The circus was founded in 1803 by the Knie family and has existed in its present form since 1919, when it changed from an open arena to a covered tent. The circus has long been famous for its animals and now operates a zoo (Knie's Kinderzoo) while its museum in Rapperswil closed in July 2017.
In 1999, Franco Knie was named Best Animal Tamer at the International Circus Festival of Monte-Carlo. Today, the circus is an enterprise with about 200 employees, operated by Frédy and Franco Knie in partnership with insurance company Swiss Life.
Ursus & Nadeschkin became in 2002 the leading act and headline of the Circus Knie, performing 257 times during the 2002 season tour and having an audience totaling one million spectators.[3]
Princess Stéphanie of Monaco travelled with the circus for some months in 2001 and 2002, while in a relationship with Franco Knie.