Visiting the Valley of the Saints... I have desires of hagiography (stories of holy names).... to understand the meaning and origins of the Breton first names...

I'll begin with Tugdual... a very famous saint here in Brittany... and an original male name...

This young man was not born in Brittany but in what is now called Wales. He, like many other Great Britons, crossed the Channel to Armorica to evangelize it.
So... he was Welsh, born in the late 5th century (about 490) and was educated in a monastery. Nothing very original for this time!
At 25, he emigrated with his family and other religious compatriots in Leon (Northern Brittany), where he founded a monastery and then a hermitage. Soon the two schools are very successful and lots of believers arrived.
He soon performed miracles, conversions increased... The Tréguier Monastery wanted him as a bishop in 532. Converted princes thanked him giving lands to found other religious establishments. In short, everything is fine.

Tugdual went to Rome in 548 and the legend says that Rome was burying the pope.
After the funeral, while the clergy gathered to elect the new pontiff, a white dove, symbol of the purity of the soul, rests on Tugdual head. And that's how his life switched : he was elected Pope Leo V.
The end of his pontificate is announced by a new sign two years later when a white horse fly him back to Tréguier.

The sculptor Francois Breton has carved him with a dove... It should be on the Valley of Saints in Central Brittany (France). (it is supposed to be there but it was not there during my visit, I have no photos to show you! Next time !)
He died in Tréguier November 30 with 73 years (if I counted right) in 563.
Celebrated this day, his name has many variants: Tual, Tudal, Tugal, Tudwal, Tuzval, Tutuarn, Pabu or Papu in Breton.

In summary, if Tugdual is the first name of your dreams for your boy, that's what you must remember: Saint Tugdual is one of the seven founding saints of Brittany. It was the first bishop of Tréguier. He is often associated with a dove... remember, Brittany had its first and only pope thanks to him and the dove.
Your son's Nobel Peace .... Not bad?

Read it in French : Saint Tugdual et sa colombe : évèque de Tréguier et unique pape breton

You like short names ... that are not nicknames for Facebook...
True, it is convenient ... for the curb of your last born … easy to be engraved on a gold medallion... Or easy to write with wooden block letters adorning the door of the children's bedroom ...

So... French short names... Those two are famous in Brittany : Malo from Saint Malo and Brieuc from Saint Brieuc. These two Saints have given their names to their cities.They're carved in Carnoët telling their stories: Malo with his boat and Brieuc with his wolf!

Let's go back to their legends...



Malo was born in what is now called Wales, like almost all the other holy founders of Brittany (except one Corentin). Celebrated on November 15, he was the first bishop of Aleth, (one of the peninsula of Saint Malo). Where says the legend, souls at that time needed to be purified ... Patrice Le Guen carved him with a ship because he needed 7 years to cross the Channel before reaching Cézembre (the island in front of St. Malo) ...



Brieuc was a monk. He became the first bishop of Saint Brieuc and the founder of the diocese. Born in 409, in Wales, he spent his life converting ... Once he was an old man, an angel asked him to evangelize Armorica. He crossed the sea with 168 followers and founded a monastery in Treguier that his nephew Tugdual would administer …
As the plague raged in his country of origin, he came back to quiet the epidemy and then returned to Armorica with new monks. He spent his whole life trying to convert sinners (which are symbolized by wolves who want to eat him but he tames them). The statue of Brieuc in Carnoët is shown with the animal at his feet … Later, Brieuc received land from a parent and founded the town of Saint Brieuc.
The legend continued after his death: as many miracles occured on his tomb, he became one of 7 founding saints. He died in 502 and he is celebrated on May 2. Brieuc in Breton is Brieg, Briec or Brioc.

Who are these Overseas Saints?

Originally, (about the 4th C), Christianity conquers Britain and becomes the dominant religion. The title of saint is honorary and given to the clergy. When these Saints cross the Channel to evangelize Armorica, those Great Bretons also import their way of seeing the world ... They manage people, and give their names to the places where they preached. And left their names in the breton toponymy.
Thus, according to the dictionary of Breton heritage, "There are about 800 Breton saints, many of whom are known only by lann or plous (lots of villages'names begin or end with lann or plou) which they have associated their names."

