Basse-Loire

Introduction

Downstream part of the valley of the the Loire, lain between Ingrandes (limit Brittany - Anjou in the north of the Loire) and Saint-Nazaire (Estuary of the Loire), the Basse-Loire delimits then crosses the historical Brittany, in the current department of the Loire-Atlantique. It is subdivided in three geographical and historical parts:

upstream, the Valley of Brittany-Anjou on the Right Bank (the North-Loire) between Ingrandes and the Storeroom, on the left bank (the South-Loire) between the Mesnil-in-Valley and the Game preserve.

in the center, the Nantes Valley of the Storeroom with Saint-Etienne-with-Montluc (the North-Loire), of the Game preserve to the Pilgrim (the South-Loire).

downstream, the Estuary of the Loire ( River mouth-Liger into Breton) where the Loire and the Atlantic Ocean mix. The Estuary has as Western ends the communes of Saint-Nazaire on Northern bank and Saint-Brevin-the-Pines on Southern bank.

The term of “Valley of Brittany” is primarily used today by the Nantes market-gardeners. It however recovers historical and geographical significances varied correspondent with three outstanding functions: historical and political border of Antiquity until our days, centers economic and political, place of opening and exchange between the Loire and the Ocean.

The Basse-Loire, space-border

The Basse-Loire was a political and human border during Antiquity.

The the Loire indeed constituted the limit between the Gallic people of the Namnètes (current the North-Loire) and of the Pictons (ancestors of the poitevins). The Celtic people de Gaulle often used the rivers and rivers to delimit their territories. There exist however interrogations on the territory of the Pays from Retz and its Western part which would have already belonged to Namnètes before the Roman conquest (many traces of currencies namnètes on the littoral of the Country of Retz, in particular with Saint-Brevin and Paimboeuf). Nevertheless archaeological excavations on the commune of " Rezé Nantes " on southern bank of the Loire reveal the importance of the port picton of Portus Ratiatus (or ratiatum pictonum portus ), Rezé was the principal port of the Pictons. The only means of connecting North and the South-Loire at the time was the river and maritime boats. So the exchanges were limited, even if archaeological research showed the importance of the coastal exchanges as of this time between Namnètes, Pictons and the powerful people Vénète (Vannes).

At the time of the Roman conquest, the Basse-Loire (contrary to the remainder of the Loire Valley) becomes an administrative border, not only between the cities of Nantes and Poitiers (inherited the people Namnètes and Pictons), but on a more important scale between the Aquitaine (Aquitania) on a side, and the Armorique (Are Morica) of the other.

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