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Maurienne (French pronunciation:[mɔʁjɛn];Arpitan:Môrièna;Italian:Moriana) is one of theprovinces ofSavoy, corresponding to thearrondissement of Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne inFrance. It is also the original name of the capital of the province, nowSaint-Jean-de-Maurienne.
The Maurienne valley is one of the great transverse valleys of theAlps. The river which has shaped the valley since the lastglaciation is theArc. The valley begins at the village of Écot (in thecommune ofBonneval-sur-Arc), at the foot of theCol de l'Iseran, and ends at the confluence of the Arc and theIsère in thecommune ofAiton. The mountains on the southern side are theDauphiné Alps and theCottian Alps. On the northern side are the part of theGraian Alps known as theVanoise. The capital,Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne, lies at the confluence of the Arc and the Arvan.
Part of the main road and rail route betweenLyon andTurin runs through the valley. TheA43 autoroute and a railway line enter at the western end from theIsère valley, and leave atModane using the FréjusRoad andRail Tunnels respectively which both emerge atBardonecchia inItaly. TheTurin–Lyon high-speed railway will also be built through the lower valley.
The other roads out of the valley use the following mountain cols:
Other cols such as theCol d'Etache,Col du Carro and theCol de Vallée Etroite are only passable on foot.
Geographers traditionally distinguish three areas: the lower, middle and upper Maurienne. The province contains the followingcantons, from west to east :
The abundance of hydro-electric power (there are twenty-four hydroelectric stations in the valley) created heavy industry such as electrochemical plants and aluminum refining, but now the emphasis in the area is on tourism, especially winter sports. Numerousski resorts line the valley, from the small villages likeAlbiez-Montrond to the purpose-built resorts, dating from the 1970s likeLe Corbier andLes Karellis.
TheVanoise National Park and its protected surroundings are a major tourist attraction. Alpine ibex, grey wolves, lynx, royal eagles or vultures are among the many rare species that live in the numerous valleys of Maurienne.
The famous but rare and expensiveBleu de Termignon cheese is made in the commune ofTermignon in the Haute-Maurienne near the Italian border.
The region has numerous traces of human habitation since thePaleolithic. In 1032,Humbert the White-Handed received theMaurienne, his native land, fromConrad II theSalian whom he had helped in his Italian campaigns againstAribert, Archbishop of Milan. TheHouse of Savoy maintained their independence as counts and then dukes untilSavoy was linked with theKingdom of Sardinia, which included Piedmont in north-western Italy. In the Maurienne are a series of five forts, La Barrière de l'Esseillon, that were created by the Sardinians in the early 19th century to protectPiedmont from a French invasion. The Maurienne was not incorporated into France until 1860, as part of the political agreement withNapoleon III that brought about theunification of Italy. Despite this, the Maurienne and theTarentaise valleys are classified asFrench towns and lands of Art and History.
The middle part of the valley is industrial, and its significant towns are:
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The upper valley of the Arc is known ashaute Maurienne. It lies along the Italian border around 45 km nearMont Cenis. It begins east ofModane, an old frontier town, at the mouth of theFréjus Road Tunnel, dominated by the resort of Val Fréjus. The villages, rising up from the valley, are:
About 5,000 inhabitants live there permanently, but the population reaches about 15,000 in the winter.
Much of the upper Maurienne is included inVanoise National Park, which became the first national park in France in 1963. This bordersGran Paradiso National Park of Italy. The two parks are important areas foribexes,chamois, andgolden eagles; thelammergeier was recently reintroduced into the area. It appears thatwolves have reached the region within the past five years.
The Maurienne valley is home to around 20 ski resorts. There is also access toThe Three Valleys via theOrelle gondola.
In rough order heading up the valley:
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