Château de Montmuran

Montmuran's two oldest towers date from the 12th century, and a stained-glass window in the chapel places their construction in 1170. From outside, only one is visible, the garrison tower. The more important one, the Constable's Tower, is the keep. As the heart of the castle, it was meant to stay hidden, from inside and out. Its walls are about 3 meters (10 feet) thick, and up to 8 meters (26 feet) at the window openings, which keeps its rooms cool in summer.

Montmuran stands on a feudal mound in the village of Les Iffs, between Rennes and Saint-Malo, not far from Dinan. On a clear day, the view from the top of the towers reaches about 20 kilometers (12 miles). In the 15th century the fortress had seven towers, which made it a stronghold during the War of the Breton Succession and the Hundred Years' War. Four remain. The only way in is through the 14th- and 15th-century defensive gatehouse, with its two drawbridges, a large one for carts and a small one for people on foot. Once raised, they made the castle almost impregnable. At the top, a curtain wall led from one tower to the next, so defenders could walk the whole circuit.

In Montmuran's chapel, Bertrand du Guesclin, the Breton knight later famous as Constable of France, was knighted in 1354. In 1374, in his second marriage, he wed Jeanne de Laval, the château's owner, there, and so became its master. A stained-glass window sums up these moments: the construction in 1170, a siege, an ambush Du Guesclin laid for the English at 17, his knighting and his wedding. Montmuran later belonged to Admiral de Coligny, the Protestant leader of the Wars of Religion.

A 1902 mural in Montmuran's chapel shows the tournament on the Place des Lices in Rennes. Du Guesclin is fifteen, and his father, Robert, has forbidden him to take part. He borrows armor and a horse from an uncle, unseats every opponent and, with no coat of arms on his shield, is taken for an unknown rider. Facing the last challenger, he recognizes the double-headed eagle of the family arms, realizes he is up against his own father and lowers his lance. He lifts his helmet, and his father recognizes him. He draws a bar across his arms with blood from his wound and gives them to his son: the double-headed eagle crossed with red.

In 1889, a fire destroyed the whole 14th- and 15th-century section of Montmuran that houses the chapel, which was rebuilt in 1902. The 15th-century tower that burned has been left as it was. Only a few floors were laid to hold the structure together. A fireplace still hangs on the wall of a floor that no longer exists. Restoring it may be a project for the generations to come.

"Nothing has happened since 1889. Maybe it'll be part of future restoration projects, maybe for the next generations."
Olivier de La Villéon, owner, 2023

The room known as Bertrand du Guesclin's bedroom fills the oldest part of Montmuran. The lord lived here with his whole family, under carved vaults. It holds a 15th-century steam room, one of perhaps two or three left in France. A wood-fired hearth heated a stone slab. Warm water was poured onto it to make steam, then drained straight into the moats. Tradition has it that the lady of Montmuran took steam baths with her distinguished guests. Restored by the present owner's father about twenty-five years ago, the steam room has never been opened to the public, for safety reasons. The current work should allow it to join the tour.

Restoring Montmuran's two 12th-century towers was never part of the plan. In February 2020, a fungus appeared on a beam: dry rot, which devours the timber of old houses. The attic had to be emptied in a hurry, and the vibrations brought the beam down, eaten away from the inside. Treating dry rot takes a sound roof, a sound roof frame and sound masonry, and none of them were. So the tower is being rebuilt entirely, from the walls to the roof, starting with the garrison tower. This is where the Impressionist painter Emmanuel de La Villéon, the owner's great-uncle, had his bedroom, and he left a painting on one of its doors.

"In February 2020, I saw this huge fungus on a beam that had shown up in a really, really short time. And I thought, there's definitely a problem here."
Olivier de La Villéon, owner, 2023

Rather than rebuild the 18th-century roof frame, Montmuran is getting its 12th-century roofs back: much taller structures with a round covering, whose finial will rise to about 28 to 30 meters (92 to 98 feet). The old frame is kept as a record, and 12th-century timbers are being recut and reused. Everything is in oak, shaped by hand, with no concrete and no metal. The contractors all come from within 10 kilometers (6 miles). Because the château is listed as a historic monument, the grants from the Brittany Region and the DRAC, the regional heritage authority, flow back into the Breton economy this way. The Mission Bern, France's heritage lottery program, chose the project as a flagship for Brittany.

"Montmuran isn't Notre-Dame, but it's my very own old lady."
Olivier de La Villéon, owner, 2023

In the 17th century, like many castles, Montmuran was partly dismantled. The fortifications came down, and stone from the towers went into a livable main house, remodeled in the 18th century, and into the outbuildings. The old stables and the granaries at the foot of the towers date from that time. The 18th-century drawing rooms, hung with family portraits, serve as family sitting rooms in winter and as reception rooms in the warmer months. In front of the château, 250-year-old lindens are listed as remarkable trees.

The La Villéon family has owned Montmuran since 1888. In 2023 the château is open to visitors from June to September and takes part in the European Heritage Days, on the third weekend of September. It hosts weddings starting in May. Donations for the work go through La Demeure historique, the association of private historic house owners. The towers will not be the last project: the defensive gatehouse, battered by storms, will need restoring within a few years.