Alièze: Local History, Monument and Parish Church

Alièze offers travelers several tangible ways to explore local history: the Monument d’Alièze, the layout of the two streets, the parish church and the history of cheese-making. These topics range from the former castle and the village’s reconstruction after 1639 to figures from the 19th-century dairy industry. If you are looking for a hotel in Alièze, these historical highlights can help you decide whether to visit.

The Monument and its historical context

The Monument d’Alièze was erected at the site where the Germans burned the bodies. About 100 meters away is the farm that had sheltered those affected. The distance places the two sites in relation to one another; at the same time, their roles remain distinct: the monument marks the site of the burning, while the farm is associated with the earlier sheltering of those affected.

Directions to the monument

To reach the monument, travel from Lons-le-Saunier along the RD 52 toward the Haut-Jura. Then take the turnoff for Alièze and follow the small road to the Rippes d’Alièze to its end. Check the current signs and road conditions before setting off, as these can change.

The village layout, church and castle

The two streets of Alièze intersect at right angles, forming the shape of a Greek cross. After its destruction in 1639, Alièze was rebuilt at the foot of the mountain dominated by the fortress. The street layout and reconstruction shed light on two different aspects of the village’s history: its spatial form and its historical development.

The parish church is dedicated to Saint John the Baptist and has a single-nave main hall and two chapels. The nave is the main lengthwise space of a church; “single-nave” describes a layout with just one main nave. The two chapels complement this basic form. The dedication and architectural design offer different insights: the dedication identifies the religious association, while the nave and chapels show the architectural layout.

The former castle of Alièze is part of the village’s earlier architectural history. It consisted of a large tower on a rocky promontory with steep drops on three sides, and had already been destroyed by 1340. The dates refer to separate events: 1340 marks the destruction of the castle, while 1639 marks the destruction of Alièze, after which the village was rebuilt at the foot of the mountain.

Cheese-making and dairy history

Cheese-making is also associated with specific historical figures. In 1875, the Alièze cheese dairy produced 12,889 kilograms of cheese from the milk of 145 cows. A new dairy was built north of the original cheese dairy in 1873 or 1874. The timeline links the construction of the new dairy with the later production figure without treating them as a single event.

Discover more destinations: Clairvaux-Les-Lacs, Foncine-Le-Haut, Prenovel, Chaussin, Cuttura, Plasne, Syam, Villard-Saint-Sauveur.

For the general travel overview: Jura.