Grüningen

Grüningen is a commune in the canton of Zurich, in the district of Hinwil, at 502 metres. The settlement established itself on a rise, as a country town, and that position still governs its outline: the built fabric holds tight to the ridge, meadows and orchards begin at the foot of the last houses.

The castle commands the whole. Raised in the 13th century, it served until 1798 as the residence of the bailiffs sent from Zurich. Part of the building was demolished in the 19th century and what remained became a parsonage. In 1970 a fire damaged it; the building now houses a historical collection.

The Reformed parish church adjoins the castle. It is a single-nave building in neoclassical style, built in 1782-1783 to plans attributed to David Vogel. Its interior, destroyed by the fire of 1970, was refitted by Markus Dieterle in 1973 — refitted, not restored to its former state. The commune received the Wakker Prize in 1976.

Why this place is remarkable

Two buildings stand side by side at the top of the town and tell the same story of dependence: the castle from which Zurich administered the bailiwick until 1798, and the Reformed church built against it in 1782-1783. The fire of 1970 went through both, and the church interior was refitted in 1973 in the language of its own time rather than reconstituted. The commune received the Wakker Prize in 1976.

History and origin

The commune's territory was already settled in the 8th century, as older traces attest. The town itself was founded at the beginning of the 13th century by the barons of Regensberg, on the rise it still occupies. From 1408 Grüningen was attached to Zurich, which made it the seat of a bailiwick: the castle received the bailiffs until 1798, the year the old regime collapsed in Switzerland.