A big resurgence of interest in Celtic customs and the Breton language amongst the younger generation in Brittany makes the Pardon de Saint Yves a festival for all ages. You don’t need to be religious to enjoy it. Whether pious, pagan, or otherwise, you can still enjoy the occasion. The funfair comes to town and sets up on the quayside and it’s a great excuse for a celebration. There is plenty of choice of places to eat and drink, particularly in the fine timbered houses in the town centre and on the quay.
Festivities centre on the cathedral square, over-looked by a portly gent cast in bronze, seated on a bench. This is Ernest Renan, an ardent supporter of his native Brittany. Behind him stands Pallas Athena, Goddess of Wisdom. The inauguration of his statue right in front of the cathedral by the citizens of Tréguier in 1903 was controversial. Many believed it mocked the Catholic establishment, for Joseph-Ernest Renan, born in Tréguier in 1823, was a revolutionary philosopher and anti-clerical scholar of religion, who championed freedom of religious expression. Renan left the Roman Catholic Church in 1845, disputing the notion that Jesus must be depicted as the son of God and challenging the historical accuracy of the Bible. He rejected the notions of Heaven and Hell, believing instead that “without a compensatory Heaven, justice will really exist on earth.” There is a museum dedicated to his life and work at No. 20, Rue Ernest Renan, which is one of the most attractive roads in town.
Tréguier’s weekly Wednesday market spills over from the town-centre, extending down the steep hill of Rue Ernest Renan to the quayside. Near the top of the hill, the little restaurant above the fishmonger’s, J.P. Moulinet, makes the best fish soup in town.
If you fancy an expensive treat, dinner on the waterfront at the Hotel Aigue Marine is exceptional.
Treguier Marina
©Jane Gifford