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All French heritage classified by regions, departments and cities

  2. Patrimoine
  3. Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
  4. Isère
  5. 38890 Saint-Chef

  6. Pollet Tower

Pollet Tower à Saint-Chef dans l'Isère

Isère

Pollet Tower

    8 Impasse de la Tour
    38890 Saint-Chef
Photo de Pollet Tower
Crédit photo : Thierry74 - Sous licence Creative Commons

Timeline

Haut Moyen Âge
Moyen Âge central
Bas Moyen Âge
Renaissance
Temps modernes
Révolution/Empire
Époque contemporaine
600
700
…
1200
1300
1400
1500
1600
1700
2000
…
VIe siècle
Foundation of the Abbey
XIIe siècle
Construction of the tower
1402-1405
Fire of the castle
XVIe siècle
Dismantling of the site
2022
Official protection
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui

Heritage classified

The tower of Saint-Chef and its site (i.e. the parcels comprising its terrace) located 7 chemin des Châteaux, corresponding to parcels No. 35, 36, 37, 42, 43 and 44, appearing in the cadastre section AB: inscription by decree of 18 November 2022

Key figures

Saint Theudère - Founder of the Abbey Disciple of Saint Caesar of Arles, 6th century.
Archevêques de Vienne - Lords and Abbés Owners of the castle and protectors of the Abbey.
Famille des Torchefelon de Montcarra - Rival Lords Fire officers in 1402-1405.

Origin and history

The Pollet Tower is located at the eastern end of the old castral complex of the "Château District" of Saint-Chef, in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. Built in the 12th century, it dominates the village and the abbey from an oval terrace, surrounded by traces of an ancient wall. Its imposing dimensions (17 meters high, 8.80 m square base side) and thick walls (2.40 m) reveal its defensive role. The tower, built of limestone and molasses, preserves traces of internal vaults and old beams delimiting the floors, although its upper side has partially disappeared.

The tower was part of a defensive system linked to the Abbey of Saint-Chef, founded in the sixth century by Saint Theudère, disciple of Saint Césaire d'Arles. In the 12th century, the expansion of the abbey was accompanied by the construction of a town and a feudal castle on the heights, owned by the archbishops of Vienna. This castle, including the Pollet tower, protected the abbey and its outbuildings. The site, lined with walls, also housed a residential "great castle" and a castral village, reflecting the strategic and religious importance of the place.

In the 14th century, the site is divided between the abbatial castle (defensive) and the residence of archbishops, more to the west. After the Dauphiné joined France, local tensions led to a fire in the castle in 1402-1405, during a conflict with the family of the Torchendelon de Montcarra. The Pollet Tower, the only surviving tower with a corner tower, is preserved after the site was dismantled in the 16th century. It is now listed as a Historic Monument, with its site, since a protection order in 2022.

The construction materials and techniques (molas of squared molasses, smooth coated, harped blocks) attest to a careful know-how, typical of medieval military buildings. Traces of cradle vaults and ruined bays suggest an internal organization on several levels, while notches for beams mark old floors. The tower, though deconstructed, remains a remarkable example of Dauphinian castral architecture, linked to the religious and seigneurial history of the region.

External links

Page Monumentum