during the middle ages brienzwiler was held by the ministerialis (unfree knights in the service of a feudal overlord) family of rudenz. they held the city for the lords of ringgenberg. the rudenz family held the village until 1361 when they sold it to a citizen of bern. over the following years it passed from owner to owner and was subdivided until the city of bern acquired the entire village in 1522. when bern adopted the protestant reformation in 1528, they secularized and annexed the lands of the nearby interlaken abbey, including some land near brienzwiler. bern assigned brienzwiler to the newly created, secular bailiwick of interlaken.