Port of Nantes

The two main sites of the Port of Nantes are the Cheviré terminals (a Nantes enclave on the left bank of the Loire, at the foot of the bridge bearing the same name) and the Roche-Maurice terminals on the right bank, both located in the {{Interlanguage link|Bellevue – Chantenay – Sainte-Anne district|lt=Bellevue – Chantenay – Sainte-Anne district|fr|Quartier Bellevue - Chantenay - Sainte-Anne}}.{{Cite web |last= |date= |title=Nantes Port Facilities |trans-title= |url=https://www.nantes.port.fr/en/nantes-saint-nazaire-port/port-facilities-and-activities/nantes-port-facilities |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210303050755/https://www.nantes.port.fr/en/nantes-saint-nazaire-port/port-facilities-and-activities/nantes-port-facilities |archive-date=March 3, 2021 |access-date=May 5, 2025 |language=}} Relatively unknown to the general public due to their distance from {{Interlanguage link|Nantes city center|lt=downtown Nantes|fr|Centre-ville de Nantes}}, these {{Interlanguage link|Industrial port area|lt=industrial-port zones|fr|Zone industrialo-portuaire}} nevertheless account for 10% of the traffic of the Grand Port Maritime of Nantes Saint-Nazaire, amounting to about 3 million tons of goods handled per year (wood, peat, scrap metal, sand, wine at Cheviré; cereals and fertilizers at Roche-Maurice, among others). It also includes the Émile-Cormerais quay on the right bank of the river in Saint-Herblain, mainly used for importing liquid bulk goods (oils, molasses).{{Cite web |last=Coutard |first=Guillaume |last2=Gicquaud |first2=Nicole |last3=Rodrigues |first3=Amandine |date=2015 |title=24 400 emplois sur le complexe industrialo-portuaire de Nantes Saint-Nazaire |trans-title=24,400 jobs at the Nantes Saint-Nazaire industrial port complex |url=https://www.insee.fr/fr/statistiques/1288205 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210619092048/https://www.insee.fr/fr/statistiques/1288205 |archive-date=June 19, 2021 |access-date=May 5, 2025 |language=fr}}

The port facilities are served by a 60 km maritime channel. The allowable drafts vary depending on the tidal coefficients. For 98% of tides, an allowable draft of 8.40 meters is available in the Nantes channel.{{Cite book |title=Les terminaux de Nantes |date=August 7, 2022 |language=fr |trans-title=Terminals in Nantes}} The turning basin has a diameter of 230 meters. The air draft under the {{Interlanguage link|Cheviré Bridge|lt=Cheviré bridge|fr|Pont de Cheviré}} is 52 meters, which is sufficient to allow the passage of the largest commercial vessels.{{Cite journal |date=2023 |title=Point Histoire n°11, L'aménagement de la ZIP de Cheviré |trans-title=History Point No. 11, The development of the Cheviré ZIP |journal=Journal de Nantes Saint-Nazaire Port |language=fr |issue=175 |pages=14-15}}

The terminal consists of the Cheviré upstream quay, 305 meters long, and the Cheviré downstream quay, 350 meters long. It has two sand berths and a roll-on/roll-off (Ro-Ro) dock.{{Cite web |date=2019 |title=Cheviré |url=https://www.bouguenais.fr/sites/default/files/media/downloads/PORT%20CHEVIRE.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240810053217/https://www.bouguenais.fr/sites/default/files/media/downloads/PORT%20CHEVIRE.pdf |archive-date=August 10, 2024 |access-date=May 5, 2025 |language=fr}}

Cheviré is the leading hub for imported lumber in France and hosts the country's largest concentration of equipment and professionals in the timber industry. Other types of traffic are handled in this zone, such as recycling products, particularly metals. Cheviré also includes a sand terminal.

The terminal is also an urban logistics platform, located next to the Nantes ring road, close to Nantes Atlantique Airport, and directly connected to the road network. It is linked to the rail network and, via the river, to the port terminals of Montoir-de-Bretagne (notably for transporting Airbus aircraft sections by barge), thanks to a Ro-Ro berth in operation since 2002. The Grand Port Maritime of Nantes Saint-Nazaire has been authorized to directly operate handling equipment at the Cheviré sites starting from January 1, 2023.{{Cite web |title=Décret du 1er décembre 2022 |trans-title=Decree of December 1, 2022 |url=https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/jorf/id/JORFTEXT000046718941 |access-date=May 5, 2025 |language=fr}}

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| caption1 = Cheviré Amont terminal, wooden boat in port.

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| caption2 = Cheviré Aval terminal.

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The {{Interlanguage link|Roche-Maurice|lt=Roche-Maurice|fr|Roche-Maurice}} terminal faces the Cheviré terminal, on the right bank of the Loire at the foot of the Cheviré bridge. At 750 meters long, it is one of the main grain depots in western France. On average, just over one million tons of cereals pass through its facilities each year.

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| caption1 = Roche-Maurice terminal, grain cargo ship in port.

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| caption2 = Roche-Maurice terminal, grain silo belonging to the {{Interlanguage link|InVivo|lt=Union Invivo|fr|InVivo}} company.

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The Émile-Cormerais port site has two liquid berths that allow for the unloading and storage (behind the quay) of vegetable oil, fish oil, and molasses. It also hosts service activities related to the maritime world (shipyard).

The Port of Nantes also includes quays closer to the city center, which are today closed to maritime traffic due to the shift in activity toward Cheviré and Roche-Maurice. Some still receive boats for various uses:{{Cite web |title=Débord de Loire 2023 |trans-title=Loire River overflow 2023 |url=https://www.fmc-nantes.org/debord-de-loire-2023/?utm_source=chatgpt.com |access-date=May 5, 2025 |website=Fonds Metropolitain pour la culture |language=fr}}

• {{Interlanguage link|Fosse Wharf|lt=Fosse Wharf|fr|Quai de la Fosse}}: a key hub of port activity in the 18th and 19th centuries, this quay, 1,100 meters long (two-thirds of which still border the Loire), permanently hosts the destroyer escort Maillé-Brézé, and occasionally prestigious visiting ships (Belem, Hermione) or sailing races (such as the start of the Solitaire du Figaro).

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| caption1 = Quai de la Fosse.

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| caption2 = The Quai de la Fosse during its days as a port.

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| caption1 = The Belem, built at the Chantiers Dubigeon shipyard in 1896, docked in Nantes (its home port) at the Quai de la Fosse. View of the Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Port church.

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| caption2 = Solitaire du Figaro.

