# Soie Castle

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{{short description|Ruined castle in the municipality of Savièse}}
{{Infobox military structure
|name = Soie Castle
| native_name          = La Soie<br/>Burg Seta
|location = Savièse
|image = Château de la Soie.jpg
|caption = Ruins of Soie Castle
|map_type = Canton of Valais#Switzerland
|coordinates = {{coord|46.2432|7.3252|type:landmark|display=inline}}
|map_size = 
|map_alt = 
|map_caption = 
|type = Castle Ruins
|battles = [Raron affair](/source/Raron_affair) (1417)
|built = 1200
|builder = [Bishop of Sion](/source/Bishop_of_Sion)
|materials = 
|height = 
|ownership = 
|open_to_public = yes
}}

'''Soie Castle''' ([German](/source/German_language): '''Seta Castle''') is a ruined [castle](/source/castle) in the [municipality](/source/Municipalities_of_Switzerland) of [Savièse](/source/Savi%C3%A8se) of the [Canton of Valais](/source/Canton_of_Valais) in [Switzerland](/source/Switzerland).  

==History==
Soie Castle was built around 1200 by Landri de Mont, the [Bishop of Sion](/source/Bishop_of_Sion), possibly to restrict the power of the [Counts of Savoy](/source/Counts_and_dukes_of_Savoy) in Valais.  During the conflicts between the bishop and the counts during the 13th century the castle was not damaged and in a 1260 peace treaty was listed as remaining in the bishop's hands.<ref name=HDS>{{HDS|11364|La Soie}}</ref>  By the mid 14th century Bishop Guichard Tavel had moved from the old fortress of [Tourbillon](/source/Tourbillon_Castle) to Soie.<ref>[http://www.burgenwelt.org/schweiz/tourbillon/geke.htm Burgenwelt.ch] accessed 6 July 2017</ref>

However, Bishop Tavel only had a few years to enjoy Soie.  The bishop had a long standing feud with the de la Tour family.  On 8 August 1375 Antoine de la Tour and his soldiers entered the castle looking for the Bishop.  They found him reading his [breviary](/source/breviary) in the garden and seizing him, dragged the Bishop to the top of the walls before hurling him off to the rocks below.<ref name=SC>{{Cite web |url=http://www.swisscastles.ch/valais/chateau/soie_d.html |title=Schloss de la Soie bei Savièse |accessdate=6 July 2017 |website=www.swisscastles.ch}}</ref>  The murder of the Bishop caused unrest throughout Valais and his successor, Edward of Savoy, was driven out of Valais when a force of Valais patriots captured Soie Castle.  Almost ten years later, in 1384, Count [Amadeus VII](/source/Amadeus_VII%2C_Count_of_Savoy) finally recaptured the castle and reinstalled the bishop in his office.<ref name=SC/>

In 1417, during the [Raron affair](/source/Raron_affair) Valais troops burned Soie Castle along with several of the bishop's other castles.  After its destruction, the castle was abandoned and allowed to fall further into ruin.<ref name=HDS/>

==Castle site==
The castle is located on the hill side south-west of Savièse and near Sion.  The site is divided into three sections, each separated by a [ditch](/source/Ditch_(fortification)) or dry [moat](/source/moat).  The best preserved section is the outer castle, which was divided into several rooms with a well preserved gate way.  The other sections are the main castle and the garden area.<ref name=HDS/>

==See also==
* [List of castles in Switzerland](/source/List_of_castles_in_Switzerland)

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{Castles of Valais}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Soie Castle}}
Category:Castles in Valais
Category:Ruined castles in Switzerland

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Soie Castle](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soie_Castle) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soie_Castle?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.