Dinan (; ) is a walled Breton town and a commune in the

Côtes-d'Armor The Côtes-d'Armor ( , ; ; , ), formerly known as Côtes-du-Nord until 1990 (, ), is a department in the north of Brittany, in northwestern France. In 2019, it had a population of 600,582.department in northwestern France. On 1 January 2018, the former commune of Léhon was merged into Dinan.

Geography

Instead of nestling on the valley floor like

Morlaix Morlaix (; , ) is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in northwestern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department. History The Battle of Morlaix, part of the Hundred Years' War, was fought near the town on 30 Septembe ...

, most

urban development Urban means "related to a city". In that sense, the term may refer to: * Urban area, geographical area distinct from rural areas * Urban culture, the culture of towns and cities Urban may also refer to: General * Urban (name), a list of peop ...

has been on the hillside overlooking the river Rance. The area alongside the river is known as the "port of Dinan", and is connected to the town by steep streets: Rue Jerzual and its continuation outside the city walls, the Rue Petit Fort. The Rance has moderate

turbidity Turbidity is the cloudiness or haziness of a fluid caused by large numbers of individual particles that are generally invisible to the naked eye, similar to smoke in air. The measurement of turbidity is a key test of both water clarity and wa ...

and its brownish water is somewhat low in velocity due to the very low gradient of the watercourse; pH levels have been measured at a slightly

basic Basic or BASIC may refer to: Science and technology * BASIC, a computer programming language * Basic (chemistry), having the properties of a base * Basic access authentication, in HTTP Entertainment * Basic (film), ''Basic'' (film), a 2003 film ...

8.13 within the city, and

electrical conductivity Electrical resistivity (also called volume resistivity or specific electrical resistance) is a fundamental specific property of a material that measures its electrical resistance or how strongly it resists electric current. A low resistivity in ...

of the waters has tested at 33 micro-siemens per centimetre. In the centre of Dinan, the Rance's summer flows are typically low, in the range of . For many years, the bridge over the river Rance at Dinan was the most northerly crossing point on the river, but the tidal power station at the mouth of the estuary, constructed in the 1960s downstream from Dinan, incorporates a 750-metre long tidal barrage, which also serves as a crossing point nearer to the sea. Dinan station has rail connections to

Saint-Brieuc Saint-Brieuc (, Breton language, Breton: ''Sant-Brieg'' , Gallo language, Gallo: ''Saent-Berioec'') is a city in the Côtes-d'Armor Departments of France, department in Brittany (administrative region), Brittany in northwestern France. History ...

, Lamballe and

Dol-de-Bretagne Dol-de-Bretagne (, literally ''Dol of Brittany''; ; Gallo: ''Dóu''), cited in most historical records under its Breton name of Dol, is a commune in the Ille-et-Vilaine ''département'' in Brittany in northwestern France. Geography Dol-de-Bret ...

Population

Inhabitants of Dinan are called ''dinannais'' and ''dinannaises''.

Attractions

The medieval town on the hilltop has many fine old buildings, some of which date from the 13th century. The town retains a large section of the city walls, part of which can be walked round. Major historical attractions include the Jacobins Theatre dating from 1224, the flamboyant Gothic St Malo's Church, the Romanesque St Saviour's Basilica, Duchess Anne's Tower and the Château de Dinan. A major highlight in the calendar is Dinan's Fête des Remparts. The town is transformed with decoration and many locals dress up in medieval garb for this two-day festival. The festival takes place over the third weekend in July every even-numbered year. At least in November, the city hosts the Festival Films courts de Dinan, an international French-speaking

film festival A film festival is an organized, extended presentation of films in one or more movie theater, cinemas or screening venues, usually annually and in a single city or region. Some film festivals show films outdoors or online. Films may be of recent ...

Breton language

In 2008, 4.97% of primary school children attended bilingual schools. ''Ofis ar Brezhoneg''
''Enseignement bilingue''
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Prominent people

Prominent people born in Dinan include: * Charles Beslay (1795–1878), member of the Council of the Paris Commune *

Théodore Botrel Jean-Baptiste-Théodore-Marie Botrel (14 September 1868 – 28 July 1925) was a French singer-songwriter, poet and playwright. He is best known for his popular songs about his native Brittany, of which the most famous is ''La Paimpolaise''. Dur ...

(1868–1925), poet and singer * Maurice Colbourne (1939–1989), actor * Yves Guyot (1843–1928), politician and economist * Auguste Pavie (1847–1925), explorer and diplomat *

Charles Pinot Duclos Charles Pinot (or Pineau) Duclos (12 February 1704 – 26 March 1772) was a French author and contributor to the ''Encyclopédie ou Dictionnaire raisonné des sciences, des arts et des métiers''. Biography Duclos was born at Dinan in Brittany ...

