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Tower of Châtel en Savoie

Savoie

Tower of Châtel


    73300 La Tour-en-Maurienne
Tour du Châtel
Tour du Châtel
Tour du Châtel
Tour du Châtel
Tour du Châtel
Tour du Châtel
Crédit photo : Amedeo - Sous licence Creative Commons

Timeline

Haut Moyen Âge
Moyen Âge central
Bas Moyen Âge
Renaissance
Temps modernes
Révolution/Empire
XIXe siècle
Époque contemporaine
900
1000
1100
1200
1300
1700
1800
1900
2000
887
First written entry
XIe siècle
Construction of the current tower
1271
Unified chestnut
XVIIe siècle
Abandonment of the castle
1800s
Restoration of the tower
8 mai 1900
Historical monument classification
août 1944
Refuge during World War II
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui

Heritage classified

Tour du Châtel : by order of 8 May 1900

Key figures

Bérold de Saxe - Founder of Savoie's house Would have renovated the site, giving its name.
Humbertiens - Counts in Maurienne and Savoie Organize the chestnut around Hermillon.
Châtelain d’Aiguebelle (1271) - Métral de Maurienne and Hermillon Manages the territory for the Counts.

Origin and history

The Châtel Tower, also known as the Berold Tower or Sarrazin Tower, is the last vestige of a medieval castle founded at least in the 9th century, located on the delegated commune of Châtel, in the Maurian valley. This 14.5-metre square dungeon, about 20 metres high, overlooks the valley and the Arc from a steep promontory. Its main access was through the village of Hermillon, reflecting its defensive role in an area marked by conflicts and Alpine exchanges.

The site, occupied from Roman times, is mentioned for the first time in 887 under the name castrum Armelionis. The present tower, probably dating back to the 11th century, would be a vestige of the dungeon of the castle of Hermillon, a strategic center of the Maurienne chestnut under the Humbertians, Counts of Savoy. According to local legends, Bérold de Saxony, founder of Savoie's house, has renovated the site, giving it its alternative name. The castle, abandoned in the seventeenth century, retained only its tower, restored in the nineteenth century.

Ranked a historic monument by order of 8 May 1900, the tower even served as a refuge during the German retreat in August 1944. Its salient stones and massive structure illustrate medieval construction techniques, while its history mixes historical facts with popular narratives. Now a communal property, it symbolizes the defensive heritage and Savoyard heritage of the Maurian.

Hermillon's châtellenie, whose castle was the heart, played a key administrative and military role from the thirteenth century. In 1271, a chestnut from Aiguebelle combined the functions of metral (comtal representative) for Maurienne and Hermillon, stressing the importance of the site in the local feudal organization. The tower, the only remaining element, recalls this time when the Chatelan managed justice, collection of taxes and defence of the territory on behalf of the Counts of Savoie.

External links