History
A little bit of history...
Running from Ugine to Megève, the valley was named after its river: the Arly, which flows from the heights of Megève to Albertville .
In Roman times, Val d'Arly belonged to the “Alpes Graies” province. It was the land of the Ceutrons, a Celtic tribe and the area’s first inhabitants. Roman milestones at the top of certain passes (Jaillet, Appennaz, Petit Croisse Bolet) provide reminders of this distant time.
In the Middle Ages Age (11th century), the Barons of Faucigny set up Flumet as their capital, building a castle and other fortifications. The other villages belonged to the “mandement de Flumet”. At first relatively autonomous, Val d'Arly gradually came under the control of the Dukes of Savoie, the future kings of Piedmont-Sardinia, before becoming part of France, with the rest of Savoie, in 1860. 
In the 11th century, the valley’s inhabitants were converted to Christianity by a group of Benedictine monks, who also cleared the forests to create pastureland. At first, all the villages were part of the Flumet parish, but each village was gradually elevated to the rank of parish in its own right. Val d'Arly was a very pious area and the deep faith of its habitants is reflected in the valley’s religious heritage.
Up until the 20th century, nearly all the villagers were arable or livestock farmers (cattle, goats, sheep and mules), struggling to survive in the face of the capricious mountain weather and harsh terrain. Paradoxically for an area that was virtually self-sufficient, emigration from Val d'Arly was common, especially in the 19th century. Some emigrants ventured as far as the Americas, but most emigration was seasonal - an attempt to escape the rigours of life in the mountains.
With the coming of industrialisation, and particularly of tourism, lifestyles have changed. Now, Val d'Arly can look forward to a bright future based on the rich traditions of a past that is still alive.
