The Bodensee Legate — Uncover the Bishop's Hidden Conspiracy

Your investigation begins at the Landungssteg of Hafen Bregenz, on the shores of the Bodensee. Here, where boats already docked in the Middle Ages, you examine the first evidence of a conspiracy. The Seepromenade, stretching along Lake Constance, offers you a panorama of the Appenzell Alps as you decipher the initial digital clues. These clues, hidden in the details of the modern environment, guide you towards the old town, the Oberstadt, the historical heart of Bregenz, about 800 meters southeast, where 15th-century secrets await to be revealed.

Heading up towards the Oberstadt, you arrive in front of the Martinsturm, Saint Martin's Tower, built in the 14th century as a defensive tower of Bregenz's medieval enclosure. From its 36-meter height, it dominates the old town. Roman foundations of Brigantium are attested beneath its medieval structure. The onion dome, added in the 16th century, has become a symbol of Bregenz. It is here, among the stones steeped in history, that you discover ancient inscriptions that could implicate Bishop Friedrich of Bregenz in machinations far darker than simple ecclesiastical quarrels.

Your journey then takes you to the Herz-Jesu-Kirche, erected between 1908 and 1914 by architect Theodor Schütz in the Vorkloster district. Although more recent, this neo-Gothic church, with its period stained glass windows, holds symbols that, once interpreted, reveal unexpected links to ancient religious brotherhoods of Vorarlberg. From there, you continue to the Zisterzienserabtei Wettingen-Mehrerau, founded in 1854. This Cistercian abbey, with its 19th-century convent buildings and neo-Gothic church, perpetuates a religious tradition that dates back long before its foundation, and whose archives could contain crucial evidence for your investigation in Bregenz.

Returning towards the center, you pass through the area of the Landhaus Bregenz, the Vorarlberg Government Palace, also designed by Theodor Schütz between 1910 and 1914 in an Austrian Art Nouveau style. This early 20th-century administrative power center contrasts with the medieval heritage but embodies the continuity of governance structures in Austria. The clues then direct you to Kornmarktplatz, the Grain Market Square, the commercial heart of the Oberstadt since the 14th century. Surrounded by 16th and 17th-century merchant houses, this square with its 19th-century fountain is the scene of a major revelation concerning the conspiracy's accomplices.

At the end of this urban stroll in Bregenz, you will have assembled the pieces of a complex historical puzzle, from the Roman remains of Römerbad to the 20th-century buildings. Each site, from Martinsturm to Seepromenade, will have helped shed light on the truth of the accusations against Bishop Friedrich of Bregenz. This interactive tour in Vorarlberg will have allowed you to delve into the city's history, understand the political and religious stakes of the era, and discover the medieval heritage and Austrian ecclesiastical architecture that shape the capital of Vorarlberg.