Lanslevillard
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Lanslevillard is a former commune in the
Savoie Savoie (; Arpitan: ''Savouè'' or ''Savouè-d'Avâl''; English: ''Savoy'' ) is a department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, Southeastern France. Located in the French Alps, its prefecture is Chambéry. In 2019, Savoie had a population o ...
department in the
Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (; AURA) or ; or ; . is a Regions of France, region in southeast-central France created by the 2014 territorial reform of French regions; it resulted from the merger of Auvergne and Rhône-Alpes. The new region came into e ...
region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...
in south-eastern
France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
. Part of its territory is home to the Val Cenis Vanoise ski resort. On 1 January 2017, it was merged with the former communes
Bramans Bramans is a former commune in the Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France. On 1 January 2017, it was merged into the new commune Val-Cenis.Lanslebourg-Mont-Cenis Lanslebourg-Mont-Cenis is a former commune in the Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France. On 1 January 2017, it was merged into the new commune Val-Cenis.Sollières-Sardières and
Termignon Termignon is a former commune in the Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France. On 1 January 2017, it was merged into the new commune Val-Cenis.Val-Cenis Val-Cenis is a commune in the department of Savoie, southeastern France. The municipality was established on 1 January 2017 by merger of the former communes of Termignon (the seat), Bramans, Lanslebourg-Mont-Cenis, Lanslevillard and Sollières ...
.


Geography

The village of Lanslevillard is situated at an altitude of , at the foot of the
Mont Cenis Mont Cenis (; , ) is a massif in Savoie (France) (with an elevation of at Pointe de Ronce and a pass at an elevation of ), which forms the limit between the Cottian and Graian Alps. Etymology The term "Mont Cenis" could be derived from '' ...
pass, in Haute Maurienne, to the south of the Vanoise mountain range and north east of Modane. The Arc river flows through the village.


Place name

According to the Canon Adolphe Gros, the name of the commune and parish of Lanslevillard stems from the surname ''Lanzo, Lanz'' or ''Lans.'' Another possibility is ''Lancius''. The addition of the title ''Le villard'' - from the Latin ''villaris, villare'', meaning a house in the country - to ''Lans'' seems to have been done in order to distinguish the parish from that of Lanslebourg. Around the 12th C these two parishes were one and the same. As early as 1093 there is mention of the parish as ''In superiori Lancio'', or ''Ecclesia de Lanzo superiore'' in 1126. In 1151 it is cited as ''Ecclesia de Villario,'' then ''Ecclesia de superiori Lancio'' in 1204 and 1233. ''Le Villar(d)'' was therefore added sometime after the 12th C. At the end of the 13th C, the parish is designated as ''Magiester Joannes de Lancio Villario'' (1293). In the 14th C it becomes ''Curatus Lancei Villaris'' or ''Parrochia Lancei Villaris in Mauriana'' (1357). It is only in the 16th C that the modern form of ''Lanslevillard,'' or sometimes a derivative, ''Lanslevilar'', sometimes written Lans-Le-Villard, appears. In francoprovençal, the name of the commune is written ''Lô Vlâr'' or ''Vêlard.''


History

Human presence in Maurienne and Lanslevillard can be traced back as far as the La Tène period, specifically with the presence of a burial site in the ''l'Adroit'' locality. There are many examples of rock art in the communes of Termignon, Lanslebourg, Lanslevilalrd and Bessans, especially around the Grand roc noir rock carving site. The territory of the Lanslevillard commune is home to two rocks bearing
cup and ring mark Cup and ring marks or cup marks are a form of prehistoric art found in the Atlantic seaboard of Europe (Ireland, Wales, Northern England, Scotland, France (Brittany), Portugal, and Spain (Galicia (Spain), Galicia) – and in Mediterranean Europe ...
s, classed as historical monuments ( ''Monuments historiques'') since 1911: * the ''Pierre aux Pieds'' (the Foot Rock), situated at an altitude of on the Pisselerand plateau, on which around fifty cup marks and thirty carved human foot prints can be seen. * the ''Pierre de Chantelouve'' or ''Pierre des Saints'', situated at an altitude of , on which 150 cup marks can be seen. Before the Roman conquest, the upper valley of the Maurienne was populated principally by the
Medulli The Medulli (Gaulish: ''Medulloi'') were a Gallic tribe dwelling in the upper valley of Maurienne, around present-day Modane (Savoie), during the Iron Age and Roman period. Name They are mentioned as ''Medullorum'' by Vitruvius (late 1st c. BC) ...
people from as early as the 3rd century BCE. They were finally conquered in 16 BCE and integrated into the Roman empire. The Romans subsequently built the ''
Via Francigena The Via Francigena (), also known as Francisca or Romea, is an ancient road and Christian pilgrimage, pilgrimage route running from the City status in the United Kingdom#Cathedral towns, cathedral city of Canterbury in England, through France and ...
'', connecting Canterbury to Rome, which passed over the Mont Cenis pass. During the French Revolutionary period, French troops invaded Savoie. General Sarret moved up the Maurienne right to the head of the valley in April 1794. He was then stopped by savoyard soldiers loyal to the ''Maison de Savoie''. This military victory caused an outpouring of joy in the villages of Lanslevillard and Lanslebourg, and, in reaction to the hostility of the Mauriennais, the revolutionary army deported the inhabitants to ''Fort-Barraux'' (
Barraux Barraux () is a Commune in France, commune in the Isère Departments of France, department in southeastern France. It includes the hamlets of Le Fayet, La Gache, and the 15th century fort, Fort Barraux. Location Barraux has the village of Chapar ...
) on the 19th and 20 April 1794. They were returned home on the 2nd of July. In the past, it was impossible to take the Mont Cenis pass without the help of a "''Marron''", a local guide who helped travelers along the sinuous paths to Italy in all weather. Nowadays, walkers can still make their way up to the pass via the "''chemin de la Ramasse''", the same path that the "Marrons' once used. In 1812, doctor Balthazard Claraz saved the life of
Pope Pius VII Pope Pius VII (; born Barnaba Niccolò Maria Luigi Chiaramonti; 14 August 1742 – 20 August 1823) was head of the Catholic Church from 14 March 1800 to his death in August 1823. He ruled the Papal States from June 1800 to 17 May 1809 and again ...
at the Mont-Cenis hospice, as the Pope was being secretly transferred from Savona to Fontainebleau, where he would remain prisoner from the 20th of June 1812 to the 23 of January 1814. During the Second World War, the Germans occupied the village, and burned most of it to the ground upon pulling out. The only surviving parts of the original village are the church, the school house and some of the houses surrounding these two buildings.


See also

*
Communes of the Savoie department The following is a list of the 273 Communes of France, communes of the Savoie Departments of France, department of France. The communes cooperate in the following Communes of France#Intercommunality, intercommunalities (as of 2025):


References

{{authority control Former communes of Savoie