|
The origins of Cosne date back to the time of the Paleolithic people who settled in the region as well as in the Nohain valley as soon as Prehistory.
The excavations which were carried out in the area enabled to find objects that testify to their settlement at this very place.
The Celt invaders established themselves on the right bank of the Loire, on a site already considered as a favourable place of living. This place was called Condate which means confluence or corner.
It was then occupied by the Gauls and a little later the Romans settled there.
After the Gallo-Roman era and the barbarian invasions, the town depended on the authority of the bishops of Auxerre as well as that of the lay lords.
In the 5th century, a castle was built and houses clustered round it. In the second part of the 9th century, la Tour Fraicte was built to watch over the Loire and defend the town against the Northmen. La Chapelle Notre Dame de Galles was built at the same time.
In the 11th century, there was a collegiate church on the site of the present church called Saint Jacques. The second church, Saint Agnan, was finished building in the 12th century. Le Palais Episcopal was restored and embellished in the 13th century. At that time, the town was fortified and the castle was rebuilt.
In the 15th century, the town was named Cosne-sur-Loire . The Couvent des Augustins dates back to 1616 ; the first wooden suspension bridges, completed in 1832, were replaced in 1929 by reinforced concrete bridges, destroyed during second world war. The present suspension bridge was inaugurated in 1959.
The industrial tradition dates back to 1670 when the factory making anchors and guns opened. This factory became Forges Royales de la Chaussade before being transferred to Guérigny in 1872.
With the construction of the railway line, the town hall, the Law Courts, the sub-prefecture, Cosne became a sizeable town. For a long time, it was famous for its cutlery industry and for its file factories (from 1866). The construction of the barracks where the 85th infantry regiment stayed was finished in 1876 . Cosne was a garrison town till 1939.
|
