Festi ruins (Bennewil)
| Festi ruins | ||
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.jpg) Remnants of the wall from the Festi ruins |
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| Alternative name (s): | Festeli | |
| Creation time : | 14th Century | |
| Castle type : | Hilltop castle | |
| Conservation status: | Burgstall | |
| Standing position : | Barons | |
| Place: | Gurzelen | |
| Geographical location | 46 ° 46 '55.8 " N , 7 ° 31' 44.3" E | |
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The ruin Festi (Bennewil) or Festeli is an abandoned medieval hilltop castle from the 14th century and is located in the Swiss municipality of Gurzelen in the canton of Bern .
Location and description
The castle ruins are located on a wooded hilltop north of the Gurzelen church. A few traces of the wall and internal structures are still visible.
history
In 1344 Anna Münzer, a widowed childless woman from Bernburg, sold her property in Gurzelen to the sons of her sister Gepa, Burkhard V. and Laurentz von Bennenwil , and the husband of her sister Katharina, Niklaus von Lindnach . In addition to the castle and the associated estate, the property contained 24 leased goods and lands as well as the Geistsee lake . The three new gentlemen then expanded the outdated castle complex within two years. The existing square residential tower to the west was renewed and raised, and a rectangular tower was built to the east on the railing rib. Between the two towers was a closed courtyard with an access gate.
The male descendants of the three owners all remained childless. The Bennenwil family died out before 1400. The Lindnach third came to the Obere Spital Bern and was acquired by the von Wattenwyl family in Burgistein in 1523. The two thirds of the Bennenwil estate came to the Bernese council families of the von Krauchthal and von Erlach families via female descendants, and to Bern via the Thorberg monastery after the Reformation . In 1532 and 1542 Reinhard von Wattenwyl zu Burgistein also acquired the Erlach third and was thus master of two thirds. Bern administered its share through officials, the castle was no longer used and fell into disrepair. The ruins probably became a "quarry" for house foundations and walls.
swell
- Castle map of Switzerland - West: ISBN 978-3-302-09801-2 , Federal Office for Topography swisstopo, 2007
literature
- Heinrich Riesen: The nobles of Bennenwil and their castle in Gurzelen in the 14th century, Verlag H. Riesen Gurzelen, 2006
- Thomas Bitterli-Waldvogel: Swiss Castle Guide, Friedrich Reinhardt Verlag Basel / Berlin, 1995, ISBN 3-7245-0865-4
Web links
- Anne-Marie Dubler : Gurzelen (BE). In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
- Germain Hausmann: Bennenwil, from. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .