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Middle Ages |
| The castle in the Middle Ages |
| History of the château The history of the château de Josselin goes back to the beginning of the 11th century. In 1008, Guéthenoc, Viscount of Porhoët, Rohan and Guémené, decided to build a fortified town and a château on this rocky promontory dominating the Oust valley. The fortress and the surrounding town were named after his son, Goscelinus.  In the 12th century, a profound historic crisis began when the King of England, Henry II Plantagenet, attempted to lay hold of the duchy of Brittany.In 1168, to revenge himself against the feudal Bretons, including Eudon de Porhoët, who opposed him, he had the château razed to the ground. He then kidnapped the daughter of the proprietor, raped and killed her. A few years later, Eudon de Porhoët built another château. In 1351, a memorable historic incident took place near Ploermel, not far from Josselin, the famous “Battle of the Thirty”. As evening fell that day, the victor, Captain de Beaumanoir, returned the prisoners to Josselin and had them executed. The castle of Olivier de Clisson In 1370, following an exchange with his cousin, Count of Alençon, Olivier de Clisson, High Constable of France, became the proprietor of Josselin.  Using the existing château, Clisson constructed a veritable fortress. Three towers, covered with machicolations and parapets are built overlooking the river. There is also a fourth tower, now known as the “isolated tower”.He also built a keep which he used as his residence. Its 26 metre diameter makes it one of the most important models of this particular type of architecture. It is constructed at the end of the terrace and communicates with the three towers. Finally, Clisson built a small castle, or entrance building, on the site of the present draw-bridge. On his death in 1407, Josselin underwent great changes. Clisson’s grandson, Alain IX de Rohan, built a 70 metre long house with a splendid facade that bears witness to the flamboyant Gothic and Renaissance architecture prevalent in Brittany at that time.
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