Maps and landscapes — Vierville-sur-Mer

Map of 1675 showing the Bessin, Vierville and the Manche coast — Detail of the map of the diocese of Bayeux by Jean Petite, 1675.

Mapping Vierville and the Bessin

Early maps reveal parishes, paths, mills and the former harbour. The collection allows us to compare representations of the Bessin from the sixteenth to the eighteenth century; Jean Petite’s map cartouches are accompanied by transcriptions.

The atlas of old maps
Maps of Bessin, Normandy and the coast, followed by 19th century plans and military maps of 1944.
Read the 1675 map cartridges
The dedication and the "peculiarities of the diocese" transcribed to facilitate their reading.
Louvières in the old maps
The neighboring village and its coastline seen by cartographers.
The text of 1675 in the Louvre file
Another entry in the comments that accompany Jean Petite's card.

Plan of assembly of the four sections of the Vierville cadastre in 1823 — The assembly plan of the cadastre of 1823, with its four sections.

Finding plots and houses

The 1823 cadastral survey locates fields, hamlets and buildings. Plans of the beach from 1844 and 1876 show the division of land and development of the seafront. A plan of the château and the route down to the sea continues the story at the end of the nineteenth century.

The cadastral plans of 1823, 1844 and 1876
Overall plans and neighbourhood details; the collection also includes war-damage sketches from 1945–1946.
The castle and the descent into the sea, around 1882
An old topographic plan of which Yves Cordelle points out the errors and inaccuracies.

Aerial view of the village of Vierville and the valley that descends towards the sea — The village and the sea: air campaign presented in the fund as April 2007, with a hesitation between 2006 and 2007.

Seeing the village from above

From oblique aerial views taken before the war to orthophoto maps of the 2000s, aerial photographs reveal changes to streets, farmland and the beach. Images from 1943–1944 also help locate defences and changes brought about by the war.

The inventory of air campaigns
An identification of the shots and their dates, from 1939 to the 2000s.
The village seen from the sky, from 1939 to 1947
Views of the descent, allied photographs and post-war documents, with the dates on file.
The April 2007 helicopter campaign
The village, the castle, the roads and the Vaumicel; the 2006 or 2007 dating remains hesitant in the notes.
Other aerial views, around 1975–2010
Photographs of the coastline and the estates; several dates are approximate.

Reading the coastal landscape

Why did the village grow between a plateau, a small valley and a beach? These collections bring together maps, geological cross-sections, photographs and observations on water. Documents about storms, the seawall and tides show how residents understood and shaped this shoreline.

Beach, dunes, cliffs and dike
An essay on the formation of the shore, with photographs of the storms and the development of the dike.
The plateau, the cliffs and the descent to the sea
Topographic maps and descriptions of the relief preserved in the files of Yves Cordelle.
Soils and geological maps
Early maps and geological cross-sections, including documents attributed to Arcisse de Caumont and Eugène Hausermann.
Springs, valleys and water
The Fumichon, drainage basins and wetlands in the maps and notes preserved in the archive.

Landscapes in postcards

Collectors have preserved hundreds of postcards of the village and beach. They show streets, hotels, villas, beach games and hamlets. The albums can now be explored by place, or by theme for working life and seaside holidays.

Inventory of postcards and photographs
The classification of the albums gathered thanks to collectors and documents of various origins.
Choose a place or a neighborhood
The village, the estates, the hamlets, the beach and the neighboring municipalities.
Choose an activity or a souvenir
Work, shops, small train, hotels, school, parties and communal life.
The beach in pictures
Family photographs, games, postcards and panoramas of the coast.

Map of the landscape entities of Vierville appearing in the urban planning file — Landscape entities in the old file on urban planning and landscapes.

Understanding planning and development

Landscape maps, municipal boundaries and former planning documents shed light on changes to the area. The collection preserves the POS land-use plan and its zoning regulations, the PLU local development plan approved on 1 September 2011, and earlier inventories of risks and protected features.

Landscapes, housing and urban planning
Analysis of the shapes of the village, built spaces and zoning reproduced in the old files.
The PLU file approved in 2011
Report, draft development, regulations and annexes gathered in the archives of September 1, 2011.
The former land-use plan
The complete regulations, with versions and council deliberations dated 1979, 1986, 1995 and 2001.
Municipalities and parish boundaries
A plan comparing the former intercommunality of Trévières to the parish of Saint-Exupère-en-Bessin.