Anne of Brittany commemorations continue

Anne of Brittany (Breton: Anna Vreizh) was born on January 25th, 1477, in Nantes, Brittany and died on January 9th, 1514, in  Blois, France. Daughter of Duke Francis II (Breton: Frañsez II) of Brittany and Margaret of Foix, Anne succeeded to her father’s duchy on September 9th, 1488. As Duchess of Brittany and twice queen consort of France, who devoted her life to safeguarding the autonomy of Brittany. Throughout this year 2014, the five hundredth anniversary of her death, Anne of Brittany has been commemorated in ceremonies throughout the Breton nation. 

She represents a spirit of Brittany which continues to oppose centuries of discrimination against its culture and language. Not least has been the campaign for the reunification of the Loire Atlantique with the rest of Brittany. The separation of Nantes from the rest of Brittany was undertaken against the wishes of the Breton people by the Vichy Government in 1941. A separation that would have been inconceivable to Anne of Brittany. As we move towards the end the year the celebrations of Anne's life continue. A programme of events can be seen on the website of Comité Anne de Bretagne 2014.