Lake Reschen: Why a Village Lies Beneath the Water

From the surface of Lake Reschen in the high-altitude borderlands of South Tyrol rises an architectural anomaly: a 14th-century Romanesque bell tower. Surrounded by freezing alpine waters, the structure is often photographed as an impossible, isolated monument. Beneath the waterline lies a history of hydroelectric expansion, Fascist-era politics, and forced displacement.

There Was Already a Lake Here

The lake visitors see today is a hydroelectric reservoir created by damming and dramatically raising the level of existing natural water bodies. Before the mid-20th century, the Reschen Pass was home to two smaller, distinct natural lakes—Reschensee and Grauner See (Mittersee). The surrounding valleys were populated by agrarian communities, primarily the German-speaking village of Graun. Graun bore the most visible loss, while parts of neighbouring Reschen were also affected.

From Five Metres to Twenty-Two

Hydroelectric projects for the region had been proposed since the Austro-Hungarian era, originally planning for a modest water level increase of five meters. However, in 1939, under the Fascist regime of Benito Mussolini, the Montecatini energy company received approval for a much larger project. The following year, a notice announcing the 22-metre water-level increase was posted.

The official project notice was posted only in Italian, a language many residents of predominantly German-speaking Graun could not understand. As a result, no formal objection was registered during the legal window.

A Village That Could Not Stop the Dam

The outbreak of the Second World War temporarily halted construction, leading residents to believe the project had been abandoned. In 1947, however, Montecatini announced that construction would resume. Realizing the existential threat to their homes, the villagers mobilized. Their protests reached Rome, and the local parish priest, Alfred Rieper, even traveled to the Vatican to appeal to Pope Pius XII. Even the appeal to Pius XII failed to stop the project.

The Destruction of Old Graun

By 1949–1950, the reservoir was being filled and old Graun was progressively demolished and submerged. As the reservoir began filling, Montecatini demolished buildings progressively as the water advanced through old Graun. By the summer of 1950, roughly 677 hectares of cultivated land had been flooded.

Around 150 families were displaced by the reservoir project. Compensation was widely regarded as inadequate; settlement payments were largely insufficient to rebuild equivalent livelihoods. As a result, approximately half of the affected families were forced to emigrate, while many who remained were initially housed in temporary, hastily constructed barracks higher up the mountain. Theresia Theiner, who was 18 when Graun disappeared, later recalled her family having just one week to load their possessions onto a truck as the water advanced.

Why the Bell Tower Survived

The 14th-century bell tower of the Church of Saint Catherine is the only structure that remains of the original village. One official South Tyrolean account states that the tower survived two attempts to demolish it with explosives before it was ultimately preserved. It was subsequently designated as a protected historical monument and left standing as the waters rose around it.

The Bells Beneath the Lake

In particularly cold winters, the lake can freeze solid, and visitors have historically been able to walk directly to the tower. Local folklore frequently claims that during severe winter storms, the church bells can still be heard ringing from the depths of the lake. The legend cannot be literal: the bells had already been removed before the flooding. Yet, the story of the bells survived long after the bells themselves were gone.

From Trauma to Tourist Landmark

Today, the lower half of the masonry bears the dark watermarks of fluctuating reservoir levels, which are constantly dictated by the region's energy demands. Visitors who want the history behind the photograph can visit the Upper Vinschgau Valley Museum in modern Curon, which extensively documents the destruction of the old villages. The submerged village of Graun now exists in a tension between its traumatic history and its modern status as one of South Tyrol's most photographed landmarks.