The ruins of Wulp Castle is a castle

Castle

A castle is a type of fortified structure built in Europe and the Middle East during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars debate the scope of the word castle, but usually consider it to be the private fortified residence of a lord or noble...

 located in Küsnacht

Küsnacht

Küsnacht is a municipality in the district of Meilen in the canton of Zurich in Switzerland.-History:Küsnacht is first mentioned in 1188 as de Cussenacho....

, Zurich

Zürich

Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...

, Switzerland

Switzerland

Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....

, built during the high Middle Ages

High Middle Ages

The High Middle Ages was the period of European history around the 11th, 12th, and 13th centuries . The High Middle Ages were preceded by the Early Middle Ages and followed by the Late Middle Ages, which by convention end around 1500....

. Despite this, the castle is documented only in a few found texts, and much of the castle's history is not known. However, in the chronicle of Muri Abbey

Muri Abbey

Muri Abbey was a Benedictine monastery dedicated to Saint Martin of Tours. It flourished for over eight centuries at Muri, in the Canton of Aargau, near Basle in Switzerland...

, a castle that could perhaps fit Ruine Wulp's description - a castle in proximity to Zurich and Lake Zurich

Lake Zurich

Lake Zurich is a lake in Switzerland, extending southeast of the city of Zurich. It is also known as Lake Zürich and Lake of Zürich. It lies approximately at co-ordinates ....

 - was mentioned, but this has not been confirmed by other findings and is mere speculation. Also, a person named Eghart of Küsnacht was mentioned in the chronicle and several other documents to be the owner of the castle in the late 11th century.

History

While no cemented and sure truth about the castle can be confirmed, progress has been made, including the finding of Bronze Age

Bronze Age

The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...

 remnants after the excavation of the castle site, such as palisades

Palisades

A palisade is a steel or wooden fence or wall of variable height, usually used as a defensive structure.Palisade or Palisades also may refer to:-Geology:United States...

.
Other items have been uncovered about the castle's past, such as the altering of the castle in the 13th century, when it is presumed that most or all of the castle was replaced with a single tower

Tower

A tower is a tall structure, usually taller than it is wide, often by a significant margin. Towers are distinguished from masts by their lack of guy-wires....

 and a central building, with only sections of the main wall still existing. After an unknown period of time, the Barons von Regensberg are known to have assumed ownership of Ruine Wulp, and also are known to have made plans to completely renovate the castle, but the plans probably were never realised.

Excavation

The castle and the castle site were excavated and conserved in 1920 - 1923, 1961–1962, 1978 and 1980 - 1982. The task was performed by the adornment association Küsnacht, and in 1923, the area and castle were placed under the protection and responsibility of the federation.

Downfall of the castle

Several theories exist about how the castle may have come to an end, and historians are in debate. Some theories include:

• The Barons von Regensberg destroyed the castle for an unspecified or unknown reason, or they demolished it with the intent of building a new castle that was never finished.
• The castle was destroyed in 1267 by the inhabitants of Zurich. This theory is confirmed by several old documents, but by no other found evidence.
• The castle was abandoned sometime in the late 13th century, and deteriorated over time.

Currently

Little remains of the castle, and only small and insignificant ruins of the tower foundation

Foundation (architecture)

A foundation is the lowest and supporting layer of a structure. Foundations are generally divided into two categories: shallow foundations and deep foundations.-Shallow foundations:...

and main wall can be defined clearly. However, the ruins have been adequately preserved since the first excavations.

Further reading

• Christian Bader: The castle ruin Wulp with Küsnacht ZH . In: Swiss of contributions for culture history and archaeology of the Middle Ages , Bd. 25. Basel 1998.