Bry-sur-Marne is a French commune in the eastern suburbs of
ParisParis is the capital of France and the country's most populous city. It is situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
,
FranceFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
. It is located from the
center of ParisIn many countries, Kilometre Zero or similar terms in other languages, is a particular location , from which distances are traditionally measured...
.
The commune of Bry-sur-Marne is part of the sector of Porte de Paris, one of the four sectors of the "new town" of
Marne-la-ValléeMarne-la-Vallée is a new town located near Paris, France.Disneyland Resort Paris and Val d'Europe are located in Marne-la-Vallée.-Status:Marne-la-Vallée has been gradually built up since the first plans in 1965 and now covers an area of over 15,000 hectares and includes 26 communes, in the...
.
The photographer
Louis DaguerreLouis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre was a French artist and chemist, recognized for his invention of the daguerreotype process of photography.- Biography :...
died in Bry-sur-Marne in 1851 and a monument marks his grave there.
Bry's name comes from the
CeltCelts is a modern term used to describe any of the European peoples who spoke, or speak, a Celtic language...
ic word
Briw, which means a bridge or a river crossing.
Bry-sur-Marne is a French commune in the eastern suburbs of
ParisParis is the capital of France and the country's most populous city. It is situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
,
FranceFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
. It is located from the
center of ParisIn many countries, Kilometre Zero or similar terms in other languages, is a particular location , from which distances are traditionally measured...
.
The commune of Bry-sur-Marne is part of the sector of Porte de Paris, one of the four sectors of the "new town" of
Marne-la-ValléeMarne-la-Vallée is a new town located near Paris, France.Disneyland Resort Paris and Val d'Europe are located in Marne-la-Vallée.-Status:Marne-la-Vallée has been gradually built up since the first plans in 1965 and now covers an area of over 15,000 hectares and includes 26 communes, in the...
.
The photographer
Louis DaguerreLouis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre was a French artist and chemist, recognized for his invention of the daguerreotype process of photography.- Biography :...
died in Bry-sur-Marne in 1851 and a monument marks his grave there.
Prehistory and early history
Bry's name comes from the
CeltCelts is a modern term used to describe any of the European peoples who spoke, or speak, a Celtic language...
ic word
Briw, which means a bridge or a river crossing. The area has been inhabited since
NeolithicThe Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BCE in the Middle East that is traditionally considered the last part of the Stone Age...
times . The town's motto, which features on its coat of arms, is "
Moult viel que Paris" - old French for "Much older than
ParisParis is the capital of France and the country's most populous city. It is situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
" .
In 1903, archeologist Adrien Mentienne uncovered the bones of a large bovine which died 15,000 years ago. In 1982, the skeleton of a woman who died in the 5th century BC was uncovered beneath the playground of a school in Bry. It is now housed in the town's
museum.
From that century onwards, there was a permanent human presence where Bry now stands. In 1886, a
necropolisA necropolis is a large cemetery or burial ground, usually including structural tombs. The word comes from the Greek νεκρόπολις - nekropolis, meaning "city of the dead"...
was found which contained
potteryPottery is the ceramic ware made by potters. Major types of pottery include earthenware, stoneware, and porcelain. The places where such wares are made are called potteries. Pottery is one of the oldest human technologies and art-forms, and remains a major industry today...
,
GaulGaul is a historical name used in the context of the Roman Empire in references to the region of Western Europe approximating present day France and Belgium, but also sometimes including the Po Valley, western Switzerland, and the parts of the Netherlands and Germany on the west bank of the River...
and
FrankThe Franks or Frankish people were a West Germanic tribal confederation first attested in the 3rd century as living north and east of the Lower Rhine River. From the third to fifth centuries some Franks raided Roman territory while other Franks joined the Roman troops in Gaul...
ish weaponry, silver and gold jewelry, and coins, dating from the
GaulGaul is a historical name used in the context of the Roman Empire in references to the region of Western Europe approximating present day France and Belgium, but also sometimes including the Po Valley, western Switzerland, and the parts of the Netherlands and Germany on the west bank of the River...
era to the Merovingian. The first known written mention of the town named Bry was in a charter signed by King
Charles the BaldCharles the Bald , Holy Roman Emperor and King of West Francia , was the youngest son of the Emperor Louis the Pious by his second wife Judith.- Struggle against his brothers :He was born on 13 June 823 in Frankfurt, when his elder...
in 861.
The first church was built in 1130.
From the feudal era to modern times
In 1404, Robert de Chatillon, cousin of King
Charles VICharles VI , called the Well-loved and the Mad , was the King of France from 1380 to 1422, as a member of the House of Valois.-Early life:...
, was Bry's feudal lord. His castle no longer stands, and its exact location is uncertain. Bry's current
château was built in the 1690s. It became the town hall in 1866. It was rebuilt after the
Franco-Prussian WarThe Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the 1870 War was a conflict between France and Prussia. Prussia was aided by the North German Confederation, of which it was a member, and the South German states of Baden, Württemberg and Bavaria...
of 1870.
The railway came to Bry in 1926, followed by the
motorwayThe OECD has defined a motorway as:Motorways are identical to freeways as a road type, and comparable to the United States's Interstate Highways as a classification....
(1970) and the
RERThe RER is a rapid transit system in France serving Paris and its suburbs. The RER is an integration of a modern city-centre subway and a pre-existing set of regional rail lines. Within the city of Paris, the RER is as an express network with multiple connections with the Paris Métro...
(1977). The town's hospital was built in 1936 .
Daguerre's diorama
Bry's most treasured artwork is a
dioramaThe word diorama can refer either to a nineteenth century mobile theatre device, or, in modern usage, a three-dimensional full-size or miniature model, sometimes enclosed in a glass showcase for a museum...
painted by
Louis DaguerreLouis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre was a French artist and chemist, recognized for his invention of the daguerreotype process of photography.- Biography :...
. The painting changes as each day wears on, mimicking daylight and night-time; the painted candlesticks light up at night. It is kept in the local church.
Transport
Bry-sur-Marne is served by Bry-sur-Marne station on Paris
RER line AThe RER A is one of the five lines in the RER Rapid transit system serving Paris, France.The line runs from Saint-Germain-en-Laye , Cergy Le Haut , and Poissy...
.
Miscellaneous
The town has been twinned with
SawbridgeworthSawbridgeworth is a small, mainly residential, town in Hertfordshire, England.- Location :Sawbridgeworth is four miles south of Bishop's Stortford, twelve miles east of Hertford and nine miles north of Epping. It lies on the A1184 and has a railway station that links to Liverpool Street station in...
in
HertfordshireHertfordshire , abbreviated Herts, is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford....
,
EnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the North Sea to the east, with the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and
Moosburg an der IsarMoosburg an der Isar is a town in the Landkreis Freising of Bavaria, Germany.The oldest town between Regensburg and Italy, it lies on the river Isar at an altitude of 421 m . It has 17,275 inhabitants and covers an area of 44 km². It is easily reached by Autobahn 92 and regional train from Munich...
in
GermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium,...
since 1973.
External links
Official town site Bry's Association Louis Daguerre