In 1218, Bern was elevated to the status of Free Imperial City, due to the dissolution of the House of Zahringen in the same year.

Due to these events, a power vacuum was left behind in the region, which included modern day Switzerland, and the city of Bern.

They owned large amounts of territory in Swabia, acquiring land from the defunct House of Kyburg,[2] and after their acquisition of Austria following the Battle of Marchfeld, they had secured a strong powerbase.

Instead, the city turned to an anti-Habsburg alliance, which included Burgundy and Savoy for protection, both of which were eager to expand their influence in Swabia as well.

Rudolf II sent an army to Bern and prepared an ambush outside of the city while harassing the landscape in an attempt to draw out a sortie.

300-400 mounted horsemen were then secretly planted in the hilled forests of Schosshalde, ready to ambush any Bernese soldiers that chased after the Habsburg armies.

The plan worked, and a large detachment of Bernese soldiers left the walls to fight the Habsburgs outside the city.

[4] Despite being defeated, Bern was allowed to retain its status as an imperial city and its independence would be confirmed by King Adolf I in 1293.