La Baume Church

The church of La Baume, dedicated to the Immaculate Conception, does not go unnoticed, as its rocky outcrop dominates the road between Thonon and Morzine. Although it seems to defy time, it was only built in the 19th century.

In the Middle Ages, unlike the rest of the valley, which belonged to the Abbey of Aulps, the various hamlets belonged to the lords of Allinges. It was not until the end of the 14th century that the abbey obtained rights over the villages. La Baume became an independent parish of Biot in 1852, when the village of Biot decided to move its church. At the entrance to the church, a marble plaque reminds us that it was built by the spontaneous efforts of the local population. The Reverend Nicolas-Marin Cathand was the first parish priest of La Baume from 1852 to 1881. The three-aisled neoclassical church with a dome whose pendentives are adorned with paintings representing the four Evangelists was built by the parishioners themselves. The church tower is equipped with a clock that strikes for the first time on 11 November 1923, the anniversary of the Victory in World War Two. The original bell tower was bulbous. In 1939, it was destroyed by fire and replaced by a square tower, judged to be "of little character" by the authors of the volume Histoire des communes savoyardes (1980). In 1991, the bell tower was rebuilt as it was originally. The building was restored in 1940 by the painter Modena, and in 2003 it was also decorated, restoring it to its former splendour. The church has an organ dating from 1872, which can still be played with the help of a mechanical blower: a listed organ This instrumental ensemble is one of 6 listed organs in Haute Savoie.