Saint-Briac-sur-Mer (, literally ''Saint-Briac on Sea''; ;
Gallo: ''Saent-Beriac''), is a
commune in the
Ille-et-Vilaine
Ille-et-Vilaine (; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Ill-e-Vilaenn'', ) is a departments of France, department of France, located in the regions of France, region of Brittany (administrative region), Brittany in the northwest of the country. It is named a ...
Department in
Brittany
Brittany ( ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the north-west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica in Roman Gaul. It became an Kingdom of Brittany, independent kingdom and then a Duch ...
in northwestern
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
.
Population
Inhabitants of Saint-Briac-sur-Mer are called ''briacins'' in French.
Climate
St Briac lies on the
Gulf Stream
The Gulf Stream is a warm and swift Atlantic ocean current that originates in the Gulf of Mexico and flows through the Straits of Florida and up the eastern coastline of the United States, then veers east near 36°N latitude (North Carolin ...
which means it enjoys a warm climate, several degrees warmer than the surrounding areas. The village has fine examples of tropical palms and plants, along the streets, making strolls very enjoyable.
Leisure
Saint Briac has two
campsite
Campsite, campground, and camping pitch are all related terms regarding a place used for camping (an overnight stay in an outdoor area). The usage differs between British English and American English.
In British English, a ''campsite'' is an ...
s, seven beaches, four
tennis courts
A tennis court is the venue where the sport of tennis is played. It is a firm rectangular surface with a low net stretched across the centre. The same surface can be used to play both doubles and singles matches. A variety of surfaces can be u ...
, one
soccer field
A football pitch or soccer field is the playing surface for the game of association football. Its dimensions and markings are defined by Law 1 of the Laws of the Game, "The Field of Play". The pitch is typically made of natural turf or artifici ...
, a
yacht club
A yacht club is a boat club specifically related to yachting.
Description
Yacht clubs are mostly located by the sea, although there some that have been established at a lake or riverside locations. Yacht or sailing clubs have either a mar ...
, one
mini golf
Miniature golf (also known as minigolf, putt-putt, crazy golf, and by several other names) is an offshoot of the sport of golf focusing solely on the putting aspect of its parent game. The aim of the game is to score the lowest number of poi ...
, one 18 hole
golf course
A golf course is the grounds on which the sport of golf is played. It consists of a series of holes, each consisting of a teeing ground, tee box, a #Fairway and rough, fairway, the #Fairway and rough, rough and other hazard (golf), hazards, and ...
, and more than 5 restaurants.
History
The name Saint Briac comes from the name of
Saint Briag
Saint Briag (Breton) or Briac (French) was an Irish monk who came to Brittany in the company of Saint Tudwal. His feast day is 17 December.
Biography
Born of Irish nobility, he lived during the sixth century. After his studies, he left his cou ...
, an Irishman. Briag arrived from Ireland with
Saint Tugdual in around 548.
On 4 and 5 September 1758, a British fleet of 113 ships under the command of Admiral
Richard Howe, landed east of the Garde Guerin, in Saint Briac. With a force of more than 12,000 men, under the command of General
Thomas Bligh, who accompanied the Duke of York, the future king
George III
George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland, Ireland from 25 October 1760 until his death in 1820. The Acts of Union 1800 unified Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and ...
, they established camp in neighboring St Lunaire, but not before pillaging and burning down more than half of Saint Briac.
Le Chateau du Nessay (seen below) was built on an emplacement of a castle originating from the 12th century. During the
French Revolution, it was used as a prison, to hold political prisoners.
St Briac was called Port Briac during the
French Revolution.
Though France requires since 1976 that all beaches be public and that shoreside owners let people pass, wealthy owners of Saint-Briac-sur-Mer don't allow it and have been fighting the law in court ever since, including John Kerry's family.
The
Forbes
''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine founded by B. C. Forbes in 1917. It has been owned by the Hong Kong–based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments since 2014. Its chairman and editor-in-chief is Steve Forbes. The co ...
family estate, called
Les Essarts was bombed during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. Les Essarts was rebuilt in 1954.
Politics
Brice Lalonde
Brice Lalonde (; born 10 February 1946) is a former green party leader in France, who ran for President of France in the Presidential elections, 1981. In 1988 he was named Minister of the Environment, and in 1990 founded the green Ecology Gen ...
, a former
Green Party
A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as environmentalism and social justice.
