Sainte-Pazanne's village

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Presentation

The name of Sainte-Pazanne comes from a saint of Spanish origin: Sainte Pexine and its many variants including Sainte Pazanne.

The first written mention of the municipality is in the Pouillé of 1287 in the Latin form Sancta Picina.

It is a very important personality since Sainte-Pazanne, after some disputes with the other commune of almost the same name Sainte Pézenne, was able to obtain part of the phalanx of the saint, handed over in 1956, to the bishop of Nantes, Monsignor Villepelet.

The Origins of Saint-Pazanne

Prehistory
3,500 BC: the earliest evidence of human settlement, including the dolmen known as ‘La Roche aux Fées’, like many other megaliths, now in ruins.
Located on the D61 road, 200 metres to the north-west, the Port-Fessant dolmen bears witness to the earliest signs of human occupation in the vicinity of Sainte-Pazanne during the Neolithic period.

The effigy of the “Port-Fessant beast” is described by its discoverer as a “monstrous figure carved in relief, very common in the region”. This discovery was published around 1850.
Thirty years later, it was studied by a group of archaeologists, who concluded that it was a natural formation of the rock, in no way altered by human hands.
In 1895, Orieux described it as a “large, overturned dolmen”, such was the variety of interpretations of the rock. Whilst some believed it to be a dolmen, others saw it as the ruins of a covered passageway, known as a “fairy gallery”.
Clearly, this megalith has retained all its mysteries!

Antiquity
There is evidence of human habitation at the Sainte-Pazanne site dating back to the time of the Roman conquest of Gaul.

Black and grey pottery dating from the 1st century has been found,
as well as three buildings at a place called La Briancière, in the village of Le Bois, dating from the 2nd century. One of them appears to be a signal tower.

The town of Sainte-Pazanne from the Middle Ages to the Revolution

651: monks founded a priory on the banks of the Tenu.
1284: first mention of Sainte-Pazanne as a parish.

The present-day territory of the commune of Sainte-Pazanne was divided amongst several manors. Consequently, it fell under the jurisdiction of different authorities.
During the feudal period, the lords of Sainte-Pazanne held market rights. Three fairs a year were authorised at that time.
A charter dated 1784 states that the market was already held every Friday.
A seigneurial market hall – the building now situated on Place de la Hunaudais – was built around 1720. This building served as a church during the Revolution until 1819.

The commune changed its name during the Revolutionary period, temporarily becoming known as Franchère. The reason is not specified, but we can assume that dechristianisation was the cause. This was an episode of the French Revolution between the summer of 1793 and the spring of 1794. This movement aimed to erase all public traces of Christianity (particularly in its Catholic form).
12 April 1789: The representatives from Pazens, like others, called in their lists of grievances, in particular, for equality in taxation and access to public office, and expressed the wish that voting in the Estates-General should be on a per capita basis.

15 January 1790: The Constituent Assembly decided, on the advice of the deputies from Brittany, that this province would be divided into five departments and specified, at its sitting on 30 January, that the department of Nantes would comprise nine districts, including that of Machecoul. This district comprised six cantons, including that of Sainte-Pazanne (which was to be its administrative centre), a canton comprising Port-Saint-Père and Saint-Hilaire-de-Chaléons.

Modernisation of Sainte-Pazanne

The arrival of the railway in 1875 rapidly boosted the town’s economic life (the first train arrived from Pont-Rousseau, in Rezé). Many craftsmen and traders settled there.

The Nantes–Pornic line passes through Sainte-Pazanne.
The other line, Sainte-Pazanne–Machecoul, opened only the following year, in 1876.

Shortly afterwards, between 1877 and 1898, the present church was built; it was listed in the supplementary register of Historic Monuments in 2007.
In April 1956, the relic of Saint Pazanne arrived in the town following an official transfer of some of her remains. These had been found in a sacristy at El Escorial in Spain.

A new covered market was built in 1905 on the site of the former church dating from 1965.
The market will henceforth be held on the current Place du 18 juin 1940.

Since 1898, the streets of Sainte-Pazanne had been lit by street lamps fuelled by rapeseed oil. The rural constable would come to light them every day.
Electricity reached the village in 1910. The thirty lamps would then be switched on from 10.30 pm.
A power station was subsequently built by the Compagnie Départementale d’Énergie Électrique next to the current town hall. The Société Nantaise d’Éclairage bought it in 1920.
Following the nationalisation of the production, transmission and distribution of electricity, the company was incorporated into EDF on 1 January 1947.

Post had been delivered in Sainte-Pazanne since 1830.
However, it was not until 1866 that a post office was established (No. 24 Avenue du Général de Gaulle). It was subsequently moved to its current premises. The PTT purchased the premises in 1956.

In 1895, Sainte-Pazanne was assigned a gendarmerie brigade. This was based at 20 Rue de la Gare.
A sergeant and three gendarmes then took up their posts.
The current barracks were built in 1971.

A fire brigade was established on 17 May 1925 following a devastating fire. A fire engine and equipment were then purchased.

An extra bonus:
You can explore the village, as well as the history of Sainte-Pazanne, by following an interpretive trail through the town’s streets and paths.

Source: www.shpr.fr, Le Patrimoine des communes de la Loire Atlantique (FLOHIC, 1999)

Information

DETAILS FOR CIVIL ARCHITECTURE :
- City / Village / District
Geographical zone :
- Sainte-Pazanne

Map

Destination

Le bourg de Sainte-Pazanne

44680

STE PAZANNE

GPS coordinates

Latitude : 47.10354

Longitude : -1.81016

See Sainte-Pazanne's village on GoogleMaps

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Contact details

Sainte-Pazanne's village

44680

STE PAZANNE

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