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Origin and history

The Chambéry courthouse was built from 1850 onwards under the impulse of the Sardinian kingdom, after the decision taken in 1848 to build a building dedicated to justice. The first stone was laid by King Victor Emmanuel II and Queen Adelaide, marking the beginning of a ten-year construction project. Originally designed by architect Pierre-Louis Besson, the plans were taken over by engineer Pierre Spurgazzi, while retaining the original structure. The chosen site, near the prisons, was the small end of the Verney Garden, the only space for such a building.

The building became the scene of a major historical event: on 29 April 1860, its walls welcomed the proclamation of the plebiscite's results on the annexation of Savoy to France. Neither the Sardinian king nor Napoleon III officially inaugurated the palace, but its solemn opening took place on 28 June 1860 with the installation of the first French attorney general. This monument, of neo-classical style with colorful facades, reflects the Sardinian and Palladian architectural influence, especially in its inner courtyard with arcades.

Before its construction, justice in Chambéry was performed in various places, including the Dominican convent, the seat of the Savoy Senate for nearly three centuries. The present palace has remarkable heritage features, such as the hall of solemn sessions where annexation was proclaimed, or the Napoleon Salon decorated with royal portraits. Since 1984, parts of the building, including facades and courtrooms, have been protected as historical monuments.

The courthouse is distinguished by its staircase of honour, its mural by Pierre Eugène Montézin (1939) in the room of the not lost, and its historical library, former repository of the archives of the Savoie Senate. The exterior facades, initially yellow, were ravaged in "sard red" in 1976. The inner courtyard, conceived as a public passage, lost this function in 1960. Today, the building combines Sardinian judicial heritage and French republican symbol.

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