Bipp Castle (Oberbipp)

Bipp Castle is a 13th-century castle in the municipality of Oberbipp in the canton of Bern and is now privately owned.

Bipp Castle is first mentioned in a document in 1268. At the end of the 13th century, the castle came into the possession of the Counts of Neuchâtel-Nidau and changed hands in the mid-14th century to the Kyburgs. In 1407, the Kyburgs sold the castle to the cities of Bern and Solothurn, who jointly administered the lordship. In 1463, Bern acquired the entire property and converted the castle into the seat of the Bernese bailiff. During the French invasion of Switzerland in 1798, the castle was plundered and damaged. In 1805, the Canton of Bern sold the already heavily dilapidated castle into private ownership. The castle was temporarily used as a quarry. In 1852, Johann Jakob Stehlin-Hagenbach from Basel (later mayor of Basel) acquired the castle estate. In 1855, the manor house, which is still preserved today, was built in place of the old granary.