Lire cet article en français : Prénoms bretons courts : Malo et Brieuc

... Follow the guide ... and discover the history of the names of the holy founders in the valley of huge granite statues in France (Brittany).

These preachers of Armorica are not many for the moment in Carnoët (where the sculptures are) but they're the most prestigious ... The area has been evangelized between the 5th and 6th C. Most of them are "British" as they came from Wales and founded Dol, Quimper, Saint Brieuc, Saint Malo, Saint Pol de Leon, Tréguier and Vannes.
These seven cities were and are the main stops of Tro Breizh (walking tour of Brittany in Breton language), a very important pilgrimage of the Middle Ages that everyone had to do once in his life. If you like walking, cross the sea and do your pilgrimage, it is really nice to do.
Corentin (in Breton Kaourantin) died December 12. His Day is the day of his death (like many other saints). As a girl's name, it is Corentine.



Corentin has a remarkable originality because, among those 7 emblematic saints , he is the only one to be born in Brittany, France in 375. All other holy founders came from across the Channel.
Very pious, he did many miracles near his hermitage. He was best known because he had a fish that did wonders: as soon as he did cut a slice, it grew again ... No wonder that the sculptors of the Valley represented him with a fish ... almost as big as him ...

Legend explains that one day the king Gradlon (the hero of the city of Ys) went hunting and got lost with his court ... He arrived at the hermitage of Corentin who feeded them with the miracle fish ...
Later, when Gradlon wanted someone for the Diocese of Quimper, he remembered the hermit and asked him to become the first bishop of the city. He died in 401 at age 26. Corentin, the patron saint of Quimper, is buried in the cathedral.
And Corentine has other feminine names : Cora , Coralie ou Coralise.

Read this article in French : Histoire d'un prénom celte Corentin

The idea is pharaonic ...
its size first: a breton valley with monumental statues (over 3 meters high) .... and its number: 1000 granite Saints ....
What a job! Most of them are still invisible, they are waiting for the sculptors to create them...



The project of the association, is to create an Easter island, a Breton one for the 3rd millennium … to glorify the memory of 1500 years of popular Breton culture ... and to protect the identity of the region.

The first Patron Saints to be carved are those who helped for the Christianization of Britain.
At St. Pol de Leon, during the summer of 2009, artists began to carve the granite and St. Pol was born. 6 other saints of Christianity have followed: Pattern, Malo, Brieuc, Corentin Tugdual and Samson. Each one done by a different artist ...

These works of art were looking for a place to stay : 9 cities have been competing to receive the project. And the city of Carnoët , central Britain, (a few kilometers from Carhaix), won the bet.

After a summer on the coast, the statues returned to their final home, the elected site Tossen Sant Gweltaz .... And the valley began to be inhabited.
The project continues ... There are still a few (!) dozens of carving statues to be done to "feed" the valley. Sponsorship (each statue-menhir is funded by a company) must allow sculptors, each year make their works in granite. From May to September, each month, 8 artists will carve a Catholic patron saint with its attributes (about forty a year). If you want to compete, go on ! The sculpture competition will go on for a while !

The association hopes to attract thousands of visitors and be a cultural crossroads site (Welsh, Irish, Cornish, Breton ...). A center of information and documentation about the Middle Ages (time when the Saints arrived in Britain), the reconstruction of a Celtic monastery and a stage to receive theatrical, musical ... will be created too.

The idea is certainly very good ... and very ambitious, for sure. An arts center to attract hikers from everywhere with a unique site in France, even in the world .... in the Center of Brittany .... (according to the Tourism Committee of Britain, visitors come overwhelmingly in the region to enjoy the coastline, coasts and sea ..). To divert the flow to the inside of Brittany, you need at least a mammoth project ... The musical festival in Carhaix, festival des vieilles charrues, is a good example of success, it is one of the biggest music scene in France...

I went to see ... this winter, these carved megaliths. It is not easy to find them... There was no sign for the precious valley. I was a bit lost in Carnoët when a nice lady told me where to go. It's in the land, park in front of a beautiful church with a beautiful Calvary and after a few meters, you'll arrive at the place which hosts the statues.



