Lorient

Brittany's fourth largest city, lies on an immense natural harbour protected from the ocean by the Île de Groix and strategically located at the junction of the rivers Scorff, Ter and Blavet. A functional, rather depressing port today, it was once a key base for French colonialism, and was founded in the mid-seventeenth century for trading operations by the Compagnie des Indes, an equivalent of the Dutch and English East India Companies. Apart from the name, little else remains to suggest the plundered wealth that once arrived here. During the last war, Lorient was a major target for the Allies, but the Germans held out until the very end and by the time they surrendered in May 1945, the city was almost completely destroyed. The only substantial remains were the U-boat pens, which have subsequently been expanded by the French for their nuclear submarines.