The majestic snow-capped peaks of the Alps against the blue sky, and under them - the boundless Lake Geneva of incredible beauty ... Switzerland is an extremely picturesque country. The mountain air here is just healing. No wonder Switzerland became the first climatic resort for the treatment of pulmonary diseases, in particular tuberculosis. And with the fashion for trekking, mountaineering and skiing, the popularity of this small country in the heart of Europe has only increased. But there are other attractions in Switzerland. No, this article will not talk about ultra-precise watches, chocolate or Swarovski crystals. The country of medieval castles is considered France. But Switzerland has no shortage of them. Suffice it to recall at least the castles of Granson (de Grandson) or Chillon (Château de Chillon). And if the first stands on the shores of Lake Neuchâtel, thirty kilometers north of Lausanne, the second rises directly above the waters of Leman. In this article we will talk about the Chateau de Chillon: how to get to the castle and what to see.
Sights of Lake Geneva
The ancient Romans, pushing the borders of their empire to the north, discovered this pond and named it Lacus Lemannus. With the formation of the Swiss Confederation, the lake began to be called Geneva - the largest city on its shores. But later people again returned to the old name. And so it happened that the lake is listed as Geneva on Russian maps, and as Leman on European maps. This crescent-shaped body of water is located on the border between France and Switzerland. He stretched from west to east for seventy kilometers. The North Shore is a continuous chain of fashionable resorts, united under the general name of the Swiss Riviera. Perhaps the visiting card of Lehmann is the Geneva Fountain. For one hundred and twenty years, he has been uninterruptedly throwing a stream of water to a height of 150 meters. The 13th-century St. Peter's Basilica is a unique architectural dominant of Geneva. The capital of the canton of Vaud Lausanne is the second largest city on Lake Geneva. Here is a very mild microclimate that allows you to grow grapes. At one time, Lausanne rested Mozart, Byron, Hugo, Dickens and other famous personalities. And in the neighboring town of Vevey, Charlie Chaplin spent the last years. The grave of the most famous comedian is in the city cemetery. Dewoevsky and Gogol, Ernest Hemingway visited Vevey. Yverdon-les-Bains has the only natural sandy beach on the whole of Lake Geneva. There are also healing springs that created the glory of the balneological resort. And finally, the lovely Montreux. This town is located on a low hill near the majestic alpine mountains and Lake Geneva. It is in it that the Chillon Castle is located.
How to get there
Montreux is located on the eastern shore of Lake Geneva, only forty kilometers from Lausanne. Of the great Russian celebrities, Leo Tolstoy, Igor Stravinsky and Pyotr Tchaikovsky visited here, and Vladimir Nabokov lived here for the last seventeen years. Montreux is known as a resort for active people. It has many golf and yacht clubs, riding centers. Skiers surf the surface of the lake, climbers climb the cliffs, and hiking enthusiasts walk along the surrounding slopes. Montreux is also known for its gardeners. Whenever you come, the city will delight you with exuberant flowering - from primroses and tulips to chrysanthemums and cyclomens. Four kilometers from Montreux, its main attraction is Chillon Castle. You can get to it via the A9 highway. Near the castle there is free parking. Bus number 1 runs from Montreux to Chillon every ten minutes. A visit to the castle-museum will cost an adult twelve francs, and a child is half the price.
History of a medieval fortress
The chillon rises on a small rock sticking out from the bottom of Lake Geneva. The castle is connected to the shore by a bridge. Chillon was built in a strategically important place. After all, the Saint Bernard Pass is very close by. Thus, the fortress controlled the main route from Europe to Italy. The history of the castle, according to scientists, begins in the ninth century. But the present appearance of Chillon took in the thirteenth century, under Peter the Savoy. Archaeologists find Roman coins in this place , although there is no information about the presence of a camp here or the strengthening of the times of antiquity. The first written evidence of Castrum Quilonis dates back to 1160. Even then, it was the main residence of the Dukes of Savoy. In 1253, Pierre II conceived a grand restructuring of the castle, which continued (with short interruptions) until the fifteenth century. But those twenty-five buildings in the three courtyards of the citadel that we see now were built by the architect Pierre Meunier in the middle of the thirteenth century.
Castle prison
Since the fourteenth century, pilgrims and merchants traveling to Italy have increasingly used the St. Gotthard Pass. Chillon Castle gradually lost its original meaning - control over the main tract. The Dukes of Savoy began to use not so much the chambers of the fortress as its dungeons. During the time of the Black Plague (1347), Jews were tortured in casemates, extorting confessions from them that they poisoned the sources with a terrible disease. Then the Dukes of Savoy - ardent Catholics - kept the Huguenots in prison, burning them like heretics in one of the courtyards. During the witch hunt, the same fate awaited women accused of witchcraft. Those who died in captivity from starvation and torture, the guards threw into Lake Geneva through special windows. All these atrocities lasted until May twenty-ninth, 1536, until the castle after two days of siege was taken by Protestants of Bern. In 1798, when the canton of Vaud became independent, the citadel became his property. Soon, a museum was opened within the walls of the castle.
Famous prisoner
In the cellars of the citadel many eminent persons languished. Here, for example, is the abbot of Valu from Corvey, who was imprisoned in Chillon Castle on the orders of the French King Louis the Pious. Or the great chancellor of Savoy, Guillaume de Bolomie, who, a century after the fire of the Jews, was drowned in Lake Geneva at the walls of the citadel. But the most famous prisoner of the castle was Francois Bonivar. He was a prior at the San Victor Monastery in Geneva, and when he began to support the ideas of the Reformation, he immediately fell into disfavor with the Duke of Savoy Charles III, an ardent papist. From 1532 to 1536, François Bonivard “without trial” spent in the prison of Chillon Castle, chained to a pillar. And most likely, part of Guillaume de Bolomier would have been waiting for him if the Protestants from Bern had not taken the fortress by storm.
Romanticization of Chillon Castle
In the summer of 1816, the English poet George Gordon Byron visited Lake Geneva (Switzerland). Among other attractions, he visited the medieval castle, towering directly from the water. In the fortress, Byron was told the story of Francois Bonivard. Shocked by what he heard, he wrote the poem The Prisoner of Chillon. There is a pillar in the basement of the castle. The poet was told that it was on this crossbar that the great Huguenot was chained for four years. And Byron left his autograph on the historical pillar. Chillon Castle in Montreux was also mentioned in their works by Percy Shelley, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Alexander Dumas and Victor Hugo. Famous personalities such as Auguste Flaubert, Charles Dickens, Mark Twain and Hans Christian Andersen visited the fortress.
Castle museum
Thanks to the poem, the fortress became a world celebrity. In the 19th century, medieval buildings were not favored, turning them into barracks or warehouses. But Chillon Castle was a happy exception. Already in 1887, the Association for the Preservation of the Monument was created. The authorities of the canton of Vaud also did not stand aside, and in 1891 the castle was awarded the status of a historical monument. And in 1939, one hundred thousand people visited the fortress museum.
What you need to see in Chillon Castle?
This is Switzerland's most famous architectural landmark. Lake Geneva and Chillon Castle look as one organic whole. From a height it seems as if the ship was moored off the coast. The castle consists of twenty-five buildings in three courtyards. In the center rises the dungeon. The only religious building is the castle chapel. It preserved paintings of the XIV century. Visitors are led through enfilades of grandiose chambers. This is a festive, knightly, stamped halls, a guest room, a count's bedroom. No less interesting is the prison. The vaulted dungeon resembles a Gothic cathedral. To get the most out of the tour, you need to purchase a brochure in Russian at the box office.