Aigle and its past

Iconic image and testament to the fascinating history of Aigle town, the Château and its Cloisters district date back to the 12th Century. Today Aigle’s evolution can be traced by visiting this famous monument and by going on two special walks « Of Streets and Men » and « Tour of the Fountains ».

The first houses in the vicinity of the Château date back to the 12th Century. Under Savoy rule from 1232 Aigle took its name from a Savoy family called « Alio » whose male ancestors bore the surname « Aquileius » itself taken from the latin name for the bird « aquila ».

It would be in 1476 that the Fribourg Congress awarded the actual vaudois Chablais to the Berne Republic. The region then became a « Government » with Aigle Château as its seat of power, so creating the first French speaking land to be part of the former Swiss Confederation.

After the Vaud Revolution of 1798 the Château would be bought at auction by the Aigle Commune in 1804 so becoming the seat of the courts and district prisons right up until 1972 ! Following 19 different stages of renovation, Aigle Château is now a bedrock of culture and celebration.