(1704–1772), author * Pierre de Porcaro (1904–1945), Catholic priest and prisoner-of-war * Jean Rochefort (1930–2017 ), actor * Da Silva (singer) (1976–), singer * Yann Benoist, musician, (1951–) Other people associated with Dinan include: *

François-René de Chateaubriand François-René, vicomte de Chateaubriand (4 September 1768 – 4 July 1848) was a French writer, politician, diplomat and historian who influenced French literature of the nineteenth century. Descended from an old aristocratic family from Bri ...

(1768–1848), writer, studied in Dinan *

Bertrand du Guesclin Bertrand du Guesclin (; 1320 – 13 July 1380), nicknamed "The Eagle of Brittany" or "The Black Dog of Brocéliande", was a Breton knight and an important military commander on the French side during the Hundred Years' War. From 1370 to his ...

(c1320-80), connétable of France. Born at nearby Broons. His heart is buried in Dinan. *

John Everett Millais Sir John Everett Millais, 1st Baronet ( , ; 8 June 1829 – 13 August 1896) was an English painter and illustrator who was one of the founders of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. He was a child prodigy who, aged eleven, became the youngest s ...

(1829–96), British painter who lived in Dinan as a child * Danielle Mitterrand (1924–2011), wife of President François Mitterrand, educated at the Roger Vercel college * Colonel Robert Jambon (1924/5-2011), soldier in the First Indochina War, died in Dinan * Jean-François Paillard (1928– ), conductor, educated at the Cordeliers de Dinan *

Henri Pinault Henri-Marie-Ernest-Désiré Pinault (; 7 September 1904 – 24 February 1987) was the Roman Catholic bishop of Chengdu from 1949 until 1983, four years before his death. Early life Pinault was born on 7 September 1904 into a family of farm ...

(1904–1987), Catholic Bishop of Chengdu, educated at the Cordeliers de Dinan *

René Pleven René Jean Pleven (; 15 April 190113 January 1993) was a notable political figure of the French Resistance and Fourth Republic. An early associate of Jean Monnet then member of the Free French led by Charles de Gaulle, he took a leading role i ...

, (1901–1993), politician, minister, essayist. The hospital in Dinan is named after him. * Horace Tuck (1876–1951), English painter, visited Dinan for its picturesque vistas * Roger Vercel (1894–1957), writer, winner of the Prix Goncourt in 1934, died in Dinan. A college in the town is named after him. * Edward Matthew Ward (1816–1879), English artist who painted views of Dinan

Gallery

File:Dinan_hill_05-08-03.jpg, The Rue du Jerzual is a steep medieval street connecting Dinan to the river below. File:Du Guesclin Dinan.jpg, Statue of

Bertrand Du Guesclin Bertrand du Guesclin (; 1320 – 13 July 1380), nicknamed "The Eagle of Brittany" or "The Black Dog of Brocéliande", was a Breton knight and an important military commander on the French side during the Hundred Years' War. From 1370 to his ...

. File:Bretagne Armor Dinan6 tango7174.jpg, Saint Saviour's Basilica,
The main altar. File:Bretagne Armor Dinan3 tango7174.jpg, Saint Malo's Church,
Font carried by the Demon. File:Bretagne Armor Dinan4 tango7174.jpg, Saint Malo's Church,
Entrance of Anne of Brittany. File:Bretagne Armor Dinan5 tango7174.jpg, Saint Malo's Church,
Transfer of Saint Malo's relics.
Dinan Port on Rance River

International relations

Dinan is a twin town with: *

Dinant Dinant () is a City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality of Wallonia located in the Namur Province, province of Namur, Belgium. On the shores of river Meuse, in the Ardennes, it lies south-east of Brussels, south ...

, Belgium *

Exmouth Exmouth is a harbor, port town, civil parishes in England, civil parish and seaside resort situated on the east bank of the mouth of the River Exe, southeast of Exeter. In 2011 it had a population of 34,432, making Exmouth the List of settl ...

, United Kingdom *

Lugo Lugo (, ) is a city in northwestern Spain in the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Galicia (Spain), Galicia. It is the capital of the Lugo (province), province of Lugo. The municipality had a population of 100,060 in 2024, ...

, Spain

Climate

References

External links

*
Town council website

Dinan Basilica Image
* {{Authority control Communes of Côtes-d'Armor Subprefectures in France Fortified settlements Côtes-d'Armor communes articles needing translation from French Wikipedia