The three-meters high statues watch you from the top of the hill.

But for now, the Saints seem to be standing there ... ! and wait for friends! ... May be this outdoor celtic park in Brittany will be competing with Disneyland Paris!



Read this article in French : la vallée des saints : 1000 statues à Carnoët (Bretagne)

April 15th, the feast of St. Patern! That's an original French name ! I don't know anyone who's name is Patern. Anyhow it is a famous breton saint who is connected to rain and springtime...
Paterne or Paterne (and not Pattern !) is the patron saint of a French city in Brittany Vannes, where he was the first bishop. He was revered during the Middle Ages, when Vannes was one of the stages of the pilgrimage, the Tro Breizh, which linked the 7 bishoprics of Small Britain (Dol, Quimper, Saint Brieuc, Saint Malo, Saint Pol de Leon, Treguier and Vannes). The pilgrims had to do it once in their life.

Patern is one of the 7 founding saints of Brittany, a native from Wales. He emigrated to Armorica during the 5th C. Like many Great Britons who had fled the big island to take refuge in the small peninsula.
This religious man was not really welcomed by the local people (he is a foreigner but a Breton yet!). Nonetheless he is the first bishop of Vannes (c. 465). Quickly forced to resign, he moved to a hermitage in the region and he died forgotten in April 15 in 475.

Unloved, he should have been abandonned when a century later, the city of Vannes suffered a severe drought. The parishioners thought they were punished for abusing their bishop and they began to pray. As the rain returned, they built a church in his name... The tomb of Patern is not in the cathedral of Vannes, but in this little church (2 Place Saint Catherine Vannes).
Here is the story of Patern, whose fame continues... His statue is in the Holy Valley of Carnoet (but I forgot to photograph it). Signed by Olivier Leveque, it stands with the other contemporary sculptures of the founding saints of Brittany. You don't like this male name of Patern. Go and read my others articles on Corentin, Tugdual, Malo... or check a guide on Celtic names and their original meanings ...

Read this article in French : Un prénom breton original : Patern le saint fondateur de l'évéché de Vannes

Destination: vacation, leisure and sports ...

Walking, cycling or horse tourism... Brittany is a nice place to tour... Tro Breizh (tour of Brittany in Breton language) is a beautiful tour of a few hundred miles ... you can do on foot, on bicycle and on horse-back ... in one go (and then some days are not enough, you need several weeks ...) or more stages (and then take the opportunity to visit some nice places), with your family or solo, in couple. .. stoping by a crêperie or a nice restaurant, a B&B or a pleasant cottage, a camping on the coast....

Since 1994, Les Chemins du Tro Breiz (The Paths of Tro Breizh) organizes walks around Small Britain. They invite you to tour for a week... every year. As there are around 700 kilometers, you'll achieve it in 7 years. It is our paths to Santiago !



Historically, the Tro Breizh connects the dioceses of the seven founding saints of Brittany. This medieval pilgrimage was a walk around Small Britain to pray the saints who evangelized the region.

The legend says that those Saints were septuplets and therefore brothers (they should have been killed at birth by their mother Domnonia ... because she believed twins were the children of sin). But fortunatly, the seven brothers (Seizh Breur) have been protected by God. For their safety, they were sent to Brittany. Once there, they evangelized Britain and created 7 bishoprics : Corentin in Quimper, Patern in Vannes, Saint Pol Aurélien at Saint Pol de Léon, Samson in Dol-de-Bretagne, Tugdual at Treguier, Brieuc and Malo in their respective cities Saint Brieuc and Saint Malo.
The pilgrims of the time did the pilgrimage in about a month (over 600 km).

All Breton Christians had to do it once ... or they had to do it once dead ... and then, even for a good Catholic, it was very long ... The legend recalls that the believer who had not performed it alive had to do it advancing a length of coffin a night ... It took quite a while.

Let's go back to our tour : Dol is one of the stages of the Tro Breizh. Saint Samson is the patron saint of the city and one of the founding saints of Brittany. He has its granite sculpture at Carnoët in the Holy Valley. Sculpted by Jacques Dumas, he is represented with a mermaid.



