Chamalières-sur-Loire is a commune located in the Haute-Loire department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, about 30 km north of Puy-en-Velay.
The village has developed along the right bank of the river, at the foot of the Miaune and Gerbizon mountains, ancient volcanoes rising to over 1000 m altitude, against 525 m for the town.
Despite the narrowness of the valley, agriculture, arboriculture and even, formerly, viticulture have been able to flourish. However, it is the establishment of a Benedictine monastery in the Xth that will energize the site. The incomes of the monks then allowed them to erect in the 11th and 12th centuries a remarkable Romanesque church, forming with the conventual buildings which adjoin it a famous priory. The church houses relics, Chamalières becomes a place of pilgrimage. Fortified during the Hundred Years War, the whole is manhandled however during the wars of Religion, in the sixteenth century. But the church and its cloister are spared.
If the monks have disappeared, the building is the major attraction of the locality. This heritage and the natural environment that surrounds it make Chamalières-sur-Loire (about 504 inhabitants) an interesting stage, even a place to stay for tourists who love history and preserved landscapes.
It is therefore the priory composed of a church (built in the 11th and 12th centuries), and dedicated to Saint Gilles, a convent building and a garden (other buildings have disappeared) which is the essential jewel from the community. Became famous place of devotion in the Middle Ages to house relics of Saint Gilles (a bone of the arm) and a nail of the cross of Christ, the church is a remarkable example of Auvergne's Romanesque art. There are, however, influences clunisiennes but also Arab (as shown by a series of arcades also evoking the cathedral of Puy-en-Velay). Large but sober, the church is composed of two parts corresponding to two periods of construction: the vaulted nave formed of three bays and the transept on the one hand, the apse, the choir and the apse chapels on the other hand. This second part in the shape of a sanctuary covered by a vault in cul-de-furnace constitutes the singularity of the church, since it needed a space large enough to accommodate the pilgrims (including the night). The bell tower, meanwhile, has been remodeled and dates from the early twentieth century. The visit will continue with the discovery of the garden of the old cloister, which remain six arches of the twelfth century and a turret corner. In the adjoining building, the refectory of the former monastery was transformed into a room dedicated to exhibitions and meetings of associations. Free admission all year. Guided tours of the obviously classified priory can be organized for groups. Information on +33 4 71 01 30 67 or +33 4 71 03 42 06.
In the village itself, we will then linger in the center of the village, on the main square, on an old strong house of square shape flanked by a tower. The whole has, however, been reworked over the centuries.
Another strong house is worth visiting, in the hamlet of Ventressac. Built in the 15th century, it has been remodeled to become more residential but it is easy to distinguish vestiges of its defensive vocation (watchtowers).
As for the natural heritage, many hiking and mountain bike trails are marked, along the Loire Valley or to join the neighboring peaks. It is therefore prudent to inquire about the difficulties of the chosen routes. Maps, brochures and information at +33 4 71 01 30 67 or +33 4 71 03 42 06.
Note also that Chamalières-sur-Loire was one of the access roads to one of the main roads to Santiago de Compostela (the current GR 3). It is therefore another goal of hiking from the locality.
For the fishing amateurs, all information on the developed places and the regulations on +33 4 71 09 09 44.
As for swimming, it can be considered in summer when the course of the river is quiet, but it is not monitored.
On the occasion of the national holiday, the 13th or 14th of July evening, ball, meal and fireworks.
August 15, garage sale in the streets of the village.
During the second half of August, the church of Saint-Gilles, endowed with a remarkable acoustic (30 acoustic vases are encrusted in the vault of the choir), welcomes every year a decentralized concert of the prestigious festival of sacred music of La chaise-Dieu. The rest of the year, other concerts take place in the church, but no fixed date.
Finally, at the beginning of September, the votive festival is punctuated with fun and convivial activities.
