A new life for Taureau

After the Sailing School left in 1980, the Château du Taureau was once again abandoned. This historic monument was left to the ravages of the sea, and rapidly started to fall into ruin, which greatly worried the local population, who were so fond of its iconic silhouette on their horizon.

To save the Château from ruin, an association was formed in 1988, bringing together the local communities of Plouezoc'h, Carantec, Morlaix, Plougasnou and the Île de Batz. However, even this group effort couldn’t persuade the government (who owned the building) to react to its disrepair; it seemed that the government ‘did not consider the restoration of this monument to be a priority’.

Power to the People

In 1994, the association was given a fresh dose of energy thanks to the Mayor of Plouezoc'h, Romain Guillou, who felt it would be good to expand their group so that it included Plougasnou, Carantec, Plouezoc'h, Morlaix, l'Ile de Batz, Roscoff, Saint-Martin des Champs, Henvic and Locquénolé. New partners also joined, including the Chamber of Commerce and the State. This was the beginning of the Association Château du Taureau-Baie de Morlaix.

A restoration costing 17 million francs

In February 1996, a huge storm finally brought down the archway at the Château entrance. Once again, the association brought the monument’s plight to the attention of key decision-makers. In response, the State asked Daniel Lefèvre, its Chief Architect for Historic Monuments, to carry out ‘an initial study into the general restoration of the Fort du Taureau’. After reading this document, the regional board for cultural affairs started to take notice, and later that same year, the government set aside 17 millions francs (equivalent to 23 million euros now) to bring the fortress back to its former glory. In return, the government asked local authorities and businesses to come up with ideas that would use this cultural and historical site to best advantage.

Opening the site to the public

The association, particularly the Chamber of Commerce, accepted the challenge: this was not only an important icon historically and culturally, it could be a tourism draw, especially if it could be opened to the public. This would also justify further investment to bring the fortress up to standard for visitors, keeping the Château’s iconic silhouette, bringing in new visitors to the area, and also making it accessible to local people, who had never been able to visit.

Illustration : Inventaire général, ADAGP