Jacques Dumas explains the legend of Saint Samson : his mother rescued once a mermaid who then gave to this women a son (she was too old to have one).

Samson was born in Wales (as you know now) and emigrated ...
He is a peacemaker between animals and with men too... He commands the birds that destroy crops, he hunts the serpent which occupies the cave where he wishes to move ... He also works in humans problems and rules the political conflicts between the Franks and the Britons. He created the diocese of Dol. He died in about 565 Dol. His feast day is July 28.



In West Britain, at the other end of the Tro Breizh, you'll meet Saint Pol Aurélien (David Puech is the artist). This saint is the source of many miracles in the area .... Thanks to him the island of Batz was released from the dragon ....He also comes from Wales, arrived at Ouessant and finally settled in Saint Pol de Leon, where he left his name.

Enjoy your tour... walking, cycling or riding horses...

Read this article in French : Tour de Bretagne à pied, à cheval ou à vélo : idée de vacances sportives en Bretagne

This year, French fashion will be striped... stripped T-shirts... If you don't wear a top T-shirt or a navy striped sweater, you'll be old-fashioned... Fashion is stripped and the wardrobe of babies, children, women and men, youngs, … even old ones, Parisians and Froggs... are full of them. You have to wear some...

The reason for stripes ...
Initially, these stripped clothes have a history and a very specific use ... Fishermen and sailors used to wear (and still do) stripped clothes ... And for good reason ... A man overboard is easier to find with this type of clothing ... That's what the legend says ... I did not try !

No wonder that great clothing brands are French, even Breton : Armorlux for example... has an entire collection of marine clothing... Long or short sleeves, blue, white, red, yellow stripes... Nautical trend is back...

And to buy them cheap, you can either plan to go to France, even Brittany and buy them there on the Armorlux company at Quimper... Or get them on websites Brin de mer, for example, another marine clothing brand, where they sell the last year collection online … cheaper... at really low prices...

Other clothes are originally sailor « wardrobe »... la vareuse , a cotton jacket really thick that protects you from the wind ...

There's also the yellow rain slicker ... The emblem of stormy weather in Britain, of wet and drizzled weekends ... I discovered that its history starts in 1960, in France when a man tired of waiting his friend in the rain, (he was a clothing manufacturer) had this great idea... Before there were oiled jackets... waterproof ... but it was a different time ...

The sailor sweater, buttoned on the shoulder, has had its period of glory ... It used to be wool, 100%, … now they use cotton or other materials...
In short, these stripped tee shirts are trendy ... With the first sunbeams, everyone is wearing them... And you ?

In Brittany, Saints used to be quite important in the daily life. Because they were “natives”… I mean they were either born in the region or they did something remarkable and therefore they were venerated.



On the other hand, their fame did not transcend breton boundaries… and usually the Church did not recognize them.

Saint Lénard or Léonard is one among those breton Saints. His grave is located on the village of Andouillé Neuville, (right on the old road going from Rennes to Mont Saint Michel RN 175) and he is still quite famous.

The grave is at the end of a long tree-lined lane. It is also full of ex voto ( an ex voto is an object given to a Saint for a special wish).



A sign reminds us the legend of Saint Lénard and explains that in 1580 there used to be a small chapel dedicated to him in a wood called Bois de Borne. But nowadays the Bois de Borne is really tiny and the chapel gone. The grave is still there but it seems that it has been erected much later during the 19C.



The website of Aubigné ( the district of Andouillé Neuville) presents the 19C legend.

Once upon a time … a bad guy called Léonard used to live in the surroundings of Aubigné. He loved to disturb his neighbours and specially the carters. He used to stand big stones in the middle of the roads. Or he would dig large holes to wedge the carts.
He was hated by the population as everybody knew he was responsible for the troubles of the roads.
One day he was wandering in the forest (bois de Borne where his grave is) and as he was thirsty he tasted an apple that wasn’t ripe enough. He decided to put back it on an old oak and wait till it is good enough to be eaten. Sometimes later he came back to savour the apple and it was really nice. He thought :
Everything could change in better even myself…
And he decided to become a good boy from now on…

Just at that moment he saw a carter that was stuck in the middle of the road. He jumped to help him. But the carter thought that he wanted once again to annoy him. He hit him on the head and killed him. And then buried him.

