Bruno von Kirchberg was a German Catholic bishop, founder of the city of Brunico who took his name from him. Bruno von Kirchberg came from a noble Swabian family near Memmingen. The mother, Bertha, was sister of Duke Mainardo I, Count of Tirolo-Gorizia. It is probably because of this relationship that he attended the bishop's seminary of Bressanone, since at that time most of the Pusteria valley was subject to the Tirolo-Gorizia family. Later he became Domicellarius ("Domherr") of Magdeburg and cardinal deacon of San Giorgio al Velabro.
On the death of the bishop of Trento Aldrighetto di Castelcampo, at the beginning of 1247, the papal legate Pietro Capocci appointed, after long negotiations, Bruno von Kirchberg bishop of Trento. In the meantime, however, another papal legate, Cardinal Ottaviano, had appointed the Prince bishop of Bressanone Egnone di Appiano as administrator of the diocese of Trento. Pope Innocent IV started further negotiations, which continued for three years. At the end of these, Egnone di Appiano finally received, in 1250, the title of Prince bishop of Trento, but at the same time he had to leave the diocese of Bressanone to Bruno von Kirchberg. In this way, Bishop Bruno found himself having not only the office of bishop of Bressanone, but also, as prince of the Germanic Empire, a real temporal power.
The diocese of Bressanone had numerous possessions in Pusteria, in particular a palace in Aufhofen (Villa Santa Caterina), which served as administrative headquarters. To protect it from attacks and looting, in 1250 the bishop Bruno had built the castle of Bruneck (Rocca di Bruno) on a rocky hill nearby; at the same time it gave way to the settlement of an inhabited area, around the castle, which constituted the city of Brunico-Bruneck. If this undertaking made him famous by eternalizing his name, Bruno did not remain inactive in other parts of his diocese. To the south-west of the city of Bressanone he built a new bishop's residence, leaving the old one available in 1270, to allow a remake of the Frauenkirche at the Cathedral of Bressanone.
In 1265 Bruno tightened with his uncle Mainardo II an alliance that was almost like a complete submission. In 1274 Bruno took part in the Council of Lyons and in 1286 in Würzburg. On 24 August 1288 he died and was buried in the Cathedral of Bressanone.