Talk:Pont-de-Ruan

History

The discovery in 1964 of a Roman vase on the Aulnays site confirms a Gallo-Roman presence on the left bank of the Indre river at Pont-de-Ruan. The ford over the Indre and the Roman road "Via Aquitania", laid out by Roman engineers, made Pont-de-Ruan a place of passage and trade from very early on (see the patronymic section: rotomagos = ford market). The protector of the ford was the Roman god Apollo, to whom benevolence was requested by leaving a few coins when crossing the river. The museums of Touraine possess a key and a piece of dagger dating back to Gallo-Roman times, found in the riverbed at the old ford. The early Christianisation of the region, and of the village in particular (the church of the Sainte Trinité, consecrated in 444, makes this one of the oldest churches in the region), transformed the cult of Apollo into a Christian cult dedicated to Sainte Apolline, patron saint of dentists, hence the oratory near the bridge and a stained glass window in the church dedicated to this saint.

Roman roads crossing, the early days of the village saw the crossing of the Via Aquitania (a very important road running from north to south) and the Vetuta transverse road (leading to Chinon) at the Corne d'Or crossroads. Ideally located 20 km from Tours, the village soon became a stopover for pilgrims heading south to Santiago de Compostela, or north to Tours to visit the tomb of Saint Martin. And the Corne d'Or bears the memory of an inn that welcomed pilgrims on their way to Santiago de Compostela until 1750.

The end of the Roman era and the beginning of the Middle Ages saw the passage of hordes, known as barbarians, along the Via Aquitania. These multiple incursions led to a great deal of looting, fire and other damage.

To protect themselves from these dangers, the inhabitants built underground refuges cut into the hillside bordering the Indre. The galleries of Château-Robin were a succession of gutters and pitfalls leading to rooms where families and their supplies were sheltered. There are very precise plans of these galleries, which are now closed and only frequented by colonies of bats.

It is very possible that the blow dealt in October 732 to the most advanced scouts of the Arab incursions took place to the north of the village, at a place known as "Les Landes de Charlemagne". If this is the case, these incursions passed through the village ford.

The feudal period was a succession of calmer, more prosperous periods, with periods of unrest and power struggles between lords. It was during this period that a feudal motte was built on the hillside, overlooking the refuge galleries of Château-Robin. The motte included a moat (still visible today) and a wooden tower from which to observe the Indre valley.

Thanks to a prolonged period of peace between the 11th and 12th centuries, the village, like the rest of the region, enjoyed a period of progress and prosperity.

As the Indre had never been navigable, it was developed very early on. The first traces of milling activities date back to 1192. The first wooden bridge was built to cross the river, whose water level had risen following the creation of the first reservoirs to power the mills. The name of the village then became Pons Rotomagi.

The road was once again very busy, with traders and pilgrims often staying in the church. Numerous clearing operations enabled new dwellings to be established in the localities that sprang up at this time: la Ménégenterie, les Pontins, Vonnes, les Porchers, l'Auberdière or Vaugarni...

The Hundred Years' War (1337-1453) and the Black Death (1347-1351) put a stop to these two centuries of prosperity and progress. The region was not spared until better days dawned with the arrival in Chinon of Joan of Arc on 23 February 1429. Local tradition has it that Joan of Arc passed through La Croix des Quarts near Relay, perhaps even within the walls of the Priory.

At the end of the Middle Ages, the bridge was rebuilt, and houses built of tufa stone rather than wood. The house on the banks of the Indre, known as "La Seigneurie", owned by René Savary, Lord of Saché and vassal of the Counts of Sainte-Maure, became a toll house. It also became the home of the bridge keeper, who was responsible for "ensuring that the said bridge was in good condition, so that people could easily cross on foot, horseback or cart".

By chance and luck, the village was spared overall by the Wars of Religion (1562-1598), apart from the passage in 1569 of the Catholic army led by the Duke of Anjou, brother of King Charles IX. This army consisted of "ten thousand men on foot, three thousand German reîtres, two thousand Spanish harquebusiers and one thousand Italians sent by the Pope".

