Péry

Geschichte

Péry is part of the municipality of Péry-La Heutte in the Jura bernois administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. It is located in the French-speaking Bernese Jura (Jura Bernois).HistoryThe first mention of Péry is in 884 where it is called villam Bedericam. In 1148 it was known as Peril, though that name comes from a 12th-century forgery. The municipality was formerly known by its German name Büderich, however, that name is no longer used.In 884, Charles the Fat granted Péry to Moutier-Grandval Abbey. The Abbey owned the village and surrounding lands until 999 when the Prince-Bishop of Basel acquired the village. He incorporated it into the seigniory of Erguel and gave the village to the Lords of Péry who ruled from Châtillon Castle, now a ruin, on a nearby hill. Beginning in the 14th century the feudal levies from Péry were part of the Erguel army under the command of Biel. In 1530, Biel encouraged the village to accept the Protestant Reformation.The village of Rondchâtel was independent of Péry until 1766. Based on the name, it is likely that a castle existed on the hill, but little is known about it. During the mid 14th century, the Prince-Bishop of Basel Johann II von Munsingen, granted Rondchâtel to his brother Conrad, who was an ecclesiastical bailiff of Biel in 1340-65. Starting at the end of the 14th century, Rondchâtel fief was owned by the de Nans and d'Orsans families out of Franche-Comté. They held the village until 1766, when the last heir of the families died out and the fief reverted to the Prince-Bishop. The Prince-Bishop then leased Rondchâtel to the community of Péry.