Iberg Castle (Ruin)

Iberg Castle was built after 1230 by the Lords of Iberg, ministeriales of the Princely Abbey of St. Gallen. It likely served as an administrative center for the monastery's lands and rights around Wattwil. The name Iberg probably derives from a field name meaning “yew mountain”. In 1249, Count Kraft I of Toggenburg conquered the castle during a conflict with the Princely Abbey but had to return it in 1255. In 1290, Iberg was again besieged and conquered, this time by Konrad von Gundelfingen, but returned to the Abbot of St. Gallen in 1292. During the Appenzell Wars in 1405, the castle was destroyed by the Appenzellers but rebuilt after 1408 as a bailiwick. From 1468, when the County of Toggenburg belonged to the Princely Abbey of St. Gallen, the St. Gallen bailiff of Toggenburg resided temporarily at Iberg. During the Thirty Years' War, the monastery's church treasures were stored in its cellars. In 1710, rebellious Toggenburgers occupied the complex, which, after the Toggenburg War in 1718, was defortified and converted into an inn. After the dissolution of the Princely Abbey in 1805, Iberg became private property. The castle was inhabited until 1835, when a manufacturer, annoyed by a rejected idea to establish a poorhouse, had the roofs removed and building materials transported away, which greatly accelerated its decay. In 1883, the ruin became the property of the municipality of Wattwil, which restored the keep between 1902 and 1903 and secured parts of the complex as an excursion destination. The last renovation took place in 1965.

The Iberg Ruin is located at approximately 709 meters above sea level southwest of Wattwil in Toggenburg, Canton of St. Gallen, Switzerland.

The Iberg Ruin is now accessible to visitors. The castle hill was once protected on three sides by a ring ditch and embankments, while the south side slopes steeply down to the Hagbach ravine. The castle complex, surrounded by a curtain wall, includes a keep with six floors, whose walls are 1.6 meters thick. The original high entrance on the southeast side, about 6 meters above the courtyard, has been replaced by a ground-level access with a reconstructed staircase. Parts of the curtain wall and the castle gate have also been restored.

• Ruine Bibiton (Kaltbrunn) (Castle), approx. 11.2 km away
• Ruine Uznaberg (Uznach) (Castle), approx. 11.3 km away
• Schloss Grynau (Tuggen) (Castle), approx. 12.2 km away
• Schloss Hirzen (Schmerikon) (Castle), approx. 13.0 km away