Île-de-Bréhat

Bréhat
Île-de-Bréhat
Enez-Vriad
Commune
Views of Bréhat
Flag of Bréhat
Flag
Coat of arms of Bréhat
Coat of arms
Location of Bréhat
Map
Bréhat is located in France
Bréhat
Bréhat
Bréhat is located in Brittany
Bréhat
Bréhat
Coordinates: 48°50′51″N 3°00′00″W / 48.8475°N 3.0000°W / 48.8475; -3.0000
CountryFrance
RegionBrittany
DepartmentCôtes-d'Armor
ArrondissementSaint-Brieuc
CantonPaimpol
Government
 • Mayor (2020–2026) Olivier Carré[1]
Area
1
3.09 km2 (1.19 sq mi)
Population
 (2021)[2]
402
 • Density130/km2 (340/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code
22016 /22870
Elevation0–34 m (0–112 ft)
Websitewww.iledebrehat.fr
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Bréhat (French: Île-de-Bréhat, French pronunciation: [il də bʁea]; Breton: Enez Vriad) is an island and commune located near Paimpol, a mile off the northern coast of Brittany. Administratively, it is a commune in the Côtes-d'Armor department in northwestern France.

Bréhat is actually an archipelago composed of two main islands, separated only at high tide, and many smaller ones. It is famous for its pink granite rocks, very mild micro-climate and Mediterranean vegetation, due to the warm Gulf Stream coming from across the Atlantic.

Many day-trippers come to Bréhat every day by the ferry service (les Vedettes de Bréhat) which sails from Pointe de l'Arcouest, to the north of Paimpol, taking about 10 minutes.[3] They come to visit the main tourist attractions, the Paon and Rosedo lighthouses, the St-Michel chapel, the Guerzido beach, the Birlot [fr] water-mill and the Verrerie of Bréhat. In June 2023 the local municipality imposed a limit on the numbers of summer tourists, citing "overtourism".[4]

Climate

Bréhat features a temperate oceanic climate with mild winters, dry summers and lower precipitation levels than continental Brittany as a result of the effects of the Gulf Stream,[5] favoring a wide diversity of plants and flowers such as mimosas, hortensias, ceanothus, echiums and agapanthus. It is one of the few places in Brittany and its surroundings where palm trees and other Mediterranean plants can grow naturally due to the scarcity of frosts throughout the year.

Climate data for Île-de-Bréhat (1961–1990)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 8.9
(48.0) 		9.0
(48.2) 		10.4
(50.7) 		11.9
(53.4) 		14.6
(58.3) 		17.1
(62.8) 		19.4
(66.9) 		19.9
(67.8) 		18.7
(65.7) 		15.9
(60.6) 		12.0
(53.6) 		10.0
(50.0) 		14.0
(57.2)
Daily mean °C (°F) 6.8
(44.2) 		6.8
(44.2) 		8.0
(46.4) 		9.4
(48.9) 		11.9
(53.4) 		14.4
(57.9) 		16.6
(61.9) 		17.1
(62.8) 		16.0
(60.8) 		13.5
(56.3) 		10.0
(50.0) 		8.0
(46.4) 		11.5
(52.7)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 4.7
(40.5) 		4.6
(40.3) 		5.5
(41.9) 		6.9
(44.4) 		9.2
(48.6) 		11.7
(53.1) 		13.8
(56.8) 		14.3
(57.7) 		13.4
(56.1) 		11.1
(52.0) 		7.9
(46.2) 		6.0
(42.8) 		9.1
(48.4)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 85.0
(3.35) 		69.5
(2.74) 		62.5
(2.46) 		45.0
(1.77) 		56.0
(2.20) 		39.6
(1.56) 		36.1
(1.42) 		36.3
(1.43) 		51.5
(2.03) 		69.0
(2.72) 		88.7
(3.49) 		83.5
(3.29) 		722.8
(28.46)
Average relative humidity (%) 87 85 85 85 86 87 87 86 86 86 85 85 86
Mean monthly sunshine hours 61.7 87.3 134.5 180.3 224.3 223.2 238.2 220.9 169.8 122.7 72.3 56.3 1,791.5
Source: Infoclimat.fr[6]

Population

Historical population
YearPop.±% p.a.
1968 653—    
1975 553−2.35%
1982 511−1.12%
1990 461−1.28%
1999 421−1.00%
2009 429+0.19%
2014 392−1.79%
2020 377−0.65%
Source: INSEE[7]

Inhabitants of Île-de-Bréhat are called Bréhatins in French.

Sights

  • La Croix Lighthouse
    La Croix Lighthouse
  • Paon Lighthouse
    Paon Lighthouse
  • Chapelle St Michel
    Chapelle St Michel
  • Bréhat island's enclosed harbour, at high tide
    Bréhat island's enclosed harbour, at high tide
  • Chapelle Keranoux
    Chapelle Keranoux
  • St Michael's chapel
    St Michael's chapel

People linked to Île-de-Bréhat

  • Pierre-Marie Le Bozec- Naval officer who lived and died here
  • André César Vermare (1869–1949), renowned sculptor who resided and died in the island
  • Marc Chagall (1887–1985), painted La fenêtre sur l'Ile de Bréhat, 1924, kept at Vereinigung Zürcher Kunstfreunde.[8]
  • Goudji (born 1941), the Georgian-born French sculptor and goldsmith, frequently resides in Bréhat; in 2008 he offered an item and participated in an auction to restore local religious monuments
  • Marie-José Chombart de Lauwe, resistance fighter.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Répertoire national des élus: les maires" (in French). data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises. 4 May 2022.
  2. ^ "Populations légales 2021" (in French). The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 28 December 2023.
  3. ^ "Bréhat island - Ile de Bréhat, Brittany France - Accommodation, Ferries, Attractions". www.brittanyholidayguide.com. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
  4. ^ "Trendy French island limits visitors to fight 'overtourism'". France 24 (English). 16 June 2023. Retrieved 16 June 2023.
  5. ^ Vergez-Tricom, Geneviève (1925). La Géographie: " L'île de Bréhat ". p. 44.
  6. ^ "Normes et records 1961–1990: Ile de Bréhat, Côtes-d'Armor(22), 25 m" (in French). Infoclimat. Archived from the original on 9 December 2008. Retrieved 9 January 2016.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  7. ^ Population en historique depuis 1968, INSEE
  8. ^ "Marc Chagall at Vereinigung Zürcher Kunstfreunde". Archived from the original on 23 March 2012. Retrieved 17 July 2011.
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