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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

Bodel Manor House, also known as Bodel Castle or Sainte-Suzanne Manor House, is a medieval building located in Caro, Morbihan. Built mainly in the 14th and 16th centuries, it replaces a 13th century building belonging to the Bodel family. This granite and schist manor house is distinguished by its two external towers with screw stairs, one of which gives access to a circular room arranged in height. It was surrounded by outbuildings now missing, such as a north wing and a south building visible on the cadastre of 1829.

Bodel's mansion was a seigneurial seat with high, medium and low justice rights, symbolized by a prison and patibular forks. During the League's wars, it was reinforced by a fortified corner pavilion. Successive property of influential families such as the Bodels, Mauléon, Houx (squires of the Duke of Brittany), Théhillac, and Botherel-Quintin, it was restored in 2013 to consolidate its southern turret. His private chapel, dedicated to St. Suzanne, saw his altar transferred to the church of Ruffiac in the 20th century.

The site preserves traces of its ancient history, like a Gaulish funeral stele discovered near the Roman road Chaussée d'Ahès, which passes not far from the mansion. This route, linking Angers to Carhaix, highlights the strategic importance of the region from ancient times. Ranked a historic monument in 1978 for its facades and roofs, the mansion illustrates Breton seigneurial architecture, combining defensive, residential and judicial functions.

The noble families who succeeded Bodel reflect alliances and local authorities in Ducale Brittany. Jean de Mauléon, treasurer of Jean V of Brittany in the 15th century, or the Houx, squires of the ducal house, embody this link between the mansion and the Breton aristocracy. In the 19th century, the Anger de Kernisan family owned it, before the site passed into the hands of families like the Préaudeau or the Briand in the 21st century. Today, the mansion remains a testimony of this heritage, between medieval history and contemporary restorations.

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