Situated close to the lake between Lausanne and Geneva, Château de Prangins is surrounded by a five-hectare estate comprising a park, a meadow-cum-orchard, and the country’s largest historical kitchen garden. Home to the Swiss National Museum in French-speaking Switzerland, it is a popular day-trip destination and exhibition venue that combines culture with nature. The largest 18th-century castle open to the public in Switzerland.

THEN…
Although Château de Prangins is the largest 18th-century building open to the public in Switzerland, the site has been inhabited for much longer. The medieval fortress, which is burnt down during the Bernese invasion in 1536, is replaced by a stately home. The present-day château, which has welcomed figures as distinguished as Voltaire and Joseph Bonaparte, owes its handsome appearance to the banker Louis Guiguer, who has it built in the 1730s and so becomes baron of Prangins. The timeless elegance of the French classical style is a living monument to the Age of Enlightenment.

... AND NOW
After numerous changes of ownership, the château is acquired by the Cantons of Vaud and Geneva, who hand it over to the Swiss Confederation in 1975. Château de Prangins opens its doors as the home of the Swiss National Museum in French-speaking Switzerland in 1998. The three floors and the cellars of the historic building – a monument of national importance – host permanent and temporary exhibitions on Swiss history, identity and culture. Housed in the reception rooms of Louis-François Guiguer, Baron of Prangins “Noblesse Oblige! Life at a Château in the 18th Century”, presents its subject in an attractive and novel way.

Exhibition archive