 Expansion of the Canton of Geneva. Yellow-Pre 1815 Blue-Congress of Vienna (1815) Pink-Treaty of Turin (1816) | |
| Type | bilateral treaty |
|---|---|
| Signed | 16 March 1816 |
| Location | Turin, Italy |
| Negotiators |  Pictet de Rochemont  Montiglio, Collegno |
| Original signatories | Kingdom of Sardinia, Switzerland |
The 1816 Treaty of Turin was a treaty between Switzerland and the Kingdom of Sardinia which expanded the Canton of Geneva.
In 1814 the Swiss Confederation accepted Geneva's proposal to join the Confederation. At that time, it only covered a total of 124 square kilometers (48 sq mi) (about 44% of its modern size) and had only 14 of the 45 current municipalities. [1] Additionally, Geneva city and its three neighbors, Vandoeuvres, Chêne-Bougeries and Cologny were isolated from the remaining municipalities and from the rest of Switzerland. Only the isolated municipality of Céligny (which today is an exclave in the Canton of Vaud) was connected to the rest of the country. Before the canton could join Switzerland, it needed a land connection to the rest of the country and continuous borders. [2]
Tasked with gaining support from the Great Powers for Geneva joining Switzerland and gaining needed territory, the diplomat Charles Pictet de Rochemont was dispatched from Geneva to the Congress of Vienna and Paris. At the Congress of Vienna, Pictet de Rochemont was able to gain support for Geneva joining the country which it did in mid 1815. At the Second Paris Peace Talks, he was able to secure a strengthened acknowledgement of Swiss neutrality, a reparation of 3 million francs and part of the Pays de Gex along the northern shore of Lake Geneva. [3] On 20 November 1815 the municipalities of Versoix, Collex-Bossy, Bellevue, Pregny-Chambesy, Le Grand-Saconnex, Meyrin and Vernier became part of the Canton of Geneva. These new communities expanded the canton by 49 km2 (19 sq mi) and 3,343 residents. [1]
The 1815 treaties indicated that the Kingdom of Sardinia should give Switzerland a 25 km (16 mi) strip of land along the south shore of Lake Geneva and lands around Mount Salève. However, the exact boundaries and a schedule were left up to the two nations. [4] Additionally, beginning in 1792 the French revolutionary government had established tariffs on all goods, including food, going into the city which forced Geneva to accept annexation in 1798. For this reason the government wanted to gain additional farm land and establish trade treaties with their neighbors. [5]
In January 1816 Pictet de Rochemont met with Montiglio and Collegno in Turin to begin negotiating the exact borders. Pictet de Rochemont sought to connect the community of Jussy with the rest of the canton. Sardinia wanted to keep Mount Salève and the Salève road between Faucigny and Chablais, which would prevent linking with Jussy. They eventually compromised with Geneva receiving the lake shore as far east as Hermance and over to Thônex, but giving the Salève area and road as well as the community of Saint-Julien-en-Genevois to Sardinia. [4]
Once these issues were settled, the treaty was nearly ready to sign. However, in early March the government of Geneva refused to sign the treaty over a pair of issues. The first dealt with the status, lodging and payments to the curia of the Catholic Church. The other was over the wording in Article VII, which dealt with the neutrality of the lands which Sardinia ceded to Switzerland. Both concerns were eventually addressed and on 16 March 1816 the treaty was signed. [6] The treaty added a total of 24 new municipalities, 109 km2 (42 sq mi) and 12,700 new residents to the canton. [1]
The treaty established a customs free zone in what became the French district of Haute-Savoie, which included about 151 km2 (58 sq mi) of Sardinian land [4] added to lands in the Arrondissement of Gex from 1815 for a total of about 540 km2 (210 sq mi) of free trade zones. [7] Despite an attempt in 1919 by the French government to dissolve the free trade zones around Geneva, the International Court in The Hague ruled that these zones were still protected by the treaties. In 1998 these free trade zones imported about SFr 47.3 million, while SFr 2.3 million worth of goods were exported. [5]
Geneva is the second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland. Situated in the south west of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the capital of the Republic and Canton of Geneva.
Savoy is a cultural-historical region in the Western Alps.
The Canton of Geneva, officially the Republic and Canton of Geneva, is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of forty-five municipalities and the seat of the government and parliament is in the City of Geneva.
Gex is a commune in the Ain department in eastern France and a subprefecture of the department.
The Duchy of Savoy was a country in Western Europe that existed from 1416 to 1847.
Mont-Blanc[mɔ̃ blɑ̃] was a department of the First French Empire. It was named after Mont Blanc, the highest mountain in Western Europe, which marks the border between France and Piedmont. It was formed in 1792, when the Savoy region, was occupied by the French. The department ceased to exist following Napoleon's defeat at Waterloo; the territory was restored to its former rulers.
Léman was a department of the French First Republic and French First Empire. Its name came from the French name of Lake Geneva, Lac Léman. It was formed in 1798, when the Republic of Geneva was annexed by the French Republic. Léman also included districts that were previously part of the departments of Mont-Blanc and Ain. Its territory corresponded with the present Swiss canton of Geneva and parts of the present French departments of Ain and Haute-Savoie.
Carouge is a municipality in the Canton of Geneva, Switzerland.
Jussy is a municipality of the Canton of Geneva, Switzerland. The historical Chateau Du Crest is located here.
Puplinge is a municipality in the canton of Geneva in Switzerland.
Satigny is a municipality of the Canton of Geneva, Switzerland. It is the largest municipality of the canton by land area and the largest wine-producing municipality of the country. Its territory contains the majority of the Mandement area, a designated heritage site of national importance shared with the neighbouring municipalities of Russin and Dardagny.
The arrondissement of Gex is an arrondissement of France in the Ain department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region. It approximately corresponds to the historical region of the Pays de Gex. It has 27 communes. Its population is 93,027 (2016), and its area is 404.9 km2 (156.3 sq mi).
Charles Pictet de Rochemont was a statesman and diplomat who prepared the declaration of Switzerland's permanent neutrality ratified by the great powers in 1815.
Étrembières is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France.
The Kingdom of Sardinia, also referred to as the Kingdom ofSavoy-Sardinia, Piedmont-Sardinia, or Savoy-Piedmont-Sardinia during the Savoyard period, was a state in Southern Europe from the early 14th until the mid-19th century.
The territorial evolution of Switzerland occurred primarily with the acquisition of territory by the historical cantons of the Old Swiss Confederacy and its close associates. This gradual expansion took place in two phases, the growth from the medieval Founding Cantons to the "Eight Cantons" during 1332–1353, and the expansion to the "Thirteen Cantons" of the Reformation period during 1481–1513.
The Albanais is a small Savoyard region situated between Lake Annecy and Lac du Bourget, at the entrance to the Parc naturel régional du Massif des Bauges. Located in the French departments of Savoie and Haute-Savoie, its principal city is Rumilly. The name Albanais comes from the Latin Albinnum, which is derived from the names of the tribes Albii whose presence is attested to in the toponymy of places such as Albens, Alby, and Albigny.
The France–Italy border is 515 km long. It runs from the Alps in the north, a region in which it passes over Mont Blanc, down to the Mediterranean coast in the south. Three national parks are located along the border: Vanoise National Park and Mercantour National Park on the French side and Gran Paradiso National Park on the Italian side.
Grand Genève is a Local Grouping of Transnational Cooperation, a public entity under Swiss law, in charge of organizing cooperation within the cross-border metropolitan area of Geneva. The Grand Genève GLCT extends over Switzerland and France.
Treaty of Turin can refer to one of the following treaties signed in the northern Italian town of Turin: