The Restiturm, or Burgruine Resti, is a ruined

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 of Meiringen in the

Swiss Swiss may refer to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina *Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses *Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports *Swiss Internation ...

canton of Bern The canton of Bern or Berne (german: Kanton Bern; rm, Chantun Berna; french: canton de Berne; it, Canton Berna) is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. Its capital city, Bern, is also the ''de facto'' capital of Switzerland. ...

. The original castle was built in the 13th century and has been rebuilt several times. The castle is situated at the foot of the Hasliberges. The best preserved part of the castle is its tower, which still stands to this day. An examination of the castle interior reveals that the castle was constructed inside out, with the core's construction beginning in 1250. It took another 50 years before the iconic tower was completed. The castle was the seat of the Knights of Resti, vassals of 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 ...

. The first construction was in 1250 by Peter von Resti. It overlooks the

Haslital The Oberhasli is a historical '' Landvogtei'' or ''Talschaft'' in the Bernese Highlands, Switzerland, bordering on the cantons of Obwalden (OW), Nidwalden (NW), Uri (UR) and Wallis (VS). From 1833 to 2009, Oberhasli was incorporated as the ...

and served to control and protect the valley and the trade routes across the Grimsel Pass,

Joch Pass The Joch Pass (German: ''Jochpass'') is a mountain pass of the Uri Alps, located between the Bernese Oberland and Central Switzerland, at the foot of the Titlis. The pass crosses the col between the peaks of Graustock and Jochstock, at an eleva ...

, Susten Pass,

Grosse Scheidegg The Grosse Scheidegg is a mountain pass in the Bernese Alps of Switzerland, The pass crosses the col between the Schwarzhorn and the Wetterhorn mountains at an elevation of . The pass is traversed by a road connecting the town of Meiringen, at ...

and Brünig Pass. In the 16th century, the castle was abandoned and fell into disrepair. It was restored in 1914 and again in 2004. During this latter renovation, information boards, steel ladders and a terrace were added. Today, only the tower remains. It is owned by the nonprofit association Meiringen and is a listed building.

References

External links

*
Web page of the Archaeological Service of the Canton of Bern on Restiturm
(in German) *
{{Authority control Castles in the Canton of Bern Meiringen