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Villages / Fribourg / Glâne district / Chapelle (Glâne)

Chapelle (Glâne)

Canton of Fribourg · District: Glâne · 339 inhabitants (2024, former municipality of Chapelle (Glâne), last figure before the merger)
Part of the municipality of Rue
Origin of the name Founding Historical timeline Population over time Must-see historical sites Sources and references Nearby villages

Origin of the name Chapelle (Glâne)

The village appears in 1354 (or 1345, in the accounts of the castellany of Rue) as « Capella ». Until 1953 its official name was Chapelle-sur-Gillarens.[1][2]

Founding of Chapelle (Glâne)

Chapelle is a village in the Broye valley. On a mound the lords of Illens built an oratory, later enlarged into the chapel of Notre-Dame des Champs. In the Middle Ages the village belonged to the lordship of Rue, which passed to the House of Savoy, and was held in fief by the Champion and Maillardoz families, then by the Brandis and by Jean, bastard of Gruyères. Its people lived mainly from dairy farming. Chapelle (Glâne) is now part of the municipality of Rue (merger of 2025).[1][2][3]

History of Chapelle (Glâne)

Around 1300. The chapel of Notre-Dame des Champs is thought to date from this time.[1][3]

1354 (or 1345). The village is first mentioned, as « Capella ».[1][2]

1453. A document attributes the founding of the chapel of Notre-Dame des Champs to a lord of Illens. The shrine then draws many pilgrims.[1][2][3]

1518. A nave is added to the chapel.[1]

1536. Chapelle passes to Fribourg and belongs to the bailiwick of Rue until 1798.[1][2]

1674. Together with the commoners of Gillarens, the village obtains the creation of a chaplain's benefice.[2][4]

1798-1848. Chapelle belongs to the district of Rue.[1]

1928. The village church leaves the parish of Promasens and has since formed one parish with Gillarens.[1][5]

1953. The official name Chapelle-sur-Gillarens is dropped.[1]

1988. The Italian painter Anselmo Francesconi paints the chapel's interior frescoes.[1][3]

1999. Marcel Dorthe makes the chapel's stained-glass windows, evoking the mysteries of the Virgin.[3]

2023. On 12 November Chapelle accepts the merger with Rue, Auboranges and Ecublens by 83.6 %.[6]

2025. Chapelle (Glâne) becomes part of the municipality of Rue.[1]

Population of Chapelle (Glâne)

Sources and references: [1]

Population of Chapelle (Glâne)
1811125
1850173
1900146
1920113
1950160
1970119
2000198
2010249
2020317
2024339

Historic sites in Chapelle (Glâne)

Chapel of Notre-Dame des Champs. Built on a mound around 1300, extended with a nave in 1518 and later a tower and belfry, it was a well-known pilgrimage site. The frescoes by Anselmo Francesconi (1988) work the architecture into the painting.[1][3]

Sources

  1. Dictionnaire historique de la Suisse, « Chapelle (Glâne) » (Evelyne Maradan, version du 05.03.2026)
  2. Commune de Rue, « Histoire »
  3. Fribourg Région, « Chapelle Notre-Dame des Champs »
  4. Dictionnaire historique de la Suisse, « Gillarens » (Evelyne Maradan, version du 11.07.2007)
  5. Dictionnaire historique de la Suisse, « Promasens » (Marianne Rolle, version du 13.07.2010)
  6. Frapp, « Rue, Auboranges, Chapelle et Ecublens fusionneront » (12.11.2023)

Other villages near Chapelle (Glâne)

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