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53-864: The Pennine Alps are amongst the three highest major subranges of the Alps, together with the Bernese Alps and the Graian Alps that include the Mont Blanc massif . The Italian side is drained by the rivers Dora Baltea , Sesia and Toce , tributaries of the Po . The Swiss side is drained by the Rhône . The Great St Bernard Tunnel , under the Great St Bernard Pass , leads from Martigny, Switzerland to Aosta . The main chain ( watershed between

106-401: A Bronze Age settlement were found at the foot of the rocky spur in town. There was a Roman era town at Saint-Maurice, but very little is known about the actual layout of it. There was a customs post at Acaunum, where an import and export tariff of 2.5% was levied. The town probably had a shrine to water nymphs. According to tradition, Saint Maurice and his southern Egyptian companions of

159-499: A tourist attraction. Following the army reforms of Armee 95 and XXI, the former mountain infantry military base of Saint-Maurice-Lavey has served as a training camp for the military police. A large rail yard was built in the municipality following the construction of a railway in 1860, now part of the Simplon Railway . Between 1898 and 1940, the power plant Bois Noir, supplied the city of Lausanne with electricity. However,

212-512: Is a city in the Swiss canton of Valais and the capital of the district of Saint-Maurice . On 1 January 2013, the former municipality of Mex merged into the municipality of Saint-Maurice. Saint-Maurice is the site of the Ancient Roman outpost of Agaunum and the 6th-century Abbey of Saint-Maurice d'Agaune . The city is located at the entrance of a pass leading to the upper part of

265-606: Is too rocky for vegetation. The city of Saint-Maurice is located at the foot of a rock wall and at a narrow point in the Rhône valley, on the left side of the Rhône river. The city sits on the routes over the Valais alpine passes into Italy . It consists of the town of Saint-Maurice and the hamlets of Épinassey and Les Cases. Until 1822, it included the villages of Evionnaz and Vérossaz. The municipalities of Mex and Saint-Maurice have merged on 1 January 2013. The blazon of

318-591: Is used for agricultural purposes, while 2.95 km (1.14 sq mi) or 42.0% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 2.28 km (0.88 sq mi) or 32.5% is settled (buildings or roads), 0.2 km (0.077 sq mi) or 2.8% is either rivers or lakes and 0.1 km (25 acres) or 1.4% is unproductive land. Of the built up area, industrial buildings made up 3.3% of the total area while housing and buildings made up 11.5% and transportation infrastructure made up 13.0%. Power and water infrastructure as well as other special developed areas made up 2.4% of

371-744: The Aletsch Glacier and the two summits of the Jungfrau and Bietschhorn , which constitute some of the most impressive features of the site. The actual site (after the extension) includes other large glacier valleys such as the Fiescher Glacier and the Aar Glaciers . The chief peaks of the Bernese Alps are: Main glaciers : The chief passes of the Bernese Alps are: Saint-Maurice, Switzerland Saint-Maurice

424-724: The CVP , four FDP.The Liberals and one representative of the Alliance de gauche . The thirty-member General Council had 15 members from the CVP, 11 from the FDP. The Liberals and four from the Alliance de gauche . The citizen's council is managed by a six-member committee, which oversee extensive property, including the campsite Bois Noir, pastures and forests. Saint-Maurice has an area, as of 2009 , of 7 square kilometers (2.7 sq mi). Of this area, 1.51 km (0.58 sq mi) or 21.5%

477-837: The Chablais Alps in the west and from the Pennine Alps in the south; the upper Rhône valley separates them from the Lepontine Alps to the southeast; the Grimsel Pass and the Aare valley separates them from the Uri Alps in the east, and from the Emmental Alps in the north; their northwestern edge is not well defined, describing a line roughly from Lake Geneva to Lake Thun . The Bernese Alps are drained by

530-603: The Eucharist in Epinassey. The Capuchin monastery's chapel was built in 1640. The church of Saint-Sigismond has been the parish church since at least the mid-12th century. It was built on the site of the 6th- or 7th-century St. John's burial church. The present church building dates of 1715. The still standing Hospice of Saint-Jacques was built in the 10th century. Until the Reformation in 1529, Morcles belonged to

