The Ramparts of Vannes are the fortifications erected between the 3rd and 17th centuries to protect the city of Vannes in the Morbihan department in France. Founded by the Romans at the end of the 1st century BC under the reign of Augustus, the civitas Venetorum was forced to protect itself behind a castrum at the end of the 3rd century, during a major crisis shaking the Roman Empire. This first enclosure remained the city’s only protection for over a millennium. During the time of Duke John IV, at the end of the 14th century, the city’s enclosure was rebuilt and extended southward to protect the new districts. The duke wanted to make Vannes not only a place of residence but also a stronghold he could rely on in case of conflict. The area of the city intra-muros was doubled, and the duke added his Château de l’Hermine to the new enclosure.
The Wars of the League at the end of the 14th century forced the city to equip itself with several polygonal bastions (Gréguennic, Haute-Folie, Brozilay, Notre-Dame). The Garenne spur was the last defensive structure built in Vannes around 1630. From 1670, King Louis XIV sold parts of the ramparts piece by piece to finance his wars. The most significant event was, in 1697, the donation to the city of Vannes of the ruins of the Château de l’Hermine, which were then used for the redevelopment of the port and the maintenance of municipal buildings.
The urban developments of the 19th century led to the demolition of several segments of the northern and western walls. It was not until the partial destruction in 1886 of the Prison Gate, one of the oldest entrances to the old city, that Vannes residents attached to their heritage came together to form a heritage defense association in 1911. This led to the gradual establishment of protection for the ramparts as historical monuments between 1912 and 1958. For several decades, the city has been undertaking the restoration and enhancement of the parts of the ramparts it owns. A cornerstone of Vannes’ heritage and a quintessential tourist attraction, the Ramparts of Vannes are among the few urban fortifications still remaining in Brittany.
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