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Origin and history

The Château de Sales was a former fortress located in the commune of Thorens-Glières, in Haute-Savoie, in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region. A cradle of the Sales family, he was the ancestral home of this line before his transfer to the nearby Thorens Castle. Today, no visible vestige remains, except for a chapel built on its ruins, marking the location of the birthplace of Saint Francis de Sales, born there on August 21, 1567.

The castle played a central role in the history of the Sales family, notably with François de Sales, bishop of Geneva, canonized in 1665 and proclaimed Doctor of the Church in 1877. His father, also named François, seigneur de Sales, Boisy and Novel, began from 1551 to acquire the nearby castle of Thorens because of the old age of Sales. The site was ravaged by two major fires: the first in 1617, then in 1630 during the French invasion of Savoy, in retaliation for the resistance of Count Louis de Sales, the saint's younger brother.

In 1672, three nephews of Louis de Sales, including Bishop Charles-Auguste de Sales, Prince Bishop of Geneva, built a chapel on the ruins of the castle, at the exact location of the birth of Saint Francis. This chapel, restored in the 19th century by Count François de Roussy de Sales (1860-1943), became the family necropolis. It houses a 17th century baroque altarpiece and a cross marking the inspiration of the Order of the Visitation. The site, which has been classified since 1982 and partially listed as historical monuments (1960, 1990), remains a place of memory linked to the Savoyard spiritual and aristocratic heritage.

Architecturally, the Château de Sales initially had six high towers, three turrets and three houses. Its promontory was separated from the village of Thorens-Glières by the Flau (or Flan), a local stream. The present chapel, the last symbolic vestige, perpetuates the memory of this missing monument, while sheltering the ashes of members of the family of Roussy de Sales, formerly buried in the church of Thorens.

The Château de Sales illustrates the historical tensions between Savoy and France, especially during the invasion of 1630-1631. Count Louis de Sales, governor of the castle of Annecy, refused to deliver the place to the French troops commanded by the Marshal of Châtillon, causing the destruction of his ancestral home. This episode reflects the territorial conflicts and dynastic loyalties that marked the region in modern times.

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