Thonon-les-Bains (; frp, Tonon), often simply referred to as Thonon, is a subprefecture of the Haute-Savoie

department Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

in the

Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (ARA; ; frp, Ôvèrgne-Rôno-Ârpes; oc, Auvèrnhe Ròse Aups; it, Alvernia-Rodano-Alpi) is a region in southeast-central France created by the 2014 territorial reform of French regions; it resulted from the merger of ...

region in Eastern France. In 2018, the

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

had a population of 35,241. Thonon-les-Bains is part of a transborder metropolitan area known as

Grand Genève Grand Genève ("Greater Geneva" in English) is a Local Grouping of Transnational Cooperation (in French: ''groupement local de coopération transfrontalière'', or GLCT), a public entity under Swiss law, in charge of organizing cooperation within ...

. It is situated on the shores of

Lake Geneva , image = Lake Geneva by Sentinel-2.jpg , caption = Satellite image , image_bathymetry = , caption_bathymetry = , location = Switzerland, France , coords = , lake_type = Glacial lak ...

(french: Lac Léman, or simply ).

History

Thonon-les-Bains was the historic capital of Chablais, a province of the old

Duchy of Savoy The Duchy of Savoy ( it, Ducato di Savoia; french: Duché de Savoie) was a country in Western Europe that existed from 1416. It was created when Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor, raised the County of Savoy into a duchy for Amadeus VIII. The du ...

. The Chablais Savoyard is the portion of Chablais in France. Chablais Valaisan and Chablais Vaudois are those portions of Chablais in the adjacent Switzerland cantons Valais and Vaud.(cite: Chablais Wikipedia) The town was the capital of the

Dukedom of Chablais The title Duke of Chablais ( it, Duca di Chiablese, french: duc de Chablais) was a subsidiary title of the Duke of Savoy and later the King of Sardinia, both of the House of Savoy. The title is named after the province of Chablais, whose capital ...

. During the debates on the future of the Duchy of Savoy in 1860, the population was sensitive to the idea of a union of the northern part of the duchy with Switzerland. A

petition A petition is a request to do something, most commonly addressed to a government official or public entity. Petitions to a deity are a form of prayer called supplication. In the colloquial sense, a petition is a document addressed to some offic ...

circulated in this part of the country ( Chablais, Faucigny, Northern Genevois), but it collected no more than 13,600 signatures. The duchy was reunited after a plebiscite organised on 22 and 23 April 1860 under Napoleon III, in which 99.8 percent of the Savoyards voting were reported to have answered "yes" to the question "Does Savoy want to be reunited to France?"

Population

Transport

Thonon-les-Bains station Thonon-les-Bains station ( French: ''Gare de Thonon-les-Bains'') is a railway station located in Thonon-les-Bains, Haute-Savoie, south-eastern France. The station was opened in 1880 and is located on the Longeray-Léaz-Le Bouveret railway. The ...

has rail connections to Lyon, Évian-les-Bains, Annemasse and Geneva. Local transport is assured by BUT (Bus urbains thononais). The lines are: * Line A: Destination Grangette / Destination Multiplex * Line B: Destination Z.I VONGY / Destination Place des arts * Line C: Destination Collège Théodore Monod / Place des arts * Line D: Destination Collège theodore Monod or Espace Leman / Place des arts * Line L: Destination Amphion Village / Place des arts * Line P: Destination Marin / Place des arts * Line M: Destination La Chavanne / Place des arts * Line N: Destination Parking des chateaux / Place des arts Map of the network: http://www.leman-but.fr/ftp/FR_plan/Plan%202012%202013.pdf Line H and J are used in Évian-Les-Bains, and not Thonon-Les-Bains.

Main sights

Arboretum de Ripaille The Arboretum de Ripaille (53 hectares) is an arboretum and forest located on the grounds of the Château de Ripaille, Thonon-les-Bains, Haute-Savoie, Rhône-Alpes, France. It is open daily except Monday, but closed in December. The arboretum is ...

Château des Guillet-Monthoux A château (; plural: châteaux) is a manor house or residence of the lord of the manor, or a fine country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally, and still most frequently, in French-speaking regions. Nowaday ...

Château de Ripaille A château (; plural: châteaux) is a manor house or residence of the lord of the manor, or a fine country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally, and still most frequently, in French-speaking regions. Nowaday ...

Château de Sonnaz A château (; plural: châteaux) is a manor house or residence of the lord of the manor, or a fine country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally, and still most frequently, in French-speaking regions. Nowaday ...

Château de Thuyset A château (; plural: châteaux) is a manor house or residence of the lord of the manor, or a fine country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally, and still most frequently, in French-speaking regions. Nowaday ...

* ''Saint-Hippolyte'' church (12th century), rebuilt in Savoy Baroque-style during the 17th century *

Funiculaire de Thonon-les-Bains The Funiculaire de Thonon-les-Bains, or Thonon-les-Bains Funicular, is a funicular railway in the spa town of Thonon-les-Bains, in the French ''département'' of Haute-Savoie. The line links the Belvedere, in the city centre, to the port of Rive ...

Twin towns (sister cities)

Thonon-les-Bains is twinned with: * Eberbach, Germany * Mercer Island, United States *

Čačak Čačak ( sr-Cyrl, Чачак, ) is a city and the administrative center of the Moravica District in central Serbia. It is located in the West Morava Valley within the geographical region of Šumadija. , the city proper has 73,331 inhabitants, w ...

, Serbia

History

Population

Transport

Main sights

Twin towns (sister cities)

See also