Hidden within the valleys of Switzerland, the Neu-Bechburg Fort is alleged to be haunted by the Robber Knight, Junker Kuoni who was walled up inside a secret chamber within the fort.
Excessive above the city of Oensingen in Switzerland’s canton of Solothurn, the brooding ruins of Neu-Bechburg Fort watch over the valley like a silent sentinel for hundreds of years. It has been the house of knights and Barons, the seat of the Bishop of Basel earlier than falling from grace, turning into a poor home and an inn amongst different issues.
Learn Extra: Take a look at all ghost tales from Switzerland
Oensingen is within the Swiss Plateau on the foot of the Jura Mountains with inexperienced forests so far as the attention can see. But Neu-Bechburg Fort’s historic stones carry extra than simply the burden of historical past over the Roggen River — they harbor a darkish legend that has plagued the fort for hundreds of years: the curse of the robber knight Kuoni.
The Bandit Knight Junker Kuoni of Neu-Bechburg Fort
Neu-Bechburg Fort was inbuilt 1250 by the Lord of Bechburg earlier than altering palms a number of occasions. It went to the Counts of Frohburg, Nidau, Thierstein, Kyburg and Buchegg. It was an important place in Switzerland in Roman occasions. In 1415, the fort and lordship have been offered to Bern and Solothurn. In 1463, the fort grew to become the total property of Solothurn and a bailiff’s seat was established.
Within the 14th century, Neu-Bechburg was house to Junker Kuoni, an notorious knight-turned-bandit who dominated the encircling lands by means of violence and concern. Tales of his cruelty unfold swiftly — of caravans ambushed on mountain roads, vacationers vanishing into the forests, and harmless villagers stripped of their meager belongings. His crimes grew so horrible that even his fellow nobles may not tolerate his presence.
In line with legend, Kuoni’s reign of terror resulted in a fittingly grim trend. Betrayed by his personal males and captured by the native townsfolk, the robber knight was bricked up alive throughout the fort partitions, left to die slowly in suffocating darkness.
There may be additionally a way more detailed model of the story, telling that the knight was really taken by the plague. It got here to the village and the locals feared for it spreading. Some say they confined him in a small home on the south aspect of the fortified tower, in what was the tower guard’s home. Some sources mentioned he was fed by means of a slender slit, getting increasingly more sick and he ultimately died. And after he died, this slit was additionally walled up.
Learn Additionally: Take a look at The Headless Ghost of Reichenstein Fort and The Misplaced Fort of Hollerwiese for extra mysterious fort’s the place an evil robber is alleged to hang-out.
When or the place within the fort has varied sources telling various things. It’s mentioned that it was within the east or south tower and it occurred in 1408. Perhaps. Did he die as a result of the folks round him wished to place an finish to his merciless methods, or was it really an endemic he succumbed to?
Since that day, Neu-Bechburg has by no means actually been at relaxation.
The Haunting of Neu-Bechburg Fort
The Neu-Bechburg Fort modified homeowners a number of occasions and, in 1635, it briefly grew to become the seat of the Bishop of Basel. It fell into ruins when the French invaded and the place misplaced its place and significance, earlier than being restored once more. In 1835 it was acquired by Johannes Riggenbach. His son Friedrich restored the fort from 1880 onwards now owned by the Neu-Bechburg Fort Basis.
Guests to the crumbling fortress communicate of chilling drafts in sealed rooms, disembodied whispers at the hours of darkness, and an oppressive presence that adheres to sure corridors. Electrical gear fails and pictures flip black. He additionally often performs small pranks, locks doorways, and in any other case principally wanders by means of the fort.
Fort caretaker, Patrick Jakop has mentioned of his personal experiences when he heard footstep above him:
“I went up the steps as quick as I may. I used to be upstairs for a couple of seconds, however there was nobody there. I searched each cabinet, however there was merely nobody,”
Throughout a Brazilian wedding ceremony being celebrated on the Bechburg, the water pipe to the properly was blocked. A voodoo priestess was among the many company. She informed Jacob that an sad soul was lurking within the pipe. “I referred to as out to the spirit within the properly: For those who don’t prefer it right here, then simply go away,” the fort warden continues. And lo and behold: “There was a gurgling, a bang, and a sudden rush of water. The pipe was clear once more.”
A number of mediums and ghost hunters have tried to resolve it. Even in fashionable occasions, know-how appears to falter within the fort’s shadow. In 2002, a Swiss tv crew got down to movie a historic documentary at Neu-Bechburg. Once they introduced X-ray gear to scan what was believed to be Kuoni’s burial area of interest, the equipment inexplicably failed — screens flickered to black, batteries drained with out trigger, and unusual, muffled knocks got here from the partitions.
Learn Extra: Take a look at all ghost tales from haunted castles all over the world
The story of the robber knight just isn’t the one factor mentioned to hang-out the fort and never the one horrible demise if we’re to consider the rumours. There was a dungeon within the east tower, and the so-called witch’s cage within the west tower. The tales fluctuate from youngsters claiming to have seen a ghost to guests reporting a weeping lady within the fort fountain.
The Fact of the Robber Knight
What are the information we’re coping with when speaking about Kuoni? There is no such thing as a historic proof of him having existed, and there’s no bodily proof that he’s actually walled up inside a wall of the fort. And once we discuss concerning the bubonic plague, we frequently speak about it hitting Switzerland in 1349 when the plague reached Bern, Zürich, Basel and Saint Gallen.
To this present day, locals declare the spirit of Kuoni stalks the ruins, stressed and bitter. He’s blamed for sudden gusts that snuff out lanterns, the sharp, metallic scent of blood within the air on misty nights, and eerie, unexplained noises when the fort is supposedly empty. The legend endures — a whispered warning to those that dare trespass in Neu-Bechburg’s shadow.
For in these historic stones, it appears, Kuoni’s curse lives on.
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References:
Mysteriöses Gemäuer – Das Spukschloss ob Oensingen – Schweiz aktuell – SRF
Kuoni, der Geist von Schloss Neu-Bechburg – 20 Minuten
Schloss Neu-Bechburg in Oensingen SO: Patrick Jakob ist hier Hauswart
