medieval heritage revisited with romantic influences.

The seigneury of Pérennou, formerly associated with figures such as Guillaume du Pérennou or René Mocam (Sénéchal de Quimper), passed into several hands before being acquired in 1789 by Jacques-Charles du Marhallac The latter made it a symbol of resilience for his family, the only well preserved after revolutionary upheavals. Today, the current owner, M. de Broc, continues this tradition by restoring the gardens and opening the estate to the public.

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