Timeline

Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The Chappe de Marcy tower is an optical telegraph station built in the 4th quarter of the 18th century, integrated into the Paris-Lyon-Toulon line. It entered service in 1799 and was operational until 1852, when the electric telegraph and the railway rendered its use obsolete. Located between the relays of Theizé and Dardilly, it was the 55th station from Paris, with a mechanism consisting of a mast of 7.8 m, a main arm of 4.5 m and two wings of 2 m.

The unique Beaujolais tower, whose equipment was restored in the same way between 1981 and 1984, has been included in the additional inventory of historic monuments since 1982. Located on the heights of Marcy (Montezain Highway), it reflects the technological innovation of the revolutionary era and the optical communication network linking the capital to strategic regions.

Telegraph Chappe, a pioneering remote message transmission system, played a key role in military and administrative communications under the First Empire and Restoration. The tower of Marcy, owned by the commune, is now one of the last five still visible in France, offering a concrete example of this technical and historical heritage.

Its modest architecture (square building of 4 m side and 7 m height) contrasts with its functional importance. The site, accessible near the Marcy cemetery, illustrates the adaptation of the infrastructures to the reliefs, here the Beaujolais hills, to ensure the visibility between the distant relays of 8 to 9 km.

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