Waltensburg/Vuorz is a former

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' ...

in the

Surselva Region Surselva Region is one of the eleven administrative districts in the canton of Graubünden in Switzerland. It was created on 1 January 2017 as part of a reorganization of the canton.canton 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 ...

. On 1 January 2018 the former municipalities of

Andiast Andiast () is a former municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the Surselva Region in the Switzerland, Swiss Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Graubünden. Until 1943, it was known as Andest.Breil/Brigels Breil/Brigels is a municipality in the Surselva Region in the Swiss canton of Graubünden. On 1 January 2018 the former municipalities of Andiast and Waltensburg/Vuorz merged into the municipality of Breil/Brigels. The name of the municipality ...

History

Waltensburg/Vuorz was first mentioned in 765 as ''Vorce''. The German name of Waltensburg is first mentioned in 1209 as ''Waltramsburg'', which was an older name of the castle ''Jörgenberg''. While the Romansh speaking population used the older, Romansh name of Vorce (meaning: "a

river fork A river fork is where a river is connected to two or more clearly and equally distinct branches. It describes both tributaries and distributaries. A typical river fork is usually two tributaries merging (a confluence), such as the Nile proper cre ...

") the former name of the castle moved to include the village. At about the same time, the castle came to be known as Jörgenberg from the name of the nearby

early medieval The Early Middle Ages (or early medieval period), sometimes controversially referred to as the Dark Ages, is typically regarded by historians as lasting from the late 5th to the 10th century. They marked the start of the Middle Ages of Europ ...

fortified Church of St George. In the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

, the nearby settlements on Ladral () and Jörgenberg belonged to Waltensburg. In the area surrounding Waltensburg/Vuorz there are three other medieval fortresses, Grünenfels (), home 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 of Grünenfels in the 13th century, Kropfenstein and Vogelberg (). In 1734 the municipality of Waltensburg, which at that time included

Rueun Rueun is a former municipality in the district of Surselva in the canton of Graubünden in Switzerland. On 1 January 2014 the former municipalities of Rueun, Castrisch, Ilanz, Ladir, Luven, Pitasch, Riein, Ruschein, Schnaus, Sevgein, Duvin, ...

Siat Siat is a former Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the district of Surselva (district), Surselva in the Switzerland, Swiss Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Graubünden. On 1 January 2014 the former municipalities of Siat, Castrisch, ...

Pigniu Pigniu () is a former municipality in the district of Surselva in the canton of Graubünden in Switzerland. Its official language is Romansh. On 1 January 2014 the former municipalities of Pigniu, Castrisch, Ilanz, Ladir, Luven, Pitasch, R ...

Andiast Andiast () is a former municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the Surselva Region in the Switzerland, Swiss Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Graubünden. Until 1943, it was known as Andest.Schlans Schlans is a former municipality in the district of Surselva in the Swiss canton of Graubünden. The municipality of Schlans merged on 1 January 2012 into the municipality of Trun.fief 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 ...

. The

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in com ...

of St. Leodegar is first mentioned in 1241. The

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

of Waltensburg included Andiast until 1526, when Waltensburg was the only municipality in the ''Bündner Oberland'' that converted to the

Reformed Reform is beneficial change. Reform, reformed or reforming may also refer to: Media * ''Reform'' (album), a 2011 album by Jane Zhang * Reform (band), a Swedish jazz fusion group * ''Reform'' (magazine), a Christian magazine Places * Reform, Al ...

faith. A procession from

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

Andiast through Waltensburg toward Rueun in 1682 started the ''Fahnenkrieg'' (Flag War) in the valley. Until 1963 the municipality was financially stable from water and forest use taxes and did not have property taxes. However, starting in 1961 many of the small farms began to combine into a few larger operations which led to the

emigration Emigration is the act of leaving a resident country or place of residence with the intent to settle elsewhere (to permanently leave a country). Conversely, immigration describes the movement of people into one country from another (to permanentl ...

of many farmers to

Ilanz Ilanz () is a former Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the district of Surselva (district), Surselva in the Switzerland, Swiss Cantons of Switzerland, canton of the Grisons. The former municipality of Ilanz was congruent with the town ...

