The Château de Sales is a ruined

castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...

in the ''

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

'' of

Thorens-Glières Thorens-Glières () is a former commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France. On 1 January 2017, it was merged into the new commune Fillière.Haute-Savoie Haute-Savoie (; Arpitan: ''Savouè d'Amont'' or ''Hiôta-Savouè''; en, Upper Savoy) or '; it, Alta Savoia. is a department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of Southeastern France, bordering both Switzerland and Italy. Its prefecture is ...

département In the administrative divisions of France, the department (french: département, ) is one of the three levels of government under the national level ("territorial collectivity, territorial collectivities"), between the regions of France, admin ...

'' of

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. Château de Thorens, appelé par erreur Château de Sales It is often confused with the nearby Château de Thorens.

History

The Château de Sales was the home of the Sales family in Thorens until the beginning of the 17th century, when they built and moved to the Château de Thorens, a few hundred metres away, where they still reside. The Château de Sales is known to have existed before 1249 and was remodelled in the 15th and 16th centuries. It was destroyed in 1630 on the orders of

Louis XIII Louis XIII (; sometimes called the Just; 27 September 1601 – 14 May 1643) was King of France from 1610 until his death in 1643 and King of Navarre (as Louis II) from 1610 to 1620, when the crown of Navarre was merged with the French crown ...

, during his invasion of

Savoy Savoy (; frp, Savouè ; french: Savoie ) is a cultural-historical region in the Western Alps. Situated on the cultural boundary between Occitania and Piedmont, the area extends from Lake Geneva in the north to the Dauphiné in the south. Savo ...

. This was in reprisal for the resistance of Louis Sales, younger brother of Saint

Francis de Sales Francis de Sales (french: François de Sales; it, Francesco di Sales; 21 August 156728 December 1622) was a Bishop of Geneva and is revered as a saint in the Catholic Church. He became noted for his deep faith and his gentle approach to ...

, captain-governor of the Château d'Annecy. The latter had refused to surrender the

Annecy Annecy ( , ; frp, Èneci or ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Haute-Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of Southeastern France. It lies on the northern tip of Lake Annecy, south of Geneva, Switzerland. Nicknamed ...

castle to the King's troops, commanded by Gaspard III de Coligny, Maréchal de Châtillon. In 1672, three nephews of Louis Sales, including Monseigneur Charles-Auguste de Sales, Prince-bishop of

Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...

, built a chapel on the ruins of the Château de Sales, on the precise location of the room where Saint François de Sales had been born. In the 19th century, it was restored by the architect Ruphy for Count François de Roussy de Sales (1860–1943). A cellar was added in which were laid the ashes of his ancestors, until then buried in the church at Thorens (Saint Sébastien chapel). This chapel has since been the

necropolis A necropolis (plural necropolises, necropoles, necropoleis, necropoli) is a large, designed cemetery with elaborate tomb monuments. The name stems from the Ancient Greek ''nekropolis'', literally meaning "city of the dead". The term usually im ...

of the Roussy de Sales family. The last count of Thorens, Jean-François de Roussy de Sales (1928-1999), grandson of count François, is buried there with the greater part of his ancestors. Opposite the chapel, a cross shows visitors where Francis de Sales was inspired by God to create the

Order of the Visitation of Holy Mary , image = Salesas-escut.gif , size = 175px , abbreviation = V.S.M. , nickname = Visitandines , motto = , formation = , founder = Saint Bishop Francis de ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sales, Chateau de Ruined castles in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Haute-Savoie

History

See also

References