Heitenried
Origin of the name Heitenried
The place is called «Essers» in French in 1228 and «Ried» in German in 1257. The name points to an Alemannic settlement of the 10th-11th century.[1]
Founding of Heitenried
Heitenried is a scattered settlement 15 km east of Fribourg on the Bernese border, with the hamlets of Scheuergraben, Schönfels, Selgiswil, Unterwinterlingen and Wiler vor Holz. Hallstatt-period burial mounds lie in the Magdalenawald, and stretches of a Roman road led towards Schwarzenburg. In the 11th-12th century a church of Saint Michael, unusually large for a rural church, was built below the castle. The closeness suggests a foundation by the lords, and its baptismal font marks it as a parish church.[1][2]
History of Heitenried
Époque de Hallstatt. Burial mounds are raised in the Magdalenawald.[1]
Époque romaine. A road crosses the area towards Schwarzenburg.[1]
XIe-XIIe siècles. The church of Saint Michael is built, with a mortar floor, benches and a choir screen. Burials take place around it from the 11th century.[2]
1228. The parish is first recorded.[1]
XIIIe siècle. A knightly family «von Ried» appears.[1]
XIVe siècle. The counts of Thierstein own part of the lordship.[1]
1442. The Velga family buys the lordship, part of the Auge banner in Fribourg's Old Territories.[1]
Fin du XVe siècle. Wall paintings decorate the church, and large fragments have been found.[2]
1493-1579. Between these dates Heitenried separates from the parish of Tafers (Tavel).[1]
XVIe siècle. Burials begin inside the church.[2]
1579. Through inheritance and purchase the castle passes to the Diesbach-Steinbrugg family.[1]
1626. The church is enlarged. Its nave receives a coffered barrel vault decorated with reliefs.[2]
1820. The last of the Diesbachs leaves the castle to his servant, Pierre Bersier.[1]
1878. The municipality and the parish buy the castle and set up a school there, which still exists.[1]
1904-1905. A neo-Gothic church is built.[1]
2000. Services provide about half of jobs, farming just under a third.[1]
Population of Heitenried
Sources and references: [1][4]
| 1850 | 705 |
| 1900 | 748 |
| 1950 | 833 |
| 2000 | 1'101 |
| 2010 | 1'286 |
| 2020 | 1'385 |
| 2025 | 1'413 |
Historic sites in Heitenried
Heitenried castle. Owned by the Diesbach-Steinbrugg from 1579 to 1820, then by Pierre Bersier, it has housed the municipal school since 1878.[1]
Parish church of Saint Michael. It is listed in the federal inventory of cultural property as an object of national importance (A).[3]
Sodbach covered bridge. Covered bridge over the Sense, shared with St. Antoni and Schwarzenburg, an object of regional importance (B).[3]
Chapel of Saint Joseph. Chapel in the hamlet of Hinter Schönfels, an object of regional importance (B).[3]
Remains in Heitenried
Old church of Saint Michael. The excavations uncovered the Romanesque church, its 1626 enlargement and fragments of late 15th-century paintings. They also yielded rosaries and medals of the 17th and 18th centuries and 429 coins struck between the 13th and 19th centuries. 89 % are small coins of the city of Fribourg, including a pfennig of 1735.[2]
Magdalenawald burial mounds. Burial mounds of the Hallstatt period.[1]
Roman road. Stretches of a Roman road to Schwarzenburg survive in the area.[1]
Sources
- Dictionnaire historique de la Suisse, « Heitenried » (Ursula Birchler, version allemande du 17.02.2025)
- État de Fribourg, Service archéologique, « Heitenried » : fouilles de l'ancienne église Saint-Michel (d'après J. Bujard et A.-Fr. Auberson, Freiburger Archäologie 30, 2023)
- Office fédéral de la protection de la population, « Révision Inventaire PBC 2021 : liste cantonale, canton de Fribourg » (état au 1.1.2026)
- Service de la statistique du canton de Fribourg (SStat), « Population des communes, de 1900 à 2025 » (T01-02-03), population résidante permanente au 31.12.2025
Other villages near Heitenried
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