# Chalmazel

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**Chalmazel,** in [Forézian](/source/Franco-Proven%C3%A7al) Arpitan **Vers-Charmasél**[2] (pronounced [ve.ʃam.ˈze]),[3][4] is a former [French commune](/source/Communes_of_France) in the [Loire department](/source/Loire_(department)) of the [Rhône-Alpes](/source/Rh%C3%B4ne-Alpes) region, known for its winter sports resort and [château](/source/Ch%C3%A2teau_de_Chalmazel).

By decree of October 22, 2015, effective January 1, 2016, Chalmazel merges with **[Jeansagnière](/source/Jeansagni%C3%A8re)** to create the first new commune in the Loire: [Chalmazel-Jeansagnière](/source/Chalmazel-Jeansagni%C3%A8re).[5]

## Geography

The commune of Chalmazel lies at the heart of the [Forez mountains](/source/Forez_mountains), a mountain range in the [Massif Central](/source/Massif_Central) separating the [Dore](/source/Dore_(river)) valley from the [Forez](/source/Forez) plain. The village lies at an altitude of 800 metres on the side of a valley bordered by the [Lignon](/source/Lignon_du_Forez), a tributary of the [Loire](/source/Loire). The boundary of the commune is marked to the east by the Col de la Croix de Ladret (1,046 metres) and the Pic de Morière (1,137 metres), and to the west by the Col du Béal (1,390 metres) and the massif's highest point, Pierre-sur-Haute (1,631 metres). However, the latter is located on the commune of [Sauvain](/source/Sauvain) for some 250 meters, unlike the winter sports resort on its flank, which remains on Chalmazel. The ridge running through the Col du Béal and [Pierre-sur-Haute](/source/Pierre-sur-Haute) also marks the separation between the departments of [Loire](/source/Loiret) ([Rhône-Alpes](/source/Rh%C3%B4ne-Alpes) region) and [Puy-de-Dôme](/source/Puy-de-D%C3%B4me) ([Auvergne](/source/Auvergne) region). It is home to vast, undulating plateaux of moorland dotted with peat bogs, known as the hautes Chaumes, classified [Natura 2000](/source/Natura_2000) for their floristic interest.

## Origin of the commune's name

The name Chalmazel has been around since ancient times. According to [Albert Dauzat](/source/Albert_Dauzat), the origin of the toponym could come from **calmis*: high bare plateau, a Prelatin word; and *mazel*: mazet, mas, manse, house, from the Latin *man(s)um*, substantive past participle of the verb *manere*: to dwell.[6][7][8]

Various spellings are attested over the centuries: Chalmazel in 1214, Chalmasel in 1225, Charmazel in 1313,[9] Chalmazel in the 18th century ([Cassini map](/source/Cassini_map)).

After the Revolution, the parish became a commune: An II (1793): *Chalmazelles*. Bulletin des lois of 1801: *Chalmazelle*. And finally in 1939: *Chalmazel*, the definitive official spelling.

## History

In 1231, [Guy IV](/source/Guigues_IV_of_Forez), Count of Forez, allowed his loyal vassal Arnaud [de Marcilly](/source/Marcilly-le-Ch%C3%A2tel) to build a fortified house at *Chalmazelles*. The objectives were clear: on the one hand, to control the upper [Lignon](/source/Lignon_du_Forez) valley, a modest passageway between the provinces of [Forez](/source/Forez) and [Auvergne](/source/Auvergne) via the present-day Béal pass, and on the other, to guard the seigneury of [Couzan](/source/Sail-sous-Couzan), owned by the [Damas family](/source/House_of_Damas) with links to the [German Emperor](/source/German_Emperor) (Renaud de Damas was not a secure vassal for the Count of Forez).

By 1250, Chalmazelle had become, along with [Couzan](/source/Ch%C3%A2teau_de_Couzan), [Rochefort](/source/Saint-Laurent-Rochefort) and [Urfé](/source/Champoly) (aux d'Urfé), one of the four great keep seigneuries of the “evening mountains” (Monts du Forez).

The Talaru family succeeded the Marcilly family in the seigneury of Chalmazel: Béatrix de Marcilly, who had married Mathieu de Talaru, became heiress to Antoine de Marcilly, her brother, in 1388; the land of Chalmazel thus remained with the Talaru family (ancient nobility of Forez).

The church of Chalmazel seems to have been founded around 1270 under Jean de Marcilly, second lord of Chalmazel, and dedicated to Saint Jean-Baptiste, the patron saint of its founder.

The parish of Chalmazel was at that time an annex of [Saint-Just-en-Bas](/source/Saint-Just-en-Bas); the oldest known parish priest of Chalmazel is Giraud de Boissel, originally from Saint-Just-en-Bas, who lived in 1370.[10]

According to the Cahier des Visites (the bishop's inspection tour) of 1614, the parish was named *Saint-Jehan-des-Neiges*; then, in 1662, Exaltation of the Holy Cross, and finally Saint-Jean-Baptiste.[11]

The ancient church of Saint-Jehan-des-Neiges was demolished in 1881 and replaced by the present-day church, best known for its famous stained-glass windows by [Théodore Hanssen](/source/Theodore_Janssen) (1885-1957), an internationally renowned master glass artist.

On the death of the last Marquis, Louis-Justin de Talaru, in 1850, the château was bequeathed to the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph, who used it as a hospice and dispensary until 1972.

## Politics and administration

List of successive mayors Period Identity Label Quality Missing data must be completed. June 1800 January 1808 Jean Fenon January 1808 May 1815 Barthélemy Jacquet May 1815 June 1821 Théodore Jean-Pierre Marie Recorbet June 1821 September 1848 Barthélemy Jacquet fils September 1848 September 1870 Jean Viot September 1870 October 1876 Jean-Marie Fayard October 1876 May 1888 Jean-Antoine Jacquet May 1888 May 1892 Jean-Baptiste Chazelle May 1892 1908 Jean-Joseph Murat 1908 1922 Antoine Valezy 1922 1962 Joseph Valezy 1962 1971 René Roche 1971 1977 Jean Gouttefarde 1977 1983 Michel Pizzo 1983 1995 Louis Brandon 1995 2002 Pierre Chazal 2002 2008 Michel Parois 2008 2014 André Gallo DVG 2014 2015 Valéry Gouttefarde DVD

It was part of the Loire Forez urban community.

## Demographics

Historical population Year Pop. ±% 1793 1,097 — 1821 907 −17.3% 1846 1,772 +95.4% 1872 1,238 −30.1% 1901 1,297 +4.8% 1926 1,109 −14.5% 1946 981 −11.5% 1962 859 −12.4% 1968 813 −5.4% 1975 743 −8.6% 1982 670 −9.8% 1990 597 −10.9% 1999 485 −18.8% 2007 453 −6.6% 2012 395 −12.8% 2022 353 −10.6%

EHESS[12] and INSEE (2007-2019)[13][1]

## Local culture and heritage

### Places and monuments

- [Saint-Jean-Baptiste](/source/John_the_Baptist) [church](/source/Church_(building)) in Chalmazel. The building was listed as a historic monument in 2021.[14]

#### The castle

[Château de Chalmazel](/source/Ch%C3%A2teau_de_Chalmazel) stands in the middle of the village. Construction began in 1231 under the Marcilly family and was continued by the Talaru family from 1372. Part of the Forez domain, this [feudal castle](/source/Castle) was used to control the road to [Auvergne](/source/Auvergne) via the Béal pass. Medieval in appearance, it retains elements of the fortified house dating from 1231, but with all the successive modifications and additions made by the Talaru family over the centuries: loopholes, base of the walls, keep, machicolated parapet walk. It also features [Renaissance](/source/Renaissance) elements: facade, inner courtyard, galleries and chapel.[15] Now restored, it is open to visitors and has guest rooms and function rooms.

#### The ski resort

Main article: [Chalmazel Ski Resort](/source/Chalmazel_Ski_Resort)

The [ski resort](/source/Ski_resort) is located at an altitude of 1,109 meters, in a place called *Les Bois*, 4 kilometers as the crow flies from the village 250 meters below. The resort is linked to the village by the 6-kilometer route départementale no. 63, and is served by route 112 of the Transports Interurbains de la Loire (TIL).

The first Chalmazel ski lift was built in 1953, and from the 1960s onwards, the resort expanded under the impetus of Éloi Marcoux, president of the local Ski-club, and Henri Essertel, general secretary of the commune of Montbrison and the Régie de Chalmazel.[16] Support from the Conseil Général and its president, [Antoine Pinay](/source/Antoine_Pinay),[17] enabled the gondola to be built in 1967.

