Brețcu is crossed by national road DN11 [ro] (part of European route E574), which starts in Brașov, passes through Târgu Secuiesc and Onești, and ends in Bacău.

Gheorghe Popa-Lisseanu [ro] argued that Brețcu was an old Romanian land mentioned in 1426 by King Sigismund in an official document.

In August 1940, under the auspices of Nazi Germany, which imposed the Second Vienna Award, Hungary retook the territory of Northern Transylvania (which included Brețcu) from Romania.

Towards the end of World War II, however, the commune was taken back from Hungarian and German troops by Romanian and Soviet forces in September–October 1944.

In 1950, after Communist Romania was established, Brețcu became part of the Târgu Secuiesc Raion of Stalin Region.