A mill symbolises the stability of the canton and the Confederation

6 October 2024

1461 Peter Reich von Reichenstein bought Landskron Castle, including a mill on the Mühlbach at Flüh. Today, Landskron Castle is in France, near the village of Leymen (Alsace), just over the border from the canton of Solothurn. At the time, however, Alsace still belonged to the Habsburgs.

Flüh consisted of a few farms. The neighbouring village was Hofstetten. Today, the municipality is called Hofstetten-Flüh (canton of Solothurn). Hofstetten was not just any village; until 1408, it was one of the seven free imperial villages of the Blauen (Reichsdörfer am Blauen). In 1408, the Lords of Rotberg acquired the seven villages.

They subsequently lost their independence (including jurisdiction and ownership of meadows and forests) after other lords (including the Bishop of Basel and the lords of Hofstetten) had already gained more rights.

Hofstetten

Witterswil

In 1515, Solothurn acquired Hofstetten and Flüh from the lords of Rotberg, and from then on, Hofstetten and Flüh became part of the canton of Solothurn. The canton of Solothurn experienced European history and the (civil) wars of religion at close quarters but emerged relatively unscathed.

As a result, the Flühmühle mill was never destroyed in the war and is still standing today. Since 2004, it has had a primarily residential function. For over five hundred and fifty years, it was used as a grain mill and, from the 19th century onwards, as an oil mill (Ölerei) and cider mill (Mosterei).

Solothurn

Solothurn, France and the Habsburgs

The Reformation, which occurred between the 1520s and 1530s, brought major political and religious changes to the region. Basel and Bern became Protestant, while Solothurn remained Catholic (eventually).

France took over southern Alsace, including the Sundgau and the Landskron, at the time of the Peace of Westphalia (the end of the Thirty Years’ War) in 1648, first with the Margrave of Baden and then as sole owner from 1663. Sébastien le Prestre, Seigneur de Vauban (1633-1707), transformed the castle into a fortress. In 1813, Allied troops destroyed the fortress in the battle against Napoleon.

The Landskron since 1813

Hofstetten-Flüh, the Virgin Chapel and the Flühmühle mill

The first written mention of the Flühmühle dates back to the Landskron sale contract (1461). At that time, a miller rented the mill.

Since 1543, the mill has also been featured in a special place in the Marienkapelle (Chapel of the Virgin) or Siebenschmerzenkapelle (Chapel of the Seven Sorrows, 15th century). Mariastein Abbey (built in 1655) did not yet exist.

The year 1541 was an important date for the mill. On Saint Lucia’s Day (13 December), the knight Hans Thüring, son of the lord Jacob Reich von der Landskron, had an accident near the Chapel of the Virgin when he fell off the cliff. During the raging plague, he and his relatives from Pfirt and Landskron had taken refuge in Mary’s chapel to benefit from the healthier air.

According to legend, he then climbed up there alone. He clung to a branch to look down into the gorge. The branch broke, and he fell into the precipice. He survived; only his jaw was broken.

An anonymous painter immortalised this event in 1543 in a painting known as the ‘Miracle’ (Mirakelbild). This painting depicts the episode with the chapel of the Virgin and the Bruderhaus on the left, the mill in the middle and the Landskron on the right. The story of the miraculous fall is depicted on the reverse of the painting.

Werner Küry (the miller) and his valet Simon brought Hans Thüring to the mill on horseback. He was nursed eight days at the mill before being taken to Landskron. On the left is the priest Jakob Augsburger from the Virgin Chapel. The castle lord probably commissioned the painting as a thank-you for the favourable outcome.

The Chapel of the Virgin also benefited. He also redecorated the chapel in honour of Mary, particularly with the family coat of arms and the painting of the miracles. Since then, this chapel has also been known as the Reichenstein Chapel (Reichensteinische Kapelle).

In the context of the Reformation and Counter-Reformation of the time, the Catholic canton of Solothurn was thus able to emphasise God’s grace and, therefore, Catholic superiority.

The depiction of the mill in the Chapel of the Virgin and the Landskron is an important historical and cultural source. Although the painting probably does not fully reflect reality, it does give a good impression of the mill, its function, and its location.

The Flühnühle today

After 1543

After 1543, the Getreidemühle (grain mill) underwent several changes, with parts disappearing or being replaced and the site being extended. Nevertheless, the foundations provide a good record of its development.

The mill changed ownership several times but remained true to its original purpose: as a grain mill. The grain came mainly from the immediate vicinity and, to a lesser extent, from the Sündgau. In the 19th century, the facility was extended to include an oil and cider mill.

Unknown artist, the baths of Flüh and the Mariastein monastery, 18th century, picture: Wikipedia

The Flüh baths: 1560-1970

In addition to the Flüh mill, Flüh also boasted another attraction between 1560 and 1970: Bad Flüh (the Flüh baths). Since 1560, the village has been known for its water springs and bathhouse. However, the monks and visitors to Mariastein claimed that the main attraction was the meetings between (scantily clad) men and women. In any case, the site was demolished in 1970 after a long decline.

Mariastein

1900-present day

In 1953, the mill’s sizeable wooden wheel was replaced by a turbine, which was then supplied with electricity. The mill continued to operate for several decades—the last report dates from May 2004, after which it was used for residential purposes. However, the mill structures are still largely intact, and the new residential function does full justice to the mill.

The Flüh mill (even though it no longer grinds), the Talbach, and the Mühlbach bear witness to a past with a future. Fifty metres away, the Talbach and Mühlbach join and continue flowing into the Birs.

Conclusion

This continuity has been possible thanks to renovation, innovation, good management, political stability and diplomacy on the part of the canton and the Confederation, even in times of (civil) war in neighbouring countries and within the Confederation, and indeed also some luck.

This (relative) stability is not self-evident. Still, it is one of the fundamental characteristics of the Confederation: the search for what is feasible, the pragmatic compromise, even in the era of the Reformation, the wars of religion (European and Swiss) of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries and the Sonderbund war of 1847.

Church in Sta. Maria (Val Mustair, canton Graubünden), an example of a Simultaneum church from the 16th century until well into the 19th century, Catholics on one side, Protestants on the other

Simultaneum (the joint use of churches), the Disputatio, the Ilanz articles in the Free State of the Three Leagues (1524/1526) and even the separation of the cantons (the Appenzell in 1597) at a time of Catholic-Protestant unrest are typical Swiss solutions.

The town of Solothurn rightly honours one of the earliest representatives of this Helvetian characteristic, Nicolas de Flüh (1417-1487).

Solothurn

Weissenstein, Bruder Klaus Kapelle

Switzerland also has a unique way of appreciating the old and the traditional, valuing them alongside new developments and adapting to them.

Innovation, modernisation, and high technology alongside – and not necessarily always in place of – the old structures are the foundation of this society and the participation of its citizens, thanks to direct democracy, subsidiarity, federalism and decentralisation.

In short, the nation has an incompatibilité d’ humeur and is a contradictio in terminis of how the current European Union works.

Impressions of Hofstetten-Flüh, Witterswil and surroundings