Château Saint-Georges

En un regard

Le château en bref

The Château Saint-Georges is a former fortress overlooking the village of Saorge, in the upper Roya valley (Alpes-Maritimes). It was built by the Counts of Savoy after 1388, together with a twin castle on the other side of the Roya, in order to lock down access to the valley, which had recently come under Savoyard rule. On 29 September 1691, during the War of the League of Augsburg, the fort fell to the French troops of Marshal Catinat during the conquest of the County of Nice, in the aftermath of the Battle of Staffarda. Its fortifications were partly dismantled by Vauban in 1693. In July 1794, during the French Revolutionary Wars, the stronghold was abandoned without a fight by its commander, the Baron de Saint-Amour, who disobeyed orders to defend it; General Masséna then had what remained of it razed, along with the neighbouring Château de Malemort and several redoubts, at the end of a thirty-three-day demolition operation carried out by French sappers. Today, only remnants of walls survive of the Château Saint-Georges, visible above the village.