Presbytery en Haute-Savoie

Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Petit-Bornand-les-Glières presbytery, located in Haute-Savoie, is a massive building dating from the late 18th century (1780-1782), rebuilt after a fire in 1668. It replaces a medieval building dating back to the 14th century, under Abbé Jean de Verboux. His coat of arms, engraved on the porch, recalls the influence of the house of Savoy, especially those of the parish priest Jacques de Savoye (1543), apostolic prothonotary and abbot d'Entremont.

The building, a Savoyard "Fort House" style, is surrounded by a wall and wooden gate. He served as a refuge during the Second World War, where Abbé Jean Truffy hid resistant and refractory at the STO (1942-1944). Arrested in 1944, he was deported to Dachau. The presbytery, threatened with destruction in 1984, was saved by an associative mobilization and listed as a historical monument in 1985.

The architecture reflects its mixed use: agricultural ground floor ( stable, cellar) and residential floor (19 rooms in 1984). Morzine's slate roof and blockage facades, with corner-sized stones, make it a typical example of the Faucignerand presbyteries. The gardens of the parish priest, the stone basins and an episcopal shield complete the whole.

The presbytery was linked to prominent figures, such as Saint Francis de Sales, parish priest in 1597-1598, or Bishop Jean-François de Sales, who visited the premises in 1626. The archives also mention influential parish priests such as Simon Cauly (17th century), doctor and chaplain of the Duke of Savoy, or François Perravex, who supervised modifications in 1786.

During the Revolution, the presbytery became national property in 1794, and its religious symbols were hammered. In the 20th century, it was at the heart of a heritage debate: in 1984, its cost of restoration (200-250 million francs) almost led to its demolition. Finally preserved, it is today a private property not open to the public.

Its history illustrates the tensions between local memory and modernity, as evidenced by the 1984 controversy between the architect of the Bâtiments de France, defending its historical value, and local elected officials, concerned with costs and contemporary usage. The 1985 classification protected its facades, roofs, and porches, sealing its iconic heritage status.

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