Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

Orlier Castle, also known as Orlyé, is a former fortified house in Seynod, in the village of Balmont, Haute-Savoie. This monument, first mentioned in the twelfth century, belonged to the Orlyé family, linked to the feudal history of the region. Its current architecture, a one-storey building with a round tower, reflects its evolution throughout the centuries.

In the 12th century, a lord of Orlyé was mentioned in ecclesiastical archives for a legacy to the church of Balmont. In 1366 Amédée d'Orlyé accompanied Count Amédée VI de Savoie on an expedition to the East, initially a crusade against the Turks, which became a campaign to liberate Byzantine Emperor John V Paleologist. This link with Savoie House illustrates the strategic importance of this family in the region.

The lineage of Orlyé, raised to the rank of Marquis, is also illustrated by religious figures. Guillaume d'Orlyé, who entered the Dominicans of Annecy in 1445, finished hermit near Allèves. His parent Jean d'Orlyé, antonin, became prior of the convent of Issenheim in Alsace at the beginning of the sixteenth century. The family also has other strong houses, such as Viuz-la-Chiesaz, and its main fief at the Cengle castle in Allèves.

Today, the Château d'Orlier presents itself as a modest building, vestige of a medieval past marked by noble alliances and military commitments. Its sober architecture, with a characteristic round tower, makes it a testimony of Savoyard history between the twelfth and sixteenth centuries.

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