[1] The rocky heights above Brienz Lake were first occupied and fortified by the Late-Bronze Age.

[2] During the Middle Ages, the land around the castle was owned by the Barons of Brienz and Raron.

During the 13th century, the Counts of Ringgenberg expanded their power, often at the expense of Interlaken Monastery.

[2] In 1528, the city of Bern adopted the new faith of the Protestant Reformation and began imposing it on the Bernese Oberland.

[2] The church was built in the ruins of Ringgenberg Castle in 1670 under the architect Abraham Dunz.