Melchnau

Melchnau is a municipality in the Oberaargau administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. Melchnau celebrated its 900th anniversary in 2000. The earliest written evidence for the town dates from about 1100. Melchnau is first mentioned in 1194 as Melchinove. The Grünenberg-Schnabelburg-Langenstein complex of three ruined castles sit on a hill above the village. The Lords of Langenstein were first mentioned in 1194 when they helped found St. Urban's Abbey. The castle was likely built around that same time. Shortly thereafter, the Barons of Grünenberg inherited the Langenstein lands which they ruled from Grünenberg Castle. Between the 12th and 15th centuries, Grünenberg Castle was a cultural and political center for the nobility that ruled over much of the Oberaargau region. As the family split into separate branches, including the Schnabel von Grünenberg and Grimm von Grünenberg, a third castle was added to the complex. In 1383–84, during the Burgdorferkrieg, the castles and village were attacked and captured by Bernese troops. After the war, the lands and castles were returned to the Grünenbergs after they entered into a treaty with Bern. However, the family's power continued to weaken and in 1444 they sold the lands that belonged to Grünenberg castle to Bern. A Bernese vogt or bailiff moved into the castle. In 1452 the last male Grünenberg heir, Wilhelm, died and in 1480 the family sold Langenstein castle to Bern. After the Grünenberg lands were absorbed by Bern, it became part of the Bailiwick of Aarwangen. The castles were abandoned and began to slowly fall into ruin. After the 1798 French invasion, it was transferred to the District of Langenthal in the Helvetic Republic. In 1803, after the collapse of the Republic, it went back to the Aarwangen District. Until the Protestant Reformation, the village was part of the parish of Grossdietwil in the Canton of Lucerne. In the 18th and 19th centuries, traditional agriculture was partially replaced by linen weaving, straw plaiting and shoe manufacturing (until 1960) in the local economy.