Saint Gangolph Chapel

The Saint Gangolph Chapel stands in an enchanting setting at the northern edge of Schweighouse, at the entrance to the valley leading to the Bannstein Pass. This small sanctuary houses remarkable wall frescoes, attributed to the era of Martin Schongauer, depicting the life of the saint. Gangolph was revered as the protector of springs and as a guarantor of harmony in couples. According to legend, this noble Merovingian knight, under the reign of Pepin the Short in the 8th century, discovered his wife's infidelity with a priest upon returning from a military campaign. Despite immersing his arm in the fountain water, it was burned, revealing the woman's guilt. Gangolph then left the area to retire in Avalon but was murdered by his wife's lover on May 11, 760. After his death, several miracles were reported at his tomb in Varennes, and he was canonized at the end of the 9th century. Today, his memory is celebrated in Schweighouse on the first or second Sunday of May, during a religious ceremony followed by a small traditional market called the "cuckoo market."