Sometime later rumors began to say that on the grave, miracles were done. And that’s the way Lenard became an holy man without the help of the Church. A Pilgrimage on his grave began to cure sick people.

The actual grave was built in 1867 as it is written on the cross. A pilgrimage used to take place till the 70’s and the money given was used to buy bread for the poors…
Today the grave is still visited and lots of ex-voto



indicate that Saint Léonard is a healer Saint.



Read it in French : Le tombeau de Saint Lénard (Léonard)

Menez-Bre, this is the breton name of one the highest mountains of Brittany... 302 meters high ! Yes, and I climbed it... the rise of Menez-Bre it's 18% ... of fatigue... or of great pleasure...



Menez-Bre means sacred mountain in breton language (z is sometimes pronounced sometimes not depending on the corner of Britain you live in). It is a beautiful hill where St. Hervé chapel is built.
It is located in the middle of Brittany, a bit North, and it is surrounded by three villages Louargat, Pédernec and Tréglamus.
It can be hiked up from all sides and down on the opposite. And then walk the road, that returns to your starting point.
At the top, the Chapel Saint Hervé dominates the landscape and you will guess, through an orientation table, the different points of the land ... Monts d'Arrée ? Pink granite coast ?

A legend says that Conomor, the breton Bluebeard, was judged here... And it is also there that Gwench'lan, a prophet and a bard of the 5th C, (who refused to convert to Catholicism and had therefore his eyes gouged out, who was an enemy of Christians but a lover of birds) has been buried here after the battle against St. Hervé.
Hence the chapel Saint Hervé, symbol of the winner ! Parts of the building date from the 16th, 17th and 18th C, it has often been rebuilt.



It used to be a place of an important pilgrimage - but it is now unfortunately closed most of the time.

Let me tell you ... the history of Saint Hervé and this French first name.... and its chapel.
He is one of the few saints from Brittany to be born here in Britain in the 6th C. Blind since birth, God would not let him see the deceptive appearances of the world, he became a hermit and was always moving with a wolf. He was also a very popular confessor all over Brittany. He is also a holy bard and exorcist.

A bard ... He is the patron saint of Breton musicians and singers. That is why the Breton bards gathered here all night to pray ... And exorcist …Demons... watch out ! In fact, the 18th C exorcism sessions were held here on the sacred mountain.

One episode is often reported : a priest, Guillermic climbed the hill barefoot reciting prayers... Before him, many exorcists came here to celebrate a Mass at midnight to scare away evil spirits.

Saint Hervé is used to cure anxiety, fears or even depression.
This patron has also sparked a source close to the Chapel (300 meters East) where sick children were plunged to heal.
Many believers suffering from eye diseases or scalp came also on pilgrimage ... to be cured.
Finally, he has composed a the famous breton song the Paradise (Ar Baradoz). Hervé is celebrated June 17.

The Menez-Bre is also, since the Middle Ages, renowned for its horse fairs that stopped in the 1960s.



Hike on the village Louargat... too.
First, because the stones village is nice. And because you will find other excuses to walk around : or rather the menhir Pergat a few kilometers away from downtown. It is one of the highest menhirs in Europe, 7 to 10 meters according to sources.
And another smaller is quite weard... Put your back against the great menhir (don't wear nylon), look at the small menhir, a field of lines of force is created. your hair will tend to stand on your head.

There is also a mound (not easy to find ... I have not found any info about him) is in the opposite direction.

There are also many churches and chapels (Saint Eloi, Our Lady of Snow, St. John, St. Fiacre, Saint Paul, Saint-Sylvestre ...) in this town.

Why not spend a weekend here...
You can choose between accommodation in a cottage very close to the chapel of St. Hervé, or you can pitch your tent in a campsite within the Park of the Manor of Cleuziou (15th – 18thC).
You can even decorate your dishes or salads with herbs gathered in their garden ... Fun, no !



