is a
French ''
Département '', named "Upper Savoy" for its location in the
Alps Mountain Range .
Haute-Savoie is 1 of the 2 ''départements'' of the region of Savoy that was annexed by France on March 24,
1860 , the other being
Savoie . For history before 1860, details of the annexation and reasons for the current separatist movement in the départements, see
Savoy .
Mont Blanc and
Lake Annecy are located in Haute-Savoie. To the North, Haute-Savoie borders on
Switzerland , with
Geneva as the closest major town, and
Lake Geneva . The town of
Évian-les-Bains is the most famous town on the French shore of Lake Geneva, well-known around the world for its
Mineral Water Evian . To the East, Haute-Savoie has a common border with
Italy .