583-827: The French department of the Simplon . In 1822 the towns of Vérossaz and Evionnaz separated from the municipality. The most important religious institution in town was the abbey, but several other religious communities were established in Saint-Maurice. These communities included; in 1611 the Capuchins , in 1865 the Sisters of Saint-Maurice, in 1906 the Augustinian Sisters and in 1996 the Brotherhood of

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636-462: The Grimsel Pass or, depending on the definition, to the river Reuss (thus including the Uri Alps ). The principal ridge, a chain that runs 100 kilometres (62 mi) from west ( Dent de Morcles ) to east ( Sidelhorn ), whose highest peak is the Finsteraarhorn , forms the watershed between the cantons of Bern and Valais . Except for the westernmost part, it is also the watershed between

689-660: The Inventory of Swiss Heritage Sites . In the 2007 federal election the most popular party was the CVP which received 40.24% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the FDP (19.88%), the SP (17.36%) and the SVP (13.6%). In the federal election, a total of 1,429 votes were cast, and the voter turnout was 60.3%. As of  2010 , Saint-Maurice had an unemployment rate of 6.5%. As of 2008 , there were 16 people employed in

742-695: The Lombards and in the mid-10th century, by the Saracens . In 888 Rudolf of Welf was crowned King of Burgundy in the Abbey. In 1034, the entire Chablais region, which included Saint-Maurice, was acquired by the Duchy of Savoy . The towns of Saint-Maurice and Monthey formed a Kastlanei or district. Around 1300, the Kastlan or vogt moved from Monthey to Saint-Maurice. The abbot exercised dominion over

795-545: The Mediterranean Sea and the Adriatic Sea ) runs from west to east on the border between Italy (south) and Switzerland (north). From Mont Vélan , the first high summit east of St Bernard Pass , the chain rarely goes below 3000 metres and contains many four-thousanders such as Matterhorn or Monte Rosa . The valleys are quite similar on both side of the border, being generally oriented perpendicular to

848-505: The Rhine ( North Sea ) and the Rhône ( Mediterranean Sea ). This chain is not centered inside the range but lies close (10 to 15 km) to the Rhône on the south. This makes a large difference between the south, where the lateral short valleys descend abruptly into the deep trench forming the valley of the Rhône and the north, where the Bernese Alps extends through a great part of the canton of Bern ( Bernese Oberland ), throwing out branches to

901-460: The Rhône valley. As such, it has a strategic importance, and defence work were built from the 15th century to control this access. The Fortress Saint-Maurice was constructed in the surrounding mountainsides from 1880 through 1995. Saint-Maurice is first mentioned in 200 as Acaun[ensis] [quadragesimae] Gal[liarum] . In respect to Saint Maurice , the name was changed from Acaunum ( French : Agaune ) to Saint-Maurice in 1003. Some traces of

954-561: The Schreckhorn , and the still more arduous enterprise of crossing the range bypasses, such as the Jungfraujoch and Eigerjoch , which are considered among the most difficult in the Alps. The Jungfrau-Aletsch area is located in the eastern Bernese Alps in the most glaciated region of the Alps. It was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site ( Swiss Alps Jungfrau-Aletsch ) in 2001 and further expanded in 2007. Its name comes from

1007-618: The Theban Legion were martyred in Acaunum during the reign of Maximian (286-310). Around 360-370 Theodul, the first Bishop of Valais, built a basilica in Acaunum in their honor. The basilica became a popular pilgrimage site. In 515, the King of Burgundy Sigismund founded the Abbey, which he endowed with rich land. In 523, the town was invaded by the Franks , followed in 574 by

1060-408: The primary economic sector and about 9 businesses involved in this sector. 257 people were employed in the secondary sector and there were 39 businesses in this sector. 1,522 people were employed in the tertiary sector , with 151 businesses in this sector. There were 1,609 residents of the municipality who were employed in some capacity, of which females made up 43.5% of the workforce. In 2008

1113-690: The Lower Valais geriatrics center. The city is home to a branch of the Mediathek Wallis (the library of Wallis), which was formerly the Lower Valais branch of the Cantonal Library. The Educators' School of Wallis (Pädagogic Hochschule Wallis) is located in the municipality. The new zoning plan of 1996 provides for the development of Saint-Maurice at the exit of the A9 motorway . In 2008, the eleven-member town council had six members of