Read this article in French : Week-end de randonnées dans les montagnes de Bretagne : escapade dans le Trégor

What are they doing, those mammoths, here in Brittany…

Well, they used to live there long long ago… when ice was everywhere and Britain and Brittany did belong to the same land...

They’re back. Because of the Parisians.Yes, the exhibition you can discover in Rennes was conceived for the National Museum of Natural History in Paris a few years ago and it is now adapted for a smaller place, l’Espace des Sciences at Rennes.

And if I do speak about it, it is because the whole expo is subtitled in English … or translated as you want…



The expo is called At the time of mammoths, it is nice ... I have just spent an hour and a half with my young nephew (6 years old).

The tour begins with all possible fantasies that existed when men discovered those huge bones. People attributed those pieces of skeleton to imaginary figures ... until a whole mammoth was found and one could imagine the disappeared animal.

The exhibition then explains the time of glaciation, the climate, and the BEAST.
You can touch things (I won’t tell you what, you’ll discover it by yourself) and it is nice to do.
Then we live the everyday life with our forebears who lived at that time…In short we become experts in the woolly mammoth.

The exhibition also shows the local history with a short film on Mont Dol (you know the mountain we have between Cancale, the oyster city and the Mont Saint Michel !) where the remains of mammoths have been found during the 19th century. It ends with a long movie whose hero is ... this big animal, which is a good resumé of everything we have learned visiting the expo.

I (we) really liked it but we were almost alone in the expo. But the problem with Champs Libres is often the same, rooms are small and sounds clink…

I needed to concentrate to hear the soundtrack for the documentary on Mount Dol, (which I found rather interesting), especially when my nephew was listening to the weather report next to me.

The children and the mammoths?

From 6 years old, indicates the brochure. My young acolyte found it nice to try the trunk or to see a baby mammoth… a real one named Dami and usually living in a Belgian Museum. He did like to touch elephant skin and to compare it to the missing pachyderm.
My young friend was really interested in the life of mammoths. So he loved the exhibition. But sometimes it is nice to help the child through : lots to read… less in English though !!
The film at the end of the exhibition sums up the entire expo and it is so real, you feel like being back some thousands years ago…

In short, the adult (I) was not bored (not at all) and my nephew either. We did enjoy it. Not in front of the same things or stands, but whatever.
At the exit, a "true woolly mammoth" is watching you...

4 € for adults and 3 for 8 years old and older.
From Tuesday to Sunday (12h - 19h on weekdays and 14-19 on weekends), 21h night until Tuesday. Until March 7, 2010.

Read it in French : Les mammouths arrivent et reviennent à Rennes, une exposition à l'Espace des Sciences aux Champs Libres

If you want to visit an unusual part of Brittany and have a nice walk in the countryside, follow me to la Guerche on a Tuesday, the market day. You'll also discover the oak for the Virgin and the chinese pagoda.

La Guerche is a nice small town, inland Brittany on the border (les marches de Bretagne in French) between the old Duchy of Brittany and the Kingdom of France. May be you already visited Vitré and Fougères which are also cities that used to be the frontline of the Duchy and therefore fortified.



La Guerche during the Duchy period ( 826-1491) changed nationality , sometimes it was Breton, sometimes it was French. It was also a strategical place during the Hundred Years War against the English !!! and therefore many battles took place in the surroundings. And if you know a bit of French History, you surely know Du Guesclin, the companion of Joan of Arc, who bought the manorial estate of La Guerche in 1379. At that time it had a fortified castle.

Later, during the 16th century, it was an important market thanks to the canvas trade. The canvas trade made the Golden Age of Britanny. Farmers grew hemp and flax in the countryside and produced the cloths that were sold all around the world. Brittany then was a rich province, we call it the breton Golden Age. Merchants came from many places in Brittany and specially from Saint Malo to buy the canvas and to sell it to Spain and South America or England. The porched and half-timbered houses you see in La Guerche are the evidence of that Golden Period. The porched houses are now our shopping arcades, merchants used to display their cloths under those porches.



