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Origin and history

The church of Saint-Georges du Prieuré, located in Saint-Jeoire-Purié en Savoie, is a former Prioral Church founded in 1110. It was established thanks to the intervention of Saint Hugues I, Bishop of Grenoble, and Gérald/Géraud de La Palud, Lord of Chignin, who granted rights to several churches, including that of Saint-Jeoire. The priory was entrusted to the regular canons of St Augustine, and his first known prior, Gérald, was mentioned in 1129 in the entourage of Count Amédée III of Savoy. The priory, prosperous in the Middle Ages, had several dependent churches and was linked to local noble families such as the Miolans, The Chamber and the Chignins.

The Priory of Saint-Jeoire formed a fortified complex, surrounded by ditches, crenelated walls and towers, reflecting its seigneurial status. A print by Claude Châtillon (1600) shows his defensive elements, including the "Tour de Miolans" and the house of the prior. From the 14th century, the beginning was introduced, and the priory gradually lost its autonomy. In 1599 his income was attached to the Collège de la Sainte-Maison de Thonon-les-Bains by a papal bubble, then secularized in 1667. Prioral life finally disappeared in 1762, leaving only the parish.

The church, classified as a historical monument in 1952, bears witness to this complex history, combining religious, seigneurial and family power. Its architecture and fortifications illustrate the strategic importance of priories in the Savoyard region in the Middle Ages, as well as their gradual decline under the Old Regime. The local noble families, such as the Miolans and the Chignins, played a central role in both its foundation and its administration.

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