Bry-sur-Marne

The town hall of Bry-sur-Marne

Coat of arms

Paris and inner ring departments

Coordinates: 48°50′28″N 2°31′20″E / 48.8411°N 2.5222°ECoordinates: 48°50′28″N 2°31′20″E / 48.8411°N 2.5222°E

Country

Bry-sur-Marne

Government

• Mayor (2008–2014)

Jean-Pierre Spilbauer

Area¹

3.35 km² (1.29 sq mi)

Population (2009)²

15,309

• Density

4,600/km² (12,000/sq mi)

Time zone

CET (UTC+1)

• Summer (DST)

CEST (UTC+2)

INSEE/Postal code

94015 / 94360

Elevation

36–100 m (118–328 ft)

¹ French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

²Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.

¹ French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Bry-sur-Marne is a commune in the Val-de-Marne department in the eastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located 12.6 km (7.8 mi) from the center of Paris.

The commune of Bry-sur-Marne is part of the sector of Porte de Paris, one of the four sectors of the "new town" of Marne-la-Vallée.

Bry's name comes from the Celtic word Briw, which means a bridge or a river crossing. The area has been inhabited since Neolithic times. The town's motto, which features on its coat of arms, is "Moult viel que Paris" - old French for "Much older than Paris".

In 1903, archeologist Adrien Mentienne uncovered the bones of a large bovine which died 15,000 years ago. In 1982, the skeleton of a woman who died in the 5th century BC was uncovered beneath the playground of a school in Bry. It is now housed in the town's museum.

From that century onwards, there was a permanent human presence where Bry now stands. In 1886, a necropolis was found which contained pottery, Gaul and Frankish weaponry, silver and gold jewelry, and coins, dating from the Gaul era to the Merovingian. The first known written mention of the town named Bry was in a charter signed by King Charles the Bald in 861.

The first church was built in 1130.

In 1404, Robert de Châtillon, cousin of King Charles VI, was Bry's feudal lord. His castle no longer stands, and its exact location is uncertain. Bry's current château was built in the 1690s. It became the town hall in 1866. It was rebuilt after the Franco-Prussian War of 1870.

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Wikipedia