Corsier-sur-Vevey, Canton of Vaud, Switzerland

Corsier-sur-Vevey is a municipality in the district of Riviera-Pays-d’Enhaut in the canton of Vaud in Switzerland. Corsier-sur-Vevey is a residential community, Corsier is best known for welcoming Charlie Chaplin. A statue of him looks at Vevey with a tender look on his face, a rose pressed against his heart and his famous cane in his other hand, it is in fact in Corsier that he lived with his family for the last 25 years of his life, at the manor house, heart of Chaplin’s World.

Corsier-sur-Vevey is located to the east of the canton of Vaud, to the north of the Riviera-Pays-d’Enhaut district. The village is at the crossroads of Lavaux to the west and the Vaud Riviera to the south. Close to Lake Geneva, it enjoys a temperate climate.

The municipality of Corsier-sur-Vevey measures 6.75 km which 19.3% of housing and infrastructure areas, 45% of agricultural areas, 34.9% of wooded areas and 0.9% of areas unproductive. With a territory of 7.5 km long and 1.25 km in its greatest width, the municipality is elongated. The lowest point in the town is located at Avenue Reller at 384 meters above sea level. The highest point is located south of Mount Vuarat at an altitude of 949 meters at La Baume (La Bauma). The average altitude is 695 meters.

The village is located at the western end of the town. Densely populated compared to the rest of the territory, the south of the village forms a continuous urban space with the districts of Gilamont and Plan-Dessus in Vevey. Although less dense, the north of the village also presents a continuous built space shared with the village of Corseaux. Most of the territory, the Monts-de-Corsier, is between the canton of Friborg to the north and Veveyse to the south. Located at a higher elevation, with a much more dispersed habitat and many farms, the landscape is rural.

History
Corsier was part of the parish of the same name, as were the towns of Chardonne, Corseaux and Jongny. Corsier depended on the Bailiwick of Lausanne from the Bernese invasion of 1536 until 1798.

In the area of Corsier-sur-Vevey, graves dating from late antiquity to the early Middle Ages have been discovered. The place was first mentioned in a document in 1079 under the name Corsie. Later the names Corsiey (1147), Corsiacum (1179), Corgie (1180) and Corsiez (1453) appeared. The place name is derived from the Roman surname Curtius.

Corsier-sur-Vevey was subordinate to the Bishop of Lausanne from its first mention, but came as a fief to the Blonay family at the end of the 11th century. This gave part of the fief in 1284 to the lords of Oron. With the conquest of Vaud by Bern in 1536, Corsier-sur-Vevey came under the administration of the Bailiwick of Lausanne. After the collapse of the Ancien Régime, the village belonged to the canton of Léman from 1798 to 1803 during the Helvetic Republic, which then became part of the canton of Vaud when the mediation constitution came into force. In 1798 it was assigned to the Vevey district.

Since the Middle Ages, Corsier formed a large parish, which also included Chardonne, Corseaux and Jongny. These villages only became politically independent parishes with the dissolution of the large parish in 1816. Another significant change in the border was made in 1892 when the Arabie, Plan-Dessus, Plan-Dessus, Sous-Crêts, Corsets and Faubourg-Saint-Antoine quarters on the outskirts of Vevey on the Veveyse alluvial cone were separated from Corsier-sur-Vevey and after Vevey were incorporated.

Economy
As of 2010, Corsier-sur-Vevey had an unemployment rate of 4.3%. As of 2008, there were 35 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 14 businesses involved in this sector. 679 people were employed in the secondary sector and there were 38 businesses in this sector. 556 people were employed in the tertiary sector, with 63 businesses in this sector. There were 1,563 residents of the municipality who were employed in some capacity, of which females made up 45.8% of the workforce.

In 2008 the total number of full-time equivalent jobs was 1,113. The number of jobs in the primary sector was 26, of which 25 were in agriculture and 1 was in forestry or lumber production. The number of jobs in the secondary sector was 652 of which 531 or (81.4%) were in manufacturing and 120 (18.4%) were in construction. The number of jobs in the tertiary sector was 435. In the tertiary sector; 58 or 13.3% were in wholesale or retail sales or the repair of motor vehicles, 30 or 6.9% were in the movement and storage of goods, 21 or 4.8% were in a hotel or restaurant, 2 or 0.5% were in the information industry, 20 or 4.6% were the insurance or financial industry, 47 or 10.8% were technical professionals or scientists, 73 or 16.8% were in education and 150 or 34.5% were in health care.

In 2000, there were 692 workers who commuted into the municipality and 1,315 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net exporter of workers, with about 1.9 workers leaving the municipality for every one entering. About 2.3% of the workforce coming into Corsier-sur-Vevey are coming from outside Switzerland, while 0.0% of the locals commute out of Switzerland for work. Of the working population, 20.5% used public transportation to get to work, and 55.9% used a private car.

