Heuturm (Hay Tower) / Wachtturm (Watchtower), Lucerne

The Watchtower you see today stands on the site of an earlier tower known as the Hay Tower. As you approach, look up at its tall, narrow profile and distinctive roof, which make it rather easy to spot. Built around 1350, the original tower got its name naturally because it was used to store hay. But just like several of Lucerne’s other towers, it was also used to store gunpowder.

That combination proved disastrous on July 30, 1701, when lightning struck the tower and ignited some 350 quintals of gunpowder stored inside. The resulting explosion completely destroyed the tower’s thick walls. Stones were thrown across the surrounding area, badly damaging sections of the Musegg Wall and houses in the Old Town, and even killing a number of locals.

A new tower was built on the same site almost immediately. Designed mainly as a lookout, it became known as the Watchtower in 1768, when the guardroom from the nearby “Look Toward the Land” Tower was transferred here. Around the same time, the tower received its distinctive, more elaborate roof structure.

Inside, the guardroom was equipped with a green tiled stove which remained in use until 1895. Today, you can still visit this historic room, along with passages leading toward the roof.

The rebuilt Watchtower rises nearly 44 meters above the Musegg Wall, with a footprint measuring roughly 8.75 by 7.1 meters. At some point, it was used to house a police radio transmitter.

Some sections of the Watchtower are open to visitors, giving you a chance to step inside and see how this former lookout once formed part of Lucerne’s medieval defenses.