Vevey is a small town on the shores of Lake Léman (or Lake Geneva, for some), situated between Lausanne and Montreux about an hour's train ride from Geneva. This is where the first chocolat was made and where the Nestlé company has its international headquarters.

The old prison facilities were designed by Philippe Franel and put into operation in 1864-1865. They made use of a building already existing since at least 1239. Built on a rectangular plan, the Chapter tower, which documents have called a "maison forte" or residence fortress, belonged to the Chapter of the Lausanne Cathedral, which used it as a residence and as a sign of power.

The tower is a massive and imposing edifice associated with the defense of the town. Its position is unusual in that it was built on the city walls not far from the gates of the Chapter. When the Bernese conquered the Canton of Vaud, in 1536, the tower was first used to house the court of the baillif; in 1720 the entire building was turned into a granary. These successive uses did not change the building's basic structure, however, but preserved the original masonry.

It was probably the thickness of the masonry walls and the spacing of the small apertures that led to the tower being chosen for a prison in the mid-nineteenth century. The history of the transformation of the building and the establishment of the prison facilities, between 1857 and 1864, is a rocky one. It brings together the names of three Vevey architects who were associated with numerous building projects that were submitted to at least three architect-experts as late as 1864. The experts' comments led to the present system of vaulting and distribution.

Despite transformations made in 1978, the present building is still very close to the one designed and executed by Franel.*

The prison was disaffected in 2004. The building belongs to the town of Vevey.

(translation: Beverly Maeder)

*Historical report, Luigi Napi, 1998