History of Brécey
The origin of the place name Brécey is unknown, the name Brécey appeared for the first time in various legal documents during the 15th century.
The first settlement was undoubtedly situated at the place now known as le Vieux Bourg (the old town), at the junction of the roman roads from Avranches to Vire and from Cotentin to Rennes. The ford by which the Sée was crossed was later replaced by a stone bridge (now called le Pont de Pierre). The old town was there before the invasion of the norsemen and had a church dedicated to Saint Martin. This church would have been destroyed by the invaders then rebuilt after their conversion. It is thought that the first château of Brécey was located in the nearby hamlet of la Tourelle.
The first known lord of Brécey followed William the Conqueror to England. At the end of the 11th century Raoul 1st, lord of Fougères, ceded the lands around Brécey to his vassal Ranulphe de Virey who was the instigator of the creation of the new town at the spot where he was to build a church dedicated to Saint Martin. It was around this church that the new town developed and, at the same time, the old town began to disappear.
The roman church of Brécey was under the control of the abbey at Savigny and was restored in 1435. Until the time of the revolution, Brécey came under the jurisdiction of the Count of Mortain. In 1613 Jean de Vassy, lord of Brécey, obtained the ‘promotion’ of the lands of Brécey to a barony.
Jacques de Vassy was the builder of the Château of Brécey on the left bank of the Sée close to the hamlet of Logis. The château, some of which no longer exists today, was very important and its avenues link to the Pont de Pierre.
The new town grew in imprtance thanks to its position in the Sée valley at the centre of the triangle formed by the towns of Villedieu les Poëles, Avranches and Saint Hilaire du Harcouët.
Business was naturally attracted to Brécey. The fairs began again in 1401 (the fair of Sainte Croix on the 14th September and of Saint Michel on the 16th October). In 1628. King Louis XIII bestowed a charter for a Friday market and for the fairs of Sainte Geneviève and Saint Martin on the 3rd January and the 4th July respectively. The neighbouring commune of Cuves which was older and a rival (being the judicial centre for the area) ended by deferring to Brécey.
The ‘living’ of Brécey was an important one. It required 1 curé and 4 vicars but also a schoolmaster and a schoolmistress
If the parish of Brécey did not take an active part in the revolution of 1789 and maintained a neutral stance, it was made to suffer much damage between 1793 and 1799 in the battles and reprisals between the chouans (anti-republicans) and the republicans
19th Century
In 1800 Brécey took its definitive place as the main town of the canton and the seat of justice. Its markets and fairs enabled it to prosper and it was during this period that many public buildings were constructed.
The moving of the cemetry in 1790, the erection of a granite crucifix in 1851, the construction of a new presbytery in 1857, the enlarging in 1862 of the church already restored in 1836,… these last works were capped in 1878 by the spire of the church.
In 1807, the mayor divided the commune into 4 sections, this separation was reversed by the land survey of 1825. The important works carried out by the commune during the 19th century gave the town its current configuration : the creation of the modern main roads and adjacent by-roads : the departmental road from Villedieu to Saint Hilaire, the creation of which was envisaged from 1818, enabled the clearing of the ground around the church and the presbytery and the disappearance of some buildings on the eastern side of the road.
The town hall square was cleared and several inconvenient houses were demolished, the market halls which did not fit in with the design of the square were moved. The square was paved in 1826. In 1843 the town council drew up plans to straighten up the square.
Between 1850 and 1870 a new town hall, a boys school and a new grain market hall were built.
Moves to prohibit thatched roofs were put in place between 1824 and 1828.
In 1879 the commune established a piped water supply from the springs at la Tessonière and built, in 1881, a monumental fountain in the centre of the main square.
Beginning of the 20th century
The beginning of the 20th century saw the appearance of the railway line (closed in the 1930’s) and the construction of an electricity generating station at the Pont Roulland.
Two ‘free’ schools for boys and girls were created by the clergy and the parishioners.
The sitting of an industrial distillery and a co-operative distillery (for the production of cider and calvados) brought back prosperity to Brécey and saw the start of new economic growth.
The commune of Brécey was liberated on the 31st July 1944 by Colonel Dean of the 7th Army Corps of the USA without any significant damage to the commune.
