Battle of Grynau
Site plan of Grynau Castle from 1820 with the old course of the Linth. At the time of the battle, Lake Zurich probably still reached the castle. The battle must have taken place near the present-day places Uznach, Tuggen or Schmerikon.
| date | September 21, 1337 |
|---|---|
| place | Uznach , Tuggen or Schmerikon |
| output | Zurich victory |
| Parties to the conflict | |
|---|---|
| Commander | |
|
Count Johann I of Habsburg-Laufenburg † |
Count Kraft III. from Toggenburg †
|
The Battle of Grynau on September 21, 1337 took place during the Grynau War between the imperial city of Zurich and an aristocratic union under the leadership of Count Johann I von Habsburg-Laufenburg .
prehistory
The site of the battle, Grynau Castle , secured one of the few crossings over the Linth between Lake Zurich and Lake Walen and was therefore a strategically important place. In 1311 the castle came under the control of Count Rudolf III. von Habsburg-Laufenburg (1270-1314), but it was also claimed by the Counts of Toggenburg.
The hostilities were triggered by the Brun's guild revolution in Zurich in 1336. After the political reorganization, the new mayor Rudolf Brun banished 22 aristocratic councilors and their families from the city. They found support from the surrounding noble houses, who felt threatened by the rise of the city of Zurich.
The fugitives came to live with Count Johann I von Habsburg-Laufenburg in Rapperswil , who also took the lead in this fight because of his own debts. It was indebted to the city as well as to some of the exiles. Under his protection, the outcasts formed a counter-government of the “outer Zurich” in Rapperswil and began to forays through the subject area of the city of Zurich. The aim was to overthrow the new government of Zurich. Count Johann recruited mercenaries during these years. Against the opponents of the new Rapperswil city government, several actions were taken, such as the above-average number of (presumably politically motivated) executions and, for example, a ban on gatherings. Zurich also sought support from allies and found it with Count Kraft III. von Toggenburg , who endeavored to occupy a profitable middle position between the Confederation and Habsburg and who was in conflict with Johann I because of Grynau. Zurich had already concluded a castle law with the Count in 1327, who was also the patron of the Zurich Great Minster . The hermit Abbot Konrad I von Thun was also acquainted with Brun, he sympathized with the cause of the Zurich people and recognized their constitutional changes.
course
In the battle that took place on September 21, 1337 near Grynau Castle, Count Johann I von Habsburg-Laufenburg and Toggenburg Count Kraft III. as the leader of the small army of the Zurich troops, death. The exact location of the battle is unknown. The Zurich victory meant that the Habsburg Duke Albrecht II of Austria intervened and ensured a temporary peace. He called on the people of Zurich to renounce all conquests and also to hand over their property to the exiles, which the city of Zurich refused. Rudolf Brun only gave in when Duke Albrecht took over the guardianship of the underage sons of the fallen count, Johann II , Rudolf IV and Gottfried II, and thus sided with the Rapperswilers.
consequences
However, the Habsburgs have not been personally present since the death of Duke Otto , Albrecht's brother, and the Zurich residents were therefore able to expand their influence on the upper Lake Zurich . Zurich then entered into a number of alliances to protect itself, including in 1340 with Constance and St. Gallen . In 1342, Jakob Brun, the brother of the Zurich mayor, was able to acquire the bailiwick rights to the farms of Wollerau , Pfäffikon and Bäch on the left bank of the lake. In 1343 a short-term alliance with Rapperswil followed. In 1345 an alliance with the bishop and the city of Basel and Schaffhausen followed . After the death of Ludwig the Bavarian , Brun succeeded in confirming Zurich's privileges from the newly elected King Charles IV , and Zurich finally joined the Swabian League of Cities in 1349 .
Brun's opponents turned to the now adult son of the fallen count, Johann II, and promised him the repayment of all debts and the redemption of the Wollerau, Bäch and Pfäffikon farms pledged to the city of Zurich. This led the guerrilla war and took the hermit Abbot Konrad II von Gösgen prisoner during an attack between July 31, 1347 and June 26, 1348 on Pfäffikon . How long the abbot was imprisoned is unclear. In any case, he was free again on June 26, 1348 and Pfäffikon was back in his hands, because on that date a reconciliation between him and Johann came about through the mediation of some gentlemen. Abbot Johannes paved the way for the lifting of the ban , which had apparently been imposed, through compensation . Count Johann II and his brothers promised to take the house of God, its people and goods under their special protection.
The conflict between Zurich and the Counts of Habsburg-Laufenburg, with an interruption until 1355, escalated in 1350 on the night of the murder in Zurich , during which Count Johann II was imprisoned in Zurich for at least two years through betrayal.
Grynau Castle was sold to Count Friedrich V of Toggenburg in 1343 and came to the canton of Schwyz during the Old Zurich War in 1437 with taxes and duties .
See also
literature
- Albert Jörger: The art monuments of the canton Schwyz, new edition. Vol. II: The March district . Basel 1989, pp. 434-440.