Switzerland

Flag of Switzerland

Language: French, German, Italian, Romansh

Currency: Swiss franc (CHF)

Calling Code: +41

 

Switzerland (French: Suisse, Italian: Svizzera, Romanian: Svizra; officially: Swiss Confederation) is a landlocked country in Central Europe.

Switzerland is a fascinating travel destination with breathtaking nature, a wide range of outdoor activities, a rich cultural heritage, first-class infrastructure and warm hospitality. From majestic Alpine peaks to picturesque lakes and well-preserved cities such as Zurich and Geneva, Switzerland offers a variety of attractions to suit every taste. Hiking in the Alps, skiing in first-class ski resorts.

The Swiss Confederation emerged from the original cantons of Uri, Schwyz and Unterwalden. The Federal Charter of 1291 is considered the founding document. Today's republican federal state has existed since 1848.

It is not a member of the European Union, but joined the Schengen Agreement on November 1, 2008. Neighbouring countries are France, Germany, Austria, Italy and Liechtenstein. Switzerland is divided into 26 cantons, of which 6 have half a cantonal vote (formerly called half-cantons).

The Alps play an important role in Swiss identity and culture, as well as tourism and communication. The Swiss Alps make up around 60% of the country's surface area. The Mittelland, where all the major cities (except Basel) are located, makes up around 30%. It is densely populated, but also characterized by agriculture and industry. The remaining 10% is made up of the Swiss Jura, a mountain range that stretches from Geneva to Schaffhausen.

The Swiss Confederation is also special because of its semi-direct democracy, which is unique in the world, and its variety of national languages. According to Article 70, Paragraph 1 of the Constitution, German, French and Italian are equal official languages, with Romansh also being the official language of the Confederation in communication with Romansh speakers.

 

Regions

Switzerland can be roughly divided into the regions of Mittelland, Jura, Alps and Southern Switzerland. All of these regions have very clear differences. The Alps and Jura are mountainous, while the Mittelland is mostly hilly. Southern Switzerland has a large number of Alpine foothills and is particularly known for its lakes, which geographically belong to the northern Italian lake district.

The country is divided into the following regions, some of which overlap:

Swiss Alps: The mountainous cantons of Graubünden, Valais, Uri, Glarus, Obwalden and Nidwalden as well as parts of the cantons of Bern, Schwyz, St. Gallen, Vaud, Fribourg and Ticino.
Central Switzerland: The region around Lake Lucerne, consisting of the cantons of Uri, Schwyz, Obwalden, Nidwalden, Lucerne and Zug, is also known as Central Switzerland.
Eastern Switzerland: The area from Lake Constance to the foothills of the Alps, consisting of Thurgau, St. Gallen, Appenzell Innerrhoden and Appenzell Ausserrhoden as well as Schaffhausen. It has a part of the Alps.
Metropolitan region of Zurich
Espace Mittelland: The flatland between the Jura and the foothills of the Alps.
Northwestern Switzerland: The region from Basel to Aargau and Neuchâtel in the western Jura region.
Romandie: The French-speaking part of Switzerland, consisting of the cantons of Geneva, Vaud, Jura, Neuchâtel and parts of the cantons of Bern, Fribourg and Valais. The region is also called Western Switzerland or French-speaking Switzerland.
Southern Switzerland: The Italian-speaking part of Switzerland consists essentially of the canton of Ticino and the southern valleys of the canton of Graubünden: the Misox, the Calanca valley, the Puschlav and the Bergell.

 

Cantons

Switzerland is made up of twenty-six cantons. Of these, six, namely Appenzell Ausserrhoden/Appenzell Innerrhoden, Basel-Stadt/Basel-Landschaft and Nidwalden/Obwalden, are considered cantons with half a vote, formerly called "half-cantons".

Aargau, Appenzell Ausserrhoden, Appenzell Innerrhoden, Basel-Stadt, Basel-Landschaft, Bern, Fribourg, Geneva, Glarus, Graubünden, Jura, Lucerne, Neuchâtel, Nidwalden, Obwalden, Schaffhausen, Schwyz, Solothurn, St. Gallen, Ticino, Thurgau, Uri, Vaud, Valais, Zug, Zurich

 

Cities

The largest cities in Switzerland are

1 Zurich. Switzerland's largest city is a major economic and cultural center. Zurich boasts a beautiful old town, a picturesque location on Lake Zurich and a lively atmosphere. Here you will find an impressive selection of museums, shops, restaurants and vibrant nightlife.
2 Geneva. As the seat of many international organizations such as the United Nations, Geneva is a multicultural city with a rich historical heritage. Its beautiful location on Lake Geneva and the stunning Alps in the background make Geneva a popular destination. Here you can explore the old town, admire the world-famous Jet d'Eau water fountain and enjoy the exquisite Swiss watch and chocolate culture.
3 Basel . This city on the Rhine impresses with a fascinating mix of history, art and culture. Basel is known for its renowned art museums and its beautiful old town with its narrow streets and historic buildings. The impressive Basel Minster, the lively Kleinbasel district and the cozy atmosphere along the river are worthwhile destinations.
4 Lausanne. The charming city of Lausanne is picturesquely located on the shores of Lake Geneva and is known as the seat of the International Olympic Committee. The city offers a beautiful old town, impressive cathedrals and a variety of cultural events. A visit to the Olympic Museum and the waterfront promenade with views of the lake and the Alps is worthwhile.
5 Bern. Tel.: +41 313 21 61 11 . The capital of Switzerland captivates with its historic charm. The beautiful old town of Bern is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and impresses with its medieval alleys, the imposing Bern Minster and the famous Clock Tower. The city also offers a lively cultural scene, excellent shopping and a relaxed atmosphere.
6 Winterthur . This city near Zurich is known for its diverse art and culture scene. The Winterthur Art Museum, the charming old town district with its historic buildings and the green parks and gardens are well worth a visit. Winterthur also offers first-class shopping and is an ideal base for exploring the surrounding region.

Other popular tourist destinations include Lucerne, Lugano, Montreux, Interlaken, Zermatt and St. Moritz.

In addition to the large cities, many smaller ones are also worth visiting. A selection of these are: Aarau, Appenzell, Ascona, Bellinzona, Biel, Chur, Estavayer, Fribourg, Locarno, Martigny, Rapperswil-Jona, Neuchâtel, St. Gallen, Sitten, Solothurn, Thun, Vevey Winterthur, Schaffhausen, Schwyz.

 

Other destinations

High Alps: The High Alps are home to first-class travel destinations such as Grindelwald in the Bernese Oberland, Verbier in the Valais, the Titlis in central Switzerland and the Bernina region in the Engadine.

Ski areas: The Swiss Alps have some particularly high-altitude and therefore snow-sure ski areas, such as Zermatt, St. Moritz, Verbier, Crans-Montana, Andermatt, Grindelwald, Arosa and Saas-Fee.

Lakes: The areas around the large lakes on the northern and southern edges of the Alps are also popular. These include Lake Geneva (Lac Léman), Lake Constance, Lake Zurich, Lake Thun, Lake Lucerne and Lake Lugano. The area around Lake Biel, Lake Murten and Lake Neuchâtel together form the "Seeland", which is known as the "vegetable garden of Switzerland" because of its fertile agricultural soils.

Landscape: Other destinations that are typical for the landscape can be found in the Pre-Alps and the pre-Alpine hill zone; Appenzell with the Säntis, Central Switzerland with the Rigi, the Emmental, the Fribourg Alps (Gruyere) and the Vaud Pre-Alps with the traditional Grand Hotels near Vevey are particularly worth a visit.

Aarburg

Chillon Castle

Gimmelwald village

Grosser Aletsch Glacier

Lenzburg Castle

Matterhorn

 

Getting here

Entry

Entry regulations can be viewed at the Federal Office for Migration (BFM). Since November 1, 2008, Switzerland has been part of the Schengen area, which means entry is usually possible without showing ID. For citizens of the European Union, the national identity card (identity card) or passport is sufficient for visa-free entry as a tourist. The border guard is responsible for identity checks; these can also be carried out by “flying patrols” in the rear area.

Since Switzerland is not part of the EU, goods checks can be carried out at the borders; The customs administration bodies are responsible for this. The limits are particularly low for foods produced in the country (dairy products, meat, alcoholic beverages) and exceeding them can result in steep punitive tariffs. Goods up to a limit of CHF 300 per person can be imported freely; more expensive new goods must be declared upon import, after which VAT must be paid. Larger amounts of foreign currency are also subject to registration requirements.

 

By plane

The largest airport in Switzerland is Zurich Airport (IATA: ZRH). Most scheduled flights depart from Zurich, Geneva Airport (IATA: GVA) and EuroAirport Basel-Mulhouse-Freiburg (IATA: BSL, MLH, EAP). Other, albeit smaller, airports are Lugano-Agno Airport (IATA: LUG), Bern-Belp Airport (IATA: BRN) and St. Gallen-Altenrhein Airport (IATA: ACH).

 

By train

From Germany there are direct trains between Zurich and Basel and European destinations such as Frankfurt am Main, Hamburg or, for example, Berlin. Night trains serve cities such as Prague, Dresden, Hamburg, Berlin, Copenhagen and Amsterdam. There are direct connections from Zurich to Stuttgart and Munich.

Trains also run from Zurich to Austria, for example to Innsbruck, Salzburg or Vienna. Night trains run to Vienna and sometimes further to Budapest.

TGV connections to France exist from Basel, Bern, Neuchâtel, Lausanne and Geneva to Paris, from Basel and Geneva to Lyon and from Basel and Lausanne to Dijon. There are also TER trains from Basel to Strasbourg.

There are direct trains to Milan from Zurich, Bern, Basel and Valais / Ticino.

After many night train connections were canceled for reasons of profitability, there are now signs of an improvement in the international night train service due to increasing awareness of ecological issues.

The Swiss Federal Railways (SBB) offer various package deals for travelers from abroad. With the Swiss Travel Pass, for example, travelers receive free travel on most train, post bus and shipping lines for 3, 4, 8 or 15 days. However, many mountain railways are excluded from this. Interrail tickets are also valid. If you're planning a day trip, you might find a discounted offer at Railaway. The easiest way to buy a ticket (although not always the cheapest) is to use the SBB app on your smartphone: after the journey has been planned using the electronic timetable, you can immediately buy the ticket online, it will be in the form a QR code stored on the smartphone.

Cheap day tickets are also available from almost all municipalities in Switzerland that offer impersonal general subscriptions (CHF 30.00 to 45.00 per day ticket). You don't need a half-fare subscription, but many municipalities only offer the offer to their own residents. Here is the list of affiliated communities: Day ticket community

Most larger cities are connected every half hour.

Unless you use the above-mentioned package deals or Interrail, traveling by train in Switzerland is relatively expensive compared to other European countries. In addition, the trains on the main traffic routes (away from the tourist routes) are overcrowded during peak hours. Switzerland has many tourist-interesting routes where a train ride is worthwhile (e.g. Glacier Express, Gotthard route, various mountain railways, etc.).

In Switzerland, you must ensure that you do not board a train without a valid ticket (travel document). If in doubt, you can make inquiries at the railway counter or ask the conductor (conductor) before boarding. The fines are otherwise high (usually a basic fee of 100 francs plus the travel price).

 

By bus

Various long-distance bus lines, mainly from European providers, run in and through Switzerland. There is a wide range of options, especially from/to Germany, the Eastern European countries, the Baltics and the Balkans as well as Spain and Portugal. The main destinations are Zurich, Basel, Bern, St. Gallen, Lausanne and Geneva. Due to the cabotage ban, international providers are not allowed to transport travelers on routes within Switzerland in order to circumvent the transport monopoly of public providers.

Due to the dense rail network, national long-distance bus lines, on the other hand, hardly exist except for the PostBus lines Chur – Bellinzona (practically every hour) and St. Moritz – Lugano (rarely).

Reservations are mandatory on some tourist PostBus lines. Reservations are free and can be made up to one hour before departure. A surcharge applies on some tourist lines.

 

On the street

Most motorways leading to the Swiss border have a motorway border crossing or at least a high-quality continuing road. From Germany, the main routes are from Frankfurt/Main along the Rhine to Basel, from Stuttgart via Singen to Schaffhausen, from Munich via Bregenz to the Lustenau border crossing near St. Margrethen, which is also used when traveling from Austria via the Arlberg.

Coming from the south of France, the crossing near Geneva is the most important; from Alsace you drive via Basel. From Italy via Milan the Chiasso or Simplon Pass crossing is usually used.

 

Local transport

The public transport system in Switzerland is very well developed. Most places are connected to the nearest larger city every half hour, and even remote villages can usually be reached by train or post bus. The larger cities with their agglomerations have a dense public transport network. The timetable can be accessed online from the Swiss Federal Railways (SBB). With the SBB app, the route can be planned on the smartphone thanks to the electronic timetable (including details of line numbers, platforms and transfer times) and the ticket can be purchased online using an integrated function.

Zone tariff systems are increasingly being used in public transport, and the SBB app simplifies the purchase of the ticket that covers the required zones. The half-fare subscription is popular in Switzerland; holders travel at half the price, just like children.

 

Traffic rules

Vignette
In order to be able to use motorways and motorways, a motorway vignette must be purchased. This applies to cars, motorcycles, mobile homes and all other privately used motor vehicles up to a maximum weight of 3.5 tons for any number of trips within a calendar year (annual vignette, from December 1st of the previous year to January 31st of the following year). In contrast to other Alpine countries, there is no special toll for road tunnels (e.g. Gotthard Tunnel). Unlike in Austria, however, car trailers in Switzerland also require a vignette. The price for a motorway vignette for 2021 is CHF 40.00. or €38.50. The vignette is available online at Swiss Post, Deutsche Post, ADAC, ÖAMTC and other points of sale, as well as offline at petrol stations, post offices, rest stops and larger border crossings. The vignette must be placed on the inside of the windshield in a place that is clearly visible from the outside in cars and motorhomes; in motorcycles, it must be placed on an easily recognizable and non-replaceable part of the vehicle (left on the fork handle or on the tank) and on the left front of trailers.

Speed limits
120 km/h on motorways, 100 km/h on motorways, 80 km/h on country roads outside built-up areas, 50 km/h in urban areas, unless a different speed is signaled. Many cities and villages also have 30 km/h zones. It is advisable to adhere to these limits; the fines can be very expensive (for 61 km/h instead of 50 km/h in urban areas: 250 francs). If you exceed 15 km/h in urban areas, 20 km/h outside of urban areas and on motorways or 25 km/h on motorways, your driving license can be revoked, as well as a severe fine depending on your income; if you exceed 5 km/h more, this is usually mandatory ( for foreigners: in addition to the fines, at least the revocation of the right to drive in Switzerland). In the case of massive speed violations (70 km/h in 30 km/h zones, exceeding the speed limit by 50 km/h in urban areas, 60 km/h outside of urban areas and on motorways or 80 km/h on motorways), the minimum penalty is one year's imprisonment, and this is also the case Vehicle confiscated. If a trailer is carried, the same speeds apply as without a trailer, apart from the general maximum speed of 80 km/h. Trailers that are registered for 100 km/h in Germany must comply with the 80 km/h limit in Switzerland; The registration is not valid in Switzerland (note: at 100 km/h on roads or 105 km/h on motorways there is a risk of driving privileges being withdrawn, see above).

Identifying colors for signposting
Motorways and motorways are shown with green signposts and distance boards (the motorway numbering in red), main roads with right-of-way with blue signposts and town signs, secondary roads with no right-of-way with white signs. On the back of the town signs (when leaving the town), the next town is shown at the top in small font above the dividing line, and at the bottom the next important route destination is shown in larger font (usually with distance information). Detours are signaled in orange, yellow signs are for military traffic. Road numbering is practically only important on motorways.

Alcohol and drugs
In Switzerland there is a blood alcohol limit of 0.5‰ in traffic. If you are involved in an accident due to excessive alcohol consumption, this can still result in civil legal consequences. There is absolute zero tolerance for illegal drugs. Therefore, if you consume alcohol, you should generally leave your car parked, use public transport or call a taxi.

 

Navigation devices

Attention, carrying stored “speed cameras” is prohibited and will result in the confiscation of the device and a fine of up to 3,000 francs. More recent navigation devices therefore automatically deactivate the radar functions based on the current location. With older devices, care must be taken to ensure that no speed cameras are stored in the points of interest in the device, even if they were supplied with the device. Simply “turning off” such points of interest is not enough. Navigation devices must not be attached to the windshield if they block the field of vision.

Other differences to Germany and Austria
In Switzerland, the town signs have no influence on the permitted speed. The urban speed applies there from the signal “50 generally” and stops at the signal “end of 50 generally”. Under ideal conditions, you should not drive slower than 80 km/h on motorways. Overtaking on the right on multi-lane roads is also prohibited in urban areas, similar to on motorways, if the individual roads do not lead in different directions. Overtaking on the right usually results in your ID being revoked. During the day you drive with lights on (daytime running lights or, in the absence of one, with dipped beams).
Autobahnen.ch, private information portal on tolls, traffic rules and an overview of motorways and expressways in Switzerland

 

Alpine roads

Tips for road traffic in the mountains:
The yellow post buses (buses) have the right of way on mountain post roads - marked with a golden post horn on a blue background. The post bus driver can warn of confusing curves with the typical three-tone horn. The post bus driver has the right to give mandatory instructions to other road users.
The vehicle traveling downhill gives way to the one traveling uphill and backs up on narrow roads. Trucks and buses, but not minibuses or mobile homes (as they are legally passenger cars), always have the right of way over passenger cars.
Smaller mountain roads are often winding and can be strenuous to drive as you always have to make room for oncoming traffic.
On small roads, you may want to honk in front of very confusing curves, especially on mountain passes (but this will reveal that the driver is a foreigner and may get malicious looks).
Don't drive or overtake as fast as the locals, they know the route better. Especially in mountain areas, locals appreciate it when drivers and motorhomes who are unfamiliar with the area briefly turn off to the right and let the following vehicles pass.
In winter, make sure you have the appropriate equipment (winter tires, snow chains); insufficient tires can result in a fine. If a corresponding obligation is signaled, winter equipment must be carried with you.

 

By boat

Although Switzerland is a landlocked country, it can be reached by boat. The most important for entry is the Lake Constance ferry Friedrichshafen-Romanshorn as a feeder to Friedrichshafen Airport (airport-lake transfer available). From Romanshorn you can continue by train.

Other cross-border connections are less important for entry, but from a tourist perspective they are worthwhile. River cruises on the Rhine or a sea trip across the Italian part of Lake Langensee (Lake Maggiore) or Lake Lugano are possible. There are four shipping lines on Lake Geneva to Geneva, Lausanne, Nyon, Morges, Vevey and Montreux.

Many lakes are worthwhile for boat trips; not just on Lake Constance or Lake Geneva. Lake Lucerne with one of the largest paddle steamer fleets in Europe or a three-lake tour on Lake Neuchâtel, Lake Murten and Lake Biel in the western Mittelland also have their charm.

River trips are possible on the Rhine between Schaffhausen and Konstanz and between Basel and Rheinfelden and on the Aare between Biel and Solothurn.

 

Bicycle (velo)

Bicycle trips (in Switzerland they are called bike tours) are also popular and have their own special appeal. Switzerland can be easily reached as an extension of the Rhine cycle path or as part of a tour around Lake Constance. Within Switzerland there is a well-designed and excellently signposted long-distance cycle path network with 9 long-distance cycle routes and 52 regional routes. In addition, the various Alpine passes offer challenges for sporty insiders. Bicycles can be taken on almost all trains and post buses for 18 CHF (reduced 12 CHF) (bicycle ticket), or for the additional price of a ticket. Some post buses only take bicycles with you if you register in advance.

In various larger cities there are bike sharing offers where you can rent a bike at short notice (some free, some for a fee); Corresponding offers can be found via Suisse roule.

In Switzerland, for electric bicycles that travel faster than 30 km/h and up to 45 km/h with pedal assistance, you need a class M moped license (from 16 years old) and a rear-view mirror on the left; 14-16 year olds also need these for slower e-bikes. This also means wearing a helmet is mandatory.

 

On foot

Switzerland has a dense, well-developed and marked network of hiking trails with yellow signposts that are uniform throughout Switzerland and indicate the direction, time required and intermediate destinations. Various long-distance hikes, such as the Jurahöhenweg, cross large regions of Switzerland.

Red-white-red marked mountain trails and blue-white-blue alpine routes are demanding, require good footwear and sure-footedness and should not be underestimated.

The Swiss maps are also considered excellent; for hikes we recommend the editions at a scale of 1:25,000 or the special hiking maps at 1:50,000 Swiss National Topography: Map Index. You can access the country's topography maps directly and free of charge on the Wanderland Schweiz website or with the Swisstopo smartphone app.

Hiking suggestions for long hikes, multi-day tours and short hikes can be found at SchweizMobil.

 

Language

The most important thing that a traveler from abroad immediately notices as soon as he sets foot on Swiss soil is that he does not understand the person he is talking to. Swiss German is very different from Standard German and is almost completely incomprehensible to foreigners; It's gotten to the point where Swiss German is generally subtitled on television. In particular, the characteristic hard palate sounds only occur in Switzerland and are difficult for strangers to imitate successfully (you shouldn't even try, you'll just make yourself ridiculous). Swiss people grow up speaking Swiss German and only learn the standard language at school. Apart from a few French loanwords, the standard language in Switzerland is similar to Standard German with one serious difference: the Eszett "ß" is generally not used in Switzerland, which is why it comes from e.g. B. does not exist on any Swiss keyboard.

Switzerland has a total of four national languages: in addition to German, they are French, Italian and Romansh. Around 66 percent of the population is a German native speaker. A good 23 percent speak French, 8 percent Italian, and just under one percent speak Romansh. Very few Swiss people speak four languages; many speak two or three national languages.

One should therefore not expect that German will be understood in the Romansh-speaking regions; this particularly applies to the French-speaking part of Switzerland. In Italian-speaking Switzerland, on the other hand, communication in German is often possible, at least in touristy places. In Romansh Switzerland, all locals speak German or Italian. Most Swiss - except French-speaking Swiss, who usually only speak French - know some English, so communication in English is usually possible. If you don't have any knowledge of one of the national languages, it might be helpful to try to communicate in English.

There are three bilingual cantons, Friborg, Valais, and Bern. French and German are spoken in all of these cantons, with French clearly predominating in the first two cantons. The only trilingual canton is Graubünden, where German, Italian and Romansh are spoken. In some bilingual cities, German and French are spoken. Examples of this are Biel/Bienne, Freiburg im Üechtland/Fribourg and Murten/Morat.

There is no uniform spelling for the dialects, which vary regionally and even from place to place. Dialect is basically written the way it is spoken, and only in private. In addition to standard German, at least one foreign language is taught. In most cantons, the first foreign language is another national language, but in some cantons it is English. There are currently efforts, particularly in eastern Switzerland, to make English the first foreign language in schools.

 

Shopping

The currency used in Switzerland is the Swiss franc, abbreviated “Fr.” or “CHF”, in French-speaking Switzerland often “frs”. Values below one franc are called “rappen” (Rp.) in German-speaking Switzerland, “centimes” in French-speaking Switzerland and “centesimi” in Ticino. One franc corresponds to 100 centimes. Since the “Fünfräppler” is the smallest coin unit, centime amounts are always rounded to 5 centimes.

Switzerland changes its banknotes approximately every 10 years (the notes of the 8th series of banknotes will be recalled as of April 30, 2021 and are no longer considered official means of payment. snb.ch). The old series can then still be exchanged in some banks during the transition period, notes from older series can only be exchanged at the Swiss National Bank. It's not worth taking banknotes home for your next vacation.

The euro is accepted as a means of payment in many shops and service providers (post office, train, etc.), but only banknotes, not coins. Many machines also accept euros. However, change is usually paid in Swiss francs. Because of the exchange rate loss, using euros as a means of payment only makes sense in individual cases (e.g. when in transit). Money is exchanged at the SBB (exchange offices in the larger train stations), the banks and larger post offices (the latter, however, only in euros). Places where you can pay with euros are often marked with a € sign.

When paying by credit card, billing in CHF or EUR is usually offered as an alternative; The selection must be made at the beginning of the payment process on the card reader. Billing in EUR is not recommended because the billing company uses a significantly less favorable exchange rate than the credit card companies (example in February 2019: direct payment in EUR with 1EUR = 1.08CHF, payments in CHF at the exchange rate 1EUR = 1.14CHF ).

In the large distributors (Migros, Coop) you can usually pay without any problems with euro notes at the favorable exchange rate without any fees, and you get the change back in Swiss francs. Larger train stations usually have a supermarket where this money exchange is possible.

The usual, traditional opening hours are from 8:00 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Smaller shops close at midday (12:00 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.). Larger stores (Migros, Coop, etc.) may be open a little longer in the evening, depending on the canton; they usually close around 8 p.m. The exception to this is the so-called evening sale, which takes place once a week and takes place on a different day depending on the location (in St. Gallen, for example, on Thursdays until 9 p.m.). On Saturdays most shops are only open until 5:00 p.m. and closed on Sundays.

Shops at gas stations and train stations usually have very long opening hours (daily, 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. or 11 p.m., depending on the canton, sometimes earlier on Sundays)

 

Kitchen

Due to the parts of the country with different languages and cultures, Swiss cuisine has influences from Italian, German and French cuisine. Well-known specialties include raclette, cheese fondue, Älplermagronen (cheese macaroni), Zürcher Geschnetzeltes, Rösti and other dishes. Polenta and risotto are popular in southern Switzerland. Switzerland is also known for its diverse types of cheese and chocolate. There are also very good Swiss wines.

More on this topic under Eating and Drinking in Switzerland.

 

Nightlife

Swiss nightlife offers a wide range of events to suit every taste. Numerous parties take place on weekdays, especially in big cities, and clubs and bars are also open until the early hours of the morning during the week.

Depending on the canton, regulations regarding “police hours” still apply to normal restaurants and inns; on weekdays they close at 11 p.m. or midnight. However, the days in which the village policeman made the rounds and the “Überhöcklers” are over " a " Nötli " received - in some cantons the police hour was abolished completely, which led to complaints from residents about noise pollution. "Extensions" for bars and nightclubs and also in the case of folk festivals and other major events are common in all cantons, however, in special ones A “free night” is granted for major events.

The minimum age for entry into the clubs is usually between 18 and 21 years. Hard alcohol is served from 18 years old, beer and wine from 16 years old. The controls are sometimes quite restrictive; For reasons of equal treatment, all customers (if they are not already gray-haired) are often required to provide ID. Certain outlets that are open late in the evenings have started selling alcohol only to people over 20 or even 21 years old. Certain stores stop selling alcohol at all after a certain period of time, although this period varies depending on the location.

 

Accommodation

When it comes to sleeping options, there is a very wide range of options in Switzerland, as in most European countries. This starts with 5-star hotels and extends to campsites, youth hostels or overnight accommodation in a straw barn. In terms of price, overnight stays in Switzerland tend to be in the upper price segment.

As a rule of thumb you can use the following guide prices:
5-star hotel: from around 350CHF per person and night
4-star hotel: from around 180CHF per person and night
3-star hotel: from around 120CHF per person and night
2-star hotel: from around 80CHF per person and night
Hostels: from around 30CHF per person per night.

The hotel stars in Switzerland are based on the hotel classification of the hotelleriesuisse association. All hotel members of hotelleriesuisse undergo regular quality tests in order to be awarded the corresponding hotel stars. At swisshoteldata.ch you can find information about hotel stars, infrastructure and specializations.

The prices in Swiss youth hostels are at the usual level in Europe. The accommodation is a little simpler than in Germany, but breakfast and dinner are usually better.

For group accommodation in Switzerland there is the central agency CONTACT groups.ch, hotels and holiday homes for groups. The mediation is free and non-binding. On the portal you can select 850 accommodations according to your own criteria and write to them directly using a collective request. The occupancy plans are online and up to date.

Tipping is included in all service establishments. For special services, a small tip, usually in the form of rounding up the amount, is always welcome.

For information on booking options on the Internet, see the topic article on hotel portals in the relevant section on Switzerland.

Wild camping is generally prohibited in national parks, nature reserves, hunting areas and game rest areas. The cantons of Appenzell, Bern, Glarus and Solothurn have also issued bans; this also applies to parking mobile homes outside designated areas. In Aargau and Obwalden you can stay one night as an individual. Otherwise, community-specific rules apply. The TCS automobile club offers a special camper membership, 2023 for 60CHF.

 

Public holidays

Mon, Jan 1, 2024 New Year's Day
Sun, Mar 31st 2024 Easter Sunday
Thu, May 9, 2024 Ascension Commemoration of Christ's Ascension
Sun, May 19, 2024 Whitsun Sunday
Thu, Aug. 1, 2024 Federal celebration national holiday
Mon, Dec 25, 2023 Christmas

There are six public holidays in Switzerland that are non-working throughout the country. In large parts of Switzerland, Good Friday (Friday, March 29, 2024), Easter Monday (Monday, April 1, 2024), Whit Monday (Monday, May 20, 2024), Federal Bus and Prayer Day (September 15, 2024), and St. Stephen's Day are also celebrated (Tuesday, December 26, 2023) and Berchtold Day (Tuesday, January 2, 2024).

If these holidays fall on a working day, long-distance public transport (SBB, etc.) runs as on a Sunday (timetable note; † = Sundays and public holidays), although the differences are often only minimal. This does not apply to municipal transport companies. These observe regional holidays and therefore have very different timetables.

The federal holiday is the only federal holiday. All other public holidays are determined by the 26 cantons, so there are significant differences from canton to canton. Furthermore, there is no work or only limited or shortened work on certain traditional holidays, even though these days are not recognized as public holidays. It is not uncommon for such events to only affect certain districts of a canton or even individual communities.

The national holiday on August 1st is celebrated with bonfires, fireworks and also speeches and music lectures.

 

Security

The crime rate in Switzerland is low. In cities there is a slightly increased risk of becoming a victim of pickpockets. Bicycles e.g. B. should always be locked when out of sight. In larger cities, a good lock is also recommended for older bicycles.

As a neutral country, Switzerland is not affiliated with any alliance, but maintains its own army.

Switzerland is one of the few countries in the world that has more shelter places than residents; The cantons and municipalities are responsible for planning shelters, with each resident being assigned a shelter. Since 2012, the construction of a shelter for new single-family homes has been abolished; Larger shelters will continue to be created and maintained in residential complexes and under public buildings.

 

Health

Switzerland offers one of the highest standards of healthcare in the world, with compulsory health insurance with guaranteed basic care. Dental treatment is always subject to a charge. The European Health Insurance Card applies. However, treatments must first be paid for and then submitted for reimbursement to the Joint Institution KVG, Industriestrasse 78, CH-4609 Olten (information sheet). Compared to Germany, high additional payments are due. It can make sense if you are near the border to go to the doctor in Germany, Austria or Italy.

Every larger city has one or more hospitals, and family medical emergency practices are increasingly being run at the hospitals, which, like the 24-hour "permanences" in large cities, are direct contact points for health problems. In the larger hospitals, the forms and the staff are also multilingual. The density of doctors is one of the highest in the world, and the primary care emergency service is organized across the board.
The rescue service is exemplary and the various emergency response organizations are networked with one another, and the medical emergency number (144) has been introduced throughout Switzerland. Every point in Switzerland can be reached by helicopter within a very short time by the non-governmental REGA (emergency number 1414). Patron membership with REGA is highly recommended. In Valais, Air Glaciers (emergency number 1415) is responsible for air rescue.

Unless otherwise stated, tap water, but also the water in most fountains in Switzerland, is generally drinkable and is often even superior in quality to mineral water. The "No drinking water" sign on a well does not necessarily mean that the water is bad and undrinkable - it was often put up in order to be able to forgo the strict controls for drinking water. Locals may be able to tell you if you can still drink the water, at your own risk of course... it may well be high quality spring water.

