Elven, Morbihan
Encyclopedia
Elven is a French
commune
, located in the department of Morbihan
and region of Brittany.
-Rennes
junction on route nationale 166 and is the capital of the canton
of Elven which also includes Saint-Nolff
, Monterblanc
, Sulniac
, Trédion
and La Vraie-Croix
. Elven is near the Lanvaux moor, surrounded by several woodlands: Helfaut wood, Coeby wood, Kerfily, and la Boissière.
The Kerbiler stream leaves the land of the Château de Largoët
and crosses la Boissière where it encounters the ruins of the Bragou mill (where it is still possible to see the mill wheel) and then flows down to the village via another old mill (the Elven mill) before emptying into the river Arz a few kilometres later. The terrain is mostly granite
which is quarried in several places, one of which is the Parc quarry near the chateau Largoët.
The town centre spreads around the imposing church of St. Alban.
with archaeological evidence discovered in the commune, in particular the village of Bocolo where the cache of a metal smelter was found. There are also many megaliths in the canton: these include the Loge-Aux-Loups on the road to Trédion, the Pierre Tabulaire de la Bataille in the Coeby forest and the twin menhirs of Babouin et Babouine that were carved with faces at an unknown period.
The commune of Elven was founded by religious leaders who emigrated across the Channel
from Britain
in the fifth century. The name evidently comes from Saint Elwen
or Elven.
A castle was built around AD 900 to defend against the Norman invasion. The present castle Largoët was built in the fourteenth century 2 km from the town in the middle of a great expanse of woods and was the seat of the Marshall of Brittany. Henry Tudor
Duke of Richmond, the future Henry VII of England, held it between 1474 and 1476. He stayed at most of the ducal and seigneurial houses in Brittany but stayed here the longest. The castle differed little from English castles but its striking feature was a 144 foot donjon of six storeys completed in 1475, isolated from the rest of the castle, by a moat. It was on the sixth floor of this Tour d'Elven that Henry, Duke of Richmond spent two years.
Elven was part of the Chouannerie
, a royalist uprising at the end of the eighteenth century. Indeed, the head Chouan Joseph Gambert, captain of the canton's companies, was killed near the village of Panistrel in 1794. A street now bears his name. Underground chambers inhabited by the Chouans can be found in the Saint-Bily woods. The 1988 film Chouans! was partially made on location in Elven.
During the German occupation, Elven was the scene of the first airborne operation, dubbed Operation Savannah
, on 15 March 1941. A monument commemorates the event on the road to Questembert
.
Three members of the French Resistance
were shot in July 1944. The Rue des Martyrs de la Résistance is dedicated to them.
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Gules, on two towers of bricks or with sable battlements, with the azure canton with ten besants or.
The two towers are the remains of the castle Largoët. The canton with ten bezants indicates the House of Rieux
who lived in the castle and whose arms are inlaid on the entrance above the drawbridge.
Largoët castle
The church of St Alban is dedicated to Alban of Verulamium
, patron saint of Elven, this ddication refers to the martyrdom suffered by Alban in Britain in AD303. The Normans burned the first wooden church. In 1121, a Romanesque
church was built, but was destroyed by fire again in 1525. A Gothic
church was subsequently built, of which only the choir now remains. In 1536 a neo-Gothic nave was built and a bell tower in 1642. In the nineteenth century, the time-damaged structure was restored and the nave and transept were rebuilt. The bell tower was completed in 1877 and the church was consecrated in 1879.
, was born in Kerleau manor. Her uncle signed the baptismal register. In 2002 a new school was inaugurated which is named after Catherine Descartes.
Henry VII, King of England
, Germany
.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
commune
Communes of France
The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. French communes are roughly equivalent to incorporated municipalities or villages in the United States or Gemeinden in Germany...
, located in the department of Morbihan
Morbihan
Morbihan is a department in Brittany, situated in the northwest of France. It is named after the Morbihan , the enclosed sea that is the principal feature of the coastline.-History:...
and region of Brittany.
Geography
The village of Elven is located about 15 km from the VannesVannes
Vannes is a commune in the Morbihan department in Brittany in north-western France. It was founded over 2000 years ago.-Geography:Vannes is located on the Gulf of Morbihan at the mouth of two rivers, the Marle and the Vincin. It is around 100 km northwest of Nantes and 450 km south west...
