Wynau

Wynau is a municipality in the Oberaargau administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. Wynau is first mentioned in 1201 as Wimenouwe. Evidence of prehistoric settlements at Wynau include; individual Bronze Age items along the Aare river, the remains of a Roman manor at Hoferrain-Birchi and a sunken Roman ship with a rudder in the Aare. Possibly medieval graves have been found on the Höchi along with clearly medieval graves at Aegerten. During the 13th and 14th centuries, the main landholders were the local nobles, the Lord of Bechburg, the Count of Falkenstein and the Knight of Aarwangen. Over time St. Urban's Abbey acquired these nobles' land in Wynau. In 1406, Bern acquired land and rights in the region from the Counts of Kyburg. With that foothold, in 1413 Bern negotiated an agreement with St. Urban's which brought Wynau and the upper Murgenthal (Murg valley) under Bernese control. Following the 1798 French invasion, under the Helvetic Republic, it was part of the district of Langenthal. After the collapse of the Republic, in 1803, it was transferred to the Aarwangen district. The church of St. Mauritius was first mentioned in 1201. The late-Romanesque basilica church was probably built in the 10th–11th century, on top of an older Carolingian building. From 1270–80 the church was expanded. During the Late Middle Ages it was the center of a deaconate within the Diocese of Constance which included the villages of Aarwangen (until 1577), Roggwil (until 1664) and Murgenthal (settlements of Balzenwil, Gruben and Walliswil until 1664, Riken and Glashütten until 1824). Bern built a salt warehouse in the municipality, followed by a customs house on the border with the Canton of Aargau in 1800. During the 18th century, cottage industry cotton weaving and coal mining began to supplement agriculture in the local economy. After 1800, many of the farms changed from traditional agriculture to dairy and livestock production. In 1862 the Roggwil-Wynau railroad opened, which connected the village with the larger Bern-Olten railroad.