Lavey
Origin of the name Lavey
The name Lavey appears for the first time in written sources in 1016, in the form «A Laver», in a deed by which the abbey of Saint-Maurice grants the place on precarious tenure. It is then found in the form «Lavetum» or «Laveto» in 1189, then again «Laveto» in 1254-1255. Another source, for its part, gives the form «alauer» as early as 1051; this point would deserve to be cross-checked with another source before being considered definitively established as to the exact date of the very first mention. On the etymological level, one hypothesis derives the name from the Franco-Provençal «lāva», which designates a flat or polished stone, combined with the Latin suffix «-ETUM» indicating a place where there is an accumulation of elements of the same kind, which would correspond to a place characterized by flat or polished stones, probably linked to the bed of the Rhône. This toponymic hypothesis would still need to be confirmed by a source specialized in French-speaking Swiss toponymy.
Founding of Lavey
Lavey was not founded in a planned way by a seigneury or a religious order: the place developed as a dependency of the abbey of Saint-Maurice, which held jurisdiction over it from the 12th-13th century until 1798. Originally, Lavey was administratively and parochially attached to the municipality and parish of Saint-Maurice. The region then came under Bernese rule between 1476 and 1798; Lavey then belonged to the castellany of Bex, before becoming its own administrative district in 1564. It was only at the end of the 15th century that Lavey obtained communal autonomy from Saint-Maurice; shortly afterwards, the locality adopted the Protestant Reformation and joined the parish of Bex. The municipality of Lavey remained autonomous until its merger with Morcles in 1852.
History of Lavey
1016. First known written mention of the place, in the form «A Laver», in a deed by which the abbey of Saint-Maurice grants the locality on precarious tenure.
1189. The place is mentioned in the form «Lavetum» / «Laveto».
1254-1255. New mention in the form «Laveto».
12th-13th century to 1798. The abbey of Saint-Maurice exercises jurisdiction over Lavey.
End of the 15th century. Lavey becomes autonomous from the municipality of Saint-Maurice, adopts the Protestant Reformation and joins the parish of Bex.
1476-1798. The region comes under Bernese rule; Lavey belongs to the castellany of Bex, in the government of Aigle.
1564. Lavey becomes an independent administrative district, having previously belonged to the castellany of Bex.
1764. Lavey has 138 inhabitants.
1798. Creation of the canton of Vaud; Lavey joins the district of Aigle.
1803. Lavey has 185 inhabitants.
1830. A road connects Morcles to the Rhône plain for the first time, ending a relative isolation.
1831. Under the direction of General Guillaume-Henri Dufour, the first military fortifications in the area, still visible today, are built to defend the Alpine pass. The same year, a sulphurous thermal spring is discovered by chance near the Rhône, an event that would mark the thermal development of the place.
1836. Construction of the first hotel of the Bains de Lavey, marking the beginning of the reception of spa guests.
1842-1844. Construction of a chapel on the site of the Bains.
1850. Lavey has 251 inhabitants, just before the merger with Morcles.
1851. Following an earthquake, the temperature of the thermal water increases.
1852. Merger of the municipalities of Lavey and Morcles to form Lavey-Morcles. According to the Historical Dictionary of Switzerland, this merger took place against the will of the population of Morcles, due to management difficulties in the latter municipality. The new municipality comprises four localities: Lavey-Village (opposite Saint-Maurice), Lavey-les-Bains, Eslex and Morcles.
1860. The merged municipality of Lavey-Morcles has 365 inhabitants.
1883. Introduction of hot sand baths at the Bains de Lavey.
1885. Formation of the company «Bains de Lavey SA».
1891. The Vaud Council of State grants a consortium a concession for the hydroelectric development of the Rhône at Lavey. The same period sees the start of construction of the Savatan Fort.
1899. The City of Lausanne acquires the rights to the Lavey hydroelectric concession.
1900. The merged municipality has 789 inhabitants. The same year, the Catholic parish of the Sacré-Coeur of Lavey is created, made necessary by the arrival of Catholic families linked to the expansion of the Savatan military installations.
1901. On 1 September, the church of the Sacré-Coeur of Lavey is blessed by Abbot Paccolat, abbot of Saint-Maurice.
1902. An electric power plant comes into service at Lavey, producing power for the lighting and industrial services of the City of Lausanne.
1904. Federal officials linked to the military installations obtain an absolute majority in the communal legislature, prompting the collective resignation of the Municipal Council.
1928. The canton of Vaud takes over management of the Bains de Lavey.
1950. The municipality of Lavey-Morcles has 884 inhabitants. According to the City of Lausanne (Services industriels), the Lavey hydroelectric plant has been its property since this year, which is also given as the year it came into service; this point would deserve to be cross-checked with other sources dating the origin of the site's electrical exploitation to the early 20th century instead.
1978. Opening of the first two swimming pools of the Bains de Lavey, following a deep borehole; they are still in operation today.