-Rennes
Rennes
Rennes is a city in the east of Brittany in northwestern France. Rennes is the capital of the region of Brittany, as well as the Ille-et-Vilaine department.-History:...
junction on route nationale 166 and is the capital of the canton
Cantons of France
The cantons of France are territorial subdivisions of the French Republic's 342 arrondissements and 101 departments.Apart from their role as organizational units in certain aspects of the administration of public services and justice, the chief purpose of the cantons today is to serve as...
of Elven which also includes Saint-Nolff
Saint-Nolff
Saint-Nolff is a commune in the Morbihan department of Brittany in north-western France.-References:* * -External links:* *...
, Monterblanc
Monterblanc
Monterblanc is a commune in the Morbihan department of Brittany in north-western France.-Demographics:Inhabitants of Monterblanc are called in French Monterblancais.-References:* * -External links:* * *...
, Sulniac
Sulniac
Sulniac is a commune in the Morbihan department of Brittany in north-western France.-References:* * -External links:* * *...
, Trédion
Trédion
Trédion is a commune in the Morbihan department of Brittany in north-western France.-References:* * -External links:* *...
and La Vraie-Croix
La Vraie-Croix
La Vraie-Croix is a commune in the Morbihan department in Brittany in north-western France. Its inhabitants are called Langroëziens after the Breton name for the commune.-Geography:...
. Elven is near the Lanvaux moor, surrounded by several woodlands: Helfaut wood, Coeby wood, Kerfily, and la Boissière.
The Kerbiler stream leaves the land of the Château de Largoët
Château de Largoët
The Château de Largoët , also known as the Tours d’Elven , is a medieval castle in Elven, in the Morbihan département of France, 13 km from Vannes.- History :...
and crosses la Boissière where it encounters the ruins of the Bragou mill (where it is still possible to see the mill wheel) and then flows down to the village via another old mill (the Elven mill) before emptying into the river Arz a few kilometres later. The terrain is mostly granite
Granite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
which is quarried in several places, one of which is the Parc quarry near the chateau Largoët.
The town centre spreads around the imposing church of St. Alban.
History
An ancient site of human settlement, the history of Elven can be traced back to the Bronze AgeBronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
with archaeological evidence discovered in the commune, in particular the village of Bocolo where the cache of a metal smelter was found. There are also many megaliths in the canton: these include the Loge-Aux-Loups on the road to Trédion, the Pierre Tabulaire de la Bataille in the Coeby forest and the twin menhirs of Babouin et Babouine that were carved with faces at an unknown period.
The commune of Elven was founded by religious leaders who emigrated across the Channel
The channel
The channel may refer to:*the means of distribution of components involved in producing consumer electronics.*the English Channel...
from Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
in the fifth century. The name evidently comes from Saint Elwen
Elwen
Elwen was the name of an early saint or saints venerated in Cornwall and Brittany. The hagiographical material asserts that he came to Cornwall from Ireland in the company of Breage and six others, but this is attested late...
or Elven.
A castle was built around AD 900 to defend against the Norman invasion. The present castle Largoët was built in the fourteenth century 2 km from the town in the middle of a great expanse of woods and was the seat of the Marshall of Brittany. Henry Tudor
Henry VII of England
Henry VII was King of England and Lord of Ireland from his seizing the crown on 22 August 1485 until his death on 21 April 1509, as the first monarch of the House of Tudor....
Duke of Richmond, the future Henry VII of England, held it between 1474 and 1476. He stayed at most of the ducal and seigneurial houses in Brittany but stayed here the longest. The castle differed little from English castles but its striking feature was a 144 foot donjon of six storeys completed in 1475, isolated from the rest of the castle, by a moat. It was on the sixth floor of this Tour d'Elven that Henry, Duke of Richmond spent two years.
Elven was part of the Chouannerie
Chouannerie
The Chouannerie was a royalist uprising in twelve of the western departements of France, particularly in the provinces of Brittany and Maine, against the French Revolution, the First French Republic, and even, with its headquarters in London rather than France, for a time, under the Empire...