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1166-776: The Pennine Alps are: Some regional nature parks , like the Parco Naturale Alta Valsesia (6,511 ha - Piedmont , IT), the Riserva Naturale Mont Mars (390 ha - Aosta Valley , IT) and the Regional park of Binn valley (15,891 ha - Valais , CH), have been established on both sides of the main water divide . Bernese Alps The Bernese Alps are a mountain range of the Alps located in western Switzerland . Although

1219-430: The abbey and the town. Citizens of the town were first mentioned in 1170 and by 1275, the citizens elected two mayors. In 1246 Amadeus IV, Count of Savoy enfeoffed Saint-Maurice to King Henry III of England in return for a pension along with the castles at Bard , Avigliana and Susa . In the 13th century the town was surrounded by walls. Count Amadeus V of Savoy confirmed the city charter in 1317, at which time

1272-539: The area are named after Agassiz and the other explorers . The works of Desor and Gottlieb Studer have been followed by several other publications that bear testimony to Swiss mountaineering activity. Notwithstanding the activity of their predecessors, the members of the English Alpine Club have found scope for further exploits, amongst which may be reckoned the first ascents of the Aletschhorn and

1325-417: The area while parks, green belts and sports fields made up 2.3%. Out of the forested land, 38.5% of the total land area is heavily forested and 3.6% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 8.1% is used for growing crops and 10.5% is pastures, while 2.8% is used for orchards or vine crops. All the water in the municipality is flowing water. Of the unproductive areas, 1.1%

1378-468: The brother Meyer of Aarau and Franz Joseph Hugi . They have explored most of the mountain ranges not very difficult to access, and have climbed most of the higher summits. In 1841, Louis Agassiz , with several scientific friends, established a temporary station on the Unteraar Glacier , and, along with scientific observations on the glaciers, started a series of expeditions. Several mountains in

1431-466: The chain east of Gemmi Pass, consisting mainly of summits around 4,000 metres (13,000 ft) on several subranges, with large valley glaciers between them. The latter section, contrary to the former, has very few foothills and is the most glaciated part of the Alps . A characteristic in the orography of the Bernese Alps is, that whereas the western portion of that chain consists of a single series of summits with comparatively short projecting buttresses,

1484-630: The construction rate of new housing units was 3.2 new units per 1000 residents. The vacancy rate for the municipality, in 2010 , was 2.95%. The historical population is given in the following chart: Abbey of St. Maurice, Agaunum , Saint-Maurice Castle with the Cantonal Military Museum, Maison de la Pierre and the Bridge over the Rhône (shared with Bex , Vaud ) are listed as Swiss heritage site of national significance . The entire Saint-Maurice castle and city area are part of

1537-593: The expansion of the residential buildings. However, in 1693 a devastating fire in the town, destroyed the warehouse of the castle and much of the gunpowder that was stored there. During the Helvetic Republic Saint-Maurice was a District capital. After the Act of Mediation ended the Republic, from 1802 to 1804 it was a Zenden capital and in 1810-14 it was the capital of a sub-prefecture of

1590-733: The higher group presents a series of longitudinal ridges parallel to the axis of the main chain, and separated from each other by deep valleys that form the channels of great glaciers. Thus the Tschingel Glacier and the Kander Glacier , separate the portion of the main range lying between the Gemmi Pass and the Mittaghorn from the equally high parallel range of the Doldenhorn and Blümlisalp on its northern side. To

1643-523: The main chain and descending progressively into the Rhône Valley on the north and the Aosta Valley on the south. Unlike many other mountain ranges, the higher peaks are often located outside the main chain and found themselves between the northern valleys ( Grand Combin , Weisshorn , Mischabel , Weissmies ). The chief peaks of the Pennine Alps are: Main glaciers : The chief passes of

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1696-425: The municipal coat of arms is Per pale Azure and Gules, overall a Cross Bottony Argent. Saint-Maurice has a population (as of December 2020 ) of 4,518. As of 2008 , 26.0% of the population are resident foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years (2000–2010 ) the population has changed at a rate of 14.5%. It has changed at a rate of 13.5% due to migration and at a rate of 1.6% due to births and deaths. Most of

