The rest of the resistance fighters
It was in 1947 that Philippe Viannay (creator of the duck Défense de la France, which would become France Soir and the Centre de Formation des Journalistes) and his wife Hélène created a place of refuge on the Glénan archipelago. This former resistance fighter during the Second World War is the creator of the resistance movement and the newspaper of the same name, Défense de la France, which later became France Soir. The aim of the association is to welcome former resistance fighters in a remote place. Sailing is not yet at the centre of the Glénans' occupations, as everyone aspires to return to a normal life after these 5 years of war. "The idea was to come up with something for this generation of thirty-year-olds confused by the war...", explains the Glenan communication department.
To welcome these "refugees", the Boloré family makes the island of Loc'h available (which it still owns), while Viannay uses his connections in the army to equip the island.
The discovery of sailing
The Glenan people use sailing ships to refuel and bring people back to the mainland. At the time, sailing was an aristocratic sport and no one yet had any notion of popular pleasure boating. It is therefore a "simple" means of locomotion to communicate with the land, located about 1 hour from Concarneau by speedboat
It was then that Henri Desjoyeaux (Michel Desjoyeaux's father) joined Viannay (his former leader in the resistance) on the Glénan archipelago. This mountain specialist did not know much about sailing, but nevertheless became one of the first instructors of the association, and this until 1952.
The Rise of Yachting
If we think we owe the development of sailing to Eric Tabarly (who also went through the Glénans), it is rather the correlation of several factors that has helped to democratize sailing. First of all Tabarly, but also the Glénans, which made sailing more accessible... And also thanks to the Vaurien, or the Caravelle... The first is a 4.08 m plywood dinghy designed by Jean-Jacques Herbulot, which allows you to sail easily and cheaply. "You could buy these boats as a kit and build them yourself... At the time, for comparison, it cost 7,000 francs compared to 40,000 francs for the sailing boats that were sailing at the time... These boats really helped to train" r ...is setting up the Glenan communication department.
And 70 years later, still relevant
But what allowed the Glénans to exist was above all Hélène, Philippe Viannay's wife... When the man launched initiatives, the woman implemented them to develop the sailing school. The principle was (and still is) simple: take out a membership with the association and learn to sail on one of the sites made available. Because today, the Glénan are 5 sites spread over Brittany (3) and the Mediterranean (2). Always remote places, in the heart of the most beautiful natural environments, several of which are classified by the Conservatoire du Littoral. "To join the Glénan is to become the owner of both the material and the immaterial." That's why DIY and repair are an integral part of the training provided.
In Glénans, members have a responsibility and the ecological dimension is part of the educational programme.
