The Roman road from Avranches (Alauna) to Rennes (Condate), probably the origin of the name of the commune, crossed Vieux-Viel from north to south. The existence of the parish of Vieux-Viel is certified in the 12th century, but writings suggest an establishment from the 11th century. Its patron saint was then Saint Martin, Bishop of Tours.
According to tradition, from the origin of the parish, the church of Vieux-Viel belonged to the monks of the abbey of Rillé (Fougères), who owned a fief in Vieux-Viel in 1541. Remains of construction near the presbytery in a field called the "Clos au moine" would attest to their presence.
Vieux-Viel, which has always belonged to the diocese of Rennes, was then part of the archdeaconry of Rennes and the deanery of Fougères. Before 1789 Vieux-Viel, divided into a number of fiefs, was under the jurisdiction of eight seigneurial jurisdictions, four of which operated in the locality: that of Chatelier, Tréhet, la Motte and Launay-Pinier. Vieux-Viel became a commune in 1789. The 1790 census recorded 768 inhabitants. During the Revolution, the commune belonged to the district of Dol-de-Bretagne and the canton of Trans, whose administrators wanted to abolish the parish by attaching it to Sougéal, but this project did not come to fruition.