Wittigkofen Castle was originally built as a residence for a farm and was awarded to the followers of the Zähringians. In the mid-13th century Heinricus Wittenchoven managed the farm. He was a member of the council and the first documented feudal superior. The property was also home to the monastery of Interlaken. The castle had several owners and belonged to different families. Beat Ludwig von Mülinen (1521-1597) purchased the castle in 1570 and gave half to Hans Rudolf Steiger (1549-1577) six years later.
In June 2011 a decision was made by the director Jürg StüssiLauterburg of the Library am Guisanplatz (BiG), a federal military library in Bern, to purchase a historical collection of items from the Von Wurstemberger family. The collection of items had been collected and exhibited in the Wittigkofen Castle. The collection included a large library, maps, and a portrait of Johann Ludwig Von Wurstemberger, a cabinet, and drawings. The Von Wurstemberger library was located in the French room of the castle and contained many books that reflected the impact that this family had on the Confederation's military history. Before being packed for transfer, every book was thoroughly cleaned with a special vacuum to avoid bringing insects to their new location. The books were packed into 50 removal boxes for transfer to the Library am Guisanplatz, with the help of active military personnel, and moved to their new location in September 2011.
References:The Pilgrimage Church of Wies (Wieskirche) is an oval rococo church, designed in the late 1740s by Dominikus Zimmermann. It is located in the foothills of the Alps in the municipality of Steingaden.
The sanctuary of Wies is a pilgrimage church extraordinarily well-preserved in the beautiful setting of an Alpine valley, and is a perfect masterpiece of Rococo art and creative genius, as well as an exceptional testimony to a civilization that has disappeared.
The hamlet of Wies, in 1738, is said to have been the setting of a miracle in which tears were seen on a simple wooden figure of Christ mounted on a column that was no longer venerated by the Premonstratensian monks of the Abbey. A wooden chapel constructed in the fields housed the miraculous statue for some time. However, pilgrims from Germany, Austria, Bohemia, and even Italy became so numerous that the Abbot of the Premonstratensians of Steingaden decided to construct a splendid sanctuary.