The village and its immediate surrounding area saw the construction of a number of "beautiful houses", including Vonnes (built around 1615), La Grand'Maison known as Belle-Croix (a former Dominican convent dating from the 18th century), a 15th-century manor house behind the church (which over time served as a presbytery, a school and now housing ), or even the Aubuis manor house, originally known as the Manoir d'Enfer (which was a dependency of the Relay Priory in 1475, and became a private manor house in the 18th century with the construction of 2 wings added to the existing pavilion); It should also be noted that Vaugarni was a fief belonging to Jean de Berruyer in 1455 and transferred to the Priory of Relay in 1639.

Between 1579 and 1770, several extreme weather events were recorded: an earthquake in 1579, exceptional snowfalls in 1615, a hailstorm on 29 May 1644, a hurricane on the night of 14-15 March 1751 and a gigantic flood in 1770. A wolf was even killed by a man named Malapert in his garden at Artannes-sur-Indre, a league from Pont-de-Ruan!

In 1787, the parish of Pont-de-Ruan had only 60 "fires", i.e. around 200 inhabitants. In 1790, the village became known as the "commune of Pont-de-Ruan" and Vincent Marquis became its first mayor. The Constituent Assembly asked for a National Guard to be raised and formed, but the village had only "33 men able to bear arms out of 52 active men". Not enough to constitute a sufficient number of men, the mayor of Pont-de-Ruan asked the mayor of Artannes-sur-Indre to "join your National Guard, jointly and indiscriminately with Artannes, and recognise your flag". The citizens of Artannes agreed and it was agreed that "the two communes would form a single body".

The property of the clergy was sold, including the Relay Priory (a branch of Fontevraud) and its grounds, the presbytery and the chapel of Sainte-Apolline. The new mayor, Vincent Marquis, purchased several of these properties.

The Revolution sought to reduce the number of communes, which were deemed too numerous. Artannes-sur-Indre tried to join forces with part of Monts, Pont-de-Ruan, Saché and Druye, but was unsuccessful.

After Bonaparte's coup d'état on 18 Brumaire 1799, the country was reorganised. Mayors and councillors were appointed by the prefects, who became the real governors of the départements. The village bridge was once again rebuilt by a private contractor, who was offered 16 years' tolls by the state in return for the work carried out. The Roman road was finally abandoned in favour of a departmental road, as the proliferation of roads made it easier to open up the countryside. Given the general shortage of priests, the church at Pont-de-Ruan was entrusted to the parish priest at Saché.

The century was marked by the frequent visits of Honoré de Balzac (1799-1850) as he travelled between Tours and Saché. He described the village in numerous books, including "Le médecin de campagne" (The Country Doctor), published in 1833, and "Le lys dans la vallée" (The Lily in the Valley), published in 1835 (in which the manor house at Vonnes is called Clochegourde). The silhouette of Balzac in the garden of the little mill is a reminder of the link between the writer and Pont-de-Ruan.

In the 1848 presidential election, all 86 voters in the village voted in favour of Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte!

In the 18th and 19th centuries, the village began raising silkworms by planting mulberry trees, but the experiment only lasted a few years (silkworm production in Touraine came to an end due to worm diseases, the monopoly of the Lyon region and the bourgeoisie's lack of interest to cheaper materials); there was a silkworm nursery in Les Aubuis as early as 1729. During the 19th century, mills became the village's main industrial activity, based around flour production.

The Third Republic and the war of 1870 affected the village, as the municipal register of 18 September 1870 shows: "The Council, meeting under the chairmanship of Mr Meneau, Mayor, unanimously decided to support the Government of National Defence. The Council is ready to make all the sacrifices required to continue the fight and will lend its support to the devoted patriots who have taken on the perilous mission of driving out the invaders". The German occupation only lasted from 2 February to 10 March 1871.

