Until 1202 Berneck was under Bamberg rule. From 1203 to 1248 it belonged again to the counts of Andechs-Merania. In 1248, following the extinction of House of Merania, it fell to the counts of Orlamünde and in 1341 to the burgraves of Nuremberg (and, later, the margraves of Brandenburg-Bayreuth). It is first recorded as a town on 18 November 1357. In 1375 Berneck was almost completely burned down and it was destroyed by fire again in 1431 and 1462 during the Hussite Wars. Plague and famine also struck the town.