Münsingen Castle, Münsingen, Switzerland

By the 12th century a castle was built in Münsingen town from which the Senn family ruled the town. However, it was demolished by Bern in 1311. A wooden outbuilding was built on the castle lands three years later, which later became the cantonal psychiatric clinic. In 1550 the Schultheiss Hans Franz Nägeli rebuilt the castle building into its current appearance. It was renovated and repaired in 1749–53. In 1977 the municipality acquired the castle and converted it into a municipal museum.

The museum is open Friday and Sunday from October until April. It contains two permanent exhibits as well as occasional temporary exhibits. The first permanent exhibit focuses on the history of the town and on the Steiger family who lived in the castle for almost three centuries. The second permanent exhibit focuses on the work of the famous puppeteer, Therese Keller (1923-1972) who was a pioneer in the puppet theater in Switzerland.

References:

Wikipedia

Sigmaringen Castle

Sigmaringen Castle was first mentioned in the year 1077 in the chronicles of Petershausen monastery. The oldest parts of the castle are concealed beneath the alterations made during the 17th and the 19th centuries. The secret of the earliest settlement built on this defendable rock will never be fully revealed: large-scale excavation work would be necessary, which the extensive land development renders impossible. Judging from the many Roman remains unearthed in the area around Sigmaringen, the 12th century keep known as the 'Roman Tower' could be traced back to a Roman predecessor.

The castle remains that have been preserved (gate, great hall and keep) date back to the Staufer period around 1200. The castle remains were integrated into subsequent buildings. The foundations of the castle buildings are to a large extent identical to the surrounding castle wall.

These remains give us a good idea of how the castle might have looked during the 12th century.

Alexander Lauber (3 years ago)
Great service, excellent food and beautiful rooms. The only thing missing was a mini bar.

Emma Ischer (4 years ago)
The lecture by Ernst W. Eggimann was excellent

Darius Burch (4 years ago)
well-kept park clean area

Margrit Wittwer (4 years ago)
Great exhibition

B. Friedli (4 years ago)
Very beautiful, historic castle ☺️

Münsingen Castle

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Sigmaringen Castle