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Chillon Castle

near
Montreux, Switzerland

Memories
Paul Richardson 2011
The Prisoner of Chillon
Eternal spirit of the chainless mind!
Brightest in dungeons, Liberty! Thou art,
For there thy habitation is the heart –
The heart which love of thee alone can bind;
And when thy sons to fetters are consigned –
To fetters, and the damp vault’s dayless gloom,
Their country conquers with their martyrdom,
And Freedom’s fame finds wings on every mind. . .

On June 22, 1816, Lord Byron and his contemporary and friend Percy
Bysshe Shelley were sailing on Lake Geneva (referred to as "Lac
Leman," the French name, throughout the poem) and stopped to visit the
Chateau de Chillon. After touring the castle—and walking through the
dungeon in which Bonivard was imprisoned—Byron was inspired by
Bonivard's story and composed The Sonnet of Chillon later renamed The
Prisoner of Chillon.

Young Bonivard opposed Charles III, Duke of Savoy in his efforts to


control Geneva; the duke captured Bonivard and imprisoned him at
Grolee from 1519 to 1521.

The experience was not much of a deterrent; Bonivard continued his


political activism. In 1530, he was set upon by robbers in the Jura, who
turned him over to the Duke of Savoy. The duke imprisoned him again,
this time underground in the Castle of Chillon. Bonivard was released by
the Bernese when they conquered Vaud (Swiss Canton) in 1536.

The poem describes the trials of a lone survivor of a family who has
been martyred. The character's father was burnt at the stake, and out of
six brothers, two fell at the battlefield while one was burnt to death. The
remaining three were sent to the castle of Chillon as prisoners, out of
which two more died due to pining away. In time only the narrator lived.
My son and I were fortunate to be at the Palace Hotel (Montreux) in
early October of 1994 for 5 days. The Palace Hotel had plaques in
corridors off of the lobby that told of many meetings of European
diplomats meeting there for consultation and negotiations. Those
diplomats knew where to have their meetings on their government’s
dime. Montreux is a beautiful place, on beautiful Lac Leman with grape
vineyards on the hills above.
It is a short train trip to Lausanne and Geneva at the other end of the
lake, but that is another chapter. Other chapters include a visit for fun
and dinner at the walled, medieval town of Gruyere famous for its
cheese and also the trip over Great St Bernard Pass (Matterhorn in full
view) on into Italy with Roman amphitheaters and other interesting
history and finally Mount Blanc with the beautiful village of Chamonix,
France at its base.
Because I had studied Byron’s poem in high school Chillon had a
magnetic attraction for me. One picture I didn’t take but should have
was of the trapdoor in the floor of the castle dungeon that covered a
chute through which dead prisoners could be deposited into the lake. As
castles go it isn’t very imposing but its position on the main trade route
from Northern Italy over St Bernard Pass and down the Rhone Valley on
to Geneva and France allowed the Dukes of Savoy to protect the
travelers and collect the duties on goods being transported over the roads
they had built and maintained.
Of course, the Reformation headquartered in Geneva with Calvin and
the Counter Reformation nearby had strong impacts on the area as the
powerful warred back and forth in support of their side of the argument.

This “postcard” map helps set the scene. As you can see Montreux is at
the opposite end of Geneva on the lake. Locally it is called Lac Leman
rather than the more familiar to us name of Lake Geneva. Note
Lausanne not far from Montreux and Vevey where Charlie Chaplin lived
for a time and is immortalized with a fanciful “Little Tramp” statue in a
park on the waterfront. Note up the Rhone Valley from Montreux is the
route to Great St. Bernard Pass the main route to Italy. Across from
Lausanne in France is Evian the source of bottled water of that name.
Walkway along the lake toward Vevey, beautiful
Chillon and moat connected to lake
From the lake

Tour group entering castle


Montreux Palace Hotel where diplomats flocked
This way to the dungeon
The misty day was appropriate for remembering the suffering of
The Prisoner of Chillon
My son inspecting the cannon

Paul Richardson Copyright © 2011

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