Balleroy () is a former

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

in the

Calvados Calvados (, , ) is a brandy from Normandy in France, made from apples or pears, or from apples with pears. History In France Apple orchards and brewers are mentioned as far back as the 8th century by Charlemagne. The first known record of Nor ...

department in the

Normandy Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics ( physical geography), human impact characteristics ( human geography), and the interaction of humanity an ...

of north-western

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

. On 1 January 2016, it was merged into the new commune of

Balleroy-sur-Drôme Balleroy-sur-Drôme (, literally ''Balleroy on Drôme (Aure), Drôme'') is a Communes of France, commune in the Departments of France, department of Calvados (department), Calvados, northwestern France. The municipality was established on 1 January ...

. The inhabitants of the commune are known as ''Biardais'' or ''Biardaises'' and ''Billards'' or ''Billardes''.

Geography

Balleroy is located some 16 km south-west of Bayeux and 21 km north-east of

Saint-Lô Saint-Lô (, ; br, Sant Lo) is a commune in northwest France, the capital of the Manche department in the region of Normandy.

. Access to the commune is by the D13 road from Cerisy-la-Forêt in the west which passes through the village and continues east to

Lingèvres Lingèvres () is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regi ...

. The D28 road goes south from the village to

Planquery Planquery () is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regio ...

. The commune is mainly farmland with the

Château de Balleroy The Château de Balleroy is a seventeenth-century château in Balleroy, Normandy. Outlook The fief of Balleroy, near the forest and abbey of Cerisy, was acquired on April 1, 1600 by Jean de Choisy, wine supplier at the court of Henry IV. The ...

grounds just west of the village occupying a substantial land area.Google Maps
/ref> The river

Drôme Drôme (; Occitan: ''Droma''; Arpitan: ''Drôma'') is the southernmost department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of Southeastern France. Named after the river Drôme, it had a population of 516,762 as of 2019.

forms the western and north-western borders of the commune as it flows north-east to eventually join the ocean at

Port-en-Bessin-Huppain Port-en-Bessin-Huppain () is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France. The commune contains the two towns of Port-en-Bessin and Huppain. Population History The name ''Huppain'' stems from Norse/N ...

. The ''Ruisseau de la Commune'' flows from the west to join the Drome in the commune. The ''Vesbire'' forms the south-eastern border of the commune as it flows south-west to join the Drôme.

History

Until 1521 the commune was the property of the lord of Aunay. The lordship of Balleroy was purchased by the Trextot family. Jean de Choisy, counselor, notary and secretary of the king, in turn bought the lordship of Balleroy as well as the lands of

Cormolain Cormolain () is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regi ...

Montfiquet Montfiquet () is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regi ...

, and

Vaubadon Vaubadon () is a former commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France. On 1 January 2016, it was merged into the new commune of Balleroy-sur-Drôme Balleroy-sur-Drôme (, literally ''Balleroy on Drôme (Aure), ...

. He was the son of Jean de Choisy, intendant of

Metz Metz ( , , lat, Divodurum Mediomatricorum, then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers. Metz is the prefecture of the Moselle department and the seat of the parliament of the Grand ...

, knight, advisor to the king and the Duke of Orléans, Lord of Balleroy,

Beaumont Beaumont may refer to: Places Canada * Beaumont, Alberta * Beaumont, Quebec England * Beaumont, Cumbria * Beaumont, Essex ** Beaumont Cut, a canal closed in the 1930s * Beaumont Street, Oxford France (communes) * Beaumont, Ardèche * ...

, Grandcamp, Léthanville, and Saint-Pierre and he founded the present chateau. He made the inhabitants near the chateau into vassals, forcing them to build their homes there. In 1634 the Lord of Balleroy obtained the establishment of a weekly market (on Tuesday) and two fairs a year. During the

French revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in coup of 18 Brumaire, November 1799. Many of its ...

ary period of the

National Convention The National Convention (french: link=no, Convention nationale) was the parliament of the Kingdom of France for one day and the French First Republic for the rest of its existence during the French Revolution, following the two-year Nationa ...

(1792-1795), the commune was called ''Bal-sur-Drôme''.

Heraldry

Administration

Balleroy was part of the Community of communes Intercom Balleroy Le Molay-Littry which included 22 communes and had its seat in

Le Molay-Littry Le Molay-Littry () is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France. History On 23 January 1969 Le Molay (the old INSEE code was 14434) merged with the old commune of Littry to form ''Le Molay-Littry'', wh ...

. Balleroy was the seat of the former Canton of Balleroy. Since the 2015 French cantons reform, it is part of the

canton of Trévières The canton of Trévières is an administrative division of the Calvados ''département'', in northwestern France. Its chief town is Trévières. Its borders were modified at the French canton reorganisation which came into effect in March 2015 C ...

. List of Successive Mayors

Twinning

Balleroy has twinning associations with: * Shebbear (

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

) since 1979. *

Ribe Ribe () is a town in south-west Jutland, Denmark, with a population of 8,257 (2022). It is the seat of the Diocese of Ribe covering southwestern Jutland. Until 1 January 2007, Ribe was the seat of both a surrounding municipality and county. It ...

