Petit Minou lighthouse

Historic sites and monuments
Kitty

Why take advantage?

Backing onto the Vauban military fort of the same name and aligned with the Portzic lighthouse, which is more firmly anchored in the harbour, this 26-metre-high lighthouse, which reaches 34 metres above high water, stands on a gigantic rock jutting out into the waves.

Like the neighboring fort, its primary role was to secure the entrance to Brest harbor. The French Navy requested its construction in 1839, but the project dragged on for administrative reasons. The lighthouse was finally built from ashlar quarried at Aber-Ildut, under the supervision of Louis Plantier, Phares et Balises engineer - who was involved in the construction of some fifteen lighthouses in Brittany, including Le Portzic. It was not officially commissioned until January 1848. Its white and red lights have a range of 19 miles, or 35km.

It wasn't until the 1890s that the Phares et Balises management decided to repaint the Petit Minou lighthouse in a more reflective color, to make it more visible to daylight navigation. A smaller building, a former semaphore, can still be admired alongside it today, as well as the former keeper's house. Like all lighthouses today, the Petit Minou lighthouse has been automated since 1989.

Spoken language(s)

  • French
Historic sites and monuments

Petit Minou lighthouse

Route du Minou
29280 Plouzané
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