A BIT OF HISTORY...

Towards the end of the 19th century, Louis Richard, a travelling salesman, was seduced by the small fishing port of Morgat and convinced Armand Peugeot, a major industrialist, to transform Morgat into a seaside resort. The architect Gaston Chabal drew the plans for many villas.
Edouard Heurteau, a native of Marcoussis in the Essone region, married Charlotte Nélaton (daughter of Doctor Charles Nélaton and granddaughter of Auguste Nélaton, surgeon to Emperor Napoleon III) bought a plot of land on the heights of the Pointe de Rulianec. The villa was built in 1928 according to the plans of the architect Gaston Chabal.
The manor house was occupied by a German air force general during the Second World War. A VF 2d bunker was built during the war. It provided shelter for 12 German soldiers and communication tools. It received an American bomb a few days before the liberation of the peninsula.

GALLERY : THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE MANOR HOUSE

THE CAVES OF RULIANEC

One felt drawn towards a pearly, strange kingdom, as if in a magic corridor.

"Voyage en Bretagne, par les champs et par les grèves", Gustave Flaubert

Morgat is especially famous for its sea caves. They are dug out at the foot of the cliffs by erosion. These caves offer astonishing and dazzling shows.
Four caves can be found under the point of the Rulianec manor house: the Grotte de la Baignoire, the Grotte des Oiseaux, the Grotte de Roméo and the Grotte de l’Eléphant.

THE LEGEND OF THE BATHTUB CAVE

Long ago, before Morgat was a seaside resort, the inhabitants did not bathe in the sea. They feared the cruel sea monster.
However, two sisters from the village did not believe this legend. They secretly explored the beaches. During a walk, they discovered a natural pool at the bottom of a cave where a hot spring flowed. The two girls undressed and bathed there. They vowed never to reveal the existence of this spring.
The two little girls often came back to play in secret in the cave. After several months, they noticed that they were not growing anymore. The two children soon realised that their condition was linked to the spring and decided not to go back for a while. They observed that they were growing again. As a precaution, they returned to the spring only once or twice a year.
The years passed. The two children had become beautiful young girls. In order to combat the first signs of old age, they assiduously returned to the mysterious spring. Although the months and years passed, they still looked as young as ever. The villagers were astonished but got used to their freshness, thinking they were fairies.

One day, a proud and jealous neighbour decided to follow them. She was frightened when she saw them cross the beach and enter a cave. But her curiosity overcame her. She hid and waited for the two girls to leave. She entered the cave and discovered the hot water bathtub. She bathed in it. She was convinced that she had discovered their beauty secret. She came back in the evening with a large bucket to take water home. When she came out of the cave, there was a huge noise. She was frightened to see that the spring had dried up and that her bucket was full of sand. Frightened, she ran away in great strides, thinking that the cave was the hideout of the horrible monster. She returned home but never told of this misadventure. By stealing water, the woman had broken the spell that protected the spring. The spring never flowed again.
The two young women never knew why the sand had invaded the bathtub. However, they continued to come to the cave to enjoy their beauty. Now they bathed in the sea.
Two centuries passed. They had been giving little wellness tips all those decades. They realised that their time had come and decided to reveal their secret. They explained to the villagers that there had never been a sea monster and that it was therefore safe to play on the beach and swim in the sea. They encouraged the villagers to learn to swim and enjoy the benefits of sea bathing.