The Birthplace of Ernest Renan in Tréguier

Located at 20 rue Ernest-Renan in Tréguier, Côtes-d'Armor, the house where the writer and philosopher Ernest Renan was born dates back to the early 17th century. It initially served as the home of a shipping merchant. During the 18th and 19th centuries, the building underwent various changes, including the addition of wood paneling and the modification of windows on the facade.

In 1780, the house was acquired by the grandparents of Ernest Renan. He was born in the ground floor of the house in 1823 to Philibert-François, a long-distance captain, and Manon Féger. Following his father's death in a shipwreck in 1828, the family fell into debt, and his mother was forced to lease the house out as apartments and a grocery business. In 1831, she returned to the house to resume her grocery business. Renan lived there until the age of 15 before moving to Paris.

The house was later given to the State by the writer's granddaughters, Henriette Psichari and Corrie Siohan. It was classified as a historical monument on April 20, 1944. In 1946, the facade was restored to replace the render with the original half-timbering. It was inaugurated as a museum in 1947 by Édouard Herriot, then president of the National Assembly.

Subsequent restorations occurred in 1992, where the timber facade was painted in red and yellow ochres inspired by maritime colors. The attic was restored in 1999, and the garden was redesigned in 2010. Since 2007, the museum has been managed by the Centre des monuments nationaux and received the Label Maison des Illustres in 2011.

Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons