Vain

Geography

Vain is in the north of the estuary of Sée and Sélune, out of bay of the Mount-Saint-Michel, along 8 kilometers of shore. This commune is bordered by the communes of Marcey-the-Strikes, on 2 kilometers, Bacilly on 5 kilometers and Genêts 1 measures in kilometres. Brooms is the starting point of pilgrimages to the Mount Saint-Michel through the strikes.

In addition to 858 hectares of terrestrial surface, approximately 140 hectares pre salted, where feed the of the same sheep name, the raised pure one their meat with the salted taste, belong to the Maritime Public domain.

Three littoral parts are distinguished: the handle of Gisors, with a mondrain, artificial dam of sand protected by a low wall, separating the pre one salted dry land, partly made up of old marshes, the rock point of Grouin of the South, otherwise called Point of the Pulpit by the inhabitants of Saint-Léonard, the handle of the Large Port or Saint-Léonard. Until the Second world war a river ran, in the middle of the handle of Gisors. Under ground consists of schist having more than 600 million years. A place where cover schist points, is called Rochelin.

On this substrate settled, in the valleys of Beaumanoir and of the brook of the Moors, a wind silt, approximately 25.000 years ago. In the lower parts, the tide deposited with the wire of the millenia silts and pitch trsè fertile, since the transgression flandrienne. (Cf Geological map of bay of the Mount-Saint-Michel).

Vain is crossed by the secondary road 911 connecting Avranches to Granville by the coast.

This commune includes/understands two boroughs apart 3 kilometers. The place chief, where town hall, church and schools are, is named by the inhabitants the Borough the Vain ones.

The other frame around a priory is named Saint-Léonard. This priory a long time in ruins was the subject of a long company of restoration and valorization of the inheritance.

The borough the Vain ones developed by the construction of allotments in Raulin, Guéteny, Bucaille and, a little further, Haguille and Tisonnières.

One estimates at a score the employee jobs on the commune. The three restaurants are the only trade. One counts ten farms. Some craftsmen work in the building. In 1995 there were approximately 170 paid outside and 24 unemployed.

History

The name of the parish is Saint-Pierre-of-Vain.

Old forms: Vedun, Veim, Vehim, Vayn. Various assumptions on the origin of the name, most plausible seems to be that of Chesnel which indicates that this name would come from Vadum or Vé Latin forms of ford, to undoubtedly cross the estuary.

An important part of the territory the Vain ones was, in 1087, a given seigniory, by William the Conqueror, with the Saint-Etienne abbey of Caen, which founded there the Prieuré of Saint-Léonard, around whose an agglomeration was constituted.

On this priory depended a vassal stronghold called on Vain, pertaining at the origin with a family of this name, then with the families Thieuville, Mauny, Goyon of Matignon, Espinay, Mathan and Beslière. Another small stronghold, Canon, had its manor with Saint-Léonard. It depended on the stronghold of Grippon. The bishop of Avranches, the senior of the chapter of the cathedral and a canon had there also goods, just as the priory of Tombelaine. The priest was named by the senior of the chapter before the Revolution. Around the church a borough was also constituted.

Into Norman, these strongholds appointed vavassor, who gave his patronym to families of Marcey-the-Strikes.

Two important activities made live a good part of the population before the Revolution: the manufacture of salt and fishing with foot.

The manufacture of salt was done by filtering salted sand collected on the strikes: the brine thus obtained was heated with the wood fire to make crystallize salt.

Before the Revolution, there existed 110 family and artisanal saltworks, on the littoral the Vain ones, each one employing approximately three people, producing 15 tons of salt and paying to the owner as much as a farm of 20 hectares.

These saltworks disappeared in the middle of XIXe.

In 1639, Saint-Léonard was the starting point of a popular revolt, because of the increase in gabelle, the tax on salt, decided by Colbert, then Minister for Finance of the king Louis XIV. (The revolt of the Tramps)

Fishing with foot as for it, consists in tightening nets or racks on the strikes or the rivers to operate them. One fished salmons formerly, thanks to stoppings of nets held in the river. The mules were taken with a trémail posed on stakes or by operating a seine. For eels one used kinds of racks called bourroches. For gray shrimps, one could push a bichette or to tighten on stakes a tesure, left net in the shape of funnel with a rectangular opening.

In 1900, one still counted about fifty fishermen, the women collected the hulls. Because of the decline of the saltworks, at the 19th century, an important part of the population was obliged, to seek an employment elsewhere. Some entered the customs, others embarked for great fishing with cod on the boats granvillais. Some settled with Saint-Pierre-and-Miquelon and Newfoundland (Hamel family - cf the novel of Fishing Pierre Loti of Iceland).

The bay become full of fish involved the reduction in the number of fishermen. Currently a good part of the inhabitants works in Avranches. Fishing, primarily distraction nowadays, are practiced today with low tide, by means of sail needles.

Some external pensioners settled on the littoral or in the borough of Saint-Léonard. In 1990 a small associative museum presented the manufacture of salt and fishing to foot. It was replaced in 2001 by the House of Bay managed and managed by the General advice of the English Channel.

Crossings of Bay towards the Mount-Saint-Michel are proposed at the beginning of the commune. Sources: Gilbert LEMETAYER Strongholds seniorities and said to Vains in the n°376 of the Revue of Avranchin appeared into seven 1998. Louis MANNEHEUT Mémoire of Overcame MLC editions, Dunkirk 2006. Municipal bulletins.

Considered for the purity of his air and the magnificence of the site, Saint-Léonard accommodated since 1840 in holiday of Parisian, anxious to benefit from a climate of an exceptional quality.

Between the two world wars, the commune lives to settle a small immigrant community originating in Poland. This period marked the end of the massive departures of the fishermen of bay of the Mount Saint-Michel towards Newfoundland and Saint-Pierre and Miquelon. Occupied during the Second world war, Vains sheltered a local delegation of Kommandantur, and a military camp in Grouin of the South, whose presence did not manage however to block the courage of its inhabitants who lodged refugees. It was released on July 31st, 1944 at the time of the opening of Avranches.

Administration

Farmer

Demography

Places and monuments

Sites

Grouin of the South is a whole of rock points which shelters a very rich fauna and a flora. The principal one and the most attended is called point of the Pulpit by the inhabitants of the village. The others are those of Bigard, the Body of guard, Sceu.

One can admire a splendid panorama there on the bottom of bay of the Mount-Saint-Michel, to compare with that of the Botanical garden of Avranches.

The access to the maritime public domain is free, while remaining vigilant towards the dangers which the bay conceals (risks of stagnation and surrounding by the sea, moving sands). It is strongly advised to call upon a guide.

Civil architecture

Manor S: home, vault, building of the body of guard. Vestiges of cuttings off probably ancient and altered with the S, the camp of Linettes.

Barns dîmières of the 17th century. One at the entry of the borough of Saint-Léonard, the other close to the church to the borough the Vain ones. That Ci was restored by the commune in order to be used of versatile room and canteen.

Old houses of the borough of Léonard Saint.

crowned Architecture

Church the Vain ones remade partly to S. Inside enfeu of Catherine d' Estouteville died in 1521. Old Priory of Saint-Léonard: work began at the beginning of the 12th century but this one was altered considerably by deprived work when it was transformed into farm with the Revolution and was restored at the end of the 20th century. There remains only the vault and the barn recently converted into dwelling. It has a square Romance bell-tower with the roof as a bâtière, with a cornice with modillons. The priory is delimited by an enclosure and an enclosure which it delimits. Private monument.

Vault Our-Lady-of-Green-Wood, old vault of the manor the Vain ones.

Rule, set up in 1865, of Our-Lady-of-the-Salette, in the middle of a thicket near the manor.

Rule, set up in 1931, of Léodewald saint called here Léonard, with the Roadway

Cross of way to the place says the Three Crosses.

Museums

The House of Bay - Vain Relays are a center of interpretation of bay of the Mount-Saint-Michel: exposure permanent on the animal life and vegetable in the traditional bay and activities. Opened in 2001 in an old large body of farm restored. Saltworks were reconstituted.

Personalities related to the commune

Léodewald saint, called also holy Léonard, bishop of Avranches from 578 to 614

Marc Valentine Regnouf (1778-1843), politician, former mayor, deputy of the district of Avranches of 1815 to 1816 and 1820 to 1827

Emile Littré, author of the Dictionary whose ancestors were Vains salt makers

Admiral Dominique Gauchet (1857-1931), ordering allied Forces in the Mediterranean in 1916.

Emile Jugan (1920-1999) fishing with foot and painter amateur

Emilde Delaunay, reprocessed Posts & Telecommunications, painter amateur

Claude Manneheut, born on June 9th, 1932 in Vains Saint-Léonard, deceased on January 24th, 2007, old directing of the Allowance office family of Évreux

Christian Hamel, customs officer and President of the Club of the Circus, author of many publications on the circus - Bears with the circus/Elephants with the circus Sylvère Hamel, born on February 23rd, 1965 in Avranches, Managing director of Kaufmann & Broad

See too

Common of the English Channel

Employers' festival: first Sunday of July (festival of Bay)

Natural resources and local economy: cottage industry, bovine and ovine breeding, cereal cultures, tourism

Schools: primary educations public and private Saint-Michel, rural family home preparing with the BEPA Services with the people

Passage du GR 223 along the littoral. Loops of small excursion

External bonds

Vain on the site of the national geographical Institute
Vain on the site of INSEE
Vain on the site of Quid
Localization the Vain ones on a chart of France and communes bordering
Plane the Vain ones on Mapquest

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