Church tower in Lake Reschen - The sunken village - How did it come about?
A tower that is located in the middle of the lake is actually nothing special, but the tower in Lake Reschen looks completely different. This has become the landmark of the Vinschgau. This tower hides a secret. It is not only extremely fascinating but also magical. Anyone who takes a trip to Lake Reschen can admire this building. The special thing about this is that it is an old church tower that is located in the middle of the lake. However, it is half sunk.
It is described as a mountain backdrop and is located near the Langtaufer Valley. This in turn is located in South Tyrol, more precisely in Italy. The sunken tower may look familiar to you, as it has been a popular postcard motif for many years. However, on one of these it is described more as the “tower by the lake”.
The Story of the Sunken Tower
The tower stands in clear water, so you can look far into the depths. The water is bluish, like tanzanite and brings a romantic touch. But what exactly is the story behind this unusual tower, which is absolutely unique? The church originally dates back to the 14th century. Century and responsible for damming the lake. This came shortly after the end of World War II. World War before.
If we go back in time a little, fascism raged in Italy from 1922 onwards. In 1939 a company, namely Montecatini, came up with the idea of damming the so-called Reschen and Graunersee by around 22 meters. However, the residents of Graun and Reschen were not asked whether they agreed with this handling. The innovations were simply decided over their heads. The construction project started in the 1st. round, but was interrupted by the outbreak of World War II. World War delayed. The residents who were in the Upper Vinschgau were relieved because they believed that the dam project had come to an end.
About 2 years after the war ended, namely in 1947, the project was started again. The 2. Construction phase has begun. The residents weren't happy about it at all. However, they couldn't do anything about it and had to endure the construction project. Construction was finished in the summer of 1950. The locks were closed and Lake Reschen was dammed. A total of 677 hectares of land were flooded. What wasn't so nice was that at that exact moment around 150 families became homeless. Many of these families had no other choice than to emigrate.
There were compensations for numerous families with which they could build a new existence, but the payments were so modest that this was not even possible. A barracks camp was quickly set up in Langtauferertal. This was intended to support numerous families in their time of need and serve as a place for them to stay.
Today the tower is located in Lake Reschen and serves as a landmark that is intended to remind us of times gone by. It has been declared a listed building and is visited by thousands of people every year. He became a real crowd puller. If you would like to get a little closer to the sunken church tower, you can book a boat trip across Lake Reschen today and see this church tower up close.
Sunken village in South Tyrol came to light
When the village of Graun was completely submerged in 1950, no one expected that they would see it again. However, this was a fallacy, because 70 years after the village disappeared under the water, it reappeared. The church tower of the town of Graun suddenly rose out of Lake Reschen. The tower once belonged to the parish church of St. Catherine.
If you haven't been able to see the sunken tower live yet, you can watch the series "Curon", which can be seen on Netflix. Not only can you admire the beautiful scenery here, but you can also learn a lot about the history. This is certainly a rather dark chapter of Lake Reschen, which is nevertheless filled with a lot of tension.
However, not only the sunken tower, which was considered lost for around 70 years, suddenly reappeared, other remains of the former city are also slowly reappearing. One can only imagine what actually happened to the village of Graun back then and what suffering was inflicted on the people. Now the plan is to bring the village to the surface. Maintenance work is taking place. Water was now even drained from Lake Reschen and more and more ruins appeared.
What will happen next with the former village and whether the former city can or will be completely uncovered still remains to be seen. In addition to the church tower, a bridge, steps and isolated buildings from that time were also revealed. Some of the buildings are still very well preserved, others look more like a large lump of rock. Some of the remains of Graun are now even accessible and are visited in droves by tourists.
The Reschensee
The Reschensee has a total length of 6 km. It is possible to cross it by boat and get a close look at the ruins, including the sunken church tower. The cruise on a historic excursion ship costs 12 euros for adults and 6 euros for children aged 6 to 12. The ticket for the boat trip can be obtained directly on board the ship. In the low season, which starts from mid-July to September, the ship sails across Lake Reschen once a day at around 3 p.m. During the high season in August, those interested can sail across Lake Reschen 5 times a day and look at the ruins.
In winter, when Lake Reschen is often frozen over, a few particularly brave people dare to go onto the lake and walk to the sunken tower. Many pilgrims, but also locals, would like to bring the sunken city back to life. You want to experience history live and visit the village. Lake Reschen is beautiful to look at and the water is deep blue. It invites you to visit it. The sunken tower or rather, the sunken city is a special feature that this breathtaking lake in South Tyrol has to offer. However, there is talk that the lake will return to its original water level and the village will disappear again, except for the church tower.
