mont-saint-michel is also the subject of a traditional rivalry between normans and bretons. bretons say that the couesnon river marks the limit between normandy and brittany. it is only because the river has changed its course over the centuries that the mount is on the norman side. this legend amuses the area's inhabitants. they state that the border is not located on the couesnon river. they say it is on the mainland, to the west, at the foot of the solid mass of saint-brelade.