Château Saint-Clair

En un regard

Le château en bref

In the north of Loire-Atlantique, the Saint-Clair Tower is the last major remnant of the castle of Derval, one of the fortified strongholds of the Breton Marches. The lords of Derval are mentioned from the twelfth century onwards; the castle, whose main building campaign dates from the fourteenth century, originally had nine towers and two enclosures. An upper court, dominated by a keep twenty-four metres tall, was preceded by a quadrangular lower court, the whole surrounded by moats. In 1373, Bertrand Du Guesclin besieged the stronghold, which was held for John of Montfort by the English captain Robert Knolles, who kept it until 1380. In the fifteenth century it belonged to Jean de Malestroit, baron of Derval, then to Hélène de Laval, before passing to the Rieux, Laval, Montmorency and Condé families. Its demolition was ordered in 1598, in the aftermath of the Wars of the Catholic League, and the stone was subsequently salvaged. The tower, partly collapsed, lies at the heart of an interpretation trail; the entire surviving remains have been listed as a historic monument since 4 November 2021.