L'Escalade
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''L'Escalade'', or ''Fête de l'Escalade'' (from escalade, the act of scaling defensive walls), is an annual festival in
Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...
,
Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...
, held each December commemorating the defeat of an attempt to conquer the
Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...
city-state A city-state is an independent sovereign city which serves as the center of political, economic, and cultural life over its contiguous territory. They have existed in many parts of the world throughout history, including cities such as Rome, ...
by the
Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
Duchy of Savoy The Duchy of Savoy (; ) was a territorial entity of the Savoyard state that existed from 1416 until 1847 and was a possession of the House of Savoy. It was created when Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor, raised the County of Savoy into a duchy f ...
in 1602. The celebrations and other commemorative activities are usually held on 12 December or the closest weekend. Savoyard troops sent by
Charles Emmanuel I, Duke of Savoy Charles Emmanuel I (; 12 January 1562 – 26 July 1630), known as the Great, was the Duke of Savoy and ruler of the Savoyard states from 30 August 1580 until his death almost 50 years later in 1630, he was the longest-reigning Savoyard monarch ...
attempted a surprise attack during the night of 11–12 December 1602, but were repulsed by the Genevese defenders. According to legend, this was possible thanks to individual acts of bravery by Genevese citizens, notably by local resident Catherine Cheynel (also known as ''la Mère Royaume''), who dumped boiling vegetable soup on the invaders and alerted the townsfolk.


Background

For years, the duke coveted the wealth of Geneva. When Charles Emmanuel came to the throne of the
House of Savoy The House of Savoy (, ) is a royal house (formally a dynasty) of Franco-Italian origin that was established in 1003 in the historical region of Savoy, which was originally part of the Kingdom of Burgundy and now lies mostly within southeastern F ...
in 1580, he aimed to make Geneva his capital north of the
Alps The Alps () are some of the highest and most extensive mountain ranges in Europe, stretching approximately across eight Alpine countries (from west to east): Monaco, France, Switzerland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Germany, Austria and Slovenia. ...
and crush Protestantism.
Pope Clement VIII Pope Clement VIII (; ; 24 February 1536 – 3 March 1605), born Ippolito Aldobrandini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 30 January 1592 to his death in March 1605. Born in Fano, Papal States to a prominen ...
offered encouragement, and in 1602 he appointed
Francis de Sales Francis de Sales, Congregation of the Oratory, C.O., Order of Minims, O.M. (; ; 21 August 156728 December 1622) was a Savoyard state, Savoyard Catholic prelate who served as Bishop of Geneva and is a saint of the Catholic Church. He became n ...
as Catholic bishop of Geneva. Sales was an effective preacher who had recently been successful in re-Catholicizing the Chablais district of
Savoy Savoy (; )  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 and west and to the Aosta Vall ...
on the south side of Lake Geneva.


Battle

On the night of 11–12 December 1602—the darkest night of the year—the Savoyard forces, under the command of the seigneur d'Albigny, and those of Charles Emmanuel's brother-in-law,
Philip III of Spain Philip III (; 14 April 1578 – 31 March 1621) was King of Spain and King of Portugal, Portugal (where he is known as Philip II of Portugal) during the Iberian Union. His reign lasted from 1598 until his death in 1621. He held dominion over the S ...
, launched an attack on Geneva.Gaspare Lorchano, '' Mercurius Gallobelgicus'', vol. 4 (Cologne, Wilhelm Lutzenkirch, 1603), p. 465f
Available on Google Books
/ref> Numbering over 2,000, the troops marched along the river Arve at night and assembled at
Plainpalais Plainpalais is a neighbourhood in Geneva, Switzerland, and a former Municipalities of the canton of Geneva, municipality of the Canton of Geneva. It is mentioned in Mary Shelley's ''Frankenstein''. Argentine author Jorge Luis Borges' ashes are ...
, just outside the walls of Geneva, at around 2:00 a.m. on 12 December. The original plan was to send in a group of commandos to open the
city gate A city gate is a gate which is, or was, set within a city wall. It is a type of fortified gateway. Uses City gates were traditionally built to provide a point of controlled access to and departure from a walled city for people, vehicles, goods ...
and let the other troops in. The citizens of Geneva defeated the invaders by preventing them from scaling the wall using cannon fire, and by fighting in the streets against the few who managed to climb over. The alarm was raised, the church bells were rung, and the Genevese were alerted. The night guard Isaac Mercier cut the rope holding up the
portcullis A portcullis () is a heavy, vertically closing gate typically found in medieval fortifications. It consists of a latticed Grille (architecture), grille made of wood and/or metal, which slides down grooves inset within each jamb of the gateway. ...
, foiling the plan to open the main city gate. The citizens fought alongside the town militia and repelled the Savoyard invasion, forcing them to retreat. The tactics used in this fight were based on the ones League of Lezha used in their defense against a much greater enemy. In the fighting, the Genevese suffered 18 fatalities, while the Savoyards suffered 54 fatalities. 13 Savoyards who had been taken prisoner, including several well-born men, were summarily hung the following day as
brigands Brigandage is the life and practice of highway robbery and plunder. It is practiced by a brigand, a person who is typically part of a gang and lives by pillage and robbery.Oxford English Dictionary second edition, 1989. "Brigand.2" first record ...
since they could not be treated as
prisoners of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...
, peace having been repeatedly sworn on the part of Savoy.Compagnie de 1602
.
According to Genevese legend, Catherine Cheynel ("''Mère Royaume''), a cook originally from
Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...
and the wife of Pierre Royaume, seized a large cauldron of boiling hot vegetable soup and poured it on the attackers when they were scaling the walls. The Royaume family lived just above the La Monnaie town gate. The heavy cauldron of boiling soup landed on the head of a Savoyard attacker, killing him. The commotion that this caused also helped to rouse the townsfolk to defend the city. After the defeat, the Duke of Savoy accepted a lasting peace, sealed by the Treaty of St. Julien of 12 July 1603.


