Les Halles or market of Ancenis !!

Posted in Bretagne, Food and Wine, France

Once again another gem while on my road warrior in my belle France. Marvelous monuments all over you go , so much to see, and we are on our way with trips in France since 1990, and now living here for 22 years as French ! I needed to update this older post on text and links for my memories of always, Therefore, let me you about the Les Halles or market of Ancenis !! Hope you enjoy it as I.

The town of Ancenis is in the department of Loire-Atlantique, no 44 of the Pays de la Loire region. Since January 1, 2019, it is the new town of Ancenis-Saint-Géréon with the old neighboring town of Saint-Géréon. However, Ancenis was built in 984 on an island whose contours can still be seen thanks to boulevards Joseph-Vincent and Léon-Séché. The wharves demonstrate the importance of past traffic on the Loire river  and the importance of the port of Ancenis. The city is part of the marche de Bretagne.The march of Brittany was, in the Carolingian era, a military district intended to protect the neustry of the Bretons and to organize military expeditions to their territories. The marche de Bretagne was created in the 8C and included the counties of Nantes, Vannes and Rennes. Its most famous leader is Count Roland. Ancenis is part of the historic Brittany region in the traditional country of the Pays Nantais!The city is 35 km from Nantes, 50 km from Angers, 50 km from Cholet, 50 km from Châteaubriant , and 179 km from my house.  Ancenis is connected to the national network by its highway /motorway interchange and its toll on the A 11 linking Nantes to Paris! However, I come free on the D723 road from Nantes, The nice monument here that caught our attention passing by it was the covered market or halles.

The market or halles are the heart of the city center, around which all the shops of the city are installed. They are built on the site of the old market which dated from the 15C, razed in 1859. It is in 1862 that they are inaugurated. They include the covered market, surmounted by a belfry, the whole is of Napoleonic architecture. The halles as they exist today were part of the vast operation Coeur d’Ancenis 2017 whose objective was to render the heart of the city more attractive. It included the creation of a forecourt, the renovation of the facade, the renovation of the roof , the installation of new joinery and the redevelopment of interior spaces, the halles have found all their superb aspect and now offer a new commercial space of 600 m2. This does not prevent market gardeners, poultry farmers, fishmongers, and cheese makers from setting up their market around the halles every Thursday morning !

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A bit of history on the covered market or Halles d’Ancenis ,tell us that the Ancenis-Saint-Géréon market is already 413 years old. The Duchess of Mercœur, who today has an alley to her name in the Rohan district, is at the origin. The Duchesse de Mercœur was born Marie de Luxembourg, she married Philippe de Lorraine, Duke of Mercœur and Baron d’Ancenis. The latter was appointed governor of Brittany in 1582 by King Henry III and later became leader of the Catholic league which challenged the arrival of Henry IV, of Protestant origin, while wars of religion were raging. In March 1606, she obtained from King Henry IV the patent letters establishing in Ancenis a fair each  year and a market each week, thus giving them a legal existence. The wooden halles (instead of the current halles) have been home to the market since at least the 15C. On September 6, 1623, the Duchesse de Mercœur died at the Chateau d’Anet  (Eure-et-Loir,dept 28 see post). She was buried in the Convent of the Capuchins, at 222 Rue de Faubourg Saint-Honoré, Paris, which she had built.

A bit of history I like on the old town of Ancenis tell us that it was founded in 984 by Guérech, son of Alain Barbetorte, Duke of Brittany, or by his wife Aremberge. An earlier Gallo-Roman occupation exists on the current territory of Saint-Géréon, on a higher point of the slopes of the Loire, the Meslières Stones. The foundation of Ancenis is intended to defend the new Breton border created by the victory of Alain Barbetorte on the Normans, including the pretensions of the dukes of Anjou who, as early as 987, besieged the city. In 1468, the Treaty of Ancenis was signed, committing duke François II of Brittany to break his alliances with Charles the Bold and King Edward IV of England.

The town of Ancenis-Saint-Géréon on its markets : https://ancenis-saint-gereon.fr/infos-et-demarches/marches-et-commerces/

The Ancenis country local tourist office on Ancenis : https://www.pays-ancenis-tourisme.com/en/to-see-and-do/visits-culture-and-heritage/towns-and-villages/ancenis-and-its-banks-of-loire/

There you go folks, another gem of my belle France. All wonderful things to see in your mine road warrior trips in the deep countryside, Again, hope you enjoy the post on Les Halles or market of Ancenis as I 

And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!

Published by pedmar10

I am a lover of travels to Europe , Americas , Africa and Asia as well ,who like to share my experiences of the last 53 years with the world, visiting so far 81 countries; living in 6, working in 5, and Citizen of 4, speaking fluently 4 languages. I can deal with sports especially football/soccer and love music, arts, wine collector/drinker, and go out to restaurants, and just visit the world. My background comes all the way from Candelaria and Pajara in Tenerife, Spain where my grandparents came from ;not knowing each other then, to Punta Brava, west of Havana, Cuba. There , my parents born in Cuba met and later on I was born there too. 100% guanche (annexed Tenerife to Spain on April 10 ,1496). I left Cuba as many have to Madrid, Spain where I lived for 4 years. Then, move to Perth Amboy ,New Jersey USA (living there 13 yrs) ; where I completed high school, became a US Citizen, learned to drive a car, and learned English. Afterward, went to the university in Florida, ERAU, and upon graduation decided to moved there to Ormond by the Sea, near Daytona Beach, finally moving North Miami, then Hialeah, then another moved to Silver Lakes division in Miramar, Broward county, Florida; in Florida I lived a total of 18 years. Finally , moved to France in 2003 ,Versailles call me for its royalty, and working in Paris was great. It was time to seek frontiers again and moved to Brech near Auray, Morbihan in Brittany , and later move to not too far Pluvigner. Total so far in France has been 20 years, and counting. Moving average a home every 5.5 years hopefully this will be my last. Cheers All rights reserved. No part of this blog may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means or stored in a retrieval system of any nature, without the written permission of the copyright holder, me. No part of this work may be modified, without the written permission of the holder, me.No part of this work may be exposed to public view in any form or by any means, without identifying the holder as the author, and with the before mentioned permission.

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