Ritterhaus Bubikon: A Medieval Commandery of the Knights Hospitaller in Switzerland

Visitor Information

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Official Website: www.ritterhaus.ch

Country: Switzerland

Civilization: Medieval European

Remains: Military

History

Ritterhaus Bubikon is located in Bubikon, Switzerland, and was established by the Knights Hospitaller, also known as the Johanniterorden, in the late 12th century. Its foundation dates between 1191 and 1198, with 1192 traditionally accepted based on a donor image found in the chapel. The commandery arose from a land dispute between two noble families, Toggenburg and Neu-Rapperswil. Diethelm V of Toggenburg, following advice from Pope Celestine III, donated contested lands including the Bubikon estate and church to the Knights Hospitaller to support the poor. Contributions from the Neu-Rapperswil family helped settle the conflict, making both families founders of the commandery, as recorded in a 1220 chapel donor image.

Throughout the 13th century, the commandery expanded its holdings through purchases and gifts, acquiring several parish churches and estates across the canton of Zürich and neighboring areas. By 1287, it had grown wealthy enough to purchase the lordship of Wädenswil. The commandery also established other branches, including Tobel in 1226, Leuggern before 1251, Wädenswil after 1287, and Küsnacht. It managed court jurisdictions and rights in multiple villages, reflecting its growing influence.

In 1408, Ritterhaus Bubikon came under the control of the city of Zürich as part of the Grüningen bailiwick. After the extinction of its local noble patrons, the commandery remained neutral during the Old Zürich War but was plundered in 1443. From the mid-15th century, the commandery and Wädenswil were directly subordinate to the German Grand Prior, who also served as commander. A third of Bubikon’s income was sent to Heitersheim, the order’s headquarters in Germany.

Leadership evolved from a prior to a commander after 1260. By 1367, the community included four priests and six lay brothers. During the Reformation in Zürich, prior Johannes Stumpf supported secularization. In 1525, the buildings were plundered during iconoclastic riots, and the convent was dissolved in 1528. Despite this, the commandery as an institution continued until 1789. After 1532, a secular steward appointed by Zürich administered the commandery, while reformist clergy oversaw the parishes. The order retained ownership of lands and income but no longer housed a religious community.

In 1789, the commandery was sold to a private citizen who transferred most rights to the city of Zürich but kept the estate itself. During the 19th century, the buildings fell into disrepair. Parts were converted for agricultural use, and the chapel served as a barn and pigsty. The choir of the chapel was demolished in 1819. Preservation efforts began in the 1930s, leading to the purchase of the site by the Ritterhausgesellschaft Bubikon in 1936. Extensive renovations from 1938 to 1959 restored many original features. Since 1941, the site has operated as a museum presenting the history of the commandery and the Knights Hospitaller.

Remains

The Ritterhaus Bubikon complex is arranged in a triangular layout enclosed by a wall. It formed from the fusion of four originally separate buildings completed by the 16th century. The oldest structure is the Bruderhaus, or Brothers’ House, dating from around 1190. Initially a chapel, it later housed the convent brothers. The building was extended east and west in the 13th century and eventually converted for economic use, including storage and cellar functions.

The chapel, dedicated to St. John the Baptist and dated to 1192, features a Romanesque nave from the late 12th century. A Gothic choir was added in the early 14th century but was demolished in 1819. The chapel contains 13th-century Romanesque mural paintings depicting the commandery’s foundation and scenes from the life of John the Baptist. A porch was added in the second half of the 13th century. After the Reformation, the chapel was repurposed for storage and residential use, with a mezzanine inserted during the 17th or 18th century.

The Komturhaus, or Commander’s House, was built in the 13th century and raised by an additional floor around 1570. It served as the administrative and representative center. The ground floor housed stables and storage, while the upper floors contain Renaissance-era painted halls, including the “Schwalbachsaal.” The building also features 18th-century panel paintings depicting Zürich’s lordship seats and landscapes.

The Schütte, a two-story wing from the 13th century, originally housed stables on the ground floor and storage above. Around 1430, a chapter hall was added and remodeled in Renaissance style circa 1548. Its original ceiling was destroyed by fire in 1940. A connecting building between the chapel and Komturhaus, built in the late 14th century, contains an open entrance hall on the ground floor and steward’s offices above. Raised around 1570, it served as the residence and office of the steward or governor after the Reformation.

The Sennhaus, or servants’ house, was constructed around 1480 and remodeled in 1570 for dairy production. It housed household staff during the 19th and 20th centuries. The long Ökonomiegebäude, or economic building, partially preserved, included stables, a threshing floor, and an upper-floor barn. Its exact construction date is unknown but it appears in early depictions.

Several former structures no longer exist, including the main gate portal removed in the early 19th century, the Portenhaus which served as a gate tower and later smithy and servants’ quarters, and a defensive tower removed by the 17th century. Decorative elements include Renaissance wall paintings, 18th-century tiled stoves, and painted coats of arms of the Knights of Malta on the courtyard façade.

The museum within the commander’s house displays the Hotz coin collection, featuring over 400 coins related to the order and its grandmasters from the 14th to 18th centuries. It also holds about 220 antique arms donated by Johann Jakob Vogel. Since 2011, a medieval herb garden of about 400 square meters is located on the southern side of the servants’ house. The site is well preserved, with many medieval and Renaissance features restored during 20th-century renovations.