Lac de Grand-Lieu () is a
lake
A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much large ...
located to the southwest of
Nantes
Nantes (, , ; Gallo: or ; ) is a city in Loire-Atlantique on the Loire, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the sixth largest in France, with a population of 314,138 in Nantes proper and a metropolitan area of nearly 1 million inhabita ...
, in the
Loire-Atlantique
Loire-Atlantique (; br, Liger-Atlantel; before 1957: ''Loire-Inférieure'', br, Liger-Izelañ, link=no) is a department in Pays de la Loire on the west coast of France, named after the river Loire and the Atlantic Ocean. It had a population o ...
,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
, and almost entirely in
Saint-Philbert-de-Grand-Lieu
Saint-Philbert-de-Grand-Lieu (; br, Sant-Filberzh-Deaz) is a commune in the Loire-Atlantique department in western France.
It is about 400 km southwest of Paris, via Chartres, Le Mans, Angers, and Nantes. The town is twinned with the ...
. At an elevation of , its surface area is , making it the largest lake in France in winter, but second after
Lac du Bourget
Lac du Bourget (; English Lake Bourget), also locally known as Lac Gris (; en, Grey Lake) or Lac d'Aix (), is a lake at the southernmost end of the Jura Mountains in the department of Savoie, France. It is the deepest lake located entirely with ...
in summer.
The lake is classified as a
Local Nature Reserve, and use of boats on the lake are prohibited for all but a small number of licensed professional fishermen.
Tourism
Due to the lake classification, as a protected area, its access is restricted. Navigation on the lake is prohibited; only seven professional fishermen have been granted specific authorisation to do so. Because of its shallow topography, and its wild vegetation, the lake is difficult to access. Except during the winter floods, it is only accessible from a few locations, such as at Bouaye in the north, at Pierre Aigüe in Saint-Aignan-Grandlieu and la Chevrolière in the east.
For visitors, a
museum
A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make these ...
has been created to present the lake and its ecosystem as well as the history of local fishermen. An observatory allows tourists to have a look at the wildlife in its natural habitat.
An exhibition on the
lake
A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much large ...
is offered at The lake House at Grand-lieu in Bouaye and a tour is also available at The old Guerlain Pavillon which overlooks the lake.
Historic
Prehistory
Prehistory, also known as pre-literary history, is the period of human history between the use of the first stone tools by hominins 3.3 million years ago and the beginning of recorded history with the invention of writing systems. The use of ...
and
antiquity
In the site the soil was formed about 50 million years, the current
topography
Topography is the study of the forms and features of land surfaces. The topography of an area may refer to the land forms and features themselves, or a description or depiction in maps.
Topography is a field of geoscience and planetary sci ...
around two millions years ago, and the transformation of the current landscape took shape during the
Neolithic
The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several parts ...
period.
Six thousand years ago the areas which had not been filled by the sand were covered by a dense forest. The deposits of this forest build over time and it is today the fifth largest in France. It contains around 29 million cubic meters of peat. The bottom of the lake is composed of various deposits and their thickness can reach about thirty meters. Aquifers containing fresh water have been formed in these layers. An analysis at
carbon 14
Carbon-14, C-14, or radiocarbon, is a radioactive isotope of carbon with an atomic nucleus containing 6 protons and 8 neutrons. Its presence in organic materials is the basis of the radiocarbon dating method pioneered by Willard Libby and col ...
has been used to date that water, the result showed that is water would be locked up for 8 700 years.
Middle ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
Before the creation of a piping work during the 18th century, the water of the lake was released via the large swamp close to the island of Couetils, then join the course of the Tenu river which cross this zone before reaching the large Loire river. The zone where the junction with The Tenu occur was made close to the island Marguerite (area which was originally called the three channels)
During the system of feudalism, the lake was owned by the lordship of Grand-Lieu. After 851 AB, under the Breton rule, the lake was placed under the Royal guardianship and then under the duke tutorship. In 1145, Conan III duke of Brittany gives his right to the monks from the Abbey of Buzay. They will keep the rights for around 150 years, which also included the right to fish. They then decided to concede those right to the lord De Vieillevigne, for an annual rent of seven livres. From 1387 the rent has stopped The Machecoul-Gastineau then take possession of the rights which they do not have and expropriate the property title
The control of this domain, with the absence of firm land, is not without consequences: the population around the city of
Nantes
Nantes (, , ; Gallo: or ; ) is a city in Loire-Atlantique on the Loire, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the sixth largest in France, with a population of 314,138 in Nantes proper and a metropolitan area of nearly 1 million inhabita ...
receive fresh water fish from the lake. The lord are given a right of “
Water
Water (chemical formula ) is an inorganic, transparent, tasteless, odorless, and nearly colorless chemical substance, which is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living organisms (in which it acts as a ...
