Administrative history of Vierville

Ancient administrative history of Vierville,

Saint-Laurent and Louvières,

and in particular Maritime Affairs

Before the Roman conquest, the Bessin was inhabited by the Gallic tribe of the Bajocasses. Caesar (1st century BC) attached this territory to a constituency of the Roman Empire called 2^ème Lyonnaise.

Christianity was introduced to the region in the 4th century by Saint Nicaise and Saint Mellon, then abbeys were founded in Jumièges and Saint-Wandrille, quite far from the Bessin, along the Seine.

The invasions of the Franks (4th and 5th centuries) attached the province to the Frankish kingdom of Soissons, then to the royalth of Neustria at the time of the Merovingian kings. The first bishops of Bayeux, Saint Exupère and Saint Vigor also date from the 5th century.

The first maritime incursions from the Germanic peoples of Northern Europe (from the Saxons first), were launched shortly after this time and continued under the Carolingian dynasty from the 8th century, with Danish and Norwegian expeditions, the "Vikings", increasingly daring and destructive.

As the looting continued, the King of France Charles the Simple, was brought at the beginning of the 10th century, to accept the installation of the Danish chief Rollon in Rouen, in charge of him to secure the region assigned and to convert with his people to Christianity. He and his men from the North quickly colonized what became Normandy. Rollon, who became Duke of Normandy, was then a vassal of the King of France, very powerful and relatively independent.

In the 11^th century, Rollon's great-grandson, William the Bastard, conquered England. He and his successors, who thus became Kings of England while still being vassals of the King of France as Duke of Normandy, increasingly opposed the Kings of France. In 1203, the King of France Philippe-Auguste finally confiscated Normandy, pushing back the Duke of Normandy Jean Sans Terre to his kingdom of England. This did not prevent the two kingdoms from continuing to oppose each other.

Notably in the 14^th and 15^th centuries, during the Hundred War (largely from 1340 to 1455,) by 2 times and for long periods, the Bessin with all of Normandy were under English sovereignty. It was onlyin 1450 (battle of Formigny) that the Normandy became French again, definitively this time.

Under the English and French dominations, Normandy retained its "freedoms", that is to say its particular laws: the CUSTOM OF NORMANDY (Stabilized in 1250 in written form), his court called theCHESS FROM NORMANDY, Sa CHARTER TO THE NORMANS, and its assembly of notables, the STATES OF NORMANDY.

From the Dukes of Normandy, the jurisdictions named bailliages and vicomtés depended on the Echiquier, a court composed of prelates, counts, barons, and judicial officers of the province, which met twice a year in Caen, or Rouen, or in Falaise or some other city. Having become sedentary under Louis XII, who fixed it in Rouen, the Echiquier took the name of Parliament of Normandy.

Seven large bailliages depended on this Parliament of Rouen, including three in Lower Normandy: the baillages of Caen, Cotentin and Alençon.

The Bailliage de Caen was divided into 5 vicomtés: Bayeux, Caen, Falaise, Vire and Thorigny.

The authority of the bailiffs has always been weakening. At the end of the 18th^th century they had only retained the right to summon the back-ban and to command the nobility of their bailliages.

It was in fact the Governor General of the Province of Normandy who had the reality of power with under his orders 2 Lieutenants General, one for Lower Normandy and the other for Upper Normandy. A Lieutenant of the King was placed in each bailiff.

Later (16th or 17th century?) The Government of Normandy was divided into 3 generalities of Caen, Rouen, and Alençon.

Each generality was subdivided into elections, seat of a subdelegation.

The elections were divided into sergenteries (248 for all of Normandy).

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Maritime affairs

From the 17th^th century, a coast guard service had been established in Normandy to prevent English attacks and had taken on considerable importance. It was reorganized in 1755 and divided into three departments: Upper, Middle and Lower Normandy, with subdivisions in captaineries and companies.

The department of Middle Normandy had 11 captaincies (in total 53 companies), in the cities of Grandcamp, Honfleur, Roque-de-Rillè, Touques, Dives, Cabourg, Ouistreham, Bernières, Asnelles, Port‐en‐Bessin, and Beuzeville.

The Revolution of 1791 made these institutions disappear. The department of Orne Inférieure, quickly renamed Calvados, was created, subdivided into boroughs (Bayeux, Caen, Vire), cantons (Trévières, etc..) and municipalities (Vierville-sur-Mer, Saint-Laurent-sur-Mer, Louvières, etc...). The boundaries of these municipalities were modeled on those of the parishes that remained, still dependent on their bishopric, that of Bayeux, which was subsequently grouped with the bishopric of Lisieux. These administrative divisions remain today, supplemented by intermunicipalities, countries, and other municipal unions

In 1900, the administration responsible for managing maritime affairs was organized into districts:

The 1^er Arrondissement Maritime, (capital Cherbourg), was headed by a vice admiral, Prefect Maritime, comprising 3 sub-boroughs, Cherbourg, Le Havre and Dunkirk.

The Sous-Arrondissements de Cherbourg, was directed directly by the Maritime Prefect, and extended from the eastern limit of Bénerville to the southern limit of the Manche department. It included 3 Maritime Districts: Caen, La Hougue, Cherbourg, with 18 Maritime Guards stations, covering the 159 coastal municipalities.