The history of the hotel
The Grand Hôtel de L’Europe… 2 centuries old
In 1792, the building was the private residence of Count Claude Haudeneau de Breugnon, Lieutenant General of the Naval Armies, Ambassador to the Emperor of Morocco, Vice-Admiral, and husband of Louise-Jeanne-Marguerite Grégoire de Saint-Sauveur. The property had belonged to Mr de Breugnon’s maternal ancestors, the Oriots, since the previous century. In the 17th century, the Oriots were one of Morlaix’s notables: goldsmiths, royal notary, lieutenant general of police, royal prosecutor, public prosecutor, provost of the chapter of Notre-Dame du Mur, etc.
The Count of Breugnon died in Paris on 6 September 1792, without issue. Due to the Revolution (nuns forbidden to inherit, emigration of nobles), the succession was procedural and lengthy, and did not reach a conclusion until February 1813: the Saliou Chef du Bois (then, by marriage, de Cresolles), Le Bihan de Pennélé and de Coëtlosquet families shared the deceased’s property.
Hôtel du Grand Turc, hôtel de l’Europe, hôtel de Paris, hôtel de l’Europe
After the death of the Comte de Breugnon, the mansion was split up: the part closest to the town hall, known at the time as “La maison neuve” or “La grande maison”, was leased to a merchant and then sold in 1806 to Gabriel Bourdoulous, a manufacturer; Antoine Maillard signed a lease for the part bordering the Pont d’Aiguillon and the Rue du Pavé. At the end of the 18th century, it became the Hôtel du Grand Turc, a sign that the innkeeper had transferred from the Place de la Poissonnerie.
In September 1816, a new tenant, Pierre-Charles Lardet, named the establishment Hôtel de l’Europe, then Hôtel de Paris in 1823, after buying a third of the building from the heirs of Baron Jean-Baptiste de Coëtlosquet.
In 1846, Mr Lardet carried out renovations and renamed his inn Hôtel de l’Europe. Since then, the hotel has undergone extensions (1885, 1892, 1929), extensions and renovations, but has never changed its name. The former Hôtel de Breugnon was restored to its former glory in 1929, when Louis Patault extended the Hôtel de l’Europe.
Prestigious guests
On 20 July 1831, Dona Maria, Queen of Portugal, was warmly welcomed by the people of Morlaix and stayed at the Hôtel de l’Europe, which hosted other prestigious travellers: the Duke and Duchess of Nemours (Duke of Orléans, second son of Louis Philippe) in September 1843, Prince Jérôme Bonaparte (brother of Emperor Napoléon Bonaparte) and his two sons in August 1880, and the Dowager Queen of Italy in 1908.
The establishment’s visitors’ book bears the dedications of Marshal Ferdinand Foch, General Maxime Weygand (who each owned a manor house in Ploujean-Morlaix), General Charles de Gaulle (21 July 1945), and numerous artists.
The present day
Between 1951 and 1972, the hotel was managed by a succession of directors (Mr Charles, Mr Thomas Bourgneuf), followed by Mr Jacques Feunteuna from 1972 to 1999. In September 1999, the Hôtel de l’Europe was taken over and managed by Mrs Arlette Paroux. Then, in October 2012, Mr Guillaume Pellerin took over as manager. Since August 2023, Elena and Jean de Kertanguy have been running the Grand Hôtel de l’Europe.
This text is the fruit of research by Marthe Le Clech, a historian from Morlaix, who has written a book on the history of the hotel, “De l’hôtel des Oriot à l’hôtel et au restaurant de l’Europe”, available from Editions Bretagne d’Hier.