The ski area extends from 1,109 to 1,600 meters, directly on the slopes of [Pierre-sur-Haute](/source/Pierre-sur-Haute) (1,634 meters), the highest point of the Monts du Forez. It alternates between [forests](/source/Forest) and wild [highland](/source/Highland) moors (les hautes Chaumes) and boasts 12 kilometers of [downhill ski](/source/Alpine_skiing) runs, served by 1 detachable bubble [chairlift](/source/Chairlift) and 7 [drag lifts](/source/Surface_lift), and equipped with 90 [snow guns.](/source/Snowmaking) Conditions permitting, the resort also boasts a small snowpark, and the surrounding area is ideal for cross-country skiing (Haut Forez Nordic area at [Col de la Loge](/source/Col_de_la_Loge)) and [snowkiting](/source/Snowkiting) (Col du Béal). The resort also offers summer activities ([accrobranche](/source/Tree_climbing) park, [mountain biking](/source/Mountain_biking), hiking via chairlift).

Chalmazel mainly attracts daily visitors from the [Forez](/source/Forez) plain and the [Roanne](/source/Roanne) and [St. Etienne](/source/Saint-%C3%89tienne) conurbations, less than 80 kilometers away, but also, to a lesser extent, from [Clermont-Ferrand](/source/Clermont-Ferrand) and [Lyon](/source/Lyon).

### Heraldry

Coat of arms Cartel: 1st and 4th per pale Or and Azure, a bend Gules, 2nd and 3rd Sable semé d'étoiles Or, a lion Or. Details The official status of the coat of arms has yet to be determined.

## See also

- [Communes of the Loire department](/source/Communes_of_the_Loire_department)

## References

1. ["Populations de référence 2022"](https://www.insee.fr/fr/statistiques/fichier/8290591/ensemble.pdf) [Reference populations 2022] (in French). [INSEE](/source/Institut_national_de_la_statistique_et_des_%C3%A9tudes_%C3%A9conomiques). December 2024.

1. Dufour, Jean-Etienne (1946). *Dictionnaire topographique du Forez et des paroisses du Lyonnais et du Beaujolais formant le département de la Loire*. Mâcon: Protat. pp. 142–143.

1. ["Forez - histoire"](http://forezhistoire.free.fr/marcoux-la-belette.html). *forezhistoire.free.fr*. Retrieved 2024-07-17.

1. ["Intô lé donc ? Où est-il donc ?"](http://forezhistoire.free.fr/images/marcouxpoeme38.pdf)

1. ["LOIRE. Création de la commune nouvelle de Chalmazel-Jeansagnière"](https://www.leprogres.fr/loire/2015/10/27/creation-de-la-commune-nouvelle-de-chalmazel-jeansagniere) (in FR-fr). *www.leprogres.fr*. Retrieved 2024-07-17.

1. Dauzat, Albert & Rostaing, Charles (1963). *Dictionnaire des noms de lieux en France*. Larousse.

1. Dauzat, Albert; Dubois, Jean; Mitterand, Henri (1964). *Nouveau dictionnaire étymologique et historique*. Larousse.

1. Dauzat, Albert (1926). *Les noms de lieux, origine et évolution*. Delagrave.

1. Dufour, J.E. (2006). *Dictionnaire topographique du département de la Loire*. Publications de l'Université de Saint Étienne ed.

1. "Théodore Ogier". *La France par cantons et par communes, département de la Loire*. Vol. 1. 1856.

1. *Les paroisses du diocèse de Lyon*. archives et antiquités, par l'abbé A. Vachet. 1899.

1. ["Populations légales 2012: Commune de Chalmazel (42039)"](https://www.insee.fr/fr/statistiques/2123878?geo=COM-42039)

1. ["Église Saint-Jean-Baptiste"](https://pop.culture.gouv.fr/notice/merimee/PA42000053). *Plateforme ouverte du patrimoine*

1. ["HISTOIRE DU CHÂTEAU"](https://www.chateau-chalmazel.com/histoire-du-chateau). *CHÂTEAU DES MARCILL Y TALARU*

1. Berne, Laurent (2014). *80 ans de ski à Chalmazel*. Éditions des Rochers. p. 32.

1. remontees-mecaniques.net. ["Téléski à perches débrayables (TKD) des Granges - www.remontees-mecaniques.net"](https://www.remontees-mecaniques.net/) (in French). *www.remontees-mecaniques.net*. Retrieved 2024-07-17.

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Chalmazel](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chalmazel) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chalmazel?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.