Prefecture

The Morbihan prefecture and its historic pediment

The Vannes audio-guided tour lets you discover the Morbihan prefecture, an imposing U-shaped building. Built on a former convent, it was inaugurated in 1865. It is its pediment that draws the eye, for it tells the ancestral history of Brittany.

Nominoë and Alan Barbetorte

The pediment depicts two major figures of Brittany. Nominoë, a ninth-century hero, freed the peoples of Armorica and led a unified Brittany towards seven centuries of independence; he is considered the father of the Breton homeland. Beside him appears Alan Barbetorte, another great figure in the history of the duchy. The prefecture thus stages the memory of Breton independence on a republican building.

What there is to see

Note the scale of the U-shaped building and the quality of its sculpted pediment, where the founding figures of Brittany are inscribed. The prefecture testifies to the official architecture of the nineteenth century and to the care taken to set regional identity in stone. Several streets in the city and region indeed bear the name of Nominoë.

Practical information

The Morbihan prefecture is in Vannes. A state administrative building, its interior access is reserved for official business and follows the hours of the services. The façade and pediment can be contemplated freely from outside, at all hours.

Who was Nominoë?

Nominoë was a ninth-century Breton hero who freed the peoples of Armorica and led a unified Brittany towards its independence. He is considered the father of the Breton homeland.

When was the prefecture inaugurated?

The Morbihan prefecture, built on a former convent, was inaugurated in 1865. Its sculpted pediment stages the founding figures of Brittany.