Administrative areas

Marking territory

While the sea clearly defines Brittany to the north, west and south, the region’s precise dimensions have waxed and waned through time and the eastern boundary has often shifted. The Vilaine Valley acted as a kind of frontier, though defensive Breton border towns went up further east. In medieval times, the Loire-side city of Nantes was capital of the dukes of Brittany, but today Rennes assumes the role of capital.

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County lines 

Today, Brittany officially consists of four dĂ©partements â€“ roughly equivalent to British counties. In the east, Ille-et-Vilaine includes Rennes, and, on its short stretch of coast, St-Malo. The rural county of CĂ´tes d’Armor stretches across northern Brittany and has St-Brieuc as its main town. Finistère spans the western end of the Breton peninsula where Brest and Quimper are the competing main towns while Morbihan basks along the south side of Brittany with Vannes and Lorient as its two major urban centres.

From coast to coast 

All three Breton coasts offer a sublime mix of sandy and rocky shores. On the Channel side, the vast open bays of northern Brittany are profoundly affected by the tides while the west coast is the most exposed to the full force of the Atlantic; it has the most fearsome of cliff defences, although the bays of Brest and Douarnenez offer havens. The south coast is characterized by long sweeps of sand and claims the most hours of sunshine, plus the mesmerising Gulf of Morbihan, an inland sea peppered with islands.

Town and country  

Brittany remains more rural than most French regions. Apart from Rennes, most of the big towns are on the coast, meaning that large swathes of the interior are peaceful, not too populated, and with relatively strong agricultural communities.

Did you know ?  

The line between Breton-speaking and French-speaking Brittany runs north to south across the region. Although another shifting boundary, it now lies roughly between St-Brieuc and Vannes.