Le Châble
Origin of the name Le Châble
The name is said to derive from « Zâblo », a local word for a gully or gutter. Another explanation links it to the verb « chabler », meaning to clear woodland, which would explain the frequent floods at the site. No dated early form of the name is known.[1]
Founding of Le Châble
Le Châble is the main village and largest settlement of the former municipality of Bagnes, which has been part of the municipality of Val de Bagnes since 2021. The village is mentioned in the 12th century as the seat of the vidame who represented the House of Savoy, and its parish church was founded in the same century. It appears in a papal bull of 1178. In 1150 the counts of Savoy ceded their rights over the valley to the abbey of Saint-Maurice, whose abbots later resided at Le Châble, in the building called « l'Abbaye ». The village developed on the left bank of the Dranse, at the head of the bridge across the river, which exposed it to many floods. The arrival of the railway in the early 1950s, followed by rapid and poorly planned building from the 1960s, greatly changed the site.[1][3]
History of Le Châble
12th century. Le Châble is mentioned as the seat of the vidame representing the House of Savoy. Founding of the parish church.[1]
1150. Counts Amadeus and Humbert of Savoy cede their rights over the valley to the abbey of Saint-Maurice.[1][3]
1178. The church is mentioned in a papal bull.
1313. A tax levy for the journey of Amadeus V to Rome records 38 taxpayers, that is as many hearths, on the left bank of the Dranse, representing about 200 inhabitants.[1]
around 1400. The residence of the vidame is enlarged and remodelled.[1]
1476. The residence of the vidame is sacked during a popular uprising.[1]
1488-1534. Construction of the bell tower of the church of Saint-Maurice.[2]
1519-1525. Pierre Guigoz builds the nave of the church. He also rebuilds the choir in 1534.[2]
1522. Construction of the town hall overlooking the central square. It passes into private hands in 1597, and its ground floor serves as a covered market until 1880.[1]
around 1560. Construction of the ossuary next to the church.[1][2]
1638. Remodelling of the old presbytery, which is of medieval origin.[1][2]
1642. Floods half bury the parish church under mud and debris.[1]
1646. Construction of « l'Abbaye », residence of the abbots of Saint-Maurice, which replaces the seat of the vidame.[1]
1798. The abbey of Saint-Maurice keeps sovereignty over the valley until the French invasion.[1]
1818. The wooden bridge over the Dranse is swept away by the Giétro glacier outburst flood.[1]
1832. The bridge is rebuilt in stone. It is widened by about a third in the 20th century.[1]
1855. Another flood, followed by that of 1877. The torrents are then regulated with federal subsidies.[1]
1953. Opening of the Sembrancher-Le Châble railway section. The Martigny-Orsières station is built when the line is created (1952 according to another source).[1][3]
1974-1982. Restoration of the church of Saint-Maurice. The old presbytery, restored in 1978, houses the Musée de Bagnes.[2]
Population of Le Châble
Sources and references: [1]
| early 20th century | 500 inhabitants approximately |
Historic sites in Le Châble
Church of Saint-Maurice. Parish church with three aisles: bell tower of 1488-1534, nave of 1519-1525 and choir rebuilt in 1534 by Pierre Guigoz, with keystones bearing the cross of Saint-Maurice. It holds a reliquary bust of Saint Maurice in polychrome wood from the mid-15th century and paintings by Sebastian Düring (around 1695-1698). Together with the ossuary and the old presbytery, a cultural property of national importance.[2]
Ossuary. Ossuary of about 1560, with a panelled ceiling decorated by Albert Chavaz (1943-1944) and a series of Baroque statues, including a recumbent Christ in polychrome wood from the mid-17th century.[2]
L'Abbaye. Residence of the abbots of Saint-Maurice near the bridge, dated 1646, which replaced the seat of the vidame, enlarged around 1400 and sacked in 1476.[1]
Town hall. Building of 1522 overlooking the central square. Its ground floor served as a covered market until 1880. It was heavily remodelled around 1900.[1]
Bridge over the Dranse. Stone bridge built in 1832 to replace the wooden bridge swept away by the outburst flood of 1818, then widened in the 20th century.[1]
Remains in Le Châble
Old presbytery. Building of medieval origin, remodelled in 1638 and restored in 1978. It keeps wall paintings dated 1627 and soapstone stoves of 1767 and 1858. Today it houses the Musée de Bagnes.[2]
Legends of Le Châble
Charlemagne's gold plate. According to a tradition, the transfer of the rights of the House of Savoy to the abbey of Saint-Maurice in 1150 was made in exchange for a solid gold plate that the monks had supposedly received as a gift from Charlemagne.[1]
Sources
- Inventaire fédéral des sites construits d'importance nationale (ISOS), « Le Châble », commune de Bagnes, 2e version 1995
- Inventaire PBC, fiche 6603, Le Châble, église Saint-Maurice, ossuaire et ancienne cure, texte de la Société d'histoire de l'art en Suisse (Guide artistique de la Suisse)
- Dictionnaire historique de la Suisse, « Bagnes, Val de » (Jean-Yves Gabbud, version du 31.03.2011, version allemande lue)
- Office fédéral de la statistique (OFS), STATPOP, chiffres provisoires au 31.12.2025, via citypopulation.de
- geo.admin.ch, recherche de lieux (coordonnées)
Other villages near Le Châble
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