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• {{Interlanguage link|Ernest-Renaud Wharf|lt=Ernest-Renaud Wharf|fr|Quai Ernest-Renaud}}: On December 8, 1986, the headquarters of the Autonomous Port of Nantes Saint-Nazaire was moved to the {{Interlanguage link|Salorges Center|lt=Salorges center|fr|Centre des Salorges}},Before this date, the headquarters of the autonomous port were located at {{Interlanguage link|Place de l'Édit-de-Nantes, Nantes|lt=Place de l'Édit de Nantes|fr|Place de l'Édit-de-Nantes (Nantes)}} in the building now occupied by the {{Interlanguage link|Nantes Administrative Court of Appeal|lt=Nantes Administrative Court of Appeal|fr|Cour administrative d'appel de Nantes}}. the result of the rehabilitation of the former hangar 11, built between 1960 and 1962, which originally connected the port warehouses with three footbridges—only one of which has been preserved. Today, the Salorges center remains the official address of the headquarters of the Grand Maritime Port of Nantes Saint-Nazaire. The quay, 110 meters long, also hosts the Navibus ferry terminal, providing passenger river transport, notably to {{Interlanguage link|Trentemoult|lt=Trentemoult|fr|Trentemoult}}.{{Cite web |title=A la découverte du village de Trentemoult |trans-title=Discovering the village of Trentemoult |url=https://navaway.fr/village-de-trentemoult/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241214212912/https://navaway.fr/village-de-trentemoult/ |archive-date=December 14, 2024 |access-date=May 5, 2025 |website=Navaway |language=fr}}

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| caption1 = Quai Ernest-Renaud, Salorges center, and ferry terminal.

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| caption2 = Quai Ernest-Renaud during its days as a port.

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• {{Interlanguage link|Marquis-d'Aiguillon Wharf|lt=Marquis-d'Aiguillon Wharf|fr|Quai Marquis-d'Aiguillon}}: Measuring 755 meters, it no longer receives ships today. Originally, in 1763, the city of Nantes decided to construct a navigable path along the Loire River to avoid the climb of the Sainte-Anne hill, and named it Marquis-d'Aiguillon Wharf. It was temporarily renamed "Palamède Quay" during the French Revolution and was widened in 1909 with a reinforced concrete jetty.{{Cite web |title=Quais et estacades du Bas-Chantenay {{!}} Région Pays de la Loire |trans-title=Quays and jetties of Bas-Chantenay {{!}} Pays de la Loire region |url=https://gertrude.paysdelaloire.fr/dossier/IA44005220 |access-date=May 5, 2025 |website=gertrude.paysdelaloire |language=fr}}

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| image1 = Quai Marquis d'Aiguillon Nantes 02.jpg

| caption1 = Quai Marquis d'Aiguillon, backing onto the Sainte-Anne hill. Hangar 12 (2,350 m{{sup|2}}, built in 1973) on the quayside. The {{Interlanguage link|Affordable housing in France|lt=low-cost housing|fr|Habitation à bon marché }}, built in 1934, can be seen on {{Interlanguage link|Rue de l'Hermitage, Nantes|lt=Rue de l'Hermitage|fr|Rue de l'Hermitage (Nantes) }} leading up to the hill.

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| caption2 = Quai Marquis d'Aiguillon during its days as a port.

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| caption3 = Boats moored near the Hermitage, at the junction of the Marquis-d'Aiguillon and Saint-Louis quays.

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• Saint-Louis Wharf: At 380 meters in length, it no longer receives boats. Initially called the Sécherie Quay, it was named after a warehouse used to steam flour and dried vegetables. In 1781, Mr. Beconnais established a flour mill there, followed in 1818 by a cane sugar refinery.{{Cite web |title=Moulins de la Loire actuellement bureaux, 5 quai Saint-Louis - Inventaire Général du Patrimoine Culturel |trans-title=Loire Valley mills currently used as offices, 5 quai Saint-Louis - General Inventory of Cultural Heritage |url=https://gertrude.paysdelaloire.fr/dossier/IA44005215 |access-date=May 5, 2025 |website=gertrude.paysdelaloire.fr |language=fr}} Between 1825 and 1830, the refinery was taken over by the Louis Say & Company. In 1895, the flour mill was replaced by the {{Interlanguage link|Cap 44 - Large mills of the Loire Valley|lt=Grands Moulins de la Loire|fr|Cap 44 - Grands moulins de Loire}}, which supplied flour to the LU biscuit factory and many nearby bakeries.{{Cite web |last=Hennebique |first=François |title=CAP 44, un témoignage du procédé Hennebique |trans-title=François Hennebique: CAP 44, a testament to the Hennebique process |url=https://gertrude.paysdelaloire.fr/dossier/IA44005215 |access-date=May 5, 2025 |website=ByBeton |language=fr}} Around the same time, the quay also became a docking location for auxiliary liners of the Compagnie Générale Transatlantique.

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| caption1 = Quai Saint-Louis, hangar 13 at the water's edge.

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| caption2 = Quai Saint-Louis, seen from the top of the {{Interlanguage link|Miséry Quarry|lt=Miséry quarry|fr|Carrière de Miséry}}. The {{Interlanguage link|Cap 44 - Large mills of the Loire Valley|lt=Cap 44|fr|Cap 44 - Grands moulins de Loire}} building is on the left, hangar 13 is in the center, the Le Saint Louis building is on the right, and the Trentemoult marina is on the opposite bank.

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| image3 = Quai Saint-Louis (Nantes) 1902.jpg

| caption3 = Three-masted Joinville moored at Quai Saint-Louis in March 1902. The sailing ship, built by the {{Interlanguage link|New construction sites in Chantenay, Nantes|lt=New construction sites in Chantenay|fr|Nouveaux chantiers nantais de Chantenay}}, is awaiting delivery to the Société des Long-Courriers Français in Paris.

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• Cordon Bleu Wharf: It is 180 meters long. Nearby are a Navibus terminal, a ship repair facility, and a boat wintering area for pleasure craft.

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| caption1 = Quai du Cordon-Bleu seen from Trentemoult.

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| caption2 = Postcard from the early 20th century showing the Cordon-Bleu in Chantenay-sur-Loire, which was an independent municipality before it was incorporated into Nantes in 1908.

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• {{Interlanguage link|Antilles Wharf|lt=Antilles Wharf|fr|Quai des Antilles}}: This 755-meter-long site no longer hosts ships, but a former port operations building—known as the "{{Interlanguage link|Banana hangar|lt=banana hangar|fr|Hangar à bananes Article Discussion}}"—has been converted into an entertainment venue.{{Cite web |title=Hangar à bananes |trans-title=Banana hangar |url=https://www.iledenantes.com/operations/hangar-a-bananes/?utm_source=chatgpt.com |access-date=May 5, 2025 |website=Ile de Nantes |language=fr}}

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| image1 = Quai des Antilles du port de Nantes.jpg

| caption1 = Antilles Wharf, Hangar 21, known as the Banana Hangar, and the Titan Grise crane, were classified as a historic monument on May 27, 2005, at the downstream tip of the Île de Nantes.

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| caption2 = Antilles Wharf during its days as a port.

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• {{Interlanguage link|Président-Wilson Wharf|lt=Wilson Wharf|fr|Quai Président-Wilson}}: Located on the Île de Nantes, it was built starting in 1913 and expanded in 1928. At 930 meters long, it specialized in hosting cruise ships between 2002 and 2016.{{Cite web |date=2020 |title=Grand Port Maritime de Nantes Saint-Nazaire |trans-title=Grand Port Maritime of Nantes Saint-Nazaire |url=https://ceser.paysdelaloire.fr/wp-content/uploads/2020_10_13_Grand_port_maritime.pdf |access-date=May 5, 2025 |language=fr}}

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| caption1 = Wilson Wharf and {{Interlanguage link|Titan cranes in Nantes|lt=Titan Grey crane|fr|Grues Titan de Nantes}}, before the port ceased operations.

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| caption2 = The MV Silver Whisper docked at Wilson Wharf, seen from Trentemoult.

