Traditional Economies and Transhumance

The Pastoral Foundation

Transhumance—the seasonal movement of livestock between valley floors and high pastures—formed the economic and cultural foundation of mountain life for millennia. This wasn't simple herding but a complex system requiring sophisticated ecological knowledge, social organization, and technological adaptation. Each valley developed specific patterns based on local topography, climate, and vegetation, creating diverse variations on the transhumant theme.

In the Alps, the "inalpe" (ascent) and "désalpe" (descent) marked crucial calendar moments, celebrated with festivals that persist today. Herders drove cattle, sheep, and goats to progressively higher pastures as snow melted, maximizing grazing resources while allowing valley meadows to produce hay for winter feed. The system required detailed knowledge—which slopes greened first, where avalanche danger lingered, how weather patterns affected different elevations.

Pyrenean transhumance followed similar principles but with regional variations. The western Pyrenees saw massive sheep movements, with flocks from Béarn ascending to high pastures in elaborate processions. The eastern Pyrenees developed systems emphasizing cattle, with elaborate agreements governing shared pastures between French and Spanish communities. Some Pyrenean communities practiced "inverse transhumance," sending flocks to winter in distant lowlands—a practice requiring complex negotiations and traditional routes maintained over centuries.

Alpine Economies Beyond Pastoralism

While pastoralism dominated, mountain communities developed diverse economic strategies. Alpine valleys pioneered early industrialization through water power, with mills, forges, and sawmills proliferating wherever streams provided energy. The Maurienne valley became a center of iron working, using charcoal from managed forests and water-powered bellows to produce tools and weapons traded across Europe.

Mining complemented pastoral activities, with communities extracting silver, lead, iron, and other minerals from mountain veins. The argentière (silver mine) place names scattered throughout the Alps mark former mining sites. Communities developed sophisticated legal frameworks for mineral rights, often maintaining collective ownership while leasing extraction rights to specialists. Mining brought wealth but also environmental degradation—early examples of the tensions between economic development and environmental protection that continue today.

Trade control provided another income source. Mountain communities leveraged their position astride crucial passes, extracting tolls while providing guides, lodging, and transport services. The Grand Saint Bernard hospice, established in 1049, exemplifies this system—monks provided free shelter to poor pilgrims while wealthy merchants paid handsomely for guides and protection. Some communities specialized entirely in trade services, developing mule breeding, road maintenance, and hospitality infrastructure that made dangerous crossings possible.