Domat/Ems Domat/Ems ( ; ) is a municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the Imboden Region in the Switzerland, Swiss Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Graubünden. History Domat/Ems is first mentioned in 765 as ''colonia de Amede''. Ems is the Ger ...

and

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 ...

. The growth of tourism in many Romansh villages has brought some of this population back.

Coat of arms

The

blazon In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct an accurate image. The verb ''to blazon'' means to create such a description. The visual d ...

of the municipal

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...

is ''Argent St. George armoured Azure caped Gules and Or and haloed and with lance of the last riding a Horse Sable harnessed of the third killing a Dragon Vert.'' The coat of arms features

St. George Saint George (;Geʽez: ጊዮርጊስ, , ka, გიორგი, , , died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was an early Christian martyr who is venerated as a saint in Christianity. According to holy tradition, he was a soldier in the ...

who is the

patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, Eastern Orthodoxy or Oriental Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, fa ...

of the church and who the castle, Burg Jörgenberg, is named after.

Geography

The village of Waltensburg/Vuorz is a

linear village In mathematics, the term ''linear'' is used in two distinct senses for two different properties: * linearity of a '' function'' (or '' mapping''); * linearity of a ''polynomial''. An example of a linear function is the function defined by f(x)= ...

located, before 2017, in the Ruis sub-district of the Surselva district, at an elevation of on a terrace north of, and some above the

Vorderrhein The Vorderrhein (; ; ; ; ), or Anterior Rhine, is the left of the two initial tributaries of the Rhine (the other being the '' Hinterrhein''). It is longer than the ''Hinterrhein'', but has a lower discharge than the latter at their confluence, w ...

. Until 1943 Waltensburg/Vuorz was known as Waltensburg.Amtliches Gemeindeverzeichnis der Schweiz
published by the Swiss Federal Statistical Office accessed 23 September 2009 The municipality of Waltensburg/Vuorz has an area, , of . This includes land on both sides of the Vorderrhein, and rising on the north side to the summit of the mountain of Ruchi, at an elevation of and on the border with the

canton of Glarus The canton of Glarus ( ; ; ; ) is a cantons of Switzerland, canton in east-central Switzerland. The capital is Glarus. The population speaks a variety of Alemannic German. The majority of the population (81%) identifies as Christianity in Switzer ...

. Of this area, 36.5% is used for agricultural purposes, while 22% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 1.5% is settled (buildings or roads) and the remainder (39.9%) is non-productive (rivers, glaciers or mountains).

Demographics

Waltensburg/Vuorz has a population (as of ) of . , 4.7% of the population was made up of foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years the population has decreased at a rate of -11.9%. Most of the population () speaks Romansh (63.4%), with German being second most common (32.4%) and Dutch being third ( 1.3%).Swiss Federal Statistical Office
accessed 02-Dec-2009 , the gender distribution of the population was 49.6% male and 50.4% female.Graubunden in Numbers
accessed 21 September 2009 The age distribution, , in Waltensburg/Vuorz is; 54 children or 14.1% of the population are between 0 and 9 years old and 57 teenagers or 14.9% are between 10 and 19. Of the adult population, 32 people or 8.4% of the population are between 20 and 29 years old. 48 people or 12.5% are between 30 and 39, 47 people or 12.3% are between 40 and 49, and 44 people or 11.5% are between 50 and 59. The senior population distribution is 40 people or 10.4% of the population are between 60 and 69 years old, 37 people or 9.7% are between 70 and 79, there are 22 people or 5.7% who are between 80 and 89, and there are 2 people or 0.5% who are between 90 and 99.Graubunden Population Statistics
accessed 21 September 2009 In the 2007 federal election the most popular party was the SP which received 31.7% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SVP (30.5%), the FDP (19.2%) and the CVP (17.4%). In Waltensburg/Vuorz about 75.7% of the population (between age 25 and 64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either university or a ''

Fachhochschule A (; plural ), abbreviated FH, is a university of applied sciences (UAS), in other words a Hochschule, German tertiary education institution that provides professional education in many applied sciences and applied arts, such as engineering, te ...

