Archivturm

En un regard

Le château en bref

The Archivturm, also called the Schatzturm, or "treasure tower", is a medieval tower in the historic centre of Schwyz. Probably built shortly after 1200, it first served as a residential and administrative tower for a Habsburg ministerial; the commune of Schwyz took possession of it in the 14th century, when Habsburg influence declined. It was then used as a prison and, for centuries, as the cantonal state archive of Schwyz: the Federal Charter of 1291 was kept there until its transfer to the new Bundesbriefmuseum in 1936. The tower is a square of 8.5 m per side with three storeys and walls 2.10 m thick at the base; its original entrance was a raised doorway on the first floor. The fire of 1642 destroyed its timber crown, replaced by a roof that was carried away by a storm in 1645; a hip roof and a staircase tower were added in 1774–1776, and the restoration of the 1930s then exposed the masonry. Today, one room hosts a medieval writing workshop for school groups, organised by the Bundesbriefmuseum, and the tower is one of the stops on the "History Run" school trail of Schwyz.