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Origin and history

The Priory of Montjoux, locally known as Château de Rives, is a 14th-century religious establishment founded in Rives-sous-Thonon, in the municipality of Thonon-les-Bains. Originally confused with a nearby strong house built by the Greysier family, it was long mistakenly considered a castle. The regular canons of St Augustine lived there until the 18th century, before the site was nationalized during the French Revolution and transformed into an industrial place (tanning, pottery).

The historical confusion between the priory and the strong house dates back to the work of Abbé Louis-Étienne Piccard (1880), who claimed that the site had been acquired by the provosts of the Grand-Saint-Bernard in the 15th century to move closer to the house of Savoie. Recent research has, however, established that the two buildings, although contemporary, were distinct: the priory, mentioned in 1386, was an assembly of houses purchased by the canons from 1321, while the strong house, cited until 1487, gradually disappeared from the archives.

In the 17th century, the fort house was already in ruins, leaving only the tower of languages. The priory was transferred in 1752 to the order of Saints Maurice and Lazare before being sold in 1791. In the 19th century, the site was home to industrial activities and became a private residence in 1920. During the Second World War, he was requisitioned by German troops, then the site of an attack on Henri Brun, former commander of GMR Île-de-France, on November 2, 1944.

Partially classified as historical monuments in 1932 (façades, roofs, courtyard and gate), the castle of Rives was ceded to the city of Thonon in 1999. Since then, it has hosted the municipal museum, highlighting its complex history, between religious, military and industrial heritage. The language tower, the last vestige of the strong house, still bears witness to this architectural and historical duality.

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