Sigmund Widmer
Sigmund Widmer (born July 30, 1919 in Zurich ; † August 11, 2003 in Visp ) was a Swiss politician ( National Ring of Independents ), historian and writer . From 1966 to 1982 he was mayor of Zurich.
Life
Sigmund Widmer was first a primary school teacher, then studied history and German in Zurich, Geneva and Providence (USA) until he received his doctorate. From 1949 he worked in Zurich as a secondary school teacher. As a militia officer in the Swiss Army, he rose to the rank of Colonel of the Infantry (Commander Inf Rgt 27). In 1950, Widmer began his political career when he was able to move up to the city council of Zurich for a representative of the Landesring der Independene , Erwin Jaeckle . Sigmund Widmer later became one of the most famous state ring politicians alongside the party founder Gottlieb Duttweiler .
In 1954, Widmer was elected to the Zurich city council, where he headed the building construction department. After the resignation of the FDP mayor Emil Landolt in 1966, Widmer took part in a competitive election for the presidium between the FDP and the SP . In the second ballot, he left the candidates of the major parties, Adolf Maurer (SP) and Ernst Bieri (FDP), behind. The post-war building boom fell during Widmer's time as mayor and head of the building construction department. Since there was no more space for the city's steadily growing population, Widmer had municipal building cooperatives buy land in the surrounding communities with the help of the city in order to combat the shortage of space. He also initiated the development of new local recreation areas, such as the Hoch-Ybrig ski area .
However, some of Sigmund Widmer's projects for the city of Zurich also suffered spectacular shipwreck, such as the plan to hold the 1976 Winter Olympics or the project to build the Zurich subway , which failed in referendums in 1969 and 1973 respectively. Since the beginning of the student riots in 1968, Widmer's position between the Poles SP and FDP has become more and more difficult, also because the electoral base of the Landesring was getting smaller and smaller. After another escalation of violence after the opera house riots in 1980, which he found difficult to control, Widmer resigned in 1982 to make way for the "bourgeois turnaround" under Thomas Wagner . In addition to his work in Zurich, Sigmund Widmer was a member of the National Council (LdU) from 1963 to 1966 and 1974 to 1991. He presided over the Pro Helvetia Foundation and was appointed by the Federal Council to mediate in the Jura conflict. As the culmination of his career as a politician and historian, Widmer was allowed to give the speech at the Federal Assembly for the 700th anniversary of the Swiss Confederation .
As a writer and historian, Widmer wrote numerous columns for the Züri-Woche , smaller essays and books, including a 13-volume cultural history of the city of Zurich. He was unable to complete a six-volume epic entitled "Familie Frey", only five volumes have appeared. He died on August 11, 2003 after a brief serious illness in the hospital in Visp and was buried in the Fluntern cemetery in Zurich .
Works
- «That is freedom!», «That is barbarism!» Sonderbund war and federal reform of 1848 in the judgment of France . Züst, Bern-Bümpliz 1948.
- Emil Landolt: Mayor of Zurich in office and everyday life . Rohr, Zurich 1965.
- Illustrated history of Switzerland . Ex libris, Zurich 1965.
- Zurich. A cultural story . 13 volumes. Artemis, Zurich 1975–1986, ISBN 3-7608-0682-1 .
- Words at the moment: a hundred columns from the «Züri-Woche» 1982–1989 . With a preface by JR von Salis. Ex Libris, Zurich 1989, ISBN 3-7178-0010-8 .
- The source is always the beginning: columns from the Züri-Woche . Gotthelf, Zurich 1992, ISBN 3-85706-283-5 .
- From Zurich to Zurich: Diary of a trip around the world . Linda, Zurich 1993, ISBN 3-906740-01-3 .
- At midnight at the Rilke tomb . Linda, Zurich 1994; 2nd edition 1995, ISBN 3-906740-04-8 .
- Family Frey: story . 5 volumes. Linda, Zurich 1997–2001, ISBN 3-906740-06-4 , ISBN 3-906740-07-2 , ISBN 3-906740-08-0 , ISBN 3-906740-10-2 , ISBN 3-906740-11- 0 .
- Switzerland - an idiosyncratic country (= Pro Libertate series. Issue 17). 2nd Edition. Swiss Association Pro Libertate , Bern 2003, ISBN 3-9521945-4-9 .
literature
- Christian Baertschi: Widmer, Sigmund. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
- Alice Gertrud, Hans Rudolf Bosch-Gwalter (Eds.): 700 Years of the Confederation: Speech by National Councilor Sigmund Widmer to the United Federal Assembly on May 3, 1991 . Kranich-Druck, 42nd Kranich-Verlag, Zollikon 1991, ISBN 3-906640-42-6 .
- "Zurich's old city president Sigmund Widmer has died". In: news.ch, August 12, 2003.
- «Former mayor Sigmund Widmer died at the age of 84. Memories of an independent and tireless politician » . In: Neue Zürcher Zeitung , August 13, 2003.
Web links
- Literature by and about Sigmund Widmer in the catalog of the German National Library
predecessor | Office | successor |
---|---|---|
Emil Landolt |
Mayor of Zurich 1966–1982 |
Thomas Wagner |
personal data | |
---|---|
SURNAME | Widmer, Sigmund |
BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Swiss politician (LdU), Mayor of Zurich and National Councilor |
DATE OF BIRTH | July 30, 1919 |
PLACE OF BIRTH | Zurich |
DATE OF DEATH | August 11, 2003 |
Place of death | Visp |