Penfeld
Encyclopedia
The Penfeld, Penfell in Breton
, is a 16 km-long French coastal river. On its left (east) bank has grown up the town of Brest
in Finistère
.
. It then passes through Bohars
and Guilers
(a hamlet bearing the river's name) before flowing out into the roadstead of Brest
. The Penfeld runs along the former course of the river Aulne
, shifted to the west by the opening of the goulet
of the roadstead of Brest
by the interglacial periods of the Quaternary Era
. This explains its depth, allowing deep-draught ships to go quite a way upstream, with tides running up it for up to 8 metres.
At Brest, the Penfeld is crossed by the Pont de l’Harteloire then, some way downstream, by the Pont de Recouvrance
, the largest vertical-lift bridge in Europe until it was de-throned by the pont levant de Rouen
in 2007.
In its last kilometres, within embanked banks of 25 to 30m high, the Penfeld runs through the Brest naval base, and at its mouth (a site whose strategic importance has been recognised since antiquity) is a 15th century château fort
.
Breton language
Breton is a Celtic language spoken in Brittany , France. Breton is a Brythonic language, descended from the Celtic British language brought from Great Britain to Armorica by migrating Britons during the Early Middle Ages. Like the other Brythonic languages, Welsh and Cornish, it is classified as...
, is a 16 km-long French coastal river. On its left (east) bank has grown up the town of Brest
Brest, France
Brest is a city in the Finistère department in Brittany in northwestern France. Located in a sheltered position not far from the western tip of the Breton peninsula, and the western extremity of metropolitan France, Brest is an important harbour and the second French military port after Toulon...
in Finistère
Finistère
Finistère is a département of France, in the extreme west of Brittany.-History:The name Finistère derives from the Latin Finis Terræ, meaning end of the earth, and may be compared with Land's End on the opposite side of the English Channel...
.
Course
Its source is in the town of GouesnouGouesnou
Gouesnou is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in north-western France.-International relations:Gouesnou is a satellite town of Brest...
. It then passes through Bohars
Bohars
Bohars is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany north-western France.-References:** ;-External links:* *...
and Guilers
Guilers
Guilers is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in north-western France.-Population:Inhabitants of Guilers are called in FrenchGuilériens.-References:** ;-External links:* *...
(a hamlet bearing the river's name) before flowing out into the roadstead of Brest
Roadstead of Brest
The roadstead of Brest is a roadstead or bay located in the Finistère department in Brittany in northwestern France. The surface area is about 180 km² . The port of Brest is located on its northern edge and one of the two French naval bases...
. The Penfeld runs along the former course of the river Aulne
Aulne
The Aulne is a 140 km long river of Brittany in north-western France, flowing down the hills and emptying into the roadstead of Brest, one of the many fjord-like bays just south of Brest. The river is part of the Canal de Nantes à Brest, the navigation canal that once connected the city of Nantes...
, shifted to the west by the opening of the goulet
Goulet de Brest
The Goulet de Brest is a 3 km long strait linking the roadstead of Brest to the Atlantic Ocean. Only 1.8 km wide, it is situated between the Pointe du Petit Minou and the Pointe du Portzic to the north and the îlot des Capucins and the Pointe des Espagnols to the south.At each turn of...
of the roadstead of Brest
Roadstead of Brest
The roadstead of Brest is a roadstead or bay located in the Finistère department in Brittany in northwestern France. The surface area is about 180 km² . The port of Brest is located on its northern edge and one of the two French naval bases...
by the interglacial periods of the Quaternary Era
Quaternary
The Quaternary Period is the most recent of the three periods of the Cenozoic Era in the geologic time scale of the ICS. It follows the Neogene Period, spanning 2.588 ± 0.005 million years ago to the present...
. This explains its depth, allowing deep-draught ships to go quite a way upstream, with tides running up it for up to 8 metres.
At Brest, the Penfeld is crossed by the Pont de l’Harteloire then, some way downstream, by the Pont de Recouvrance
Pont de Recouvrance
The pont de Recouvrance is a vertical-lift bridge in Brest, France, across the river Penfeld. Opened on 17 July 1954, it was the largest vertical-lift bridge in Europe until the opening of the Pont Gustave-Flaubert in 2008...
, the largest vertical-lift bridge in Europe until it was de-throned by the pont levant de Rouen
Pont Gustave-Flaubert
The Pont Gustave-Flaubert is a vertical lift bridge over the River Seine at Rouen, Seine-Maritime, Haute-Normandie, France...
in 2007.
In its last kilometres, within embanked banks of 25 to 30m high, the Penfeld runs through the Brest naval base, and at its mouth (a site whose strategic importance has been recognised since antiquity) is a 15th century château fort
Château de Brest
The Château de Brest is a castle in Brest, Finistère, France. The oldest monument in the town, it is located at the mouth of the river Penfeld at the heart of the roadstead of Brest, one of the largest roadsteads in the world...
.
See also
- Pont de l'HarteloirePont de l'HarteloireThe Pont de l’Harteloire is a bridge in Brest, France. Upstream of the Pont de Recouvrance, it connects the two banks of the river Penfeld and overlooks the arsenal de Brest. It is on the site the naval transporter bridge destroyed during the Second World War.-Source:...
- Pont NationalPont National (Brest)The Pont National was a swing bridge across the river Penfeld in Brest, France. It opened in 1861, linking rue de Siam to Recouvrance, near the Tour Tanguy. It was destroyed by Allied bombardment in 1944 and replaced by the Pont de Recouvrance in the 1950s....
— Pont de RecouvrancePont de RecouvranceThe pont de Recouvrance is a vertical-lift bridge in Brest, France, across the river Penfeld. Opened on 17 July 1954, it was the largest vertical-lift bridge in Europe until the opening of the Pont Gustave-Flaubert in 2008... - Recouvrance
- Arsenal de Brest