Höchhus Küsnacht
The Höchhus ( Zurich German for high house) is a medieval building in Küsnacht in the canton of Zurich in Switzerland.
building
The Höchhus originally consisted of two buildings that were built at the same time: a square tower of around 8.7 by 8.7 meters and a rectangular building of around 11.5 by 7.5 meters. The wall thickness is almost 1 meter here, and 1.2 meters for the tower. Both buildings originally consisted of two floors, which were connected to each other by a door on the first floor. When a new three-story house section was added on the lake side in the 17th century, the old house sections were also given three floors. At the same time the half- timbered superstructure and the half- hip roof were built. The name "Höchhus" probably originated from this period: the building clearly towered over the surrounding simple houses.
history
There are no written documents about the construction of the Höchhus. Features of the masonry and the construction of the walls suggest that it was built early in the 12th century. The house is said to have been used by the Regensbergers , who were sitting at Wulp Castle at the time , as a storage place for the tithe.
According to other considerations, the building was built as an administrative building for the Mülner knight family from Zurich , who owned the Imperial Bailiwick of Küsnacht as a fief in the 14th century .
Between 1320 and 1333, Mülner received Küsnacht, among others, Stadelhofen, Witikon , Zumikon with Waltikon and Gössikon as well as Zollikon and Goldbach for services rendered, which resulted in an almost contiguous territory on the lower Lake of Zurich. Götz I seems to have appointed an Ammann to administer his property and to exercise lower jurisdiction . It is also conceivable that the "Höchhus" was built on the site of the Wulp Castle, which was probably destroyed in the Regensberg feud , and that the Mülners received the Regensberg bailiffs. It is unlikely that the Mülner lived in the Höchhus themselves, as they lived in the town at Haus zum Schwert .
The time of the Mülner bailiffs was over by 1384 at the latest, when the Reichsvogtei Küsnacht passed to the city of Zurich; this was enfeoffed on June 1st by King Wenzel .
What happened to the Höchhus in the following centuries is not known. The first Obervogt in Zurich over Zollikon and Küsnacht, Johannes Seiler, carried out his office from the city like all his successors. The previous official seat was no longer needed and probably passed into private hands.
It was not until the turn of the 17th to the 18th century that the Küsnacht basic protocols provided information about the inhabitants of the Höchhuses. Three families lived in the now three-part building: the Rigold in the tower, the Lochmann in the rectangular building and the Kuser in the new part. In the course of the 18th and 19th centuries, after countless sales and changes of hands, ownership became increasingly confusing. The building served as a residence for up to seven families, each of whom lived in a separate part. The residents were artisans and traders. Around 1840 the doctor Salomon Werdmüller lived in the Höchhus; at the same time a specialty shop was operating. In the following decades, two extensions with apartments and a carpenter's workshop were built in the east and north. A small extension with a terrace was built on the lake side.
In connection with the preparations for a comprehensive and expensive renovation of the Höchhuses, opponents of the project achieved that at an emotionally charged community meeting on December 15, 1967, it was decided to demand that the local council demolish the building. Following this defeat, the “Pro Höchhus” foundation was established with the aim of preserving the building.
Northwest corner with extension
Northwest corner 2010
East side with extension
East side 2010
Thanks to the financial support of Heimatschutz, the Canton of Zurich and the municipality, the demolition was prevented. On April 2, there was a second vote, which again called for the building to be demolished under the motto “Hushöch abe mit dem Höchhus”; the house represents a serious obstacle to traffic. In the «Hotel Sonne» opposite, they were hoping for additional parking spaces. Not least thanks to the support of the women, who were allowed to vote this time , the Höchhus opponents lost with 329 to 512 votes. The foundation's considerable assets enabled the community to commission the architect Christian Frutiger to carry out the renovation.
In 1972/73 all additions were removed and the whole building restored. In the southwest corner of the second floor, the old timber construction was reconstructed.
On the occasion of the construction of the underpass and the Oberwachtstrasse as well as the redesign of the Seestrasse, the pavement was relocated to the original extension and this was supported by pillars. Today the community library, a reading room, a gallery and an apartment are housed in the Höchhus.
gallery
Remnants of old paintings
Library
gallery
reading room
Web links
literature
- Küsnachter Jahresblätter 1966 , report by Hans Kläui
- Küsnachter Jahresblätter 1976 , report by Christian Frutiger
- Küsnachter Jahresblätter 1998 , report by Hans-Richard Benz
- Werner Meyer : Castles of Switzerland. Volume 5 . Silva publishing house. Zurich, 1983
Individual evidence
Coordinates: 47 ° 19 ′ 9 " N , 8 ° 34 ′ 45.8" E ; CH1903: six hundred and eighty-six thousand two hundred and forty-three / 241548