Page 140 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Switzerland

3 "'-=
CHÂTEAU Two bedchambers

are located here.
DE CHILLON banqueting
Aula Nova,
a former
hall, now
EXPERIENCE Western Switzerland This enchanting medieval castle, set on a rocky
! B3 ⌂ 21 Ave de Chillon # 10am–5pm daily ¢ 1 Jan
contains a
and 25 Dec ∑ chillon.ch
museum.
spur on the eastern shore of Lake Geneva, is one
of Switzerland’s most evocative sights and
attracts hordes of visitors each year.
Built for the Dukes of Savoy, the castle’s origins
probably go back to the 11th century; however,
its present appearance dates from the 13th
century. In 1536, the castle was captured by
the Bernese, and from then until 1798 it was
the seat of the region’s Bernese bailiffs.
Following the Vaudois Revolution of 1798,
the castle became national property and
has belonged ever since to the canton of
Vaud. Throughout its history the castle
was the centre of court life, and it was
also used as a prison. Its most famous
captive was François Bonivard, impris­
oned there from 1530 to 1536. Today,
the castle’s many guided tours (by
reservation only) are a great way
to explore its history.

IMPRISONMENT
OF FRANÇOIS
BONIVARD
Born in 1493, François
Bonivard was the prior
of St Victor, a monas tery
just outside Geneva.
Following his opposition
to the Duke of Savoy’s
infringements against
the liberties of the city
of Geneva, he was held The spectacular The covered
prisoner at Chillon for six Castellan’s Hall bridge was
long years. Bonivard was has a wooden originally a
finally freed in 1536, ceiling resting drawbridge.
when the Bernese on columns that
support arches.
attacked and gained The walls are richly
control of the castle. He decorated with
was later immortalized paintings.
by Lord Byron in the long Did You Know?
narrative poem The
Prisoner of Chillon, which The castle’s damp, dark
he wrote in Ouchy while dungeons are cut into
travelling with fellow the bedrock of the
authors Percy Bysshe and Illustration of the island itself.
Mary Shelley, in 1816. Château de Chillon, a
popular historical sight
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