| Bipp Castle | |
|---|---|
| Oberbipp | |
 Ruins of Bipp Castle and an 1855 addition | |
  Bipp Castle  Bipp Castle | |
| Coordinates | 47°15′49″N7°39′08″E / 47.263592°N 7.652264°E |
| Type | Hill castle |
| Code | CH-BE |
| Site information | |
| Condition | Partly ruined |
| Site history | |
| Built | by 1268 |
| Garrison information | |
| Occupants | Ministerialis, Landvogt |
Bipp Castle is a partially ruined castle in the municipality of Oberbipp of the Canton of Bern in Switzerland.
During the 12th century the Bishop of Basel granted the Buchsgau region, which included the village of Oberbipp, to the Count of Froburg to hold as a fief. By 1268 Bipp Castle is first mentioned in a document. During the 13th century the counts of Froburg appear to have gradually lost most of their holdings in the Buchsgau until only the villages of Bipp, Wiedlisbach and Erlinsburg remained. At some point in the following years the Froburgs also lost ownership of Bipp Castle, though whether it was sold or captured is not clear. [1]
In 1297 Count Rudolf of Neuchâtel-Nidau granted the castle to one of his Ministerialis knights. Then, in 1313 Rudolf's son, also a Rudolf, granted the castle and the right to collect tolls on the bridge to Aarwangen. In 1362 Count Rudolf of Nidau became the Lord of Froburg along with his other titles. However, when he died childless his estates were divided between several family members. Eventually, Rudolf of Kyburg inherited the castle and surrounding lands. Following a disastrous Kyburg raid on Solothurn which led to the Burgdorferkrieg (1383–84), the lands were sold to the Habsburgs in 1385. In the following year Bipp went to Basel and then in 1406 back to the Kyburgs, who had to sell it to Solothurn and Bern in the same year. [1]
Until 1463 Bern and Solothurn jointly administered the nearby villages from Bipp Castle. After this, Solothurn received the Neu-Bechburg vogtei and Bipp became fully part of Bern. The castle became the seat of the Bernese ‘’landvogt’’ or reeve. Over the following three centuries a total of 62 Bernese administrators ruled over the region. [1]
On 2 March 1798 the French Army captured Solothurn during their invasion of Switzerland. The last Bernese landvogt fled Bipp Castle ahead of the invading army. The residents of Oberbipp and Niederbipp then plundered the castle, taking everything they could carry off. A French report from 16 March 1798 records that the castle was uninhabitable because even the windows and doors had been carried off. [1]
The ruins of Bipp Castle were sold in 1805 and were partly demolished to provide stone for other buildings. In 1855 the ruins were sold to the Stehlin family of Basel, who built a small mansion on the site of the former castle granary. [2]
The castle was built on hill near the village of Oberbipp. The castle was an elongated polygon with a massive palas on the eastern side and a slender, round bergfried on the west, connected by a line of buildings. The northern side of the castle was a curtain wall connecting the palas and bergfried. The main wall was further protected with a lower, outer wall with several round and square towers. A granary and stables were outside the wall on the southern flank of the castle hill.
The canton of Bern, or Berne, is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. Its capital city, Bern, is also the de facto capital of Switzerland. The bear is the heraldic symbol of the canton, displayed on a red-yellow background.
Lenzburg Castle is a castle located above the old part of the town of Lenzburg in the Canton of Aargau, Switzerland. It ranks among the oldest and most important of Switzerland. The castle stands on the almost circular castle hill, which rises approximately 100 m (330 ft) over the surrounding plain but is only about 250 m (820 ft) in diameter. The oldest parts of the castle date to the 11th century, when the Counts of Lenzburg built it as their seat. The castle, its historical museum and the castle hill with its Neolithic burial grounds are listed as heritage sites of national significance.
Kyburg Castle is a castle in Switzerland, overlooking the Töss river about 3 km south-east of Winterthur, in Kyburg municipality, canton of Zürich. It is a Swiss heritage site of national significance.
Nidau is a municipality in the Biel/Bienne administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland.
Wiedlisbach is a municipality in the Oberaargau administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland.
The County of Kyburg probably came into existence in the 11th century and is first mentioned in 1027. After 1053 it was a possession of the counts of Dillingen. It was greatly expanded with the extinction of the House of Lenzburg in 1173.
The Kyburg family was a noble family of grafen (counts) in the Duchy of Swabia, a cadet line of the counts of Dillingen, who in the late 12th and early 13th centuries ruled the County of Kyburg, corresponding to much of what is now Northeastern Switzerland.
The Burgdorferkrieg or Kyburgerkrieg was a war in 1383-84 between the counts of Neu-Kyburg and the city of Bern for supremacy in the County of Burgundy in what is now Switzerland.
Burgdorf Castle is a castle in the municipality of Burgdorf in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. It is a Swiss heritage site of national significance.
Erlach Castle is a castle in the municipality of Erlach of the Canton of Bern in Switzerland. It is a Swiss heritage site of national significance.
Nidau Castle is a castle in the municipality of Nidau of the Canton of Bern in Switzerland. It is a Swiss heritage site of national significance.
Oberhofen Castle is a castle in the municipality of Oberhofen of the Canton of Bern in Switzerland. It is a Swiss heritage site of national significance.
Thun Castle is a castle in the city of Thun, in the Swiss canton of Bern. It was built in the 12th century, today houses the Thun Castle museum, and is a Swiss heritage site of national significance.
Landshut Castle is a castle in the municipality of Utzenstorf of the Canton of Bern in Switzerland. It is a Swiss heritage site of national significance.
Wimmis Castle is a castle in the municipality of Wimmis of the Canton of Bern in Switzerland. It is a Swiss heritage site of national significance.
Erguel Castle is a ruined castle in the municipality of Sonvilier in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. It is the best preserved castle ruin in the French-speaking Bernese Jura.
Fraubrunnen Abbey is a former Cistercian nunnery in the municipality of Fraubrunnen in the canton of Bern, Switzerland.
Wiedlisbach Castle is a former tower house and defensive tower in the municipality of Wiedlisbach of the Canton of Bern in Switzerland.
Trostburg Castle is a small castle in the municipality of Teufenthal in the canton of Aargau in Switzerland.
Biberstein Castle is a castle in the municipality of Biberstein in the Swiss canton of Aargau.