Green party platforms typically embrace Social democracy, social democratic economic policies and fo ...
candidate for
president of France
The president of France, officially the president of the French Republic (), is the executive head of state of France, and the commander-in-chief of the French Armed Forces. As the presidency is the supreme magistracy of the country, the po ...
, was mayor of this wealthy resort village from 1989 to 2008.
Lalonde and his first cousin,
U.S. Senator
The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...
John Kerry
John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is an American attorney, politician, and diplomat who served as the 68th United States secretary of state from 2013 to 2017 in the Presidency of Barack Obama#Administration, administration of Barac ...
, are grandsons of James Grant Forbes, an heir of the
Forbes family
The Forbes family is one of the components of the Boston Brahmins—a wealthy extended American family long prominent in Boston, Massachusetts. The family's fortune originates from trading opium and tea between North America and China in the 1 ...
of
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
and
Boston
Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...
. James Grant Forbes was born in
Shanghai
Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...
and later moved to France where the
Forbes family estate is located. Kerry and Lalonde were childhood friends on the estate in Saint Briac.
The current mayor is Vincent Denby Wilkes
Personalities
Princess Victoria Melita of Edinburgh and Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, the Titular Empress of all the Russias, lived here with her husband and their son and one of their daughters.
Grand Duke Cyril Vladimirovich of Russia
Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich of Russia (; ''Kirill Vladimirovich Romanov''; – 12 October 1938) was a son of Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich of Russia, a grandson of Emperor Alexander II and a first cousin of Nicholas II, Russia's last ...
, Victoria's husband, Head of the Imperial Family of Russia and Titular Emperor and Autocrat of all the Russias.
Kira Kirillovna of Russia
Kira Kirillovna of Russia (9 May 1909 – 8 September 1967) was the second daughter of Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich of Russia and Princess Victoria Melita of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. She married Prince Louis Ferdinand of Prussia, grandson of ...
, their youngest daughter and wife of
Louis Ferdinand, Prince of Prussia heir to the Prussian Throne.
Vladimir Cyrillovich, Grand Duke of Russia, their son, Head of the Imperial Family of Russia and Titular Emperor and Autocrat of all the Russias after the death of his father. Vladimir is the father of
Maria Vladimirovna, Grand Duchess of Russia
Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna of Russia (; born 23 December 1953) has been a claimant to the headship of the House of Romanov, the Imperial Family of Russia (who reigned as Emperors and Autocrats of all the Russias from 1613 to 1917) since ...
a disputed claimant to the leadership of the Imperial Family.
Armel Beaufils
Émile Jean Armel-Beaufils was a French sculptor born in Rennes in 1882 and who died in Saint-Briac in 1952.
Biography
Émile Jean Armel-Beaufils started his schooling in Fougères then at a lycée in Rennes. He studied law and then literature ...
a sculptor, lived in St Briac from 1929 to 1952.
Auguste Renoir
Pierre-Auguste Renoir (; ; 25 February 1841 – 3 December 1919) was a French people, French artist who was a leading painter in the development of the Impressionism, Impressionist style. As a celebrator of beauty and especially femininity, fe ...
painted a peasant and her cow in the outskirts of the village.
Paul Signac
Paul Victor Jules Signac ( , ; 11 November 1863 – 15 August 1935) was a French Neo-Impressionist painter who, with Georges Seurat, helped develop the artistic technique Pointillism.
Biography
Paul-Victor-Jules Signac was born in Paris on ...
a painter, creator of
pointillism
Pointillism (, ) is a technique of painting in which small, distinct dots of color are applied in patterns to form an image.
Georges Seurat and Paul Signac developed the technique in 1886, branching from Impressionism. The term "Pointillism ...
and
divisionism
Divisionism, also called chromoluminarism, is the characteristic style in Neo-Impressionist painting defined by the separation of colors into individual dots or patches that interact optically..Homer, William I. ''Seurat and the Science of Pain ...
commonly stopped in St Briac during his travels.
Hugh Grant
Hugh John Mungo Grant (born 9 September 1960) is an English actor. He established himself early in his career as a charming and vulnerable romantic leading man, and has since transitioned into a character actor. He has received List of awards ...
an actor
See also
*
References
External links
Official WebsiteCultural Heritage
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saintbriacsurmer
Communes of Ille-et-Vilaine
Seaside resorts in France
Curiosolitae