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| image3 = Port de Nantes, quai Wilson, hangar 24.jpg

| caption3 = Hangar 24 of the Grand Port Maritime at the foot of the {{Interlanguage link|Pont des Trois-Continents|lt=Pont des Trois-Continents|fr|Pont des Trois-Continents}}.

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The history of the Port of Nantes predates that of the city itself. It began with the advent of bronze metallurgy—an alloy of copper and tin. Tin (cassiterite) extracted from the Nozay deposit or the {{Interlanguage link|Abbaretz mine|lt=Abbaretz mine|fr|Mine d'Abbaretz}} was transported by barge via the Erdre River to its confluence with the Loire, where a primitive port emerged.{{Cite book |last=Bois |first=Paul |title=Histoire de Nantes |date=1984 |publisher=Privat |isbn=978-2708947177 |language=fr |trans-title=History of Nantes}} For over a millennium, the ore thus transported—along with that from a vein formerly located beneath today's François-Bruneau Street in the city center—was involved in commercial exchanges via the Loire. By the end of the Bronze Age, around 900 BCE, a local bronze industry appeared, as evidenced by traces of three foundries discovered in the Mauves plain, the Jardin des Plantes, and {{Interlanguage link|Croix Bonneau-Bourderies|lt=Croix-Bonneau|fr|Croix Bonneau-Bourderies}}. The copper needed for production was imported from Spain. Other traded goods included salt, preserved foods, leather, and cereals. The early port likely consisted of beaching areas or wooden docks stretching from the Jardin des Plantes upstream to the Chézine downstream.{{Cite book |last=Sanquer |first=René |title=Histoire de Nantes |date=1984 |location=Toulouse |language=fr |trans-title=History of Nantes |chapter=Nantes antique |trans-chapter=Ancient Nantes}} The port name at that time is unknown—it might have been Corbilo, a Gallic port mentioned in Greek geographic tradition as being located on the Loire, though this remains unconfirmed.{{Harvsp|Descours|2006|pp=9-10}}

The first Celtic groups arrived in Gaul at the end of the Bronze Age and organized locally into tribes between 500 and 100 BCE. The Namnetes occupied the north bank of the Loire (present-day Nantes), while the Pictones occupied the southern bank (present-day Rezé). During the Gallic Wars, the Pictones supported the Roman occupiers.{{Cite book |last=Caesar |first=J |title=La Guerre des Gaules |date=2003 |publisher=Les Belles Lettres |location=Paris |language=fr |trans-title=The Gallic Wars}} The final battle occurred in August 56 BCE and ended with a Roman victory. This favored the Pictones and spurred the development of the port of Ratiatum, which had served as a fleet base for the victorious Roman army.{{Harvsp|Descours|2006|pp=11-12}}

The chief town of the Namnetes (modern-day Nantes) was given the Latin name Portus Namnetum (Port of the Namnetes) and also known as {{Interlanguage link|Condevincum|lt=Condevincum|fr|Condevincum}} in Latinized Gaulish. It was a simple trading post (emporium) facilitating the transit of tin, marble, pottery, salt, cereals, Italian wine, and oils from the Iberian Peninsula. There were also shipyards on the Chézine and a fishing port. Goods transported via the river were partly unloaded, with the rest transshipped onto barges for further navigation to other ports along the Loire, such as Ancenis.{{Cite news |date=July 2019 |title=Loire-Atlantique, le magazine du Département |trans-title=Loire-Atlantique, the department magazine |language=fr |issue=161}} The limits of the Gallo-Roman port extended from {{Interlanguage link|Rue de Richebourg|lt=Rue de Richebourg|fr|Rue de Richebourg}} (north of the current Nantes train station) upstream to {{Interlanguage link|Port-Maillard Alley|lt=Port-Maillard|fr|Allée du Port-Maillard}} (between the current Château des Ducs de Bretagne and the Loire) downstream. The arrival of Roman civilization fostered the growth of a city around the port, and in 276 CE, {{Interlanguage link|Gallo-Roman enclosure at Nantes|lt=Nantes' Gallo-Roman rampart|fr|Enceinte gallo-romaine de Nantes}} was built to protect the city and its port from barbarian invasions.{{Cite book |last=Sanquer |first=René |title=Histoire de Nantes |date=1977 |pages=41-42 |language=fr |trans-title=History of Nantes |chapter=Nantes antique |trans-chapter=Ancient Nantes}} This was followed by a series of invasions and civil wars from the 4th to the 10th century, plunging the city into a dark period and causing the port's decline.{{Harvsp|Descours|2006|pp=|p=13}}

{{Multiple image

| image1 = 2011-06 St Lupien 02.jpg

| caption1 = Remains of the Gallo-Roman wall of Ratiatum.

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| caption2 = Remains of the Gallo-Roman wall of Nantes, in the former {{Interlanguage link|Convent of the Cordeliers, Nantes|lt=Cordeliers convent|fr|Couvent des Cordeliers de Nantes}}.

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The port was revived thanks to the trade of wine and salt. The production of salt increased due to the abandonment of the old method of ignigenous salt (obtained by evaporating brine through the action of heat) in favor of the Roman technique of salt marshes, which had the effect of concentrating production in the Guérande peninsula and the Bay of Bourgneuf.{{Harvsp|Descours|2006|pp=|p=17}} In Nantes, in the 13th century, Pierre I of Brittany redeveloped two ports on either side of the castle on ancient sites: the port of Pierre-de-France upstream and the port-Maillard downstream, named after the seneschal Briand-Maillard.{{Harvsp|Descours|2006|pp=|p=19}} Further downstream, developments at the {{Interlanguage link|Tremperie Alley|lt=Bouffay Wharf|fr|Allée de la Tremperie}} and the {{Interlanguage link|Rue du Port-au-Vin|lt=Port-au-Vin|fr|Rue du Port-au-Vin}} (now {{Interlanguage link|Place du Commerce, Nantes|lt=Place du Commerce|fr|Place du Commerce (Nantes)}}) became essential links in Nantes' port infrastructure of the time.{{Cite web |title=Port-Maillard |url=http://patrimonia.nantes.fr/home/decouvrir/themes-et-quartiers/port-maillard.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220122170215/http://patrimonia.nantes.fr/home/decouvrir/themes-et-quartiers/port-maillard.html |archive-date=January 22, 2022 |access-date=May 5, 2025 |website=www.patrimonia.nantes.fr |language=fr}} The port was then mainly devoted to transit, focused on French and European coastal trade. Wine from the Loire Valley was brought down to Nantes to be transshipped and sent to Breton ports and the British Isles. In the opposite direction, {{Interlanguage link|Guérande salt marshes|lt=salt from Guérande|fr|Marais salants de Guérande}} traveled up the Loire to be transported via Nantes to the {{Interlanguage link|Port of Orléans|lt=port of Orléans|fr|Port d'Orléans}}, destined to supply Paris. In the 14th century, trade expanded to include Spain (iron, alum, textiles) and ports of the Hanseatic League.{{Cite web |title=Histoire du Grand Port Maritime {{!}} Nantes Saint-Nazaire Port |trans-title=History of the Grand Port Maritime {{!}} Nantes Saint-Nazaire Port |url=https://www.nantes.port.fr/fr/nantes-saint-nazaire-port/lhistoire-du-port |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220118040652/https://www.nantes.port.fr/fr/nantes-saint-nazaire-port/lhistoire-du-port |archive-date=January 18, 2022 |access-date=May 5, 2025 |website=www.nantes.port.fr |language=fr}} The port slowly migrated westward: Richebourg declined in favor of Port-Maillard, and the development of the Fosse began with the construction of warehouses next to the Salorges.{{Harvsp|Descours|2006|pp=|p=21}} Beyond the city limits, outports at {{Interlanguage link|Port Lavigne|lt=Port Lavigne|fr|Port Lavigne}}, Couëron, and Le Pellerin allowed goods to be unloaded onto smaller vessels that in turn ascended the estuary. During the same century, Nantes became a military port to protect itself against acts of piracy, which were increasing in parallel with the growth of commercial trade.{{Harvsp|Descours|2006|pp=|p=25}}