(

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

) since 1986. * Fo (

Burkina Faso Burkina Faso (, ; , ff, 𞤄𞤵𞤪𞤳𞤭𞤲𞤢 𞤊𞤢𞤧𞤮, italic=no) is a landlocked country in West Africa with an area of , bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to ...

) since 1989.

Demography

In 2012 the commune had 985 inhabitants. Balleroy 04

Culture and heritage

Civil heritage

The commune has two sites that are registered as historical monuments: *The

(1626) was built by the architect

François Mansart François Mansart (; 23 January 1598 – 23 September 1666) was a French architect credited with introducing classicism into Baroque architecture of France. The '' Encyclopædia Britannica'' cites him as the most accomplished of 17th-century Fr ...

for Jean de Choisy, advisor to

Louis XIII Louis XIII (; sometimes called the Just; 27 September 1601 – 14 May 1643) was King of France from 1610 until his death in 1643 and King of Navarre (as Louis II) from 1610 to 1620, when the crown of Navarre was merged with the French crown ...

. Its

French formal garden The French formal garden, also called the (), is a style of garden based on symmetry and the principle of imposing order on nature. Its epitome is generally considered to be the Gardens of Versailles designed during the 17th century by the ...

are by Henri Duchêne according to plans by André Le Nôtre. It remained in the Balleroy family until 1970. The village was built around the castle. *The Château de Balleroy Park (1626) ;Chateau of Balleroy Picture Gallery File:Château de Balleroy 2008 PD 02.JPG File:Château de Balleroy 38.JPG File:Château de Balleroy 11.JPG File:Château de Balleroy 04.JPG File:Château de Balleroy 10.JPG File:Château de Balleroy 32.JPG File:Château de Balleroy 24.JPG File:Château de Balleroy 31.JPG File:Château de Balleroy 05.JPG File:Château de Balleroy 09.JPG File:GrundrissSchlossBalleroy.png

Religious heritage

*The Parish Church of Saint-Martin Grounds (1650) are registered as an historical monument. The Church contains several items that are registered as historical objects: **A Framed Painting: The Alliance between Abimélek and Abraham (17th century) **A Framed Painting: The descendant of Abraham (17th century) **A

Chalice A chalice (from Latin 'mug', borrowed from Ancient Greek () 'cup') or goblet is a footed cup intended to hold a drink. In religious practice, a chalice is often used for drinking during a ceremony or may carry a certain symbolic meaning. R ...

with

Paten A paten or diskos is a small plate, used during the Mass. It is generally used during the liturgy itself, while the reserved sacrament are stored in the tabernacle in a ciborium. Western usage In many Western liturgical denominations, the p ...

(17th century) **A Statue: Virgin and child (17th century) **A Painting: The Annunciation (18th century) **An Episcopal Cross (18th century) **A Statue: Saint Martin (17th century) ;Church of Saint Martin Picture Gallery File:Église Saint-Martin de Balleroy 11.JPG, The Nave File:Église Saint-Martin de Balleroy 17.JPG, Painting: The Descendant of Abraham File:Église Saint-Martin de Balleroy 09.JPG, The Confessional

Activities and events

Each year a gathering of

hot air balloon A hot air balloon is a lighter-than-air aircraft consisting of a bag, called an envelope, which contains heated air. Suspended beneath is a gondola or wicker basket (in some long-distance or high-altitude balloons, a capsule), which carries ...

s took place at the

. This gathering took place for the last time in 1999 when

Malcolm Forbes Malcolm Stevenson Forbes (August 19, 1919 – February 24, 1990) was an American entrepreneur most prominently known as the publisher of ''Forbes'' magazine, founded by his father B. C. Forbes. He was known as an avid promoter of capitalis ...

, the chateau's owner, would have celebrated his 80th birthday. Since 2007 in the face of demand from the public, the festival was again held at the end of June but this no longer happens in the castle. This was held by the village festival committee who organized a small gathering. The festivities are now held above the village at the stadium.

Notable people linked to the commune

* Louis Charles d'Hervilly (1756-1795), Count of Hervilly, knight, Marquis of Leschelles, married Marie Louise Augustine La Cour de Balleroy (1758-1830) on 7 October 1778 at the Château de Balleroy which was the Château for his wife's family. *Louis James, from an old Balleroy family (James from Lalande). He left to live in Auxerre (Yonne) where he founded the first modern department store in association with the local merchant Lesseré. As he was unmarried, he brought in a nephew (Achille) and niece (Hortense) to share in the very successful business: it was the time of "Bonheur des Dames" (Happiness of Women). The stores ''Soisson & James'' were transferred to Eurodif in 1970. *Count Albert de Balleroy (1828-1872), MP for Calvados, painter specialising in hunting scenes, shared a studio on Rue Lavoisier in Paris with

Édouard Manet Édouard Manet (, ; ; 23 January 1832 – 30 April 1883) was a French modernist painter. He was one of the first 19th-century artists to paint modern life, as well as a pivotal figure in the transition from Realism to Impressionism. Bo ...

Albert de Balleroy Archive website
/ref> *

(1919-1990), American press billionaire, owner of the Chateau from 1970.

References

External links

Balleroy official blog

{{authority control Former communes of Calvados (department) Populated places disestablished in 2016