Felsenburg (Kandergrund)

Felsenburg Castle
Burgruine Felsenburg
Kandergrund
Ruins of Felsenburg Castle
Felsenburg Castle Show map of Canton of Bern Felsenburg Castle Show map of Switzerland
Coordinates	46.531894°N 7.673257°E / 46.531894; 7.673257
Site information
Open to the public	yes
Site history
Built	12th century
Built by	Freiherr of Kien

Felsenburg Castle is a ruined castle in the municipality of Kandergrund of the Canton of Bern in Switzerland. It is a Swiss heritage site of national significance.^[1]

History

Probable appearance around 1400

Felsenburg castle was probably built in the 12th century for the Freiherr of Kien. The castle was built on a rocky spire above the road over the Gemmi pass into Valais. It was inherited, along with the rest of the Herrschaft of Frutigen, by the Freiherr of Wädenswil in 1290. The Freiherr of Turn acquired it from Wädenswil in 1312. It was mentioned in a record in 1339 as the castrum de Petra. It was again mentioned in 1368 as Stein, German for Stone. In 1400, Bern acquired the castle along with the rest of the Herrschaft. They abandoned Felsenburg and allowed it fall into ruin.^[2]

Castle site

Currently, only the rectangular main tower and remnants of the outer walls are still standing.^[2]

See also

• List of castles in Switzerland

References

1. "Kantonsliste A-Objekte". KGS Inventar (in German). Federal Office of Civil Protection. 2009. Archived from the original on 28 June 2010. Retrieved 25 April 2011.
2. Felsenburg in German, French and Italian in the online Historical Dictionary of Switzerland.