In many areas, especially in the northeastern Mittelland (Thurgau, Schaffhausen, Zurich, northern canton of St. Gallen and the Aarau/Olten area), in the Three Lakes region (Lake Neuchâtel) and in the southern Lake Thun area (Spiez-Niedersimmental region) ( As of 2012) there is an increased risk of infection with TBE (tick-borne encephalitis), which is transmitted through tick bites. When going on trips to the forest, it is recommended to take the necessary protective precautions (long clothes, tick spray, etc.). Vaccination is recommended for longer stays in the region with activities in the forest.

 

Climate and travel time

North of the Alps there is a temperate, Central European climate, mostly characterized by oceanic winds, south of the Alps it is more Mediterranean. However, the climate varies greatly from region to region, depending on the geographical elements.

Basically, the weather is similar every day from the Jura arc across the Central Plateau and the foothills of the Alps, while the weather in the inner Alps and in southern Switzerland can be completely different. In central Switzerland, the Alps and Ticino, the average rainfall is around 2000 millimeters per year. The wettest place is Säntis (2,502 m above sea level) with an average of 2,837 mm (standard period 1981–2010), the driest place is Ackersand in Vispertal with an average of 545 millimeters per year (both values for the standard period 1981–2010). In the standard period 1961–1990, the value for arable sand was 521 millimeters. In the Central Plateau the amount is around 1000 to 1500 millimeters per year. This region is the only region in Switzerland to have recorded a statistically significant increase in annual rainfall since 1864, which is primarily due to an increase in the winter months. The amount of precipitation in Switzerland is generally around twice as high in summer as in winter. Primarily depending on the altitude, a lot of precipitation falls as snow in winter, so that there is a solid blanket of snow in the Alps and foothills of the Alps for months. It snows comparatively rarely in the regions around Geneva and Basel as well as in southern Ticino, and here there can also be winters without a snow cover. The greatest snow depth in Switzerland was measured at 816 cm in April 1999 on Mount Säntis.

The temperatures in Switzerland depend primarily on the altitude. In addition, they tend to be statistically slightly higher in the west than in the east (approx. 1 °C). In general, the average temperature in January in the lowlands is around −1 to +1°C. In the warmest month, July, it is 16 to 19°C. The average annual temperatures are around 7 to 9°C. The warmest places on average with available series of measurements are Locarno-Monti and Lugano, each with an annual average of 12.4°C (normal period 1981–2010). As at almost all measuring stations, climate change is also evident here: in the standard period 1961–1990, the average values were 11.5°C (Locarno/Monti) and 11.6°C (Lugano), respectively, and thus by 0.9 or 0.8°C lower than in the last averaged standard period. The coldest place on average is the Jungfraujoch at −7.2°C (normal period 1981–2010). Here too, the average temperature has increased by 0.7°C since the standard period 1961–1990. Absolute records were measured in Grono with 41.5°C on August 11, 2003, and in La Brévine with −41.8°C (January 12, 1987).[37] Compared to the altitude of comparison locations in the Central Plateau, the temperatures in the Rhone Valley, the Rhine Valley and the Basel region are on average one to two degrees Celsius warmer, and two to three degrees warmer in the Magadino Plain in Ticino. Although the climate is part of southern Switzerland, the temperatures in the Engadine are an average of ten degrees Celsius colder. This is because the Engadine is a high alpine valley. The same applies to the side valleys and Goms in Valais.

Hail is a rather rare event in the Alps, French-speaking Switzerland and Ticino. In the period from 1999 to 2002, the average annual hailstorm in Emmental, Laufental and Toggenburg was up to 60 minutes; in the other regions it was less than 30 minutes.

Fog can be observed throughout the Central Plateau, although the Alpine areas are affected less frequently. The fog is particularly common along the Aare, the northern Reuss and in Thurgau, where it can occur for several weeks, especially in autumn, winter and early spring. With the exception of high fog, fog is a comparatively rare phenomenon in the Jura arc and in the Basel region. The frequency of fog in the Swiss plateau has decreased significantly since the 1970s. The Zurich-Kloten weather station, for example, used to repeatedly record years with 50 to 60 days of fog. Today there are around 40. The reasons for the decline in fog are likely to be found in a change in the prevailing weather conditions and in improving air quality control.

Frequently occurring winds in Switzerland are the mild Föhn on both sides of the Alpine ridge and the cold Bise, from which southern Switzerland is often spared. The highest wind speed ever measured is 285 kilometers per hour (Jungfraujoch, February 27, 1990).

The Federal Office of Meteorology and Climatology (MeteoSwiss) is Switzerland's national weather service. Other well-known private weather services are: SRF Meteo, Meteomedia and MeteoNews. The Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research is located in Davos.

This section on climate is covered by the Wikipedia page "Switzerland".

 

Rules and respect

Basically, similar rules of decency and mutual respect apply in Switzerland as in other Western European countries. However, a few small differences are worth mentioning:

There is an unspoken understatement. Modesty is perceived as pleasant.
When toasting with a glass of beer or wine, make eye contact with your partner. The French way of turning to the next person is considered impolite.
The statement “I'll get a beer,” often used in restaurants and bars in Germany, is considered very impolite in Switzerland. Instead, in Switzerland people order with “I would like a beer” or “Could I get a beer?”
Close friends and good acquaintances give each other three kisses on the cheeks - left, right, left.
The usual “Hello” greeting in Germany is generally rarely used in Switzerland, except on the telephone. In Eastern Switzerland, people who are on first name terms are greeted with “Hoi” and say goodbye with “Tschau”. In contrast, in the Basel region they greet each other with “Sali” (Salut) and in the Bern region with “Tschou”. .
People you don't know or with whom you communicate via email are greeted with "Grüezi" or "Grüessech" (Greetings to you). However, “Guete Morge” (in the morning hours), “Gute Tag” during the day and “Guete(n) Obig” as a greeting in the evening are more common.
In Germany, the usual "bye" when saying goodbye is perceived by the Swiss as collegial/confidential and - if at all - only used to say goodbye to people with whom you are on a first-name basis. People with whom you are on friendly terms can be said neutrally with “Goodbye” (or “Goodbye”) or with “Adieu”.
Punctual as a Swiss watch is not just an empty phrase. Arriving too early or too late for an invitation with a fixed time is not welcomed.

Further: The Swiss are proud of their identity (multilingualism, dialects, culture and direct democracy) and they should honor this with respect. If they criticize Switzerland or make derogatory comments, they are usually met with contempt and incomprehension. Please address other topics and respect Switzerland and its people as they are. This way you will quickly make friends. The Swiss are a very friendly people, a little reserved at first, but they are very helpful and consider politeness, manners and mutual respect to be very important.

 

Post and telecommunications

Telephone and mobile communications 

The international area code is: +41 or 0041. If this international area code is used, the leading zero is omitted from the numbers. So 044 123 45 67 becomes 0041 44 123 45 67. This must also be dialed when calling from a landline within the same area code. Within Switzerland, the normal telephone number has ten digits (044 999 99 99) and should be dialed that way. For international calls to Switzerland, the zero should be omitted (+41 44 999 99 99). If you want to make an international call from Switzerland, you should dial a double zero in front of the country number. Example: Germany 0049 + national phone number.

The last public telephone booth was moved to the museum in 2019 and telephone taxi cards were also taken out of circulation.

There are three mobile network providers, each operating their own network: Swisscom, Salt and Sunrise. There are also more than a dozen service providers that offer SIM cards for private customers. The differences in costs and reception performance are negligibly small. However, a comparison is advisable, especially when it comes to internet access tariffs. If you rarely make phone calls or hardly need mobile internet, you should consider a prepaid offer. For example from Lebara Mobile, whose SIM cards can be easily purchased at post offices. For the price of just under 15 CHF you get a card with 30 CHF credit; M Budget offers are available at Migros supermarkets. SIM cards are only issued upon presentation of an ID card in order to better monitor the population.

Mobile phone coverage is exemplary for all providers, even in rural areas. Dead spots are rarely encountered, even in the Alps; Coverage is excellent, particularly in ski areas. In areas close to the border, make sure that roaming is switched off when using a Swiss SIM card. Roaming tariffs are high and it can happen that you accidentally make calls on a foreign network with heavy traffic.

In Switzerland, mobile phones are not called cell phones, but rather Natel. This term originally meant National Car Telephone Network and then transferred to the devices used. 90% of the population has access to a 5G network; for political and ideological reasons, citizens' initiatives in many places are resisting the construction of 5G antennas. 4G and 3G coverage is comprehensive, the 2G network was switched off at the end of 2020.

Switzerland is not part of the EU, so the EU roaming regulation does not apply here. Some providers grant free roaming on a voluntary basis for Switzerland (e.g. Telekom Deutschland), others (e.g. the Austrian providers) mercilessly charge roaming fees for Swiss networks. It is advisable to read the small print of your own cell phone contract here.

 

Postal network

In Switzerland there is a dense postal network of the Swiss Post, the counters of larger post offices are open most Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. and are usually also open on Saturday mornings (smaller post offices often have very limited opening hours). Please note the emptying time for the yellow mailboxes; in rural areas they are only emptied once a day. In a number of smaller towns the post office was abolished and replaced by a branch in the village shop.

 

Practical tips

Traveling expenses

Switzerland is generally not a cheap travel destination and the prices for the tourist infrastructure are significantly higher than in the euro area. However, the actual travel costs depend heavily on the exchange rate of the € to the Swiss franc. A snack (e.g. bratwurst costs around 6 Fr) a main course in a restaurant is rarely available for less than 25 Fr and even simple accommodation rarely costs less than 80 Fr per night. The same applies to the fares for Buses and trains. For those who want to travel more around the country, a "half-fare" subscription (a type of rail card/advantage card that allows you to travel for half the price) can be useful.

 

Power supply

For electrical devices, the plugs and sockets comply with the Swiss standard SEV 1011. These sockets can accept the two-pin Euro plugs, but not contour plugs such as. B. the German Schuko plug; Grounded devices are connected with a three-pin plug. The use of a suitable adapter is recommended. The mains voltage corresponds to the usual 230 V in Europe.

 

Etymology

The name of the country goes back to the name of the canton of Schwyz, which was one of the three founding cantons of the confederation in 1291. In 970, the center of this canton is mentioned as Suuites, in 1281 - Switz, modern. Schwyz; the name comes from OE-German. suedan "uproot". Since the XIV century, the state as a whole has been called by the name of this canton. The inhabitants of the country themselves called themselves Eidgenossen (that is, Confederates), and only from the end of the 15th century did the self-name Schweizer (that is, the Swiss) come into use. From the name of the country Schweitz (German: Schweiz) the name of its inhabitants, the Swiss (German: Schweizer, Polish: Szwajcar), is derived, and from it the Russian name of the country Switzerland is “the country of the Swiss”.

 

History

The more recent history of Switzerland as a federal state begins with the adoption of the Federal Constitution in 1848. The forerunners of modern Switzerland were the Old Swiss Confederacy, which had been organized as a loose federation since the end of the 13th century, the centrally organized Helvetic Republic, which existed from 1798 to 1803, and the "Swiss Confederation," founded in 1803 and reorganized in 1815.

The federal cantons gained sovereignty from the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation in the Peace of Westphalia in 1648. This sovereignty was confirmed by the Congress of Vienna in 1815, and the borders of Switzerland that existed before the "French period" and are still valid today were recognized, with a few minor deviations. Important basic principles in Swiss history are the pronounced federalism and, since the Second Peace of Paris in 1815, international neutrality, based on the decisions of the Congress of Vienna.

 

Predecessors

Modern Switzerland has three predecessors:
The "Old Swiss Confederacy", a loose structure of various countries and city states (confederation of states), partly in the area of ​​today's Switzerland. The year of its foundation is traditionally said to be the renewal of an older alliance in 1291 by the three forest states of Uri, Schwyz and Unterwalden. The so-called 13 "places" (cantons) fought for extensive autonomy from the Holy Roman Empire, most recently in the Swabian War in 1499. The Peace of Westphalia made the Swiss cantons, their subject territories and allies ("allied") sovereign under international law, i.e. independent of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation. The French invasion of Switzerland and the Helvetic Revolution in 1798 marked the end of the structure, which had been internally divided since the Reformation.
Under pressure from the French Republic, i.e. In 1798, under Napoleon Bonaparte's leadership, most of the territory of the former Old Swiss Confederacy was combined to form the centrally structured "Helvetic Republic". The previously independent states of the Confederation were downgraded to administrative units, partially divided or combined into larger units. After the withdrawal of the French troops in 1802, the Helvetic Republic perished in the civil war between the advocates of the unified state and the federalists. Due to the federal tradition of the Old Swiss Confederacy and its roots in the population, the federalists clearly had the upper hand, and the unified state was never widely accepted.
In 1803, the representatives of the cantons reached an agreement under the mediation (French: médiation) of Napoleon Bonaparte. The "Swiss Confederation" was re-established as a confederation of states through the Act of Mediation as a confederal constitution. After the fall of Napoleon, this confederation dissolved again in 1813. The 13 old cantons and the 9 newly founded cantons since 1798 then joined together to form a new confederation in the Federal Treaty of August 7, 1815. The structure of the Swiss Confederation, its territorial integrity and its "perpetual neutrality" were recognized by the Congress of Vienna in 1814/15. In the 1830s, the aristocratic families in the individual cantons, which had regained their power since 1815 and 1803 respectively, were finally politically disempowered and the liberal-democratic form of government took hold. After the Sonderbund War, the Swiss Confederation was transformed into the federal state with the federal city of Bern on September 12, 1848, through the adoption of a federal constitution that still exists today. The official name is still "Swiss Confederation" or Confoederatio Helvetica.

 

Overview of the history of the present-day territory of Switzerland before 1291

Prehistory and early history of Central Europe

The area of ​​today's Switzerland has been populated since the Paleolithic period. It was only after the last ice age that the Swiss Mittelland became more densely populated, especially the areas around the lakes. Celtic settlement of the Mittelland began with the start of the Iron Age. Celtic finds near La Tène in the canton of Neuchâtel gave the entire period of the Late Iron Age its name. The Celts maintained trade relations as far as the Greek cultural area. The first signs of writing probably also emerged in Swiss territory during this phase.

 

Switzerland in Roman times

Before the Roman conquest, according to records by the Roman general and politician Julius Caesar in his justification for the Gallic War, various Celtic tribes and peoples lived in the area of ​​present-day Switzerland: the Helvetii (Central Switzerland), the Lepontii (Ticino), the Seduni (Valais, Lake Geneva) and the Raetii (Eastern Switzerland). As the Roman Empire expanded across the Alps, the area of ​​present-day Switzerland was subjugated until the 1st century AD in order to secure the strategically important Alpine passes to Germania. During the imperial period, most of Switzerland was assigned to the Roman province of Germania Superior. Eastern Switzerland, Valais and Graubünden belonged to the province of Raetia, and parts of Ticino finally to the province of Gallia Transpadana. The centres of Roman Switzerland were the old Helvetic capital Aventicum (Avenches) and the Roman colonies Julia Equestris (Nyon), Augusta Raurica (Augst) and Forum Claudii Vallensium (Martigny). Until late antiquity, the Celtic population of Switzerland adopted Roman customs, culture and language, and ultimately Christianity. When the Roman provinces were reorganised in the 3rd century by Emperor Diocletian, northern Switzerland was assigned to the province of Maxima Sequanorum and a dense chain of fortified towns, castles and watchtowers was built along the Rhine. After the Goths invaded the Western Roman Empire, all Roman troops were withdrawn from the areas north of the Alps in 401 to protect Italy. Rule over western Switzerland passed to the Burgundian Empire, central and eastern Switzerland was controlled and settled by the Alemanni, while the Alpine regions remained in the hands of Celto-Roman local rulers. Some Roman structures shaped Switzerland even after the end of Roman rule: the road network, the Roman settlements and the old Roman spatial division, in particular the church organization with the bishopric boundaries.

 

Switzerland in the Middle Ages

Due to the increasing immigration of the West Germanic Alamanni (Alemanni) from the year 259, the Romansh population of eastern and central Switzerland adopted the Alemannic language in the early Middle Ages, while in western Switzerland the Burgundian language could not prevail, but Latin dialects prevailed. Later, the Franco-Provençal language emerged from this. Latin dialects also survived in Graubünden and Ticino, from which the Italian and Romansh languages ​​developed. After a brief period of independence, the kingdoms of the Burgundians and the Alemanni were incorporated into the Frankish Empire in the 6th century AD.

Under Frankish rule, the entire area of ​​what is now Switzerland was Christianized through the work of missionaries and the founding of numerous monasteries, such as St. Gallen, Reichenau, Moutier-Grandval and Romainmôtier. In the early Middle Ages, feudalization also took place: peasants entered into a hereditary relationship with spiritual or noble landowners. With the division of the Frankish Empire of Charlemagne by his grandchildren in the Treaty of Verdun (843), western Switzerland first became part of Lotharingia, then a new Kingdom of Burgundy, while eastern Switzerland, as part of the tribal duchy of Swabia, became part of the East Frankish Empire, later the Holy Roman Empire (of the German Nation). After the Ottonian imperial dynasty acquired Burgundy (1033), the entire area of ​​what is now Switzerland belonged to the Holy Roman Empire.

For the Roman-German emperors, the Alpine passes were of crucial importance for controlling Italy, especially for the journeys to Rome on the occasion of the imperial coronations. For this reason, the emperors owned extensive areas in the Alpine region from the early Middle Ages, which they administered directly as imperial property and did not grant as fiefs. In addition, various noble families in the Alpine region competed, the Zähringen, Kyburg, Lenzburg, Habsburg and Savoy. Large areas of Switzerland belonged to various church institutions, for example monasteries, foundations or even directly to the bishops. Some of them rose to the status of princes in the High Middle Ages, such as the Prince-Abbots of St. Gallen or the Prince-Bishops of Basel, Chur, Sitten and Constance.

 

Formation and growth of the Old Swiss Confederacy 1291–1515

The extinction of powerful noble families and the disputes between the emperor and the pope in the 13th century favored the independence of the more important cities and valleys in Switzerland. In 1218, Zurich, Bern, Freiburg and Schaffhausen became imperial cities after the Zähringen family died out; Uri (1231) and Schwyz (1240) also received the privilege of imperial immediacy. This meant that these cities and regions were directly under the emperor or king and were exempt from the authority of the local counts. In this way, Emperor Frederick II secured the route from the north over the Gotthard Pass to Italy while he was at war with the Lombard cities, and secured the cities' loyalty in the fight with Pope Innocent IV. After Frederick II was excommunicated and deposed by the pope in 1245, Bern, Basel and Zurich remained loyal to the emperor. The end of the Hohenstaufen dynasty and the beginning of the interregnum in the empire also marked the transition to the late Middle Ages for the area of ​​present-day Switzerland. At the same time, around 1230, the Gotthard Pass became a trade route with the construction of the Devil's Bridge. The Graubünden passes, however, continued to be more important.

The three forest settlements of Uri, Schwyz and Unterwalden form the core of the Old Swiss Confederacy. After the death of the Roman-German King Rudolf I of Habsburg in July 1291, they renewed an older alliance, which since 1891 has been mythologically regarded as the "foundation" of the Old Swiss Confederacy. In 1309, King Henry VII confirmed the imperial immediacy of Uri and Schwyz and now also included Unterwalden; the three forest settlements were placed under the authority of a royal governor. In recent research, the privileges of 1309 are seen as an important step towards the later formation of the alliance, but the importance of the Federal Charter is considered to be overestimated. The core alliance of the three forest states in what is now central Switzerland gradually expanded to include other partners, especially imperial cities in the Swiss Mittelland between the Rhine and the Aare. In particular, the alliances with the imperial cities of Zurich in 1351 and Bern in 1353, after Bern had won the Laupen War in 1339, contributed significantly to the consolidation of power and territorial expansion, as the cities had large subject territories. It was only through the three cities that the Swiss Confederation achieved stable political importance; this was tolerated by the European court centers of Vienna, Paris and Milan.

Since the first confrontation in 1315, about which little is known and which was only romanticized in retrospect at a later date, there have been repeated conflicts between the noble Habsburg family and the Old Swiss Confederacy (Battle of Sempach in 1386), which led to the annexation of the Habsburg lands to the left of the Rhine by 1460. At the same time, however, there were always changing alliances in which parts of the so-called Swiss Confederation came to an agreement with the Habsburgs in order to pursue their own expansionist interests. This was one reason for the old Zurich War. Recent research has criticized the fact that source reports were often taken out of context and interpreted one-sidedly in the sense of national heroic tales, which led to a distorted public view of history that still has political effects today. Rather, the early Swiss Confederation was loosely structured and not without role models; it was only the conquest of Aargau in 1415 that forced people to cooperate more in order to be able to administer the so-called "common dominions".

In the Appenzell Wars from 1401 to 1429, communities in Appenzell fought against the Prince Abbot of St. Gallen. The Appenzell Wars provided the decisive impetus for the separation of the region of Appenzell from the rule of the Princely Abbey of St. Gallen and the rapprochement with the Swiss Confederation.

The expansionist policy of the city of Bern, which was itself the center of a "Burgundian Confederation" in what is now western Switzerland, led the loosely connected Confederation into its first confrontation on a European level with the Burgundian Duke Charles the Bold. The Burgundian Wars ended with a sensational victory for the Confederation over Burgundy and established the good reputation of Swiss mercenaries. From then on, "Reislaufen", military service in foreign pay, formed an important part of the economy of the Old Confederation, especially in central Switzerland. Internal disputes between countries and towns were regulated by the Stanser Verkommnis in 1481 following the Burgundian Wars.

After the victory over Burgundy, the Swiss Confederation had become the dominant power in southern Germany. The Swabian nobility, especially the Habsburgs, tried in vain to counter the growing influence of the Swiss Confederation in Central Europe in the Waldshut War of 1468 and the Swabian War of 1499. The Swabian War was ostensibly about implementing the Imperial Reform of 1495, but in fact it was the last attempt by the House of Habsburg to assert itself against the Swiss Confederation. In the Peace of Basel, the German King Maximilian I had to recognize the de facto independence of the Swiss Confederation within the Holy Roman Empire. The Swiss Confederation's affiliation to the empire remained in place until 1648. The Swabian War marked the end of the Swiss Confederation's expansion northwards. In 1513, Appenzell became the last and 13th canton to join the Old Swiss Confederacy, which were linked by a complicated network of alliances. They ruled common subject territories and almost every canton had individual, "individual local" subject territories, especially the city cantons, in which only the city citizens were actually equal confederates. The allied places, which were connected to the Confederation but had no say in the only common body, the Diet, were grouped around the "13th local Confederation". At that time, areas such as the Valtellina or the city of Mulhouse still belonged to the Confederation. The roots of today's multicultural Switzerland can also be reconstructed based on the developments at that time: the Romansh-speaking areas were integrated into the confederation either as a result of conquests at the time or on a voluntary basis (due to a need for military protection or economic interest).

The Habsburg-French conflict that arose after 1477 over Burgundy and the Duchy of Milan drew the Swiss Confederation into a conflict on a European level as the main supplier of mercenaries to both warring parties and as an independent power. The military importance of the Swiss Confederation reached both its peak and its end in the Ennetbirg campaigns as part of the Milanese Wars between 1499 and 1525. The campaigns to Italy were initially victorious and gave the Swiss Confederation control over Ticino and Valtellina as well as the protectorate over the Duchy of Milan. The beginning of the Reformation in Switzerland divided parts of the Swiss Confederation even further and weakened its position in the Italian disputes between Habsburg, the Pope and France. In 1515, the French King Francis I defeated a Swiss army that had been decimated by the withdrawal of numerous cantons at Marignano. The Thirteen Places concluded the Eternal Peace in 1516 and a mercenary alliance with the Kingdom of France in 1521, in return for which they received pensions, customs and trade concessions and political support in internal and external conflicts. In addition, a large part of the Ennetberg area was finally awarded to the Swiss Confederation.

In traditional Swiss history, this marked the end of the expansionist phase of the Confederation and gave way to neutrality due to internal weakness. Whether neutrality can be spoken of in view of the mercenary alliances with France is controversial, especially since Vaud was conquered in 1536. The export of Swiss mercenaries by various Swiss Confederation places continued after 1515 until it was finally banned in 1859. The only exception since then has been the Papal Swiss Guard.

 

Reformation and Counter-Reformation 1519–1712

In Zurich, Ulrich Zwingli, after surviving the disaster at Marignano and a bout of plague and now seeing the Bible as the most important measure of religious decisions, began to reform the church in 1519, which led to the founding of the Reformed Church. Zwingli preached against the veneration of images, relics and saints, and he was also committed to opposing celibacy and the Eucharist. He tried to spread his Reformation throughout Switzerland; as a politician, he dreamed of a strengthened Swiss Confederation of the Reformed faith. An important success for Zwingli was the introduction of the new faith in his hometown of Zurich in 1528. At that time, Zurich was on the side of the French-German coalition against Habsburg and the Pope - the introduction of the Reformation can also be seen from this political perspective. Later, the cities of Basel, Schaffhausen and St. Gallen followed Zurich's example, as did Bern. The Reformation was also largely successful in the estates of Appenzell, Glarus and the Three Leagues, as well as in Thurgau, the Rhine Valley and the Princely Abbey of St. Gallen.

The estates in Central Switzerland, which were allied with the Pope and opposed the city cantons, fought bitterly against the Reformation. Zwingli's policies also contributed to alienating the people of Central Switzerland, as he advocated a strong leadership role for the cities of Bern and Zurich in a politically reformed confederation and the abolition of mercenary services. In contrast to the trading cities in the Mittelland, however, the local elite in Central Switzerland was dependent on the lucrative mercenary service.

The disputes between the Catholic and Reformed estates over the spread of the Reformation in the common dominions led to the two Kappel Wars between Zurich and the cantons of Central Switzerland in 1529/31. A compromise was found in the Second Peace of Kappel: Religious sovereignty was given to the cantons, who could decide what faith should apply in their territory. In 1536, for example, Bern forcibly introduced the new faith in the newly conquered areas of Vaud. The spread of the Reformation in the common dominions was also stopped. Toggenburg, among others, was recognized as a religiously mixed area. In the Three Leagues, the choice of religion was left to the judicial communities, which is why a religious patchwork developed. The conflict between the religions there lasted until the 17th century (Grisons turmoil).

Numerous monasteries in the reformed areas were closed in the 1520s and 1530s.

Geneva (an affiliated town since 1526) was the last city to introduce the Reformation in 1541 under the influence of Bern. The reformer there, Jean Calvin, founded "Calvinism" with his particularly strict interpretation of the Bible. In 1559 Calvin founded the Geneva Academy as a university of the Reformed faith, which developed a Europe-wide influence and made Geneva a "Protestant Rome". Calvinism spread in France ("Huguenots" is a French form of "Confederates"), England (Puritans), Scotland and the Netherlands, and from there to America. It was only when Calvin reached its extreme peak that the Reformation gained worldwide significance. While in the Swiss Confederation, the collaboration of Heinrich Bullinger from Zurich with Calvin in the Consensus Tigurinus of 1549 led to an agreement between the Reformed and Calvinists on the question of the Lord's Supper, the fronts between the Reformed and Lutherans remained hardened until modern times. Calvinism continued to spread until the 17th century, especially among the active leading classes and in the cities of Germany and Eastern Europe. According to Max Weber's controversial thesis of the Protestant ethic, the special work ethic of Calvinism was largely responsible for the later economic success of the reformed countries. On the Catholic side, the Valais Cardinal Matthäus Schiner should be mentioned as an influential advisor to the young Emperor Charles V, who also narrowly failed with his candidacy for the Pope.

The Catholic towns of central Switzerland became the starting point of the Counter-Reformation in the Swiss Confederation in the 16th and 17th centuries. The initial spark of the Counter-Reformation is considered to have been the visitation trip of the Italian Cardinal Charles Borromeo to the Swiss Confederation in 1570. In 1574 the first Jesuit school was opened in Lucerne and in 1579 the Collegium Helveticum was founded in Milan, a university for Catholic Swiss priests in accordance with the Council of Trent. The first official university in the country was founded in Basel in 1460 (by a papal bull), but due to its later Protestant affiliation it ceased to be a Catholic institution of education. In 1586 the papal nuncio for the Swiss Confederation, Giovanni Francesco Bonomi, settled in Lucerne and the Capuchins were called to Switzerland. The Counter-Reformation led to constant conflicts in the mixed cantons. For this reason, the canton of Appenzell split into two half-cantons in 1597. By the 17th century, the Counter-Reformation had won large areas of the Confederation back to the Catholic faith, particularly in northwestern Switzerland (Bishopric of Basel) and in eastern Switzerland (Fürstenland, Uznach, Gaster, Sargans).

The Reformation had a long-term, severely weakened the Confederation, as joint decisions by the Reformed and Catholic places in the Diet became practically impossible. The Diet was a congress of envoys from the various federal places and, as the only common institution, had only very limited legislative and executive powers. In some places, the Catholic places even contributed to the loss of territory by Reformed places. For example, an alliance of the Catholic places with Savoy forced Bern and Valais in 1567/69 to cede the Chablais and the Pays de Gex, which they had conquered in 1536, back to Savoy. The Catholic towns also prevented the full acceptance of the allied Reformed cities of Mulhouse, Geneva, Strasbourg and Constance into the Confederation. Nevertheless, Reformed Geneva was able to hold its own against the Savoyard attacks (Escalade 1602). The confessional and political division of the Confederation was sealed in 1586 by the Golden League of the seven Catholic cantons. In the Huguenot Wars in France, the Confederates fought in different camps depending on their confession: the Catholics supported Henry III, later the League, the Reformed Henry of Navarre.

The division of the Confederation along confessional lines was somewhat alleviated in 1602 by a mercenary alliance between the 13 towns, excluding Zurich, and France. The focus of European politics with regard to the Swiss Confederation shifted to the Three Leagues, where Spain and France had been fighting for control of the Alpine passes since the outbreak of the Thirty Years' War in 1618. As a result, Graubünden was the only country in the Swiss Confederation to be devastated by the Thirty Years' War during the "Grisons Troubles" of 1618–1641. However, the 13th places refused to support the Three Leagues and were thus not drawn into this war; only Bern and Zurich intervened briefly and unsuccessfully directly in Graubünden in 1620. The Swiss Confederation as a whole remained neutral during the Thirty Years' War (see Naval War on Lake Constance 1632–1648), but provided France - and the Catholic places also Spain - with mercenaries in accordance with the treaty. The main reasons for the neutrality were the outdated military facilities and the religious division. Any taking of sides would have meant civil war and thus the end of the Swiss Confederation: in 1634, an alliance between Zurich and Bern with Sweden was about to be concluded and the Catholic regions negotiated with Spain; only the Swedish defeat at Nördlingen prevented civil war. In the Defension of Wil, the first federal military constitution, the 13 regions decided on armed neutrality in 1647. Throughout the war, from the German perspective, Switzerland was a calm, storm-swept island of prosperity and relative peace. In economic terms, many regions in Switzerland even benefited from the war, as food prices rose sharply due to the widespread devastation in Germany and Italy.

In the Peace of Westphalia of October 24, 1648, the Swiss cantons obtained their exemption through their representative Johann Rudolf Wettstein in Art. VI IPO or § 61 IPM: a privilege under imperial law, with which an imperial estate lost its direct subordination to the emperor and empire and was thus no longer subject to its courts. In the peace treaty, the Swiss Confederation was not granted sovereignty under international law that would break imperial law (as was the case with the Netherlands in the Spanish-Dutch Peace Treaty), but rather "full freedom and exemption from the empire" with the additional declaration that the federal places were no longer subject to imperial jurisdiction. The interpretation and consequences of this measure were already controversial among contemporaries, but in the 18th century, following the spread of French sovereignty doctrine, it was generally understood as a separation from the Holy Roman Empire and mostly interpreted as recognition of sovereignty under international law. Since then, all federal towns have considered themselves sovereign states and have dealt diplomatically with other European states on an equal footing. The Confederation's position under constitutional and international law was therefore described as a sovereign, neutral republic. However, some imperial jurists (e.g. Ludwig Friedrich von Jan in 1803) held on to the fiction that the Confederation belonged to the empire as the "highest free class" until the end of the empire.

