Town Hall (Rapperswil)

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South side with sundial and among other things the coat of arms of the von Landenberg family
View from the east
View from the northeast (castle stairs), in the foreground the main square

The town hall of the town of Rapperswil , which was independent until December 31, 2006, is located in the heart of the old town of Rapperswil , a district of the Swiss municipality of Rapperswil-Jona in the canton of St. Gallen .

Council and councilors

In Rapperswil, a council court made up of the 12 members of the “ Small Council ” and the Schultheissen has been occupied since 1341 . Since 1481 the “ Great Council ” consisted of 24 members elected by the Small Council. Since the court privilege of May 18, 1442, the minor and major councils, chaired by the mayor, exercised blood jurisdiction . The umbrella bailiwick over the Wurmsbach monastery has been in use since 1415 . A “ secret council ” determined all the city's affairs in times of war. Well-known councilors include the Landenbergers , as mayors and councilors until 1530. Other prominent names include the Russinger (Lords of Russikon), Göldlin and Breny families.

building

The town hall on the main square was first mentioned in 1419 as " council or richthus ", the large council chamber has been documented since 1433. The construction is said to go back to a watchtower of the oldest city ​​fortifications , probably from the first half of the 13th century. The building in its current form was built around 1470 and the extension in the form of a tower was added in 1614/15. Conversions took place in 1866 and 1895. In 1902 the floor was increased by one floor, which is decorated with figurative and heraldic motifs under the hipped roof . Recent renovations in 1946/47 and 1998/99 led to today's rather simple appearance, as the elaborate decorations on the basement floors were largely removed. The sundial on the south side and the city coat of arms on the east side have been preserved. The building includes the town hall restaurant, the council chamber, the “Richterstübli” and parts of the city archive.

The late Gothic portal to the council chamber with richly profiled, double-sided keel arch was made from a single oak trunk . A cast iron renaissance stove (year 1572) is the most representative piece of equipment. The panels in the hall (1471), the gold and silver treasures from the 16th and 17th centuries (exhibits in the city ​​museum ), the round council table by Conrad Lütprand (1618), the paintings by the Rapperswil artists Felix Maria Diogg and Johann Michael are all worth seeing Hunger as well as the valuable stocks of stained glass.

  • Detailed view of the sundial

  • Supraporte in the entrance hall

  • Portal to the council chamber

  • Council Chamber

  • " Richterstübli "

The See-Gaster District Court meets in the council chamber , and the local administrative council ( comrades ) holds its meetings in the “ Richterstübli ”, which is also used for weddings . The building houses the restaurant of the same name and the office and the city ​​archive on the second floor . The building is owned by the local community of Rapperswil-Jona.

history

" Juliusbanner " from 1512 on the first floor of the town hall

A first councilor and mayor in the city of Rapperswil can already be assumed for the time after the city was founded. Between 1267 and 1282, citizens, clerics and nobles took on representative tasks instead of the Rapperswil counts. The first seal of the city of Rapperswil is proven in 1277. After the destruction of Rapperswil and the reconstruction initiated by Duke Rudolf IV von Habsburg , Rapperswil received the right to accept citizens in 1358, customs law for the pier in 1360 , and King Wenzel certified the exemption from foreign courts in 1379. In 1406 Hermann Gessler is mentioned as bailiff and mayor. As a result of the Battle of the Stoss , in which numerous citizens of Rapperswil lost their lives on the side of Habsburg- Austria, Rapperswil was given the right to freely choose the mayor in 1406 and to use court fines for the structural maintenance of the city.

On June 24th, 1512 the papal " Juliusbanner " with golden roses was awarded by Cardinal Schiner , in recognition of the mercenary services of Rapperswil travelers for Pope Julius II in the so-called "Great  Pavier Campaign ". Incited by the city of Zurich's grain ban and predicant policy , supporters of the turmoil of the Reformation stormed the town hall in July 1531, expelled the council, even elected Zurich Stapfer as mayor and appointed a reformed pastor. With the Second Land Peace in Kapperswil , Rapperswil returned to the Roman Catholic faith, and those who had converted to the Reformed faith left the town. The four umbrella sites confiscated the property of the subversive, forbade further meetings and punished the leaders of the Reformed party with pillory , tongue slits and executions. Rapperswil has now monitored by a central Swiss crew and lost the grace letter of 1532 some of his old rights.

Julius banner

Federal soldiers of Pope Julius II had achieved a quick victory over the French who broke into Lombardy in the so-called "Great Pavier Campaign" during the Italian wars in 1512. According to a document dated June 24, 1512, the participating team from Rapperswil received a banner from Cardinal Schiner with an "improved" city coat of arms: golden instead of red rose studs and a depiction of the baptism of Christ by Johannes in the corner quarter , with reference to the Johannes patronage of the parish church of Rapperswil . The heavily damaged silk damask with the dimensions 116 x 122 cm, which was restored for the first time in 1895, was reassembled and preserved in 1993 by order of the local community of Rapperswil-Jona.

regional customs

View from the east, with parts of the coat of arms

The still practiced Eis-zwei-Geissebei on Shrove Tuesday to the siege and pillage of Rapperswil go back on February 24, 1350 by Zurich troops. Back then, compassionate city dwellers would have passed food to hungry children from the windows of their houses, which is a reminder of today's custom .

See also

literature

  • Peter Röllin: Rapperswil-Jona cultural building set: 36 museums without a roof . Rapperswil-Jona 2005, ISBN 3-033-00478-4 .

Web links

Commons : Rathaus Rapperswil  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Website legal sources foundation of the Swiss Lawyers Association: Legal sources of the city and rule of Rapperswil (with the farms Busskirch / Jona, Kempraten and Wagen) , accessed on March 16, 2013
  2. ↑ Work like in grandfather's time . In: Fachwissen Applica 18/2007
  3. ↑ Other, Kunstdenkmäler des Kantons St. Gallen, p. 368f.
  4. ^ Website of the city of Rapperswil-Jona: Customs and History , accessed on April 11, 2013.

Coordinates: 47 ° 13 '34.8 "  N , 8 ° 48' 59"  E ; CH1903:  seven hundred and four thousand three hundred thirty-nine  /  231517