{{Multiple image

| image1 = Port Maillard.jpg

| caption1 = Port-Maillard Wharf (early 20th century).

| image2 = Château ducs de Bretagne, Nantes.jpg

| caption2 = Same view a century later: since the river was filled in, the Loire no longer flows at the foot of the castle, which has undergone restoration work.

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While the Portuguese embarked on colonial ventures across the oceans, soon followed by the Dutch, the Spanish, and the English, the merchants of the port of Nantes cautiously continued their wine and salt trade throughout the 16th century. The {{Interlanguage link|Union of the Duchy of Brittany with the French crown|lt=union of Brittany with France|fr|Union du duché de Bretagne à la couronne de France}}, completed in 1532, had no significant impact on trade.{{Harvsp|Descours|2006|pp=|p=23}} The port of Nantes remained vulnerable to acts of piracy and consequently became one of the two bases for the kingdom's galleys in the Atlantic—the other being {{Interlanguage link|Port of Marseille|lt=Marseille|fr|Port de Marseille}} for the Mediterranean. These defensive ships were built at the Port-au-Vin shipyard before it was relocated to {{Interlanguage link|Île Gloriette|lt=Île Gloriette|fr|Île Gloriette}}. In 1554, the port of Nantes hosted twenty-two of the kingdom's sixty-eight royal galleys.

The French Wars of Religion (1562–1598) interrupted the country's economic growth for thirty years. The Duke of Mercœur, appointed governor of Brittany on September 5, 1582, turned Nantes into a stronghold of the Catholic League. The powerful Spanish Empire of Philip II, an ally of the League, took control of the port of Nantes, and for years, trade was conducted solely with Spain. That same year, Port-Maillard was equipped with its first wharf, strengthening its activity. The abjuration of Henry IV eventually forced Mercœur to submit, allowing the king to re-enter the city and sign the Edict of Nantes there on April 13, 1598.

File:Boisseau - Nantes en Bretagne.jpg continues on the Loire, while downstream, the merchant fleet begins to develop, initially from Port-au-Vin.]]

The 17th century marked a turning point in the history of the port of Nantes. Traditional trades, especially in wine and salt, went through a crisis between the 1630s and 1670s,{{Cite book |last=Pétré-Grenouilleau |first=O |title=Nantes au temps de la traite des Noirs |pages=25 |language=fr |trans-title=Nantes during the slave trade}} and the sites of Port-Maillard, Quai du Bouffay, and Port-au-Vin lost their leading position in the port infrastructure. On the other hand, during these years, the port of Nantes was integrated into the trade networks of the {{Interlanguage link|First French colonial empire|lt=first French colonial empire|fr|Premier empire colonial français}}. Benefiting from its geographic position on the Atlantic coast, the port expanded from a regional scope to an international dimension within just twenty years, from 1660 to 1680. This major transformation, encouraged by Colbertism, benefited the Quai de la Fosse, located downstream from the city center. Used since the Middle Ages, it was developed from 1516 onward and enlarged in 1632. A sharp increase in traffic occurred in 1670, mainly driven by trade with the French West Indies. Goods essential to colonial life—wine, brandy, flour, cloth, copper, tin, oil, candles, building stones, crockery, and rifles—were shipped to the islands, initially through direct routes. In return, large quantities of cane sugar were imported to be refined. By 1671, the city had at least five sugar refineries, and by 1700, up to twelve.{{Cite book |last=Grenouilleau |first=Olivier |title=Les traites négrières: Essai d'histoire globale |date=2006 |publisher=FOLIO HISTOIRE |isbn=978-2070339020 |language=fr |trans-title=The Slave Trade: An Essay in Global History}} Other tropical products were also imported, such as tobacco, cocoa, and cotton.{{Harvsp|Descours|2006|pp=35-36|p=}} Following the Spanish merchants who had settled in Nantes in the 16th century and from whom they learned maritime trade techniques, the Dutch, Portuguese, and later the Irish of Nantes were succeeded in the 17th century by {{Interlanguage link|List of shipowners in Nantes|lt=local shipowning families|fr|Liste des armateurs nantais}}, who rose to become part of the city's economic elite. Around the mid-17th century, Paimboeuf became the main outport of Nantes, while in Nantes itself, the Quai de la Fosse—better suited to the new demands of navigation and port handling—established itself as the city's modern port, displacing the medieval port sites, which gradually lost their functions and were eventually buried, like other {{Interlanguage link|List of wharves in Nantes|lt=wharves in the city center|fr|Liste des quais de Nantes}}, during the {{Interlanguage link|Fillers in Nantes|lt=land reclamation|fr|Comblements de Nantes}} works carried out between 1926 and 1946. The development of sugar plantations in the West Indies required labor, justifying the population policy supported by Colbert. Nantes merchants recruited young emigrants, generally aged 14 to 25, from the artisan class burdened by the {{Interlanguage link|Corporation in the Kingdom of France|lt=guild|fr|Corporation sous le royaume de France}} system, landless peasants, and some younger sons from ruined families, all from western France. Required to work for three years for a planter to repay the cost of the crossing, they were then offered a small plot of land to develop and a modest amount of money.{{Cite book |last=Pétré-Grenouilleau |first=Oliver |title=Nantes au temps de la traite des Noirs |date=2014 |publisher=Fayard/Pluriel |isbn=978-2818504130 |language=fr |trans-title=Nantes during the slave trade}}

However, this primitive system had two major drawbacks: it inadequately met the colonies' high labor needs, and there was an imbalance between outbound cargo (ships left Nantes with half-empty holds) and return cargo. To address this, the system gradually evolved into a slave trade integrated into a triangular trade system.

