Nominoe (died March 7, 851), was count of Vannes and the first duke of Brittany, from 826 to his death. He was nominated by king Louis I of France and Holy Roman Emperor to rule Brittany as his vassal. Nominoe honoured the agreement and remained a faithful servant until 841, when Louis died and was succeeded by Charles the Bald.
Apparently the relations between the Duke and Charles were not as amicable, because Nominoe refused to swear alliance to the new king and rebelled, declaring Brittany an independent state. Charles of France hurried to clash the rebellion but, after some minor skirmishes, was utterly defeated in the battle of Ballon. In 846, Charles was forced to recognise the independence of Brittany and Nominoe as its king.
Nominoe died undefeated in Vendôme in 851, after conquering the counties of Maine and Anjou. After duke Alan II, the title of king has been abandoned and the rulers took the title of dukes of Brittany.
His name in Breton is Nevenoioù. To Breton nationalistes he is known as Tad ar Vro, or "father of the country".
Nominoë snatched Brittany from the archdiocese of Tours on which she was suffragan; he founded the archdiocese of Dol, in order to establish a self governing Breton church which could continue and support the traditions of the Bretons.
Nominoë's successors, from Erispoë to Alain Barbetorte, vigorously applied themselves to the protection of the independence of the Dukedom from the Franks and Norsemen.
Four dukes, Jean the lst, Jean the 2nd, Arthur the 2nd and Jean the 3rd succeeded the late Pierre de Dreux, until 1341.
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