”, which means they have the right to fish with a large fishing net, which allows them to catch the fish in very large quantity
Modern times
After the Middle ages, during the modern times, the population living around the lake were the victims of the frequent
flood
A flood is an overflow of water ( or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are an area of study of the discipline hydrol ...
. It is during the 18th century that human greatly changed the life of the lake, with the construction of different channel .In the north the construction of The Acheneau canal will make the regulation of the flows possible. The name Acheneau originates from the
French work chenal which in the
English language
English is a West Germanic language of the Indo-European language family, with its earliest forms spoken by the inhabitants of early medieval England. It is named after the Angles, one of the ancient Germanic peoples that migrated to the is ...
means channel. The Acheneau leaves from the north of the lake, joins the course of the Tenu, and then goes towards the
Loire
The Loire (, also ; ; oc, Léger, ; la, Liger) is the longest river in France and the 171st longest in the world. With a length of , it drains , more than a fifth of France's land, while its average discharge is only half that of the Rhône ...
.
After 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 November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...
In 1809, the
Comte August de Juigne, who is the holder of the rights on the lake, project to drain and dry it in order to use it to grow
crops
A crop is a plant that can be grown and harvested extensively for profit or subsistence. When the plants of the same kind are cultivated at one place on a large scale, it is called a crop. Most crops are cultivated in agriculture or hydroponics ...
. At that time is type of initiative was common, relying on the economic argument but also on the problem related to
health
Health, according to the World Health Organization, is "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease and infirmity".World Health Organization. (2006)''Constitution of the World Health Organiza ...
that
wetlands
A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The ...
can bring to the close population.
The Juigne family will, from there, try fiercely to carry out this project, which will be briefly threaten by 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 November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...
but the family lordship right will ended be maintained. In 1844, the owner of the lac are the Juigne family, Louis de Saint-Aignan’ family, the family Juchault des Jamonieres and the Comte Antoine d'Eserot d’Estrée.
The project then faces the population living around the lac. During the 19th century the future of the lac is decided by the confrontation between the Comte de Juigne and the syndicate of the Buzay channel run by local public figure The Comte also has to work against people who grant, illegally, part of the lake for themselves. He does not hesitate for instance to conduct an action against the Jamonières’ family. His project is to dry out part of the land in the hope to sell them as farmlands, he hopes to get back around three thousands hectares.
At the end of the 18th century, Gustave Juigné who succeeded his father , also plan to conduct a
drainage
Drainage is the natural or artificial removal of a surface's water and sub-surface water from an area with excess of water. The internal drainage of most agricultural soils is good enough to prevent severe waterlogging (anaerobic conditio ...
of the lake, but this time he encounters an intervention from Gustave Roch, the "
Loire-Inférieure
Loire-Atlantique (; br, Liger-Atlantel; before 1957: ''Loire-Inférieure'', br, Liger-Izelañ, link=no) is a department in Pays de la Loire on the west coast of France, named after the river Loire and the Atlantic Ocean. It had a population of ...
"
deputy
Deputy or depute may refer to:
* Steward (office)
* Khalifa, an Arabic title that can signify "deputy"
* Deputy (legislator), a legislator in many countries and regions, including:
** A member of a Chamber of Deputies, for example in Italy, Spai ...
. The parliament decided to open a report on the public domain, and the Council decided that the question of the lake ownership could only be decided by the Justice. This rebound puts an end on the Juigné project
Gallery
File:Lake Grand-Lieu SPOT 1249.jpg, SPOT
Spot or SPOT may refer to:
Places
* Spot, North Carolina, a community in the United States
* The Spot, New South Wales, a locality in Sydney, Australia
* South Pole Traverse, sometimes called the South Pole Overland Traverse
People
* Spot (prod ...
satellite image
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lac De Grand Lieu
Grand Lieu
Landforms of Loire-Atlantique
Ramsar sites in Metropolitan France