The strong aristocratization of the towns as a result of the centralization of the regional governments, the absolutist tendency in the exercise of power and the economic crisis that followed the "boom" of the Thirty Years' War in Switzerland caused great discontent in the subject territories of the cities in the Mittelland, especially among the peasants. In 1653, the Swiss Peasants' War broke out in the territories of the cities of Bern, Lucerne, Solothurn and Basel, and was brutally suppressed. The war therefore even strengthened aristocratic tendencies and widened the gap between town and country. After the Peasants' War, numerous farmers emigrated to depopulated Germany, where various states attracted immigrants through privileges and financial incentives.

A few years after the Peasants' War, the federal reform project in 1655 caused religious disputes to flare up again. In the First Villmergen War in 1656, Bern and Zurich tried in vain to use force to change the Second Peace of Kappel in their favor. The victory of the Catholic towns in the First Battle of Villmergen on January 24, 1656 again confirmed the disadvantaged position of the Reformed Church in the common dominions. The internal weakness and discord of the Confederacy did not, however, call into question the mercenary alliance with France, which was also renewed with Louis XIV by all towns and allies. From then on, the Swiss allowed the recruitment of up to 16,000 mercenaries, in return for which they received trade concessions and regular large payments of money, so-called "pensions". Later, France was also declared the arbitrator for internal conflicts within the Swiss Confederation and was granted free passage through Switzerland. Due to the close ties with France, the Swiss Confederation effectively declined into a French protectorate in the 18th century. Nevertheless, after the annulment of the Edict of Nantes in 1685, around 20,000 Huguenots were taken in by reformed Switzerland. They brought a strong revival to the textile and watchmaking industries in the cities and in the Jura. On September 5, 1687, two ships carrying Huguenot refugees crashed on the Aare between Aarberg and Lyss. 111 people drowned.

Since the 13th century, young Swiss have sought their fortune as mercenaries, also known as Reisläufer (from the word Reise). For centuries, mercenary work was the second most important economic sector in Switzerland - after agriculture. At times, one in ten Swiss fought in a foreign army. The beginning of the end of mercenary work came with the Battle of Malplaquet during the War of the Spanish Succession in 1709. At that time, Swiss mercenaries served on both sides of the war and fought and killed each other. Around 8,000 Swiss died in this civil war, which led to heated discussions in Switzerland. Thanks to better employment opportunities within Switzerland, fewer and fewer Swiss went into foreign service. In 1859, eleven years after the founding of the modern federal state, military service for a foreign power was finally banned.

The economic boom in the cities caused the military advantage of the rural towns to dwindle, which is why the Reformed towns had the upper hand in the Second Villmergen War in 1712, which was triggered by religious tensions in the Princely Abbey of St. Gallen. In the Peace of Aarau concluded after the Second Battle of Villmergen, the Catholic towns lost their influence in the common lordships of Baden, Free Offices, Rapperswil and had to include Bern in the administration of the lordships of Thurgau, Rhine Valley and Sargans. The principle of parity, i.e. the equal rights of both denominations in the common lordships, ended the Catholic supremacy in the Confederation.

The 68-meter-long Urnerloch was opened in 1708 in the Schöllenen Gorge, on the way to the Gotthard Pass, the first traffic tunnel in Switzerland.

 

Ancien Régime 1712–1798

In the 18th century, the Old Swiss Confederacy resembled a relic of the late Middle Ages, given the centrally governed monarchies that predominated in Europe. It was by no means a state in the modern sense. Rather, it consisted of a network of small, sovereign states that had joined together in a loose federation. However, not all areas of Switzerland were equally included in this federation. The core was formed by the Thirteen Old Places, which were either urban or rural places. Zurich, Bern, Lucerne, Freiburg, Solothurn, Schaffhausen and Basel were considered urban places or city republics, while Uri, Schwyz, Glarus, Zug, Obwalden and Nidwalden as well as Appenzell Innerrhoden and Ausserrhoden were counted as "countries". In addition, there were the subject territories that were subordinate to the fully entitled places and in which a considerable part of the population lived. They were either directly subordinate to one of the 13 places or were administered as common dominions by several places. With the exception of the Appenzell towns, all of the towns with full rights had such subject territories, with the majority of the most important belonging to the cities. Bern and Zurich alone accounted for around two fifths of the Swiss population. In addition to the thirteen towns and their subject territories, there were also the affiliated towns of St. Gallen, Graubünden and Valais, which had a loose relationship with the core. The only common institution of the alliance network was the Tagsatzung, in which the full rights towns were represented by two envoys each and the affiliated towns by one each. Its most important tasks were the administration of the joint dominions, foreign policy and defense. However, its power was very limited and decision-making in votes, which required unanimity, was rather difficult given the envoys instructed by the towns. As was later to be seen, it was also unable to offer serious military resistance when the French invaded.

The strengthening of state power following the French model of absolutism gave rise to three types of constitution in various parts of Switzerland, which combined aristocratic forms and divine right with republican traditions:

In the cities of Bern, Solothurn, Freiburg and Lucerne, the patriciate, the rule of a few long-established families;

The guild aristocracy in Zurich, Basel and Schaffhausen; it limited the oligarchy of the long-established families through the influence of the guilds;

Finally, in the Landsgemeinde towns, a common aristocracy of the old landed nobility and the families who had become rich and noble through mercenary service also developed.

The absolutist tendencies in the exercise of power caused a whole series of uprisings in the affected subject areas in the 18th century, but all of these were suppressed with the utmost severity by 1798.

Despite Europe-wide outrage, the maid Anna Göldi was executed in Glarus on June 13, 1782 after the last witch trial in Europe. The earliest known witch trials in Switzerland were the Schaffhausen witch trials of 1402. According to a rough estimate, around 10,000 witch trials took place in the area of ​​what is now Switzerland.

Despite the aristocratic tendencies, the Enlightenment was able to gain a foothold in the Swiss Confederation. Albrecht von Haller and Jean-Jacques Rousseau sparked a real enthusiasm for Switzerland in Europe and a first wave of tourism through their glorification of the naturalness, simplicity and innocence of the Swiss Confederation. (The sharp criticism of the Englishwoman Helen Williams of the conditions of the Ancien Régime, however, fell on deaf ears.) With his theory of the state, Rousseau also made an important contribution to the later emergence of direct democracy. At the same time, Zurich became the "Athens on the Limmat" thanks to a collection of scholars known throughout Europe, such as Johann Jakob Bodmer, Salomon Gessner, Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi and Johann Caspar Lavater. The advent of reason and planning not only improved infrastructure and the economy, but also loosened the strict religious discipline in the reformed towns and brought about a rapprochement between the denominations in the spirit of mutual tolerance.

By defending the existing or imagined Swiss characteristics, contemporary poets and scholars gave rise to a Swiss national consciousness for the first time. In 1761/62, these patriotic and enlightened currents manifested themselves in the founding of the Helvetic Society, which campaigned for freedom, tolerance, the overcoming of class differences and the patriotic solidarity of the Swiss. In the second half of the 18th century, literature also discovered the motif of the shared heroic past before Marignano, which from then on determined the historical image of Switzerland as a "battle story" until the late 20th century. By referring back to the shared idealized past, the confrontation with the difficult period of confessional tensions could be avoided.

After almost 300 years, the Three Leagues lost control of their southern subject territories of Bormio, Chiavenna and the Valtellina in 1797. Napoleon annexed the territories to the newly founded Cisalpine Republic. The later canton of Graubünden was reduced to its current size.

 

The "French period": Helvetic Republic and Mediation 1798–1814

In 1798, during the French invasion, the Old Swiss Confederacy was occupied by Napoleon Bonaparte's troops and the centralized unitary state of the Helvetic Republic was founded based on the French model. The cantons (previously independent states) were downgraded to administrative units and reorganized based on the model of the French departments. During the "Helvetic" period, the cantons of Léman, Oberland, Aargau, Waldstätte, Säntis, Linth, Thurgau, Bellinzona, Lugano, Rhaetia, Baden and Fricktal were newly created. Geneva, Mulhouse and the Jura with Biel became part of France; Neuchâtel remained Prussian, but no longer had any links with Switzerland. The capital of the unitary state was initially Aarau. Between 1799 and 1803, there were four coups in the Helvetic Republic (among them, the Vaudois F. Laharpe wanted to establish a sole rule - based on Napoleon's model in France). The division of the cantons and the constitution were changed several times.

In 1802, after the withdrawal of the French troops, a short civil war ("Steckli War") broke out between the Unitarians, who advocated a centralized state based on the French model, and the Federalists, who wanted to restore the old cantons. However, the Unitarians had little support among the population due to their deeply rooted federal traditions. It was only when Napoleon Bonaparte intervened in 1803 that Switzerland regained peace. Napoleon gathered the Swiss political elite in Paris at the Helvetic Consulta and worked with them to develop the Act of Mediation, a new federalist constitution that Napoleon guaranteed. The independence of the cantons was strengthened again; the unitary state became a confederation of states. According to the Act of Mediation, the "Swiss Confederation", as the state was now officially called, comprised 19 cantons, whose constitutions were also included in the Act of Mediation. The 13 old cantons were restored. New cantons were added: St. Gallen, Graubünden, Aargau, Thurgau, Ticino and Vaud. Valais first became an independent republic due to the strategic importance of the Simplon Pass for France, and then became part of France in 1810.

Until Napoleon's defeat in the Wars of Liberation in the autumn of 1813, Switzerland was a vassal state of France. Swiss troops and mercenaries therefore took part in both the war in Spain and the Russian campaign. In December 1813, the Swiss state created by Napoleon dissolved again under the pressure of the domestic counter-revolution and the advancing troops of the Sixth Coalition. There was briefly considerable tension between the old and the new cantons; Switzerland was on the verge of civil war. It was only under external pressure from the victorious coalition of the great powers that the sovereign cantons, which were only loosely organized in the Federal Union of 1813, moved closer together in the summer of 1814, so that on August 7, 1815, with the new cantons of Geneva, Valais and Neuchâtel joining, 22 cantons again constituted Switzerland as a confederation with the so-called Federal Treaty.

457 people and 323 farm animals died in the Goldau landslide on September 2, 1806. 220 stables and barns, 111 houses, two churches and two chapels were destroyed. In 1807, the Linth correction was started as a charitable federal project to protect the Linth plain from flooding and to rid it of malaria.

 

Switzerland as a confederation 1814–1847

In 1815, the inner and outer borders of the Swiss Confederation were redefined at the Congress of Vienna and internationally recognized for the first time. After that, only a few border corrections were agreed with neighboring states in the 19th and 20th centuries, mainly in connection with the settlement of border conflicts, road construction, waterway corrections and the use of water power, or to simplify the complicated border line.

Strengthening the Swiss Confederation by expanding to include Geneva, Neuchâtel, Valais, and the former Prince-Bishopric of Basel was intended to create a stable buffer state between France and Austria. Bern received the areas of the former Prince-Bishopric of Basel, including the city of Biel, as compensation for Vaud and Aargau. The northern, Catholic part of this area now forms the canton of Jura. The acquisition of further areas for Switzerland, such as the area around Geneva, the city of Constance, or the Valtellina, failed, however. In order to free the strategically important Alpine region from the sphere of influence of France, the great powers decreed "perpetual armed neutrality" for Switzerland in the Second Peace of Paris on November 20, 1815.

Internally, the Confederation was held together during the Restoration period by the Federal Treaty of 1815, which replaced the Act of Mediation and allowed the cantons to have a very large degree of independence. Defense, coinage and customs sovereignty were transferred back to the cantons. As in the old days, the Federal Diet acted as the central authority, meeting annually in the three suburbs of Zurich, Bern or Lucerne. The only permanent institution was a Federal Chancellery, which moved to the suburbs with the Diet every year. In the cantons of the Mittelland, the phase of conservative restoration then led to the liberal "regeneration" of 1830/31: the aristocratic dominance was finally broken and replaced by liberal-democratic systems. However, during a transitional phase, tensions within the cantons arose again under somewhat different circumstances: either liberals fought against Catholic conservatives or "old liberals" (supporters of representative democracy with census voting rights) against "democrats" (supporters of direct democracy with universal equal voting rights).

In April 1815, the Tambora volcano on the island of Sumbawa in what is now Indonesia erupted with a magnitude of 7 on the volcanic explosivity index. Huge amounts of ash and sulphur dioxide were distributed around the world by the jet stream, leading to a volcanic winter. The summer of the following year, 1816, popularly known as the "year without a summer", was the coldest since weather records began. Many European countries, including Switzerland, experienced crop failures, famines and economic crises, which caused or forced many people to emigrate.

With the Concordat on a common Swiss system of weights and measures of August 17, 1835, the metric system was introduced in Switzerland as a reference (not measurement) system.

In 1838, the situation between Switzerland and France escalated in the course of the so-called Napoleon trade. Prince Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte (Napoleon III), who grew up at Arenenberg Castle in the canton of Thurgau and had Thurgau citizenship, had been back in Switzerland since August 1837 after going into exile from France to the USA in 1836. He visited his mother (died October 5, 1837) on her deathbed. When France demanded his expulsion on August 1, 1838, the Thurgau radicals lined up behind the prince, who was popular in the canton. When France again mobilized troops against Switzerland, the liberals throughout the country showed solidarity with Thurgau; the federal troops were also mobilized and Charles-Jules Guiguer de Prangins was appointed general. An escalation was avoided by Napoleon's voluntary departure.

In January 1841, the Grand Council of the Canton of Aargau decided to immediately close all monasteries in the canton, including the Benedictine Abbey of Muri, the Habsburgs' private monastery. The canton thus violated the Federal Treaty of 1815 and caused great discontent in neighboring Catholic countries, especially in Vienna. The Aargau monastery dispute and the two Freischarenzügen of 1844 and 1845 further increased the great tensions between Catholics and Protestants throughout Switzerland. These finally erupted in the Sonderbund War in 1847.

 

Sonderbund War

Due to a continuing polarization between the liberal (mostly urban-reformed) and conservative (mostly rural-Catholic) cantons after the Freischarenzügen, the Catholic cantons of Lucerne, Uri, Schwyz, Unterwalden, Zug, Freiburg and Valais joined together in 1845 to form a Sonderbund in order to protect their interests. As a result, the liberal majority of the Diet decided to violently dissolve the Sonderbund, despite a threatened military intervention by the Viennese guaranteeing powers, which happened in November 1847 under General Henri Dufour.

The Sonderbund War, which only lasted from November 3 to 28, 1847, was the last armed conflict on Swiss territory. According to official figures, the Sonderbund War cost 130 people their lives and left around 450 wounded. The victory of the liberal cantons paved the way for the centralization and liberalization of the previously loose confederation of more or less democratic individual cantons into a more unified and tighter parliamentary federal state with a federalist basic structure.

 

Establishment and consolidation of the new Swiss federal state

The new Swiss Federal Constitution came into force on September 12, 1848. The new constitution united Switzerland from a confederation into a federal state. It was approved by the Swiss people (men only) in cantonal votes in July and August 1848 with 145,584 votes in favor (72.8%) and 54,320 against (27.2%). Voting in favor: ZH, BE, LU, GL, FR, SO, BS, BL, SH, AR, SG, GR, AG, TG, VD, NE, GE. Voting against: UR, SZ, OW, NW, ZG, AI, TI, VS. The Federal Constitution has only been revised in its entirety twice so far, in 1874 and 1999 ("total revision"). The Sonderbund War of 1847 brought victory for the Liberals at the national level. As a result, the Swiss Federal Constitution of 1848 was liberal. In its early days, the newly created Swiss federal state was politically dominated by the liberal movement. It formed the majority in the Federal Assembly and the entire Federal Council. Another key feature of the new Federal Constitution was the standardization of measurement and coinage as well as the abolition of the many internal tariffs, which created a unified economic area in Switzerland. The "Federal Law on Federal Coinage" of May 7, 1850 introduced the Swiss franc as the currency of Switzerland. New coins were minted from 1850 and issued the following year. Banknotes were initially issued by commercial and cantonal banks; in 1907, the newly founded Swiss National Bank (SNB) was granted the sole right to issue banknotes (monopoly on banknotes) as the central bank. After the first cantonal stamps, Zurich 4 and Zurich 6, were issued in 1843, the Swiss Post was founded in 1848. German, French and Italian were declared equal national languages, and Romansh was not added as a fourth national language until 1938.

As early as 1849, the young federal state under General Dufour had to endure its first military conflict. During the so-called Büsinger trade, Hessian troops violated the Swiss border when they penetrated the German exclave of Büsingen during the Baden Revolution. The Swiss northern border was also violated when the Baden revolutionary army retreated. The secession movements in Neuchâtel from the Kingdom of Prussia in 1857 represented another major foreign policy challenge. While mobilization was again underway under General Dufour, the so-called Neuchâtel trade was settled diplomatically at the last moment. Further border occupations took place during the Austro-Italian wars in 1859 and 1866. The controversy over the role of Swiss mercenaries in Italy ultimately led to the banning of the traditional "Reislaufen" in 1859. In 1860, the cession of Savoy by Sardinia-Piedmont to France caused another foreign policy crisis, as nationalist-minded circles led by Federal Councilor Jakob Stämpfli wanted to exercise Switzerland's right to occupy Chablais, Faucigny and parts of Geneva. However, a plebiscite in Savoy resulted in a clear majority in favor of joining France. The so-called Savoy trade was settled by the establishment of a free zone around Geneva. In 1870/71, the Franco-Prussian War made a border occupation under General Hans Herzog necessary. In February 1871, under the watchful eye of the Swiss army, around 87,000 men from the defeated French "Bourbaki Army" crossed the border in the cantons of Neuchâtel and Vaud and were interned. The reception and care of the exhausted soldiers is the largest humanitarian action that Switzerland has ever carried out.

The conflicts between radicals and conservatives continued at the cantonal level after 1848. From 1863 onwards, a new so-called Democratic Movement also fought for the transition from representative to direct democracy and for economic and social reforms. The supporters of the Democratic Movement were given a boost by the social question that was becoming increasingly urgent as a result of industrialization, which is why the Grütli Workers' Education Association, founded in 1838, and left-wing idealists supported the radical democratic demands. Although individual cantons issued protective regulations for factory workers and children, the problems of the working class remained urgent. In 1851, eight "Grütlians", including the early socialist Karl Bürkli, founded the Zurich consumer cooperative. The company is considered the oldest truly successful consumer cooperative in Switzerland and on the European continent. In 1995, Coop took over the cooperative.

In the first half of the 19th century, thousands of "homeless" people lived in what is now Switzerland; people who did not have citizenship in any community or corporation. Most of them had already lost their citizenship due to their ancestors; the reasons for this were lack of means, "dissolute lifestyles", births outside of wedlock, illegal marriages or religious conversions. The smaller group were the travelling people. Homeless people were not allowed to settle anywhere and therefore moved from place to place. They were not allowed to marry legally and were excluded from municipal welfare. They lived in abject poverty. The Homeless Law of 1850 laid the foundation for the formal legal integration of the homeless into society. By 1878, around 30,000 people had been forcibly naturalised, sometimes against the resistance of the communities concerned. However, the law also aimed to make the travelling way of life disappear. A large proportion of the new citizens and their descendants were able to free themselves from their predicament and integrated into civil society. Some of the travellers evaded assimilation and continued their life on the country roads.

During the second half of the 19th century, Switzerland was hit by a strong wave of industrialization and railway construction. On August 9, 1847, the first railway line in Switzerland was opened between Zurich and Baden, which was popularly known as the "Spanish Bread Railway". A few years earlier, the French had built the Strasbourg–Basel railway line. Like no other personality of the time, the politician, business leader and railway entrepreneur Alfred Escher influenced the political and economic development of Switzerland. In addition to his political offices, he played a key role in the founding of the Federal Polytechnic (now ETH Zurich), the Swiss Credit Institute (now Credit Suisse), the Swiss Life Insurance and Pension Institute (now Swiss Life), the Swiss Reinsurance Company (now Swiss Re), the Swiss Northeastern Railway and the Gotthard Railway. Under the influence of Alfred Escher, the expansion of the Swiss railway network was initially carried out by private railway companies. After serious political and economic disputes over the construction of the railway, many railway companies fell into crisis in the 1870s. Nevertheless, the Gotthard Railway was opened in 1882 with financial help from Germany and Italy. After 1898, the railways were gradually nationalized until 1909 and transferred to the Swiss Federal Railways (SBB). On June 14, 1891, the worst railway accident in Switzerland to date (as of 2020) occurred. The railway bridge over the Birs below the village of Münchenstein, built by Gustave Eiffel, collapsed under a train of the Jura-Simplon Railway (JS) coming from Basel. 73 passengers died and 171 were injured. During the Belle Époque, the period between 1884 and 1914, tourism became an increasingly important economic sector. The number of hotels, especially grand hotels, rose sharply. Numerous narrow-gauge railways and mountain railways were built, particularly in the foothills of the Alps and the Alps, such as the lines of today's Rhaetian Railway and the Matterhorn-Gotthard Railway, the Pilatus Railway, the Gornergrat Railway and the Jungfrau Railway. The industrialisation of the Swiss Mittelland transformed Switzerland from an agricultural state into an industrial state, and the population grew from 2.4 million to 3.3 million between 1850 and 1900. The textile industry in eastern Switzerland was the leading industry until the First World War. In its wake, the machine industry developed, and the chemical industry, especially in Basel. After the rise of the electrical industry, the first large European river power station was built between Rheinfelden AG and Rheinfelden (Baden), soon followed by numerous hydroelectric power stations to generate electricity for the Swiss economy (e.g. the textile and aluminium industries), and later also for private households and the railways. In agriculture, grain cultivation was increasingly abandoned in favour of dairy and livestock farming due to cheaper imports. Cheese, chocolate and condensed milk became important export goods. Despite the industrial boom, many Swiss were forced to emigrate to North and South America and Russia due to the poor economic conditions. Rural exodus and population growth led to strong growth in cities; the percentage of the urban population in the total population grew from 6.4 to 27.6 percent between 1850 and 1920 (see also Demographics of Switzerland).

On the initiative of the Genevan Henry Dunant (1828–1910), what would later become the International Committee of the Red Cross was founded in Geneva in 1863. The Geneva Convention, which all European states had joined by 1868, recognized the Red Cross as an auxiliary service of the army and neutralized the medical service. As the headquarters of the Red Cross, Geneva became a metropolis with international appeal and attracted other important international organizations well into the 20th century.

In 1873, the "Kulturkampf" between the state and the Catholic Church broke out in Switzerland as a result of the First Vatican Council's dogma of infallibility. The primary issue was the influence of the church in the new liberal-secular state. There were strong tensions between the Roman Catholic Church and the liberal cantons in the area of ​​the diocese of Basel, particularly in the Catholic northern Jura, which was dominated by the Reformed Bern. The conflicts escalated until the Federal Council broke off diplomatic relations with the Vatican in December 1873. The apostolic nuncio, who had been based in Lucerne since 1586, left Switzerland. A small part of the Roman Catholic faithful split off to form the new Christian Catholic Church. In 1920, the re-establishment of a nunciature was permitted, this time with its seat in Bern. Only the deletion of the exceptions in the Federal Constitution - the ban on Jesuits and the ban on new monasteries - paved the way for a Swiss representation at the Holy See. In 1991, the Federal Council appointed an "ambassador on a special mission to the Holy See", and from 2004 the Swiss ambassador in Slovenia was also responsible for the Vatican via a side accreditation.

In the course of flood protection and the acquisition of arable land, numerous waterways were corrected, sometimes massively, in the 19th and 20th centuries, for example the Aare during the Jura water corrections (1868–1891/1935–1973) or the regulation of the Alpine Rhine around 1900. In the 21st century, some areas were renaturalised.

The Democrats gradually fought for constitutional revisions in the cantons, which for example led to the creation of a new cantonal parliament. In Zurich, for example, in 1869, the introduction of the popular initiative, the obligatory legislative referendum and the popular election of the government was included. After a first failed attempt in 1872, the Federal Constitution was revised in 1874 in the interests of the Democrats. In addition to the expansion of direct democracy with the introduction of the optional referendum, the centralization of the military system and a general standardization of the law, the Kulturkampf was also reflected in the revised Federal Constitution, for example in the ban on the Jesuit order, the introduction of civil marriage and divorce, the granting of full freedom of religion and worship as well as compulsory, free and non-denominational primary school education for all children. Swiss Jews were also granted complete freedom of religion after they had already received full civil rights and freedom of settlement throughout Switzerland in 1866. As part of the total revision, the Federal Court was upgraded to a permanent court of law, which from then on was also based on a real separation of powers.

Especially since the 1870s, Switzerland became a center of the anarchist movement in the international labor movement. This included people such as Mikhail Bakunin, Peter Krapotkin and Johann Most, but also unorganized anarchists such as the murderer of Empress Elisabeth of Austria-Hungary, Luigi Lucheni. A regional focus emerged in the Jura, where many journeymen from the watchmaking industry joined the movement. Saint-Imier had been a meeting place for international anarchists since 1872. In 1882, a federal law abolished gender guardianship. This gave unmarried women full legal capacity and capacity to act. Married women only achieved full legal equality with the new marriage law of 1988.

Towards the end of the 19th century, the traditional lines of conflict between liberals and conservatives were softened by the strengthening of the labor movement. In 1888, cantonal workers' parties merged to form the Socialist Party (SP), today's Social Democratic Party. Just a few years later, the conservative and liberal-democratic movements also united into parties at the national level: in 1894, the Free Democratic Party (FdP), the Catholic Conservative Party (KK) and the Christian Democratic People's Party (CVP) - today's Die Mitte - were founded. At that time, federal politics was dominated by the Free Democrats, the founders of the liberal democratic state, with clear majorities. In 1891, the Federal Assembly elected Joseph Zemp from Lucerne as the first Catholic and representative of the moderate wing of the Catholic-conservative movement to the Federal Council. This marked the beginning of the integration of the conservative-Catholic forces, which had been defeated in 1848 and 1874, into the federal state.

On August 1, 1891, the Swiss Federal Day was celebrated for the first time. The date of 1 August was chosen in reference to the Federal Charter of early August 1291.

In 1891, the direct democratic instrument of the popular initiative to adapt the Federal Constitution was introduced. In 1892, the Federal Law on Debt Enforcement and Bankruptcy (SchKG) came into force. It is the oldest part of civil law codified at the Swiss (federal) level and older than the Swiss Civil Code (ZGB), which came into force in 1912, and the Code of Obligations (OR), which is the fifth part of the ZGB. In 1894, the Federal Council introduced a uniform time in Switzerland. Central European Time (CET) replaced the various regional time zones.

In 1907, Switzerland signed the Hague Convention on the Rights and Duties of Neutral States in War. The agreement prohibits neutral countries from supplying warring states with troops, weapons or ammunition, among other things. The Swiss War Material Act is also based on this. The most important right from the agreement is the right to the inviolability of one's own territory.

Since the founding of the federal state, ten federal interventions (with and without the use of troops) have taken place in cantons, including the Tonhalle riots in Zurich in 1871, the unrest in Göschenen in 1875, the Ticino coup of 1890 and most recently the unrest in Geneva in 1932.

On August 1, 1914, the Swiss National Park was founded in the Engadin, making it the oldest national park in the Alps.

 

First World War

During the First World War, Switzerland maintained armed neutrality. The border was occupied under General Ulrich Wille. The German Schlieffen Plan had already envisaged attacking France via Belgium and not via Switzerland before the war. Although French and Italian plans existed to attack the Central Powers by marching through Switzerland, Switzerland was spared military attacks on its territory.

Almost more dangerous for Switzerland's continued existence was the country's political and cultural division along the German-French and bourgeois-socialist lines of conflict. Parts of the German-speaking Swiss population sympathized with the Central Powers (primarily Germany), while France was supported in western Switzerland. After the "Colonel Affair" in western Switzerland, the German-speaking Swiss military elite around General Wille and Chief of Staff Theophil Sprecher von Bernegg in particular were suspected of colluding with Germany and Austria-Hungary.

The population's trust in the Swiss military and politics was repeatedly shaken by affairs and scandals. In 1917, for example, Federal Councillor Arthur Hoffmann attempted to mediate peace between Russia and Germany. Hoffmann was ultimately forced to resign under pressure from the Entente because he was accused of trying to help Germany to relieve pressure on the Eastern Front. Throughout the war, Switzerland offered humanitarian services, such as repatriating civilian internees from both sides, organising the exchange of wounded and offering recuperative stays for the wounded in health resorts.

Economically, the world war was a heavy burden for Switzerland and its population. The sharp rise in federal expenditure caused debts to grow, so that a one-off war tax was introduced in 1915 and a war profits tax in 1916. In 1918, the stamp duty was introduced as a second federal tax. In order to ensure the country's supply of coal, food and steel, the Federal Council agreed to the warring parties monitoring foreign trade and granted them large loans. Rationing was only introduced very late, in October 1917, initially for bread, and in March 1918 for fat. Due to the late introduction of rationing and the lack of a wage replacement scheme for the soldiers, as well as rising unemployment as a result of the lack of raw materials and foreign demand, poverty in Switzerland increased.

The political parties agreed to a truce in August 1914, so that party disputes were put on hold at the start of the war. However, after the international socialist conferences in Zimmerwald (1915) and Kiental (1916) in the canton of Bern, the influence of anti-militarist and revolutionary-minded forces within the SP grew significantly. In 1917, the SP adopted a new anti-militarist and revolutionary party program that signaled a clear break with the rest of the party landscape. The worsening social problems strengthened the socialists, especially in the cities. Since November 1917, tensions have erupted in the form of violent unrest, strikes and demonstrations. The national strike of November 1918 is considered the high point of the political confrontation between the "citizens' bloc", the traditional liberal and conservative forces, and the workers' movement. The strikers demanded, among other things, a 48-hour week, pensions and women's suffrage. The national strike put Switzerland to a serious test for the first time since 1848. 25,000 workers went on strike, facing 95,000 soldiers who were called up by the Federal Council to ensure peace and order. Overall, despite substantial tensions, the strike was resolved relatively peacefully after three days. In total, there were three deaths in Grenchen.

Between 1914 and 1917, the future Russian revolutionary leader Lenin lived as a refugee in Switzerland. The Swiss socialist Fritz Platten played a key role in organizing Lenin's journey to St. Petersburg in a sealed car in April 1917. After the February Revolution of 1917 ended the Russian tsarist rule and the Bolsheviks seized power by force, many Russian-Swiss fled back to their old homeland and had to leave all their belongings behind. In Russia they had achieved a certain level of prosperity. Many of them subsequently became dependent on welfare in Switzerland.

In 1915, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) moved its headquarters from Paris to Lausanne. Numerous world and European sports associations followed suit in the decades to come.

In 1918 and 1919, the Spanish flu was rampant in Switzerland, as it was in much of the world. According to official statistics, 24,449 people died of the flu in Switzerland between July 1918 and the end of June 1919. That corresponds to 0.62 percent of the entire population in 1918. Due to the lack of mandatory medical reporting, it is assumed that a large number of unreported cases are not reported. Many people also contracted tuberculosis. Between 1916 and 1925, over 50,000 people died of the disease in Switzerland.

 

Interwar period

In 1919, the bourgeois Federal Council implemented reforms that largely met the demands of the workers' movement, such as the introduction of the 48-hour week. In October 1919, the National Council was elected for the first time using proportional representation, which put an end to the dominance of liberalism and led to a strong upswing for the socialists. Despite this, at the end of the year the SP adopted a party program that placed it in clear opposition to the bourgeois-democratic state order. Despite this, radical socialists split off into the Communist Party of Switzerland. In response, the major bourgeois parties formed the "Citizens' Bloc," which formed the Swiss government during the interwar period and politically isolated the SP at the federal level.

Swiss domestic politics in the interwar period was shaped by the growing conflicts between farmers and tradespeople on the one hand and employees or the parties and organizations that represented them on the other. In 1918, the peasant leader Rudolf Minger founded the Farmers', Tradesmen's and Citizens' Party (BGB) in the canton of Bern as a new bourgeois force. Originally a centrist farmers' party, it was opposed to the existing bourgeois and socialist parties, but was nevertheless integrated into the bourgeois bloc relatively quickly and, with Minger's election to the Federal Council in 1929, received a seat in government.