''). Waltensburg/Vuorz has an unemployment rate of 0.6%. , there were 46 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 19 businesses involved in this sector. 4 people are employed in the

secondary sector In macroeconomics, the secondary sector of the economy is an economic sector in the three-sector theory that describes the role of manufacturing. It encompasses industries that produce a finished, usable product or are involved in constructi ...

and there are 2 businesses in this sector. 58 people are employed in the

tertiary sector The tertiary sector of the economy, generally known as the service sector, is the third of the three economic sectors in the three-sector model (also known as the economic cycle). The others are the primary sector (raw materials) and the ...

, with 16 businesses in this sector. Waltensburg Gdehaus

The historical population is given in the following table:

Heritage sites of national significance

The

Swiss Reformed Church The Protestant Church in Switzerland (PCS), formerly named Federation of Swiss Protestant Churches until 31 December 2019, is a federation of 25 member churches – 24 cantonal churches and the Evangelical-Methodist Church of Switzerland. The P ...

of Waltensburg/Vuorz with

fresco Fresco ( or frescoes) is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaster, the painting become ...

es, the prehistoric settlement and medieval castle at ''Jörgenberg'', the ''Richtstätte / Galgen Fuortgas'' and the ruins of Kropfenstein Castle are listed as Swiss heritage sites of national significance.Swiss inventory of cultural property of national and regional significance
21.11.2008 version, accessed 02-Dec-2009 Archeological excavations on the Jörgenberg have uncovered traces of a

Bronze Age The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...

settlement, an

Iron Age The Iron Age () is the final epoch of the three historical Metal Ages, after the Chalcolithic and Bronze Age. It has also been considered as the final age of the three-age division starting with prehistory (before recorded history) and progre ...

Raetia Raetia or Rhaetia ( , ) was a province of the Roman Empire named after the Rhaetian people. It bordered on the west with the country of the Helvetii, on the east with Noricum, on the north with Vindelicia, on the south-west with Transalpine ...

n settlement and some

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

items. The Reformed parish church of St. Leodegar was first mentioned in 1241. The frescoes are the work of the unknown ''Waltensburg Master'' and were done between 1350 and 1450. File:Waltensburg Kirche.jpg, Exterior of the church File:KircheWaltensburginnen.JPG, Interior of the Church of Waltensburg File:Waltensburg Festnahme.jpg, Fresco of the

Stations of the Cross The Stations of the Cross or the Way of the Cross, also known as the Via Dolorosa, Way of Sorrows or the , are a series of fourteen images depicting Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ on the day of Crucifixion of Jesus, his crucifixion and acc ...

File:Waltensburg Geisselung.jpg, Frescoes, including the scourging of Christ File:Jörgenberg.jpg, Burg Jörgenberg File:Jörgenberg Glockenturm.jpg, Jörgenberg Bell Tower File:Jörgenberg Plan.jpg, Jörgenberg floor plan File:Jörgenberg Innenhof.jpg, Inner courtyard of Jörgenberg File:Kropfenstein Plan.jpg, Kropfenstein Castle floor plan File:Kropfenstein innen.jpg, Interior of Kropfenstein File:Kropfenstein Lage.jpg, Kropfenstein site File:Reformierte Kirche Waltensburg (d.j.b.) 12.jpg, Church Organ File:Reformierte Kirche Waltensburg (actm) 01.jpg, Fresco and window on the church File:Reformierte Kirche Waltensburg (actm) 04.jpg, Fresco File:Reformierte Kirche Waltensburg (actm) 06.jpg, Fresco File:Waltensburg-Vuorz. Ruïne Burg Kropfenstein (Casti Grotta) (d.j.b.) 01.jpg, Ruins of Kropfenstein Castle File:Ruïne Casti Munt Sorn Gieri Waltensburg (d.j.b.) 02.jpg, Toren bij de ruïne. File:Ruïne Casti Munt Sogn Gieri Waltensburg (actm) 02.jpg, Restanten van de ruïne. File:Ruïne Casti Munt Sorn Gieri Waltensburg (actm) 07.jpg, Restanten van de ruïne. Ruïne Casti Munt Sorn Gieri Waltensburg (actm) 24.jpg, herinneringssteen.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Waltensburg Vuorz Breil/Brigels Former municipalities of Graubünden Cultural property of national significance in Graubünden