Reconstruction of the mansion XVIIe siècle (≈ 1750)
Seat of a seigneury, current remains (pigeon, gate).
4e quart du XVIIIe siècle
Transformation into a hunting lodge
Transformation into a hunting lodge 4e quart du XVIIIe siècle (≈ 1887)
Partial reconstruction, terraced garden.
1990
Historical Monument
Historical Monument 1990 (≈ 1990)
Protection of landscape infrastructure and nymph.
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui Aujourd'hui (≈ 2025)
Position de référence.
Heritage classified
Coat-Iles Garden: Architectural infrastructures including the nyumphee with its stairs, terrace support walls and the enclosure wall (cad. A 667): entry by order of 9 October 1990
Key figures
Information non disponible - No names cited in the sources
Owners or architects are not mentioned.
Origin and history
The Coat-Iles Garden in Taulé, Brittany, is one of the few remains of an important seigneury rebuilt in the seventeenth century, probably on the foundations of an older mansion. From this period remain the dovecote, the gate and the entrance pavilion, testimonies of the former prestige of the place. At the end of the 18th century, the whole was thoroughly redesigned: the original manor house was replaced by a hunting lodge, now very restored, while subsequent additions (XIX-20th centuries) altered its western facade, in particular.
The garden, the most remarkable element of the site, was designed to fit perfectly into the home. Organised in three terraces with neat retaining walls, it takes over the architectural lines of the house, with carved boxes evoking the stairs. These developments, along with the nymphae and its staircase, reflect a search for harmony between nature and construction, characteristic of the seigneurial gardens of the time. The whole, classified as Historical Monument in 1990, protects in particular landscape infrastructures (walls, terraces, enclosures).
Although the mansion has lost much of its original appearance, the Coat-Iles Garden remains a significant example of the art of gardens in Brittany, mixing medieval heritage (via seigneury) and classical influences of the 17th–15th centuries. Subsequent transformations, although criticized for their impact on the facade, did not alter the spirit of the place, where the arrangement of the outer spaces retains a rare historical coherence.
