Marmels Castle is a ruined castle 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' ...

Marmorera Marmorera () is a village and former municipality in the Sursés in the district of Albula in the canton of Graubünden in Switzerland. On 1 January 2016 the former municipalities of Bivio, Cunter, Marmorera, Mulegns, Riom-Parsonz, Salouf, Sav ...

in the district of Albula in the

canton Canton may refer to: Administrative divisions * Canton (administrative division), territorial/administrative division in some countries * Township (Canada), known as ''canton'' in Canadian French Arts and entertainment * Canton (band), an It ...

of Graubünden in

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 ...

Location

The ruins of the ''Grottenburg'' (a castle built into a naturally occurring cave) Marmels are located on two rocky points high above the

embankment dam An embankment dam is a large artificial dam. It is typically created by the placement and compaction of a complex semi-plastic mound of various compositions of soil or rock. It has a semi-pervious waterproof natural covering for its surface ...

that formed the Lai da Marmorera near the municipality of

. The entrance to the ruins is along a path that starts near the dam and then climbs steeply through the woods. The path may require an experienced climber and in wet weather may be inaccessible.

Site

On the lowest level, there are portions of two sections of the curtain wall which follow the edge of the cliff. Additionally, traces of an overhanging platform and the outer

gatehouse A gatehouse is a type of fortified gateway, an entry control point building, enclosing or accompanying a gateway for a town, religious house, castle, manor house, or other fortification building of importance. Gatehouses are typically the most ...

can still be seen. The three-story, square

keep A keep is a type of fortified tower built within castles during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars have debated the scope of the word ''keep'', but usually consider it to refer to large towers in castles that were fortified residen ...

is located on the southern terrace and rested against the surrounding rock, as can be seen in the sketch from 1893. Only the foundation of the towers of the keep are still visible. The keep had a door and half-round tower on the ground floor as well as another entrance on the next level. These entrances are no longer visible in the foundation. The type and shape of the roof is not known. In the southern wall there was a door that led to a fourth story arbor. A steep path along the rear wall of the

grotto A grotto or grot is a natural or artificial cave or covered recess. Naturally occurring grottoes are often small caves near water that are usually flooded or often flooded at high tide. Sometimes, artificial grottoes are used as garden fea ...

leads to the upper level of the castle site. It is clear that there were additional buildings, however, the exact nature or size is not known. The two-story

chapel A chapel (from , a diminutive of ''cappa'', meaning "little cape") is a Christianity, Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. First, smaller spaces inside a church that have their o ...

is still standing. The lighter plaster that it was covered with, makes it stand out against the rock wall. The half-round

apse In architecture, an apse (: apses; from Latin , 'arch, vault'; from Ancient Greek , , 'arch'; sometimes written apsis; : apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical Vault (architecture), vault or semi-dome, also known as an ' ...

is built into the eastern wall. The plaster is still in good condition. Both levels of the chapel can be reached from the west side. It is unclear how the inhabitants of the castle would have provided drinking water, as there is no well in the castle site. On a small plateau, north of the chapel, are the ruins of a later building. This structure might have served as housing for the priest. On a small outcrop below the castle, the ruins of a small building have been discovered. This building, located between the castle and the village, may have been a small trading post which allowed local farmers to sell food to the inhabitants of the castle.

History

It is unknown exactly when the castle was built. The design of the chapel entered Rätien by the end of the

Carolingian The Carolingian dynasty ( ; known variously as the Carlovingians, Carolingus, Carolings, Karolinger or Karlings) was a Frankish noble family named after Charles Martel and his grandson Charlemagne, descendants of the Arnulfing and Pippinid c ...

era (9th Century) and remained in use until the early 12th Century. Based on the construction of the chapel, the foundation of the castle was likely about 1100. The knights of Marmels were first mentioned as ''

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 the service of the ''

Freiherr (; male, abbreviated as ), (; his wife, abbreviated as , ) and (, his unmarried daughters and maiden aunts) are designations used as titles of nobility in the German-speaking areas of the Holy Roman Empire, the Austro-Hungarian Empire and in ...

en'' (or Baron) of

Tarasp Tarasp is a former municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the district of Inn District, Switzerland, Inn in the Switzerland, Swiss Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Graubünden. Its eleven settlements are situated within the Lower Engadin ...

in 1160. The castle is first mentioned in 1193. Andreas von Tarasp granted Andreas von Marmels, who already held a

fiefdom A fief (; ) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a form of feudal alle ...

over half of Tarasp Castle, a position as a ''ministerialis'' to the

Bishop of Chur The Bishop of Chur (German: ''Bischof von Chur'') is the ordinary of the Diocese of Chur in Grisons, Switzerland (Latin: ''Dioecesis Curiensis'').Burg Spliatsch as a

Vögte An , sometimes simply advocate, (German, ), or (French, ), was a type of medieval office holder, particularly important in the Holy Roman Empire, who was delegated some of the powers and functions of a major feudal lord, or for an institutio ...

(or reeve) and the village of

Riom Riom (; Auvergnat ''Riam'') is a commune in the Puy-de-Dôme department in Auvergne in central France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department. History Until the French Revolution, Riom was the capital of the province of Auvergne, and the ...