1749-478: The municipality and 824 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net importer of workers, with about 1.3 workers entering the municipality for every one leaving. Of the working population, 10.3% used public transportation to get to work, and 59.9% used a private car. From the 2000 census , 2,720 or 75.6% were Roman Catholic , while 285 or 7.9% belonged to the Swiss Reformed Church . Of

1802-474: The municipality was not industrialized until much later. The first major industrial plant was a cement factory that was in operation from the 1950s until 1986. In 1934 the Saint-Augustin printing house opened in town. The newspaper "valaisan Nouvelliste" (New Valais) was founded in 1903 in Saint-Maurice. It was renamed the "Feuille d'Avis Nouvelliste et du Valais" in 1968. The "Echos de Saint-Maurice"

1855-533: The municipality. There were 1,592 married individuals, 231 widows or widowers and 214 individuals who are divorced. As of 2000 , there were 1,376 private households in the municipality, and an average of 2.4 persons per household. There were 438 households that consist of only one person and 117 households with five or more people. In 2000 , a total of 1,319 apartments (85.9% of the total) were permanently occupied, while 153 apartments (10.0%) were seasonally occupied and 64 apartments (4.2%) were empty. As of 2009 ,

1908-477: The name suggests that they are located in the Berner Oberland region of the canton of Bern , portions of the Bernese Alps are in the adjacent cantons of Valais , Fribourg and Vaud , the latter being usually named Fribourg Alps and Vaud Alps respectively. The highest mountain in the range, the Finsteraarhorn , is also the highest point in the canton of Bern. The Rhône valley separates them from

1961-561: The northern foothills, while on the sunnier southern foothills (Rhone Valley) it also consists of vineyards. Gemmi Pass is the most central of the major passes through the main chain. It also marks the separation between two distinct sections of the Bernese Alps: the chain west of Gemmi Pass, consisting mainly of foothills with a few large glacier-covered mountains (notably Dent de Morcles, Grand Muveran , Diablerets , Wildhorn and Wildstrubel ) around 3,000 metres (9,800 ft), and

2014-516: The parish of Saint-Maurice and the church of Notre Dame-sous-le-Bourg was the parish church for Lavey . In 1693 Notre Dame-sous-le-Bourg was destroyed in a fire and by 1721 only the ruins of the walls still remained. The chapel of Saint-Laurent was first mentioned in 1178 and was abandoned in the 19th century. The church of Notre-Dame-du-Scex was built in the 18th century, on the remains of an 8th-century building. The Martyrs Chapel in Vérolliez

2067-464: The population (as of 2000 ) speaks French (3,097 or 86.1%) as their first language, Italian is the second most common (123 or 3.4%) and Albanian is the third (112 or 3.1%). There are 87 people who speak German . As of 2008 , the population was 48.7% male and 51.3% female. The population was made up of 1,421 Swiss men (34.5% of the population) and 584 (14.2%) non-Swiss men. There were 1,582 Swiss women (38.5%) and 527 (12.8%) non-Swiss women. Of

2120-596: The population in the municipality, 1,146 or about 31.9% were born in Saint-Maurice and lived there in 2000. There were 921 or 25.6% who were born in the same canton, while 690 or 19.2% were born somewhere else in Switzerland, and 722 or 20.1% were born outside of Switzerland. As of 2000 , children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 24.4% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 57.8% and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 17.8%. As of 2000 , there were 1,559 people who were single and never married in

2173-665: The population) belonged to no church, are agnostic or atheist , and 163 individuals (or about 4.53% of the population) did not answer the question. In Saint-Maurice about 1,126 or (31.3%) of the population have completed non-mandatory upper secondary education , and 300 or (8.3%) have completed additional higher education (either university or a Fachhochschule ). Of the 300 who completed tertiary schooling, 59.3% were Swiss men, 31.7% were Swiss women, 5.3% were non-Swiss men and 3.7% were non-Swiss women. As of 2000 , there were 1,273 students in Saint-Maurice who came from another municipality, while 115 residents attended schools outside

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2226-415: The range only that crystalline rocks make their appearance; the western part is composed almost exclusively of sedimentary deposits , and the secondary ridges extending through Bern and the adjoining cantons are formed of jurassic , cretaceous , or eocene strata . The beauty of the scenery and the facilities offered to travellers by the general extension of mountain railways make the northern side of