After the end of the war, the Austrian state of Vorarlberg attempted to join Switzerland. In the Paris Peace Treaties, Switzerland's neutrality was reaffirmed, but Vorarlberg was definitively assigned to Austria and the neutrality of Upper Savoy was lifted. In 1920, following a referendum, Switzerland joined the League of Nations, which had its headquarters in Geneva. This marked the beginning of a phase of differentiated neutrality for Switzerland. It took part in economic, but not military, sanctions imposed by the League of Nations.

After the end of the war, Switzerland experienced its first economic crisis, which particularly affected eastern Switzerland, where the textile industry practically collapsed due to the lack of foreign demand for luxury products. After the economic situation in Germany stabilized in 1924 (after hyperinflation in 1923 and currency reform), the economy recovered, but in the course of 1930/31 it was also caught up in the global economic crisis (in and around Germany and Austria, the German banking crisis from June 1931 exacerbated the economic situation). The collapse of exports to almost a third led to a sharp fall in prices and a rise in unemployment. The public sector at federal, cantonal and municipal levels attempted to bring an end to the crisis through emergency work, major projects and various other economic policy interventions. However, the state's price and wage reduction policy actually exacerbated the crisis with its deflationary effect. The crisis led to a strong radicalization among the workforce. At the end of 1932, 13 workers died in the violent military suppression of protests in Geneva.

The relationship between Switzerland and the Principality of Liechtenstein has been regulated by a customs treaty since 1923 (officially: "Treaty between Switzerland and Liechtenstein on the annexation of the Principality of Liechtenstein to the Swiss customs territory").

In the fight against "vagrancy", the Pro Juventute relief organization Children of the Road was founded in 1926 to snatch Yenish children from their parents. The goal was the forced integration of the Yenish. From 1972 onwards, the practice was investigated by the federal government under pressure from the media. Another dark chapter in the history of Switzerland in the early 20th century was the treatment of so-called indentured children. Children from poor or socially difficult backgrounds were usually placed with farmers by the guardianship authorities, who often exploited and/or mistreated the children as cheap labor. The responsible authorities looked the other way. The practice was not abandoned until the 1970s. At the beginning of the 21st century, the media took up this topic more intensively, after it had been suppressed by society for a long time. The issue of administrative care was also addressed and dealt with. People who did not fully conform to social norms were locked away without a court order. This practice was only abandoned after the ratification of the European Convention on Human Rights in 1974.

In the interwar period, companies and institutions were founded that have continued to shape Switzerland to this day: In August 1925, Gottlieb Duttweiler founded Migros. First in sales vans, and later in shops, he sold a basic range of cheap food and household products. Established food retailers felt threatened. Together with parties, politicians and unions, they tried to ruin Migros, for example with the unconstitutional ban on branches that existed between 1933 and 1945. Female consumers in particular recognized the value of Migros. The company became increasingly successful and rose to become the largest retailer in the country. In keeping with his social attitude, Gottlieb Duttweiler and his wife Adele bequeathed Migros to their customers in 1941 by turning the company into a cooperative.

In February 1931, the Swiss Radio and Television Corporation SRG was founded, organized as an association. The SRG operates its radio and, from 1953, television programs under a federal license and is largely financed by broadcasting fees. During the Second World War, the SRG supported the "spiritual defense of the country" with its three national broadcasters, Radio Beromünster (German), Radio Sottens (French) and Radio Monte Ceneri (Italian), and thus assumed an important political function. The private company Swissair - Schweizerische Luftverkehr AG was also founded in 1931. Until the opening of Zurich-Kloten Airport in 1948, Dübendorf Airport was Swissair's home base.

The ongoing crisis also led to the emergence of a right-wing, anti-Marxist, national renewal movement in Switzerland, the Fronten movement. After the Nazi regime seized power in Germany (and parallel to the establishment of the Austro-fascist corporate state in Austria), the Swiss renewal movements felt a boost in the "Frontenfrühling" (spring 1933), but were unable to record any notable political successes. Despite strong political tensions and a crisis of confidence in the national government, the popular initiative launched by the National Front for a total revision of the federal constitution, which was intended to bring about a fascist transformation of Switzerland, failed on September 8, 1935.

The fascist-National Socialist threat brought the SP and the trade union movement closer together with the bourgeois parties. The SP gave up its opposition role and spoke out in its 1935 party program for national defense and against the dictatorship of the proletariat. By resolution of September 27, 1936, the Federal Council devalued the Swiss franc by 30 percent; This contributed to a recovery in the export economy and an end to the economic crisis. The peace agreement in the metal and watchmaking industry in July 1937 between employers' and employees' organizations marked the beginning of the era of social partnership and collective labor agreements.

In the 1930s, further federal laws replaced cantonal solutions. In 1932, road traffic became a federal matter, which led to the Federal Law on Motor Vehicle and Bicycle Traffic. In 1938, after twelve years of preparatory work, the people adopted the Swiss Criminal Code (StGB), which came into force on January 1, 1942. This abolished the death penalty. The last person to be executed after a civil criminal trial was the 32-year-old triple murderer Hans Vollenweider on October 18, 1940. During the Second World War, 17 traitors were shot under military criminal law. The death penalty has been banned at constitutional level since 1999. The penal code of 1942 only sanctioned homosexual acts with minors. This meant that consensual homosexuality between adults was legalized, making Zurich the center of the European gay movement.

After the annexation of Austria to the German Reich (March 1938), Switzerland returned to integral neutrality, which was recognized by the League of Nations. Under the impression of German expansion (armament of the Wehrmacht), Swiss politicians, scholars and military officers reaffirmed Switzerland's will to resist and assert itself. Federal Councilor Hermann Obrecht proclaimed: "Whoever attacks our independence [...] will face war! We Swiss will not go on pilgrimages abroad first."

In the late 1930s, 800 Swiss fought in the International Brigades in the Spanish Civil War.

After the introduction of the Nuremberg Race Laws in Germany, the emigration and flight of German Jews to Switzerland increased. In 1938, Germany began to stamp Jewish passports with a J stamp (Ordinance on Jewish Passports). Switzerland only granted asylum to political refugees (and not to those persecuted "on racial grounds"). At the Evian Conference in July 1938, Switzerland also refused to permanently accept a certain contingent of refugees and insisted on remaining solely a transit country, which is why only emigrants who could credibly demonstrate that they would be able to travel on as soon as possible were allowed to enter Switzerland. In response, Jewish National Councilor David Farbstein resigned in 1938.

From 1933 onwards, parliamentarians, intellectuals and media representatives demanded measures to ward off fascist, National Socialist and communist totalitarianism. In a message dated December 9, 1938, the Federal Council therefore called for spiritual national defense, i.e. a return to Switzerland's fundamental values: belonging to three European cultural areas, cultural diversity, the confederal character of democracy and respect for human dignity and freedom. This mandate led to the founding of the Swiss cultural foundation Pro Helvetia in 1939, and it also shaped the Swiss National Exhibition "Landi" in Zurich, which took place in the summer of 1939. The diversity and protection of minorities in Switzerland was also emphasized by the fact that the people recognized Romansh as the fourth national language (but not an official language) in 1938.

 

Second World War

After the outbreak of the Second World War, Switzerland again invoked armed neutrality and ordered the general mobilization of the army under the commander-in-chief, General Henri Guisan. Parliament granted the Federal Council, citing a state of emergency and applying extra-constitutional emergency law, comprehensive powers that were actually unconstitutional (cf. state of emergency), to take direct measures to defend Switzerland and its economic interests, which only had to be subsequently approved by the legislature. During the German invasion of France, the German Wehrmacht in La Charité-sur-Loire came across secret plans that revealed Swiss and French agreements in the event of a German attack on Switzerland. On May 10, 1940, the army triggered the second general mobilization. During the French campaign, around 42,000 French and Polish soldiers fled to Switzerland in early June 1940 and were interned until 1941 and then some were returned to France. After the French defeat, General Guisan implemented the Réduit Plan to further defend Switzerland, which was now completely surrounded by the Axis powers. In the event of a German invasion, the Mittelland and its civilian population would have been abandoned and resistance would have been concentrated on the Alpine massif.

At times, the Axis powers planned the invasion of Switzerland in general staff simulations using the operational plan against Switzerland. In this context, the foundation for a National Socialist policy in Switzerland was laid from Rorschach with Wilhelm Gustloff, who was later murdered. Switzerland was largely spared from military activities during the Second World War, but was not completely untouched. In addition to German airspace violations in the first phase of the war, the Allied bombing campaign led to constant overflights and accidental bombings of Swiss towns and villages until the end of the war, partly because Switzerland introduced blackouts under pressure from the Axis powers. Swiss territory was bombed a total of 77 times, killing 84 people. The most serious incident, with 40 deaths, over 100 injuries and loss of cultural assets, was the bombing of Schaffhausen on April 1, 1944.

During the Second World War, Switzerland, with a total population of less than four million, housed a total of almost 300,000 people seeking protection for shorter or longer periods of time. These included categories as diverse as interned military personnel (103,000), temporarily admitted border refugees (67,000), children on vacation (60,000), civilian refugees (approx. 51,000, of whom approx. 21,000 were of Jewish descent), emigrants (10,000) and political refugees (250). Given the precarious supply situation, the acceptance of refugees was controversial among politicians and the population. In this context, Federal Councilor Eduard von Steiger coined the political slogan "the boat is full". From 1942, the Federal Council ordered stricter measures against illegal border crossings. Since Swiss asylum law only recognized refugees for political reasons, Jewish refugees who attempted to leave Germany or its sphere of influence "for racial reasons" were denied entry to Switzerland. It was not until July 1944 that Jews were recognized as political refugees. According to recent studies, around 24,398 refugees were turned back at the border. However, a study in Geneva showed that, despite the theoretically closed border, 86 percent of "illegal" refugees were accepted.

In contrast to the First World War, from 1939 onwards the social burden of active service for soldiers was reduced by the introduction of the wage and earnings compensation system, so that social unrest did not occur. Despite this, the SP became the strongest faction in the National Council in the 1943 parliamentary elections, with 56 seats. The election of the Social Democrat Ernst Nobs to the Federal Council sealed the integration of the SP into the Swiss party system and the end of the party struggles between the bourgeois bloc and the socialists.

Public opinion was controlled by censorship (Press and Radio Department), extremist and subversive propaganda was banned. In 1940, the Communist Party of Switzerland and the National Movement of Switzerland were banned. Numerous Swiss and foreign nationals were arrested during the war for spying for Germany. A total of 33 men were sentenced to death for treason while serving in active service, with only 17 sentences being carried out. Numerous other people were sentenced to prison terms or expelled or deported. The deployment of troops against the Steiner Uprising in 1942 is considered the largest military law enforcement operation in the Second World War.

Around 1,000 Swiss citizens suffered in Nazi concentration camps between 1933 and 1945, and at least 200 of them died. No violent conflict in the last 200 years has claimed more Swiss lives. Many victims could have been helped if official Switzerland had done more for them. In the last years of the war, Germany showed great interest in exchanging a large number of Swiss prisoners for Germans imprisoned in Switzerland. But official Switzerland did not seize the opportunity. The Swiss authorities did not want to promote an exchange for criminals and those "who had carried out activities that are also punishable in Switzerland or that appear to be at least detrimental to Swiss interests (such as espionage against Germany for the benefit of third countries, participation in the resistance movement in France, communist activities)". Swiss citizens who had been actively involved in opposing the Nazi dictatorship could not expect any help.

Through early economic preparation and the rapid introduction of rationing and the "cultivation battle", the Federal Council was able to ensure Switzerland's food supplies. The high financial burden on the federal budget made it necessary, as had been the case with the war tax in 1915, to raise one-off additional taxes and finally, in 1941, to introduce a military tax on income and assets, which has survived to this day as a direct federal tax. In order to generate further tax revenue, the goods turnover tax (WUSt) was introduced in mid-1941. This was replaced by value added tax in 1995. In order to combat tax evasion, the fourth tax at federal level, the withholding tax, which is still in force today, was finally introduced in 1944. After Switzerland was completely encircled by the Axis powers, the Federal Council was forced to conclude an economic agreement with Germany to regulate the exchange of coal, steel and other goods essential to the war effort. Switzerland had to grant Germany loans totaling over a billion francs. Despite the blockade, Switzerland was able to continue to supply the Allies with precision instruments that were important for the war effort. The Allies had been keeping "black lists" since 1939 to force the Swiss machine industry to stop exporting to Germany. In March 1945, Switzerland and the Allies agreed in the Currie Agreement to end Swiss exports to Germany and to hand over some German assets. In the Washington Agreement of 1946, Switzerland finally allowed the Allies to confiscate all German property in Switzerland. The dispute over the so-called looted gold that had come to Switzerland via the German Reichsbank was settled with the payment of 250 million Swiss francs. The Allies then lifted all economic and financial measures against Switzerland. In the same year, Switzerland and the Soviet Union established diplomatic relations after relations had been severely strained for 23 years due to the Conradi affair. Between 1952 and 1971, the Federal Republic of Germany repaid 650 million Swiss francs of war debts to Switzerland. Switzerland's role in the Second World War was last revised in the 1990s by the Bergier Report.

Over 2,000 Swiss National Socialists fought in the German Waffen-SS during the war. Between October 1944 and February 1945, the Swiss Johannes Pauli (1900–1969) was deputy camp commander in the Bisingen concentration camp. At the end of the war, Pauli fled to Switzerland, where he was arrested in Basel and sentenced to 12 years in prison. The fact that Swiss citizens committed war crimes in the service of the Nazis has so far been almost completely ignored by German historiography and only inadequately addressed by Swiss historiography. Johannes Pauli was only one of four war criminals in Swiss history to be found guilty and convicted.

 

Switzerland in the post-war period and during the Cold War

In its long tradition, Switzerland saw itself as politically and militarily neutral during the Cold War, but ideologically it clearly belonged to the liberal western camp. For reasons of neutrality (→ Neutrality of Switzerland), Switzerland did not join the United Nations (UN) or NATO. Despite this, the European headquarters of the UN remained in Geneva after the dissolution of the League of Nations, and numerous UN sub-organizations also opened their headquarters in Geneva. In 1945, the superpowers USA and the Soviet Union viewed Switzerland's stance negatively, but the Soviet Union was nevertheless keen to formally resume diplomatic relations. On the other hand, Switzerland concluded the Washington Agreement with the USA, France and the United Kingdom in 1946 to regulate German assets in Switzerland. With Resolution 11 on November 15, 1946, the Security Council laid down the conditions for Switzerland's accession to the International Court of Justice, which it finally did on July 28, 1948. As part of the Marshall Plan, 16 European states founded the Organisation for European Economic Cooperation (OEEC) (the predecessor of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)) in Paris in 1948. Switzerland participated in it.

Especially in the immediate post-war period, the undestroyed Switzerland was an important factor in Central Europe, both economically and militarily. The beginning of the Cold War led to a major costly rearmament and modernisation of the Swiss army, particularly since 1951. Conscription in the militia army lasted for all Swiss fit for service from the age of 20 to 50 (Army Reform 60). By 1967, the first steps towards nuclear rearmament were taken; Switzerland was considered a nuclear threshold country. However, with the signing of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty in 1969, Switzerland voluntarily gave up the nuclear option. To protect the population in the event of a nuclear war, a network of shelters was built from the 1970s onwards, which is unique in the world.

In the post-war period, the spiritual defence of the country was directed against the danger of the country being occupied by Warsaw Pact troops and against communist infiltration of Switzerland. For this reason, around 13,000 Hungarians were taken in during the Hungarian uprising in 1956 and around 12,000 Czechoslovakians who had fled from Soviet intervention in their countries were taken in after the suppression of the Prague Spring in 1968. Switzerland's neutrality favoured the so-called "good offices" of Switzerland, so that international peace conferences were repeatedly held in Switzerland, mostly in Geneva, for example the Indochina Conference in 1954 or the regular summits of the superpowers. For example, the President of the United States Ronald Reagan and the General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Mikhail Gorbachev met at the Geneva Summit Conference (1985). The World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, founded by Klaus Schwab in 1971, also serves as an opportunity for exchange between global elites.

The federal popular initiative "Return to direct democracy" was launched in 1946 after it became apparent that the Federal Council was no longer willing to abandon the plenary powers regime. It was narrowly approved in the referendum on September 11, 1949. This popular initiative indirectly ensured that the Federal Assembly repealed the last plenary powers by the end of 1952.

In the night of December 19-20, 1947, a secret Swiss army ammunition depot exploded above Mitholz in the municipality of Kandergrund in the Bernese Oberland. The explosion disaster in Mitholz claimed nine lives and injured seven other residents. Large parts of the village of Mitholz were devastated, several houses and the Blausee-Mitholz station of the Lötschberg railway were destroyed. After the clearance work, the facility was partially rebuilt and used as a warehouse and troop accommodation. In 2018, however, experts from the VBS determined that the ammunition remains remaining in the facility still posed an explosion hazard. As of 2022, the former ammunition depot is therefore to be completely cleared from 2031. For safety reasons, the village of Mitholz must remain evacuated for over ten years. The clearance is expected to cost around one billion francs.

In 1952, the Citizenship Act (BüG) was amended so that Swiss women who married a foreigner did not automatically lose their Swiss citizenship. Up until then, there had been repeated cases in which expatriated Swiss women were deported to their husbands' often foreign country due to poverty or illness. In some documented cases, the women were even murdered in Nazi concentration camps.

Because Switzerland did not want to join the European Economic Community (EEC) for political reasons, it founded the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) in 1960 together with Denmark, Norway, Austria, Portugal, Sweden and the United Kingdom. In 1961, Switzerland was one of the founding members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). On May 6, 1963, Switzerland also joined the Council of Europe. In 1970, the Federal Council took the first steps towards Switzerland's European integration, which culminated in a free trade agreement with the EEC in 1972. In the same year, Switzerland also signed the European Convention on Human Rights. In 1973, it joined the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). Switzerland was a founding member of the European Space Agency (ESA) in 1975. In 1992, Claude Nicollier became the first Swiss astronaut to fly into space on board the Space Shuttle Atlantis.

After 1945, Switzerland experienced an unprecedented economic boom that lasted until the 1970s. During this time, exports increased almost tenfold. With a steadily increasing population due to the baby boom and immigration, the face of Switzerland changed due to strong construction activity and increased mobility of the population. The Mittelland between Geneva and Lausanne and between Bern and Zurich and St. Gallen in particular lost its rural character due to urban sprawl. The existing road network was no longer sufficient to cope with the increased volume of traffic. The law on a national road network passed by parliament in 1960 transferred authority for national road construction to the federal government. The growing energy demand was met by the construction of five nuclear power plants and the expansion of hydroelectric power generation, including the construction of numerous reservoirs. However, the large-scale Urseren power plant project failed due to resistance from the population. Economic development, particularly in the service sector, led to a strong increase in private income and general prosperity. The expansion of the welfare state (introduction of old-age and survivors' insurance (AHV) in 1947, disability insurance (IV) in 1959) and the reduction of working hours, coupled with strong economic growth, ensured social peace in Switzerland until the 1990s. The national exhibition Expo 64, held in Lausanne in 1964, took place in the spirit of economic boom and belief in progress.

Economic growth from the 1960s onwards made it necessary to import "cheap" labour from abroad for the construction and tourism industries. The proportion of the foreign resident population therefore rose from 10 per cent to 17.5 per cent between 1960 and 1970, with Italians making up the largest immigrant group, as Italy had signed an agreement with Switzerland in 1948 to provide Italian labour. Since the end of the economic boom in the 1970s, fears of foreign infiltration have become noticeable among parts of the population. Several attempts to limit the number of foreigners in Switzerland through so-called "foreign infiltration initiatives" (James Schwarzenbach) failed in the referendum. The Federal Council attempted to prevent the permanent settlement of so-called "guest workers" by enforcing the seasonal worker statute established in 1934, but this only created social hardship and hindered the rapid integration of migrants.

In 1969 and 1970, Switzerland was suddenly targeted by Palestinian terrorists. On February 18, 1969, four Fatah attackers opened fire on an aircraft belonging to the Israeli airline El Al at Zurich Airport. The co-pilot and one attacker died in the attack. On February 21, 1970, Swissair Flight 330 crashed near Würenlingen after a parcel bomb exploded. All 47 people on board died. The attack by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) was actually aimed at the Israeli airline El Al. The series of attacks culminated in September 1970 with the hijacking of three passenger planes from Switzerland, the USA and Great Britain with more than 300 hostages to Jordan. The 143 passengers and 12 crew members of the Swissair flight SR100 were released, as were all the other hostages. The terrorists then blew up the planes. In 2016, a journalist from the Neue Zürcher Zeitung published the theory that the then Foreign Minister, Federal Councillor Pierre Graber, mediated by SP National Councillor Jean Ziegler, had concluded a secret ceasefire agreement with the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO), which was openly terrorist at the time. Switzerland was to be spared from terrorist attacks from then on. In return, Switzerland campaigned for the diplomatic recognition of the PLO at the UN headquarters in Geneva. The prosecution of a Palestinian suspect in the attack on Swissair Flight 330, which left 47 people dead, was dropped by the judiciary for reasons still unknown. In 1995, the then Federal Prosecutor Carla Del Ponte reopened the case despite the statute of limitations, but dropped the proceedings again in 2000.

The introduction of women's suffrage at the federal level failed for the first time in a referendum in 1959. However, Vaud and Neuchâtel introduced it at cantonal level in the same year, followed by Basel-Stadt (1966) and Basel-Landschaft (1968) as the first cantons in German-speaking Switzerland. Trudy Späth was the first woman to be elected to a political authority in 1958. In 1971, women's suffrage was approved in a referendum (among Swiss men) after decades of struggle. At cantonal level, the canton of Appenzell Innerrhoden was the last to allow women to take part in the Landsgemeinde in 1991 under pressure from the Federal Court. After political equality with the amendment of the Federal Constitution in 1981, women were also given the same rights as men at constitutional level (Art. 8 BV). The new marriage law came into force in 1988 and the Equality Act in 1996. Elisabeth Kopp (FDP) was the first woman to be elected to the Federal Council in 1984.

In the autumn of 1973, the almost uninterrupted economic growth that had been taking place since 1950 came to an abrupt end due to the oil price crisis and gave way to a surprising economic crisis. Large parts of the world economy were affected by it. However, the crisis was more pronounced in Switzerland than in the other OECD countries. In 1975, gross domestic product fell by almost 7 percent in real terms, partly because around 200,000 Italian workers had to leave the country. The oversized construction industry and the textile sector were particularly badly hit, as were mechanical and equipment manufacturing. The watch industry, which was so important for exports and had long failed to recognise the importance of the quartz watch, found itself in existential difficulties. In addition to falling demand, the export economy suffered from the strong franc after US President Richard Nixon removed the gold backing of the US dollar in 1971, thus ending the Bretton Woods world monetary system. The oil price shock drove the already high annual inflation rate in Switzerland to almost 12 percent in December 1973.

Even before the outbreak of the economic crisis, a new environmental awareness developed within a short period of time from 1970 onwards due to the consequences of unbridled growth, especially the burden on the population from noise, soot and exhaust fumes from the rapidly increasing traffic, on rivers and lakes from sewage and on the landscape from waste dumps. On June 6, 1971, in the first vote with the participation of women, the people approved the environmental article with the second highest yes percentage (92.7%) in the history of the federal state. The Environmental Protection Act did not come into force until 1985, but in the meantime the authorities were mainly pushing ahead with the construction of sewage treatment plants. Exhaust fumes from motor traffic and industry were considered to be the cause of forest dieback, which caused concern in the 1980s, especially in German-speaking countries. Switzerland therefore decided to significantly expand public transport (Zurich S-Bahn, Rail and Bus Project 2000) and to take measures to protect the air. In politics, the fear of forest dieback led to the founding of green parties. They won nine (GPS) and four (GBS) seats in the 1987 National Council elections.

The 1973 oil crisis caught Switzerland completely unprepared, as 80 percent of its energy supply was dependent on oil at the time. The Federal Council lacked the basis to intervene in the markets and ensure supplies due to the lack of a constitutional article. In 1974, it therefore set up the Federal Commission for the Overall Energy Concept, chaired by "nuclear pope" Michael Kohn. In its final report in 1978, the commission presented four scenarios, from a market economy without state intervention to a dirigiste one without nuclear power plants, i.e. with a sustainable change in energy consumption and thus in lifestyle. The Federal Council opted for the interventionist scenario, which called for an energy article and, based on this, an energy tax. However, the energy article failed in 1983 with a majority of 12 no votes to 11 yes votes.

Since the late 1960s, the electricity suppliers owned by the cantons and cities have been pushing ahead with the construction of nuclear power plants, initially in accordance with a broad consensus, especially among conservationists who opposed the expansion of hydropower. The Beznau 1 (NOK) nuclear power plant went into operation in 1969, Beznau 2 and Mühleberg (BKW) in 1972. The Gösgen nuclear power plant followed in 1979, the Leibstadt nuclear power plant in 1984, both built jointly by several suppliers. When construction of the Kaiseraugst nuclear power plant began in the spring of 1975, however, there was an occupation lasting weeks because growth critics fundamentally rejected nuclear power. The anti-nuclear movement submitted several popular initiatives for a ban. The people rejected them in 1979, 1984 and 1990 by a narrow majority; the Leibstadt nuclear power plant, however, remains the last plant built to date.

It was not until 1975 that voters introduced "unrestricted freedom of residence" for Swiss citizens throughout the country by a large majority. Until then, cantons could send welfare recipients back to their hometown.

In terms of domestic politics, Switzerland was shaped by the concordance achieved between the leading parties since 1959, which manifested itself in the so-called magic formula for the distribution of Federal Council seats. The concordance only fell into crisis after the end of the Cold War in 1989 and the rise of the right-wing conservative Swiss People's Party (SVP), which led to the magic formula being blown up in 2003. During this time, however, the population's trust in the authorities was repeatedly put to the test by political affairs and scandals, such as the Mirage affair in 1964 and the file scandal in 1989, as well as the discovery of the secret organization P-26 in 1990.

The crisis surrounding the separatist movement in the Bernese Jura was resolved democratically in 1979. The new canton of Jura was founded by the separation of the French-speaking administrative districts of Delémont, Ajoie and Freiberge from the canton of Bern. The founding of the canton made the Laufental a Bernese exclave. After a cascade of votes, the Laufental changed canton to the canton of Basel-Land on January 1, 1994.

The international youth movement led to conflicts between young people and the authorities in 1968 and 1980, with some bloody riots, particularly in Zurich. Politically and socially, the old elites were replaced and the spiritual national defense was broken up, but at the same time a conservative countermovement emerged in the bourgeois parties, which was mainly initiated by the SVP Zurich with its president Christoph Blocher. A significant sociopolitical debate arose in 1989 during the vote on the abolition of the Swiss army (“army abolition initiative”) brought about by the Group for a Switzerland without an Army (GSoA). Despite strong commitment from politicians, authorities and the army to retain the army, 35.6 percent of those eligible to vote approved the initiative. Together with the shock of the file affair, the controversy surrounding the army brought about the final end of the spiritual national defense.

From the 1980s onwards, the welfare state was further expanded: BG on accident insurance (UVG) in 1981, BG on occupational old-age, survivors' and disability benefits (BVG) in 1982, BG on compulsory unemployment insurance and insolvency compensation (AVIG) in 1982, BG on health insurance (KVG) in 1994.

Since the 1970s, the number of popular initiatives submitted has increased sharply. The parties discovered the popular initiative as a tool for political marketing with a view to the next parliamentary elections. This also increased the number of initiatives accepted. In 1987, the double yes with tie-breaker question was introduced for popular initiatives with a counter-proposal at federal level.

Between 1980 and 1989, 21 children disappeared in Switzerland, 14 of whom were found abused and murdered. Despite intensive searches, there is still no trace of 7 children, including Sarah Oberson, to this day (as of 2020). In August 1989, Werner Ferrari was arrested and in 1995 sentenced to life imprisonment by the District Court of Baden AG for five counts of murder. In 2007, he was acquitted in one of the cases. With the arrest, the series of missing children stopped. The faces of the missing children in the police photos burned themselves into the collective memory of two generations, that of the parents and that of the children of that time.

From 1986, the Platzspitz park in Zurich became an officially tolerated meeting place for drug addicts from all over Central Europe. The park attracted international attention as Needle Park until it was closed in 1992. The expulsion of drug addicts from Platzspitz shifted the open scene to neighboring districts before it settled again at the disused Letten train station. In 1995, the open drug scene in Zurich was finally closed. It became clear that police repression alone could not eliminate the drug problem. The establishment of drug rooms and the widespread supply of methadone enabled almost all addicts to reintegrate into society and escape drug-related crime.

In the summer of 1987, Switzerland was hit by several natural disasters. These were the most serious floods of the century. On the night of August 24-25, torrential rain fell on the cantons of Valais, Ticino and Uri. The dams in the Uri valley floor broke and the Reuss overflowed its banks. Houses, streets and the Gotthard railway line were torn away, and a motorway bridge on the A2 near Wassen collapsed because the Reuss had washed away a pillar. The storms in the summer of 1987 cost a total of eight people their lives. The federal government estimated the total financial damage at 1.2 to 1.3 billion Swiss francs, half a billion Swiss francs in the canton of Uri alone.

 

Switzerland in the 1990s

The Federal Council failed repeatedly when it tried to end Switzerland's political self-isolation. In 1986, voters rejected Switzerland's accession to the UN and in 1992 also to the European Economic Area (EEA). Despite growing opposition from right-wing bourgeois circles, the Federal Council stuck to its European integration course and submitted an application to Brussels in the same year for Switzerland to join the EU. The rise of the Swiss People's Party (SVP), the only Federal Council party to clearly oppose European integration, and the negative mood among the people forced the Federal Council onto the "bilateral path". Without formal accession, Switzerland implemented EU law autonomously and agreed twice with the EU in bilateral treaties on partial integration of Switzerland into the EU internal market and the liberalization of passenger and freight transport.

Switzerland joined the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund in 1992. Together with Central Asian states and Poland, it founded a voting group that was derisively referred to as "Helvetistan". Switzerland has been cooperating within NATO's Partnership for Peace since 1994 and the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council since 1997. This enables it to bring forward its foreign and security policy concerns.

The 1990s were marked by a long-term economic crisis and low economic growth, which led to a sharp increase in public debt. At the same time, the cantons and municipalities found themselves exposed to intense tax competition that largely ruled out tax increases. The decline of the Swiss machine and textile industries led to deindustrialization, particularly in eastern Switzerland, which has continued to this day, for example in the cantons of Glarus and St. Gallen. For the first time since the Second World War, unemployment rose again for a longer period to over four percent. The industrial workforce was hit particularly hard. The crisis only ended with the international economic upturn around the turn of the millennium. Whether Switzerland's failure to join the EEA or the EU, the federal government's misguided economic policy or the National Bank's monetary policy were the decisive factors in the long crisis is still a matter of political debate today.

During the 1990s, Switzerland took in numerous refugees from various international conflict regions, particularly from Sri Lanka, Turkey and the former Yugoslavia. During the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina (1992–1995), Switzerland took in almost 30,000 asylum seekers, and during the Kosovo conflict (1998/99) the figure was around 53,000. The significant influx of people from rural areas of southeastern Europe led to socio-political tensions, particularly because of the refugees' difficult cultural integration.

The defense policy debate about the future of the Swiss army continued in the 1990s. In 1993, the GSoA narrowly failed in a referendum with its proposal to forego the costly procurement of new F/A-18 fighter aircraft. Although the army regained trust through an initial army reform in 1995, it was only through Army Reform XXI that it was able to partially overcome the structural crisis that had broken out with the end of the Cold War and the elimination of real threat scenarios. Since the end of the 1990s, the continuation of the militia or the professionalization of the army had been under debate.

