Guimiliau

Guimiliau Gwimilio
Commune
Parish close
Coat of arms
Location of Guimiliau
Guimiliau Guimiliau
Coordinates: 48°29′19″N 3°59′45″W
Country	France
Region	Brittany
Department	Finistère
Arrondissement	Morlaix
Canton	Landivisiau
Intercommunality	Pays de Landivisiau
Government
• Mayor (2020–2026)	Elisabeth Guillerm
Area 1	11.22 km2 (4.33 sq mi)
Population  (2021)	1,004
• Density	89/km2 (230/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	29074 /29400
Elevation	63–159 m (207–522 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Guimiliau (French pronunciation: [ɡimiljo]; Breton: Gwimilio) is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in north-western France.

It is noted for the Guimiliau Parish close. It should not be confused with the neighbouring commune and village of Lampaul-Guimiliau.

Population

Inhabitants of Guimiliau are called in French Guimiliens.

Historical population

Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1793 1,841 —     1800 1,557 −2.37% 1806 1,328 −2.62% 1821 1,397 +0.34% 1831 1,464 +0.47% 1836 1,495 +0.42% 1841 1,590 +1.24% 1846 1,596 +0.08% 1851 1,530 −0.84% 1856 1,497 −0.44% 1861 1,625 +1.65% 1866 1,625 +0.00% 1872 1,521 −1.10% 1876 1,523 +0.03% 1881 1,526 +0.04% 1886 1,511 −0.20% 1891 1,584 +0.95% 1896 1,562 −0.28%	Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1901 1,516 −0.60% 1906 1,453 −0.85% 1911 1,461 +0.11% 1921 1,275 −1.35% 1926 1,156 −1.94% 1931 1,043 −2.04% 1936 949 −1.87% 1946 988 +0.40% 1954 817 −2.35% 1962 786 −0.48% 1968 756 −0.65% 1975 700 −1.09% 1982 760 +1.18% 1990 791 +0.50% 1999 814 +0.32% 2007 933 +1.72% 2012 1,028 +1.96% 2017 1,009 −0.37%
Source: EHESS and INSEE (1968-2017)

Local Saints

Guimiliau, or Gwimilio in Breton, is named after St Miliau. The name simply means town or settlement (Breton: gwic) of Milio. According to legend, Miliau was a good and just Breton prince, put to death in a dynastic quarrel in the 6th or 9th century.

Guimiliau is also famous as the reputed birthplace of St Hervé, a 6th-century ascetic, who is one of the most popular Breton saints.

Parish close

Main article: Guimiliau Parish close

Entrance to the parish close, showing the enclosing wall and gateway.

Parish closes are a distinctive feature of Breton culture in the historic Léon diocese, in which Guimiliau stands. As the name suggests, a close is a completely enclosed church yard, usually with a commanding entrance arch. Sacred enclosures were a feature of Celtic religion even before the arrival of Christianity. Parish closes today form the foci for pardons, the annual Breton pilgrimage festivals, which can attract thousands of worshippers.

The parish close of Guimiliau is situated at the upper end of the main village street, with the entrance dominating the village.

The calvary or crucifix is the centre piece of the church yard, surrounded by a fine and complex retelling of the Passion in statuary. See Calvary at Guimiliau

The church contains many fine examples of polychrome sculpture from the sixteenth century onwards, including several large retables. There is also a fine octagonal baptistery, a carved pulpit and a collection of banners used especially in religious processions at pardons.

Gallery

• 
  Church and Calvary.
• 
  Porch left side.
• 
  Porch right side.
• 
  Nave and choir.
• 
  Detail from Retable of the Rosary.
• 
  Detail from Retable of St Miliau.
• 
  Banner of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
• 
  Detail of the carved pulpit.
• 
  Oak carved baptistry.
• 
  Carvings of birds, snakes and vines on the baptistery pillars.
• 
  Medieval carving in the porch of the church.
• 
  Retable of St Joseph, shown in the centre with the infant Christ.
• 
  The two local saints: St Hervé, with St Miliau in the background.
• 
  Dallam organ.

See also

• Communes of the Finistère department
• List of the works of the Maître de Plougastel

External links

• Base Mérimée: Search for heritage in the commune, Ministère français de la Culture. (in French)
• Mayors of Finistère Association (in French)