Navigation on Lake Geneva is nothing new: in the 18th century, numerous boats plied the lake for the transport of goods and trade, which was highly developed in the region. The Geneva Fair, one of the largest in Europe, encouraged 𝗹𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘁 𝗱𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗶𝘁𝘀 𝗽𝗮𝗿 𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝗰𝗼𝗹𝘀 𝗮𝗹𝗽𝗶𝗻𝘀 𝗲𝘁 𝗮𝘂𝗴𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗳𝗶𝗰 𝗹𝗮𝗰𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗲.
Initially, a small fleet of boats was assembled and stationed at Chillon Castle by 𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝘁𝗲𝘀 𝗱𝗲 𝗦𝗮𝘃𝗼𝗶𝗲, 𝗾𝘂𝗶 𝗮𝘂 𝟭𝟴𝗲̀ 𝘀𝗶𝗲̀𝗰𝗹𝗲 𝗽𝗼𝘀𝘀𝗲̀𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗹'𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗲̀𝗿𝗲𝘁𝗲́ 𝗱𝘂 𝗟𝗲́𝗺𝗮𝗻. Rivalries between the Genevese, Bernese and Savoyards gave rise to real 𝗯𝗮𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗻𝗮𝘃𝗮𝗹𝗲𝘀. Over time and in times of peace, these boats were occasionally used to transport goods and, with the expansion of towns in the 19th century, eventually became real lake transport. It was from this time onwards that these boats were developed for 𝗹𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝗱𝗲 𝗽𝗶𝗲𝗿𝗿𝗲𝘀 𝗱𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻, 𝘁𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗰𝘂𝗹𝗶𝗲̀𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗮̀ 𝗹𝗮 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗿𝗶𝗲̀𝗿𝗲 𝗱𝗲 𝗠𝗲𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲, the main Franco-Swiss supplier to the Lake Geneva coast.
These boats are on average 𝟯𝟬 𝗺𝗲̀𝘁𝗿𝗲𝘀 𝗱𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗲𝘁 𝗽𝗲̀𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗽𝗿𝗲̀𝘀 𝗱𝗲 𝟳𝟬 𝘁𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗲𝘀! These are real "buildings" that need to be moved. What's more, their system of pivoting sails and antennae requires a 𝗺𝗮𝗶̂𝘁𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗲 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗳𝗮𝗶𝘁𝗲 in order to steer these large vessels safely.
In 1900, around sixty boats were operating on the lake. Subsequently, the development of the rail network put a relatively rapid end to the use of boats, including 𝗹𝗮 𝗾𝘂𝗮𝘀𝗶-𝘁𝗼𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗲́ 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘂 𝗮𝘂 𝟮𝟬𝗲̀𝗺𝗲 𝘀𝗶𝗲̀𝗰𝗹𝗲.
The Savoie, built between 1997 and 2000 by a group of enthusiasts, is a replica of the Savoie 513, built according to the plans of the builders of the time, using materials and tools from that era!
Today, there are 𝟱 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗮𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 vintage boats still sailing on Lake Geneva: 𝗟'𝗔𝘂𝗿𝗼𝗿𝗲, 𝗟𝗮 𝗩𝗮𝘂𝗱𝗼𝗶𝘀𝗲, 𝗟𝗮 𝗡𝗲𝗽𝘁𝘂𝗻𝗲, 𝗟𝗮 𝗗𝗲𝗺𝗼𝗶𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗲 𝗲𝘁 𝗟𝗮 𝗦𝗮𝘃𝗼𝗶𝗲. Of course, they are no longer used for transporting goods, but rather for local tourism and to perpetuate the heritage of Lake Geneva that these formidable boats represent, by making them accessible to the general public.
𝐒𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐬 :
