Legend has it that upon St. Francis of Assisi's visit to the Savoy territories, the Saint was given accommodation by Countess Beatrice, wife of Thomas I of Savoy. The devout noblewoman asked for a keepsake of the Saint's visit with such insistence that Francis, somewhat bemused, tore a sleeve off his own robe and presented it to her. The relic stayed in Piedmont until the Franciscan order was chased out of the region on Napoleon's orders; following that, the cloth was transferred to the ducal chapel in Chambery.