2279-467: The range, the Bernese Oberland , one of the portions of the Alps most visited by tourists. Since strangers first began to visit the Alps, the names of Grindelwald , Lauterbrunnen , and Interlaken have become famous. But unlike many other Alpine regions, which have been left to be explored by strangers, this region has been long visited by Swiss travellers and men of science. Among them were

2332-404: The repair of motor vehicles, 150 or 13.1% were in the movement and storage of goods, 94 or 8.2% were in a hotel or restaurant, 17 or 1.5% were in the information industry, 6 or 0.5% were the insurance or financial industry, 27 or 2.4% were technical professionals or scientists, 252 or 22.0% were in education and 251 or 22.0% were in health care. In 2000 , there were 1,031 workers who commuted into

2385-628: The rest of the population, there were 26 members of an Orthodox church (or about 0.72% of the population), there were 2 individuals (or about 0.06% of the population) who belonged to the Christian Catholic Church , and there were 32 individuals (or about 0.89% of the population) who belonged to another Christian church. There was 1 individual who was Jewish , and 250 (or about 6.95% of the population) who were Islamic . There were 2 individuals who were Buddhist and 5 individuals who belonged to another church. 125 (or about 3.48% of

2438-519: The river Aare and its tributary the Saane in the north, the Rhône in the south, and the Reuss in the east. The Bernese Alps are amongst the three highest major subranges of the Alps, together with the Pennine Alps and the Mont Blanc massif . One of the most prominent Alpine ranges, the Bernese Alps extend from the gorge of Saint-Maurice , through which the Rhône finds its way to Lake Geneva, to

2491-663: The south, the same portion of the main range is divided from the still higher parallel range whose summits are the Aletschhorn and the Bietschhorn by the Lötschental and the Lötschenlücke . To this again succeeds the deep trench through which the lower part of the Aletsch Glacier flows down to the Rhône, enclosed by the minor ridge that culminates at the Eggishorn . It is in the central and eastern portions of

2544-406: The total number of full-time equivalent jobs was 1,391. The number of jobs in the primary sector was 10, all of which were in agriculture. The number of jobs in the secondary sector was 238 of which 68 or (28.6%) were in manufacturing and 166 (69.7%) were in construction. The number of jobs in the tertiary sector was 1,143. In the tertiary sector; 143 or 12.5% were in wholesale or retail sales or

2597-542: The town had a population of between 1,400 and 1,800. In 1475 the Lower Valais was ruled by the Seven Zenden as an associate member (Zugewandter Ort) of the Swiss Confederation . From 1475 until 1798, Saint-Maurice was the capital of the Saint-Maurice province. In the following year, 1476, Bern began construction of a castle in the narrow Rhone valley at Saint-Maurice. It was completed in 1646 with

2650-407: The west into the adjoining cantons of Vaud and Fribourg . There the mountains progressively become lower and disappear into the hilly Swiss Plateau . The Bernese Alps have a large influence on the climate of Switzerland: while their north side is very exposed to weather, their south side is protected from it. As a consequence, agriculture consists essentially of dairy farming and cattle breeding on

2703-481: Was first published in 1899, and in 2000 became the "Nouvelles de l'Abbaye". The "La Patrie Valaisanne" was published between 1927 and 1969. It then became the CVP party newspaper under the title "Valais Demain" until it closed in 1997. The abbey building, its treasure, and the Feengrotte which opened in 1863, attract pilgrims and tourists. The Saint-Amé clinic was founded in 1901 and was rebuilt in 1996 into

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2756-580: Was rebuilt to its present appearance in the 18th century. The chapel in Epinassey was established in 1923. The Abbey College, was first mentioned in the Middle Ages . In 1806, support of the school was taken over by the canton and it became the Collège de Saint-Maurice . The narrow canyon at Saint-Maurice facilitated both trade and defense. The bridge over the Rhone was built around the 12th century and

2809-404: Was the first bridge upstream of Lake Geneva after the Roman bridge of Massongex (2 km downstream Saint-Maurice). The fortifications in the canyon was gradually expanded in 1831, 1848, 1859 and finally in 1892. During the Second World War, the fortifications at Saint-Maurice were one of the three main pillars of the National Redoubt . In 1995, the fortifications were abandoned and opened as

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