The Briard is a very old breed of French working dog. Depicted in 8th-century tapestries and mentioned in records of the 12th century; the breed is accurately described in the 14th and 16th centuries. In early times, Briards were used to defend their charges against wolves and poachers, but the dividing up of the land and the increase in population which followed the French Revolution gradually transformed their work into the more peaceful tasks of herding the flocks, keeping the sheep within the unfenced boundaries of the pastures, and guarding their masters' property.  

The first Briard description was made by Abbot Rozier who used the name Chien de Brie in 1809 in his Course of Agriculture. In the year 1863 a Briard appeared at a dog show in Paris for the first time. At this first Paris dog show briard Charmante was placed first over all sheepdogs. Pierre Mégnin separated in his publication the short and long haired French sheepdogs in 1888 and since 1893 briard and beauceron were distinguished in the catalog of the dogs.   

In 1897 the first official description or "standard" governing the appearance of the Briard was drawn up by Le Club Francaise du Chien de Berger. The work of the herding dogs is so specialised that the work demands specific qualities of the body and spirit and especially attitude. These characteristics were defined in this early French Standard and revisions in 1908, 1924, 1925 have led to the current standard in France. Then, in 1909, a French society called Les Amis du Briard was founded. Although this club disbanded during World War I, it was formed again in 1923 and established a more precise standard for the Briard in 1925. This standard, with slight modification, was adopted by the Briard Club of America, founded in 1928.   

Early tapestries of the eighth century depict these large shaggy dogs with the Emperor Charlemagne and in the eighteenth century Napoleon was also reputed to have Briards. Unfortunately, shepherds were not renowned for their writing skills and little is available during this time on the history of the Briard. In fact, it is from the United States of America that some of the early documentation comes. In 1789 the Frenchman, La Fayette, introduced Briards to Thomas Jefferson who became one of the first breeders in the USA. Jefferson was a man with a keen appreciation for the usefulness of dogs and of the Briard he wrote 'they are the finest house and farm dogs I have ever seen'. It was not until 1922 that a litter of Briards was registered with the American Kennel Club. Barbara Danielson of Groton, Massachusetts, was the breeder.

Briards learn readily and training should begin at a young age. Although Briards have been used primarily as guarding and herding dogs, they are usually versatile. They also have served successfully as tracking and hunting dogs and they have a splendid record as war dogs. In this capacity, they served as sentries at advanced posts, where their acute hearing proved to be invaluable. They accompanied patrols, carried food, supplies, and even munitions to the front. Reports from the medical corps tell of the Briard's excellent ability to lead corpsmen to the wounded on the battlefield.  

The Briard has been the official dog of the French Army and is somewhat rare today because so many were lost in World War 1. He was used to carry supplies to the front lines and served as a sentry dog. Due to his keen hearing, reputed to be the most acute of any breed, he was used by the medical corps to search for wounded soldiers. The reports stress the amazing ability of the Briard to lead the corpsmen to those men which still had a spark of life in their bodies. It was said that any man a Briard passed by was beyond assistance.

The Briard is not a breed created by modern zoology but rather is the natural descendant of man's first helper, the dog of pre-history. He has evolved through time by natural selection for the qualities needed in his work. Today this dog of the plains is more elegant than he used to be, devoted breeders have kept him not too shaggy or too big and have retained all of his original characteristics, especially his alertness and his tractable temperament.