Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The Château de Pouancé, located on the border between Anjou and Brittany, is mentioned for the first time between 1049 and 1060 in the cartular of Carbay. Built on a fortified site from the 11th century, it becomes a strategic issue facing the Breton square of Châteaubriant. His early identity remains uncertain: some historians attribute it to Manguinoë (990–1037), others to Foulque Nerra. From 1066, the Duke Conan II of Brittany took over after a siege, marking the beginning of recurring conflicts for his control.

In the 12th century, the lords of Pouancé, linked to the families of La Guerche and Martigné, opposed the Plantagenets. Geoffroy I, involved in a rebellion against Henry II in 1172, saw his castle destroyed. His son joined the Bretons in 1196, consolidating the political role of the fortress, which then dominated a vast territory on horseback over Anjou and Brittany. In the 13th century, William III erected a dam on the Verzea, creating the pond of Pouancé to strengthen the western defences.

The Hundred Years War turned Pouancé into a coveted stronghold. In 1379, Pierre II de Valois built the Grosse Tour and modernized the defenses, but the castle fell into the hands of the Bretons. In 1432, Jean V of Brittany laid siege to the fortress with 6,000 men and seven cannons, before lifting the siege after five weeks. In 1443, the English failed to seize it despite the destruction of the suburbs. These conflicts accelerated its evolution: bastion, sparrows, and caponière were added in the 15th century.

The castle plays a key role in Franco-Breton tensions. In 1467 John II of Alençon, allied with Francis II of Brittany, saw his fortress burned by the French. Louis XI stationed 5,000 men there in 1472 before attacking Châteaubriant. After the annexation of Brittany (1488), Pouancé lost its military importance. In the 16th century, the Cossé-Brissac, the league owners, resisted briefly to the troops of Henry IV. The fortress was gradually abandoned: its walls were dismantled as early as 1541, and its ditches were filled in the 18th century.

Ranked a historic monument in 1926, the castle was saved from ruin by volunteers from the 1960s. The "Bois-Dormant" construction sites (1964–1974) released the structures, revealing artillery balls, quadrilobed openings, and a currency of the 15th century. In 1976, Louis Bessière became its owner before leaving it to the commune. Since 1981, the CHAM association and the Companions Builders have carried out excavations and restorations, despite partial collapses (1982, 1995). Today he is nicknamed the "second fortress of Anjou", after Angers.

The site, open to the public in summer, preserves a double oval enclosure flanked by six towers (including the Grosse Tour and the Heptagonale), an entrance chestnut, and unique defensive developments such as sparrows and caponière. Under the seigneurial house, a vaulted cooler and a 15th century Grand Logis testify to its residential past. Despite recent studies (thesis of 2012), many questions remain due to the lack of extensive archaeological excavations. In 2010, Pouancé was proposed for a UNESCO World Heritage Site in the framework of the Marches de Bretagne.

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