L'HISTOIRE DU PORT DU COLLET

As early as the 12th century, the sea had left the first contours of Bourgneuf to retreat further offshore. This led to the formation of an islet in the middle of the marsh: the Collet was born. This islet was probably formed by the meeting of two currents: the étier de Millac which connected Prigny and the ocean and the second current coming from the waters which flowed back from Bourgneuf. On a marine chart of 1313, we find for the first time the mention of the Collet in Bourgneuf, commune to which the Collet was attached. Le Collet was a great exporter of salt that was produced in the salt marshes of the coast. The reputation of the salt of Le Collet was already well known. The Normans had chosen our coast for their first landing. They needed our saltworks. Salt was then as important a commodity as oil is nowadays. But it is especially after the Hundred Years War that the Collet will take its rise. At the end of the 15th century, more than 200 ships were loading in the Bay of Brittany for the Baltic Sea ports, which were major consumers of salt. Le Collet is in fact the outport of Bourgneuf which had become too sandy. This activity ensured a prosperity of which the last beautiful houses of shipowners built in Bourgneuf-en-Retz still testify. Le Collet was the first exporter of salt in France, well in Brittany at the time (1532: attachment to the kingdom of France). Gradually, the silting up of the bay caused the end of the salt export from the Port of Collet (around the 18th century). Today, Le Collet is a picturesque oyster port with a few places for pleasure craft. The lock of Collet Last rampart before the ocean, the lock was built more than 100 years ago. In 1995, it threatened to collapse. It became urgent to rebuild one before the sea water invaded the marshes. In 1997, work began on the port, roads and waterways. The aim was to dam up the Falleron and Millac estuary to allow for the expansion of the marina. The lock was dismantled and another more efficient one was built a little further upstream in the marshes. The door and the mechanism of the old lock have been reassembled in the courtyard of the Museum of the Pays de Retz in Bourgneuf-en-Retz/Villeneuce-en-Retz, in order to preserve a souvenir of this monument. The old lock is now replaced by a footbridge that offers a magnificent view of the Bay of Bourgneuf. The lock keeper's house Built in 1881 at the same time as the old lock, it was used as a home for the lock keeper. Its café was very frequented by fishermen, salt workers, but also by writers and poets. Today, the Lockkeeper's House is a restaurant appreciated for its setting.