BALADE HISTORIQUE DE BREM SUR MER À VÉLO

1 Formed by the association of the former communes of Saint Martin de Brem and Saint Nicolas (1st January 1974), Brem sur Mer has its origins in a distant past. As far back as prehistoric times, people lived along the coast. Their presence can still be seen today: dolmen, menhirs, stone and bronze tools. But it was not until the 9th century, after the Norman invasions, that Saint Nicolas de Brem began to take root. After the Normans had passed through, the inhabitants of old Brem took refuge inland and built the village. At the same time, the port at the mouth of the Gachère was relocated and became a stopover for ships sailing up and down the coast. In the 12th century, a new village, Saint Martin, was created a short distance from Saint Nicolas and grew rapidly.

2 More commonly known as "the Priory", this medieval building with its large stone buttresses is situated slightly below the church. Currently in private ownership, it has recently undergone a meticulous and particularly successful renovation. During the Revolution, the pleasure garden was the site of the cemetery, at the centre of which was the hosannière cross. This hosannière cross is now in the Saint-Nicolas cemetery.

You are standing in front of the Marcetteau family tomb. Adolphe Marcetteau de Brem was born in Brem to René, Jean-Marie Joseph and Suzanne, Ursule de la Rochefoucauld. By decree of 19 June 1867, the Imperial Government officially authorised Adolphe Marcetteau to add "de Brem" to his surname. It was thanks to Adolphe Marcetteau de Brem that the new Saint Nicolas cemetery was created, previously located below the church. The hosanna cross was moved there.
Eugène Marcetteau, Adolphe's brother, who died unmarried at the COUR de BREM on 8 April 1865, is buried in the Saint Nicolas de Brem cemetery. His grave, which was the first in the Saint Nicolas cemetery, is still there, opposite the hosannière cross.

4 Most of them date from the 16th and 17th centuries, and it was around these crosses, traditionally erected in the middle of cemeteries, that parishioners used to gather to sing the Palm Sunday Hosanna. Sealed at the bottom of the cross, a stone lectern or table allowed the officiant to place the Book of Readings and read a passage from the Passion of Christ to the faithful. Some of these crosses, such as Saint Nicolas, had a niche. They were used to hold statues, perhaps pietàs. The original role of the crosses has long since been abandoned. In Brem, the cross at Saint Martin was used as a war memorial until 1977, when the cemetery was moved.

In front of you is the Romanesque church of St Nicolas, listed as a Historic Monument in 1956. Its existence is attested before 1020, making it one of the oldest churches in the Vendée.
Originally, it had three naves with apses and apsidioles, but no transept. The two side aisles, of which only fragments remain today, were added to the original building in the 12th century by the monks of the Sainte-Croix Abbey in Talmont. The apse on the north side, very similar to the central apse, was curiously separated from it by a narrow corridor.
The current church is located in the central nave of the original building. The heart dates from this period, but the whole church was completed at the end of the 17th century. The side walls of the central nave were rebuilt, but no attempt was made to rebuild the entire church, which had been destroyed by the Protestant troops of Soubise.

6 You are in the village of Saint Nicolas de Brem. This village was founded on the rocky plateau by the inhabitants of old Brem, who decided to return inland when peace returned following the barbarian invasions. The church of Saint Nicolas, patron saint of sailors, and a castle were built on either side of the harbour, dominating it. In the 11th century, the village of Saint Nicolas became a small capital, the seat of a count's viguerie and the main parish of Brandais. In addition, numerous disputes broke out between the lords and monks, leading the monks of Marmoutier to build another church a little further away: the church of Saint Martin. The village of Saint-Nicolas and its church were severely damaged as a result.

7 At the beginning of the Middle Ages, a fortified castle was built at Saint Nicolas de Brem on the rocks that had appeared on the river side following an eruption. This castle built on the rocky promontory was a defensive site. According to the Annuaire de la Vendée (1890), Saint Martin dug "a magnificent tumulus", near which tradition places a port. This burial mound is also known as a castle, because during the Middle Ages, defensive walls were built there.

8 This man-made mound or tumulus dates back to feudal times. Excavations carried out in 1901 uncovered the remains of the ancient fortified castle that served as a defence for the natural harbour formed behind Saint Nicolas de Brem. According to legend, it was built by Saint Martin de Vertou, the great apostle of this region. A cross was erected on the mound in the early 19th century.

9 The quarry was worked between 1902 and 1984. The stone was grey when first extracted, turning red over time. This stone was very hard and was known as micro granulite. It was used as a building material for some of the houses in Brem sur Mer.

10 Under the Ancien Régime, this was the customs officer responsible for collecting the tax on salt, the "gabelle". This term is still used today to designate customs officers.

