Sargans Castle is a

castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by 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 r ...

in the

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

Sargans Sargans is a municipality in the ''Wahlkreis'' (constituency) of Sarganserland in the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland. Sargans is known for its castle, which dates from before the founding of the Swiss Confederation in 1291. Sargans was also ...

of the Canton of St. Gallen in

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

. It is a Swiss heritage site of national significance. The castle was the seat of the counts of Werdenberg-Sargans in the 13th century. Since 1899, it has been run by the local church and now houses the Sarganserland museum.

History

Beginning in 982 the Sargans region was part of the lands of the Counts of

Bregenz Bregenz (; gsw, label= Vorarlbergian, Breagaz ) is the capital of Vorarlberg, the westernmost state of Austria. The city lies on the east and southeast shores of Lake Constance, the third-largest freshwater lake in Central Europe, between Switze ...

. In 1160, the male line of the Counts of Bregenz died out.

Count palatine A count palatine (Latin ''comes palatinus''), also count of the palace or palsgrave (from German ''Pfalzgraf''), was originally an official attached to a royal or imperial palace or household and later a nobleman of a rank above that of an ord ...

Hugo of Türbingen inherited most of their lands, through his wife Elisabeth. His son, Hugo, inherited the Bregenz lands around

Lake Constance Lake Constance (german: Bodensee, ) refers to three bodies of water on the Rhine at the northern foot of the Alps: Upper Lake Constance (''Obersee''), Lower Lake Constance (''Untersee''), and a connecting stretch of the Rhine, called the Lak ...

, including Sargans. This Hugo, who adopted the name Montfort und Werdenberg built or expanded Sargans Castle before his death in 1228. Excavations around the oldest part of the castle show that there was an earlier fort or castle, but nothing is known about that building. Hugo built the large

bergfried ''Bergfried'' (plural: ''bergfriede''; English: ''belfry''; French: ''tour-beffroi''; Spanish: ''torre del homenaje'') is a tall tower that is typically found in castles of the Middle Ages in German-speaking countries and in countries under Germ ...

, expanded the walls to the west and may have built a

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 ...

on that side of the castle. In the mid-13th century the Montfort und Werdenberg lands were divided between Hugo of Werdenberg-Heiligenberg and his brother Hartmann of Werdenberg-Sargans. Hartmann took up residence in the castle and probably expanded the palas. The castle was first mentioned in 1282. Over the following century the wealth and lands of the Counts of Werdenberg-Sargans were divided over and over again between descendants. By the last 14th century, Count Johann I ruled over a small and poor county under the

Habsburgs The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...

. In the

Battle of Näfels The Battle of Näfels was fought on 9 April 1388 between the Canton of Glarus, supported by its allies of the Old Swiss Confederation, and the Duchy of Austria ruled by the House of Habsburg. It was a decisive victory for Glarus, which achieved i ...

in 1388, the count commanded a wing of the Austrian army that was supposed to cross the Kerenzerberg Pass. However, when he saw the threatened destruction of the main Austrian army, he fled back over the pass. The cost of the war, as well as other expenses forced Johann I to sell the castle and village to Leopold of Austria.

References

Cultural property of national significance in the canton of St. Gallen Castles in the canton of St. Gallen Sargans {{Switzerland-castle-stub

History

See also

References