In the 1990s and the beginning of the new millennium, several natural disasters struck Switzerland. On September 24, 1993, a flood disaster occurred in Brig in the canton of Valais. Heavy rainfall caused the water level of the Saltina mountain stream to rise sharply. Debris and tree trunks blocked the flow near a city bridge. The masses of water and debris sought a new path. As a result, the old town of Brig was flooded with meters of mud and debris. Two people lost their lives. The avalanche winter of 1999 claimed 17 lives in Switzerland in non-tourist avalanche accidents, 12 of them in the avalanche accident in Evolène on February 21, 1999 alone. On July 27, 1999, 21 young people from a canyoning group died in the Saxetbach in the Bernese Oberland. They were swept away and killed by a water roller caused by a thunderstorm. On December 26, 1999, Hurricane Lothar swept across Central Europe and Switzerland. On Zurich's local mountain, Uetliberg, wind speeds of 241 km/h were measured, while in the lowlands, gusts of 140 km/h were recorded. In Switzerland, 10 million trees (around 13 million cubic meters of wood) were knocked down. 14 people died in the storm. In October 2000, the Alpine region was hit by severe flooding. On October 14, 2000, large masses of rock, earth and water destroyed 10 houses in the small community of Gondo on the Simplon Pass in the canton of Valais. 13 people died.

 

21st century

Political situation

Switzerland entered the new millennium with the implementation of the completely revised Federal Constitution, which had been approved by the people the previous year. The Federal Council described the revision as an "update" in which unwritten constitutional law was codified. Among other things, nine different fundamental rights that had previously only been recorded in decisions of the Federal Court and in legal commentaries were included. In addition, the position of the Federal Assembly vis-à-vis the Federal Council was significantly strengthened.

As part of the judicial reform approved by the Swiss people in 2000, three new first-instance federal courts were created in the following years, namely the Federal Criminal Court, the Federal Patent Court and the Federal Administrative Court. This took over the tasks of 36 federal appeals commissions and departmental appeals services.

As one of the last internationally recognized states, Switzerland joined the United Nations (UN) after a referendum on September 10, 2002. The only opposition to joining the UN was from right-wing conservative forces around the SVP.

The 12-week time limit for regulating abortion has been in place since October 2002.

On December 10, 2003, Christoph Blocher, the leading figure of the SVP, was elected to the Federal Council in place of Ruth Metzler (CVP). The last time a governing official was not re-elected was in 1872. The "de-election" of Christoph Blocher as Federal Councillor on December 12, 2007 by a prior agreement between the centre-left factions CVP, SP and the Greens clearly revealed the disunity among the Federal Council parties. The SVP no longer saw itself represented by the moderate SVP politician Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf, who had been newly elected to replace Blocher, and announced that it would step up its opposition to the state government. The effects of this implementation of the opposition while maintaining representation in the government on national politics remained modest, but led to strong tensions within the party and ultimately to the split of the Civil Democratic Party (BDP) from the SVP. Since the two SVP Federal Councillors Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf and Samuel Schmid joined the BDP, the SVP was no longer represented in the Federal Council until Samuel Schmid resigned at the end of 2008. In the by-election, the SVP managed to regain a seat in the Federal Council with former party president Ueli Maurer, but the attack on Federal Councillor Widmer-Schlumpf's seat held by the BDP failed in the 2011 general election. Since Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf announced her resignation at the end of 2015, the SVP was able to enter the general election on 9 December 2015 with a claim to a second seat. Guy Parmelin from Vaud won in the third round of voting, meaning that the SVP once again has two seats in the Federal Council.

In 2005, Switzerland joined the Schengen and Dublin agreements and is therefore part of the Schengen area.

In the 2007/2008 financial crisis (subprime crisis), the Swiss major bank UBS, like other banks around the world, found itself in dire straits. In order to avert serious, long-lasting economic consequences of an impending bankruptcy, the Swiss Confederation and the Swiss National Bank (SNB) rescued UBS with two financial injections. On October 16, 2008, the Federal Council announced that the federal government had subscribed to a mandatory convertible bond from UBS in the amount of 6 billion Swiss francs and that the Swiss National Bank had created a special purpose vehicle ("bad bank") into which UBS could outsource non-tradable securities worth up to 60 billion US dollars. By removing the illiquid securities from its balance sheet, the threat of UBS becoming over-indebted was averted.

The 2011 parliamentary elections largely confirmed expectations. The relatively new Green Liberal and BDP parties were definitely able to establish themselves at the national level and made the biggest gains in terms of both voter shares and seats. All other parties lost voter shares, most notably the FDP and SVP. The SVP's disproportionate seat losses and the SP's seat gains can be explained by the proportional representation system and the Council of States elections, which went very badly for the SVP. This resulted in the following shifts in the United Federal Assembly: SVP −10 seats (now 59 seats), SP +5 (57), FDP −6 (51), CVP −5 (41), Greens −5 (17), GLP +10 (14), BDP +10 (10). In the Federal Council, an alliance of the center-left parties SP, CVP and BDP formed a majority with four seats after the SVP failed in its attack on Federal Councilor Widmer-Schlumpf in the general elections. Even after the elections, the SVP continued to oppose European policy, immigration policy and migration issues. For example, against the recommendation of the government and parliament, it was able to persuade voters to accept popular initiatives aimed at automatically deporting criminal foreigners (deportation initiative) and limiting immigration through quotas.

Under great international pressure, on May 6, 2014, Switzerland joined the OECD declaration on the future automatic exchange of information in tax matters, which largely lifted the strict Swiss banking secrecy vis-à-vis the tax authorities of third countries.

On May 21, 2017, the Swiss population approved the Energy Strategy 2050 with 58.2% voting in favor. As a result, the construction of new nuclear power plants is prohibited. Furthermore, renewable energies and the more efficient use of energy are to be promoted (see measures of the Energy Strategy 2050).

The narrow adoption of the mass immigration initiative on February 9, 2014 was followed by a lengthy domestic and foreign policy crisis. The initiative called for immigration to Switzerland to be regulated by quotas, which called into question the continued existence of the bilateral agreements with the EU. Switzerland refused to extend the free movement of persons to the new EU member Croatia, citing the vote, whereupon the EU suspended negotiations with Switzerland on participation in the Horizon 2020 research program and the Erasmus+ student exchange. Switzerland was thus treated as a third country in these programs. It was not until the end of 2016 that the parties agreed, despite fierce resistance from the SVP, to implement the initiative in a way that was compatible with the free movement agreement. This implementation in the form of a job registration requirement was accepted by the EU, and Switzerland extended the free movement of persons to Croatia on January 1, 2017. With the "limitation initiative" submitted in August 2018, the SVP directly attacked the bilateral agreements with the EU for the first time. In September 2020, the people clearly rejected the initiative with 61.7% of the votes against.

Relations between Switzerland and the EU have been shaped since 2017 by negotiations to conclude a framework agreement for the bilateral agreements. This is intended to form an institutional umbrella for the existing and possible new market access agreements and to regulate the ongoing adaptation and uniform interpretation of the agreements as well as the legal settlement of disputes. The EU decided back in 2012 not to conclude any new market access agreements with Switzerland without a solution to these issues. The negotiating mandate for a framework agreement was adopted by the Federal Council on December 18, 2013, but negotiations dragged on until December 2018 after they officially began on May 6, 2014. The fully negotiated agreement was not signed by the Federal Council, however, but was submitted to parties, associations and cantons for consultation. The discussion focused on wage protection, the adoption of EU law and the question of jurisdiction in disputes with the EU. Negotiations were terminated on May 26, 2021.

On September 26, 2021, the Swiss electorate approved the introduction of marriage for all with 61.1% of the votes, and all cantons adopted the law.

On June 9, 2022, the UN General Assembly elected Switzerland as one of ten non-permanent members of the UN Security Council with 187 of 190 valid votes. The two-year mandate runs from January 1, 2023 to December 31, 2024. All major parties supported the candidacy, with the exception of the SVP, which expressed concerns about neutrality.

 

Other events

On September 27, 2001, a gunman carried out an attack in the parliament of the canton of Zug, leaving 15 people dead. One week later, one of the biggest economic collapses in Swiss history occurred: Swissair's aircraft fleet had to remain on the ground from October 2 due to insolvency (commonly referred to as grounding in Switzerland), and a year later the company finally had to cease operations. The remnants of the airline were absorbed into the new company Swiss. On October 24, 2001, 11 people died in the Gotthard road tunnel when two trucks collided and a fire broke out. The tunnel was then closed for two months for renovation work.

For the first time since 1954, a major sporting event took place in Switzerland in summer 2008 in cooperation with Austria: the European Football Championship. The venues in Switzerland were (stadiums in brackets): Basel (St. Jakobspark), Bern (Stade de Suisse), Zurich (Letzigrund) and Geneva (Stade de Genève). The St. Jakobspark in Basel had 42,500 seats and thus accommodated the most spectators in Switzerland. With tennis player Roger Federer, Switzerland produced one of the world's most famous and successful athletes.

While the economic upturn around the turn of the millennium was short-lived, the Swiss economy again achieved strong growth of an average of 3 percent between 2004 and 2008. The highest growth was recorded in 2007 with +3.8 percent. As a result of the subprime crisis, Switzerland also experienced a short recession in 2009 (-1.9 percent), but this was followed by a new phase of growth in 2010 (+3 percent). Overall, Switzerland has weathered the effects of the financial crisis and the franc shock in 2015 surprisingly well, achieving an average GDP growth of 1.4 percent since 2008. However, this was mainly due to immigration, which is why GDP growth per capita only reached 0.3 percent. Switzerland was one of the first countries to conclude a free trade agreement with the People's Republic of China in 2014.

Economists and politicians also see the recovery of the Swiss economy in connection with the free movement of people with the EU, which was introduced in 2002 and allows numerous skilled workers from the EU, especially from Germany, to immigrate to Switzerland. Switzerland is one of the few countries in Europe to experience population growth due to a positive migration balance (2022: +81,345 people). Due to strong immigration, the proportion of permanent foreign residents in the total population rose from around 15 percent in 1980 (0.9 million people) to over 25 percent at the end of 2022 (2.24 million people). During the same period, the permanent resident population grew from around 6.3 million to 9 million by 2023.

Between 2007 and 2020, the three base tunnels at Lötschberg, Gotthard and Ceneri were opened to traffic as part of the New Railway Transversal through the Alps (NRLA).

According to a 2020 study by the Zurich University of Applied Sciences, around 700 Swiss couples adopted a baby from Sri Lanka in the 1980s and 1990s. Many of the children were given up for adoption using false identities. Some of the children were also stolen from their biological parents or deliberately conceived on a "baby farm" for their parents from Europe. Under pressure from the children affected, who are now adults, the Federal Office of Justice had the circumstances of the adoptions investigated. According to the study, the Swiss authorities had known about child trafficking since 1981 and collectively turned a blind eye.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Federal Council banned events with more than 1,000 visitors at the end of February 2020. As a result, the Engadin Ski Marathon, the Geneva Motor Show and the Basel Carnival, among others, had to be cancelled. On March 16, 2020, the Federal Council declared an "extraordinary situation" under the Epidemic Act. Among other things, all shops (except grocery stores), restaurants, bars and entertainment and leisure establishments had to be closed. Public and private events were banned. Schools and universities had to switch to distance learning. According to a decision by the Federal Council, up to 8,000 members of the Swiss army could be called up for assistance to support the civilian authorities. This was the largest troop deployment of the Swiss Army since the Second World War. And it was the first time since the Second World War that the Federal Council ruled under emergency powers for an extended period of time.

On June 15 and 16, 2024, the high-level conference on peace in Ukraine took place at the Bürgenstock Resort.

 

Geography

The landlocked country of Switzerland lies between the 46th and 48th parallels, with the headwaters of rivers that flow into the North Sea, the Mediterranean and the Black Sea. The maximum north-south extension is 220.1 kilometers (from Bargen to Chiasso), the greatest west-east extension is 348.4 kilometers (from Chancy to Val Müstair).

The highest point in Switzerland is the 4634 m above sea level Dufourspitze on the border with Italy, the lowest point is the shore of Lake Maggiore at 193 m above sea level, also on the Italian border. The highest settlement, Juf in the canton of Graubünden, is at 2126 m above sea level; the lowest settlements are on Lake Maggiore in the canton of Ticino at 196 m above sea level. The geographical center of Switzerland is in the canton of Obwalden on the Älggi Alp.

Switzerland's national border is 1,935 kilometers long. The longest border is with Italy in the south at 782 kilometers. In the west, Switzerland borders France for 585 kilometers; in the north, it borders Germany for 347 kilometers, most of which runs along the Rhine. In the east, Switzerland borders Austria for 180 kilometers and the Principality of Liechtenstein for 41 kilometers.

23.9 percent of Switzerland's area is agricultural land, 13 percent is alpine farming land. Settlement land accounts for 6.8 percent, and 25.5 percent - mainly in the Alps and Jura - is considered unproductive natural land. Around 30.8 percent is forest and woodland.

 

Natural spatial structure

Switzerland can be divided into three major landscape areas that show great differences: the Jura, the densely populated Mittelland and the Alps with the Pre-Alps. Around 48 percent of the country's surface area belongs to the Alps in the narrower sense, 12 percent to the Pre-Alps. 30 percent is considered to be the Mittelland, and the Jura takes up the remaining 10 percent of the country's surface area.

The Swiss Mittelland is geographically and geologically delimited in the northwest and north by the long ridges of the Jura. In the south, towards the Alps, the relatively abrupt rise to heights of over 1500 m above sea level in some places is usually used as a criterion for delimitation. The southwestern border of the Swiss Mittelland is formed by Lake Geneva, the northeastern border is formed by Lake Constance together with the Rhine. The population density of Switzerland is determined by the metropolitan areas, all of which are located in the Mittelland, with the two modest-sized but nevertheless important global cities of Zurich and Geneva.

In Switzerland, the Prealps are the areas that mark the transition from the gently rolling Swiss plateau to the mountainous region of the Alps and are characterized by their elevations as a local recreation area, especially during periods of high fog. Together with the Alps, they form an arc between the southwest and northeast of Switzerland.

The Alps form an important climate and watershed in the "heart of Europe" with additional alpine and inner-alpine weather effects, which means that Switzerland usually has several weather conditions despite its small size. The Swiss Alpine arc contains well-known holiday destinations for summer and winter tourism as well as the only Swiss national park. The public transport network in Switzerland, which also exists in the Alps, was given a UNESCO World Heritage Site with the Albula Line, and the mountain landscapes of the Sardona Tectonic Arena and the Jungfrau-Aletsch Swiss Alps are considered natural heritage.

South side of the Alps is a term that is used primarily in weather forecasts, as the weather conditions, climate and vegetation are usually different from those on the north side of the Alps. The southern side of the Alps includes the canton of Ticino, the southern valleys of Graubünden, Misox, Calanca, Bergell, Puschlav and Val Müstair, as well as the area south of the Simplon Pass in the canton of Valais, and is part of the Alps in natural terms.

The Swiss Jura can be roughly bordered in the east and southeast by the Swiss Mittelland, in the north by the High Rhine, and in the northwest by the Burgundian Gate. The Jura is a geologically young folded mountain range with a length of around 300 kilometers and describes a large crescent-shaped arc that opens to the southeast. On the Besançon–Yverdon line, the greatest width of the mountain range is around 70 kilometers. At Biel/Bienne, the chains change direction more and more to the east, the mountain system becomes narrower, and the number of adjacent chains decreases. The easternmost Jura chain, the Lägern chain, runs exactly in a west-east direction and ends at Dielsdorf, where the mountain-forming layers descend beneath the molasse of the Swiss Mittelland.

 

Geology

The geological structure of Switzerland is essentially the result of a plate collision between Africa and Europe over the last million years. This phenomenon is particularly clearly visible in the Glarus thrust, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Geologically, Switzerland is divided into five main regions: the Alps are essentially made of granite, the Jura is a young folded mountain range made of limestone. Between the Jura and the Alps lies the partly flat, partly hilly Mittelland. In addition, there is the Po Valley in the southernmost tip of Ticino, the Mendrisiotto (Mendrisio), and the Upper Rhine Plain around Basel, which lie for the most part outside Switzerland.

The topography of today's Switzerland has been shaped and formed over the last two million years by the huge masses of ice that advanced far into the Mittelland during the various ice ages.

Compared to other European countries, Switzerland has a medium risk of earthquakes, although there are regional differences: In Valais, Basel, the St. Gallen Rhine Valley, central Graubünden, the Engadine and central Switzerland, earthquakes occur more frequently than in other areas. An earthquake of magnitude 6 or greater can be expected every 60 to 100 years. The last time an earthquake of this magnitude occurred was in 1946 near Sierre in Valais. The earthquake that occurred near Basel on October 18, 1356 is the strongest documented in Central Europe in historical times. The Swiss Seismological Service (SED) at ETH Zurich monitors earthquake activity in Switzerland and in neighboring countries.

 

Mountains

In Switzerland there are more than 3,350 peaks over 2,000 meters high. The sixteen highest peaks in Switzerland are all in the Valais Alps. The highest peak is the 4,634 m above sea level. The Dufourspitze is the highest point in Switzerland. The highest mountain that lies entirely on Swiss territory is the Dom. It belongs to the Mischabel group and is 4546 m above sea level.

The most famous mountain in the Swiss Alps is the Matterhorn, which is 4478 m above sea level. In the Bernese Oberland, the Eiger (3967 m above sea level), the Mönch (4110 m above sea level) and the Jungfrau (4158 m above sea level) form a well-known group that is also visible from the Mittelland. Notable points in the Eastern Alps are the Piz Bernina (4048 m above sea level), the easternmost four-thousand-meter peak in the Alps and the only four-thousand-meter peak in the Eastern Alps, the Tödi and the Piz Kesch, other mountains with more than 1500 meters of prominence.

In the foothills of the Alps, the elevations are lower, but the mountains are no less impressive due to their dominance and height. Well-known mountains are the Lucerne local mountain Pilatus (2132 m above sea level), the Mythen (1898 m above sea level), the Rigi (1797 m above sea level) in the canton of Schwyz or the Säntis (2502 m above sea level) in the Alpstein in eastern Switzerland.

The highest Swiss Jura mountain is the Mont Tendre at 1679 m above sea level. Other important mountains are La Dôle (1677 m above sea level), Chasseral (1607 m above sea level), Chasseron (1607 m above sea level) and Suchet (1588 m above sea level). The easternmost foothill of the Jura is the Randen in the canton of Schaffhausen.

 

Glaciers

The Swiss high mountains are largely shaped by the many glaciers. The largest and longest glacier in the Alps is the Great Aletsch Glacier, followed by the Gorner Glacier (by area). The Swiss glaciers last reached their peak during the Little Ice Age, which lasted from the beginning of the 15th to the middle of the 19th century. Since the middle of the 19th century, a significant decline in glaciers has been observed in Switzerland, as in almost all parts of the world. This glacier loss has increased in recent decades. Between 1973 and 2010, the area of ​​all glaciers in the Swiss Alps decreased by 28 percent to around 940 square kilometers. In the hot summer of 2015, the glaciers lost several times more mass than in previous years. Glacier loss became even more extreme in 2022 and 2023, when the mass of the glaciers decreased by around 10 percent in just two years.

 

Caves

The Hölloch in the canton of Schwyz is the second longest cave system in Europe, and the Lac Souterrain de Saint-Léonard in the canton of Valais is the largest natural underground lake in Europe.

 

Bodies of water and islands

In water-rich Switzerland, two of the longest rivers in Europe, the Rhine and the Rhone, have their source in the Gotthard massif. Several main European watersheds run through Switzerland: they separate the catchment areas of the North Sea, the Mediterranean and the Black Sea. The Rhine and its tributaries flow into the North Sea, the Rhone and the Ticino into the Mediterranean, while the water of the Inn flows into the Black Sea via the Danube. A triple main watershed can be found on the Lunghin Pass.

Within Switzerland, the Rhine has the longest course at 375 kilometers, ahead of the Rhine tributary, the Aare, at 295 kilometers. The Rhone flows 264 kilometers within Switzerland, while the Reuss, the fourth largest river in Switzerland, reaches a length of 158 kilometers. Other important rivers are the Saane in the west, the Ticino in the south, the Birs and the Doubs in the northwest, the Linth/Limmat and the Thur in the northeast and the Inn in the southeast. Near Schaffhausen, the Rhine forms the largest waterfall in Central Europe (Rhine Falls). At one point, there was an idea to connect the North Sea and the Mediterranean with a waterway using a transhelvetic canal between the Rhine and the Rhone, but this project was never realized.

Due to its topographical structure and above all due to glaciation during the ice ages, Switzerland has around 1500 lakes, the majority of which are smaller mountain lakes. In total, around four percent of Switzerland's surface is covered by lakes, but this total is mainly determined by the largest lakes in Switzerland: The largest lake in Switzerland is Lake Geneva (580.03 square kilometers) on the French border. Almost 60 percent of it lies on Swiss soil. Lake Constance, which borders Germany and Austria, is slightly smaller at 536.00 square kilometers (23.73 percent of the shoreline is on Swiss soil). Lake Maggiore on the Italian border (19.28 percent on Swiss territory) is the lowest point in Switzerland at 193 m above sea level. The largest lakes located entirely in Switzerland are Lake Neuchâtel (215.20 square kilometers), Lake Lucerne (113.72 square kilometers) and Lake Zurich (88.17 square kilometers).

There are numerous large and small islands in the Swiss lakes and rivers. The most famous are the Isole di Brissago, the St. Peter's Island and the Ufenau.

 

Climate

North of the Alps there is a temperate suboceanic climate (according to Troll & Paffen), mostly influenced by Atlantic winds; south of the Alps it is more Mediterranean. However, the climate varies greatly from region to region, due to the geographical elements.

Basically, the weather from the Jura Arc across the Central Plateau and the Prealps is similar during the day, but in the inner Alps and southern Switzerland it is often very different. In central Switzerland, the Alps and Ticino, the average rainfall is around 2000 millimetres per year. The place with the most rainfall is Säntis (2502 m above sea level) with an average of 2840 mm; the driest place is Ackersand in the Vispertal with an average of 543 millimetres per year (both values ​​for the standard period 1991–2020). In the standard period 1961–1990, the value for Ackersand was still 521 millimetres. In the Central Plateau, the amount is around 1000 to 1500 millimeters per year. The Central Plateau is the only region in Switzerland to have recorded a statistically significant increase in annual precipitation since 1864, mainly due to the increase in the winter months. The amount of precipitation in Switzerland is about twice as high in summer as in winter. Primarily dependent on the altitude, a lot of precipitation falls as snow in winter, so that the Alps and the foothills of the Alps are covered in snow for months. It snows relatively rarely in the Geneva and Basel regions and in southern Ticino, where winters can also have no snow cover. The greatest snow depth in Switzerland was measured on the Säntis in April 1999 at 816 cm.

Temperatures in Switzerland depend primarily on the altitude. In addition, they tend to be statistically somewhat higher in the west than in the east (approx. 1 °C). In general, the average temperature in January in the lowlands is around −1 to +1 °C. In the warmest month, July, it is 16 to 19 °C. The annual average temperatures are around 7 to 9 °C. The average warmest place with available measurement series is Lugano with an annual average of 13 °C (standard period 1991–2020). As at almost all measuring stations, climate change is also evident here: in the standard period 1961–1990, the average value was still 11.6 °C. The average coldest place is the Jungfraujoch with −6.7 °C (standard period 1991–2020). Here, too, the average temperature has increased by 0.7 °C since the standard period 1961–1990. Absolute records were measured in Grono with 41.5 °C on August 11, 2003, and in La Brévine with −41.8 °C (January 12, 1987). Compared to places at the same altitude in the Swiss Plateau, temperatures in the Rhone Valley, the Rhine Valley and the Basel region are on average one to two degrees Celsius warmer, and two to three degrees in the Magadino Plain in Ticino. Although the Engadin is part of southern Switzerland in terms of climate, temperatures there are on average ten degrees Celsius colder. This is because the Engadin is a high alpine valley. The same applies to the side valleys and the Goms in the Valais.

The Napf region, Ticino and the Jura are considered hotspots for hail precipitation, where two to four hail days are expected per summer half-year.

Fog can be observed throughout the Swiss Plateau, while the Alpine regions are less frequently affected. Fog is particularly common along the Aare and the northern Reuss, as well as in Thurgau, where it can occur for several weeks, especially in autumn, winter and early spring. With the exception of high fog, fog is a comparatively rare phenomenon in the Jura Arc and in the Basel region. The frequency of fog in the Swiss plateau has decreased significantly since the 1970s. The Zurich-Kloten weather station, for example, used to regularly record years with 50 to 60 days of fog. Today, there are around 40. The reasons for the decrease in fog are likely to be a change in the prevailing weather patterns and improvements in air quality.

Winds that frequently occur in Switzerland are the mild foehn on both sides of the Alpine ridge and the cold bise, which southern Switzerland is often spared. The highest wind speed ever measured is 285 kilometers per hour (Jungfraujoch, February 27, 1990).

The Federal Office of Meteorology and Climatology (MeteoSwiss) is the state weather service of Switzerland. Other well-known private weather services are: SRF Meteo, Meteomedia and MeteoNews. The Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research is based in Davos.

 

Nature

There are around 56,000 species of plants, animals and fungi known in Switzerland. These include around 45,000 animal species, of which around 30,000 are insect species and around 99 are mammal species. Around 40 percent of animal species are endangered, particularly amphibians and reptiles.

The Swiss water network comprises around 65,300 kilometers of rivers and streams. The right of public access in Switzerland allows everyone to move freely in nature under certain restrictions. Collecting berries and mushrooms is also permitted with restrictions. In some cantons, fishing is permitted in certain waters under certain conditions under the free fishing law without a permit, otherwise a license is required. Hunting is organized as a hunting area in the northern cantons, and as a license hunt in most other cantons; see also Hunting law (Switzerland).

 

Flora and vegetation

One third of Switzerland's land surface is forested. Conifers (firs, spruces, larches and Swiss stone pines) predominate in the Alps. The forests in the Alps have important functions as avalanche protection forests and flood protection (the forests absorb the rainfall and release it slowly). In the Mittelland, in the Jura and on the southern side of the Alps, mixed deciduous forests and broadleaf forests grow below 1000 metres. Particularly well-known forest areas in Switzerland are the Aletschwald, the Sihlwald and the Pfynwald as well as the alpine primeval forests Bödmerenwald (untouched core area approx. 150 hectares), the primeval fir forest of Lac de Derborence (22 hectares), the Scatlè spruce forest near Brigels in the canton of Graubünden (9 hectares) and the Val Cama - Val Leggia forest reserve in Misox. The Tamangur in the Lower Engadine is the highest Swiss stone pine forest in Europe. In Ticino and Misox there are extensive chestnut forests, which in earlier times played a major role in the population's diet. The three largest contiguous forests in Switzerland are in southern Switzerland and on the Jura heights. These are forest areas west of the Maggia (169 square kilometers), between Monte Tamaro and Roveredo (162 square kilometers) and at the Col du Mollendruz up to the national border at La Dôle (117 square kilometers). Over 700 plant species in Switzerland are considered to be threatened with extinction.

In the valleys of Ticino and occasionally in the central plateau, some palm species grow as ornamental plants, such as the dwarf palm or the Chinese hemp palm. The latter palm species has become wild and, because it is threatening native woody plants, it is listed as an invasive neophyte on the black list of invasive neophytes.

 

Fauna

The fauna in Switzerland includes around 99 species of mammals in the wild, the majority of which are bats and other small mammals. All large predators have disappeared from Switzerland in the last hundred years. The importance of predators in a healthy ecosystem has been recognised, and lynx, wolves and bears have been protected. The lynx has been reintroduced to Switzerland. The wolf has immigrated independently from Italy and France. A pack lives in the Piz Beverin region, for example. In the south-east of Graubünden, brown bears from Italy, which had disappeared due to hunting in 1910, have also been found on Swiss territory since 2005, although no population has yet been able to form. The most frequently observed is the red fox. It also feels at home in Swiss cities. Badgers often share the same den with foxes, which is why they have suffered greatly from the fox's persecution. Other burrow dwellers in some Alpine regions include marmots. In addition to the lynx, there are isolated populations of wild cats in the Jura in Switzerland. In 1952, the otter, which was designated for extinction under the Fisheries Act of 1888, was placed under protection. Nevertheless, it had disappeared from Switzerland by 1990, and the last traces were found in 1989 on Lake Neuchâtel. The main reason for its extinction was probably the state of the waters and the resulting reduction in fish stocks. It has been spotted again occasionally since 2009. The stone marten is often found in settlements. Its relative, the pine marten, is rather rare and keeps its distance from people. The first golden jackal was spotted in 2011.

Various species of ungulates have also disappeared from Switzerland, such as the bison and the elk. Some extinct species, such as the Alpine ibex, have now been reintroduced; it populates the high mountains of the Alps. In Lower Valais there are two colonies of European mouflons that have migrated from France. The chamois is very common in the higher regions of the Alps and the Jura. The largest species of deer is currently the red deer. The smallest native species of deer is the roe deer. The roe deer is also the most common species of deer and inhabits the Mittelland and Jura. The sika deer is found in the Zurich-Schaffhausen border area near Rafzerfeld. In the turmoil of the Second World War, some animals escaped from southern German enclosures and settled in Switzerland from there. The wild boar is also quite common in some areas of northern Switzerland. Of the rodents, the beaver has been reintroduced. In September 2023, a test herd of bison was released into supervised semi-freedom in the Thal Nature Park in the canton of Solothurn.

Numerous species of birds live in Switzerland. The Swiss lakes and rivers are important resting and wintering areas for waterfowl. Every year, several thousand herons, pochards and red-crested ducks, as well as coots, goosander and great crested grebes spend the winter in Switzerland. Of the birds of prey, the kestrel and buzzard are particularly common. Red and black kites are also regularly seen. The golden eagle is once again inhabiting the entire Alpine region. The populations of goshawks and sparrowhawks have also recovered and are stable. The extinct bearded vulture was released into the Swiss National Park; in 2007, three pairs bred in Switzerland for the first time.

Of the grouse, hazel grouse, rock ptarmigan, black grouse and capercaillie inhabit the Swiss Alps and partly the Jura arc. However, capercaillie populations are seriously threatened by alpine tourism and the intensification of forestry. The capercaillie has already disappeared from many areas of the foothills of the Alps and the northern Jura. However, nature conservation organizations are making intensive efforts to preserve the species. The rock partridge inhabits the areas near the tree line. The partridge, the corncrake and the curlew are at high risk of extinction.

Owl species such as the tawny owl, the long-eared owl, the eagle owl, the pygmy owl, the boreal owl and the barn owl live in Switzerland. Many species of woodpecker live in the old mountain forests. Songbirds are numerous in Switzerland. Due to the expansion of settlement areas, the intensification of agriculture even in ever higher mountain regions and winter tourism, many bird species in Switzerland are endangered. In total, almost 40 percent of bird species in Switzerland are on the Red List of endangered species. According to Daniela Heynen from the Sempach Ornithological Institute, electric shock is one of the most common known causes of death for eagle owls and white storks (see bird strike).

The most notable reptiles are the many species of snake that thrive in the sunny southern valleys of the Alps, such as the asp viper. The adder also lives in the high altitudes of the Alps and the Jura. However, non-venomous snakes such as the grass snake and the dice snake are far more common and widespread. Various species of lizard are very common. The European pond turtle is the only native species of turtle.

Amphibians are widespread in Switzerland. Common species include the common frog, the common toad and the alpine newt. Much rarer, however, are the tree frog, the midwife toad and the Alpine crested newt. The most typical vertebrate in Switzerland is the Alpine salamander - the largest population of which and the center of its distribution are the Swiss Alps.

There are around 65 native fish species and subspecies in Swiss waters, including a unique variety of whitefish. In addition, there are around 20 introduced fish species. There are also four native species of crayfish (noble crayfish, Italian crayfish, common crayfish, stone crayfish) and four introduced species of crayfish. Since the 19th century, fish stocks have been artificially renewed through stocking measures, especially since the 1980s. Several hundred million young fish are released each year.

