Burgruine Heitnau

Switzerland, Switzerland

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Burgruine Heitnau is the ruin of a medieval hill castle located in the forest between Tobel and Braunau in Canton Thurgau, Switzerland, first documented in 1209 as the seat of Arnold von Heitnau, a vassal of Count Diethelm II of Toggenburg.

Built on a steep ridge over the Heitnauertobel valley for strategic defense, it managed Toggenburg estates in the upper Lauchetal before passing to the Kommende Tobel commandery around 1275, suffering a mid-13th-century fire but declining gradually until abandonment by the mid-14th century.

Excavated between 1950 and 1954 revealing its layout despite prior stone reuse for local buildings like Braunau's church, the site preserves fragmented walls as a testament to early feudal power in the region.