Companies
Decision SA, construction company, which notably built the Alinghi boats, America’s Cup winners 2003 and 2007
Serono, biotechnology company

Religion
From the 2000 census, 1,260 or 39.4% were Roman Catholic, while 1,222 or 38.2% belonged to the Swiss Reformed Church. Of the rest of the population, there were 79 members of an Orthodox church (or about 2.47% of the population), there was 1 individual who belongs to the Christian Catholic Church, and there were 135 individuals (or about 4.22% of the population) who belonged to another Christian church. There was 1 individual who was Jewish, and 105 (or about 3.28% of the population) who were Islamic. There were 14 individuals who were Buddhist, 6 individuals who were Hindu and 4 individuals who belonged to another church. 396 (or about 12.38% of the population) belonged to no church, are agnostic or atheist, and 39 individuals (or about 1.22% of the population) did not answer the question.

Education
In Corsier-sur-Vevey about 1,212 or (37.9%) of the population have completed non-mandatory upper secondary education, and 404 or (12.6%) have completed additional higher education (either university or a Fachhochschule). Of the 404 who completed tertiary schooling, 46.8% were Swiss men, 27.0% were Swiss women, 18.1% were non-Swiss men and 8.2% were non-Swiss women.

Related Post

In the 2009/2010 school year there were a total of 331 students in the Corsier-sur-Vevey school district. In the Vaud cantonal school system, two years of non-obligatory pre-school are provided by the political districts. During the school year, the political district provided pre-school care for a total of 817 children of which 456 children (55.8%) received subsidized pre-school care. The canton’s primary school program requires students to attend for four years. There were 156 students in the municipal primary school program. The obligatory lower secondary school program lasts for six years and there were 170 students in those schools. There were also 5 students who were home schooled or attended another non-traditional school.

As of 2000, there were 222 students in Corsier-sur-Vevey who came from another municipality, while 186 residents attended schools outside the municipality.

The International School of Monts-de-Corsier was previously in Les Monts-de-Corsier and was a part of the Montreux-based Riviera School network.

Sights
A parish church has been mentioned since 1079. The tower of the previous Romanesque building and parts of the choir with wall paintings from the 15th century are integrated into today’s church. The three-aisled nave and its side chapels date from around 1600. The rectory built in 1592 was redesigned in the 18th century.

Other important buildings include the Maison laïque (with sculptures in the Renaissance style), the Bernese Winzerhaus (1583–1585), the Maison Cuénod and the Maison De Montet (both from the 18th century), the Hôtel de Ville (17th century) and Châtelard Castle (from the 17th and 18th centuries).

The Manoir de Ban mansion, built in 1840, was the residence of Charlie Chaplin from 1953 to 1977, who – like James Mason and Bronisław Huberman – is buried in the Corsier-sur-Vevey cemetery. In 2016, a museum, Chaplin’s World, opened in the mansion.

Historical heritage
The village of Corsier-sur-Vevey includes two buildings classified as Swiss cultural property of national importance: the café de la Place and the manor of Ban. It also has several buildings classified as cultural goods of regional importance, namely the buildings at numbers 2, 4 and 6 of the rue du Château, as well as the temple of Corsier-sur-Vevey.

The old Bellière toll (1831) in Monts-de-Corsier on the border with the canton of Friborg on the road to Châtel-Saint-Denis is due to the Vevey architect Philippe Franel.

Chaplin’s World
A Museum For Laughing, Learning And Entertainment At The Heart Of Chaplin’s World

The Manor
Discover the family life of this legendary artist through the rooms of this magnificent residence. Let yourself be guided through the furniture and personal items of a film genius. Follow step by step the last 25 years of this extraordinary destiny.

The Studio
Enter the spectacular world of silent cinema in the Studio. Experience a unique journey as moving as it is captivating, travel through eras and settings and rediscover the mythical films that made the work of the filmmaker: from the fairground world of the Circus, to the Modern Times machine by passing by Hollywood Boulevard, follow in the footsteps of Charlot, and try your hand at the art of pantomime. Connoisseurs and amateurs alike, get ready for an emotional journey!

The Park
Chaplin’s home stands at the heart of a magnificent 4 hectare estate. You can enjoy this green setting all year round, with its breathtaking view of Lake Geneva and the Alpine massifs.

Events and festivals
Every year since 1982, at the end of August, a pedestrian race has been organized in Corsier-sur-Vevey (Course Chaplin). This race crosses the roads and paths of the town. There is one route per category: the most popular category is the so-called “popular” one (4 kilometers), which crosses the town and notably passes through the manor of Ban.

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