Rudenz Castle (Ruin)

Rudenz Castle was built in the first half of the 13th century. It was the easternmost of three castle complexes that were spread over a distance of about two kilometers in Giswil during the Middle Ages. Until the second half of the 14th century, the castle was the ancestral seat of the Lords of Rudenz. Later inhabitants are not known, but Landammann Heinrich Bürgler is mentioned as owner in 1478, followed by his son at the beginning of the 16th century. When the castle was abandoned is not recorded. As the walls served as a quarry, the ruin was in danger of disappearing. In 1892, the Historical and Antiquarian Association of Obwalden acquired the ruin. In 1994, the Canton of Obwalden placed the ruin under monument protection. After extensive renovation in spring 2008, the Historical Association of Obwalden transferred the ruin to the Canton in 2010.

The Rudenz ruin is located in Rudenz, a district of the municipality of Giswil in the Canton of Obwalden, Switzerland, at an altitude of approximately 504 m above sea level.

Visitors can today explore the ruin. Several meters high walls of a square tower are still preserved, whose original height is unknown. Two construction phases are recognizable in the masonry, with the first phase consisting of little-processed glacial and moraine blocks and the second phase dating to around 1500.

• Rosenberg (Kleinteil) Ruin (Castle), approx. 2.2 km away
• Hexenturm (Sarnen) (Castle), approx. 8.4 km away
• Landenberg Castle (Sarnen) (Castle), approx. 8.5 km away
• Restiturm (Meiringen) Ruin (Castle), approx. 11.8 km away