Tilleul de la Liberté d'Hauteluce

Hauteluce

On the village square of Hauteluce, in the heart of the Savoyard Beaufortain, a monumental lime tree has watched over local life for more than two centuries. Planted at the time of the French Revolution, like thousands of other trees of liberty sown across the whole of France as a symbol of the new ideals of equality and fraternity, it is one of the rare survivors of that wave of patriotic planting still standing in the Alps. Unlike many of its fellows, felled, burnt or simply lost with time, the Hauteluce tree has come through two centuries of history, the wars, the rural exodus from the mountains and the village's transformation into a winter sports resort, without ever leaving its post at the centre of the village. Its broad, gnarled trunk and its generous crown, which today shades the square on market days, make it a landmark as much as a living monument. Every summer, its fragrant blossom perfumes the whole centre of the village, reminding residents and holidaymakers who have come to walk in the Beaufortain massif of the enduring memory of this tree, planted by their ancestors to celebrate liberty.

Getting there : Centre of the village of Hauteluce, Beaufortain, Savoie

Opening times and access details are given as a guide only: check before you set out.

Ambient sound