Châteaugiron, “Petite Cité de Caractère” in Brittany

Sign in a medieval street in Châteaugiron

CHÂTEAUGIRON CASTLE

The thousand year old village of Châteaugiron in Ille-et-Vilaine started to develop around the castle in the 12th century. The ancient, medieval fortress was built to protect Rennes, capital of the Duchy of Brittany.

The impressive building comprises a quadrangular outer wall interspersed with corner towers and a 38-metre high keep which stands alone. Four towers still exist : the keep, clock tower, Cardinal’s tower and watchtower. These round towers are typical of fortifications built under Philippe Auguste at the end of the 12th century.

Rebuilt in the 14th century, the circular keep is the oldest tower of the fortress. Surrounded by a moat, it is reached via a drawbridge. The seigniorial dwelling on the north side was the residence of the Lords of Châteaugiron until the 15th century. It was subsequently reworked and extended during the 18th century in classical style with large windows and French-style gardens. Nowadays, the castle belongs to the town and houses the town hall.

Visiting Châteaugiron Castle

Guided tours of the ancient medieval fortress are run by the local Office de Tourisme du Pays de Châteaugiron and take visitors around the towers, the residential building and the chapel as well as some rooms which are not normally open to the public!

There are also guided tours of the castle for families featuring fun, sensory activities. You can also explore the castle at nightfall during a nocturnal tour in which the castle appears in a totally different light!

3 CHA Art Centre

Since 2015, the superbly restored historic chapel of the Château de Châteaugiron has been home to a contemporary art centre known as ‘Les 3 CHA’. The name alludes to the first syllable of the words CHApelle, CHÂteau and CHÂteaugiron!

3 CHA Art Centre is a member of the a.c.b. network for contemporary art in Brittany. It organises different exhibitions, workshops and cultural events (concerts, art and craft fairs) throughout the year.

Each exhibition is unique as it is tailor-made to suit the venue. The advantage of the art centre lies in the ability to organise huge, unconventional installations at the heart of a historic building of simple, clean-cut design.

Châteaugiron and its castle overlooking the town

Half-timbered houses, Rue de la Madeleine in Châteaugiron

THE MEDIEVAL CENTRE

Take time to visit the historic centre of Châteaugiron with its medieval streets and pretty, half-timbered houses. The long Rue de la Madeleine, one of the oldest streets in the town, has lots of historic houses which were once home to sailcloth merchants including the ‘Maison du Pot d’Etain’ at n° 28 (15th and 16th centuries) and the ’Maison du Grand Veneur ’ at n° 20 (16th century).

The historic streets are packed with attractive shops like the bookshop « Aux Vieux Livres », one of the oldest shops in Châteaugiron and « Atelier Baroque » with its amazing collection of original, decorative objects!

A 2-hour heritage walk starting from the Castle car park takes you around the ‘Petite Cité de Caractère’. You can also choose a one hour tour with an audio guide downloaded onto your smartphone starting from the castle courtyard. ‘La Médiévale’ guided tour for history lovers follows in the footsteps of a Châteaugiron family during the Middle Ages.

Châteaugiron and weaving

From the end of the 15th century onwards, numerous weavers and cloth merchants settled in Châteaugiron, a town famous for producing sailcloth. In the 17th century, a royal factory to make canvas sails called « Noyales » was opened in the town. It manufactured extremely tough hemp sailcloth using a new technique involving double-thickness threads. The processing and trade of hemp generated intense economic activity. In 1800, the area still boasted 56 weavers each with their own loom.

In 1824 the ‘Manufacture Des Bouillons’ (factory) opened in the buildings of the Prieuré Sainte-Croix (priory). The workshops contained 76 weaving looms and produced more than a thousand canvas sails annually for the French Navy and Merchant Navy. The factory closed in 1850.

Today, the ‘Espace Eco-chanvre et Fibres Végétales’ at Noyal-sur-Vilaine is a discovery centre with an exhibition about the history of hemp. Visitors can also discover the traditional uses of hemp and the modern-day benefits of using plant fibres.

NATURE WALKS IN CHÂTEAUGIRON

Although Châteaugiron has an important historical heritage, the ‘petite cité de caractère’ also has some lovely nature walks around the lake at the foot of the castle and in La Glaume country park.

Châteaugiron lake

The river Yaigne flows through Châteaugiron and its lake at the foot of the castle, a popular local venue with fitness trail and picnic tables.

Starting from the lakeside car park, the 13km footpath from La Glaume to Gervis offers an easy walk near the castle and historic centre then back to La Glaume wetlands.

La Glaume country park

This natural attraction and centre of biodiversity is home to numerous species of wildlife. Information points along a well-thought out network of boardwalks and footpaths help visitors to discover flora and fauna including grey herons, snipe, butterflies and wild flowers. There is also a flock of rare-breed sheep grazing in the park to maintain it, a project known as eco-grazing.