, a royalist uprising at the end of the eighteenth century. Indeed, the head Chouan Joseph Gambert, captain of the canton's companies, was killed near the village of Panistrel in 1794. A street now bears his name. Underground chambers inhabited by the Chouans can be found in the Saint-Bily woods. The 1988 film Chouans! was partially made on location in Elven.
During the German occupation, Elven was the scene of the first airborne operation, dubbed Operation Savannah
Operation Savannah
During World War II, Operation Savannah was the first insertion of SOE trained Free French paratroops into German-occupied France: on the night of 15 March 1941....
, on 15 March 1941. A monument commemorates the event on the road to Questembert
Questembert
Questembert is a commune in the Morbihan department in Brittany in north-western France.It is located approximately from Vannes.-Demographics:Inhabitants of Questembert are called Questembertois.It was 7,404 as of the estimation of 2005....
.
Three members of the French Resistance
French Resistance
The French Resistance is the name used to denote the collection of French resistance movements that fought against the Nazi German occupation of France and against the collaborationist Vichy régime during World War II...
were shot in July 1944. The Rue des Martyrs de la Résistance is dedicated to them.
Heraldry
The two towers are the remains of the castle Largoët. The canton with ten bezants indicates the House of Rieux
Rieux
Rieux is the name or part of the name of several communes in France:*Rieux, Marne, in the Marne department*Rieux, Morbihan, in the Morbihan department*Rieux, Oise, in the Oise department*Rieux, Seine-Maritime, in the Seine-Maritime department...
who lived in the castle and whose arms are inlaid on the entrance above the drawbridge.
Bagad Elven
Bagad Elven, a traditional Breton musical group, was first formed from the Elven Celtic group which was established in 1965. The creation of Bagad Elven really took place in 1977 with the help, the following year, of Roland Becker. In 1984, Bagad Elven joined the BAS (Bodadeg ar Sonerion). In 2005, they recorded their first CD, "Un dimanche matin à Elven". Together with their artistic advisor Roland Becker, Elven Bagad won the title of 3rd category in the National Bagadou Championship of 2008. At the end of 2008, Elven Bagad released their second album: "Mémoires d'aujourd'hui" which represents the dialogue between the music of today and folk tunes collected over the last 60 years.Demographics
Because of the proximity of the RN 166, Elven is a vibrant village. From about 3500 inhabitants in 1999, the town has now grown to between 4500 and 4800. Many housing esates and individual houses are under construction. Local town planning is being modified and a ZAC (green zone) is being established in the town centre.Sites and monuments
The church of St Alban is dedicated to Alban of Verulamium
Verulamium
Verulamium was an ancient town in Roman Britain. It was sited in the southwest of the modern city of St Albans in Hertfordshire, Great Britain. A large portion of the Roman city remains unexcavated, being now park and agricultural land, though much has been built upon...
, patron saint of Elven, this ddication refers to the martyrdom suffered by Alban in Britain in AD303. The Normans burned the first wooden church. In 1121, a Romanesque
Romanesque architecture
Romanesque architecture is an architectural style of Medieval Europe characterised by semi-circular arches. There is no consensus for the beginning date of the Romanesque architecture, with proposals ranging from the 6th to the 10th century. It developed in the 12th century into the Gothic style,...
church was built, but was destroyed by fire again in 1525. A Gothic
Gothic architecture
Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
church was subsequently built, of which only the choir now remains. In 1536 a neo-Gothic nave was built and a bell tower in 1642. In the nineteenth century, the time-damaged structure was restored and the nave and transept were rebuilt. The bell tower was completed in 1877 and the church was consecrated in 1879.
People associated with the commune
Catherine Descartes (1637–1706), poet and niece of the philosopher René DescartesRené Descartes
René Descartes ; was a French philosopher and writer who spent most of his adult life in the Dutch Republic. He has been dubbed the 'Father of Modern Philosophy', and much subsequent Western philosophy is a response to his writings, which are studied closely to this day...
, was born in Kerleau manor. Her uncle signed the baptismal register. In 2002 a new school was inaugurated which is named after Catherine Descartes.
Henry VII, King of England
Twinning
Elven has been twinned since 1998 with the city of Lüdingworth, District of Cuxhaven, in Lower SaxonyLower Saxony
Lower Saxony is a German state situated in north-western Germany and is second in area and fourth in population among the sixteen states of Germany...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
.