ClasséMonument · protected 1980Temple celto-romain du type fanum, dénommé Temple de TrogouzelPhoto: Piero · CC0 · Wikimedia Commons
Chapelle Saint-Jean de Tréboul · Photo: DomFelga · CC BY-SA 4.08historic monuments
History of Douarnenez · Monuments historiques
8 historic monuments, 4 classé
A protected historic area (site patrimonial remarquable) is on the ministry’s list; its rules are still being drawn up. For every 10,000 residents Douarnenez counts 5.7 monuments, more per resident than 73% of compared French towns, against 2.5 in the median compared French town. The oldest monuments in Douarnenez date from the 1st century. We have photos of 7 of Douarnenez’s monuments.
Monuments historiques
8
5.7 per 10,000 residents
median compared town 2.5
median compared town 2.5
Classé
4
the highest protection
Inscrit
4
the second level
Oldest part
1st c.
of any listed monument
Homes before 1919
12%
median compared town 7.4%
In pictures
Douarnenez in 7 photos
Nearly every classé monument, photographed. Tap a photo to step through them full screen.
Temple celto-romain du type fanum, dénommé Temple de TrogouzelClassé
Église Saint-Herlé de PloaréClassé
Chapelle Saint-MichelClassé
Église Saint-Jacques de PouldavidInscrit
Chapelle Sainte-CroixInscrit+2See all photosPhotos from Wikimedia Commons, copied to our own server, each credited to its photographer with its license; names open the monument’s page.
Map
Where Douarnenez’s monuments stand
Every monument with a point on the ministry’s list; the larger, darker dots are classé.
ClasséInscrit
Tap a dot to open the monument’s page: its record, photo and the monuments around it.
8 monuments by protection
4 Classé4 Inscrit
Classé is the higher protection: any work on the building needs the State’s permission. Work on an inscrit building must be declared to the State in advance. Around both, building work in sight of the monument (usually within 500 m) needs the agreement of the architecte des Bâtiments de France.
Points as the ministry gives them: a monument spread over several plots has one point.
Classé
4 classé monuments in Douarnenez
Classé is France’s highest protection for a building, held by about a third of the monuments on the list. 1 of the 4 is protected in part only (a façade, a roof, a room). Each card opens the monument’s page.
ClasséChapel · protected 1924Chapelle Saint-Jean de TréboulPart of the building is protectedPhoto: DomFelga · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
ClasséChurch · protected 1910Église Saint-Herlé de PloaréPhoto: Moreau.henri · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
ClasséInscrit
4 inscrit monuments in Douarnenez
Inscrit is the second level of protection: the building is worth keeping, and any work on it must be declared.
InscritChurch · protected 1995Église Saint-Jacques de PouldavidPhoto: Moreau.henri · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Inscrit
InscritHouse · protected 2007Ancien abri du marin, aujourd'hui siège de la revue Le Chasse-MaréePart of the building is protected
How old
How old Douarnenez’s monuments are
Each monument once, by the oldest part the list dates.
Prehistory & Antiquity to the 4th c.1
Middle Ages 5th–15th c.1
16th to 18th century Renaissance to Revolution5
19th century 1801–19000
20th century and later since 19011
2 of 8 dated monuments have parts from before 1500. The oldest dated: Temple celto-romain du type fanum, dénommé Temple de Trogouzel (1st & 4th c.).
Protected area
A protected historic area is on its way in Douarnenez
Sites patrimoniaux remarquables on the Culture ministry’s list, with the plan in force.
| Area | Created as | Plan in force |
|---|---|---|
| SPR53-27 | ZPPAUP July 1, 2011 | Still being drawn up |
A site patrimonial remarquable protects a whole area rather than one building: inside it, building work follows the area’s own plan and needs the agreement of the architecte des Bâtiments de France.
The list gives no boundaries, so the map can’t show the area.
Age of homes
12% of homes in Douarnenez were built before 1919
Main homes by when they were finished, beside the median compared French town (the tick).
12%
Before 1919
13%
1919–45
32%
1946–70
27%
1971–90
7.9%
1991–2005
8.1%
2006 on
DouarnenezMedian compared French town
12% of its main homes were built before 1919; the median compared French town has 7.4%. More of them were finished between 1946 and 1970 than in any other period (32%).
INSEE, census 2023: main homes (résidences principales) only; second homes and empty homes aren’t dated.
Born before 1900
13 people born in Douarnenez before 1900
Their lives on one line.
