The Castle of Gruyères (in French: ''château de Gruyères''), located in the

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

town of

Gruyères Gruyères (; ; Fribourgeois: ''Grevire''; ) is a town in the district of Gruyère (district), Gruyère in the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Canton of Fribourg, Fribourg, Switzerland. The medieval town is an important tourist location in the ...

Fribourg or is the capital of the Cantons of Switzerland, Swiss canton of Canton of Fribourg, Fribourg and district of Sarine (district), La Sarine. Located on both sides of the river Saane/Sarine, on the Swiss Plateau, it is a major economic, adminis ...

, is one of the most famous in

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 ...

. It is a Swiss heritage site of national significance.

History

The building was built between 1270 and 1282, following the typical square plan of the fortifications in

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 ...

. It was the property of the Counts of Gruyères until the bankruptcy of Count Michel in 1554. His creditors, the cantons of

and

Bern Bern (), or Berne (), ; ; ; . is the ''de facto'' Capital city, capital of Switzerland, referred to as the "federal city".; ; ; . According to the Swiss constitution, the Swiss Confederation intentionally has no "capital", but Bern has gov ...

, divided his earldom. From 1555 to 1798, the castle was the residence of the

bailiff A bailiff is a manager, overseer or custodian – a legal officer to whom some degree of authority or jurisdiction is given. There are different kinds, and their offices and scope of duties vary. Another official sometimes referred to as a '' ...

s and then to the

prefect Prefect (from the Latin ''praefectus'', substantive adjectival form of ''praeficere'': "put in front", meaning in charge) is a magisterial title of varying definition, but essentially refers to the leader of an administrative area. A prefect' ...

s sent by Fribourg. In 1849, the castle was sold to the Bovy and Balland families, who used the castle as their summer residency and restored it, establishing an artists' colony. The castle was repurchased by the canton of Fribourg in 1938, made into a museum, and opened to the public. Since 1993, a foundation ensures the conservation as well as the highlighting of the building and the art collection.

Museum

The castle is home to three capes of the

Order of the Golden Fleece The Distinguished Order of the Golden Fleece (, ) is a Catholic order of chivalry founded in 1430 in Brugge by Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, to celebrate his marriage to Isabella of Portugal, Duchess of Burgundy, Isabella of Portugal. T ...

. They were part of the war booty captured by the Swiss Confederates (which included troops from Gruyères) at the

Battle of Morat The Battle of Morat took place during the Burgundian Wars (1474–1477) that was fought on 22 June 1476 between Charles the Bold, the Duke of Burgundy, and a Swiss Confederation army at Morat ( Murten), about 30 kilometres from Bern ...

against

Charles the Bold Charles Martin (10 November 1433 – 5 January 1477), called the Bold, was the last duke of Burgundy from the House of Valois-Burgundy, ruling from 1467 to 1477. He was the only surviving legitimate son of Philip the Good and his third wife, ...

Duke of Burgundy Duke of Burgundy () was a title used by the rulers of the Duchy of Burgundy, from its establishment in 843 to its annexation by the Crown lands of France, French crown in 1477, and later by members of the House of Habsburg, including Holy Roman E ...

in 1476. As Charles was then celebrating the anniversary of his father's death, one of the capes is a black

velvet Velvet is a type of woven fabric with a dense, even pile (textile), pile that gives it a distinctive soft feel. Historically, velvet was typically made from silk. Modern velvet can be made from silk, linen, cotton, wool, synthetic fibers, silk ...

sacerdotal

vestment Vestments are Liturgy, liturgical garments and articles associated primarily with the Christianity, Christian religion, especially by Eastern Christianity, Eastern Churches, Catholic Church, Catholics (of all rites), Lutherans, and Anglicans. ...

with

Philip the Good Philip III the Good (; ; 31 July 1396 – 15 June 1467) ruled as Duke of Burgundy from 1419 until his death in 1467. He was a member of a cadet line of the Valois dynasty, to which all 15th-century kings of France belonged. During his reign, ...

's emblem sewn into it. A collection of landscapes by 19th century artists

Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot ( , , ; 16 July 1796 – 22 February 1875), or simply Camille Corot, was a French Landscape art, landscape and Portraitist, portrait painter as well as a printmaking, printmaker in etching. A pivotal figure in ...

Barthélemy Menn Barthélemy Menn (20 May 1815 – 10 October 1893) was a Swiss people, Swiss painter and draughtsman who introduced the principles of ''plein-air'' painting and the ''paysage intime'' into Swiss art. Early life Menn was the youngest of four sons, ...

and others are on display in the castle.Château de Gruyères (site officiel) – Bienvenue : Willkommen : Welcome
/ref> An international collection of ''Fantastic Art'' is also exhibited (José Roosevelt, Gian Paolo Dulbecco, Vincent Amas,

Patrick Woodroffe Patrick James Woodroffe (27 October 1940 – 10 May 2014) was an England, English artist, etcher and drawer, who specialised in Fantasy art, fantasy science-fiction artwork, with images that bordered on the surreal. His achievements include s ...

, Milan Goldschmiedt).

References

*Gremaud, Henri; Fleury, Gilbert; Chatton, Etienne; ''Château de Gruyères'', Villars-sur-Glâne : G. Fleury, 1991, *Guadalupi, Gianni; ''Castles of the world'', New York : Barnes & Noble 2006. *Guex, François; ''Le château de Gruyères'', Fribourg Service des Biens Culturels 2005.

External links

Official web site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chateau De Gruyeres Castles in the canton of Fribourg Gruyères Museums in the canton of Fribourg Historic house museums in Switzerland