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Villages / Vaud / Gros-de-Vaud district / Montanaire

Montanaire

Merger 2013 Canton of Vaud · District: Gros-de-Vaud · 2'856 inhabitants (31.12.2025)
Origin of the name Founding Historical timeline Population over time Must-see historical sites Sources and references Nearby villages

Origin of the name Montanaire

Montanaire is a new name, chosen by the nine communes to form «une seule et unique commune portant le nom de Montanaire». None of them bore it before. The word comes from a place name between Saint-Cierges and Thierrens. It is said to mean «little mountain» or «hill».[1][5]

Founding of Montanaire

Chanéaz, Chapelle-sur-Moudon, Correvon, Denezy, Martherenges, Neyruz-sur-Moudon, Peyres-Possens, Saint-Cierges and Thierrens form Montanaire on 1 January 2013. Together they then have some 2'300 inhabitants. The process is quick: just under two years separate the first intercommunal meeting from the vote. The arms show an oak «à neuf feuilles nonalobées, englanté de neuf pièces d'or». The new territory covers part of the Jorat plateau, where Saint-Cierges and Peyres-Possens lie. Peyres and Possens, two localities of equal size, line the right bank of the Menthue. The land of Chanéaz even reaches into the canton of Fribourg. These villages never formed a single political unit before 2013: under the Ancien Régime they were spread over three Bernese bailiwicks, and at the time of the merger Chanéaz still belonged to the Jura-Nord vaudois district, while the other eight were in the Gros-de-Vaud. The Church bound them more closely. The parish of Saint-Cierges included Martherenges, and Chapelle-sur-Moudon was attached to it at the Reformation.[1][2][3][5][7][8][10]

History of Montanaire

929. A chapel is recorded at Denezy, then «villare Donaciaco». It had become a parish church before 1228.[9]

1004-1007. Thierrens enters the records in the form «Teoderinco».[6]

1145-1184. Within forty years five more villages are named: Saint-Cierges between 1145 and 1154, Neyruz in 1147, Correvon in 1166, Chapelle in 1177 and Chanéaz in 1184.[5][7][8]

1200-1230. Peyres («Pairi», 1200) and Possens («Pussens», 1230) appear. Both hamlets belong to the castellany of Dommartin, held by the Lausanne cathedral chapter.[10]

1228. Thierrens and Chapelle each have a parish church.[6][8]

1412. Martherenges, the last of the nine, is mentioned for the first time.[5]

1536-1798. Under Bern, Thierrens and Chapelle-sur-Moudon belong to the bailiwick of Moudon. Saint-Cierges, seat of a castellany, and Chanéaz come under Yverdon, Peyres-Possens under Lausanne.[5][6][7][8][10]

1798. On 25 January two French hussars are killed at Thierrens. The incident serves as the justification for the entry of General Ménard's troops.[5][6]

1798-2006. Thierrens, Saint-Cierges, Chapelle-sur-Moudon, Denezy and Peyres-Possens are part of the district of Moudon.[6][7][8][9][10]

1958. The parish of Denezy is abolished and joined to that of Thierrens.[9]

2010. On 18 March a first intercommunal meeting launches the project. The study of a nine-commune merger runs until the end of March 2011.[1]

2011. In April the merger agreement is drafted, then presented to the population in April and May.[1]

2011. In June the nine executives adopt the agreement and show residents the new coat of arms.[1]

2011. The nine communal councils adopt the agreement on 6 September.[1]

2012. Sunday 29 January: the voters of all nine communes accept the merger with 83.1 % yes and a turnout above 65 %.[1][2]

2013. Montanaire becomes a commune on 1 January.[1][2][3]

Population of Montanaire

Sources and references: [2][4][5]

Population of Montanaire
20122'300 approximately (nine merged communes)
20212'777 (1 May, communal figure)
20252'856

Historic sites in Montanaire

Administrative seat. The communal administration has its seat in the locality of Thierrens.[1]

Church of Saint-Martin and parsonage (Thierrens). Rebuilt in the 16th century on 12th-century foundations, the church, like the neighbouring parsonage, is a cultural property of regional importance.[6][11]

Church of Chapelle-sur-Moudon. A parish church from 1228, it received its bell tower in 1724. A stained-glass window from around 1500 survived the Reformation here, an almost unique case in the canton.[5][8][11]

Tour du Molard (Saint-Cierges). Remains of a Roman sanctuary were uncovered here. Coins, tiles and pottery led to its identification as a place of worship linked to springs.[5][7]

Creux du Château (Denezy). Only the foundations remain of this 14th-century fortified house.[9]

Peyres-Possens tile works. This tile and brick factory has operated since 1857. Morandi Frères SA took it over in 1944.[10]

Sources

  1. État de Vaud, Conseil d'État, exposé des motifs et projet de décret no 472 sur la fusion des communes de Chanéaz, Chapelle-sur-Moudon, Correvon, Denezy, Martherenges, Neyruz-sur-Moudon, Peyres-Possens, Saint-Cierges et Thierrens (mars 2012)
  2. État de Vaud, communiqué « Neuf communes fusionnent dans le Gros-de-Vaud » (29 janvier 2012)
  3. État de Vaud, « Fusions de communes en chiffres (2025) »
  4. Statistique Vaud, « Population résidante permanente au 31 décembre 2025 »
  5. Commune de Montanaire, « Les 9 villages qui forment Montanaire »
  6. Dictionnaire historique de la Suisse, « Thierrens » (Emmanuel Abetel, version du 04.01.2017)
  7. Dictionnaire historique de la Suisse, « Saint-Cierges » (Boris Anelli, version du 04.01.2017)
  8. Dictionnaire historique de la Suisse, « Chapelle-sur-Moudon » (Valérie Favez, version du 04.01.2017)
  9. Dictionnaire historique de la Suisse, « Denezy » (Valérie Favez, version du 04.01.2017)
  10. Dictionnaire historique de la Suisse, « Peyres-Possens » (Emmanuel Abetel, version du 04.01.2017)
  11. Office fédéral de la protection de la population, Inventaire PBC, liste cantonale VD (état au 1.1.2026)

Localities of the municipality with a page

Other villages near Montanaire

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