. Burg Marmels was first mentioned in 1193 when Andreas von Marmels (or his son with the same name) captured the

Cardinal Legate 300px, A woodcut showing Henry II of England greeting the Pope's legate. A papal legate or apostolic legate (from the ancient Roman title ''legatus'') is a personal representative of the Pope to foreign nations, to some other part of the Cathol ...

Cintius for the

Emperor The word ''emperor'' (from , via ) can mean the male ruler of an empire. ''Empress'', the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), mother/grandmother (empress dowager/grand empress dowager), or a woman who rules ...

and held him at the castle. The most important member of the line was Conradin von Marmels († 1517/18) who held titles to

Haldenstein Haldenstein is a former municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the Plessur Region in the Switzerland, Swiss Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Grisons. On 1 January 2021 the former municipality of Haldenstein merged into the municipality of ...

and

Rhäzüns Rhäzüns (; , ) is a municipality in the Imboden Region in the Swiss canton of Grisons. History Rhäzüns is first mentioned about 840 AD as ''Raezunne''. It formed a single parish with Bonaduz until the Reformation. It was part of the Grey L ...

. During the

Swabian War The Swabian War of 1499 ( (spelling depending on dialect), called or ("Swiss War") in Germany and ("War of the Engadin" in Austria) was the last major armed conflict between the Old Swiss Confederacy and the House of Habsburg. What had begun ...

of 1499, he commanded the troops of the

Three Leagues The Three Leagues, sometimes referred to as Raetia, was the 1471 alliance between the League of God's House, the League of the Ten Jurisdictions, and the Grey League. Its members were all Swiss Associates, associates of the Old Swiss Confederacy, ...

against the

Habsburg The House of Habsburg (; ), also known as the House of Austria, was one of the most powerful dynasties in the history of Europe and Western civilization. They were best known for their inbreeding and for ruling vast realms throughout Europe d ...

s. However, due to his pro-Habsburg stance he was quickly overthrown and imprisoned. His oldest son, Johannes inherited Rhäzüns and later

Neu-Aspermont Castle Neu-Aspermont Castle is a ruined castle in the municipality of Jenins in the Canton of Graubünden in Switzerland. It is a Swiss heritage site of national significance. Castle site The castle is built on a rocky spur above the village of Jen ...

. His younger son, Rudolf, received Burg Haldenstein, was

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

Chur '' Chur (locally) or ; ; ; ; ; ; or ; , and . is the capital and largest List of towns in Switzerland, town of the Switzerland, Swiss Cantons of Switzerland, canton of the Grisons and lies in the Alpine Rhine, Grisonian Rhine Valley, where ...

and later the primary ''

Landeshauptmann The Landeshauptmann (if male) or Landeshauptfrau (if female) (, "state captain", plural ''Landeshauptleute,'' ) is the chairman of a state government and the supreme official of an Austrian state and the Italian autonomous provinces of South Ty ...

'' in Veltlin. The castle remained in the possession of the family von Marmels throughout its history, which is quite unusual. The last mention of the castle is in 1550. Conradin's son Rudolf sold the castle, along with the tower of

Tinizong Tinizong-Rona is a former municipality in the district of Albula in the Sursés in the canton of Graubünden in Switzerland. It was formed in 1998 from the villages of ''Tinizong'' and '' Rona''. The local administration is situated in Tinizong ...

and the Burg Spliatsch to his nephew Hans. Hans promptly went in

arrears In finance, arrears (or arrearage) is a legal term for the part of a debt that is overdue after missing one or more required payments. The amount of the arrears is the amount accrued from the date on which the first missed payment was due. The t ...

on the debt that he ran up to purchase the castle, and Rudolf bought the castle back from him. At that time the castle was in livable condition. By the 16th Century it was abandoned and in the early 17th Century it had fallen into ruin. An earthquake partly destroyed it in 1905. Unlike most Rätien nobles, the House of Marmels did not die out. The descendants of the von Marmels now have the last name of Demarmels.

Gallery

Image:Marmels Plan-English.png, Castle layout Image:Marmels_Beringrest.jpg, Wall foundation from the northern section Image:Marmels_Terrasse_Süden.jpg, Southern terrace Image:Marmels_Trümmer_Wohngebäude.jpg, Southern

tower house A tower house is a particular type of stone structure, built for defensive purposes as well as habitation. Tower houses began to appear in the Middle Ages, especially in mountainous or limited access areas, to command and defend strategic points ...

Image:Marmels Kapelle.jpg, A view of the chapel from the south

References

* Fritz Hauswirth: ''Burgen und Schlösser in der Schweiz''. Band 8. Neptun Verlag, Kreuzlingen 1972. * Otto P. Clavadetscher, Werner Meyer: ''Das Burgenbuch von Graubünden''. Orell Füssli, Zürich 1984, . * Werner Meyer: ''Burgen der Schweiz''. Band 3. Silva Verlag, Zürich 1983. {{Castles of Graubünden Castles in Graubünden Cave castles in Switzerland Ruined castles in Switzerland

Location

Site

History

Gallery

See also

References