Obertagstein Castle is a ruined

castle A castle is a type of fortification, fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by Military order (monastic society), military orders. Scholars usually consider a ''castle'' to be the private ...

in the

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

Thusis Thusis (, '' Romansh: Tusàn'') is a municipality in the Viamala Region in the Swiss canton of Graubünden. On 1 January 2018 the former municipality of Mutten merged into the municipality of Thusis. History Thusis is first mentioned in 1156 as ...

of the

Canton of Graubünden The Grisons (; ) or Graubünden (),Names include: * ; * Romansh: ** ** ** ** ** **; * ; * ; * . See also other names. more formally the Canton of the Grisons or the Canton of Graubünden, is one of the twenty-six cantons of Switzerland. I ...

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

History

The castle was probably built in the 13th century by the Masein/Rialt family near Untertagstein Castle. In 1316 Margareta von Rialt left all her properties in Tagstein to her nieces. The first mention of a castle in the area is in 1322, but it probably refers to Untertagstein in

Masein Masein ''( Romansh: Masagn)'' is a municipality in the Viamala Region in the Swiss canton of Graubünden. History Masein is first mentioned in 1156 as ''de Medezenu''. Geography Masein has an area, , of . Of this area, 38.4% is used for agric ...

. In 1322 the male line of the Rialt family died out and it was inherited by the Bärenburg family. The Bärenburg family were

ministerialis The ''ministeriales'' (singular: ''ministerialis'') were a legally unfree but socially elite class of knights, administrators, and officials in the High Middle Ages in the Holy Roman Empire, drawn from a mix of servile origins, free commoners, and ...

, or unfree knights in service to a higher noble, to Vaz family. After the extinction of the Vaz family in 1337, they became vassals of the

Counts of Toggenburg The counts of Toggenburg (''Grafen von Toggenburg'') ruled the Toggenburg region of today's canton of St. Gallen, Switzerland, and adjacent areas during the 13th to 15th centuries. A baronial family of Toggenburg is mentioned in the 11th and 1 ...

and the castle was given to the Tumb family. They began to refer to themselves as von Tagstein, but again probably referring to Untertagstein. In 1385 and 1387 Untertagstein is specifically mentioned. The castle was originally built with an outer gate at the south-west corner of the castle. This gate led to narrow path that wrapped around the southern side of the castle, passed through a middle gate and then led to an inner gate on the east side. At some point in the castle's history the western wall at the main

cistern A cistern (; , ; ) is a waterproof receptacle for holding liquids, usually water. Cisterns are often built to catch and store rainwater. To prevent leakage, the interior of the cistern is often lined with hydraulic plaster. Cisterns are disti ...

collapsed. The cistern was abandoned and the hole in the wall became a new gate. The old outer gate was then walled up. In the 15th century the castle was gutted by a fire and abandoned. In 1512 the ruins of Obertagstein were recorded in the property of

Cazis Priory Cazis ''( Romansh: Tgazas)'' is a municipality in the Viamala Region in the Swiss canton of Graubünden. On 1 January 2010 the municipalities of Portein, Präz, Sarn and Tartar merged into the municipality of Cazis. History Cazis is first men ...

. As early as the 16th century the castle was visited by hikers who carved their initials and dates into the plaster walls.

Castle site

The castle occupies the entire top of a small rock outcropping south of Thusis. The castle complex is about . Storage buildings and workshops were probably built on the mountain side of the outcropping and were separated from the castle by a ditch. Above the ditch was a

ring wall A curtain wall is a defensive wall between fortified towers or bastions of a castle, fortress, or town. Ancient fortifications Evidence for curtain walls or a series of walls surrounding a town or fortress can be found in the historical source ...

that is mostly still standing. During construction the trunks of two trees were left standing and incorporated into the wall. Across a small courtyard, the

palas A ''palas'' () is a German term for the imposing or prestigious building of a medieval '' Pfalz'' or castle that contained the great hall. Such buildings appeared during the Romanesque period (11th to 13th century) and, according to Thompson ...

filled the eastern end of the complex. The original entrance into the castle was on the east side of the palas, but after the cistern collapse the outer gate was sealed. The new western entrance had a wooden bridge over the ditch.

Gallery

File:Burgruine Obertagstein in Graubünden.jpg, View of the castle File:Obertagstein Nordmauer.jpg, North wall File:Obertagstein Eingang.jpg, Main entrance into the castle File:Obertagstein vermauertes Tor.jpg, Sealed old outer gate File:Obertagstein Schildmauer innen.jpg, Ring wall from the courtyard

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Obertagstein Castle Castles in Graubünden Cultural property of regional significance in Graubünden