Historically, the socio-economic development of Granville
was closely linked to its sea-front: from the 17th century
to the beginning of the 20th century, Granville was an
important cod-fishing port sending each year 110 sailing
boats around Newfoundland, and vying with Saint-Malo
for the title of leading French most important port. In the
Haute Ville, historic centre of the city, are the mansions
that were the main residences of the rich ship owners of
Granville. The “Bisquine”, a handsomely-rigged sailing
ship, was designed as a dredger, and used on the beds
of the wild-oysters, the “pied de cheval” (horse’s hoof)
in the Mont Saint-Michel’s Bay.
The decline of in-deep sea fishing began with the early
development of tourism and coastal resorts. From the
mid 19th century, the “bathing season” attracted increasing
number of summer visitors. The construction of the
Paris/Granville railway, during the 2nd Empire, encouraged
the inflow of tourists to board on the “pleasure trains”.
For three months every year, Granville was transformed
into an elegant quarter of Paris. Urbanisation based on
the architecture of the seaside and given impetus by some
great Parisian architects, gave the city of Granville its
present layout: the Casino, built in 1911 is a listed historic
monument, the “Hôtel de l’Ermitage” in Donville-les-Bains
and villas such as “Les Rhumbs” (which was bought in
1906 by Louis Dior, the couturier’s father), were built at
the same period. In 1912, the Granville golf course, one
of the only true golf-links in the Atlantic Arc, was built by
the greatest pre war golf-course designer.
Granville is still developing its seafront: its marina built in
1975 offers 1 000 berths and 700 more are envisaged in
the future. Its fishing port, leading port in France for shellfish,
is home to more than 60 trawlers and all-purpose
boats. Almost 155 000 tons of gravel and scrap metal are
exported yearly from the Commercial Port. Every year in
the first weekend of August, this activity that is inherent
to Granville is celebrated during the Nuit des Soudeurs:
welder artists and craftsmen occupy the trading port’s
quays for one night to draw inspiration from the scraps
of iron and materials amassed there and shape them…
An average of 160 000 passengers depart from Granville
to reach the Chausey archipelago and its coastal area, or
the Channel Islands via a daily link to Jersey for instance.
Free large-scale events are organized on a regular basis
from February to October: from Carnaval, which is famous
for its spontaneity and its good-natured satirical spirit,
to Toute la mer sur un plateau – which puts seafood in
the spotlight – to the street arts festival – Les Sorties de
Bain, La Nuit des Soudeurs, etc.
Boasting a highly attractive cultural policy and an exceptional
architectural and natural heritage, the City of Granville
is applying to obtain the Ville et Pays d’Art et
d’Histoire label. The town council is currently compiling
the cultural and heritage actions that the city has undertaken.
This is an application prerequisite.
