Grangettes
Origin of the name Grangettes
The name appears between 1147 and 1154 as « de Grangetes », with no established etymology.[1]
Founding of Grangettes
Grangettes covers 331 ha on the south-west slope of the Gibloux, above the right bank of the Neirigue. In the Middle Ages the village was the centre of a small lordship that included Estévenens, La Neirigue, part of Villariaz and part of Le Châtelard, with a castle of the lords of Grangettes recorded in the 12th century. The church of Saint-Maurice was built in the 15th century at the expense of the people of Grangettes and Le Châtelard. A dependency of Vuisternens, Grangettes formed a parish with Le Châtelard in 1626. The village lives from livestock and dairy farming.[1][2][3][6]
History of Grangettes
1147-1154. The village appears as « de Grangetes ».[1]
12th century. A castle of the lords of Grangettes is recorded.[1]
1430. The people of Grangettes and Le Châtelard have the church of Saint-Maurice, which they paid for, consecrated.[1][2][3]
1476. The castle burns down. No trace of it remains.[1]
15th-16th centuries. Grangettes passes in turn to the Lullin, de Rovéréa, de Reynold, Koenig and de Boccard families.[1]
1536-1798. The village belongs to the Fribourg bailiwick of Romont.[1]
1626. Until then a dependency of Vuisternens, Grangettes forms a parish with Le Châtelard.[1]
1770. An arson fire ravages the church. The two bells, cast by François-Xavier and Joseph-Désiré Rognon of Morteau, bear this date, that of the bell tower.[1][2][4]
1773. The church of Saint-Maurice is rebuilt.[1]
1798-1848. Grangettes belongs to the district of Romont.[1]
1848. The municipality joins the district of Glâne.[1]
1903. Conrad Carlen, organ builder in Brig, builds the church organ.[2]
1983. The church is restored.[1]
1984. Anselmo Francesconi creates four stained glass windows for the church.[1]
2001. Grangettes has eleven farms, mainly devoted to livestock and milk.[1]
2022. Eric Dorthe, organ builder in Fuyens, restores the 1903 organ.[2]
2023. On 1 January the parish merges with those of Le Châtelard and Massonnens.[5]
Population of Grangettes
Sources and references: [1][7]
| 1811 | 148 |
| 1850 | 190 |
| 1900 | 186 |
| 1950 | 179 |
| 2000 | 157 |
| 2025 | 214 |
Historic sites in Grangettes
Church of Saint-Maurice. Consecrated in 1430 and rebuilt after the fire of 1770, the 100-seat church keeps relics of the wood of the Holy Cross and a stone crucifix in the middle of the nave. It lies on the stained glass trail.[1][2][3][4]
Stained glass by Anselmo Francesconi. The four windows in the nave date from 1984.[1][3]
Bells. The two Rognon bells, dated 1770, are still rung by rope.[4]
Calvary cross. A double-sided calvary cross dates from the 16th century.[1]
Remains in Grangettes
Castle of the lords of Grangettes. Recorded in the 12th century, it was burned in 1476 and has vanished without trace.[1]
Sources
- Dictionnaire historique de la Suisse, « Grangettes » (Evelyne Maradan, version du 11.01.2006)
- Unité pastorale de la Glâne, « Église de Grangettes »
- Romont Région, « Église Saint-Maurice » (Grangettes-près-Romont)
- Quasimodo sonneur de cloches, « Cloches de Grangettes (FR), église St-Maurice »
- Unité pastorale de la Glâne, « Le Châtelard-Massonnens-Grangettes »
- Commune de Grangettes, site officiel
- Service de la statistique du canton de Fribourg (SStat), « Population des communes, de 1900 à 2025 » (T01-02-03), population résidante permanente au 31.12.2025
Other villages near Grangettes
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