Indermaur

Indermaur, more commonly written In der Maur and also recorded as In der Mauer or Indermauer, is not principally a commercial consumer brand. It is the name of a Swiss family whose documented history reaches back to the Rhaetian Alps and the political communities of eastern Switzerland. The family became particularly associated with Berneck and Rheineck in the canton of St. Gallen, where members served for centuries as magistrates, court clerks, tax officials, land administrators, and representatives of local communities. The name therefore functions primarily as a family and historical lineage designation rather than as a unified company or product label. The family’s earliest documented political prominence was in Berneck, historically known as Bernang or Farniwang. Ulrich In der Maur held the office of Ammann, a chief magistrate of the rural community, in 1435. Hermann In der Maur later held the same office and received a coat of arms in 1478. The family belonged to the local Bürgergemeinde and exercised influence under both the community’s local institutions and the authority of the Prince-Abbey of St. Gall. Other members served as court scribes and Imperial tax collectors. Their responsibilities included maintaining legal records, administering property and inheritance matters, collecting dues, and representing local interests in disputes with neighboring rulers. Religious and political changes during the Reformation shaped the Berneck branch. Although many local residents moved between Catholic and Reformed observance during the sixteenth century, members of the Berneck family adopted and retained the Reformed faith. In the seventeenth century, family members participated in disputes concerning ecclesiastical appointments, property rights, taxation, and the jurisdiction of the Prince-Abbot of St. Gall. The family also owned vineyards in the Rhine Valley, linking its political role with agricultural and landholding interests. A separate branch emerged when Hans Indermaur, a tanner from Berneck, settled in Rheineck in 1590. The Rheineck line received fiefs and a distinct coat of arms in 1685. Its members continued to occupy administrative offices, including court clerkships and district magistracies. The family’s former home in Rheineck was later acquired by the municipality and converted into an orphanage; its cellar, once used as a tannery, has subsequently served as a cultural venue. Another important branch settled in South Tyrol, particularly around Kurtatsch an der Weinstraße. This line received several heraldic grants between 1479 and 1586 and was raised to the lower nobility in 1601 under Emperor Rudolf II. It later received baronial status in 1703. The family possessed estates and fortified residences, including Strehlburg and Freienfeld, and members held official positions in Tyrol, Trier, Liechtenstein, Austria, and Bavaria. Carl von In der Maur twice served as governor of Liechtenstein and received an Austrian imperial order in 1909. Austrian noble particles in the family name ceased to have legal standing after the abolition of nobility in 1919. Migration created further branches in the Netherlands, England, Australia, and the Dutch East Indies. A Berneck descendant, Paulus In der Maur, moved to Schoonhoven in the eighteenth century, and later generations lived in Utrecht, Gouda, Rotterdam, and Dordrecht. This line included organ builders Johann Frederik In der Maur and Johannes Casper In der Maur. Another branch moved to England in the eighteenth century, with later descendants recorded in Middlesex and Somerset. Family members also appeared in social directories and Swiss expatriate institutions in London. In the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, the name remained associated with a mixture of family enterprises, historic properties, hospitality, vineyards, and individual public figures. A restaurant called Zum goldenen Fass in Rorschach was established by Johann Indermaur in 1905 and remained family-operated according to the cited account. The family also maintained the Maienhalde vineyard and winery in Berneck for several generations. A family-owned kitchen business was sold in 2000 and incorporated into ASTOR Küchen AG. These activities do not establish a single Indermaur corporate group or a standardized commercial brand. The appropriate interpretation of Indermaur is therefore as a Swiss-origin family name with historical, genealogical, heraldic, and localized business associations.

The In der Maur family is described as originating in the Rhaetian Alpine region of Switzerland and as descending from Alemannic populations. The German surname is commonly interpreted as meaning “in the wall,” although the historical explanation of the name is uncertain and may relate to a fortified structure, a defensive wall, or a geographic feature. Over time, family branches established themselves across eastern Switzerland, southern Austria, northern Italy, and other parts of Europe. The Berneck branch is central to the family’s early political history. Ulrich In der Maur was appointed Ammann of Berneck in 1435, making him the earliest member identified in that office. Ammann was a senior local magistracy associated with the rural community and its assemblies. Hermann In der Maur later served as Ammann and received heraldic recognition in 1478, including a coat of arms featuring a green clover or shamrock motif on a gold shield. The family belonged to the local Swiss bourgeois community and retained administrative importance after the Abbey of St. Gall acquired authority over the area. Members of the Berneck family served as court clerks, treasury officials, and Imperial tax collectors. The surviving record places them in property disputes, church appointments, tax collection, land exchanges, and delegations representing communities in the Upper Rhine Valley. The family owned vineyards around Berneck and participated in the agricultural economy of the Rhine Valley. During the Reformation, the Berneck branch adopted the reforms associated with Huldrych Zwingli and remained Protestant despite periods in which the wider population shifted between Catholic and Reformed practice. The Rheineck branch began when Hans Indermaur, identified as a tanner from Berneck, moved there in 1590. The branch acquired fiefs and developed a distinct heraldic identity. In 1685 Johannes In der Maur received arms showing a gold lion wielding a blade on a blue shield. Later generations held fiefs near vineyards and maintained roles as scribes, court officials, and district magistrates. A family house in Rheineck was eventually purchased by the municipality and repurposed as an orphanage. The former tannery cellar survives as a historic and cultural space. South Tyrol became the center of another branch. Members of the family appear in records around Kurtatsch an der Weinstraße from the late fourteenth century. Heraldic grants were made in 1479, 1491, and 1586. In 1601, the branch was elevated to the lower nobility by Rudolf II, and in 1703 members were granted baronial rank by Leopold I. The family held estates and noble residences in the region, including Strehlburg and Freienfeld. Caspar Indermaur financed the construction of the Chapel of St. Anna at Ansitz Strehlburg in 1615. Members later served as officials in hunting administration, court government, and regional service. The South Tyrolean line also entered the political life of Liechtenstein and Austria. Carl von In der Maur served twice as governor of Liechtenstein and was awarded the Commander's Cross of the Order of Franz Joseph in 1909. The family’s compound noble surname referred to descent from and residence at principal estates. After Austria abolished nobility in 1919, the use of nobiliary particles became legally prohibited there. Migration expanded the family’s geographic footprint. Paulus In der Maur moved from Berneck to Schoonhoven in the Netherlands during the eighteenth century, establishing a Dutch line whose descendants lived in several Dutch cities. The line included organ builders Johann Frederik In der Maur and Johannes Casper In der Maur. A separate family branch moved from Switzerland to England, with descendants in Middlesex and Somerset and later connections to Australia. Other descendants settled in Batavia, now Jakarta, and became connected by marriage to Dutch colonial families. The family’s twentieth- and twenty-first-century associations include hospitality, vineyards, historic residences, and other local businesses. Johann Indermaur established the Rorschach restaurant Zum goldenen Fass in 1905. The Maienhalde estate in Berneck remained connected with family winemaking for several generations. The family also operated a furniture manufacturing company and warehouse in Goldach for more than a century before the business was sold. A kitchen business was transferred in 2000 and subsequently incorporated into ASTOR Küchen AG. Modern references include Katharina In Der Maur’s appearance as a Vienna Opera Ball debutante in 2018 and Felix Indermaur’s role as a winemaker and clergyman associated with Berneck’s night-watch tradition. These activities represent separate family or individual associations, not a single centrally managed brand.

• 2018

  Katharina In Der Maur appears at Vienna Opera Ball

  [1]In der Mauren.wikipedia.org

  Katharina In Der Maur was presented as a debutante at the Vienna Opera Ball.

• 2000

  Kitchen business transferred

  [1]In der Mauren.wikipedia.org

  A family kitchen business was sold and incorporated into ASTOR Küchen AG in Einsiedeln.

• 1905

  Zum goldenen Fass established

  [1]In der Mauren.wikipedia.org

  Johann Indermaur of Berneck started the Zum goldenen Fass restaurant in Rorschach, which the source describes as remaining in family ownership.

• 1703

  South Tyrolean line receives baronial status

  [1]In der Mauren.wikipedia.org

  The South Tyrolean branch was raised to baronial rank under Leopold I.

• 1685

  Rheineck branch receives a coat of arms

  [1]In der Mauren.wikipedia.org

  Johannes In der Maur was granted a Rheineck coat of arms depicting a gold lion with a blade on a blue shield.

• 1601

  South Tyrolean branch elevated to lower nobility

  The South Tyrolean In der Maur branch was elevated to the lower nobility by Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor.

• 1590

  Hans Indermaur settles in Rheineck

  [1]In der Mauren.wikipedia.org

  Hans Indermaur, a tanner from Berneck, moved to Rheineck and established the branch later known as the Indermaur von Rheineck line.

• 1478

  Berneck branch receives heraldic recognition

  [1]In der Mauren.wikipedia.org

  Hermann In der Maur was granted a coat of arms while serving as Ammann of Berneck under the authority of the Abbot of St. Gall.

• 1435

  First recorded In der Maur Ammann in Berneck

  [1]In der Mauren.wikipedia.org

  Ulrich In der Maur is recorded as holding the office of Ammann, or chief local magistrate, in Berneck.

Historical Swiss family name and lineage designation, with associations to heraldry, public office, vineyards, hospitality, estates, and family businesses rather than a unified commercial brand.

• Wine and vineyards

  Maienhalde estate and winery

  The Maienhalde estate in Berneck is described as a family-owned winery and vineyard held for four generations. It represents the family’s longstanding connection with viticulture in the Rhine Valley. The available material does not identify a standardized consumer brand portfolio, product names, production volumes, or current corporate structure.

• Restaurant · 1905

  Zum goldenen Fass

  Zum goldenen Fass is a restaurant in Rorschach founded by Johann Indermaur in 1905. The reference material describes it as continuing under family ownership and operation. It is a local hospitality enterprise associated with the Indermaur family rather than evidence of a broader restaurant chain.

• Kitchen manufacturing and retail

  Family kitchen business

  The family operated a kitchen-related manufacturing and commercial business before selling it in 2000. The business was acquired by Ruedi Kälin, Claude Strickler, and Rolf Kurath and incorporated into ASTOR Küchen AG in Einsiedeln. Specific product ranges and the original business name are not identified in the supplied material.

• 2000

  Sale of family kitchen businessM&A

  Background

  The Indermaur family’s kitchen business was transferred to new owners and integrated into ASTOR Küchen AG.

  Action taken

  Ruedi Kälin, Claude Strickler, and Rolf Kurath acquired the business and incorporated it into ASTOR Küchen AG in Einsiedeln.

  Aftermath

  The original family operation ceased to be independent, while the business continued under the ASTOR Küchen AG structure.

  Source

1. 1In der Mauren.wikipedia.org