The first mention of the market of La Guerche dates from 1121, and the legend says it never stopped. It is easily understandable because of its particular place in the region. It was a crossroad between the Duchy and the French Kingdom during the Middle Age, it continued when Britanny became French and now it is a crossroad between 4 departments and still 2 regions. It still attracts people from the surrounding areas, the parking places are full on Tuesday morning !!! it used to be more traditionnal, you could see poultry or pork, but nowadays you just find nice local and traditional products like honey, bread, buckflour, « breton galettes », « galette saucisse », meat, cheese and wine.



While enjoying the market, notice the old houses and enter the Basilica (basilique Notre Dame). It became a Basilica, in 1951 – the title Basilica is only given by the Pope because of several reasons : it can be because it is old, because the bishop asked for it or because of an important pilgrimage -. Have a look at the 16th stained –glass windows, at the carved wood stalls and at the tufa recumbent statue of Guillaume, Lord of La Guerche during the Middle Age.

Once you ‘re finished, begin your walk (8 to 15 kms depending on what you want to see) on the countryside. Leaving the Basilica follow the rue d’Anjou (which is one of the street around the Basilica) till the boulevard d’Anjou. On your left a sign Fontaine Couverte V3 , 8 kms, take that direction, you ‘ll go through an housing estate for one kilometer, when you are in front of the cross, just take a right, and you’ll go through different hamlets : Hairie, Perinelle…



go on for 2,5 kms, you’ll meet another cross



go on till the crossroad Route des Rondes.



Take a right for one km to the next cross (Gaumonerie) and you’ll see the first sign for chêne à la Vierge (oak of the Virgin) on your left. You leave the road for a path, just walk a bit till the forest at the end of the path and you’ll see it.



This oak is the witness of events that took place after the French Revolution (1789) in 1792. A youg girl was shot in front of the oak because she refused to reveal the place where a priest was hiden. At that time France was divided into two sides : the one for the ideas of the French Revolution the republicans and the others against it. Priests were usually against French Revolution because the leader of the French Revolution were against religion and had confiscated or destroyed religious buildings and properties. You still can see for example on many churches statues of Saints or religious figures beheaded or destroyed. This oak is now an holy place : the various statues of the Virgin testify the religious devotion. Ceremonies still take place on August 15th.

If you are in shape, you have to go on for the next unusual site : a chinese pagoda. But if you want to go back, take the road you left , walk a bit on your left till you find the sign for La Guerche and you will soon find the way you came in.



If you want to see the pagoda keep walking straight (la Selle) for about 2,5 kms, you’ll see again a cross, you’re almost there. Leave the cross on your left, and after the bend, you’ll see the fork with the sign chapelle du Pâtis or Chapelle Sainte Anne.



This wood chapel is an octogonal pagoda unique in France. It was created in 1875 by the Priest François Lizé from La Selle Guerchaise. He was a missionary in China and took home the pagoda at the end of the 19th century. It is dedicated to the Virgin and Sainte Anne. Sainte Anne is one of the patron saint of the Bretons, the other one is Saint Yves. She is the mother of the Virgin. Inside the chapel you’ll see the epitaph of the Priest, nice restored colourful fresco (1875-1876) and three saint statues.



A peculiar one from Sainte Anne in wood from the 16th century has slanting eyes, one from Joseph and one from Joachim Sainte Anne ‘ husband.

Leaving the chapel, walk in the direction of La Selle and after some meters you’ll find another cross (it is written 40 jours d’indulgence on it) and you see a sign for La Guerche, you’re ok. This cross was probably on a pilgrimage that gave you days of indulgence. Indulgence were remission of punishment for sins for which you had to make penitence. Through confession, charity works, pilgrimage or money gifts, the sinner could recover remission from eternal punishment. This cross was part of the remission way. Once you’re on the way to La Guerche, you have to walk for 4 kms and arrive in the city, don’t take the street called « point du jour » but the other one with no sign and you’ll find the boulevard d’Anjou.

Read it in French : le marché de la Guerche come point de départ pour une excursion au chêne de la Vierge et à la chapelle Sainte Anne