Spiez is a town and municipality on the shore of Lake Thun in the Bernese Oberland region of the Swiss canton of Bern.

Besides the town of Spiez, the municipality also includes the settlements of Einigen, Hondrich, Faulensee, and Spiezwiler.

[3] The area between the Kander and Lake Thun in modern Spiez was home to several large Bronze and Iron Age settlements.

On a nearby hill, the Bürg site is slightly younger and contained knives, arrow and spear heads, a horse's bridle and a razor.

The center of the religious site was a granite block surrounded by ash from fires and thousands of shattered ceramic fragments.

Celtic graves from the 4th to 2nd century BC contained gold, amber and glass ornaments which were imported from over the Alps.

After the fall of the Western Roman Empire and into the Early Middle Ages the Spiez area was home to several scattered settlements.

According to Elogius Kiburger, the author of the Strättliger Chronicle, in 933 the King of Burgundy, Rudolph II, built Spiez Castle.

In 1308 King Albert I of Habsburg was murdered at Windisch on the Reuss, by his nephew Duke John Parricida.

By 1340, the Bubenberg appointed vogt took orders from Bern, but was obligated to raise troops for the Habsburgs.

As Bern was de facto independent from their former overlords, the Habsburgs, this created an unstable situation which remained for over 40 years.

[3] The castle and surrounding land remained with the Bubenberg family until their extinction in 1506, when it was acquired by Ludwig von Diesbach.

Over time the surrounding villages came to be included in the town charter and their residents became citizens of Spiez.

After the 1798 French invasion and the creation of the Helvetic Republic, the von Erlach family lost their land rights and jurisdiction over the village, but retained ownership of the castle until 1875.

The vineyards of Spiez were first mentioned in 1338 and remained in operation until an outbreak of disease destroyed the plants in 1900.

An attempt in 1927 to restart the wine industry on Spiez mountain and at Faulensee was fairly successful.

The construction of the Lake Thun road in 1844 and steam ship docks in 1835, 1876 and 1926 helped open the town to the rest of the country.

Due to the mild climate and transportation links, Spiez became a popular health and spa town in the 19th century.

Beginning in 1856 resorts and hotels, including the Schonegg, Spiezerhof and Faulensee-Bad, opened along the lake shore.

The Thun-Spiez-Interlaken (1893), Spiez-Zweisimmen-Montreux (1897-1905) and Spiez-Frutigen-Lötschberg-Simplon (1901–13) railroads all helped the tourist industry and the rest of the town to grow.

The municipality comprises five villages (Bäuerte): Spiez, Einigen, Hondrich, Faulensee and Spiezwiler (formerly Wyler).

The Hotel Belvédère in Spiez accommodated the Germany national football team during the 1954 FIFA World Cup held in Switzerland.

"The Spirit of Spiez", developed there among the players, is regarded as important factor that helped the German team to win the world championship.

[citation needed] The Bürg archeological site with prehistoric and medieval settlement ruins, the Swiss Reformed castle church, Spiez Castle and the Weinbauernhof are listed as Swiss heritage site of national significance.

The number of jobs in the primary sector was 92, of which 87 were in agriculture, 3 were in forestry or lumber production and 2 were in fishing or fisheries.

In the tertiary sector; 411 or 16.3% were in wholesale or retail sales or the repair of motor vehicles, 283 or 11.2% were in the movement and storage of goods, 376 or 14.9% were in a hotel or restaurant, 32 or 1.3% were in the information industry, 85 or 3.4% were the insurance or financial industry, 196 or 7.8% were technical professionals or scientists, 163 or 6.4% were in education and 487 or 19.3% were in health care.

[20] Spiez is home to a regional library which has (as of 2008[update]) 20,276 books or other media, and loaned out 135,277 items in the same year.

The old line through the since 1913 existing and 500 metres (1,600 ft) higher situated Lötschberg Tunnel (15 km (9.3 mi)) is still operating and a touristic highlight.

The parts between Bern and Brig is operated by BLS AG (Lötschberg railway line), but also intensely served by SBB CFF FFS.

BLS' Spiez–Erlenbach–Zweisimmen railway line is part of the Golden Pass Express between Lucerne and Montreux at Lake Geneva.