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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Notre-Dame-de-Lannelou Chapel is a religious building located in the commune of Montauban-de-Bretagne, in Ille-et-Vilaine, Brittany. Built during the second half of the 15th century, it is located to the west of the department, near the national road RN 12 linking Paris to Brest, to the place called Lannelou. A stream, the Goulas, flows below the site. This monument, classified as historical monuments since 5 January 1942, presents an unusual rectangular plan, juxtaposing two constructions: a choir potentially older than the nave, with elements that can go back to the Romanesque era.

The chapel is marked by a rich carved decoration. The western entrance door, in the middle of the hanger surmounted by a broken arch with several twists, is decorated with pinnacles and an archvolt with sleek cabbages. The south facade, pierced by a third-point window with two sills, takes on this decorative style. Inside, remains of frescoes remain on the tympanums of broken arches above the altars. The frame, on the other hand, has sculpted headshots resting on crows decorated with human masks. A small campanile covered with a roof in a building stands east of the building.

According to a legend reported by Adolphe Orin in 1913, a poor cousin of the Baron de Montauban discovered a fountain where he was thirsty. He became rich years later and would have had the chapel erected at the site of this fountain, as a sign of gratitude. This narrative is part of a local oral tradition, while historical sources confirm its role as an ancient Freian chapel and active pilgrimage site. The property now belongs to an association, and the site retains both a heritage and a spiritual dimension.

The models carved under the roof, as well as the architectural details of the doors and windows, bear witness to a remarkable craftsmanship for the time. These elements, combined with the strategic location near a major road axis, suggest that the chapel played a central role in the religious and social life of the region at the end of the Middle Ages. Its classification in 1942 underlines its heritage importance, while the traces of interior frescoes evoke a liturgical decoration today partially erased by time.

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