(former) Americans in Geneva: Chateau de Chillon

One Sunday back in June we took a quick train trip up the lake to the Montreux area (read about another trip we took to Montreux here) and visited a medieval castle/former fortress Chateau de Chillon. It is one of the most spectacular castles in Europe and it is featured in one of Rick Steves' European tour guides (see here). I am shamelessly copying a paragraph from Steves' guide to give you a brief description.

Château de Chillon (pron. shee-yon) was the Savoys' fortress and residence, with four big halls (a major status symbol) and impractically large lakeview windows (their powerful navy could defend against possible attack from the water). When the Bernese invaded in 1536, the castle was conquered in just two days, and the new governor made Château de Chillon his residence (and a Counter-Reformation prison). Inspired by the Revolution in Paris, the French-speaking people on Lake Geneva finally kicked out their German-speaking Bernese oppressors in 1798. The castle became — and remains — the property of the Canton of Vaud. It has been used as an armory, a warehouse, a prison, a hospital, and a tourist attraction. Rousseau's writings first drew attention to the castle, inspiring visits by Romantics such as Lord Byron and Victor Hugo, plus other notables including Dickens, Goethe, and Hemingway

Some more information...

Excavations carried out from the end of the 19th century, in particular by the archeologist Albert Naef (1862-1936), affirm that this site has been occupied since the Bronze Age.
In its current state, the Castle of Chillon is the result of several centuries of constant building, adaptations, renovations and restorations.
The rocky island on which the castle is built, was both a natural protection and a strategic location to control the passage between northern and southern Europe.

The history of the castle was influenced by three major periods:

The Savoy period (12th century to 1536)The oldest written document mentioning the castle dates from 1150; it says that the House of Savoy already controlled the route along the shores of Lake Geneva.

Explicit reference to the castle is first made in 1150, when it is said that the Counts of Savoy controlled it, having acquired the rights to it, or sharing them with the sires of Blonay. As a result, they also controlled the route along the shores of the lake. In this document, Chillon is referred to as a castrum: given the mediaeval meaning of the word, this proves that there was a settlement associated with it. During the 13th century, the Counts of Savoy conquered most of the territory of Vaud, divided as it was into a number of small seigneuries. This marked the beginning of Savoy domination over approximately two-thirds of the territory which makes up today’s French-speaking Switzerland.

The Bernese period (1536-1798)
The Swiss, more precisely the Bernese, conquered the Pays de Vaud and occupied Chillon in 1536. The castle retained it's role as a fortress, arsenal and prison for over 260 years.

The Vaudois period (1798 to present)
The Bernese left Chillon in 1798 at the time of the Vaudois Revolution. The castle became the property of the Canton of Vaud when it was founded in 1803. The restoration of the historical monument began at the end of the 19th Century and continues to this day.

It was a cloudy at times rainy day as you will see from the pictures but we had a lot of fun. We explored the castle for a few hours and afterwards we had a lovely lunch of fondue at a nearby restaurant. It was the perfect way to spend a lazy Sunday.

This map with show you Chillon in relation to Geneva (which is in the left most tippy tip of the crescent shaped lake).