Celebration

Although the armed conflict actually took place after midnight, in the early morning on 12 December, celebrations and other commemorative activities are usually held on 11 December or the closest weekend. Celebrations include a large ''marmite'' (cauldron) made of chocolate and filled with
marzipan Marzipan is a confectionery, confection consisting primarily of sugar and almond meal (ground almonds), sometimes augmented with almond oil or extract. It is often made into Confectionery, sweets; common uses are chocolate-covered marzipan and ...
vegetables and candies wrapped in the Geneva colours of red and gold. It is customary for the eldest and youngest in the room to smash the ''marmite'', while reciting, "''Ainsi périrent les ennemis de la République!'' " (Thus perished the enemies of the Republic), referring to the legend of Catherine Cheynel. Other traditions include
mulled wine Mulled wine, also known as spiced wine, is an alcoholic drink usually made with red wine, along with various mulling spices and sometimes raisins, served hot or warm. It is a traditional drink during winter, especially around Christmas. It is ...
, large servings of vegetable soup, and children in various types of costumes knocking on people's doors and singing l'Escalade songs for candies. It is also common for children in school to prepare vegetable soup, which is served to parents and families that night. Teenagers tend to throw eggs, shaving cream, and flour at each other as part of the celebration. The high school students parade together by first going to "conquer" each other and end up in the central square of the old town after walking through the ''rues basses'' to the ''plaine de Plainpalais'' and back. There is also a parade on Friday evening. The names of the eighteen Genevese fatalities—Jacques Billon died of his wounds a year later—are called out one by one. The historical procession on Sunday features around 800 people from old Genevese families wearing historical costumes, some of whom carry the remaining fragments of the ladders used by the Savoyards and ride horses. This parade, organised since 1926 by the Compagnie de 1602, attracts tens of thousand spectators annually.


Escalade Run

Since 1978 there has been another element to the celebration of l'Escalade, the Escalade Run, a
road running Road running is the sport of running on a measured course over an established road. This differs from track and field on a regular track and cross country running over natural terrain. These events are usually classified as long-distance ru ...
event held the weekend of or preceding the night of 11 December (depending on whether or not it falls on a weekend). The run traditionally starts in the ''parc des Bastions'' and goes through the Old City of Geneva before eventually circling back to the start. It is one of the most significant annual events in Geneva. There are multiple events for different age groups. File:Commémoration de l'Escalade à Genève 05.jpg, A soldier in the commemorative parade File:Marmite-Escalade.jpg, A chocolate "marmite de l'Escalade" File:Marmite-Escalade-window.jpg, The window of a chocolate shop in
Carouge Carouge () is a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the Canton of Geneva, Switzerland. History Carouge is first mentioned in the Early Middle Ages as ''Quadruvium'' and ''Quatruvio''. In 1248 it was mentioned as ''Carrogium'' while i ...
selling marmites


Legacy

The story of L'Escalade is told in a song called "Cé qu'è l'ainô", written in a
Franco-Provençal Franco-Provençal (also Francoprovençal, Patois or Arpitan) is a Gallo-Romance languages, Gallo-Romance language that originated and is spoken in eastern France, western Switzerland, and northwestern Italy. Franco-Provençal has several di ...
dialect around 1603 by an unknown author. The song has become the "national"
anthem An anthem is a musical composition of celebration, usually used as a symbol for a distinct group, particularly the national anthems of countries. Originally, and in music theory and religious contexts, it also refers more particularly to sho ...
of Geneva. While the complete version comprises 68 stanzas, only four of them are usually sung. It was also celebrated in verse by Samuel Chappuzeau in his ''Genève Délivrée''.


References


Further reading

*


External links


Compagnie de 1602
the group who organises the yearly festival.
La Course de l'Escalade




a yearly celebration in Geneva in memory of the night attack by the Savoyards in 1602. {{DEFAULTSORT:Escalade 1602 in Europe 17th century in Switzerland Battles involving Savoy Conflicts in 1602 Culture in Geneva December Festivals in Switzerland History of Geneva Tourist attractions in Geneva Winter in Switzerland