Murten (the German form: French Morat) lies on a ridge of hills marking the linguistic boundary between French and German, on the southeast side of the idyllic Murtensee (Lac de Morat). This beautiful little medieval town has preserved, more completely perhaps than anywhere else in Switzerland, the old
-world character derived from its many surviving buildings of the 15th-18th C. The old town is still surrounded by its circuit of walls (with a wall-walk). In 515 King Sigismund of Burgundy presented a property at Murten, on the road to Valais, to the monastery of St Maurice. In 1013 Murten was a stronghold held by King Rudolf III of Upper Burgundy. The real foundation of the town was the work of the Zähringen dynasty between 1157 and 1177. Murten's main claim to fame is the battle fought here in 1476 in which the Confederates defeated the troops of Charles the Bold of Burgundy. The field of battle ranged from Cressier (572 m/1,877ft)to Greng (442 m/1,450ft), where a memorial now stands.
Print this page
Add to Favorites
