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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Château de La Tour, located in Saint-Genis-Laval in the Métropole de Lyon, is a quadrangular building dating from the early seventeenth century. With a round tower and three square pavilions, it is distinguished by its monumental perron, inscribed in historical monuments since 1943. Inside, courtrooms and prisons set up during the Revolution testify to its judicial role.

The family of Villars marked the history of the castle as early as 1592, when a truce was signed there between the Duke of Nemours and Alphonse d'Ornano. Jerome de Villars, archbishop of Vienna, ordered its construction in the early seventeenth century. The estate then moved to the Vidaud family in 1627, which retained it until the Revolution, when it housed a revolutionary tribunal.

During the Terror, the castle barely escaped demolition. Its owner, Étienne Marion, died guillotine in 1794. In the 19th century, master glassmaker Lucien Bégule was born there in 1848. Today, the castle remains a private property and does not visit.

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