{{Multiple image

| image1 = Porr Paimboeuf gravure Ozanne.jpg

| caption1 = Port of Paimbœuf painted by Nicolas Ozanne in 1776.

| image2 = Le port de Nantes en 1776.jpg

| caption2 = The port of Nantes seen from Sainte-Anne hill looking upstream, 1776. The center of gravity shifted towards the Fosse Wharf.

| image3 = Porr Nantes gravure Ozanne.jpg

| image4 = Chantier naval quai Fosse Nantes 1776.jpg

| caption3 = The port of Nantes seen from {{Interlanguage link|Île Feydeau|lt=Île Feydeau|fr|Île Feydeau}} looking downstream, 1776. Print by Nicolas Ozanne.

| width4 =

| caption4 = Shipyard at the Fosse Wharf in 1776.

| align = center

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| total_width = 800

}}

The slave trade in Nantes began at the end of the 17th century. The first confirmed expedition from the port dates to 1688, several years after the start of the {{Interlanguage link|Slave trade in La Rochelle|lt=slave trade in La Rochelle|fr|Traite négrière à La Rochelle}} (1643) and {{Interlanguage link|Slave trade in Bordeaux|lt=Bordeaux|fr|Traite négrière à Bordeaux}} (1672).{{Cite book |last=Hallier |first=Valérie |url=https://enslaved.org/record/source/Q13871 |title=Le lancement de la traite négrière à Nantes de 1688 à 1713 |date=1996 |publisher=Mémoire de maîtrise, Université de Nantes |language=fr |trans-title=The launch of the slave trade in Nantes from 1688 to 1713}} French merchants were following the example of the Portuguese, pioneers in the field, followed by the Spanish, Dutch, and English. In Nantes, ten expeditions took place by 1698, requiring the payment of a fee to the French East India Company, whose headquarters were at the citadel of Port-Louis.{{Cite book |last=Daget |first=Serge |url=https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k3341408d/ |title=Répertoire des expéditions négrières françaises à la traite illégale (1814–1850) |date=1988 |publisher=CRHMA, Université de Nantes |location=Nantes |language=fr |trans-title=Directory of French slave ships involved in the illegal slave trade (1814–1850) |access-date=May 5, 2025}} Following the principles of Colbertism, which aimed to minimize foreign expenditures, Nantes merchants loaded inexpensive trade goods ("pacotille")—glassware, printed cottons, weapons—which they exchanged in West Africa with local rulers for captives. In the West Indies, these captives were sold as slaves, and the merchants returned with ships full of tropical goods.{{Harvsp|Descours|2006|pp=43-60|p=}}

{{Multiple image

| image1 = Musée d'histoire de Nantes - 179 - Collier de traite.jpg

| caption1 = Milking collar, on display at the Nantes History Museum.

| image2 = Musée d'histoire de Nantes - 669 - Indiennes et courtepointe en indienne.jpg

| caption2 = Indian women at the Nantes History Museum.

| image3 = Musée d'histoire de Nantes - 176 - Fusil de traite.jpg

| caption3 = Trade rifle, exchanged for African captives.

| align = center

| width1 = 300

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The triangular trade expansion in Nantes took off in 1713, following the War of Spanish Succession, leading to a significant increase in port activity. {{Interlanguage link|History of shipbuilding in the Loire estuary|lt=Shipbuilding in the Loire estuary|fr|Histoire de la construction navale dans l'estuaire de la Loire}} became a priority, and the local industry adapted to the booming sugar cane trade. Nantes rose to become the leading French port until the mid-18th century.{{Cite web |title=La traite atlantique et l'esclavage |trans-title=The Atlantic slave trade and slavery |url=https://www.chateaunantes.fr/thematiques/la-traite-atlantique-et-l-esclavage/?utm_source=chatgpt.com |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250505211617/https://www.chateaunantes.fr/thematiques/la-traite-atlantique-et-l-esclavage/ |archive-date=May 5, 2025 |access-date=May 5, 2025 |website=Chateau des ducs de Bretagne |language=fr}} However, this growth was not continuous and was interrupted by periods of recession, mainly due to major conflicts such as the War of Austrian Succession and the Seven Years' War, which caused an economic collapse.

The {{Interlanguage link|Nantes medieval city walls|lt=medieval walls of Nantes|fr|Enceinte médiévale de Nantes}} were demolished to allow the city, which had become too confined, to expand toward its port. Enriched slave-trading shipowners built elegant {{Interlanguage link|List of mansions in Nantes|lt=private mansions|fr|Liste des hôtels particuliers de Nantes}} in the districts of La Fosse, Île Feydeau, and Île Gloriette, reflecting their newfound social status. From there, they could oversee their fleets and conduct business while also constructing countryside estates along the banks of the Erdre River.

{{Multiple image

| image1 = Profil La Marie Séraphique de Nantes.jpg

| caption1 = Slave ship from Nantes, the Marie-Séraphique, launched in 1764.

| image2 = Marguerite-Urbane Deurbroucq.jpg

| caption2 = Portrait of {{Interlanguage link|Marguerite Deurbroucq|lt=Marguerite Deurbroucq|fr|Marguerite Deurbroucq}}, wife of slave ship owner {{Interlanguage link|Dominique Deurbroucq|lt=Dominique Deurbroucq|fr|Dominique Deurbroucq}}, served by her slave (1754).

| align = center

| image3 = Nantes (44) Temple du Goût - Extérieur - 05.jpg

| caption3 = Details of the baroque architecture of the Temple du Goût, a mansion built in 1753 by shipowner {{Interlanguage link|Guillaume Grou|lt=Guillaume Grou|fr|Guillaume Grou}}.

| width2 = 160

| width1 = 298

| width3 = 137

}}

During the French Revolution, particularly during the Reign of Terror, prisoners from the War in the Vendée were held in the {{Interlanguage link|Coffee Warehouse Prison|lt=Coffee Warehouse Prison|fr|Prison de l'Entrepôt des cafés}} near the port district. The fear of an epidemic led to the infamous "Drownings of Nantes" between November 1793 and February 1794.{{Cite book |last=Lallié |first=Alfred |title=Les noyades de Nantes |date=1879 |publisher=Pays & Terroirs |language=fr |trans-title=The drownings of Nantes}} The Quai de la Sécherie (later Quai Saint-Louis) in Chantenay was the site of two mass executions by drowning in 1793:

• On the night of November 16–17, a boat carrying around 90 refractory priests was deliberately sunk in the Loire.
• On the night of December 23, approximately 800 people, including women and children, perished in the same manner.

{{Multiple image

| image1 = Noyadesnantes (cropped).jpg

| caption1 = Engraving from the late 18th century entitled Drownings in the Loire by order of the ferocious Carrier.

| image2 = NantesChateauMuséeNoyades.jpg

| caption2 = Les Noyades de Nantes, anonymous painter, Nantes History Museum.

