Stockalper Palace

Last updated
Stockalper Palace
Native name
German: Stockalperpalast
Le chateau Stockalper de l'ouest.jpg
Location Brig-Glis
Coordinates 46°18′55″N7°59′26″E / 46.315265°N 7.990656°E / 46.315265; 7.990656
Built1658-78
OwnerCity of Brig-Glis
Switzerland adm location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location of Stockalper Palace in Switzerland
Kaspar Stockalper Stockalper.jpg
Kaspar Stockalper

The Stockalper Palace (German: Stockalperpalast) is a castle in Brig-Glis, Switzerland. It was built between 1658 and 1678 by Kaspar Stockalper, a silk merchant of Brig. The Stockalper Palace was the largest private construction in Switzerland at the time. It is a Swiss heritage site of national significance. [1]

Contents

History

The first building on the site is known as the Stockalper House, which was built in 1532 by Peter Stockalper. Over the following century it was expanded toward the north, but it remained generally unchanged until the rise of Kaspar Stockalper. Kaspar Stockalper was born to a wealthy family in Brig on 14 July 1609. After studying at the university in Freiburg im Breisgau from 1627 to 1629, he returned to Brig and began building an extensive trading empire. By 1647 he had the local salt monopoly and built a road over the Simplon pass which gave him a monopoly on trade over this pass. Between 1651 and 1659 he built a canal from Vouvry to Collombey which expanded his trading empire. [2] At the peak of his power, Kaspar employed around 5,000 people (at that time Brig only had about 900 residents). [3]

Between 1630 and 1640 Kaspar expanded the Stockalper House toward the south with a great hall, chapel and other construction. The great hall was decorated with a coat of arms in 1653. The chapel altar is black with silver reliefs depicting the Adoration of the Magi and the Coronation of the Virgin, both of which were the work of Samuel Hornung of Augsburg in 1655. A two-story covered arcade leads from the Stockalper House to the much larger Palace. [4]

Kaspar's extensive trade empire required an extensive warehouse and in 1658 he began construction on the Palace to provide that space. Construction of the 80 meters (260 ft) long building lasted 20 years. Once it was completed, Kaspar did not get many opportunities to enjoy his monumental building. In 1679 the communities of Visp, Leuk, Sierre and Sion rose up against him and drove him into exile in Domodossola. Six years later, in 1685, the Diet of Valais negotiated an agreement that allowed Kaspar to return and live out his last years in his Palace. [5]

In 1948 the city took over the Palace and in 1960 the city council moved in. A museum was established in the Palace and some of the rooms were renovated and used for concerts and exhibitions. Since 2010 the courtyard and surrounding parks have been included in Google Street View. [6]

Today, there are guided tours which allow visitors to tour many parts of the building. [7]

Castle site

The Palace was built next to the smaller 16th century Gothic Stockalper House. It is a rectangular building with three towers on the north-west, south-west and south-east corners. The interior features a large, rectangular courtyard (40 m × 32 m [131 ft × 105 ft]) with arcades in the style of the Italian Renaissance. The balusters that line the second story are not original, but were added later. The three towers were named for the Three kings or Wise Men of the Bible. The tallest was named after Saint Caspar as well as Kaspar Stockalper. The other two were then named Melchior and Balthazar, the traditional names of the Wise Men. [3]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rhône</span> Major river in Switzerland and France

The Rhône is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and Southeastern France before discharging into the Mediterranean Sea. At Arles, near its mouth, the river divides into the Great Rhône and the Little Rhône. The resulting delta forms the Camargue region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Valais</span> Canton of Switzerland

Valais, more formally, the Canton of Valais, is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of thirteen districts and its capital and largest city is Sion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Neuschwanstein Castle</span> Palace in Bavaria, Germany

Neuschwanstein Castle is a 19th-century historicist palace on a rugged hill of the foothills of the Alps in the very south of Germany, near the border with Austria. It is located in the Swabia region of Bavaria, in the municipality of Schwangau, above the incorporated village of Hohenschwangau, which is also the location of Hohenschwangau Castle. The closest larger town is Füssen. The castle stands above the narrow gorge of the Pöllat stream, east of the Alpsee and Schwansee lakes, close to the mouth of the Lech into Forggensee.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sion, Switzerland</span> Municipality in Valais, Switzerland

Sion is a Swiss town, a municipality, and the capital of the canton of Valais and of the district of Sion. As of December 2020 it had a population of 34,978.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Old City (Bern)</span> Medieval city center of Bern

The Old City is the medieval city center of Bern, Switzerland. Built on a narrow hill bordered on three sides by the river Aare, its compact layout has remained essentially unchanged since its construction during the twelfth to the fifteenth century. Despite a major fire in 1405, after which much of the city was rebuilt in sandstone, and substantial construction efforts in the eighteenth century, Bern's old city has retained its medieval character.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brig-Glis</span> Municipality in Valais, Switzerland

