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Dol-de-Bretagne
Just a little way from Saint-Michael’s Mount, and on the frontier with Normandy, Dol-de-Bretagne is a wonderful Brittany town. Come here to meet history, face-to-face…
An eventful past is apparent in each of the town’s narrow streets. Very often captured and pillaged, by the Normans, the Francs, the French, and the Revolutionary Troops, this town has reinvented itself recently, adapting quietly to being a tourist destination. And it has many factors to attract tourists.
The m
ain unusual feature of the town is its Saint-Samson cathedral. Let’s face it, fortified churches are unusual! But here you have one, dating from over 800 years ago. The interior is also surprising, with its three-tier nave.
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La rue des Stuarts is a monument in itself. The oldest houses date from the 12th century. You just have to admire the tiny arcades and facades. There are numerous traces of Viking influence, notably the iconography of Nordic legends.
At the edge of the town is le Mont Dol, which was formerly an island. Now surrounded by a swamp, it is topped by the Tout Notre Dame. Pilgrims climb a snaking road to make it to the top, while climbers go up the hard way-the south and east faces are ideal piton terrain.
Not far away, the Landal Castle is beautifully restored and maintained, and eagles are reared there. If the weather is good, you can watch a display of the flight of these magnificent creatures.
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