Klaus von Flüe (1417 to 1487) married in 1446 and built a house. He had ten children with his wife Dorothe. In 1467, he left his family and moved to a hermitage just a few minutes away, without completely breaking off contact with his relatives. He was beatified in 1669 and canonized by Pope Pius XII in 1947. As an exception among the heroes of Swiss history, his life and work as a statesman, especially as a mediator in federal disputes, are well documented historically.
From today's perspective, the house seems modest for a family of 12. However, it invites us to reflect on the living conditions of the common people at the time of Brother Klaus, who mostly lived in one-room dwellings with their small livestock, comparable to today's small alpine huts.
Today, the average person in Switzerland has 45 square meters of living space. In the last 25 years alone, this figure has increased by approximately one-third. As recently as the middle of the last century, it was by no means unusual for a family of five to live in a three-room apartment of perhaps 80 square meters. How big would Brother Klaus's house have had to be to meet today's standards?

Starting point:
Directly on the Way of St. James

Time required:
½ hour

Info:
On the person and his time: Meier, Pirmin: Ich Klaus von Flüe, Zurich 1997, ISBN 3-250-10309-8. A comprehensive (558 pages) but very fascinating read on many facets of our national saint.
Brother Klaus's Residence (with opening hours): www.sachseln.ch/de/vereine/sehenswuerdigkeiten Brother Klaus Museum in Sachseln:
www.museumbruderklaus.ch

Public transport:
The house is located directly on the Way of St. James
Sachseln train station with post bus connection to Flüeli-Ranft.