The period between 1870 and 1914 was marked by a number of important events for the commune: - The resurrection of the Holy Trinity pilgrimage in 1875 by Abbé Dechezelles. During this pilgrimage, pilgrims came to Pont-de-Ruan to soak in the sacred fountain and treat rheumatism and arthritis. The abbot decided to expand this ancient custom. He had booklets printed detailing this pilgrimage on the three Sundays of the Trinity between May and June each year. They were an immediate success and read as follows: "On the three Sundays of the Trinity, from dawn onwards, you will see the streets of the village covered with pilgrims eagerly making their way to the Sacred Fountain. Many of them go all the way down to the bottom, hidden by fencing. It is customary before bathing to drink from it three times after making the sign of the cross".

- Around 1900, Mrs Blain, an energetic woman, set up a butter, casein and cheese-making business. This activity was taken over and industrialised in 1924 to create La Cloche d'Or, which is still in operation today.

- In 1910, a hundred-year flood devastated the entire region, and the village centre was completely destroyed. The only means of getting around was by boat.

- Before 1914, Paul Foste, the village miller, had the idea of installing dynamos powered by the energy supplied by the mill wheel. This electricity production enabled the inhabitants of the village (and the neighboring village) to light up very early on with filament bulbs.

- At the same time, with industrial progress in full swing, a project to build a tramway line between Tours and the Ruchard military camp was envisaged to transport soldiers on manoeuvres. The tramway was to run over the Pont-de-Ruan bridge... The outbreak of the First World War put an end to this ambitious project.

A lime kiln was also purchased as a national asset in 1791 and demolished in 1833. There was another lime kiln built at the end of the 18th century, the large intermittent kiln at Croix Billette. Lime production ceased here before 1866, and in 1857 a tile and brick kiln was added. These red bricks (named after the last owner Coullion) can still be seen today in the walls of some of the village's houses. The business closed around 1900.

- The existing wash-house dates from 1907; it still has its chimney and brick-framed door.

- We should also mention this literary curiosity (1897-1898) set in Pont-de-Ruan and written by Jules Mary: "La Pocharde" and "Les Filles de la Pocharde" (works that have also been adapted for the stage and screen).

The First World War did not spare the village, which was emptied as the men were called up to the front. The mill operated thanks to the energy and determination of the miller's wife and the women of the village.

During the Second World War, Pont-de-Ruan was occupied. The occupying troops took up residence in Belle-Croix house. During those four years, a number of people were arrested and deported without return, including Marcel Ballon, the village teacher, for acts of resistance, and Mr Viguier for possessing radio transmitters. For her part, Mrs Bourne, the owner of the village hotel-restaurant, hid an American aviator named Steward for many weeks without being caught.

On 30 August 1944, as the occupying troops retreated towards the north and east of France, three maquisards came upon three Germans on bicycles. Two surrendered, but the third resisted. He was killed in the brawl and his body left on the main road outside the village. Fortunately, three local teenagers, Jean Person, Jack Lambert and a certain Ledugne, recovered and hid the body, saving the village from a fate probably identical to that of Oradour-sur-Glane in Haute-Vienne or Maillé in Indre-et-Loire.

The twenty or so kilometres between Pont-de-Ruan and Tours and the absence of a direct road kept the village's population growing until the early 1970s. In 1968, the number of inhabitants was still equivalent to that of 1881 (as a reminder: 250 inhabitants in 1801, 270 in 1851, 323 in 1901, 273 in 1946, 537 in 1993 and 1215 in 2021). At that time, the village still had many shops. The development of individual transport and improvements to the traffic network have considerably reduced journey times to the urban community of Tours, enabling property development in the village, whose population has almost tripled in 40 years.

The village is regularly crossed by groups of walkers following the paths marked out by the Federation of French Footpaths (FFR); some are even lucky enough to see the guinea fern, a magnificent flower that is unfortunately in danger of extinction, so it is strictly forbidden to pick it! Today, Pont-de-Ruan is best known for its view from the bridge and the 4 mills known as "Balzac's mills" after the author, as well as for its famous goat's cheese made at La Cloche d'Or. And finally, for lovers of French heritage, this small commune in the Indre-et-Loire region has a lot to offer. Patrimoine Pont de ruan (talk) 14:29, 4 March 2024 (UTC)