Vallon de Saint-Imier

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Vallon de Saint-Imier

The Vallon de Saint-Imier (German Sankt-Immer-Tal, not very common today) is a longitudinal valley in the Jura , in the northwest of the Swiss canton of Bern . The 27 km long valley is 1.5 to 2 km wide in the upper area and 3 to 4 km wide in the lower area (measured as a cross section between the upper valley slopes).

topography

Geologically, the valley basin forms a large syncline between two Jura chains . It is flanked in the north along its entire length by the anticline of the Montagne du Droit (up to 1289  m above sea level ). The southern limit is the Chasseral chain with 1607  m above sea level. M. high Chasseral and, a little further to the west, the anticline of Mont d'Amin ( 1417  m above sea level ). The Vallon de Saint-Imier takes its starting point at a leaf shift (Transformbruch) north of the Vue des Alpes pass crossing , a few kilometers southeast of La Chaux-de-Fonds . Here lies the headwaters of the Schüss ( French Suze ), which drains the valley. In this uppermost area, the valley floor is almost 1000  m above sea level. M. The longitudinal incline is initially 3–4%, but falls below 2% above Saint-Imier. At Sonceboz-Sombeval the valley floor is 650  m above sea level. M.

The Vallon de Saint-Imier extends from southwest to northeast according to the fold structure of the Jura in this area. It has almost no curve and ends below the municipality of Sonceboz-Sombeval at the narrow point of Le Châtillon, another displacement zone. Here the two anticlines come very close together and force the Schüss into a canyon-like narrowed valley. The Vallon de Saint-Imier has no side valleys. The Schüss is only fed by individual streams that have dug a few short erosion valleys (e.g. Combe Grède ) into the Chasseral anticline over the course of millions of years . From the left, the Dou and the Raisette flow, both from karst springs , which bring back the water that seeped into the Franches-Montagnes ( Freiberge in German ) to the surface . The Champ Meusel northeast of Saint-Imier is a specialty . This almost circular depression (300 m in diameter) on the southern slope of Mont Soleil is the result of a meteorite impact in prehistoric times and is the largest surviving evidence of a meteorite impact in Switzerland.

population

The valley has a total of around 13,300 inhabitants (2003), the central place is the eponymous Saint-Imier with 4827 inhabitants. Around 90% of the residents speak French, and a little less than 10% state that German is their mother tongue (2000). Nine municipalities are in the valley, from west to east Renan , Sonvilier , Saint-Imier, Villeret , Cormoret , Courtelary , Cortébert , Corgémont and Sonceboz-Sombeval .

economy

Until the end of the 18th century, the Vallon de Saint-Imier was mainly characterized by agriculture . There were some mills and sawmills along the Schüss. From the watch making town of La Chaux-de-Fonds was in the late 18th century watchmaking introduced. At first this was based on home work, as a sideline for the farmers, later numerous factories were built. From the middle of the 19th century, the watch industry developed rapidly and a rapid economic upswing began. This was accompanied by the construction of the characteristic cubic multi-storey apartment buildings that still characterize most places in the valley today. With the crisis in the watch industry, first after 1930 and then especially in the 1970s, hundreds of jobs were lost and the industry had to switch to new industries. Today mechanical engineering , precision mechanics and the manufacture of precision devices are of the greatest importance. Some companies are still active in the manufacture of watches.

traffic

Thanks to the early industrialization, the valley is well developed in terms of transport. On April 30, 1874, the railway line from Biel to Convers was inaugurated, serving all valley communities. The main road from Biel / Bienne to La Chaux-de-Fonds runs through the Vallon de Saint-Imier . In the far east near Sonceboz-Sombeval, the A16 motorway touches the valley, which was opened to traffic in spring 2017.

history

The area was already traversed in Roman times , because an important road led from Aventicum to Augusta Raurica via the Col de Pierre Pertuis . The valley was first settled around the year 600, when Himerius , who came from Ajoie , founded a hermitage from which the Benedictine monastery of Saint-Imier developed. In 999 the chapter came with its goods to the Bishop of Basel. The valley rule was in 10./11. Century transferred to the lords of Erguel , who came from the Besançon region and built the Château d'Erguel near Sonvilier , of which the ruins are still preserved today. Until 1792, the Erguel reign was subordinate to the Principality of Basel . However, the city of Biel increased its influence over time and introduced the Reformation in the valley in 1530 . From 1797 to 1815 the valley belonged to France and was initially part of the Mont-Terrible department , which was connected to the Haut-Rhin department in 1800 . By the decision of the Congress of Vienna , the area in 1815 came to the Canton of Bern and went in the district of Courtelary on.

Web links

Coordinates: 47 ° 9 '3.6 "  N , 7 ° 0' 4.8"  E ; CH1903:  five hundred sixty-six thousand eight hundred and thirty-four  /  222319