Heerbrugg Castle

Heerbrugg Castle
The new Heerbrugg Castle in the Balgach vineyard . Built in 1775 by Bartholomäus Schlumpf , merchant from St. Gallen.
Alternative name (s):	Herburch, Herrenburg
Creation time :	Fort during the Roman Empire , 1077  Hêrburch  to 1280, from 1775 Heerbrugg Castle
Geographical location	47 ° 24 '36.7 "  N , 9 ° 37' 22.7"  E Coordinates: 47 ° 24 '36.7 "  N , 9 ° 37' 22.7"  E ; CH1903:  764,843  /  253338

Heerbrugg Castle and Villa Schmidheiny, built in 1775

The Heerbrugg castle was in 1775 by Bartholomew Schlumpf , a businessman from St. Gallen on the Heerbrugg foothills of Balgacher (Bergs Hümpeler called) on the farm Herrbrugg about Aich (formerly Hêrburch , a stronghold from the year 1077) built.

history

middle Ages

There are indications that a fort was built on the ridge of the Hümpeler , where Heerbrugg Castle is today, as early as the Roman Empire to protect the Heeresstrasse and the only bridge over the Aich .

In 1077/1078 the St. Gallen abbot Ulrich III built. the Hêrburch (also Herrenburg) on ​​the ruins of the Roman fort to protect his possessions. The fortress in turn dominated the old Roman road from the lower Rheingau to Raetia, which led there over the still only bridge over the Aich. The Aich was a branch of the Rhine that regularly flooded the valley floor when it rained heavily. The castle was destroyed around 1280, after which the estate was abandoned.

The St. Galler gave the estate to various feudal lords: 1303 knight Ulrich von Husen and 1417 the noble von Ainwil ( Andwil ), for interest and tithes. In 1518, the town was named Herrenbrugg über der Aich in the certificate of the court marks between Lustenau , Berneck , Balgach and Kriessern , from which the name Heerbrugg is derived.

Early modern age

In 1598, Junker Schobinger (son of Bartholomäus Schobinger ) from St. Gallen took over the estate. In 1698 David Schobinger, a merchant from St. Gallen, who died in 1699 and bequeathed it to his only son, became the owner of the farm. David Schobinger, for his part, fell in the battle of Negroponte against the Turks that same year. In 1727 the Reidt von Chur family bought the property, but hardly lived in it, so it continued to fall apart. It fell victim to a fire on February 13, 1774.

In 1774, Bartholomäus Schlumpf, a merchant from St. Gallen, bought the property for 10,000 guilders plus back interest, the rights to the property with everything that the conflagration had left over. This included a farmhouse, estates and forests. In 1775 he rebuilt the castle without the current tower. In 1792 he sold the castle to the district captain Custer von Altstätten for 16,000 guilders. Until 1796 there was only the castle with three outbuildings in Heerbrugg, the plain was uninhabited.

In 1833 the entire property went to gymnastics father Karl Völker (* 1796, German emigrant from Eisenach), who was related by marriage to Custer and who had bought his citizenship in Altstätten. In 1839 Völker, a schoolmaster by profession, set up an educational institute with boarding school for young Englishmen in the castle , which he gave up in 1850 to devote himself to agricultural experiments. In 1856, Karl Völker built a brick factory at the foot of the Schlossberg, which was the cornerstone of Heerbrugg's economic success.

Todays use

Since 1867, when the weaving fergger Jacob Schmidheiny bought (1838 *), including the castle and surrounding brick by Karl peoples, it belonged to the family dynasty Schmidheiny . As a result, he gave up his own weaving mill and expanded the brick factory. Jacob Schmidheiny died in 1905 and his property passed to his two sons Ernst (* 1871) and Jacob II (* 1875). Jacob II took over the castle in 1910 and rebuilt it in 1910, while Ernst had the Schmidheiny villa built next door for himself and his family . In 1911 the tower with an onion helmet was added. The castle was subsequently inherited by the Schmidheiny family until it was sold by Peter Schmidheiny to the brothers Leo and Peter von Rotz in 2005.

Peter von Rotz has been the sole owner of the palace since 2006. The owner does not want to rename the building, which is also known as Schloss Schmidheiny (based on the Villa Schmidheiny). The Villa Schmidheiny is now home to Thomas Schmidheiny's wine cellar . The wine cellar was provided with an extension in 1999, which can be used for wine tastings. It is designed in a modern, puristic way with lots of glass and concrete, in the style of today's attractive wine architecture . In 2009 Schmidheiny acquired properties in the municipality of Rapperswil-Jona on Lake Zurich , which increased its vineyards by 10 hectares with the Höcklistein, Fuchsenberg and Meienberg vineyards  . With his wineries overseas, mostly in top locations, they form a network for his strategic wine company.

Timeline

Castle concerts

Since 2005, the palace concerts have been held in the palace shed every summer. The event is public and chargeable. The Sunday matinee with brunch, which is also open to children, concludes. In 2015, for the 10th anniversary, you will find them on 14./15. and 21/22/23 August.

Web links

Commons : Heerbrugg Castle  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Inventory sheet 19.009: Balgach, Heerbrugg Castle (PDF) on the website of: Canton St.Gallen, Department of the Interior, Office for Culture, Archeology,
• Heerbrugg Castle
• Castle concerts

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c d} The history of Heerbrugg Castle. hydroelectra.ch, accessed on December 30, 2013 . 
2. ↑ ^{a b c d e f} HISTORY / Chronology of Heerbrugg Castle. hydroelectra.ch, accessed on December 30, 2013 . 
3. ↑ HISTORY / History of Heerbrugg. hydroelectra.ch, accessed on December 30, 2013 . 
4. ↑ A professor with ideas. (No longer available online.) ProHeerbrugg, archived from the original on December 30, 2013 ; accessed on December 30, 2013 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
5. ^ History of the political community Au. Municipality of Au, accessed on December 30, 2013 . 
6. ↑ Heinz-Gert Woschek (eds.), Denis Duhme, Katrin Friederichs: Wine and Architecture - A wine travel guide for architects and wine lovers. Edition Detail, 1. Edition 2011, ISBN 978-3-920034-55-3 , p. 125.