Bubenberg-Denkmal: the defender of Murten

Adrian von Bubenberg was a Bernese nobleman and several times Schultheiss, the title of the head of the city of Bern. In April 1476 he was chosen as commander of Murten. The town withstood a siege by the Burgundian army for twelve days. On 22 June 1476 the Battle of Murten brought relief. Bubenberg died in August 1479.

Standing or on horseback?

At the end of the 19th century a competition was held for a monument. There was heated debate about whether Bubenberg should be shown as a statesman on foot or as a knight on horseback. The sculptor Max Leu from Solothurn won the competition and received the commission in 1892. The statue was unveiled on 18 July 1897. It shows Bubenberg on foot. Leu died in 1899, aged 36.

What you can see

The bronze figure is larger than life. Bubenberg wears armour but no helmet. One hand rests on his sword, the other is stretched out as if to protect someone. On the pedestal are two sentences attributed to him: "So lange in uns eine Ader lebt, gibt keiner nach" (as long as a vein lives in us, no one gives in) and "Mein Leib und Gut ist euer eigen bis in den Tod" (my body and goods are yours until death).

Moved in 1930

At first the monument stood at the west end of the small park on Bubenbergplatz. It faced west, towards Murten. When the square was rebuilt in 1930, it was moved to Hirschengraben after long discussions. There it faces north. In 2015 it was restored and cleaned for the first time since 1930.

Good to know

The monument is only a few steps from the railway station. The spot on Hirschengraben is freely accessible.