Course d'école au Musée Fort de Chillon : château et fort, une continuité stratégique (notion pour les élèves)

School trip to the Fort de Chillon Museum: castle and fort, a strategic continuity

Between the medieval castle and the 20th-century military fort, the site of Chillon illustrates a long strategic continuity. Discover why this passageway has always been fortified.

A “must-see” since the Middle Ages

Since the Middle Ages, the rock of Chillon has controlled the narrow passage between the mountain and the lake, a veritable choke point between the Plateau and the Chablais. From the 13th century onwards, the Counts of Savoy developed a stronghold there to guard the road, collect tolls, and control access to the north of Lake Geneva. Chillon Castle thus became an essential link in the Savoyard defensive and economic network in the region.

The military fort of Chillon (1941–1994)

During World War II, the same strategic position was reoccupied: Fort Chillon, carved into the rock starting in 1941, blocked the pass and covered the road and railway line leading to Chablais. Part of the National Redoubt, it was incorporated into the fortress of Saint-Maurice and, with modern means, continued the control and defense functions once performed by the castle.

In connection with the Fort de Chillon Museum

The Fort de Chillon Museum illustrates the continuity between the medieval castle and the 20th-century fort: same site, same surveillance mission, but different techniques and threats. The visit thus provides an ideal opportunity to help students understand how a strategic location can change form while retaining the same function over the centuries.

For teachers

This inspirational article serves as an introduction to a school trip to the Fort de Chillon Museum and does not claim to be exhaustive. It can be supplemented by classroom work on Chillon Castle, the National Redoubt, and the history of the routes between the Plateau and Chablais regions.