During the Middle Ages, Wil Castle was built near the village and it became the seat of the Herrschaft of Schlosswil. The lords of the fort, the Freiherren von Wiler, were first mentioned in 1146. The von Wiler family died out around 1300, and the village and associated territory passed through several noble families, including the Freiherren von Signau and eventually the Senn von Münsingen family. The territory was split in half and passed through several Bernese patrician families until Burkhard von Erlach reunited the two halves in 1514.

In 1546 the medieval castle was destroyed in a fire. Shortly thereafter it was rebuilt as a larger castle under the direction of the master builder Niklaus von Wattenwyl-May. The current appearance comes from a 1780 renovation that gave the castle a Baroque exterior.

Following the 1798 French invasion, under the Helvetic Republic the nobility lost much of their power and property and by 1812 the castle was acquired by the Canton of Bern. In 1818 the castle tower became the only granary for the district of Konolfingen. A famine in 1816-17 was partly alleviated by the grain at the castle. In 1847 the tower was converted into a prison, a role that it filled until 1881. Even after the prison closed, the castle continued to be used by the district administration and courts. In 2010 the District of Konolfingen was dissolved and the need for district offices vanished. In 2011 it was acquired by Matthias Steinmann, who founded the Steinmann Foundation to operate the castle.

The original fortress tower was built in first half of the 12th century for the von Wiler family. The walls of the square tower are 38 meters tall and to the peak of the roof is 43.5 meters.

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Details

Founded: 12th century
Category: Castles and fortifications in Switzerland

More Information

en.wikipedia.org

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4.6/5 (based on Google user reviews)

User Reviews

Ben Cangrejo (4 years ago)
Small beautiful castle with a pond and fountain. Long avenue facing south
Riponne Griffondor (4 years ago)
Superb little castle to discover a few kilometers from Bern. its avenue of trees and its park are really worth the discovery and the walk, whatever the weather!
Karl 1974 (4 years ago)
Wil Castle is a castle from the 13th and 16th century in the municipality of Schlosswil in the Canton of Bern, Switzerland. The castle is a popular destination for locals and is a Heritage Site of National Significance. It was the administrative seat of the Konolfingen District. During the Middle Ages, a fortress (German: Burg Wil) was built near the village and it became the seat of the Herrschaft of Schlosswil. The lords of the fort, the Freiherren von Wiler, were first mentioned in 1146. The von Wiler family died out around 1300, and the village and associated territory passed through several noble families, including the Freiherren von Signau and eventually the Senn von Münsingen family. The territory was split in half and passed through several Bernese patrician families until Burkhard von Erlach reunited the two halves in 1514. In 1546 the medieval castle was destroyed in a fire. Shortly thereafter it was rebuilt as a larger castle under the direction of the master builder Niklaus von Wattenwyl-May. The current appearance comes from a 1780 renovation that gave the castle a Baroque exterior. Following the 1798 French invasion, under the Helvetic Republic the nobility lost much of their power and property and by 1812 the castle was acquired by the Canton of Bern. In 1818 the castle tower became the only granary for the district of Konolfingen. A famine in 1816-17 was partly alleviated by the grain at the castle. In 1847 the tower was converted into a prison, a role that it filled until 1881. Even after the prison closed, the castle continued to be used by the district administration and courts. In 2010 the District of Konolfingen was dissolved and the need for district offices vanished. In 2011 it was acquired by Matthias Steinmann, who founded the Steinmann Foundation to operate the castle.
Bernhard Kunz (5 years ago)
Kleines Schloss mit langer Allee. Die Herrschaft Wil gehörte ursprünglich den Freiherren von Wiler, die 1146 in Verbindung mit den Zähringern erwähnt werden. Später zersplitterten sich Herrschaftsrechte und Gebäudeanteile, bis 1514 Burkhard von Erlach die Teile wieder vereinigte. Im 17. Jahrhundert war das Gut im Besitze der Familie von Diesbach, ab 1719 der Familie Frisching. Mit dem Untergang der Stadt und Republik Bern 1798 gingen die Herrschaftsrechte der Patrizier an den Kanton Bern. Nach 1800 diente der Bergfried lange Zeit als Kornspeicher. 1812 kaufte der Staat Bern die Domäne und richtete hier den Sitz der Verwaltung des neu geschaffenen Amtsbezirks Konolfingen ein. 2011 wurde das Schloss im Rahmen der kantonalen Verwaltungsreform an den Unternehmer Matthias Steinmann verkauft. Niklaus von Wattenwyl errichtete nach dem Brand der Burg im Jahr 1546 das Schloss neu unter Einbezug des Bergfrieds. Um 1725 wurde ein reicher französischer Garten angelegt, wovon noch Terrassenmauern, Wegsysteme, ein Weiher, eine kleine Allee und ein Baumrondell auf der Westseite, vor allem aber die 500 Meter lange Hauptallee mit abschliessendem Baumsaal, erhalten sind. Die beiden Gartenpavillons sind Reste ehemaliger Ecktürmchen der mittelalterlichen Ringmauer. 1780 wurde die Hauptfassade barockisiert. Eine umfassende Restauration wurde in den Jahren 1936 und 1937 vorgenommen.
Google Nutzer (5 years ago)
Eine super Beratung, sympatusches Team, coole Outdoor und Reise Artikel.
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