Brig, officially Brig-Glis, is a historic town and municipality in the district of Brig in the canton of Valais in Switzerland. The current municipality was formed in 1972 through the merger of Brig (city), Brigerbad and Glis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lötschberg railway</span> Key western Swiss transport link

The Lötschberg line is a railway in Switzerland, connecting Spiez in the canton of Bern with Brig in the canton of Valais. It crosses the Bernese Alps, from the Bernese Oberland to Upper Valais, through the Lötschberg Tunnel in the middle of the line. Together with the Simplon Tunnel south of Brig, it constitutes one of the major railways through the Alps and an important north-south axis in Europe. The Lötschberg axis is backed by the lower and longer Lötschberg Base Tunnel, part of the New Railway Links through the Alps project.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Neuburg Castle (Switzerland)</span> Ruined castle in Untervaz in the Canton of Graubünden in Switzerland

Neuburg Castle is a ruined castle in Untervaz in the Canton of Graubünden in Switzerland. It is a Swiss heritage site of national significance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Romanesque secular and domestic architecture</span> Period of architectural design

Romanesque architecture is an architectural style of medieval Europe characterised by semi-circular arches. The term "Romanesque" is usually used for the period from the 10th to the 12th century with "Pre-Romanesque" and "First Romanesque" being applied to earlier buildings with Romanesque characteristics. Romanesque architecture can be found across the continent, diversified by regional materials and characteristics, but with an overall consistency that makes it the first pan-European architectural style since Imperial Roman Architecture. The Romanesque style in England is traditionally referred to as Norman architecture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leuk Castle</span>

Leuk Castle or Bishop's Castle is a castle in the municipality of Leuk of the Canton of Valais in Switzerland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Majorie Castle</span>

Majorie Castle is a castle in the municipality of Sion in the Canton of Valais, Switzerland. It is a Swiss heritage site of national significance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saarbrücken Castle</span>

Saarbrücken Castle is a Baroque château in Saarbrücken, the capital of Saarland. It is located in the district of Alt-Saarbrücken on the left bank of the Saar. Earlier, a medieval castle and a Renaissance castle stood on the same site.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mülenen Castle</span> Ruined medieval castle in Bern, Switzerland

Mülenen Castle and the attached Letzi Mülenen wall are a ruined medieval fortification in the village of Mülenen and municipality of Reichenbach im Kandertal, in the Swiss canton of Bern. The Letzi Mülenen is a Swiss heritage site of national significance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alt-Regensberg Castle</span> Building in Regensdorf, Switzerland

Alt-Regensberg Castle is a hill castle which was built about the mid-11th century AD by the House of Regensberg in the Swiss municipality of Regensdorf in the Canton of Zürich.

The architecture of Switzerland was influenced by its location astride major trade routes, along with diverse architectural traditions of the four national languages. Romans and later Italians brought their monumental and vernacular architecture north over the Alps, meeting the Germanic and German styles coming south and French influences coming east. Additionally, Swiss mercenary service brought architectural elements from other lands back to Switzerland. All the major styles including ancient Roman, Romanesque, Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque, Neoclassical, Art Nouveau, Modern architecture and Post Modern are well represented throughout the country. The founding of the Congrès International d'Architecture Moderne in La Sarraz and the work of Swiss-born modern architects such as Le Corbusier helped spread Modern architecture throughout the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Schwarzenstein Castle</span>

Schwarzenstein Castle is a ruined castle in the municipality of Obersaxen Mundaun of the Canton of Graubünden in Switzerland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beauregard Castle, Chippis</span> Castle ruins in Chippis, Switzerland

Beauregard Castle is a ruined castle on the territory of Chippis in the canton of Valais, Switzerland. It is situated on a rocky spur at the entrance to the Val d'Anniviers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saillon Castle</span>

Saillon Castle or Bayard Tower is a ruined castle in the municipality of Saillon of the Canton of Valais in Switzerland. It is a Swiss heritage site of national significance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saxon Castle</span>

Saxon Castle is a ruined castle in the municipality of Saxon of the Canton of Valais in Switzerland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brig, Switzerland</span> Town in Valais, Switzerland

Brig, known as Brig in German and Briga in Italian, is a town in the canton of Valais, in the commune of Brig-Glis.

References

  1. ↑ "Kantonsliste A-Objekte". KGS Inventar] (in German). Federal Office of Civil Protection. 2009. Retrieved 25 April 2011.
  2. ↑ Kaspar Stockalper in German , French and Italian in the online Historical Dictionary of Switzerland .
  3. 1 2 Swiss castles.ch (in German) accessed 11 August 2016
  4. ↑ Federal Office for Civil Protection quoting GSK: Kunstführer durch die Schweiz. Bern (in German) accessed 16 August 2016
  5. ↑ Municipal website (in German) accessed 11 August 2016
  6. ↑ Direktlink
  7. ↑ Tour information for the Palace
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.