Saint-Thomas Gate

The Saint Thomas Gate you’re passing through on your way down to Eventail Beach was built in 1740 during the city’s expansion works. It was previously called Sillon Gate because it opened onto the sandy strip that once linked Saint-Malo to the mainland. Today, it is actually the third gate to bear the name Saint Thomas. The first was the castle gate, which at the time opened directly to the outside of the city, and the second stood beside the Quic-en-Groigne Tower. It was also near this Saint Thomas Gate that the Bureau des Bains—the bathing office—operated in the 1830s. Before the 19th century, people didn’t really go to the beach for pleasure. Seaside tourism began in Britain, where seawater was used much like spa water for its supposed therapeutic benefits. The trend crossed the English Channel to the Norman coast and then spread more widely with the arrival of the railway. If you had visited Saint-Malo two centuries ago, you would have gone to the bathing office to rent deckchairs and mobile changing cabins pulled by horses. But don’t picture swimsuits just yet—men and women bathed on separate beaches, fully clothed. We’re now going to head down to the beach and make our way to Fort National. But first, one very important safety note: only go to Fort National at low tide. Let me say that again: low tide. If the timing doesn’t work today, feel free to listen to this part later during a visit to the fort, or right now while looking at it from a distance. If you can’t reach it, don’t go down to the beach—just continue along the ramparts as far as Fort La Reine Bastion.