Amlikon-Bissegg is a municipality in the district of Weinfelden in the canton of Thurgau in Switzerland.
The municipality was created on 1 January 1995 by a merger of Amlikon, Bissegg, Griesenberg and Strohwilen.
History
Amlikon village is first mentioned in 1282. The hamlet of Bissegg is first mentioned in 1324 as Bynssegge. Bissegg also includes the hamlets of Holzhäusern (mentioned in 1397 as Holtzhusern), Hünikon (mentioned in 857 as Huninchova) and Junkholz (mentioned in 1324 as Junkholtz). The village of Griesenberg is first mentioned in 1256 as Griessinberc and it also includes the hamlet of Fimmelsberg (mentioned in 1228 as Vilmarsperc) as well as other hamlets.
Amlikon
During the High Middle Ages it was part of the lands of the Baron of Bussnang. From the mid-13th century until 1798, it was part of the court of Griesenberg, which came from a side line of the Bussnang family. Amlikon has always been part of the parish of Bussnang. The ferry over the Rhine in Amlikon, was first mentioned in the 14th century. It was replaced around 1727 by a bridge. The flood of 15 June 1910 destroyed the covered bridge that had been built in 1821. It was replaced in 1911-12 by an iron structure, which was replaced in 1995 by a concrete bridge. The municipality lies on both sides of the Thur River.
Until the 19th century the main economic activities were grain cultivation in a three-field system and hemp production. This was mostly replaced in the 19th century by cattle and dairy farming. The first cheese factory was built in 1908. Wine grapes are cultivated today. In the 19th century there was an oil press. The steep lane to the village was replaced in 1832 by the S-shaped village street. At the turn of the 20th century there were several local embroidery shops. However, larger factories did not permanently settle in the village.
Bissegg
Much of the village was owned by the Abbey of St. Gallen. During the High Middle Ages it was under the influence of the Baron of Bussnang. Between the mid-13th century to 1798, it was under the court of the Griesenberg family, which was a side branch of the Bussnang family. It was always part of the parish of Bussnang, until in 1857 Bissegg and Junkholz became part of the Reformed parish of Leutmerken.
The local economy was based on grain cultivation, and some vineyards until the 19th century when it transitioned to cattle and dairy farming. Starting about 1870 milk from the village went to Holzhof village in the municipality of Griesenberg. Finally, in 1905, a cheesemaker opened in Bissegg.
Griesenberg
Originally the village was owned by the Abbey of St. Gallen. During the High Middle Ages it was under the Baron of Bussnang. At the beginning of the 13th century, the west half of the Bussnang lands came under a limited self-rule. Its administrative center was the fortress of Alt-Griesenberg at Altenburg, until its destruction in 1289 by the Habsburgs. The new administrative center became the castle of Neu-Griesenberg at Tümpfel. After the death of the last of the male Griesenberg, Lütold von Griesenberg, in 1325, the new ruler was his daughter Adele. In 1367 the village had to be pledged as collateral to the Harzer brothers from Constance. Then, in 1397, Adelaide's daughter from her first marriage, Clementia, sold the village to Konrad von Hoff of Constance. In the 15th and early 16th centuries it became the property of various families until it was acquired in 1529 by Henry of Ulm, who was also a citizen of Constance. His descendants sold it in 1759 in Lucerne, who sold it again in 1793. Karl Anton Kraft, Austrian bailiff of Stockach, sold it in 1795 to the Schulthess Family of Zurich. A Gerichtsoffnung or village law of 1475 (which was updated in 1605) defined the rights of the citizens of the village. The church of Griesenberg was part of the parish of Leutmerken, and converted to the new faith during the Protestant Reformation in 1529. When Marx von Ulm converted back to the old religion in 1607, the Counter-Reformation came into the village.
Until the 19th century, the local economy was based on grain cultivation. This changed to livestock raising and then dairy farming followed by fruit cultivation. The Holzhof, which has been in the possession of the Wartmann family since 1858, is one of the cradles of Swiss Tilsit cheese.
Geography
Amlikon-Bissegg has an area, , of . Of this area, or 68.5% is used for agricultural purposes, while or 22.2% is forested. Of the rest of the land, or 8.2% is settled (buildings or roads), or 1.2% is either rivers or lakes and or 0.1% is unproductive land.