Agiez

Origin of the name Agiez

First mentioned in 1011 in the form «in Aziaco». An older mention, in 982, is sometimes cited («in pago de Atiaco») (to be cross-checked). The name is said to come from a Latin personal name, «Abidius», with the place-name suffix of Celtic origin «-acum» (to be cross-checked).

Founding of Agiez

The territory of Agiez has been inhabited since prehistoric times: finds include a Neolithic site (a double-edged serpentine axe), an engraved bronze bracelet, Roman-era debris and pottery, and a Burgundian cemetery discovered in 1836. None of the sources consulted names a founder of the village. Agiez belonged to the royal estate of Orbe and then passed to the priory of Romainmôtier: in 1011 King Rudolph III of Burgundy ceded property in Agiez to the monks, and a further donation was made in 1256 by Renaud de Vaumarcus. The village was administered on behalf of the priory by stewards; the Thomasset family held this office from the 15th century until 1798 and built the manor house known as the «Château». The municipality comprises the village, the quarters of Le Moulin and Le Coin and a few isolated farms. The inhabitants are nicknamed the Ritefailles («lè Rita-Fâïe» in patois), meaning the Ewe-Roasters.

History of Agiez

Neolithic. Neolithic site; discovery of a double-edged serpentine axe.

Bronze Age. A bronze bracelet decorated with engravings is found on the municipal territory.

Roman period. Roman-era pottery and debris.

982. Possible mention of the place in the form «in pago de Atiaco» (to be cross-checked).

1011. First certain mention, «in Aziaco»: King Rudolph III of Burgundy cedes property in Agiez to the priory of Romainmôtier.

1256. Further donation to the priory, made by Renaud de Vaumarcus.

14th century. The church of Agiez becomes a parish church.

15th century. The Thomasset family obtains the priory's stewardship, which it keeps until 1798; the tithe is granted to it as a fief.

1468. First mention of the priory's mill, in operation until around 1825.

16th century. Construction of the hexagonal tower of the «Château», the Thomasset manor house.

1536. Bernese conquest: Agiez is attached to the bailiwick and castellany of Romainmôtier; the commune is run by the assembly of burghers. After the Reformation, Arnex becomes a daughter church of the parish of Agiez.

1646. The church's pulpit is made.

1687. The church receives its panelled barrel vault.

1705. Construction of the parsonage.

1798. Agiez joins the district of Orbe, to which it belongs until 2007.

1836. Discovery of a Burgundian cemetery.

1888. The large dressed-stone quarry employs about a hundred workers; its white stone is used notably for buildings on the place Saint-François in Lausanne, and for the casino and the Grand-Pont in Orbe.

1914. The quarry closes.

1928. Adoption of the municipal coat of arms, in the colours of Romainmôtier, with two crossed picks recalling the quarrying.

2008. After the district of Orbe is dissolved, Agiez becomes part of the Jura-Nord vaudois district.

Population of Agiez

Population of Agiez

1529	19 hearths (households)
1764	207
1850	344
1900	612 (to be cross-checked; another source gives 279)
1950	249
1970	185
2000	224
2022	379
2025	382

Historic sites in Agiez

Church of Agiez and parsonage. Parish church since the 14th century, with a 15th-century Gothic chapel (to be cross-checked), a pulpit from 1646 and a panelled barrel vault from 1687. The adjoining parsonage was built in 1705. After the Reformation, the parish of Agiez had Arnex as its daughter church.

The «Château». Manor house built by the Thomasset family, stewards of the Romainmôtier priory from the 15th century until 1798; it stands out for its massive hexagonal 16th-century stair tower.

Orbe gorges. The canyon cut by the Orbe below the village is now a nature reserve.

Village listed in the ISOS. The whole village is listed in the Federal Inventory of Swiss Heritage Sites of national importance.

Remains in Agiez

Burgundian cemetery. Early medieval necropolis discovered in 1836 on the municipal territory.

Former dressed-stone quarries. Worked in the 19th century (about a hundred workers in 1888) until their closure in 1914, they supplied a white stone called «blanc royal» or «banc royal», used for many buildings in Vaud, including buildings on the place Saint-François in Lausanne, and the casino and the Grand-Pont in Orbe. The two crossed picks of the municipal coat of arms keep their memory alive.

Priory mill. Mill of Romainmôtier mentioned from 1468 and in operation until around 1825.

Legends of Agiez

The Ewe-Roasters. According to tradition, a young shepherd is said to have dried a rain-soaked ewe in an oven. The story would explain the nickname of the people of Agiez, the Ritefailles («lè Rita-Fâïe»), meaning the Ewe-Roasters; they are also simply called the Ewes, and sometimes the Bottle-Breakers.

Sources

• Dictionnaire historique de la Suisse, « Agiez »
• Wikipédia, « Agiez »
• Wikipedia (de), « Agiez »
• Wikipedia (en), « Agiez »
• Feuille des avis officiels du canton de Vaud, « Alphabet des communes vaudoises : Agiez »
• Geneawiki, « Suisse - Agiez »
• Statistique Vaud, « Population résidante permanente au 31 décembre 2025 »

Other villages near Agiez

• Bofflens (VD)
• Montcherand (VD)
• Arnex-sur-Orbe (VD)
• Croy (VD)
• Bretonnières (VD)