Insects make up the largest proportion of all animal species, about a quarter.

As with plants, biological invasion is also increasing in animals. Invasive alien species include:
Quagga mussel
Japanese beetle
Tiger mosquito
Asian hornet
Red-eared slider turtle
Raccoon
Black Sea goby

 

Nature conservation

The aim of nature conservation in Switzerland is to "preserve and protect the local landscape and townscape, the historical sites and the natural and cultural monuments of the country and to promote their preservation and care". Nature conservation is legally regulated in the Federal Law on Nature and Heritage Conservation (NHG). Partial regulations also exist in the forest and agricultural legislation of the federal government and cantons. There are around 300 rangers in action throughout Switzerland.

Currently (as of May 2016), 16 parks of national importance are in operation and 3 are in the construction phase. The best known of these is the Swiss National Park in the canton of Graubünden, founded in 1914. Two parks have also been designated as biosphere reserves. 165 protected landscapes are listed in the Federal Inventory of Landscapes and Natural Monuments of National Importance.

There are 1,073 natural forest reserves in Switzerland, including the Swiss National Park, with a total area of ​​46,199 hectares, which corresponds to 3 percent of the Swiss forest area (as of December 2018). Appenzell Innerrhoden is the only mountain canton without a wildlife rest zone.

Private organizations also take care of local nature conservation, such as Pro Natura, which contractually protects over 600 nature reserves in Switzerland with a total area of ​​almost 600 square kilometers, or the Swiss Bird Protection Association.

Since 1987, moors and raised bogs have been strictly protected by the Federal Constitution (Rothenthurm Initiative). In 2007, the Federal Inventory of Lowland Moors of National Importance recorded 1,163 moors worthy of protection with a total area of ​​around 20,000 hectares, and the Federal Inventory of Raised Moors of National Importance includes 549 moors with a total area of ​​around 1,500 hectares. This corresponds to around 0.04% of the country's surface area.

In 2019, Lancy was the first municipality to be certified by Bio-Suisse.

By 2020, not enough areas had been registered for the Emerald Network. So far, only 37 Emerald areas exist. Of all European countries, Switzerland has the lowest proportion of protected areas in relation to the country's surface area. Tourism, the expansion of settlement areas, the intensification of agriculture, environmental pollution and the overuse of resources, among other things, contribute to the loss of biodiversity. In 2020, BirdLife Switzerland concluded that Switzerland had done far too little for its rich biodiversity. The OECD and the European Environment Agency also point out that the measures taken to date to protect biodiversity are far from sufficient.

 

Zoological gardens

Various zoos and animal parks show visitors native as well as exotic animals. The most famous zoos in Switzerland include Basel Zoo, Zurich Zoo with its Masoala Hall, Knie's Children's Zoo and Bern Zoo.

 

Culture

The culture is influenced by neighboring countries, but over the years an independent Swiss culture has developed. The division of Switzerland into several language and cultural regions makes it difficult to speak of a uniform Swiss culture. The three larger language regions are strongly influenced by their respective neighboring countries as well as by the Anglo-Saxon countries, while the Romansh culture has no "big brother".

 

Customs

Customs are part of the cultural diversity and intangible heritage of Switzerland. They are part of the folk culture and always have a local or regional character. In some cases (Carnival, Easter customs, Christmas customs) they can also be supra-regional. Customs include various traditional forms of expression in music, dance, folk poetry, e.g. at the Basel Carnival, and in traditional crafts. They also include various rites and religious festivals.

In 2008, Switzerland ratified the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (2003) and the Convention for the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions, which expresses concern about the disappearance and commercialization of customs.

Examples of customs in Switzerland are: the Lucerne Carnival, the Basel Carnival, the Unspunnenstein throwing in Interlaken, the Sechseläuten in Zurich or the Fête des Vignerons (Winegrowers' Festival) in Vevey.

 

Public holidays

In Switzerland, only August 1st is set as a public holiday for the whole country at federal level (see also Swiss Federal Holiday). The regulation of all other public holidays is the sole responsibility of the cantons, which can set up to eight additional days as legal rest days. Due to this fact, apart from the Federal Holiday, there are only three other days that are also recognized throughout Switzerland: New Year's Day, Ascension Day and Christmas Day. Good Friday, Easter Monday, Whit Monday and St. Stephen's Day (second day of Christmas) are still celebrated in large parts of the country. The majority of holidays have a Christian background. Corpus Christi, the Assumption of Mary, All Saints' Day and the Immaculate Conception are only celebrated in the Catholic cantons, while Berchtold Day (second day of New Years) is largely restricted to the Protestant cantons. Labour Day, which is often referred to as the day of struggle of the workers' movement, has no religious connection. There are also a number of local holidays such as the Knabenschiessen in Zurich or Dirty Thursday.

 

Cuisine

Swiss cuisine combines influences from German, French and Italian cuisine. It varies greatly from region to region, with the language regions providing a kind of rough division. Many dishes have crossed local borders and are popular throughout Switzerland.

Typical Swiss dishes are cheese fondue, raclette, Älplermagronen and Rösti. This also defined the Röstigraben, the border between German- and French-speaking Switzerland. To the east of this border, Rösti is one of the most popular national dishes, but not to the west. Birchermüesli, which is now known worldwide, was developed in Zurich around 1900 by a Swiss doctor, Maximilian Bircher-Benner. The honey-almond-nougat chocolate Toblerone has only been produced in Bern for over 100 years and is sold from there to over 120 countries. Cervelat is probably the most popular sausage in Switzerland.

Very popular Swiss products are Swiss cheese and Swiss chocolate. Local specialties include: Basler Läckerli, Vermicelles, Appenzeller Biber, Meringue, Aargauer Rüeblitorte or Zuger Kirschtorte.

The sweet drink Rivella is very popular in Switzerland. However, the drink produced in Aargau has so far only been able to establish itself internationally in the Netherlands. Ovomaltine is also one of the most popular Swiss drinks. In contrast to Rivella, Ovomaltine has spread worldwide, mostly under the name Ovaltine.

 

UNESCO World Heritage in Switzerland

Twelve cultural and natural assets are registered as World Heritage sites in the UNESCO World Heritage list in Switzerland.

 

Architecture

The most famous and important Swiss architect is probably Le Corbusier. Atelier 5, Mario Botta and Diener & Diener are other well-known Swiss architects of the present day who have helped to shape modern architecture abroad. The architects Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron (Herzog & de Meuron) have made a name for themselves in recent years with the Tate Modern building in London and the National Stadium ("Bird's Nest") in Beijing, among others, and have received the Pritzker Prize. Peter Zumthor, whose most famous building is the thermal baths in Vals, is also a Pritzker Prize winner. In 1928, the Goetheanum was built in Dornach near Basel, one of the first reinforced concrete buildings, which with its sculptural form is still considered one of the well-known buildings of expressionism and organic architecture.

 

Cultural and architectural monuments

Neutral Switzerland was – with the exception of the city of Schaffhausen – almost completely spared from the great destructive wars of modern times. As a result, many historical buildings have been preserved throughout the country to this day.

In the emerging cities of the 11th and 12th centuries, there was intensive construction. New churches were built in towns, villages and monasteries. All five episcopal churches of the time in what is now Switzerland (Basel, Chur, Geneva, Lausanne, Sitten) were rebuilt in the second half of the 12th century. In addition to the fully developed repertoire of Romanesque forms, its replacement by Gothic was already visible. The Romanesque style can be found in Switzerland, among others, in the Basel Minster, the Cathedral of Our Lady in Sitten, the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Assumption in Chur and the Cathedral of St. Peter in Geneva. The All Saints Minster in Schaffhausen is today considered the largest Romanesque religious building in Switzerland.

In the area of ​​present-day Switzerland, Gothic architecture appeared extremely early. The Notre-Dame Cathedral in Lausanne, built from 1190 onwards, is now considered one of the most important Gothic buildings in Switzerland.

The monastery church in Einsiedeln, the collegiate church in St. Gallen and the St. Ursen Cathedral in Solothurn were built in the lavish Baroque style.

The oldest wooden houses in Europe are in the canton of Schwyz. The houses Nideröst (1176) and Bethlehem (1287) were built as log houses from the highest quality spruce heartwood before the founding of the Old Swiss Confederacy. There are proven to be over a dozen of the ancient wooden houses in the area between Arth and the Muota Valley. According to new research results, homeowners at the time were able to dismantle the houses into their individual beams and take them with them when they moved to a neighboring village. Experts say that this is by far the oldest group of wooden houses in all of Europe.

The social, political and economic conditions for the construction of monumental Renaissance, Baroque and Rococo castles were lacking in Switzerland. Some of the few exceptions were the prince-bishop's residence in Chur, the episcopal residence in Pruntrut and the Princely Abbey of St. Gallen. Castles in Switzerland mostly date back to medieval castles. Between the 10th and 15th centuries, around 2000 castles were built in the area of ​​present-day Switzerland, mostly by noble or count family groups, by the minor nobility or knights. The Swiss cantons exercised a certain degree of restraint in the remodeling of their castles, which were used as bailiwicks. As a result, valuable medieval building fabric was preserved. In contrast, the rural and especially the urban upper classes, the so-called patricians, developed a lively private building activity in the construction of representative country estates. The most famous castles in the country today include Chillon Castle, Thun Castle, the moated castle of Bottmingen, the Habsburg, Tarasp Castle, Grandson Castle and Sargans Castle. The three castles of Bellinzona are UNESCO World Heritage sites.

Modern weapons technology made the medieval city fortifications useless in the 18th century. The demolition of the city fortifications in the first half of the 19th century went hand in hand with city expansions as industrialization began to take hold. Road and especially railway construction blew up the city walls and displaced the tower-topped defensive rings and ramparts. Some places were able to preserve their medieval fortifications, such as the small town of Murten. In other cities only a few parts of the fortifications remained, such as the Zytglogge Tower in Bern, the Spalentor in Basel or the Munot in Schaffhausen. During this time, Bahnhofstrasse was also created in Zurich by filling in the Fröschengraben.

In the young federal state at the end of the 19th century, a return to its own history was of great importance. This return to history led to the use of historical stylistic elements in architecture and their fusion into a new whole. For several decades, historicism prevailed as a new architectural style in Switzerland. The most famous buildings of this period include the Federal Palace in Bern (1852–1902), the Elisabethenkirche in Basel (1857–1864), the Stadthaus in Winterthur (1865–1869), the Zurich main station (1870–1871), the Bern Historical Museum (1892–1894) and the Swiss National Museum in Zurich (1897).

In the 20th century, a few buildings were also built in the neoclassical style, such as the Bern City Theater in 1903 and the Palais des Nations in Geneva in the early 1930s. Between 1922 and 1927, the Federal Court building was built in Lausanne in the classical style.

The rural building culture has produced a wide range of different architectural styles, each one perfectly adapted to the different landscapes and climatic conditions. The villages of eastern Switzerland are characterized by the typical timber-framed buildings, in the Valais the log houses, darkened by the sun, dominate (e.g. in Grimentz), in the Bernese Mittelland the farmhouses with the wide-spreading roofs, the typical round roofs, are everywhere, and the houses richly decorated with sgraffito are an unmistakable part of every Engadine village (e.g. in Ardez). The Ballenberg Open Air Museum offers a comprehensive overview of the various types of farmhouse in Switzerland with its more than 100 original exhibits.

In 2013, the Swiss Heritage Society (SHS) selected 50 outstanding buildings from the period between 1960 and 1975 as witnesses to the more recent building culture, such as the two large Telli developments in Aarau and the Cité du Lignon in Vernier. Objects from this period characterize many communities in Switzerland, but are often still considered architectural sins or "energy guzzlers". There has been little discussion of the building culture of this era.

The Wakker Prize is a prize awarded by the Swiss Heritage Society since 1972 to political communities for exemplary protection of their townscape. The first award went to the small town of Stein am Rhein for its townscape, which grew on a medieval ground plan and has been excellently preserved.

 

Fine art

In the 16th century, Protestantism had a strong influence on the visual arts in Switzerland. Since then, several Swiss artists have been able to make an international name for themselves. In the 18th century, Johann Heinrich Füssli achieved considerable fame in England under the name Henry Fuseli with his grotesque, fantastic pictures. From the 19th century, Arnold Böcklin, Albert Anker and Ferdinand Hodler are among those to be mentioned. Alberto Giacometti and HR Giger became internationally famous in the 20th century. Jean Tinguely fascinated people with complex, moving sculptures made of scrap metal. Paul Klee is sometimes celebrated as the most important painter in Switzerland. Johannes Itten's Theory of Colours is considered an outstanding standard work. Sophie Taeuber-Arp is a representative of concrete, rhythmic-geometric art and is one of the most outstanding abstract artists of the 20th century.

 

Theater

The Schauspielhaus Zurich is considered one of the most important German-speaking theaters. Numerous plays by Bertolt Brecht had their premieres here. Most of the plays by Max Frisch and Friedrich Dürrenmatt were also premiered here. In 2002 and 2003 it was voted Theater of the Year by critics of the magazine Theater heute.

The Zurich Opera House, which opened in 1891, is also the venue for many premieres and world premieres. International opera stars are regular guests on the Zurich opera stage. Initially, spoken and musical theater was also performed. After the Schauspielhaus opened, however, the opera house limited itself to opera, operetta and ballet.

Other important theaters are the Theater Basel, the Grand Théâtre de Genève, the Stadttheater Bern and the Cabaret Voltaire, the birthplace of Dadaism.

The Hans Reinhart Ring, awarded annually since 1957 by the Swiss Society for Theater Culture (SGTK), is considered the highest award in theater life in Switzerland.

 

Music

The history of music in Switzerland has been shaped by two factors: Due to the lack of royal courts and large cities, there were no style-defining centers in earlier centuries. In addition, in multilingual Switzerland, music was significantly influenced by the surrounding cultures. As a result, an independent Swiss musical style never emerged.

In the 20th century, the country produced a number of well-known composers of classical modernism. Arthur Honegger, Othmar Schoeck and Frank Martin all achieved international fame.

Since the 1950s, there has been a lively music scene in the pop and rock genres. Especially since the late 1970s, pop/rock music with dialect lyrics (dialect rock) has become more and more established in German-speaking Switzerland. The forerunners of this music in the 1960s were the Bernese Troubadours. They performed their own songs in dialect and usually accompanied themselves on the guitar. The most famous of these music poets was Mani Matter. Today, dialect lyrics can be found in all areas of music. Well-known dialect singers are or were Polo Hofer, Toni Vescoli, Züri West, Patent Ochsner, Endo Anaconda, Peter Reber, Trio Eugster, Vera Kaa, Dodo Hug, Sina, Gölä, Plüsch, Mash, Florian Ast, Sandee and Adrian Stern. Only a few dialect interpretations such as Hemmige by Stephan Eicher or Nach em Räge schint Sunne by Artur Beul also became internationally known.

Switzerland won the Eurovision Song Contest three times: at the first event in 1956 with Lys Assia, in 1988 with Céline Dion and in 2024 with Nemo. The trio Peter, Sue & Marc took part in the ESC four times.

 

Hip-Hop

Successful hip-hop artists include Greis, Gimma, Bligg, Wurzel 5 and Sektion Kuchikäschtli, who rap in Swiss German, and Stress and Sens Unik from western Switzerland with French lyrics.

 

Pop, Rock

Pop and rock musicians who have also been successful abroad include DJ BoBo, Patrick Nuo, Stephan Eicher, Krokus, Yello, The Young Gods, Gotthard, Eluveitie, Double, DJ Antoine and Andreas Vollenweider. Among the musicians and pop stars known throughout the German-speaking world are Lys Assia, Vico Torriani, Hazy Osterwald, Paola Felix, Pepe Lienhard, Nella Martinetti, Francine Jordi, Leonard and Beatrice Egli. Rock star Tina Turner, who has lived in Switzerland since the 1990s, gave up her US citizenship after she was granted Swiss citizenship.

 

Jazz

Jazz music has a firm place in the cultural life of Switzerland. The two Swiss jazz musicians who were well-known beyond the jazz scene were George Gruntz and Claude Nobs. The jazz festivals in Montreux, Willisau and Lugano are among the best-known events of their kind internationally.

 

Folk music

Traditional Swiss folk music, which is part of Alpine folk music, is highly regarded in the country. It is also known as Ländler music. Typical Swiss instruments are the alphorn and the Schwyzerörgeli, but violin, bass violin and clarinet are also common. In contrast to the rest of the German-speaking world, Ländler in Switzerland does not just refer to 3/4-bar Ländler melodies, but also to dance and entertainment music that emerged at the beginning of the 20th century from the folk music of the 19th century. Instrumental Swiss folk music is played in numerous local groups, most of the players have amateur status, some are also known throughout Switzerland, for example the Streichmusik Alder, Carlo Brunner or the Swiss Ländler Gamblers. The music is predominantly dance music such as Ländler or Schottisch, but is often played without the opportunity to dance. Brass bands are very common throughout the country. Traditional yodeling is also practiced in many clubs. In order to better distinguish the Swiss yodel from the Tyrolean yodel, which was popular at the time, and to make the almost extinct alphorn popular again, the current Federal Yodeling Association was founded in 1910. Federal festivals in various musical styles take place at regular intervals, such as the Federal Music Festival, which is considered the largest brass music festival in the world.

 

Festivals

Switzerland is a real stronghold of music festivals of all musical styles. The international music festival, the Lucerne Festival, takes place annually in Lucerne. Similar events are also held in other places. In addition, numerous open-air events take place every summer, such as the Gurten Festival, the Paléo Festival or the Open Air St. Gallen. The annual Zurich Street Parade with around a million visitors is the world's largest techno event.

The Swiss Cooperative Society of Authors and Publishers of Music (SUISA) represents the copyright usage rights of composers, lyricists and publishers of musical works.

 

Film

Switzerland has one of the youngest film histories in Europe. It was only in the 1930s and only through the immigration of ambitious artists and entrepreneurs that a Swiss film scene was able to emerge. The most important in the early era of sound films up to around 1950 were the Austrian-born Lazar Wechsler, who founded Praesens-Film, the only major film production company at the time, and Leopold Lindtberg, the most productive and successful director of Praesens-Film, which won a total of four Oscars and awards at all major international festivals.

As in all European countries, filmmaking in Switzerland today is dependent on state film funding. However, the funding is only enough for a small annual film output. In recent history, therefore, only a few Swiss films have achieved international fame. Due to a lack of competitive alternatives, US films and television series are widespread in all language areas of Switzerland. US productions predominate in cinemas. Admission prices are among the highest in Europe.

The most well-known film produced in Switzerland is probably The Swissmakers. Other comedies that have received a lot of attention are Beresina or The Last Days of Switzerland by Daniel Schmid and Purchased Happiness by Urs Odermatt. In contrast, the work Höhenfeuer by Fredi M. Murer is much more serious: it is about incest in remote mountain regions. Kleine Fluchten by Yves Yersin is also set in a rural setting. In 1991, Xavier Koller's Reise der Hoffnung won an Oscar. This film is about a Kurdish family who flee to Switzerland in search of a better life. Various films with Swiss participation have also achieved further success. The leading actress (Halle Berry) in the film Monster's Ball by Swiss director Marc Forster received an Oscar for her role. The Swiss film industry has had recent successes with Mein Name ist Eugen, Heidi and Schellen-Ursli.

The most successful Swiss in the international film business is the producer Arthur Cohn, who has been nominated for an Oscar four times and won three Oscars in the category of Best Documentary.

The Swiss Film Prize is awarded at the Solothurn Film Festival at the end of January. The Locarno International Film Festival, one of the most important international film festivals in the world, also takes place every year in August. The most recent festival is the Zurich Film Festival, which took place for the first time in 2005.

 

Literature and philosophy

Since Switzerland has four national languages, four areas are often distinguished: the literature of German-, French-, Italian- and Romansh-speaking Switzerland. There was already literary work in various monasteries in the Middle Ages: the oldest German-language Easter play was written in Muri Monastery around 1250 and the first Christmas play was written a little later in St. Gallen. Although German-language Swiss literature has always been in the shadow of Germany, there are works that are known throughout the German-speaking world, including those by Friedrich Dürrenmatt, Max Frisch, Friedrich Glauser, Jeremias Gotthelf, Hermann Hesse, Gottfried Keller, Pedro Lenz, Conrad Ferdinand Meyer, Adolf Muschg and Johanna Spyri. In addition to the dominant Swiss High German literature, there are also important representatives of Swiss dialect literature such as Ernst Burren, Pedro Lenz and Kurt Marti. The bestsellers of the Francophone Joël Dicker have been translated into over 40 languages ​​and sold millions of copies.

Important literary events in Switzerland are the Solothurn Literature Days and the Basel Book and Literature Festival.

 

Museums

According to the museum statistics of the Federal Office of Culture (FOC), the 1,111 Swiss museums recorded over 12 million admissions in 2015.

The Kunstmuseum Basel was opened in 1661, making it the oldest public museum in Europe. Its origins lie in the Amerbach family's cabinet, which included a collection of world-famous paintings and the estate of Erasmus of Rotterdam.

The Kunsthaus Zürich has the most important collection of works by Alberto Giacometti, as well as the largest Munch collection outside Norway. The Kunstmuseum Bern houses works from eight centuries.

The Fondation Beyeler in Riehen near Basel is known for modern and contemporary art. It is the most visited art museum in Switzerland.

The Swiss National Museum has its headquarters in the Landesmuseum Zürich and houses the largest cultural history collection in Switzerland. It covers all eras from prehistory to the 21st century. Since 1998, the Swiss National Museum in western Switzerland has been located in Prangins Castle in the canton of Vaud. It focuses on the cultural, social and economic development of Switzerland in the 18th and 19th centuries.

The second largest historical museum in Switzerland is the Bern Historical Museum with 250,000 objects of various origins. Particularly worth mentioning are the Burgundian carpets that were taken from the Burgundian Duke Charles the Bold during the Burgundian Wars.

Another important museum is the Anatomical Museum in Basel. This displays original specimens and wax models of human body parts and organs. Among them is the oldest anatomical specimen in the world, a skeleton prepared in 1543.

The most visited museum in Switzerland is the Transport Museum in Lucerne with its large collection of locomotives, cars, ships and aircraft.

The Technorama in Winterthur is the largest science center (technology museum) in Switzerland. It carries out numerous experiments that give visitors an understanding of technical and scientific connections.

The Jewish Museum of Switzerland in Basel is the national museum for Jewish religious and everyday history. Founded in Basel in 1966, it is the first museum of its kind in the German-speaking world after the Second World War.

In western Switzerland, several museums focus on international organizations. The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Museum in Geneva documents the history of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, and the Olympic Museum in Lausanne documents the modern Olympic movement since 1896.

 

Federal Festivals

The most important federal festivals include the Federal Wrestling and Alpine Festival, the Federal Yodeling Festival, the Federal Gymnastics Festival and the Federal Field Shooting.

The desire for national festivals arose as early as 1799 during the time of the Helvetic Republic. The Unspunnen Festivals of 1805 and 1808 are considered the forerunners of the federal festivals. The first federal festival was the Federal Shooting Festival in 1824. In the 19th century, the emerging federal festivals, organized on a federalist basis by clubs and associations, played an important role in the development of the nation of will and the federal state. The joint festivals express the solidarity of all participants, even though they belonged to different linguistic, cultural groups or denominations.

Today, the federal festivals, which take place at regular intervals, are a popular meeting place for athletes and musicians from all parts of the country and are the highlight of many clubs' club life.

 

National exhibitions and garden shows

The following six national exhibitions have been held since the founding of the federal state:
1883 in Zurich (Swiss National Exhibition 1883)
1896 in Geneva
1914 in Bern (Swiss National Exhibition 1914)
1939 in Zurich (Landi)
1964 in Lausanne (Expo 64)
2002 in Biel/Bienne, Neuchâtel, Yverdon-les-Bains and Murten (Expo.02)

In 1991, to mark the 700th anniversary of the Swiss Confederation, decentralized celebrations were held in all parts of the country, including the national research exhibition Heureka in Zurich.

The G59 was the first of two horticultural exhibitions to date, and took place in Zurich in 1959. The Grün 80 followed in Basel in 1980.

 

Various cultural themes

There are over 700 different traditional costumes in Switzerland. The umbrella organization for traditional costume people is the Swiss Traditional Costume Association.
The Pro Helvetia Foundation, financed by the Swiss Confederation, is responsible for the cultural representation of Switzerland abroad and for cultural dialogue between the different parts of the country.
The internationally known Circus Knie is the largest and most visited circus in Switzerland. Other well-known circus companies are: Circus Nock, Circus Monti, Circus Conelli.
The Prix Walo, awarded annually since 1974, is the most important award in Swiss show business. It is considered the "Swiss Oscar". Many well-known Swiss actors, cabaret artists and singers have won the award.
Jassen, a card game from the Bézique family, is considered the national game in Switzerland. "French" cards are played west of the Brünig-Napf-Reuss line, and "German" cards are played east of it.
Cow fights, usually with Eringer cows, take place every spring and summer in the French-speaking part of Valais.

 

Population

Cities and municipalities

The smallest political unit is the municipality. Cities are also counted as municipalities. As of January 1, 2024, there were 2,131 political municipalities. This number is constantly decreasing due to municipal mergers.

As of December 1, 2020, Zurich is the most populous city in Switzerland with 433,989 inhabitants, the least populated is Kammersrohr (SO) with 31 inhabitants. Other large cities are Geneva with 206,635 inhabitants, Basel with 176,329, Lausanne with 144,160, the federal city of Bern with 136,988 and Winterthur with 119,315 inhabitants. The most populous cities with fewer than 100,000 inhabitants are Lucerne with 85,534, St. Gallen with 78,213, Lugano with 63,495 and Biel/Bienne with 55,932 inhabitants.

Around 1,369,000 people live in the Zurich agglomeration, 592,100 in the Geneva agglomeration, 547,800 in the Basel agglomeration, 420,800 in the Lausanne agglomeration and 418,200 in the Bern agglomeration (December 31, 2017). In total, almost three quarters of the population live in one of the 52 Swiss agglomerations. In 2022, 49% of the population lived in statistical cities, and 47% or 4.1 million people lived in the agglomeration - the area that is not part of the country but not really part of the central city either. Only 14% of the Swiss population live in rural or village areas, which make up 57% of the country's area.

The largest political municipality in terms of area has been the municipality of Scuol (GR), which was created through a merger on January 1, 2015, with 438 square kilometers; previously, the largest municipality in terms of area was the municipality of Glarus Süd (GL), which was also created through a merger, with 430 square kilometers. The smallest municipalities in terms of area are Gottlieben (TG) and Rivaz (VD), each with 0.31 square kilometers.

The municipality of Zwischbergen has the largest gender difference of all Swiss municipalities, with 71% men and 29% women (as of 2022).

 

Swiss citizenship

Swiss citizenship is the common term for citizenship of the Swiss Confederation. According to Article 37, paragraph 1 of the Federal Constitution, it cannot be acquired without simultaneously acquiring the citizenship of a municipality and the citizenship of the canton. Municipal and cantonal citizenship convey Swiss citizenship.

The municipality whose (municipal) citizenship a Swiss citizen has is called the place of citizenship (also hometown).

The Swiss passport and identity card serve as proof of citizenship of the Swiss Confederation.

Swiss citizenship law is restrictive by international standards, and the cantons have different regulations. Children born in Switzerland to foreigners living in the country do not automatically receive citizenship.

Swiss citizens who live abroad are called Swiss Abroad and are also referred to as the Fifth Switzerland. This term is explained by the four language regions of Switzerland. At the end of 2018, 760,200 Swiss citizens lived abroad, 62% of whom lived in Europe, 16% in North America, 8% in South America, 7% in Asia, 4% in Australia and 3% in Africa (statistics of those registered with a Swiss diplomatic mission abroad).

 

Demography

Since the beginning of the 20th century, the population has more than doubled: from 3.3 million (1900) to 8.6 million (2019). Population growth leveled off to 0.7 percent in 2018. Population growth peaked between 1950 and 1970. Population declines only occurred in 1918 as a result of the Spanish flu and in the economic recession years of 1975–1977. While a total of 148,799 people immigrated to Switzerland in 2012, 96,494 left the country.

The growth of the population with a Swiss passport has been slower and more constant than that of the total population since 1981. The development of the foreign resident population was somewhat faster, but more irregular over the years - with relatively high annual growth rates of around 3 percent between 1988 and 1993.

While the general birth rate was 2.67 in 1963, it then steadily decreased to a value of 1.38 in 2001. Since then, there has been a moderate increase to 1.46 in 2007. This also resulted in a surplus of births of Swiss nationals (+400) for the first time in ten years. In 2018, the birth rate was 1.52 children per woman.

According to the Federal Statistical Office, life expectancy in 2019 was 85.6 years for women and 81.9 years for men. According to the United Nations, Switzerland was the country with the second highest life expectancy in the world between 2015 and 2020.

The population density in the flat central plateau is very high by Swiss standards, with around 450 people per square kilometer on 30 percent of the country's territory, and naturally low in the Alpine region and in the Jura. In the canton of Graubünden, located in the Alpine region, the population density is only a fraction of that (approx. 27 people per square kilometer). In addition, the Mittelland, but also the canton of Ticino, is highly urbanized.

Slower immigration has an impact on the real estate market: according to the Federal Statistical Office, the number of vacant apartments rose from 40,000 to 65,000 apartments between 2013 and 2017. As a result, rents are also falling.

In Switzerland, a distinction is made between foreigners (population without Swiss citizenship) and the population with a migration background (population with Swiss citizenship and foreign roots). The term Secondo is the term used in Switzerland for second-generation immigrants, some of whom are foreigners and some of whom are Swiss citizens.

 

Foreigners

Foreigners are people without Swiss citizenship (the official term for Swiss nationality). At the end of 2017, 2,126,400 residents without Swiss citizenship lived in Switzerland, corresponding to a foreigner share of 25.1 percent, most of them from Italy (317,300), Germany (304,600), Portugal (266,600) and France (131,100). Every foreigner receives a foreigner's ID card. Since the beginning of the 19th century, the proportion of foreigners in the total Swiss population has been higher than in other European countries. Reasons for this include the many border regions, the central location in Europe and the small size of the country. Others see the reason for this more in the restrictive legislation that prevents faster naturalization. While the average proportion of foreigners in the entire country is 26.0 percent (as of 2022), many communities have a proportion well above average. 29 municipalities have a foreign population of over 40 percent (as of 2022). In the same year, the municipalities of Rorschach (SG) with 50.6 percent, Spreitenbach (AG) with 50.9 percent and Kreuzlingen (TG) with 56.3 percent recorded the highest proportion of foreigners in Switzerland.

At the federal level, foreigners have no right to vote. In 605 municipalities (as of 2019), residents without a Swiss passport are allowed to take part in elections and votes. Most of these municipalities are located in French-speaking Switzerland in the cantons of Neuchâtel (since 1984), Vaud (since 2002), Geneva (since 2005) and Fribourg (since 2006). In the cantons of Graubünden, Appenzell Ausserrhoden and Basel-Stadt, municipalities are free to introduce the right to vote for foreigners. However, only a few municipalities make use of this right.

 

Population with a migration background

The population with a migration background includes people who have immigrated to Switzerland and whose parents were both born abroad. This also includes the immediate (direct) descendants of these people (so-called secondos, members of the second generation) who were born in Switzerland.

A person with a migration background can have both Swiss and foreign nationality.

Foreigners of the third generation and native Swiss whose at least one parent was born in Switzerland are therefore not considered to have a migration background. The Federal Statistical Office (FSO) determined that 34.8 percent (2,374,000 inhabitants) of the resident population aged 15 and over throughout Switzerland as of the end of 2013 were people with a migration background.

 

Asylum

Switzerland complies with its international legal obligations under the Geneva Refugee Convention. The legal basis is the Asylum Act (AsylG). The responsible federal authority is the State Secretariat for Migration (SEM). Asylum seekers and refugees, like all other foreigners, receive a foreigner's identity card: the "N" identity card is given to asylum seekers, "F" to temporarily admitted foreigners and "S" to those in need of protection.