1990. The municipality of Lavey-Morcles has 861 inhabitants.
1999. The Eurothermes group takes over management and renovates the Bains de Lavey.
2000. The municipality of Lavey-Morcles has 781 inhabitants.
2004. Creation of the present-day Espace Wellness of the Bains de Lavey (beauty treatments, massages, balneotherapy).
2005. The Vaud-Valais police academy moves into the Savatan Fort.
2017. Installation of an experimental hydrokinetic turbine in the tailrace canal of the Lavey hydroelectric plant.
Population of Lavey
| 1764 | 138 |
| 1803 | 185 |
| 1850 | 251 |
| 1860 (Lavey-Morcles) | 365 |
| 1900 (Lavey-Morcles) | 789 |
| 1950 (Lavey-Morcles) | 884 |
| 1990 (Lavey-Morcles) | 861 |
| 2000 (Lavey-Morcles) | 781 |
Historic sites in Lavey
The Bains de Lavey. Considered the hottest thermal spring in Switzerland (62 to 69 degrees according to historical measurements), the Bains de Lavey originate from the chance discovery of a sulphurous spring in 1831. A first hotel was built in 1836, then a chapel in 1842-1844. After a phase of private management in the form of a joint-stock company from 1885, the canton of Vaud took over management of the site in 1928. New swimming pools were opened in 1978 following a deep borehole, and the site is today operated by the Eurothermes group since 1999, with a wellness area created in 2004.
Savatan Fort. Military structure whose construction began in 1891, Savatan Fort durably shaped the economy and social life of Lavey-Morcles in the 20th century, with the federal officials attached to it even obtaining an absolute majority in the communal legislature in 1904. Since 2005, the site has hosted the Vaud-Valais police academy.
Dailly Fort. A component of the Saint-Maurice Fortress system, Dailly Fort was started in 1892 and made operational in 1894, before being heavily modernized in the 20th century. It is associated with the territory of Lavey-Morcles in several inventories of regional military heritage, which would however deserve to be more precisely cross-checked as to the exact municipal boundaries of the structure.
The Lavey hydroelectric development. A concession for the exploitation of the hydraulic power of the Rhône at Lavey was granted in 1891 to a consortium by the Vaud Council of State; the City of Lausanne acquired the rights to it in 1899 and an electric power plant came into service in 1902, supplying lighting and industrial services in Lausanne. The development, today owned by the Services industriels de Lausanne, produces about 400 GWh per year, nearly half of the electricity supply for SiL customers. An expansion project («Lavey+»), recognized as being of national interest by the federal energy authorities, has been pushed back to around 2030.
The Sacré-Coeur church of Lavey. Built quickly at the request of Canon Henri de Stockalper to respond to the arrival of Catholic families linked to the expansion of the Savatan military installations, the church was blessed on 1 September 1901 by Abbot Paccolat of Saint-Maurice. Initially attached to the abbey of Saint-Maurice, the parish has depended on the diocese of Sion since 1993.
Lavey-Village, historic gateway to the Alps. Located opposite Saint-Maurice, on the other side of the Rhône, Lavey-Village stands at the entrance to the defile that separates the Vaud Chablais from Valais, a natural passage used since Antiquity by the Gauls, the Romans, the Lombards, the Saracens and, more recently, by Napoleon's troops in 1800.
Remains in Lavey
Fortifications of 1831. Built in 1831 under the direction of General Guillaume-Henri Dufour to defend the Alpine passage of the Saint-Maurice defile, these first fortifications are explicitly described by the Historical Dictionary of Switzerland as «still visible today». No earlier archaeological remains (Roman or prehistoric), on the other hand, could be specifically confirmed for Lavey in the sources consulted; this absence does not mean that none exist, but that no documented find was identified during this research.
Sources
- Dictionnaire historique de la Suisse, article « Lavey-Morcles »
- Dictionnaire historique de la Suisse, article « Morcles »
- Wikipédia FR, « Lavey-Morcles »
- Wikipedia EN, « Lavey, Switzerland »
- Wikipedia EN, « Lavey-les-Bains »
- Wikipedia EN, « Lavey-Village »
- Commune de Lavey-Morcles, page « Historique »
- Les Bains de Lavey, « Qui sommes-nous »
- Ville de Lausanne (SiL), « Aménagement hydroélectrique de Lavey »
- Plateforme Rhône, « Lavey : l'hydroélectricité et l'industrialisation »
- Église catholique dans le canton de Vaud, paroisse de Lavey-Morcles
- Saint-Maurice Tourisme, « Découvrez Lavey »
- Feuille des Avis Officiels du canton de Vaud, Alphabet des communes vaudoises, « Lavey-Morcles »
- Wikipedia EN, « Fort de Dailly »
- torpille.ch, inventaire « Fort de Dailly »
Other villages near Lavey
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