| align = center

| width1 = 320

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}}

The last known slave ship to depart from Nantes did so in 1833.{{Cite journal |last=Daget |first=Serge |date=1975 |title=Long cours et négriers nantais du trafic illégal, 1814-1833 |trans-title=Long voyages and Nantes slave traders involved in illegal trafficking, 1814-1833 |url=https://www.persee.fr/doc/outre_0300-9513_1975_num_62_226_1821 |journal=Revue française d'histoire d'outre-mer |language=fr |volume=62 |issue=226-227 |pages=90-134 |doi=10.3406/outre.1975.1821 |access-date=May 5, 2025}} The abolition of slavery in France in 1848 and the development of the Second French Colonial Empire transformed the port, which adapted to the Industrial Revolution's shift in trade models.{{Cite book |url=https://www.snes.edu/IMG/pdf_actes_traite_negriere.pdf |title=La traite négrière, l'esclavage et leurs abolitions : mémoire et histoire |date=2007 |publisher=Pierre Danckers |isbn=2-86637-469-X |language=fr |trans-title=The slave trade, slavery, and their abolition: memory and history |access-date=May 5, 2025}} Port activity adjusted to supply the emerging industries with raw materials and to distribute their products to foreign markets. As a result, industrial production gradually surpassed trade, and the pace of industrial output and shipbuilding (notably at Chantiers Dubigeon and Ateliers et Chantiers de la Loire) remained strong throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries. Several industrial establishments were founded, including the {{Interlanguage link|Basse-Indre forges|lt=forges of Basse-Indre|fr|Forges de Basse-Indre}} and Brissonneau & Lotz. In the agri-food sector, sugar refineries were joined by canneries, pioneered by Pierre-Joseph Colin (1785–1848), who established the first sardine canning factory in 1824 at 9 {{Interlanguage link|Rue des Salorges|lt=Rue des Salorges|fr|Rue des Salorges}}, sourcing fish from the {{Interlanguage link|Port of La Turballe|lt=port of La Turballe|fr|Port de La Turballe}}. Similar businesses multiplied throughout the city, including {{Interlanguage link|Cassegrain (company)|lt=Cassegrain|fr|Cassegrain (entreprise)}} (founded in 1856) and Saupiquet (founded in 1891 at 13 {{Interlanguage link|Rue Crucy|lt=Rue Crucy|fr|Rue Crucy}}). {{Interlanguage link|Louis Lefèvre-Utile|lt=Louis Lefèvre-Utile|fr|Louis Lefèvre-Utile}} took over the LU biscuit company from his parents in 1882, industrializing production by founding a factory on Île de la Madeleine along the Loire.{{Harvsp|Descours|2006|pp=72-74}} Biscuiterie Nantaise (BN) was established in 1896 near {{Interlanguage link|Place François-II|lt=Place François-II|fr|Place François-II}} on {{Interlanguage link|Île de la Prairie-au-Duc|lt=Île de la Prairie-au-Duc|fr|Île de la Prairie-au-Duc}} by a group of local traders.{{Cite web |title=Du Casse-croûte au choco BN, la petite histoire des biscuits nantais |trans-title=From Casse-croûte to Choco BN, the short history of Nantes biscuits |url=http://www.usinenouvelle.com/article/du-casse-croute-au-choco-bn-la-petite-histoire-des-biscuits-nantais.N296118 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220129100023/http://www.usinenouvelle.com/article/du-casse-croute-au-choco-bn-la-petite-histoire-des-biscuits-nantais.N296118 |archive-date=January 29, 2022 |website=usinenouvelle.com |language=fr}}

File:Plaque salorges 18b quai ernest renaud.jpg|Commemorative plaque on the façade of the Centre des Salorges in memory of the beginnings of the food preservation industry.

File:Musée d'histoire de Nantes - 036 - L'usine LU, la Renommée et le pavillon LU à l'Exposition universelle de Paris.jpg|The LU factory on the banks of the Loire in Nantes (The LU factory, Renommée and the LU pavilion at the 1900 Paris World's Fair, painting by Luigi Loir.

File:Publicité Saupiquet 1882.JPG|Advertising poster for the Saupiquet factories.

File:Nantes - Place François II - Biscuiterie Nantaise.jpg|The Biscuiterie Nantaise factories on Place François-II.

File:135 Publicité Cassegrain.jpg|Advertisement for Cassegrain canned goods supplying Port Arthur during the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-05.

File:Tereos Nantes.JPG|Former Béghin Say sugar refinery on the banks of the Loire (Pirmil arm).

To support increasing activity, the Antilles Wharf was developed starting in 1840, directly across from Quai de la Fosse. However, the Loire River posed navigational challenges—it was shallow, while ships were becoming larger and required greater draft clearance. As a response, the {{Interlanguage link|Port of Saint-Nazaire|lt=port of Saint-Nazaire|fr|Port de Saint-Nazaire}} was created in 1856 as a new outport for Nantes, replacing Paimbœuf. By the mid-19th century, the port of Nantes had a continuous line of quays along its right bank from the Palais de la Bourse to the boundary with Chantenay-sur-Loire. Beyond that, private quays were developed by companies like {{Interlanguage link|Établissements Kuhlmann|lt=Kuhlmann|fr|Établissements Kuhlmann}}, Saint-Gobain, Talvande, and Chantiers Dubigeon, restricting public access to the river except in specific locations like Cale {{Interlanguage link|Crucy family|lt=Crucy|fr|Famille Crucy}} and the village of Roche-Maurice.

File:Port Nantes 1850 Horace Castelli.jpg|Sailboats and steamboats at the Quai de la Fosse, engraving made in 1850 by {{Interlanguage link|Horace Castelli|lt=Horace Castelli|fr|Horace Castelli}}.

File:Port Nantes Gloriette 1850.jpg|Port activity on {{Interlanguage link|Île Gloriette|lt=Île Gloriette|fr|Île Gloriette}} in 1850.

File:Nantes à vol d'oiseau.png|Aerial view of Nantes, its river from upstream to downstream, and its port activity in the 19th century.

File:Rezé, la Loire et le Seil en 1883.jpg|Location of the seaport at Fosse Wharf on a map from 1883.

Starting in 1887, passenger transport services were provided by steamships called Roquio, operating within the port and stopping at various points along Fosse Wharf, Antilles Wharf, and Trentemoult. This service was discontinued in 1970.

File:Nantes - Roquio Chantenay 05.jpg

By the late 19th century, sandbanks between the communes of Le Pellerin and Frossay made it impossible for large ships to navigate to Nantes. In response, construction of a canal parallel to the river was ordered in 1882, and in 1892, the {{Interlanguage link|Canal de la Martinière|lt=Canal de la Martinière|fr|Canal de la Martinière}} was inaugurated. Used for commercial navigation for twenty years, it became obsolete as technological advancements allowed for more efficient dredging of the Loire River's bed.{{Cite book |last=Cozic |first=Jean-Charlez |title=La presse à Nantes de 1757 à nos jours |last2=Garnier |first2=Daniel |date=2008 |publisher=L'Atalante |isbn=978-2-84172-395-9 |volume=I. Les années Mangin (1757–1876) |location=Nantes |pages=241-242 |language=fr |trans-title=The press in Nantes from 1757 to the present day}} Additionally, {{Interlanguage link|Île Mabon|lt=Île Mabon|fr|Île Mabon}} was leveled starting in 1902 to facilitate entry into the port of Nantes.{{Cite web |title=Quai du Marquis d'Aiguillon |trans-title=Marquis d'Aiguillon Quay |url=http://ddata.over-blog.com/xxxyyy/1/43/73/70/les-rues-PDF/Aiguillon.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150620184306/http://ddata.over-blog.com/xxxyyy/1/43/73/70/les-rues-PDF/Aiguillon.pdf |archive-date=June 20, 2015 |access-date=May 5, 2025 |language=fr}}

File:Pont de la Bourse (Nantes).jpg|Loading around 1900 of a boat moored at the foot of the {{Interlanguage link|Place de la Petite-Hollande|lt=Place de la Petite-Hollande|fr|Place de la Petite-Hollande}} near the {{Interlanguage link|Hôtel de La Villestreux|lt=Hôtel de La Villestreux|fr|Hôtel de La Villestreux}}. The Palais de la Bourse is on the opposite bank. The Place du Commerce and {{Interlanguage link|Île Feydeau|lt=Île Feydeau|fr|Île Feydeau}} are connected by the Pont de la Bourse.