In 2014, 23,765 people applied for asylum in Switzerland. The majority of asylum seekers came primarily from Eritrea, followed by Syria and Sri Lanka. In 2015, 39,523 people applied for asylum, mainly from Eritrea, Afghanistan and Syria.

 

Sans-Papiers

People who live in Switzerland without a valid residence permit are called sans-papiers (French, literally "people without papers"). Their number is naturally unknown. Estimates vary between 80,000 and 300,000 people; the Federal Statistical Office (FSO) puts the number at around 76,000 in a 2015 study. Most undocumented immigrants work in jobs for "low-skilled" workers. Undocumented immigrants work in industries whose personnel requirements are not fully covered by Swiss or EU nationals. They clean in private households, look after children and the elderly, work on construction sites or in agriculture.

 

Emigration

For young men, joining foreign military service as mercenaries was the most common form of emigration until the first third of the 19th century. From the 14th century onwards, the so-called mercenaries were in the service of the emperor, the French kings and Italian cities such as Milan.

Hunger and poverty after the Thirty Years' War led to waves of emigration to East Prussia and Russia. At the beginning of the 19th century, the general impoverishment caused by the war led to emigration to Russia, while in the famine years of 1816–1817, Latin America in particular was the destination. The agricultural crises of the 1840s, 1870s and 1880s as well as restructuring problems during industrialisation led to mass emigration on an unprecedented scale overseas, especially to North America and South America. At the end of the 19th century, North America was the destination for almost 90 percent of emigrants. Between 1851 and 1860, around 50,000 people emigrated overseas, in the 1860s and 1870s 35,000 each year, and between 1881 and 1890 over 90,000. By 1930, the number of emigrants per decade had stabilized at between 40,000 and 50,000. In some cantons, the authorities urged poor people to emigrate on a large scale.

The emigrants founded colonies in the New World, such as New Bern in North Carolina in 1710, Nouvelle Vevay (now New Vevay) in Indiana in 1803, New Switzerland in Illinois in 1831, and New Glarus in Wisconsin in 1845. The most famous emigrant was probably Johann August Sutter. The Californian landowner known as General Sutter founded the private colony of New Helvetia. The Californian gold rush broke out on his land in 1848.

According to empirical data, the migration balance for the area of ​​present-day Switzerland was always negative from the second half of the 16th century to the end of the 19th century.

 

Immigration

Today, Switzerland is - like almost all wealthy western countries in the world - a country of immigration. During the period of industrialization, there was a large internal migration, especially from the Alps. Since the great economic growth in the 1960s, guest workers were specifically recruited, and later on, Switzerland was repeatedly flooded with refugees, for example from the former Yugoslavia during the Yugoslavian wars. Many guest workers came from Turkey to Western Europe and thus also to Switzerland. After 8,544 people (4,876 of them Germans) moved from Germany to Switzerland in 1992, the number was 14,792 (11,225) in 2003 and 35,061 (29,139) in 2008. After that, immigration from Germany decreased to 25,881 (19,930 Germans) in 2014. In 2015, 106,805 people immigrated from the EU/EFTA and 55,111 EU/EFTA nationals left Switzerland. In 2008, only a few more people, 113,235, immigrated from the EU/EFTA. A few thousand people from third countries receive labor market access each year.

In 2017, Italian citizens made up the largest group of foreigners at 14.9 percent, followed by German (14.3 percent), Portuguese (12.5), French (6.2), Kosovar (5.2), Spanish (3.9), Turkish (3.2) and Serbian (3.1) citizens. 19.9 percent come from the rest of Europe, 7.9 from Asia, 5.1 from Africa and 3.8 from America.

42,699 people, mainly from Italy, Germany, Portugal, France and Kosovo, were naturalized in 2015. In 2008, 45,305 people were naturalized, mainly from Kosovo, Italy, Germany and Turkey.

In the first naturalized generation, the probability of participating in elections remains around ten to twelve percent lower than among voters who have been resident for several generations, said political scientist Anita Manatschal in 2021, who researches the so-called participation gap, i.e. the participation gap between people with and without a migration background in democracy.

 

Languages

According to a 2021 survey, German is the most widely spoken language in Switzerland; 62% of the permanent resident population aged 15 and over speak it as their main language. In German-speaking Switzerland (pale pink on the map), Swiss German dialects and, to a lesser extent, (Swiss) High German are spoken, while written material is usually written in Swiss High German. This is the name for the variety of standard German used in Switzerland. It differs from the standard variety of other German-speaking areas in vocabulary, word formation, semantics, orthography (e.g. no ß) and pronunciation. The corresponding peculiarities are called Helvetisms. Swiss German belongs to the Alemannic dialect area. Only the municipality of Samnaun belongs to the Bavarian dialect area.

French is spoken as a main language by around 23 percent of the total population. The predominantly French-speaking part of the country (purple) is known as Romandie, Suisse romande, Western Switzerland or – less frequently – as Welschland. In addition to the standard French that predominates today, only a small minority still speaks Patois (dialect).

Italian is spoken in the canton of Ticino and in four southern valleys (Misox, Calanca Valley, Bergell, Puschlav) as well as the municipality of Bivio in the canton of Graubünden (Grigioni italiano) (green). Italian is the main language for 8 percent of the total population of Switzerland. A large, but dwindling, part of the Italian-speaking population speaks local dialects that belong to Lombardy («Ticinées»).

The fourth national language, Romansh (yellow), accounts for 0.5 percent of the total population and is spoken in Graubünden; however, practically all Romansh speakers also speak German. The existence of Romansh has been endangered since the 19th century and, despite support measures, is gradually being displaced by German. Since 1860, 51 Graubünden communities have switched from Romansh to German-speaking areas. In 1938, the people approved a constitutional amendment that made Romansh the fourth national language of Switzerland; since 1996, Romansh has been an official language of Switzerland alongside German, French and Italian. Since 2001, the written language Rumantsch Grischun has been the official written language in the canton of Graubünden and is also used at federal level for communication with the Romansh-speaking population. In the Romansh communities, however, one of the five regional varieties serves as the official language.

The Federal Constitution does not specify the language areas of Switzerland. Article 70, paragraph 2 of the Federal Constitution gives the cantons the authority to determine their official languages. In doing so, however, they must take linguistic minorities and the traditional composition of the language areas into account. Anyone moving from a part of the country where a different language is spoken has no right to communicate with the new cantonal and municipal authorities in their native language (territoriality principle).

Of the bilingual cantons, only Bern and Valais have defined the language areas spatially; the bilingual canton of Fribourg assigns the regulation of the official language to the municipalities.

The municipalities of Biel/Bienne, Evilard/Leubringen and Fribourg/Fribourg on the French-German language border ("Röstigraben") are officially bilingual by cantonal constitution. Some other municipalities, such as those in the Murten/Morat school district and in the area around Biel, also offer bilingual services and schools to accommodate the French-speaking minority.

In the canton of Graubünden, according to Article 16 of the Graubünden Language Act of 2006, municipalities are officially considered monolingual Romansh if at least 40 percent of the inhabitants speak this language, and bilingual if at least 20 percent speak it. In practice, this can mean that Romansh is the administrative and school language, but Swiss German is the general language of communication.

The canton of Ticino defines itself as belonging entirely to the Italian-speaking area and the canton of Jura as belonging entirely to the French-speaking area, although one municipality in each case (Jura: Ederswiler, Ticino: Bosco/Gurin) has a German-speaking majority.

The number of travellers, among whom the Yenish form the vast majority alongside a smaller number of Sinti and Roma, is not recorded in censuses, but official estimates put it at 20,000 to 35,000. This would correspond to a share of approximately 0.5 percent. Yenish live scattered throughout Switzerland and, in addition to their internal group language, Yenish, usually speak one of the national languages. Yiddish (Western Yiddish) has an old tradition in Switzerland in the Surbtal villages of Endingen and Lengnau due to the Jewish communities there, which are now only marginal. Yiddish (Eastern Yiddish) has a more recent tradition in the city of Zurich, where it is sometimes spoken in ultra-orthodox circles. Since 1997, Switzerland has considered the speakers of Yenish and Yiddish as national, non-territorial "minority communities" within the framework of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages, but their languages ​​are not recognised as national minority languages.

Sign languages ​​are spoken by around 10,000 people living in Switzerland. In Switzerland, the Swiss German Sign Language (DSGS), the Langue des signes Suisse romande (LSF-SR, French-speaking Swiss Sign Language) and the Lingua dei segni della Svizzera italiana (LIS-SI, Ticino Sign Language) are used.

25 percent of the total population has another main language. Due to immigration, 9 percent of residents now speak languages ​​other than the national languages. Of these, English, Portuguese, Albanian, Spanish, Serbian-Croatian-Bosnian-Montenegrin are the most widely spoken (with decreasing prevalence). Others are Turkish, Tamil and Tigrinya.

As foreign languages, students in public schools learn at least one second national language and English. There are discussions about whether English should be taught at the same time as or even before the second national language. Due to protests from the other language region and fundamental considerations regarding the cohesion of Switzerland, purely English-language teaching has not yet been able to prevail anywhere.

 

Religions

Of the total Swiss resident population in 2017, 3,213,411 people (37.9 percent) were members of the Roman Catholic Church and 2,150,387 people (25.3 percent) were members of the Evangelical Reformed Church (100 percent: 8,484,130 people).

According to a survey by the Federal Statistical Office (FSO), of the resident population aged 15 and over in 2017, 35.9 percent were Roman Catholic, 26.0 percent were non-denominational, 23.8 percent were Evangelical Reformed, 5.9 percent belonged to other Christian communities (free churches, Christian Catholics and Orthodox Christians), 5.4 percent belonged to Islamic communities, 1.6 percent belonged to other religious communities (including 0.3 percent Jews) and 1.4 percent did not provide any information. In 2022, the non-denominational, with a share of around 34 percent, were ahead of the Catholics for the first time, who reached a share of around 32 percent.

According to a study by the Pew Research Center from 2017, 75 percent of the adult population in Switzerland describe themselves as Christians - regardless of whether they officially belong to a particular Christian denomination or church, e.g. by paying church tax. However, only 27 percent of Christians attend a church service at least once a month. 21 percent of those surveyed do not feel they belong to any religion, with almost half of them describing themselves as atheists.

Freedom of religion in Switzerland is enshrined as a fundamental constitutional right. It is up to the cantons whether they want to grant selected religious communities a special status as a public corporation and thus as a national church. In most cantons, the Roman Catholic Church and the Evangelical Reformed Church, in many cantons also the Christian Catholic Church and in some cantons the Jewish communities have this status. In 1973, the Israelite Community of Basel (IGB) in the canton of Basel-Stadt was the first Jewish community in Switzerland to be recognized under public law by the canton, with the cantons of Bern, Fribourg, St. Gallen, Vaud and Zurich now having the same law. The Christian Catholic Church is only important in parts of northwestern Switzerland. In the western Swiss cantons of Geneva and Neuchâtel there are no national churches because church and state are completely separate there; they are nevertheless recognized as "organizations of public interest". In Basel there is the so-called "limping separation" of church and state.

At 0.33 percent, Buddhism is more strongly represented in Switzerland than in other European countries. Synagogues, mosques and Buddhist temples exist in several places in Switzerland. Historically, the inhabitants of the cantons of Zurich, Bern, Basel-Stadt, Basel-Landschaft (except the district of Arlesheim), Schaffhausen, Appenzell Ausserrhoden and Vaud were almost exclusively Protestant around 1850, while those of the cantons of Fribourg (except the district of Murten), Valais, Jura, Solothurn (except the district of Bucheggberg), Lucerne, Obwalden and Nidwalden, Uri, Schwyz, Zug, Appenzell Innerrhoden and Ticino were almost exclusively Catholic. In contrast, the cantons of Glarus, Aargau, St. Gallen, Graubünden and Geneva were denominationally mixed. The distribution of denominations was the result of the application of the territorial principle in the choice of denomination after the religious wars of the 16th century; the denominationally mixed cantons either had new cantonal borders (Aargau, St. Gallen, Geneva) or had a traditional community-based definition (Glarus, Graubünden). Parity, i.e. the simultaneous presence of both denominations in the same place, was the exception; it applied in Toggenburg, in parts of the former subject territories of the Confederation (Thurgau, Echallens) and in some communities in Graubünden and Glarus.

A referendum in Vorarlberg in 1919 on negotiations with Switzerland about joining the Swiss Confederation resulted in a good 80 percent approval, but further negotiations failed because of the Reformed Church in Switzerland, who would have lost their then majority if an additional canton with Catholics were added.

 

Niklaus von Flüe is considered the patron saint of Switzerland.

Politics
Switzerland's politics are shaped by its self-image as a nation of will - the national identity is not based on a common language and culture, but rather on a common history, common myths, liberal, grassroots democratic and federalist traditions, and partly on the feeling of being a "special case" as a neutral and multilingual, self-reliant "small state" in Europe. A directorial system exists.

These conditions have been reflected in a political system that is unique in its entirety, in which federalism, expanded political rights of the people and elements of direct democracy, foreign policy neutrality and domestic policy consensus are at the forefront.

See also: Direct democracy in Switzerland and List of federal referendums

Political system
Switzerland is a republican federal state. It differs from other republics in that it has
elements of direct democracy: the people can have a direct influence on government activities through initiatives and referendums. In two cantons, Appenzell Innerrhoden and Glarus, there is still an original form of Swiss grassroots democracy: the Landsgemeinde.
the pronounced federalism: the cantons, alongside the people, are the constitutional legislators of the federal government and retain all tasks that are not explicitly assigned to the federal government in the federal constitution. In addition, the cantons are heavily involved in all phases of political decision-making (consultation, Council of States, majority of the cantons)
the consensus democracy
their self-declared Swiss neutrality

As is usual in democracies, state power is divided into three pillars, based on the Federal Constitution of the Swiss Confederation:
The legislature (Federal Assembly) consists of two chambers, the National Council with 200 members as representatives of the people and the Council of States with 46 members as representatives of the cantons. The Swiss parliament is a so-called militia parliament: the National Council and Council of States members exercise their mandate (at least nominally) part-time. The renewal elections take place every four years.
The executive is the Federal Council with the administration. It consists of seven equal members (principle of collegiality), the so-called "Federal Councillors" (ministers), each of whom heads a department (ministry) of the federal administration. The Federal Councillors are elected by Parliament. A member of the Federal Council is elected as Federal President by the Federal Assembly for one year at a time. He chairs the meetings of the Federal Council and carries out representative tasks at home and abroad, but has no privileges over the rest of the Federal Council. The presidency usually rotates based on seniority, the actual election is generally considered a formality to confirm it; rejection by Parliament is theoretically possible, however. During this year, the Federal President is usually addressed in public as Mr. Federal President, Madam Federal President, and no longer as Mr. Federal Councillor or Madam Federal Councillor. During the presidential year, a Federal Councillor fully carries out his usual government duties.
At federal level, the judiciary consists of the Federal Supreme Court based in Lausanne and two social law divisions of the Federal Supreme Court in Lucerne (until 2006: the Federal Insurance Court) as the highest judicial authority. The lower federal authorities are the Federal Criminal Court in Bellinzona, the Federal Administrative Court and the Federal Patent Court, both in St. Gallen, and finally the Federal Valuation Commission, a special administrative court. The federal judges, who usually belong to a party, are elected by the Federal Assembly. The Criminal Court began work in 2004; the Administrative Court did so in 2007.
There is no special Constitutional Court in Switzerland as in other countries, but all courts can exercise (limited) constitutional jurisdiction. According to Article 190 of the Federal Constitution (BV), federal laws are binding for the Federal Supreme Court and the other courts; they cannot revoke them, declare them invalid or refuse to apply them.

The order of the individual Federal Councillors is as follows: The Federal President is at the top of the list, followed by the Vice President. The Federal Councillors then follow in order of length of office for re-election according to the principle of seniority.

As part of the 2023 Federal Council elections, the United Federal Assembly elected the seven Federal Councillors and the Federal Chancellor on December 13, 2023. Six of the previous Federal Councillors were re-elected and one was newly elected, Beat Jans was elected to replace Alain Berset. The current composition of the Federal Council with party affiliation and distribution of departments is:
Elisabeth Baume-Schneider (SP/JU), Federal Department of Home Affairs (FDHA)
Guy Parmelin (SVP/VD), Federal Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research (EAER)
Ignazio Cassis (FDP/TI), Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA)
Viola Amherd (Die Mitte/VS), Federal President 2024, Federal Department of Defense, Civil Protection and Sport (DDPS)
Karin Keller-Sutter (FDP/SG), Vice President 2024, Federal Department of Finance (FDF)
Albert Rösti (SVP/BE), Federal Department of the Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications (DETEC)
Beat Jans (SP/BS), Federal Department of Justice and Police Department (FDJP)

Viktor Rossi (GLP/BE) has been the Federal Chancellor of the Swiss Confederation and thus Head of the Federal Chancellery (BK) since January 2024.

 

State budget

Public budgets in total (federal government, cantons and municipalities)
The public budgets together included expenditure of CHF 224.876 billion in 2019 and CHF 249.530 billion in 2021, including extraordinary expenditure for the COVID-19 pandemic; this was offset by revenues of CHF 232.389 billion in 2019 and CHF 242.820 billion in 2021. This results in a budget surplus of 1.3 percent of gross domestic product in 2019 and a deficit of -0.3 percent of GDP in 2021.

According to the Maastricht criteria, public debt was 25.6 percent of gross domestic product in 2019 and 27.6 percent in 2021.

In 2020, the share of government spending (as a percentage of gross domestic product) in the area of ​​social security was 16.1 percent, in the area of ​​education 5.3 percent, in the area of ​​health 2.6 percent and in the area of ​​defense 0.9 percent.

 

Federal Government

In 2022, the federal government recorded revenues (income) of around 77 billion francs. The most important source of revenue was the direct federal tax at 34 percent, followed by value added tax (three different rates) at 32 percent, the mineral oil tax (6 percent), the withholding tax (5 percent), the tobacco tax (3 percent), stamp duties (3 percent), other fiscal revenues (9 percent) and non-fiscal revenues (5 percent), as well as extraordinary revenues (2 percent).

In 2022, the federal government spent around 81 billion francs on the following sectors: social welfare (33 percent), finance and taxes (14 percent), transport (13 percent), education and research (10 percent), security (8 percent), agriculture and food (5 percent), foreign relations (5 percent), economy (3 percent), and other expenses (10 percent).

The debt brake, which has been anchored in the constitution since 2003, is intended to oblige the federal government to keep income and expenditure in balance over the economic cycle.

The credit rating agency Standard & Poor's has been giving Switzerland's government bonds the top rating of "AAA" since 1989 (as of 2018). Long-term interest rates on Swiss government bonds are very low by international comparison.

 

Enclaves and exclaves

Büsingen on the Upper Rhine and Campione d’Italia are enclaves in Switzerland. The German municipality of Büsingen is surrounded by the canton of Schaffhausen to the north of the Rhine, and to the south it borders the cantons of Zurich and Thurgau. The Italian town of Campione, known for its casino, is located on Lake Lugano within the canton of Ticino. In terms of customs law, both enclaves have been treated differently since January 1, 2020. While Büsingen is part of the Swiss customs area, Campione has not been since January 1, 2020. Instead, the municipality has been part of the Union's customs area since then.

The Italian town of Livigno was a functional enclave for a long time. Since the construction of a pass road, Livigno can also be reached from Italy. In order to make life in the remote location more attractive, the municipality is now an Italian customs exclusion area, after previously belonging to the Swiss customs area.

The municipality of Samnaun was a functional exclave for a long time, as the only access road ran through Austrian territory until 1912. Today the municipality is a Swiss customs-free zone.

 

Foreign policy

Switzerland sees itself as neutral in foreign policy, i.e. it does not participate in wars between states. Switzerland's neutrality was recognized at the Congress of Vienna in 1815. It is permanent and armed and is still expressly recognized internationally today.

Switzerland is a member of many international organizations. Switzerland was one of the last countries to join the UN in 2002, but was also the first country whose people were allowed to vote on joining. Switzerland is also active in the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), the Council of Europe and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA). Switzerland participates in NATO's Partnership for Peace and has ratified the Kyoto Protocol. In 2024, Switzerland was elected to the UN Human Rights Council for the fourth time and will hold a seat there from January 2025 to the end of 2027. Switzerland cooperates with several European organizations in research. It is a founding member of both the European Space Agency (ESA) and the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) and, together with Geneva, is the location of the research facility. Switzerland is part of the Schengen area.

Switzerland is neither a member of the European Union (EU) nor the European Economic Area (EEA); however, important bilateral agreements exist between Switzerland and the EU. Since 2004, the Swiss Federal President has taken part in the annual meetings of the heads of state of the German-speaking countries, a format that goes back to the desire of the then Federal President Joseph Deiss to intensify dialogue with the EU. Joining NATO would conflict with Switzerland's neutrality.

 

Relationship between Switzerland and the Principality of Liechtenstein

The relationship between Switzerland and the Principality of Liechtenstein has been regulated by a customs treaty since 1923 (officially: "Treaty between Switzerland and Liechtenstein on the annexation of the Principality of Liechtenstein to the Swiss customs territory").

After Austria lost the First World War and the Austrian monarchy collapsed, Prince Johann II dissolved the 1852 customs treaty with Austria in 1919 and sought proximity to Switzerland. Since the signing of the customs treaty with Switzerland in 1923, the principality has belonged to the Swiss customs territory and the national currency is the Swiss franc. However, Liechtenstein did not conclude an official currency treaty with Switzerland until June 19, 1980. The customs treaty continues to guarantee the full sovereign rights of His Serene Highness the Prince of Liechtenstein. The treaty ensures a close partnership between the two states to this day.

 

The good offices of Switzerland

The good offices have a long tradition in Swiss foreign policy. In addition to the protecting power mandates, they play a central role in Swiss peace policy. Switzerland's good offices are not limited to making its territory available to conflict parties as a place of negotiation ("hotelier function"), but it also offers itself as a mediator (conflict mediation).

 

Protecting power mandates

Protecting foreign interests as a protecting power is a classic element of good offices and, historically, of great importance for Switzerland.

The beginnings of the Swiss tradition of protecting power date back to the 19th century. The Swiss Confederation represented the interests of the Kingdom of Bavaria and the Grand Duchy of Baden in France in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870 and 1871. Switzerland laid the foundations for its reputation as the most significant and important protecting power in the world in the first half of the 20th century. During the First World War, Switzerland took on 36 mandates to represent interests. Switzerland's activity as a protecting power reached its peak in the Second World War in 1943/44 with 219 mandates for 35 states. After the end of hostilities, the number of mandates quickly decreased again. During the Cold War, several countries again used Switzerland to represent their interests. Switzerland is the most important country for protecting power mandates, ahead of Sweden and Austria, and usually had more than 20 mandates between 1966 and 1974. The main reasons for this are its extensive experience, neutral stance and extensive diplomatic representation network.

Switzerland currently holds seven diplomatic mandates (as of September 2020):

United States in Iran (1980): Comprehensive mandate that dates back to the Tehran hostage-taking in 1979-1981 and the resulting severance of diplomatic relations.
Iran in Egypt (1979)
Russia in Georgia (December 13, 2008)
Georgia in Russia (January 12, 2009)
Iran in Saudi Arabia (2016)
Saudi Arabia in Iran (2016)
Iran in Canada (2019)

Only the representation of the interests of the United States in Iran is a comprehensive mandate. The other mandates are of a more formal nature.

After Cuba and the United States resumed direct diplomatic relations in 2015, Switzerland's mandate as protecting power for the United States in Havana expired in July 2015 after 54 years.

 

Security

According to the World Peace Index, Switzerland ranks eleventh in the list of the safest countries in the world in 2019 (out of 163 nations).

 

Swiss Army

The Swiss Army is the armed force of the Swiss Confederation. It consists of the army and air force. The annual budget is around 4.873 billion francs (2011).

The special feature of the Swiss armed forces is their militia system. Professional and part-time military personnel make up only about 5 percent of the army members; all the rest are citizens aged between 20 and 34 (in special cases up to 50) who are subject to military service. Swiss citizens are prohibited from serving in a foreign army. The Vatican Swiss Guard is an exception to this, as it is viewed by Switzerland as a security service only.

As part of the militia system, members of the army keep their personal equipment, including personal weapons (including pocket ammunition until 2008), at home. The peculiarities of the militia system gave rise to the previously common saying "Switzerland has no army, Switzerland is an army". All male Swiss citizens are required to perform military service. Women can volunteer for military service, and since 2007 they have been subject to the same physical requirements as men. Every year, around 20,000 people are trained to become soldiers in recruit schools lasting 18 or 21 weeks. Those unfit for military service serve in the civil defence and also pay an annual military service tax. Conscientious objectors have the option of performing civilian service, provided they claim reasons of conscience and are prepared to complete one and a half as many days of service as soldiers as proof of their actions. Refusal to serve for other reasons (such as political or personal reasons) necessarily leads to military court proceedings.

With the "Army XXI" reform - approved by referendum in 2003 - the number of troops planned in the previous "Army 95" model was reduced from 400,000 to around 200,000. Of these, 120,000 are assigned to active units and 80,000 to reserve units.

A total of three general mobilizations (GMob; also war mobilization, KMob) took place to protect the integrity and neutrality of Switzerland. The first GMob took place on the occasion of the Franco-Prussian War of 1870/71. In response to the outbreak of the First World War and to prevent a German or French march through Switzerland, the army's GMob was renewed on August 3, 1914. The army's third GMob took place on September 1, 1939 in response to the German invasion of Poland. Henri Guisan was elected general and during the war years became the main integration figure of the Swiss Confederation, which was surrounded by the Axis powers.

Since its founding in 1848, Switzerland today has never been confronted with open attacks by enemy forces on land. During the Second World War, however, there were frequent airspace violations by German and Allied fighter aircraft. In the most serious attack, 40 people died in the bombing of Schaffhausen on April 1, 1944, and 270 were injured, some seriously.

Since the military threat situation for Switzerland in today's Europe has changed, the army is repeatedly being questioned. The Group for a Switzerland without an Army (GSoA) in particular has been campaigning for its abolition for years - but so far without success: two votes to abolish the army were clearly rejected by the people. The question of whether peacekeeping army missions abroad are compatible with neutrality is also controversial.

 

Civil protection organization

The civil protection organization, founded in 1934, is subordinate to the Federal Department of Defense, Civil Protection and Sport. In the event of a disaster, it is the second-tier operational resource (after the fire brigade, police and health/emergency services, but before members of the army) and is responsible for protecting, caring for and supporting the civilian population. The civil protection organization also takes care of protecting cultural assets, supports the management bodies at the municipal and regional level and repairs infrastructure.

 

Federal Intelligence Service NDB

The Swiss intelligence service NDB, which has existed since January 1, 2010, emerged from the merger of the Service for Analysis and Prevention DAP and the Strategic Intelligence Service SND. The NDB reports directly to the head of the Department of Defense, Civil Protection and Sport (DDPS). The intelligence service obtains information using intelligence or secret service means and analyzes and evaluates it with the aim of creating a management-relevant intelligence situation for decision-makers at all levels. With its operational and preventive services, the NDB contributes directly to the protection of Switzerland.

Switzerland is likely to want to participate in the French espionage system Composante Spatiale Optique, as it does not maintain its own satellites.

 

Customs and border security

The Federal Office for Customs and Border Security (FOCA) was formed on January 1, 2021 through the merger and reorganization of the Border Guard Corps and the Federal Customs Administration (FCA). It is responsible for customs issues and border security.

 

Police

Police sovereignty in Switzerland lies with the cantons. Each canton has its own cantonal police to enforce police power. In some cantons, basic police services are provided by city/municipal police, such as the Zurich city police. The respective cantonal police are also responsible for security at the airports located in their canton. The Federal Office of Police (fedpol) is responsible for coordination between the cantonal police and foreign police stations.

The general emergency number for the police in Switzerland is 117. Anyone who dials the European emergency number 112 is automatically connected to the operations center of the responsible cantonal police.

 

Fire service

In most cantons, adult men and sometimes women are required to join the fire service. Organizing a fire service is primarily the responsibility of the municipalities. However, more and more local fire services are merging regionally. The fire service in Switzerland can be reached via the emergency number 118.

In 2019, the fire service was made up of 1,185 professional and around 80,110 volunteer firefighters, who work in 1,272 fire stations and firehouses. The proportion of women is nine percent. In the same year, the Swiss fire services were called out to 70,939 missions, and 12,935 fires had to be extinguished. The Swiss Fire Brigade Association represents the fire services of Switzerland in the International Fire Brigade Federation CTIF.

 

Air rescue

The Swiss Air Rescue Service (Rega) is an independent and non-profit private foundation and is responsible for air rescue in Switzerland. It works closely with the emergency services, police, fire brigade and medical services. Rega is a close partner of the Swiss Alpine Club SAC for alpine rescue and recovery operations. In the canton of Valais, it is not Rega, but Air-Glaciers and Air Zermatt that are responsible for air rescue. Rega can be reached in Switzerland on the emergency number 1414.

 

Society

Social policy

Switzerland is a very well-developed welfare state. There are several social insurance schemes. These are compulsory insurance schemes, which means that residents are required to be insured. The most important social insurance schemes are:
Old age and survivors insurance (AHV), state pension insurance
Health insurance
Maternity insurance
Accident insurance
Disability insurance (IV) for people who can no longer work full-time due to disabilities or who need supplementary benefits
The state pension insurance (AHV), occupational pension provision (pension fund) and private pension provision are collectively referred to as the three-pillar system. For employed people, occupational pension provision, the pension fund, is compulsory. This is regulated by the private sector and is the responsibility of the employer. Private pension provision, on the other hand, is voluntary in the form of life insurance, for example. These are tax-advantaged up to a certain limit.

There is also the income replacement scheme, so that those liable for military service receive a daily allowance while performing military duties. Unemployment insurance is also compulsory.

 

Health care

In Switzerland, every resident - regardless of nationality - is obliged under the Health Insurance Act to insure themselves with a health insurance company of their choice to cover the costs of treatment in the event of illness ("basic insurance", "compulsory health insurance"). Health insurance companies in Switzerland are exclusively private companies. They are legally obliged to accept anyone who submits a corresponding application into basic insurance, provided that they are resident in the area of ​​activity of the insurance company. The payment of the premium (membership fee) is the responsibility of the insured person. This is a per capita premium, i.e. the premium is independent of income, but varies from health insurance company to health insurance company and from canton to canton. Low-income people are granted individual premium reductions by the state. State hospitals are financed on the one hand by income from treatments, and on the other hand by subsidies from the cantons or municipalities. Private hospitals, on the other hand, are usually financed only from treatment fees, which are therefore significantly higher than those of state hospitals. The statutory basic insurance does not therefore cover treatment in private clinics. Outpatient treatment, on the other hand, is covered by the basic insurance throughout Switzerland and by any approved service provider. Dental treatment is not covered by health insurance, with a few exceptions. There are contracts with the EU states that regulate the mutual assumption of treatment in emergencies (form E111).

Every employee is compulsorily insured for treatment costs in the event of accidents under the Accident Insurance Act (UVG). Most employees are also insured against loss of wages, with the exception of non-occupational accidents for marginal employees who work less than eight hours for one employer. On the one hand, there is an independent accident insurance under public law (Swiss Accident Insurance Institute, SUVA for short), and on the other hand, most private insurance companies also offer accident insurance under UVG. The responsibility, whether SUVA or private insurance, depends on the employer's industry and is regulated by the Federal Council in an ordinance. Industries with a higher risk of accidents, such as construction and forestry, are insured with SUVA, for example. It is the employer's responsibility to insure all employees - even in the event of accidents during leisure time. Anyone who is not employed must take out insurance with their health insurance company to cover treatment costs in the event of accidents.

 

School system

The Swiss school system is a complex structure. The responsibility for the school system does not lie exclusively with the federal government, but is mainly the responsibility of the cantons due to federalism. In Switzerland, the average length of schooling for the population over 25 years of age in 2015 was 13.4 years, making it the longest in the world.

