Our grandmother Filomena Walch had a distinct traditional lifestyle.
She transmitted the knowledge of our origin,
the rites and habits and the patron saints into the present.
Saint Theodul was the Bishop of Sitten (Sion)
- which is located in the Swiss canton Valais -
and is the patron saint of the “Walser”, who settled down in Lech in 1300.
St. Theodul, Bishop of Sitten, once had the manifestation that the pope in Rome was in danger and had to be warned.
He promised his soul to a devil, who had said that he could fly faster than the wind, if he were able to carry him to Rome and back before the cocks cry. The devil agreed and both posted a cock as a warder.
Immediately they were in Rome and the pope thankfully gave St. Theodul a big bell as a present which the devil also had to carry home. When the bishops cock heard his master come home it began to cry and so did the devils.
Angry about the lost bet the devil powerfully threw the bell to the ground so that it sunk. The bishop prayed: “Dona! Dona! Lit!” (“ring bell, ring!”) and the bell came up ringing and has been helping ever since against thunderstorms.
The “Saint-Theodul-Bell is called the most powerful bell against thunder, hail and bad weather. Vernaleken wrote the following rhyme:
Wann man die Glock anziehen thut
Und gaht nach ihrem Willen,
Daß man si lut mit reinem Muth,
Das Wetter thut sich stillen;
Gar grusamlich sicht mans in Lufften schyben
Die Glock thut es vertriben,
Mit ihrem Ton so rych,
Uf Erd ist nit ihr Gelych.
In 1909, Sebastian Walch, the initiator and builder of the Flexenstrasse, sold the large estate to his nephew, Martin, and emigrated into the Klostertal valley as he saw no future in the town for the family. Martin bequeathed it to his son, Gotthard. In 1921, Gotthard married Filomena Walch and passed away in 1929. He left 4 sons behind: Martin, Vinzenz, Wilhelm and Josef. With the arrival of tourism, the building blocks of the courtyard were built.
Together with his wife, Ruth, Josef built Haus Wallis in 1952, Hotel Theodul in 1968 and the “Knappaboda” in 1980. In 1986, Josef died and his son, Dietmar took over the “Theodul” with his wife Martina.
In the following years the hotel was redeveloped, renovated and several extensions were built: