Chartreuse Mountains
Encyclopedia
The Chartreuse Mountains is a mountain range
in eastern France
, stretching to the north from the city of Grenoble
to the Lac du Bourget
. It is the southernmost range in the Jura Mountains
and belongs to the French Prealps
.
One of the larger cities in the Chartreuse Mountains is Voiron
(Isère
).
The monastic Carthusian Order takes its name from these mountians, where its first hermitage was founded in 1084. Also derived from the mountain range's name is that of the alcoholic cordial
Chartreuse
produced by the monks since the 1740s, and of the chartreuse colour
, named after the drink.
, and several hundred kilometres of cave
passages lie beneath the hills, including the world-famous 60 km long Dent de Crolles
system.
Mountain range
A mountain range is a single, large mass consisting of a succession of mountains or narrowly spaced mountain ridges, with or without peaks, closely related in position, direction, formation, and age; a component part of a mountain system or of a mountain chain...
in eastern France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, stretching to the north from the city of Grenoble
Grenoble
Grenoble is a city in southeastern France, at the foot of the French Alps where the river Drac joins the Isère. Located in the Rhône-Alpes region, Grenoble is the capital of the department of Isère...
to the Lac du Bourget
Lac du Bourget
The lac du Bourget is a lake in the Savoie department of France. It is the largest and the deepest lake located entirely within France. The most important town on its shore is Aix-les-Bains. Chambéry, the capital of Savoie, lies about 10 km south of the lake. The lake is named after the town Le...
. It is the southernmost range in the Jura Mountains
Jura mountains
The Jura Mountains are a small mountain range located north of the Alps, separating the Rhine and Rhone rivers and forming part of the watershed of each...
and belongs to the French Prealps
French Prealps
The French Prealps are a group of subalpine mountain ranges of medium elevation located immediately west of the French Alps. They roughly stretch from Lake Geneva southwest to the Isère and Drôme Rivers; east to a line running from Chamonix, to Albertville, to Grenoble, to Gap, to Barcelonette;...
.
One of the larger cities in the Chartreuse Mountains is Voiron
Voiron
Voiron is a commune in the Isère department in south-eastern France.- History :Voiron long formed part of Savoy, but in 1355 was exchanged by the count with France for Faucigny and Gex.Historical population:* 1901: 12,625- Geography :Voiron stands at a height of 950 ft., on the Morge Voiron...
(Isère
Isère
Isère is a department in the Rhône-Alpes region in the east of France named after the river Isère.- History :Isère is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. It was created from part of the former province of Dauphiné...
).
The monastic Carthusian Order takes its name from these mountians, where its first hermitage was founded in 1084. Also derived from the mountain range's name is that of the alcoholic cordial
Cordial (medicine)
A cordial is any invigorating and stimulating preparation that is intended for a medicinal purpose. The term derives from an obsolete usage. Various concoctions were formerly created that were believed to be beneficial to one's health, especially for the heart .Some cordials, with their flecks of...
Chartreuse
Chartreuse (liqueur)
Chartreuse is a French liqueur made by the Carthusian Monks since the 1740s. It is composed of distilled alcohol aged with 130 herbal extracts. The liqueur is named after the Monks' Grande Chartreuse monastery, located in the Chartreuse Mountains in the general region of Grenoble in France...
produced by the monks since the 1740s, and of the chartreuse colour
Chartreuse (color)
Chartreuse is a color halfway between yellow and green that was named because of its resemblance to the green color of one of the French liqueurs called green chartreuse, introduced in 1764...
, named after the drink.
Summits
Summits in the Chartreuse include:- ChamechaudeChamechaudeChamechaude is the highest summit in the Chartreuse Massif in the Isère department in eastern France. It is the fourth most prominent mountain in metropolitan France....
, 2082 metres (6,831 ft) - Dent de CrollesDent de CrollesThe Dent de Crolles is a karstic mountain of the Chartreuse Mountains range, 17 km north east from Grenoble, Isère . It has a characteristic "tooth-like" profile which is well-known sight of the Isère Valley seen from the Grenoble area...
, 2062 metres (6,765 ft) - Les Lances de Malissard 2045 metres (6,709 ft)
- Grand Som, 2026 metres (6,647 ft)
- Dôme de Bellefont 1975 metres (6,480 ft)
- Piton de Bellefont 1958 metres (6,424 ft)
- Mont GranierMont GranierMont Granier is a mountain of Savoie and Isère, France. It lies in the Chartreuse Mountains range. It has an altitude of 1933 metres above sea level....
, 1933 metres (6,342 ft) - La Grande Sure, 1920 metres (6,299 ft)
- Le Charmant Som 1867 metres (6,125 ft)
- Le Sommet du Pinet ou le Truc 1867 metres (6,125 ft)
- Les Rochers de Chalves 1845 metres (6,053 ft)
- Rocher de Lorzier 1838 metres (6,030 ft)
- Dent de l'Ours 1820 metres (5,971 ft)
- Le Petit Som 1772 metres (5,814 ft)
- La Pinéa 1771 metres (5,810 ft)
- Le Mont Outheran 1673 metres (5,489 ft)
- Les Grands Crêts 1489 metres (4,885 ft)
- L'Écoutoux 1406 metres (4,613 ft)
- Dent du ChatDent du ChatDent du Chat is a mountain of Savoie, France. It lies in the Jura range. It has an altitude of 1390 metres above sea level....
, 1390 metres (4,560 ft) - Le mont Saint-Eynard 1358 metres (4,455 ft)
- Le Néron 1298 metres (4,259 ft)
Geology
The lithology is dominated by limestoneLimestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
, and several hundred kilometres of cave
Cave
A cave or cavern is a natural underground space large enough for a human to enter. The term applies to natural cavities some part of which is in total darkness. The word cave also includes smaller spaces like rock shelters, sea caves, and grottos.Speleology is the science of exploration and study...
passages lie beneath the hills, including the world-famous 60 km long Dent de Crolles
Dent de Crolles
The Dent de Crolles is a karstic mountain of the Chartreuse Mountains range, 17 km north east from Grenoble, Isère . It has a characteristic "tooth-like" profile which is well-known sight of the Isère Valley seen from the Grenoble area...
system.
Ski resorts include
- Le Désert d'Entremont, where the use of snowshoeSnowshoeA snowshoe is footwear for walking over the snow. Snowshoes work by distributing the weight of the person over a larger area so that the person's foot does not sink completely into the snow, a quality called "flotation"....
s has been particularly developed - Saint-Pierre-de-ChartreuseSaint-Pierre-de-ChartreuseSaint-Pierre-de-Chartreuse is a commune in the Isère department in south-eastern France.It is located in the Chartreuse Mountains, to the north of the city of Grenoble....
- Col de Porte 1326 metres (4,350 ft)
- Le Sappey-en-ChartreuseLe Sappey-en-ChartreuseLe Sappey-en-Chartreuse is a commune in the Isère department in south-eastern France.-See also:*Communes of the Isère department...
- La Ruchère (cross-country skiingCross-country skiingCross-country skiing is a winter sport in which participants propel themselves across snow-covered terrain using skis and poles...
) - Saint-Hilaire-du-Touvet
Miscellaneous
The Chartreuse Mountains gave their name to:- The monastery of the Grande ChartreuseGrande ChartreuseGrande Chartreuse is the head monastery of the Carthusian order. It is located in the Chartreuse Mountains, north of the city of Grenoble, in the commune of Saint-Pierre-de-Chartreuse , France. Originally, the château belonged to the See of Grenoble...
, head of the CarthusianCarthusianThe Carthusian Order, also called the Order of St. Bruno, is a Roman Catholic religious order of enclosed monastics. The order was founded by Saint Bruno of Cologne in 1084 and includes both monks and nuns...
orderReligious orderA religious order is a lineage of communities and organizations of people who live in some way set apart from society in accordance with their specific religious devotion, usually characterized by the principles of its founder's religious practice. The order is composed of initiates and, in some... - The Chartreuse liquor, manufactured under the monks' supervision.
- The colorColorColor or colour is the visual perceptual property corresponding in humans to the categories called red, green, blue and others. Color derives from the spectrum of light interacting in the eye with the spectral sensitivities of the light receptors...
chartreuseChartreuse (color)Chartreuse is a color halfway between yellow and green that was named because of its resemblance to the green color of one of the French liqueurs called green chartreuse, introduced in 1764...
, with the greenGreenGreen is a color, the perception of which is evoked by light having a spectrum dominated by energy with a wavelength of roughly 520–570 nanometres. In the subtractive color system, it is not a primary color, but is created out of a mixture of yellow and blue, or yellow and cyan; it is considered...
ish hueHueHue is one of the main properties of a color, defined technically , as "the degree to which a stimulus can be describedas similar to or different from stimuli that are described as red, green, blue, and yellow,"...
of the Chartreuse liqueur.