Legend has it that an inhabitant of Camembert, one Marie Harel, invented the cheese which bears the village’s name, in Normadie region, located in North Ouest of France (see.map above). She was reportedly given the “secret” of its manufacture by a priest. During the French Revolution (beginning in 1789), all Roman Catholic priests in France were required to swear allegiance to the newborn republic. Those prelates who refused were executed or forced into exile. Some chose to hide in the countryside while waiting for better days. In 1790, during the month of October, the Abbé Charles-Jean Bonvoust supposedly sought refuge with Marie at her farm. He came from the Brie, a region near Paris famous for its cheeses. In return for the shelter she offered him, he gave to Marie the “secret” of making Camembert cheese.A nice legend, but the region was famous for its cheeses well before the birth of Marie Harel on April 28, 1761 ! In 1569, Brugerin de Champier in his De Re Ciberia referred to “augeron cheeses”, as did Charles Estienne, another writer, in 1554. Thomas Corneille, brother of Pierre Corneille (author of Le Cid), spoke in 1708 of “the cheeses of … Camembert” in his treatise on geography. During the 19th century, thanks to the advent of the railroad circa 1850, Camembert cheeses conquered the markets of Paris and France. In 1890 the now-familiar small round wooden container was invented – and Camembert cheeses were exported throughout the world ! The bicentennial of Camembert cheese was celebrated in 1991.