File:Port de Nantes quai d'Aiguillon ile Mabon.jpg|The former Île Mabon before it was leveled in 1902, facing the Quai Marquis-d'Aiguillon.

With navigation issues resolved, port traffic in Nantes surpassed one million tons per year at the beginning of the 20th century. The Roche-Maurice quay was commissioned around 1912, dedicated to grain exports, further confirming the right bank's role in cereal trading following the earlier development of the Saint-Louis quay for milling operations. That same year, the {{Interlanguage link|Banque CIC Ouest|lt=Crédit Nantais|fr|Banque CIC Ouest}} bank was established by local industrialists. The Président-Wilson quay was developed in 1913, and the Cormerais quay was built in 1917 downstream from Roche-Maurice.{{Cite web |title=Le quai Président Wilson |trans-title=President Wilson Quay |url=https://quais-nantes.e-monsite.com/pages/le-bras-de-pirmil/le-quai-president-wilson.html?utm_source=chatgpt.com |access-date=May 5, 2025 |language=fr}} A petroleum terminal with three docking stations was constructed in the Saint-Herblain area at a site known as "L'Usine Brûlée."The name comes from the chemical products factory Audrain & Cie, commonly known as the Massereau plant, named after the island on which it was built. In 1861, just over two years after its opening, fire destroyed it and never rebuilt. It was later integrated into Quai Émile Cormerais in 1921, named in honor of the {{Interlanguage link|Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Nantes and Saint-Nazaire|lt=Nantes Chamber of Commerce and Industry|fr|Chambre de commerce et d'industrie de Nantes et de Saint-Nazaire}} president from 1913 to 1920.

{{Multiple image

| image1 = Nantes, La Loire et Le Pont Transbordeur en 1912.jpg

| caption1 = Port activity at the Fosse Wharf and transporter bridge in 1912.

| image2 = Usine Brûlée Saint-Herblain.jpg

| caption2 = Boat docks, hangars, and storage tanks of the Usine Brûlée factory at the Émile Cormerais Wharf in Saint-Herblain, seen from Port Lavigne.

| align = center

| width1 =

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| total_width = 600

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The {{Interlanguage link|Nantes transporter bridge|lt=Nantes Transporter Bridge|fr|Pont transbordeur de Nantes}} was built on the port's grounds as early as 1903. It allowed workers, especially those at the shipyards, to cross the Madeleine branch of the Loire. Considered obsolete, the transporter bridge was dismantled in 1958.{{Cite web |title=Histoire du Pont à Transbordeur racontée par Jacques Sigot |trans-title=History of the Transporter Bridge told by Jacques Sigot |url=http://lestransbordes.fr/histoire.aspx |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081111065252/http://lestransbordes.fr/histoire.aspx |archive-date=November 11, 2008 |access-date=May 5, 2025 |website=Les Transbordés |language=fr}} In 1913, the {{Interlanguage link|Lechalas|lt=Lechalas|fr|Lechalas}} launch, built at the Blasse et Fils shipyard in Chantenay, entered service. It was used from 1913 to 1968 by the Public Works Department for the port inspection tours by engineers.{{Cite web |title=Notice no PM44000619 |url=https://www.pop.culture.gouv.fr/notice/palissy/PM44000619 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190505183204/https://www.pop.culture.gouv.fr/notice/palissy/PM44000619 |archive-date=May 5, 2019 |access-date=May 5, 2025 |website=Open heritage platform, Base Palissy, French Ministry of Culture. |language=fr}} On Sunday, June 14, 1931, the ship Saint-Philibert took on passengers bound for the island of Noirmoutier for a day trip. On the return trip in the late afternoon, it sank due to a storm, resulting in the deaths of between 450 and 500 people (passengers and crew).{{Cite book |last=Boutin |first=Émile |title=Les grands naufrages de l'Estuaire |date=2002 |publisher=Siloë |pages=154-182 |language=fr |trans-title=The great shipwrecks of the Estuary |chapter=Le naufrage du Saint-Philibert. 14 juin 1931 |trans-chapter=The sinking of the Saint-Philibert. June 14, 1931}}

{{Multiple image

| image1 = Nantes-pont-transbordeur-CP165LL.jpg

| caption1 = The transporter bridge, around 1914.

| image2 = Bateaux du patrimoine sur l'Erdre 29.jpg

| caption2 = Lechalas launch.

| image3 = Saint-philibert (bateau).jpg

| align = center

| width3 =

| width1 = 347

| width2 = 325

| caption3 = The passenger ship Saint-Philibert in 1931.

}}

During the Second World War, the German occupiers strictly prohibited civilian access to the port areas. Only personnel with a pass issued by the HafenkommandanturThis was the seat of the German port authority during the war, located at the corner of Tourville Wharf and {{Interlanguage link|Haudaudine Bridge|lt=Haudaudine Bridge|fr|Pont Haudaudine}}; it issued permits, managed infrastructure, and controlled access for ships. were authorized. Following the destruction of the port of Saint-Nazaire,Notably, the {{Interlanguage link|Bombing of Saint-Nazaire on November 9, 1942|lt=bombing of Saint-Nazaire on November 9, 1942|fr|Bombardement de Saint-Nazaire du 9 novembre 1942}}. the port of Nantes gained increased importance for the Kriegsmarine. As a result, it was visited by Großadmiral Karl Dönitz on August 25, 1943. However, this strategic value also made it a target for the Allies.{{Cite book |last=de Fleurieu |first=Sylvain |title=1939-1945 La guerre à Nantes en couleur : Révélations historiques et photographiques sur la mobilisation, l'occupation et la libération |date=2022 |publisher=Éditions d'Obestier |isbn=9782842384944 |pages=65 |language=fr |trans-title=1939-1945 The War in Nantes in Color: Historical and Photographic Revelations about Mobilization, Occupation, and Liberation}} Consequently, just a few weeks later, it was subjected to bombings on September 16 and 23, 1943, primarily targeting the Quai de la Fosse. Due to the inaccuracy of the airstrikes, the port itself was relatively spared, but the bombs caused significant destruction and resulted in 1,463 civilian deaths in the city center.{{Cite web |title=Les bombardements de Nantes |trans-title=The bombing of Nantes |url=http://www.archeosousmarine.net/nantes1943.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140715035323/http://www.archeosousmarine.net/nantes1943.html |archive-date=July 15, 2014 |access-date=May 5, 2025 |language=fr}} A few months later, on August 9, 10, and 11, 1944, the port's infrastructure was ransacked by the Germans themselves. Before leaving the city on August 12, 1944, and retreating to the Saint-Nazaire pocket, they destroyed the majority of the port infrastructure in Nantes that had survived the September 1943 bombings: 3 km of quays were mined, 60 cranes and 80% of the warehouses were put out of service, the shipyards and all bridges were destroyed, and ships were scuttled to block the Loire River.

After the war, the Marthe Richard Law of April 13, 1946, abolished the system of regulated prostitution in France, leading to the prohibition and closure of the thirteen brothels still operating in Nantes, located on rue d'Ancin, rue des Marins, and rue des Trois Matelots, behind the Quai de la Fosse. In 1964, a first quay station measuring 146 meters in length was built at Cheviré and brought into service in June 1966, facing the Roche-Maurice terminal, on land reclaimed from {{Interlanguage link|List of islands in Nantes|lt=former islands|fr|Liste des îles de Nantes}} (Île Cheviré and Île Pointière) attached to the left bank of the Loire within the municipality of Nantes, along with some land located in the neighboring communes of Bouguenais and Rezé. The terminal became the leading hub for timber trade in France.

