About Saint Malo

Front Gate and château of Saint Malo intra muros, built in the 12th century.

St. Malo is a port town located on the north coast of Brittany, about 30 miles west of Mont Saint Michel. The modern city is about 37 kilometers² (or 23 miles²), but for the purposes of this blog, when I speak of St. Malo, I refer to the old walled portion which is not even half a square mile in area, (300 x 600 meters). The original town sprang from a monastic settlement of the 6th century. Located on a small peninsula of land, it is surrounded on three sides by water. 

The granite walls, the same stone as used to build Mont Saint Michel, were erected in the 12th century (then rebuilt after the war). After the 15th century St. Malo was a major trading port for Africa, Asia and the New World. Even though continental France did not allow slavery in the country, they did profit from the slave trade, and St. Malo, as well as Nantes and other ports in Brittany, participated in it.

The granite walls of St. Malo completely surround the city.

St. Malo quickly became very wealthy and attracted privateers (essentially government sanctioned pirates, sharing the profits from their booty with the king) and shipping magnates. 

The town also played an important role in protecting France from English incursions, which were common between the 14th and 17th centuries and didn't stop altogether until the 19th.

The Grand Bé and the Petit Bé in the foreground, the National Fort and the Fort de la Conchée in the distance.

St. Malo faces La Manche, (the English Channel), where four forts were built on rocky islands just offshore. These were military outposts with cannons continuously pointed out to sea. No invasion ever overcame these defenses. A rather bold attempt was made in 1693, when the English cooked up a devilish plan to create a small vessel which they called the Infernal Machine, meant to slip past the sentries on guard. The ship was packed with explosives and was intended to ram the walls and blow them apart, allowing the English sailors on trailing ships into the city. 

The Infernal Machine, image from the public domain

As the little craft came close to shore, however, a strong wind blew it onto some rocks, where it exploded killing the 6 Englishmen on board and shattering some windows in the city, but not injuring a single Frenchman. The only victim was a cat, who lost his head. The street where his body was recovered was named the Dancing Cat. It is so named to this day. The rocks where the ship foundered were named les Rochers Anglais (the English Rocks).

This street is located on the north side of town near where the Infernal Machine crashed on the rocks.

One of the most pleasant activities in town is to walk on top of the walls. It's possible to circumambulate the entire old city at a leisurely pace in 45 minutes.

View towards the south wall from our street.

This stroll offers views into the city on one side, and on the other to the ever changing Channel. You  can see Dinard across the water, view the large sandy Sillon Beach, the port de plaisance, with its many pleasure boats, as well as enjoy watching the commercial port where ferries, cargo ships and fishing vessels are forever coming and going. 

Scallops arriving this morning.

We are situated in the southwest corner of town, in the neighborhood where historically the ship magnates had their mansions. These grand buildings are now mostly divided into apartments. 

Street map of St. Malo, intra muros.

One of the grandest hotels particuliers still exists in its original configuation, now a museum called La Demeure de Corsaire, once the home of François-Auguste Magon, privateer, ship owner, slave trader and director of the French East India Company during the reign of Louis XIV.

La Demeure de Corsaire

Five gates lead into the intra muros. The Porte St. Vincent and St. Thomas at the northeast are the main pedestrian entry points and access the more active side of town, where you find the Town Hall and the larger hotels. The Grande Porte leads onto the Grande Rue and the major shopping streets. We use the Porte St. Louis to drive into town and the Porte de Dinan to drive out. To walk from the south to the north wall through town takes about ten minutes so everything is readily accessible on foot.

On the go in St. Malo near the Porte St. Vincent.

St. Malo is an extremely jumping place. It supports dozens of restaurants, a surprising number mentioned in the Michelin Guide. There are several boulangeries, fish mongers, produce markets and the very famous Maison du Beurre, which makes possibly the best artisanal butter in the entire world. It is unlike any other I have ever tasted.

A passageway on a back street of town.

For the past two weeks we've had the autumn school holidays here in France, which means St. Malo has an influx of tourists. Even so, most people tend to gather near the front gates or in the central shopping areas. There are quiet back streets that remain so all year long. 

I am interested to see if next week brings a significant difference in pedestrian and automobile traffic. We have been to St. Malo many times, and have now been in residence for a couple of weeks, but I've never experienced the city in its most quiet seasons.

The ramp leads to the southwest corner of the ramparts. It's a three minute walk from our apartment.

At the end of our street is a ramp which leads up onto the walls. We spend a lot of time up there gazing out to sea. All around the perimeter of the ramparts you can find steps or ramps. 

In Moulins I can sometimes spend all day indoors. Here in St. Malo that just isn't possible. Even on gray days we go out several times just to enjoy the sea, to pick up supplies and to watch the harbor activities. 

It is nice, however, to have such a light and bright place on a quiet street to spend our inside hours. 

Our simple but elegant apartment with 12 foot ceilings and big windows on the south and north facing walls.

That's all for this time. I appreciate your comments and your company. We are still finding our footing here. If you've followed me for several years, you will know that we spent several months on this coast in 2020-21 in Dinard, across the bay from where we are now. It was during the second Covid confinement, so we were much indoors at that time. Our windows looked out onto the sea and it was a marvelous experience. It was those memories that drew us back.

Our location now is quite different, not offering the same stunning window views, but certainly giving us a greater opportunity to meet people and join the general current of life here. This morning we took breakfast out and then did some shopping, buying fresh-caught fish for dinner and replenishing our butter supply. We chatted with the vendors who we imagine we will get to know better as the weeks go by. They are friendly and curious to hear our story.

Sunset over Dinard