The federal government and the cantons share responsibility for the education system, although the cantons have extensive autonomy. The federal level defines the guarantee of free schooling, the start of a school year in August and the guarantee of quality requirements. In other areas, the cantons have sole authority in compulsory schooling.

The federal government has somewhat greater authority in secondary schools. However, the cantons are still responsible for implementation and the responsibility rests with them.

At the tertiary level, the powers are also distributed. The federal government has regulatory authority for the universities of applied sciences (FH) and the two Federal Institutes of Technology (ETH) in Zurich (ETHZ) and Lausanne (EPFL), as well as for the Federal Institute of Sport in Magglingen. The universities are in turn under the control of the cantons.

Due to these facts, one can speak of 26 different school systems in Switzerland, corresponding to the number of cantons.

The length of primary school, lower secondary level and the number of levels (performance level) in lower secondary level vary from canton to canton; in total it is usually nine years. There are also major differences in the school subject matter. The teaching materials (school books) are usually produced and distributed by the cantons themselves. After the end of the compulsory period, however, all are at a similar level. After compulsory schooling, one has the choice between a secondary school that leads to the Matura, or starting vocational training, an apprenticeship. The apprenticeship is accompanied by regular attendance at a vocational school. Attending a vocational secondary school (BMS) at the same time, which leads to the vocational baccalaureate, is voluntary. Most Swiss students choose to do an apprenticeship. The BMS provides access to study at a university of applied sciences. The new so-called "Passerelle" also enables access to a university without taking an exam after obtaining the vocational baccalaureate certificate (BM certificate) by completing an additional school year and taking an additional exam.

 

Human rights

Switzerland is the depositary state of the Geneva Conventions. The intergovernmental agreement is an essential component of international humanitarian law.

In 1942, with the introduction of the Swiss Criminal Code, the death penalty was abolished in civil criminal proceedings in Switzerland. Since 1999, the death penalty has also been banned at constitutional level.

In 1974, Switzerland ratified the European Convention on Human Rights.

Switzerland has a national human rights institution and a national commission for the prevention of torture. The commission visits places of deprivation of liberty. A referendum passed a constitutional amendment according to which foreign nationals convicted of certain crimes must be immediately deported to their home countries. Criminal law still did not contain a definition of torture recognized under international law.

Amnesty International has repeatedly criticized Switzerland's asylum policy. In 2010, the UN Committee against Torture expressed concern that the Swiss Federal Law on Foreign Nationals could violate the principle of non-refoulement. The law allows the automatic expulsion of foreign nationals who are considered a security threat, without the affected parties being able to appeal. In the same year, the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights expressed concern that, given the inadequate facilities for receiving asylum seekers, people are being housed indefinitely in underground civil defence facilities.

From February 2010, the Federal Administrative Court suspended the transfer of several asylum seekers to Greece under the Dublin II Regulation in order to await a ruling on the question of the admissibility of these transfers to Greece. Despite this, the Federal Office for Migration (BOM) deported a total of 50 asylum seekers to Greece in the course of 2010.

 

Orders and decorations

Switzerland and its cantons are considered to be one of the few states that do not award orders or decorations.

 

Transport

The transport sector in Switzerland is responsible for more than a third of CO2 emissions. Motorised transport is also the main contributor to high ozone pollution. Most of the passenger transport in Switzerland is for leisure travel. The well-developed public transport network is noticeable in the fact that around a fifth of all Swiss households do not have their own car. This proportion rises to as much as 57 percent in cities, further supported by the fact that shared cars are also widespread in Switzerland.

In the canton of Graubünden, motorised private transport was banned from 1900 to 1925.

 

Rail transport

The railway network measured 5,317 kilometres in 2020. With around 122 metres per square kilometre, Switzerland has the densest railway network in the world (excluding small states such as the Vatican City or Monaco), although two thirds of the country is located in very mountainous terrain and does not contribute to this record. The Swiss standard gauge railway network is 3,778 kilometres long and is completely electrified. The narrow-gauge, meter-gauge and broad-gauge railways have a total length of 1,766 kilometers, of which 30 kilometers (1.7 percent) are not electrified. 80 percent of the electrification was carried out with AC (alternating and three-phase current) and 20 percent with DC (direct current).

With a route of 3,265 kilometers, the Swiss Federal Railways (SBB) operate the most railway lines. They alone transport over 300 million passengers annually. The second longest route network with 420 kilometers is operated by BLS AG, followed immediately by the meter-gauge Rhaetian Railway with 384 kilometers, whose lines are located exclusively in the canton of Graubünden. There are also a further 47 private railway companies in Switzerland. In Switzerland, private railways are those railway companies that are organized under private law, i.e. usually as joint-stock companies under the Code of Obligations. In most cases, the main shareholders are the public sector. The public sector also plays an important role in financing rail transport. In 2016, the federal government, cantons and municipalities covered around 5.1 billion francs (45 percent) of the total costs.

In 2019, every Swiss citizen made an average of 74 train journeys, covering a distance of 2,505 kilometers; this makes Switzerland the world's leading rail travel nation.

As part of the New Railway Transversal through the Alps (NRLA), the Gotthard and Lötschberg Base Tunnels were built to serve the constitutionally prescribed traffic shift of transit traffic. The Lötschberg Base Tunnel was put into operation for regular passenger and freight traffic with the timetable change on December 9, 2007; the Gotthard Base Tunnel, the longest tunnel in the world at 57 kilometers, followed on December 11, 2016.

Since 1990, several S-Bahn trains have been built, which now handle a large part of local rail transport. In order to make fares as simple as possible, nationwide tariff associations were founded.

International long-distance rail passenger transport is to be promoted more strongly again. To this end, the transport ministers from Germany, France, Austria and Switzerland made a fundamental decision in December 2020 and the four state railways SBB, DB, ÖBB and SNCF signed a corresponding declaration of intent.

 

Local transport

In addition to the very dense rail network, buses, trams and light rail provide the detailed public transport connections.

Bus: Several dozen regional transport companies transport passengers in the cities and in the countryside. There is hardly a place that is not connected to public transport; even the town of Juf (Canton of Graubünden), the highest settlement in Europe, is served by public transport every day. Electric trolleybuses are also used in the larger cities. The yellow post bus forms the backbone of public transport in many rural and mountainous areas.

Tram: Until the 1960s, trams operated in many cities and agglomerations. The growing road traffic required more space, and so trams were replaced by buses in many places. Many tram lines still exist today in the six cities of Basel, Bern, Geneva, Neuchâtel, Lausanne and Zurich.

Light rail: In addition to the S-Bahn, bus and trams, several light rail systems have been built in recent years or are still in the planning stages. The most recent light rail system is the Limmattalbahn near Zurich.

Underground: Apart from the Skymetro at Zurich Airport, the Lausanne metro is the only urban underground system in Switzerland.

 

Road traffic

The first passenger cars in Switzerland were on the road at the end of the 19th century, after the automobile was first demonstrated in Switzerland at the 1896 National Exhibition in Geneva. Since 1944, the Swiss Road Transport Federation (FRS, Fédération routière suisse) has been the coordinated umbrella organization of the very homogeneous automobile organizations in their interests. The presidency of the Swiss Touring Club (TCS) and the Swiss Automobile Club (ACS) is held in rotation. Mass motorization began after the Second World War. The majority of the population in the densely populated central plateau now lives less than 10 kilometers from the nearest motorway or highway. A large area of ​​Switzerland with a relatively small population, on the other hand, is accessible by main roads, and finally there are various connections in the mountains over mountain passes and through tunnels, most of which are closed in winter. In 2024, the total length of all roads was 85,009 kilometers, of which 1,549 kilometers were motorways. In 2020, more than a million people were affected by excessive road traffic noise. In 2017, motorized private transport on the road caused 9.5 billion francs in external costs, which corresponds to 71 percent of the total external costs of transport in Switzerland. Commuters can claim a tax deduction for their commute.

The use of the Swiss road network is generally free of charge for passenger cars. However, for the use of motorways with white and green signs in Switzerland, a vignette (sticker vignette or e-vignette) is mandatory for passenger cars and trailers, the one-off national road tax (40 francs) to be paid for one year. Fees on a private road accessible to the public are the absolute exception (the best-known example: the tunnel at the Great St. Bernard leading to Italy).

Since January 1, 2001, the performance-related heavy goods vehicle tax (LSVA) has applied to trucks. It is collected electronically and the amount of which does not depend on the type of road traveled, but on the distance traveled and the vehicle's emission category. On February 28, 2016, a referendum approved the construction of a second tube of the Gotthard road tunnel with a yes share of 57 percent. The new tunnel tube is needed because of the renovation of the old Gotthard road tunnel.

As the number of passenger cars and their size is constantly increasing, the energy efficiency of road traffic is constantly decreasing. In 2018, a quarter of all Swiss energy consumption was used in road traffic. In 2021, 17,436 accidents involving personal injury were registered on Swiss roads, resulting in 16,601 minor injuries, 3,933 serious injuries and 200 road deaths. In 2022, the motorization rate (passenger cars per 1,000 inhabitants) was 540. In 2019, 13,197 purely electric cars were registered, more than twice as many as in the previous year (+143.9 percent). During the economic crisis in 2020, 236,828 new passenger cars were registered, the fewest since the oil crisis in the mid-1970s. Nevertheless, the number of road vehicles has continued to grow.

 

Air traffic

In aircraft registration, the Swiss national emblem is HB, Swiss airports are given ICAO codes that begin with LS.

Switzerland has three national airports, eleven regional airports, 44 airfields and five military airfields used by civilians. The largest airports and starting points for long-haul flights are in Kloten (Zurich Airport) and Cointrin (Geneva Airport). The third largest airport in Switzerland, Basel-Mulhouse Airport, is located in Hésingue and Saint-Louis on French territory. Regional airports are also located in Sitten (Sion Airport), Belp (Bern-Belp Airport), Agno (Lugano Airport) and Altenrhein (St. Gallen-Altenrhein Airport). One of the highest airports in Europe, Engadin Airport, is near Samedan.

The most serious air accident in Switzerland occurred in 1973 near Basel with Invicta International Airlines Flight 435, which resulted in 108 fatalities.

Until the debt restructuring moratorium in October 2001, Swissair was the national airline and operated a global route network and the regional airline Crossair. Its successor, Swiss, has been a subsidiary of Deutsche Lufthansa AG since July 2007 and continues to operate intercontinentally. Other Swiss airlines include Edelweiss Air and Helvetic Airways.

The only domestic flight connection is the Zurich-Geneva route offered by Swiss.

Skyguide, a private limited company, is responsible for air traffic control in Swiss airspace and the adjacent airspace in Germany, Austria, France and Italy on behalf of the Federal Office of Civil Aviation (FOCA). In Swiss airspace, this includes both civil and military air traffic control.

The federal air transport service, which is also responsible for the Federal Council's two jets, is based at Bern-Belp Airport.

According to Greenpeace, air traffic in Switzerland is subsidized to the tune of 1.7 billion Swiss francs annually, as airlines do not pay mineral oil tax (see also kerosene tax). In addition, in 2016 the environmental and health costs of around 1.2 billion Swiss francs from air traffic were almost entirely borne by the general public. The cost of these external effects was 1.4 billion Swiss francs in 2017, which corresponds to 10% of the total external costs of transport in Switzerland. In 2018, 77 percent of destinations from Switzerland were in Europe.

 

Shipping

The operating length of public passenger shipping, including car ferries, in 2020 is 514 kilometers. The only international ports with sea connections are the Swiss Rhine ports, which are located in and near Basel on the Rhine.

 

Slave transports

In the 18th and 19th centuries, numerous Swiss ships transported thousands of slaves to America. The 600-ton frigate Helvétie transported 550 slaves to Havana in Cuba and landed 414 survivors there in February 1792. Swiss ships such as the Ville de Bale, Pays de Vaud and Ville de Lausanne brought slaves to Cap-Francais in the French colony of Saint-Domingue (now Haiti). 50 ships financed by Basel merchants transported 16,261 enslaved blacks to the west; only 14,601 survived the transports. In 1817, the Le Cultivateur brought in 16,236 francs by transporting 178 men, 90 women, 166 boys and 85 girls, after deducting 27 who died en route. Swiss troops also earned money by transporting them to suppress slave uprisings.

 

21st century

Four shipping companies operate (as of 2020) a total of 19 ocean-going vessels under the Swiss flag. Switzerland is considered (as of April 2022) the fourth largest shipping location in Europe.

In addition, there are the ports of the inland lakes, which, in addition to the ferry services across Lake Zurich, Lake Constance and Lake Lucerne and the development of the municipality of Quinten on Lake Walen, have a high tourist share.

The only freight traffic on the lakes is normally gravel transport with ledi ships. Excursion boats operate on most of the larger lakes and rivers, sometimes only in the summer months. The restored paddle steamers, which are listed as historical monuments, are particularly popular with passengers.

 

Mountain railways

Due to the topography, there are many mountain, funicular and aerial cable cars in Switzerland, which are mainly used for tourist development, but also as public transport for the development of settlements. The train station on the Jungfraujoch is the highest train station in Europe, and the aerial cable car to the Klein Matterhorn is the highest train station in Europe.

Due to their location, some places in the Swiss mountain region are not or only partially accessible by road. The places and holiday settlements in Switzerland that can only be reached by train or cable car include Belalp, Bettmeralp, Braunwald, Fiescheralp, Gimmelwald, Gspon, Landarenca, Lauchernalp, Mürren, Niederrickenbach, Rasa, Riederalp, Schatzalp, Stoos, Wengen, Wirzweli and Zermatt. For those arriving by car, parking spaces or even parking garages are available at the last train station accessible by car or at the valley station, for example in Lauterbrunnen for Mürren and Wengen, and in Täsch for Zermatt.

 

Slow traffic

In 2015, 37 percent of all journeys or 6 percent of all passenger kilometers in Switzerland were slow traffic. The bicycle vignette was abolished at the end of 2011. The Bicycle Path Act came into force on January 1, 2023, which obliges the federal government and cantons to plan and build a network of bicycle paths on their roads by the end of 2042.

SwitzerlandMobility is the national network for slow traffic, especially for leisure and tourism. Slow traffic is the official umbrella term in Switzerland for hiking, cycling, mountain biking, skating and canoeing. The project was launched in 1998 and consists of several parts. The Veloland Switzerland Foundation promotes recreational cycling in Switzerland and created nine national routes by 1998. Other topics include mountain biking in Switzerland, skating in Switzerland and canoeing in Switzerland.

The hiking trails are also part of the SwitzerlandMobile project under the name Hiking in Switzerland. Switzerland has a network of uniformly marked hiking trails with a total length of 62,441 km, of which 13,880 km are hard surface and 23,090 km are mountain trails (as of 2007). There are three types of hiking trails with different levels of difficulty: yellow marked hiking trails, white-red-white marked mountain trails and white-blue-white marked alpine routes. In 2017, SwitzerlandMobile was supplemented by a uniformly signposted winter offer for winter hiking, snowshoeing, cross-country skiing and sledding.

 

Economy

Switzerland is one of the wealthiest countries in the world. Measured by gross domestic product, Switzerland ranked 20th in 2019 with the equivalent of 705 billion US dollars, and fourth in terms of gross domestic product per capita with 92,371 US dollars. According to a study by Credit Suisse Bank, Swiss residents have the second highest per capita wealth in the world at 537,599 US dollars (as of 2017), and one in ten adults has assets of more than one million dollars.

In 2020, 5.0 million people in Switzerland were employed. 2.8 percent worked in agriculture (primary sector), 20.8 percent in industry and commerce (secondary sector) and 76.4 percent in the service sector (tertiary sector). As of June 30, 2021, the unemployment rate was 2.8 percent. The general price level is high. The cost of living is the highest in Europe and was 63.3 percent above the EU average in 2015. Zurich and Geneva were the most expensive cities in the world in 2016.

Switzerland's economy is considered one of the most stable economies in the world. Price stability is one of the factors contributing to its success. In 2008, for example, annual inflation was 2.4 percent, above 1.8 percent for the first time since 1994. Economic freedom is guaranteed by Article 27 of the Swiss Federal Constitution and all 26 cantonal constitutions. In 2020, Switzerland ranked fifth on the Economic Freedom Index. In the World Economic Forum's 2017-2018 Global Competitiveness Report, which measures the competitiveness of countries, Switzerland ranks first, ahead of Singapore and the United States. Switzerland ranks first on the Global Innovation Index, which represents the innovative capacity of individual countries.

According to Brand Finance, the five most valuable brands (and companies) from Switzerland are: Nestlé, UBS, Zurich, Rolex and Roche. Economiesuisse is the largest umbrella organization of the Swiss economy. The Swiss Federation of Trade Unions is the largest union in the country.

The four Swiss companies with the highest sales (2022) are those that trade in foreign commodities on the world market. This service-related commodity trade contributed significantly more to Swiss economic output than tourism before the sanctions introduced in the wake of the war in Ukraine against Russia in 2022.

 

Swiss franc

The Swiss franc (Fr., SFr. and CHF for short) is the official currency of Switzerland. After the US dollar, euro, pound and yen, the Swiss franc is one of the most important smaller currencies in the world.

As an independent central bank, the Swiss National Bank (SNB) conducts the monetary and currency policy of the Swiss Confederation and in 2013 held currency reserves of 477.4 billion francs and gold reserves of 35.6 billion francs. Banknotes in circulation amounted to 65.8 billion francs. By February 2018, foreign currency reserves had risen to 826 billion US dollars (779 billion francs), making the country the third-highest in currency reserves behind the People's Republic of China and Japan.

 

Agriculture

The small-scale structures, the sometimes unfavorable terrain, the high wage level and the strict regulations (animal husbandry, landscape protection) have a negative impact on international competitiveness. As the agricultural market becomes increasingly open, Swiss agriculture is coming under pressure. The structural change from many small businesses in mountain and Alpine foothills to a few large businesses in the flat central plateau has been ongoing for decades. Between 2000 and 2011, the number of full-time employees in agriculture fell by 23,280 and in 2011 was only 72,715 (-24 percent). The number of farms also fell by 1.8 percent, while the area under cultivation hardly decreased. Agriculture is supported by the federal government with considerable funds (subsidies or direct payments subject to conditions). The gross self-sufficiency rate has been below 60 percent in recent years. The net self-sufficiency rate (including imported feed) was 48 percent in 2016.

 

Raw materials and energy production

Crude oil

Energy consumption in Switzerland is largely based on the import of fossil fuels. The wave of motorization from the 1950s onwards led to a rapid spread of crude oil, whose share of consumption rose from one percent to eleven between 1910 and 1939 and fell from 64 to 55 percent between 1990 and 2008, before reaching a value of 51.5 in 2014. In 1966, the Cressier refinery was opened, which was directly connected to the South European pipeline. Around a quarter of the fuels required in Switzerland (petrol and diesel) are produced there, the rest is imported by the petrol station operators. The Collombey refinery, which began operations in 1963, ceased operations in 2015.

 

Natural gas

The Swiss natural gas trading and transport company Swissgas procures and transports natural gas on behalf of the four Swiss regional gas distribution companies. Twelve feed-in points are connected to the European gas pipeline network. The most important supply line is the Trans-Europe natural gas pipeline, which runs from the Netherlands to Italy. In 2003, 781 communities were connected to the gas network. In 2012, 41 percent of the natural gas consumed in Switzerland came from the European Union, 24 percent from Norway and 21 percent from Russia. The remaining 12 percent came from other countries. In 2021, 43 percent of the gas came from Russia. In 2015, the share of gas in total final energy consumption was 13.5 percent. The regional companies also import a significant amount of the gas. Natural gas was extracted in Finsterwald from 1985 to 1994. In the meantime, more and more biogas plants are being built, which also feed the processed gas into the network.

 

Nuclear power

To ensure base load energy, nuclear energy contributes 39 percent of domestic electricity production on average over a ten-year period, and up to 45 percent in winter. The Swiss nuclear power plants, with four reactor blocks at three locations, have a total output of 3.095 gigawatts; their annual availability is around 90 percent. On May 21, 2017, the Swiss population approved the Energy Strategy 2050 with 58.2 percent of the vote. This means that the construction of new nuclear power plants is prohibited. Furthermore, renewable energies (including cost-covering feed-in tariffs) and the more efficient use of energy are to be promoted.

 

Hydropower

In addition to nuclear power, hydropower from run-of-river (around 49%), storage (47%) and pumped storage power plants (4%) is used to ensure base load energy. The more than 700 power plants (power plants with an output of at least 300 kW) account for almost 58 percent of domestic electricity production (as of 2023). In 2016, the Swiss Federal Research Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape counted 249 energy cooperatives based on commercial register entries that primarily trade and promote renewable energies.

Meanwhile, more virtual water is imported than exported, the amount of which is equal to that of Lake Thun every day. This virtual water comes to Switzerland, for example, through the purchase of strawberries from Andalusia. In total, around 82 percent of Switzerland's water footprint is generated outside the country.

 

Waste incineration

29 waste incineration plants (WIPs) supply around 2 percent of Switzerland's total energy. Due to the biomass content of the waste, 50 percent of this energy is considered renewable. Due to consumer behavior and population growth, operators can expect above-average amounts of waste. According to Eurostat, 703 kilograms of municipal waste per capita were generated in 2017, of which 336 kilograms were incinerated. Comprehensive recycling of beverage cartons to obtain secondary raw materials was discontinued because not all retailers wanted to participate in the collection. Many of these waste incineration plants are among the largest CO2 emitters in Switzerland. The Federal Department of the Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications (UVEK) and the Association of Swiss Waste Recycling Plant Operators (VBSA) signed an agreement in March 2022 that all waste incineration plants must implement CO2 capture and storage by 2050.

 

Mineral resources

Gravel, lime, clay, gypsum, granite and salt are mined in Switzerland, among other things.

Around five million tonnes of cement are consumed in Switzerland every year, 86 percent of which was covered by the six Swiss cement plants in 2019 and 14 percent by imports. This high level of self-sufficiency can only be maintained if new mining permits are granted for the necessary cement raw materials or significantly less cement is needed.

The six cement plants are located at the Eclépens, Cornaux, Péry, Wildegg, Siggenthal-Station and Untervaz sites. In addition to the use of coal, heavy oil, petroleum coke and natural gas, they also recycle plastic waste, solvents, sewage sludge, animal meal, animal fats and almost half of all old tires generated in Switzerland.

In Switzerland, a good five million cubic metres of wood are harvested every year, which corresponds to around two thirds of the usable wood that grows back in Swiss forests each year. Switzerland imports more wood and wood products than it exports. Every year, around six million cubic meters of wood are used for energy, consumed as cardboard or paper, processed into furniture or used in construction.

 

Other

The ecological resources in Switzerland are scarce. The biocapacity or biological natural capital per capita is 40 percent smaller than the world average: In 2016, Switzerland had 1.0 global hectare of biocapacity per person, compared to the world average of 1.6 global hectares per person. The use of biocapacity and thus Switzerland's consumption-related ecological footprint, on the other hand, was 4.6 hectares per capita. With around 4.6 times more biocapacity used than Switzerland contains, the densely populated country has a substantial biocapacity deficit. The consumption of fossil energy, which has grown sharply in recent decades, accounts for almost three quarters of Switzerland's ecological footprint. In 2022, Energy Independence Day fell on April 12.

 

Trade and industry

Switzerland leads the world in terms of per capita industrial production with around 12,400 US dollars, ahead of Japan with 8,600 US dollars and Germany with 7,700 US dollars. In absolute terms, Switzerland's industrial production, at around 100 billion US dollars, is significantly higher than that of Belgium, Norway or Sweden and is roughly on a par with that of Taiwan and the Netherlands. In 2008, Switzerland's industrial share of value added caught up with Germany and overtook Japan. This is mainly because industry produces very high-quality goods such as medical technology products, pharmaceuticals, precision instruments or luxury watches.

The share of value added in the industrial sector in the total gross domestic product has fallen since 1970 from around 30 percent to around 22 percent today. The largest decline occurred between 1973 and 1979, when the share fell by around 6 percentage points to less than 24 percent. The previously dominant textile industry has largely disappeared. From the 1950s to the 1980s, the machine industry in Switzerland offered the highest number of jobs in the second sector, even ahead of the construction industry.

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs for short; companies with up to 249 employees) are of crucial importance in the Swiss economy. More than 99 percent of all companies are SMEs. They provide two thirds of all jobs.

Large international companies play an important role in the machine industry such as ABB, in the food industry such as Nestlé, Lindt & Sprüngli and Givaudan, in the pharmaceutical industry with Novartis and Roche, in the chemical industry with Syngenta and in the watch and luxury goods industry with Swatch Group and Richemont.

Some of the federally owned armaments companies were merged into RUAG in 1998.

Of the 1,035,000 employees in industry and commerce in 2013, 31.7% worked in construction, 10.4% in the watch and precision instrument industry, 9.6% in metal processing, 9.5% in mechanical and vehicle construction, 6.8% in chemicals, 6.4% in food, beverages and tobacco, 1.4% in the textile industry and 24.2% in other industries.

 

Services

The tertiary sector has by far the largest number of employed people (72 percent). The dominant sectors are trade, health and education, banking and insurance, including UBS, Zurich, Swiss Life and Swiss Re, as well as the legal profession, with lawyers often also working as financial intermediaries. In the years after 2000, companies from the commodity trading sector settled here: Vitol, Glencore, Xstrata, Mercuria Energy Group. According to estimates by the KOF Economic Institute, transit trade in raw materials generated 65.8 billion francs in 2022. Switzerland is responsible for 1.8% of global service exports - mainly thanks to tourism, financial services, IT services, legal services, auditing services and research and development.

 

Tourism

Tourism has been an important economic sector in Switzerland for around 150 years. It was favored by the Alps, the many lakes, the central location in Europe, stable politics, a secure society and a strong economy. The most popular destinations and most visited regions include Zurich, Lucerne, Graubünden, Bernese Oberland, Valais, Geneva, Vaud, Basel, Ticino, Eastern Switzerland and Bern. In 2013, Switzerland had a total of 5,129 hotels and health resorts with 249,666 beds and over 25,000 classified holiday apartments and guest rooms. There are also 755 group accommodations, 52 youth hostels, 412 campsites, over 1,000 bed-and-breakfast establishments, 29,000 train stations and 2,500 cable cars. 210,000 of Swiss employees (4 percent) in 167,590 full-time positions worked in tourism. In 2022, 38.2 million hotel overnight stays were recorded. Tourism (foreign guests only) was in fourth place in export revenues in 2012 with 16 billion francs (4.6 percent). Tourism is an important economic factor, especially in the economically weaker mountain regions. In the mountain cantons of Graubünden and Valais, the share of gross domestic product is up to 30 percent, and across Switzerland it is 2.6 percent.

 

Retail

Retail in Switzerland is dominated by Migros and Coop. Aldi and Lidl have also recently become competitors. In addition to Migros and Coop, the largest retailers in Switzerland in 2022 included Denner and Digitec Galaxus (both part of the Migros Group), Volg and Landi (both Fenaco Group), Jumbo (Coop Group), Ikea (independent) and Interdiscount and Dipl. Ing. Fust (both Coop Group). In total, the Swiss retail branch network consists of around 49,000 branches. The country's largest shopping center is the Glattzentrum.

 

Foreign trade

The following table shows Switzerland's ten most important trading partners for the export and import of goods (as of 2021). The pharmaceutical and chemical industry has the largest share of exports, accounting for 44.9 percent in 2016. Swiss arms exports, on the other hand, account for less than one percent.

 

Media, communication and post

Press

National newspapers are the internationally respected Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ) and the newspapers Tages-Anzeiger, Basler Zeitung and Der Bund, which are linked by their editorial staff. The most widely read daily newspaper is the free commuter newspaper 20 Minuten (French 20 minutes), ahead of the tabloid Blick and the Tages-Anzeiger. Other newspapers are regionally oriented. In Romandie (French-speaking Switzerland), Le Temps is a national daily newspaper. A regional daily newspaper in Romandie is 24 heures.

Well-known news magazines are the weekly formats Die Weltwoche and Die Wochenzeitung. A well-known French-language magazine is L’illustré.

A “media quality ranking” by media scientists from the universities of Zurich and Freiburg mentioned the NZZ, Le Temps and the Bund in leading positions in 2018.

 

Radio and television

In addition to numerous private providers, the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR is by far the most important and largest provider of radio and television programs in Switzerland.

SRG SSR
The Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR is a private association with a public mandate based in Bern and the owner of the largest electronic media company in the country. The activities of the SRG are based on the Swiss Federal Constitution, the Radio and Television Act, the Radio and Television Ordinance and the federal license, which give it extensive tasks in the service of the general public (public service). The SRG SSR is independent in terms of both publishing and organization. Through its corporate units
Swiss Radio and Television (SRF)
Radio Télévision Suisse (RTS)
Radiotelevisione Svizzera (RSI)
Radiotelevisiun Svizra Rumantscha (RTR)

the SRG SSR is present in all language regions with its radio and television programs.

 

Radio

The public SRG SSR operates six radio programs in German (Radio SRF 1, Radio SRF 2 Kultur, Radio SRF 3, Radio SRF 4 News, Radio SRF Virus and Radio SRF Musikwelle). There are also four programs in French (La Première, Espace 2, Couleur 3 and Option Musique), three in Italian (Rete Uno, Rete Due, Rete Tre) and one in Romansh (Radio Rumantsch). The SRG SSR also operates the specialty programs Radio Swiss Pop, Radio Swiss Classic and Radio Swiss Jazz. The radio programs are financed by broadcasting fees. The SRG SSR is not permitted to run radio advertising.

Since 1983, private, commercial radio stations have been operating in all regions. There is also a large group of non-commercial regional stations that produce complementary programs that are not the same old thing. They have joined together in the Union of Non-Commercial Local Radios (UNIKOM) group.

All SRG radio programs and many private radio stations are broadcast not only on FM, but also on DAB+.

 

Television

SRG SSR's public television offering includes six channels with full programs, two for each of the three major language regions (German-speaking Switzerland SRF 1 and SRF two, French-speaking Switzerland RTS Un and RTS Deux, Italian-speaking Switzerland RSI LA 1 and RSI LA 2). SRF also produces the news and repeat channel SRF info, which can be received unencrypted via satellite throughout Europe. All seven television channels are produced in HDTV quality (720p) and can be received via the Hotbird satellite. The French-language RTS Info can be received as a live stream all over the world.

To promote the Romansh language, short programs with German subtitles from Televisiun Rumantscha are broadcast daily on SRF 1.

SRG SSR's television programs are financed by broadcasting fees and advertising.

Private broadcasters with a national broadcast area include: 3+, 4+, 5+, Star TV, Puls 8, S1, TV24 and TV25. There are also many local channels. Many German channels such as RTL, RTL II, VOX, Sat.1, kabel eins and ProSieben broadcast their programs in German-speaking Switzerland with special advertising slots and a few programs produced specifically for Switzerland. With the exception of local programs, almost all German and Austrian channels as well as French and Italian channels can be received in Switzerland.

 

Foreign service

SWI swissinfo.ch is the name of Switzerland's multimedia foreign service produced by the SRG in 10 languages. The internet platform replaced the outdated medium wave service Swiss Radio International in 1999 and is co-financed by the federal government.

 

Communication and post

The three network providers Swisscom, Sunrise and Salt Mobile each operate their own nationwide mobile network. The then state telephone monopolist PTT (predecessor of Swisscom and Swiss Post) put the analogue Natel-A network into operation in 1978. The Natel-B network followed in 1983 and the Natel-C network in 1987. Since the amount of data transferred is constantly increasing, the mobile network has been expanded several times, currently to 5G. In 1998, the state monopoly fell. The word Natel is an abbreviation for "national car phone" and is still used in Switzerland today as a synonym for mobile communications. The federal government holds 51.22 percent of Swisscom AG at the end of 2013.

In 2016, 87.2% of the population used the Internet.

Swiss Post AG is the state postal company in Switzerland.