Gruyere

The counts of Gruyere were a noble house of western Switzerland from the eleventh to the sixteenth century, ruling a county in the upper Sarine valley. Count Wilerius and his family appear as benefactors of Rougemont Priory in 1115; the name Gruyere first appears in 1144, when William II is styled comes de Grueria. Gruyeres Castle is attested from 1244. The house founded Rougemont Priory in 1104 and the Part-Dieu charterhouse in 1307.

Count Rodolphe III did homage to Savoy in 1236 and placed the county under Savoyard suzerainty in 1244, a bond that lasted until 1536. Rodolphe IV added lordships and received a minting right from King Wenceslas in 1396.

The last count, Michel, crushed by debt, fled to Burgundy. In 1554 his Swiss allies declared him bankrupt and Fribourg and Bern divided the County of Gruyere between them.