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The first documented reference to the Gräpplang castle dates from the year 1249. It was built around 1220 by the Knights of Flums. During the Old Zurich War (1436-1450), the castle was extorted in 1440 to get protection, but it was never attacked or destroyed.
In 1528 the property was given to Ludwig Tschudi von Glarus. The castle remained in their family possession until 1767. The Tschudi family gave the castle its recognizable appearance. However, the construction work was carried out in poor quality which caused expensive maintenance work. As there was no interest in preserving the castle, it was sold for demolition in 1804. Recyclable materials such as bricks, iron mountings, fixtures, woodwork and building blocks were sold whenever possible.
In 1923, the ruins of Gräpplang Castle were taken over by the commune of Flums and during the following years, extensive building work was carried out to restore the castle. A few years ago the “Pro Gräpplang” foundation was formed, which organises cultural events in and around the Gräpplang ruins.
I think when the family came to Ellis Island the inspectors heard the last part of the name Tshudi, hence the name change to Judy
Built around AD 90 to entertain the legionaries stationed at the fort of Caerleon (Isca), the impressive amphitheatre was the Roman equivalent of today’s multiplex cinema. Wooden benches provided seating for up to 6,000 spectators, who would gather to watch bloodthirsty displays featuring gladiatorial combat and exotic wild animals.
Long after the Romans left, the amphitheatre took on a new life in Arthurian legend. Geoffrey of Monmouth, the somewhat imaginative 12th-century scholar, wrote in his History of the Kings of Britain that Arthur was crowned in Caerleon and that the ruined amphitheatre was actually the remains of King Arthur’s Round Table.
Today it is the most complete Roman amphitheatre in Britain.