Grasburg (Wahlern)

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Grasburg
Grasburg Ruins Wahlern Sep2010.jpg
Creation time : around 1220 to 1230
Castle type : Höhenburg, rocky location
Conservation status: ruin
Standing position : Princes
Place: Schwarzenburg
Geographical location 46 ° 50 ′ 1 "  N , 7 ° 19 ′ 55"  E Coordinates: 46 ° 50 ′ 1 "  N , 7 ° 19 ′ 55"  E ; CH1903:  591860  /  one hundred and eighty-six thousand nine hundred and forty-six
Grasburg (Canton of Bern)
Grasburg

The Grasburg is the ruin of a rock castle on a sandstone rock near Schwarzenburg , in the canton of Bern in Switzerland .

location

The castle is located on a ledge above the Sense Gorge . This ledge lies in a bend in the river and drops over 60 meters on the south side. There are rocky steep slopes on the other side as well. Only in the southeast is a rock saddle that connects the building site with the surrounding area. On the castle rock itself, the site forms a not entirely flat area 150 meters long and around 50 meters wide. As a result, the site offered the opportunity to build the largest castle in the canton of Bern. In a first stage, the core castle, separated by a 16-meter-wide neck ditch, was built on the slightly elevated rock tip to the west. In a second stage, it was closed at the eastern end with a keep.

A medieval street runs south of the castle and connects the two Kyburg cities of Thun and Freiburg . It runs down into the Sense Gorge, where it crosses the river around 600 meters south of the castle. The place called “Torenöli”, where the descent into the gorge takes place, is in the view of the castle. Today's way to Harrissteg was also a medieval street, the destination of which was probably Laupen. The castle was therefore suitable for the Stauffer not only to manage the region, but also to monitor traffic in the region.

history

The Grasburg was built around 1220 or 1230. During this time the areas of today's cantons of Freiburg and Bern came to the Staufers , a German royal family. For a long time it was assumed that the Grasburg was built by the Zähringers . According to recent research by Thomas Biller, this is considered a mistake. The theory of the Zähringer as builders comes from Heinrich Burri from Freiburg, who wrote a book about the Grasburg in 1931. Burri's work has long been considered an authoritative source and has not been questioned for a long time. Although a survey was made on the occasion of the renovation in 1983/84, more in-depth research was not carried out, so that Burri's dating remained and the construction phases of the castle were not recognized. Although an Otto and a Cuno von Grassburg, apparently Reichsministeriale, were mentioned in the sources between 1223 and 1245, it was not until a Jakob Schultheiss von Grassburg was mentioned in 1239 that a local assignment was made, as he was referred to as a former mayor from 1259 onwards becomes, which suggests that the Grasburg belonged to the imperial castles and bases of the Staufer, which was occupied by the Kyburgers in the turmoil of the interregnum . Which would also be obvious, since it is on the road from Thun to Freiburg.

Against the building by the Zähringer (before their extinction in 1218) speak the still clearly recognizable Gothic building forms, whose style suggests that it was built in the period of the first written mentions, i.e. around 1223.

The eastern part of the ruin during repair work in 1994

When the Hohenstaufen position of power collapsed in 1250, the castle came into Kyburian possession, then in 1263/64 for a short time into Savoyard possession, then as a fief in the possession of Rudolf von Habsburg , and by his appointment as king it again became an imperial castle . The Habsburgs appointed the von Maggenbergs , de Corbières and the de Vuippens as bailiffs . In 1310 the fiefdom of Grasburg was pledged from Henry VII to Amadeus V of Savoy . From then on, the castle lost its importance and fell into disrepair, which is why it was sold in 1423 to the cities of Bern and Freiburg, who jointly administered it. In 1575 the castle was abandoned. The rulership of what is now the district of Schwarzenburg was then carried out from Schwarzenburg Castle . In 1803 the Grasburg ruins went to the State of Bern .

Today the outer bailey , the main castle and the main courtyard are still preserved from the castle . It was secured between 1984 and 1986 in such a way that it can be viewed and walked safely.

Web links

Commons : Grasburg (Wahlern)  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Archeology Bern / Archeologie Bernoise 2011, 175
  2. ↑ Archeology Bern / Archeologie bernoise 2011, 186
  3. ↑ Armand Baeriywyl, Archaeological Service of Bern
  4. ↑ Burri, Friedrich: The former Reichsfeste Grasburg. History, reconstruction, income [= Archive of the Historical Association of the Canton of Bern, Volume XXXIII, Issue 1, 1935]. Bern: Francke 1935.
  5. ↑ Freiburger Nachrichten - 3rd August 2017 edition
  6. ↑ Archeologie Bern / Archeologie bernoise 2011, pp. 172–175
  7. ↑ Archeologie Bern / Archeologie bernoise 2011, pp. 172–175