François Jérôme Le Déan
François-Étienne L'Haridon de Créménec
Émile-Joseph-Maurice Chevé
Jean-René Bolloré
Hippolyte Halna du Fretay
Joseph Villard
Louis Le Guillou de Penanros
Abel Villard
Henri Pérennès
Charles Daniélou
Joséphine Pencalet
Joseph Belbéoch
Xavier Trellu
170017501800185019001950
ÉJ
Émile-Joseph-Maurice Chevé1804–1864 · French music theorist
CD
Charles Daniélou1878–1953 · French politician and poet
JP
Joséphine Pencalet1886–1972 · French trade unionist
FJ
François Jérôme Le Déan1744–1823 · French politician
FÉ
François-Étienne L'Haridon de Créménec1768–1807 · French explorer
JR
Jean-René Bolloré1818–1881 · French physician
HH
Hippolyte Halna du Fretay1819–1893 · French politician
JV
Joseph Villard1838–1898 · French photographer
Everyone born in Douarnenez Birthplaces from Wikidata, checked against Wikipedia.
Towns its size
Douarnenez has the 8th most monuments of 41 towns its size
Compared French towns of 13,700 to 14,500 residents, by historic monuments.
Douarnenez8
#8 of 41for monuments per resident (5.7 per 10,000). Most per resident: Pont-à-Mousson, Saint-Omer and Fontenay-le-Comte.
The median town of these has 2. 15 of the 41 have none.
Neighbors
Historic monuments in the towns around Douarnenez
In brief
Douarnenez in brief
Douarnenez’s oldest monument, Temple celto-romain du type fanum, dénommé Temple de Trogouzel, dates from the 1st century. All told, the list holds 8 historic monuments, 4 of them classé. Of its homes, 12% were built before 1919, against 7.4% in the median compared French town. Only 7 of the 41 towns nearest its size have more historic monuments.
Of the 8 with a date, 5 come from the 16th to 18th centuries. Of the 13 people born here before 1900, the best known include Émile-Joseph-Maurice Chevé (1804), Charles Daniélou (1878) and Joséphine Pencalet (1886). Otherwise the figures are ordinary: most entries are churches and religious buildings; per resident it sits near the middle of compared French towns; and the list grew between 1910 and 2012.
How to read these numbers
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Monuments historiques. France protects buildings at two levels. Classé, the higher (about a third of the list), means any work needs the State’s permission; inscrit means work must be declared to the State in advance. The Culture ministry’s Mérimée base lists every protected building, and this page counts them.
- Partly protected. Many entries protect part of a building only (its façades and roofs, a staircase, a painted room). Each counts as one monument, like a fully protected one.
- Where a monument is counted. In the commune named on its protection, moved to today’s commune where communes have since merged. A monument listed for several communes counts in each.
- Sites patrimoniaux remarquables. Since 2016 France’s protected historic areas (the former secteurs sauvegardés, ZPPAUP and AVAP) share one name. Inside one, building work follows the area’s plan and needs the agreement of the architecte des Bâtiments de France.
- What isn’t here. Protected objects (furniture, organs, paintings), old buildings with no protection, UNESCO World Heritage listings and labels such as “Plus Beaux Villages de France” aren’t on this list, so this page doesn’t count them.
- No History Grade yet. Everything on this page is described, not graded: France’s History Grade isn’t built yet.
Questions about the history of Douarnenez
How many historic monuments are there in Douarnenez?
The Culture ministry lists 8 historic monuments in Douarnenez: 4 classé and 4 inscrit.
Which monuments in Douarnenez are classé?
4, among them Temple celto-romain du type fanum, dénommé Temple de Trogouzel, Chapelle Saint-Jean de Tréboul, Église Saint-Herlé de Ploaré and Chapelle Saint-Michel.
How old are the monuments of Douarnenez?
The oldest parts of its listed monuments date from the 1st century.
Is Douarnenez a protected historic area?
One is on the way: a site patrimonial remarquable for Douarnenez is on the ministry’s list, but its rules are still being drawn up.
When were monuments in Douarnenez first protected?
The first in 1910, the latest in 2012.
How old are the homes in Douarnenez?
12% of its main homes were built before 1919 (median compared French town: 7.4%).
France has no History Grade yet: this page describes, it doesn’t grade.
Sources: Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée base on POP (immeubles protégés au titre des monuments historiques), October 2026 · Ministère de la Culture, sites patrimoniaux remarquables, October 2026 · INSEE, census 2023 (main homes by build period) · Wikidata and Wikipedia (people born here) · Wikimedia Commons and Wikidata (photos of the monuments, each with its own credit and license) · IGN Admin Express (boundaries) · Medians and percentiles: TownRatings, over compared French towns, updated November 4, 2026. Under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab).
Contains public sector information under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab): INSEE, DGFiP, the Interior Ministry’s statistics service (SSMSI), the Ministry of Education (DEPP), the Health Ministry’s statistics service (DREES) and the Housing Ministry (Carte des loyers). Commune boundaries: IGN Admin Express.