The outstanding novelist, Chateaubriand, is honoured on the television this evening giving a great boost for Upper Brittany too ! A few days ago I attended the preview in Rennes of the telefilm produced by France 2 about his life, in which the writer is brilliantly portrayed by Frédéric Diefenthal. I strongly recommend you watch it this evening, Wednesday 28^th April 2010 at 8.35pm on France 2.

Chateaubriand, an eminent writer, adventurer and political figure, left his mark on several well-known places in Upper Brittany where he was born, spent his early childhood and where he is buried.

Chateaubriand at Combourg ©B. Bouflet

Childhood

François-René, Vicomte de Chateaubriand, was born in Saint-Malo in 1768. He grew up in the Chateaubriand family château in Combourg, near Lac Tranquille and was educated in Dol-de-Bretagne, Rennes and Dinan, before joining the army.

A committed, passionate artist

Chateaubriand started writing aged 20 while in Paris. His great works were inspired by his journeys to North America and around the Mediterranean (Atala, Itinéraire de Paris à Jérusalem), his profound interest in human emotion (René, which became a model for writers of the Romantic Movement) and his strong religious beliefs (Le Génie du Christianisme).

Chateaubriand died in Paris in 1848 and is buried on the island of Grand Bé off Saint-Malo, in accordance with his wishes.

Les Mémoires d’Outre-Tombe (Memoirs from beyond the grave)

Chateaubriand’s major work remains « Mémoires d’Outre-Tombe », an autobiographical work, in which he describes his childhood in Saint-Malo and Combourg : « C’est dans les bois de Combourg que je suis devenu ce que je suis (…) » (the woods of Combourg made me what I am today) and describe the historic events which took place during his lifetime.

>> You too can enjoy a romantic break in the footsteps of Chateaubriand !