Ubicado en el corazón de los Alpes franceses, a los pies del Mont Blanc, Chamonix-Mont-Blanc es un pueblo de montaña, ubicado estratégicamente en la frontera de tres países: Francia, Italia y Suiza.
De fácil acceso en sólo una hora en coche del aeropuerto internacional de Ginebra, a menos de 3 horas desde el aeropuerto a Milán o 6 horas de París, la capital del alpinismo en invierno se convierte en un deportes de invierno reconocido y conocida desde 1924, la estación de primeros Juegos Olímpicos de Invierno.
Historia Fechas clave:
1091: la primera mención oficial de Chamonix en el acto de donación Aimon primero.
1741: descubrimiento del valle de Pocock y Windham.
1786: Primera ascensión del Mont Blanc por Jacques Balmat y el Dr. Paccard.
1821: creación de la Compagnie des Guides de Chamonix Mont-Blanc.
1860 Savoy se convirtió en francés.
1924: primeros Juegos Olímpicos de Invierno en Chamonix.
1937 Campeonato Mundial de Esquí.
1948: Primera Kandahar, en Chamonix.
1955: Inauguración de la Aiguille du Midi.
1965: inauguración del Mont Blanc.
Chamonix-Mont-Blanc, más comúnmente conocida como Chamonix (anteriormente llamada Chamounix), es una comuna en el departamento de Haute-Savoie en la región de Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes en el sureste de Francia. Fue el sitio de los primeros Juegos Olímpicos de Invierno en 1924.
Chamonix es una de las estaciones de esquí más antiguas de Francia, situada al norte del Mont Blanc y cerca de los picos masivos de los Aiguilles Rouges y en particular de la Aiguille du Midi. La comuna de Chamonix es popular entre los esquiadores y entusiastas de la montaña, y a través del teleférico que lleva a la Aiguille du Midi es posible acceder a la pista de esquí fuera de pista (fuera de pista) de la Vallée Blanche.
The valley was first mentioned in 1091, when it was granted by the Count of the Genevois to the great Benedictine house of St. Michel de la Cluse, near Turin, which by the early 13th century had established a priory there.[2] However, in 1786 the inhabitants bought their freedom from the canons of Sallanches, to whom the priory had been transferred in 1519.
In 1530, the inhabitants obtained from the Count of the Genevois the privilege of holding two fairs a year, while the valley was often visited by the civil officials and by the bishops of Geneva (first recorded visit in 1411, while St. Francis de Sales came there in 1606). But travellers for pleasure were very rare.
Chamonix was part of the historical land of Savoy emerged as the feudal territory of the House of Savoy during the 11th to 14th centuries. The historical territory is shared between the modern countries of France, Italy, and Switzerland. The House of Savoy became the longest surviving royal house in Europe. It ruled the County of Savoy to 1416 and then the Duchy of Savoy from 1416 to 1860.
The first party to publish (1744) an account of their visit was that of Richard Pococke, William Windham and others, such as the Englishmen who visited the Mer de Glace in 1741. In 1742 came P. Martel and several other Genevese, in 1760 H.B. de Saussure,[2] and rather later Marc Th. Bourrit.
The growth of tourism in the early 19th century led to the formation of the Compagnie des Guides de Chamonix in 1821, to regulate access to the mountain slopes (which were communally or co-operatively owned), and this association held a monopoly of guiding from the town until it was broken by French government action in 1892; thereafter guides were required to hold a diploma issued by a commission dominated by civil servants and members of the French Alpine Club rather than local residents.
From the late 19th century on, tourist development was dominated by national and international initiatives rather than local entrepreneurs, though the local community was increasingly dependent upon and active in the tourist industry.
The commune successfully lobbied to change its name from Chamonix to Chamonix-Mont-Blanc in 1916. However, following the loss of its monopoly, the Compagnie reformed as an association of local guides, and retained an important role in local society; it provided the services of a friendly society to its members, and in the 20th century many of them were noted mountaineers and popularisers of mountain tourism, for example the novelist Roger Frison-Roche, the first member of the Compagnie not to be born in Chamonix.
Chamonix Valley: crossing the glacier on foot (between 1902 and 1904)
The holding of the first Winter Olympic Games in Chamonix in 1924 further raised Chamonix's profile as an international tourist destination.
During the Second World War, a Children's Home operated in Chamonix, in which several dozens of Jewish children were hidden from the Nazis. Some of those who hid them were recognised as "Righteous Among the Nations".
By the 1960s, agriculture had been reduced to a marginal activity, while the number of tourist beds available rose to around 60,000 by the end of the 20th century, with about 5 million visitors a year.
