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Origin and history

The convent of the Visitation of Thonon-les-Bains, also known as the convent of Sainte-Marie, was originally established in Evian in 1625 before being transferred in 1627 to Thonon, considered more suitable by Jeanne de Chantal. The community first settled in a house acquired by Marie de Charmoisy, then on the current site in 1633, thanks to the donations of Marquis Albert de Lullin. The construction work, begun in 1637, sized until 1685, with successive phases for the wings of the cloister, the church (completed in 1684) and the sacristy.

Expelled in 1793 during the Revolution, the nuns returned in 1835 after the purchase of the convent by the Visitation of Lyon. Work resumed in 1840 to complete the cloister (closed in 1848) and to raise the existing wings. The sisters finally left the site in 1968, leaving room for a municipal library, then in 2018, at the Cultural Pole of the Visitation, which now hosts the media library, music school and exhibitions.

The convent, partially listed as a historical monument since 1973, consists of buildings organized around two courtyards: the West Food Court and the Cloister in the East. The church, with a single nave of 22.6 m, includes a crypt and two side chapels. The site also preserves 17th century wall inscriptions, a mill converted into a restaurant, and traces of the 14th century Oncion Canal, which once fed the convent and the castle of Ripaille.

Among the remarkable elements are the building of the sister tourières, interface between the outside world and the monastic fence, and the western wing of the cloister, once home to the choir of the nuns and the infirmary. The attic of this building now houses the Chablaisian Academy. The facades, roofs and wall inscriptions have been protected since 1973 and 1988.

The convent illustrates the visitandine architecture of the 17th and 18th centuries, marked by a rigorous spatial organization and an adaptation to community needs. Its history reflects the religious and political upheavals, from the Counter-Reform to modern secularization, while at the same time demonstrating the cultural and social role of urban monasteries in Savoy.

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