11 From 1893 onwards, the Pont et Chaussées administration undertook major works to make the channel navigable, and above all to protect it from silting up. It was decided to build a dyke, and the work was inaugurated in 1898. The first La Gachère bridge was inaugurated on 16 December 1900. From the moment it opened, traffic was heavy during the summer season. Tourists took advantage of this passage to discover the Olonne forest and the Brem marshes.

12 You'll find yourself in the village of La Gachère, an old port that is no longer in use. This port is formed by the mouths of the Auzance and Vertonne rivers, which flow into the sea at this point. This mouth regularly silts up. Until the 16th century, fishing was the main activity in this port, and whaling was even practised. Coastal shipping and the harvesting of salt from neighbouring villages also generated significant activity. In 1741, a salt-maker named Fruchard drew up a plan to open up Havre-de-la-Gachère. He was so successful that a 60-ton ship entered the port to take on its cargo of salt. At that time, the small village with its narrow streets and low whitewashed houses was mainly home to salt workers and fishermen.

13 The creation of the Gachère marsh is the result of a slow geological phenomenon. At the beginning of our era, Ile Vertime, formed by a sandy barrier, was separated from the mainland by the Gulf of Olonnes. As the gulf gradually filled in and the butte de la Bauduère jutted out into the sea, the gulf, separated into two arms of the sea, eventually turned into marshland and was very quickly conquered by man for economic purposes. During the first millennium, it was developed into salt works, essential for supplying salt to central Gaul. This activity flourished until the end of the 17th century, when fish farming gradually developed in the abandoned salt pans. As a result of increasing competition and the degradation of the marshes by flooding, salt farming has declined sharply since the 19th century.

14 Near the Mulnière farm stands a cross pattée. According to a family tradition recounted by Marc Aveline, this cross was placed on the very spot where the Buor de la Mulnière couple were executed by Republican troops.
According to this tradition, the Buor couple's two daughters escaped the massacre when two Republican officers offered to marry them. These two officers were called Tesson and Paintaud.

15 In front of you is the Menhir de la Crulière, classified as a "Historic Monument" in 1934. It is also known as "The Devil's Stone", according to an ancient legend. The menhir is said to be a stone thrown by the Devil at the time of the evangelisation of the region. Saint Martin de Vertou, who wanted to evangelise the island's inhabitants, was looking for a way to reach them. Lucifer offered to build a bridge, on condition that he would be satisfied with the soul of the first person to cross it, if the bridge was completed before cockcrow. Demons and goblins quickly set to work, and the bridge was quickly built. The far-sighted tempter has intoxicated the cockerel with Brem wine, so that he doesn't wake up any time soon. But the rooster awakes from his slumber and starts crowing in the middle of the night, mistaking the moon for the sun. Frightened, the demons and goblins left their heavy stones behind, one of which fell to La Crulière. Here's how one of the blocks they were carrying fell at La Crulière

16 Vigie: this name was generally given to optical posts. It may also have been applied to surveillance posts (former customs posts).

Between the 18th and 19th centuries, there was an optical telegraph station here, which has long since been destroyed.
In 1792, Claude Chappe, a French engineer, proposed to the Legislative Assembly a system of communication based on the transmission of messages between stations spaced around ten kilometres apart and located on high points.
The messages consisted of a series of semaphore signals which, read using a spyglass from the previous tower, were reproduced for reading by the next tower.
Thanks to this process, messages took just a few minutes to reach the other end of the country.
In 1794, Claude Chappe established the first link between Lille and Paris.

17 Vines were introduced to Brem by the Romans, who came to buy salt in the Marais d'Olonne. Wine-growing began to develop in the 11th century under the impetus of the monks. In the early 17th century, it was encouraged by Richelieu, then Bishop of Luçon, who greatly appreciated the wines from this region and had them served at table. He gave them the title of nobility, which is why the superior wines harvested in our region were called "Vins des Fiefs du Cardinal".

The yellow colour comes from the coat of arms granted to the priory of Saint-Martin-de-Brem in the 17th century; the blue banner coat and the motto "Charity" recall Saint Martin's gesture of sharing his coat with his sword; the bunch of grapes evokes the wine of the Brem region; the church is that of Saint-Nicolas-de-Brem, presented in stylised form; the boat symbolises the coastal area and pleasure boating.

19 At the end of the 11th century, when the monks of Marmoutier were ousted from the church of Saint Nicolas, they founded the priory and the church of Saint Martin a short distance away. The latter was enlarged in the 17th century with the addition of two side chapels, and in the 19th century with the construction of the west façade and the bell tower. The priory no longer exists. The church retains its Romanesque choir and barrel vaults. Modern stained glass windows were installed in 1957.

On 26 June 1950, the post office moved into the old railway station.