| Alt-Bichelsee Castle | |
|---|---|
| Bichelsee-Balterswil | |
Alt-Bichelsee Castle hill | |
  Alt-Bichelsee Castle  Alt-Bichelsee Castle | |
| Coordinates | 47°26′50″N8°55′03″E / 47.447358°N 8.917382°E Coordinates: 47°26′50″N8°55′03″E / 47.447358°N 8.917382°E |
| Type | hill castle |
| Code | CH-TG |
| Site information | |
| Condition | ruin |
| Site history | |
| Built | about 1250 |
Alt-Bichelsee Castle is a ruined castle in the Swiss Canton of Thurgau in the municipality of Bichelsee-Balterswil.
A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages by predominantly the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word castle, but usually consider it to be the private fortified residence of a lord or noble. This is distinct from a palace, which is not fortified; from a fortress, which was not always a residence for royalty or nobility; and from a fortified settlement, which was a public defence – though there are many similarities among these types of construction. Usage of the term has varied over time and has been applied to structures as diverse as hill forts and country houses. Over the approximately 900 years that castles were built, they took on a great many forms with many different features, although some, such as curtain walls and arrowslits, were commonplace.
Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a country situated in western, central and southern Europe. It consists of 26 cantons, and the city of Bern is the seat of the federal authorities. The sovereign state is a federal republic bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland is a landlocked country geographically divided between the Alps, the Swiss Plateau and the Jura, spanning a total area of 41,285 km2 (15,940 sq mi). While the Alps occupy the greater part of the territory, the Swiss population of approximately 8.5 million people is concentrated mostly on the plateau, where the largest cities are to be found: among them are the two global cities and economic centres Zürich and Geneva.
The canton of Thurgau is a northeast canton of Switzerland.
