Lanvaudan is known as a village of thatched cottages; some of these houses are listed as historic monuments. The parish church of Saint-Mandé, the Saint-Mélec Chapel and other protected buildings also provide tangible links to the area’s history. Bocage, heathland and a valley cutting through granite complete the picture. Music and theatre are part of it too: the Festival des Terres Fertiles uses unusual performance venues.
Thatched Cottages and Architectural History
The parish church of Saint-Mandé in Lanvaudan was built in 1642 and has a Latin cross-shaped floor plan. The Saint-Mélec Chapel in Lomelec was built in 1649, seven years after the parish church. Saint-Mandé’s floor plan is also specified; the chapel, by contrast, is described by its construction date and its location in Lomelec. These details offer two distinct points of interest: architectural form on the one hand, and date and place name on the other.
For three other buildings, the relevant dates are not construction years but their listings as historic monuments. The Fontaine Saint-Roch and its enclosure were listed on 30 June 1933. The cemetery cross in Lanvaudan and the Puits et niche du Lion followed on 20 March 1934. This distinguishes the construction dates of 1642 and 1649 from the later protection dates of 1933 and 1934, establishing a clear timeline from construction to heritage protection.
A Former Railway Line and Varied Landscapes
The Circuit du patrimoine follows a former railway line. This sets it apart from the individual churches and monuments: for the buildings, the focus is on construction, floor plans and protection dates; for the Circuit du patrimoine, it is on the former railway track. Those interested in heritage can thus distinguish two kinds of traces: architecture on the one hand, and a former transport route incorporated into the trail on the other.
Around Lomelec in the Blavet Valley, the bocage is crisscrossed by banks and dry-stone walls. Gorse and heather grow on the heaths of Coët-Roc'h, where nightjars and owls can be spotted. The Vallée de Sébrevet cuts through granite and runs from one mill to the next. The landscape features are therefore quite distinct: bocage divided by banks and dry-stone walls, the plant and bird life of the heath, and a granite valley with a succession of mills.
Festival, Flour and Fishing
The Festival des Terres Fertiles brings together music and theatre. Its format includes unusual performance venues such as garages, former rectories, stables and longères. The venues, as well as the art forms, are a defining feature. The festival welcomes around 4,000 people each year. Check the dates for the current edition before travelling.
In the Vallée de Sébrevet, you can buy flour directly at the Moulin de Sebrevet; check availability before travelling. The Vallée de Kerollin is known as a place for fishing. These two pointers concern different activities: buying flour at the mill itself and fishing in the valley.
Discover more destinations: Péaule, Saint-Aignan, La Trinité-Sur-Mer, Penestin, Pluméliau, Lanouée, Port-Navalo, Plouray
For the wider travel overview: Morbihan.
