A place to remember | Office de tourisme du Haut-Lignon – Découvrez des activités pleine nature et des hébergements insolites pour vos vacances en Haute-Loire.

The Righteous show us that there will always be men and women capable of the best.

Simone Veil at the United Nations in 2005

Le Lieu de Mémoire

An introductory tour takes you through the various rooms of the Place de mémoire:

First, discover the geographical, sociological and historical specificities that explain the particular history of the Plateau in the 1940s. Then, understand the motivations of the people of the Mountain around the different forms of resistance: civil, spiritual and armed.

In the memorial room, you can watch testimonials from rescuers, refugees and resistance fighters. It completes the historical tour of the permanent exhibition by giving a place to the words of those who lived through this period. There’s no doubt that you’ll feel a very special emotion.

The tour is open to everyone aged 7 and over, and includes booklets and treasure hunts for children, so don’t hesitate to bring the whole family. It’s exciting, moving and very well organized. What’s more, you’re just a stone’s throw from the village, so it’s easy to park, have lunch, grab an ice-cream and visit the booksellers…

Le Lieu de Mémoire also has an educational service dedicated to schoolchildren. Together with a liaison teacher, they design and run educational activities for all levels.

More info

Lieu de Memoire, armed resistance with Gabriel

LDM exhibitions

Spotlight on temporary exhibitions:

2016, Destins of childhood
2017, Jews and Protestants, crossed paths 1517-2017
2018, Writers and thinkers around Le Chambon-sur-Lignon
2020, The Righteous and the rescue of Jews in Europe
2022, Marc Chagall, from one shore to the other
2023, Cabu and the drawings of the Vel d’Hiv roundup
2024,

Varian Fry, the American who set up a rescue network from which many artists and intellectuals benefited, and works by Arendt, Arp, Chagall, Ernst, Matta, Taeubert-Arp…
The Olympic Games, mirrors of society. Paris 1924 – Paris
Travelling exhibition on sport and the Olympic Games to tackle issues of discrimination, anti-Semitism and racism and deconstruct prejudice.
History and presence of Roma, Manouches, Sinté, Gitans, Yéniches and Travellers in France, a mobile exhibition from the Musée national de l’immigration.

Further information

In the garden the Place of Memory

A symbol not to be missed: the garden designed by Louis Benech, internationally renowned gardener and landscape architect!
It is located at the rear of the Lieu de Mémoire. This nurturing natural setting symbolizes the welcome and rescue of the many Jewish children who found shelter in the village during the war. Some of them were educated in the adjoining school buildings.
The Garden of Memory suggests a pathway to Paul Armand Gette’s sculptural work “La Mémoire du Souvenir” on the last terrace.

A month after the Vel d’Hiv roundup, in August 42, Pastor Trocmé declared:

“It is a humiliation for Europe that such things can still happen, and that we, the French, are unable to react against the barbaric practices of an era we thought was gone forever”.

Magda Trocmé testifies

Practical info

Open all year round by reservation for groups (more than 10 pers.).

Open from March 01 to November 30 for individuals.

23, route du Mazet

memoireduchambon.com

04 71 59 71 56

Programming

From March to October, the Lieu de Mémoire’s cultural calendar is packed with events: lectures, theater, exhibitions, educational workshops for children…

A must Guided tour

The Plateau Vivarais-Lignon, a land of welcome and refuge, offers a memorial tour of Le Chambon-sur-Lignon, retracing its remarkable history.
Your guide Claire from the Office de Tourisme du Haut-Lignon will accompany you on this guided tour, available all year round for groups and on Tuesdays in summer for individuals. The tour begins at the railway station with a historical presentation, continues with a visit to the “Accueil et Paroles de nos villages” exhibition, then a stroll through the village, ending with a moment of sharing at the temple.

The Memory Trail