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Origin and history

The Church of Notre-Dame-de-la-Visitation, located in Petit-Bornand-les-Glières in Haute-Savoie, is a Catholic building with foundations dating back to the 13th century. Most of the current construction dates from the sixteenth century (circa 1553), as evidenced by an inscription on the façade. The fire of the cure in 1668 destroyed the archives, erasing part of its primitive history. The building, regularly oriented, features a Gothic choir prior to the 15th century, illuminated by lancet bays and an oculus. The nave, originally unique, was enlarged by collaterals in the 19th century, creating an impression of structural imbalance.

The portal, executed in 1553 under the impulse of Jacques de Savoie-Nemours, son of Philippe de Genevois-Nemours, has a style influenced by Piedmont, with characteristic prismatic moldings. The bell tower, shot down in 1794 by order of the conventional Antoine Louis Albitte, was rebuilt in 1880. The stained glass windows, dated 1957, are currently being restored by a Meilleur Ouvrier de France. A 1925 fresco depicting St. Francis de Sales is housed in the abside church, while a side chapel holds a copy of a painting by Dirck van Baburen, a pupil of the Caravage, classified since 1904.

The church was a central place in community life, marked by local customs such as the Easter "complaint", where young people collected eggs by singing, or the Nativity celebrations, punctuated with dances and games. During the Second World War, Father Jean Truffy, parish priest from 1936 to 1958, played a key role as an intermediary between the population, the occupants and the Glières maquis. Deported to Dachau, he was honoured for his commitment to the Resistance.

The granite baptismal fonts, dated 1553-1554, bear witness to the local religious history: they saw the baptism of Adrienne Fichet, celebrated by Saint Francis de Sales in 1597, before she joined the Order of Visitation. The building, remodeled on several occasions (1670, 1804, 1886), preserves heteroclite architectural elements, reflecting stylistic evolutions and liturgical needs over the centuries. The bells, melted in 1747 and 1811, bear the names of their godfathers, linked to Geneva and Savoyard history.

The church also illustrates the social tensions of the 19th century, described by the parish priest Jourdil: impoverishment of families, emigration to Lyon or Paris, and transformation of morals ( frequentation of cabarets, decline of offerings). Religious festivals, such as the Assumption or the Nativity, were the occasion of festive gatherings, sometimes criticized for their excesses. Today, the building remains a symbol of the religious and historical heritage of the Borne Valley, between resistant memory and popular traditions.

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