Souaillon

Origin of the name Souaillon

Name origin: the origin of the name Souaillon is not explained by the sources consulted.

Founding of Souaillon

Souaillon is a place in the municipality of Cornaux, lying in the countryside between the villages of Saint-Blaise and Cornaux (postal address Saint-Blaise). The heights above it have yielded a group of Early Iron Age burial mounds. The present estate dates from 1718, when a house and a barn were built for Pierre de Chambrier. These first buildings were gradually supplemented by further wings and cellars, forming a true « campagne » combining a manor house and a wine-growing estate. After a fire in 1876, James-Ferdinand de Pury modernised and enlarged the estate.

History of Souaillon

Early Iron Age. A group of Hallstatt burial mounds is raised above Souaillon.

1718. Construction of the estate begins for Pierre de Chambrier: a manor house made of two perpendicular wings and a farm building of the same period.

Early 18th century. The French formal garden is laid out on three superimposed terraces, adorned with fountains.

1876. A fire leads the owner, James-Ferdinand de Pury, to modernise his estate.

1880. The barn is rebuilt and stables, a dwelling and a greenhouse are built.

1882. The manor house is enlarged to the south-west, with turrets and annexes including a summer drawing room, for James-Ferdinand de Pury.

Late 19th century. A large brick farm building is built with a goods lift, an important innovation for the time.

Historic sites in Souaillon

Manor house. House of 1718 made of two perpendicular wings, enlarged to the south-west in 1882 (turrets and annexes); a sundial adorns the south front.

French formal garden. To the south-east, a remarkable terraced French formal garden created in the early 18th century, with many water features, an orangery and a monumental octagonal fountain in Louis XV style; it is among the finest gardens of its kind preserved in the canton. A tree-lined avenue opens the view to the west.

Large brick farm building. To the north-east, a large late 19th-century farm building fitted with a goods lift.

Remains in Souaillon

Hallstatt burial mounds. Group of Early Iron Age burial mounds above Souaillon, long the only prehistoric remains known in the territory of Cornaux.

Sources

• Société d'histoire de l'art en Suisse, Guide artistique de la Suisse, notice « Souaillon » (fiche de l'Inventaire suisse des biens culturels, KGS 10462)
• Dictionnaire historique de la Suisse, « Cornaux » (Michel Egloff, Olivier Girardbille)
• Wikipédia (français), Cornaux
• Wikipédia (anglais), Souaillon Castle
• État de Neuchâtel, arrêté du 4 février 2026 homologuant le recensement cantonal de la population au 31 décembre 2025
• geo.admin.ch, service de recherche de lieux (swisstopo)

Other villages near Souaillon

• Wavre (NE)
• Voëns (NE)
• Saint-Blaise (NE)
• Cornaux (NE)
• Marin-Épagnier (NE)