Port handling equipment was managed by the {{Interlanguage link|Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Nantes and Saint-Nazaire|lt=Nantes Chamber of Commerce and Industry|fr|Chambre de commerce et d'industrie de Nantes et de Saint-Nazaire}}, while development works were under the responsibility of the Ponts et Chaussées administration until April 1, 1966. On that date, the Port of Nantes and the {{Interlanguage link|Port of Saint-Nazaire|lt=Port of Saint-Nazaire|fr|Port de Saint-Nazaire}} merged into a single entity, a public establishment of the State called the "Autonomous Port of Nantes-Saint-Nazaire," which incorporated the terminals of Donges (established from 1917) and those of Montoir-de-Bretagne (established from 1971).{{Cite journal |last=Vigarié |first=André |date=1967 |title=Chroniques de la Basse-Loire |trans-title=Chronicles of the Lower Loire |url=https://www.persee.fr/doc/noroi_0029-182x_1967_num_54_1_1840 |journal=Norois |language=fr |issue=54 |pages=346-351 |access-date=May 5, 2025}}

File:Maison de la mer Nantes 3.JPG

In 1983, the harbor master's offices of Nantes and Saint-Nazaire were reorganized into a single service with authority over the entire estuary.Until 1983, there were separate port commanders for Nantes and Saint-Nazaire. The port commanders of Nantes were (by years of service):

• Armand Boudrot (1912–1930)
• Félix Étienne (1930–1948)
• Georges Lafforgues (1948–1953)
• François-Marie Audo (1953–1963)
• Roger Betton (1963–1972)
• Jean-Marie Colin (1972–1974)
• Pierre Trebern (1974–1983)
• Yves Lelaurent, port commander of Saint-Nazaire from 1979 to 1983, became the commander of both Nantes and Saint-Nazaire from 1983 to 1998.{{Cite journal |date=2022 |title=La capitainerie de Saint-Nazaire, une sentinelle plus que centenaire |trans-title=The Saint-Nazaire harbor master's office, a sentinel for over a century |journal=Chenal + |language=fr |issue=173 |pages=14-15}}

The growing importance of the Cheviré and Roche-Maurice sites led to the gradual cessation of operations at the Quai des Antilles and the Quai de la Fosse at the end of the 1980s.

Two incidents occurred four years apart at the port facilities:

• A fire broke out on October 29, 1987, in a fertilizer warehouse belonging to the company Loiret & {{Interlanguage link|Haentjens family|lt=Haentjens|fr|Famille Haentjens}} at Roche-Maurice, resulting in the formation of a toxic cloud and the evacuation of nearby residents for several hours;{{Cite web |title=Il y a 30 ans, le nuage toxique s'étendait au nord de Nantes |trans-title=Thirty years ago, a toxic cloud spread north of Nantes. |url=https://www.ouest-france.fr/pays-de-la-loire/loire-atlantique/il-y-30-ans-le-nuage-toxique-5305229 |access-date=May 5, 2025 |website=Ouest-France |language=fr}}
• On October 7, 1991, an explosion followed by a fire devastated the depot of the Groupement pétrolier nantais, a subsidiary of the Petrofina company. Emergency services were able to quickly contain the fire and prevent it from spreading.{{Cite web |title=Loire Atlantique. C'était le 7 octobre 1991, l'explosion de Saint-Herblain |trans-title=Loire Atlantique. It was October 7, 1991, the explosion in Saint-Herblain. |url=https://www.ouest-france.fr/pays-de-la-loire/saint-herblain-44800/loire-atlantique-c-etait-le-7-octobre-1991-l-explosion-de-saint-herblain-68c01b6c-d8c6-11ea-8ae4-a1bbd49f021c |access-date=May 5, 2025 |website=Ouest-France |language=fr}}

The Wilson quay was closed in 2005, and its cranes were transferred to the Cheviré and Roche-Maurice sites, which also absorbed the associated traffic. That same year, 2005, the Navibus river shuttle service—heir to the historical Roquio ferry—was inaugurated. Operating within the waters managed by the Grand Port Maritime authority, it connects various port locations.{{Cite web |date=2019 |title=Transports. Inauguré en août, le navibus à hydrogène de Nantes a des ratés |trans-title=Transportation. Inaugurated in August, Nantes' hydrogen-powered water bus is experiencing problems. |url=https://www.ouest-france.fr/pays-de-la-loire/nantes-44000/nantes-les-mesaventures-du-navibus-hydrogene-6545370 |access-date=May 5, 2025 |website=Ouest-France |language=fr}}

The Autonomous Port of Nantes-Saint-Nazaire officially became the {{Interlanguage link|Grand Port Maritime of Nantes-Saint-Nazaire|lt=Grand Port Maritime de Nantes-Saint-Nazaire|fr|Grand port maritime de Nantes-Saint-Nazaire}} on October 9, 2008.{{Cite web |title=Décret no 2008-1035 du 9 octobre 2008 |trans-title=Decree No. 2008-1035 of October 9, 2008 |url=https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/loda/id/JORFTEXT000019595054/#:~:text=Dans%20les%20r%C3%A9sum%C3%A9s-,D%C3%A9cret%20n%C2%B0%202008%2D1035%20du%209%20octobre%202008%20instituant,maritime%20de%20Nantes%20%2D%20Saint%2DNazaire&text=L'%C3%A9tablissement%20public%20d%C3%A9nomm%C3%A9%20%C2%AB%20Port,du%20code%20des%20ports%20maritimes. |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210309115551/https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/loda/id/JORFTEXT000019595054/ |archive-date=March 9, 2021 |access-date=May 5, 2025 |website=Legifrance |language=fr}}

File:JMW Turner - Nantes from the Ile Feydeau.jpg|"Nantes from the Ile Feydeau," watercolor painted in 1829-30 by William Turner, Musée du Château des Ducs de Bretagne.

File:William Parrott - Nantes, vue des quais de la Loire.jpg|"Nantes, view from the banks of the Loire," oil painting created in 1864 by William Parrott (Dobrée Museum).

File:Emile Dezaunay Le port de Nantes.jpg|"The Port of Nantes," oil painting created in 1914 by {{Interlanguage link|Émile Dezaunay|lt=Émile Dezaunay|fr|Émile Dezaunay}}, Museum of the Dukes of Brittany.

The port of Nantes (specifically the terminals at Roche-Maurice and the Quai de la Fosse) appears in scenes from Lola, a film by Jacques Demy, shot between June and July 1960.{{Cite movie |title=Lola |date=1960 |last=Demie |first=J |type=Film}}

• Port
• Cheviré-le-Rouge
• Bank (geography)
• Navibus

• {{Cite book |last=Descours |first=Catherine |title=Le port de Nantes a 3000 ans |date=2006 |publisher=Giotto |isbn=2-910561-24-0 |language=fr |trans-title=The port of Nantes is 3,000 years old}}

Category:Ports and harbours

Category:Loire-Atlantique

Category:Nautical terminology