In the past they were called Brittanyalso as Little Britain, today the province of western France is no longer small and no longer belongs to Britain. Brittany is made up of the departments of Cotes-d’Amour, Fnistere, Ille-et-Vilaine andMorbihantogether. The administrative center of Brittany is in Rennes.
While the Gauls here in theregionthey called the area Aremorica, which means “land by the sea”.
The residents of Brittany are called Bretons.
The landscapes of Brittany
From a geological point of view, Brittany belongs to the Armorican Mountains. This was unfolded in the Carboniferous Age. If you look closely, Brittany is a large peninsula. It is the western branch of mainland Europe in the north of the Iberian Peninsula. With the north coast, Brittany borders the English Channel. The south and west coast, however, are on the Atlantic. In Breton, the sea is called armor. Not only the coast is named with this name, but also the island itself.
Large parts of Brittany stand on very old and hard rock. The coast is very rugged and has hard rock. For example, you can see the huge granite slabs at Cap Frehel near the fortress Fort la Latte protrude more than 70 meters out of the Atlantic. The remaining part is rather flat and slightly hilly. There are no high mountain ranges here. The highest “mountain” is only 384 meters high.
Brittany is characterized by a mild climate. Since the region is under the climatic influence of the Gulf Stream, predominantly oceanic climatic conditions and the corresponding temperatures prevail here. There is rarely snowfall or even frost. Since the sun often shines here, Brittany has also become a popular holiday destination. Sometimes the average hours of sunshine are over 2,000 hours per year.
Nevertheless, there are also rough times. There are mainly strong winds here, which can even grow up to storm strengths. This is due to the westerly winds that arise in winter due to the low pressure areas over the Atlantic.
However, the storms are usually not particularly long-lived. Brittany is also one of the cleanest air areas in Europe. The high iodine content in the air and the influence of the strong tides mean that the air here is not very polluted by pollutants. Which has a very soothing effect, especially for people who suffer from respiratory diseases.
The history of Brittany
as early as the Paleolithic Brittany was settled. Until about 5000 BC BC the people lived from fishing, gathering and hunting and only afterwards did they become settled and settled. They then fed on the animals that they raised and farmed themselves. They also built the so-called megalithic systems. The dolmens, tumuli and menhirs were built between 4500 and 2000 BC. Built in BC. In the Early Bronze Age there was trade with what is now England. This is proven by many finds from graves, from which one can deduce the connection to the British Isles. In addition, evidence was found that there must have been contact with Denmark and the southern German city of Singen.
As a result of the Roman rule, the population was also romanised. The era of the Roman Empire came to an end towards the end of late antiquity. It is also assumed that with the fall of the Roman Empire, the Celtic language was as good as extinct.
During the annexation phase of France, Brittany flourished economically. The coastal region was characterized by prosperity, while inland there was still poverty. Later, around 1700, movements to preserve the Breton language developed in Brittany, so it could be partly preserved.
Brittany’s current borders were created during the establishment of the new French regions in 1960.
