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Origin and history

The Château de Sainte-Hélène-sur-Isère, originally named château de Sainte-Hélène-des-Millières, is an ancient 13th century fort, which was thoroughly renovated in the 17th century. It was the seat of the seigneury, then of the barony of St.Hélène-des-Millières. His first mention dates from October 9, 1252, in an act of donation of the Count of Savoie Amédée IV to his brother Boniface de Savoie, Archbishop of Canterbury. At the time, the castle belonged to Pierre d'Aigueblanche, who had built it and declared its tenure in fief. Boniface died there on 14 July 1270, leaving his possessions to his nephew, Peter II of Aigueblanche. The site, strategic in the plain near Isère, was then sold around 1355 to Girard de Varax, before passing to the House, the noble Savoyard family that kept it until 1454.

Between 1415 and 1454 the House — notably John III, Urban, and Gaspard — strengthened and occupied the castle, before it passed by inheritance to the House-Seyssel. In 1607, the latter sold it to Jean-Baptiste de Locatel, from Bergamo, who undertook a major restoration after the damage of the Franco-Savoyard conflicts. The castle, partially ruined, was transformed into a seigneurial residence. In the 17th century, it belonged to the Mareschals of Duingt, then to the Allinges-Coudrée until the Revolution. In 1793, his towers were stunned, and he was sold as a national good before changing hands several times in the 19th and 20th centuries.

The building, inscribed in historical monuments since 17 May 1940, has a quadrangular enclosure flanked by three round towers (including one arased dungeon) and three houses. The southwest tower preserves a Louis XIV fireplace, while the old chapel, used as a parish church in the 19th century, houses a room where Boniface de Savoie died. The castle thus mixes medieval elements (mâchicoulis, vaulted rooms) with classical arrangements (French ceilings, winter garden). Its historic parcellar, including dovecote and stables, is documented by the Sardinian mappe.

Among the remarkable elements, the altarpiece of the chapel (representing the Virgin, Saint Roch and Saint Sebastian) is now preserved at the Museum of Fine Arts in Chambéry. The site, dominated by the Grand Arc and close to Isère, illustrates the evolution of a medieval fortress in seigneurial residence, marked by the conflicts and alliances of the noble families of Savoy between the Middle Ages and the modern era.

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