History of the Canton of Schwyz

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Schwyz canton coat of arms
Obligation of 1000 francs from the canton of Schwyz dated August 10, 1891

The history of the canton of Schwyz deals with the past of Schwyz Canton area between Lake Lucerne and Zurich since the early days.

The oldest human traces come from the late Paleolithic , the oldest existing settlement remains are pile dwellings in Lake Zurich near Freienbach . There was permanent settlement on Lake Zurich and on the route over the Bündner passes even in Roman and early medieval times. The area around Schwyz was settled together with the other forest sites in the 7th and 8th centuries. From a secular point of view, the canton was part of the Zürichgau , and on the ecclesiastical side of the diocese of Constance . A Benedictine abbey has been located in Einsiedeln since the 10th century .

As rulers, the noble families of Kyburg , Frohburger and Rapperswiler owned land in the canton of Schwyz. In the second half of the 13th century, the Habsburgs tried to enforce rulership rights in their place. They took over the umbrella bailiff over the Einsiedeln monastery. In the Schwyz valley, communal structures developed under the leadership of farming families. The interests of Habsburg and the Schwyz valley clashed in the Marchenstreit and the Battle of Morgarten (1315).

In the 14th century, Schwyz concluded alliances with the other forest sites and the imperial-free cities in the Central Plateau. At the same time it acquired control of areas under the sovereignty of the Einsiedeln monastery and the Küssnacht landscape until the 15th century. With the granting of high jurisdiction over these areas in 1415, the old country of Schwyz was created, which had bailiwick rights in the common lordships . Schwyz remained Catholic during the Reformation .

In 1798 the Schwyz estate resisted integration into the Helvetic Republic without success . Its territory was assigned to the cantons of Waldstätte and Linth . In 1803 the canton was restored in its old form. The previous subject areas revolted against the privileges of the old state of Schwyz and threatened to split off in 1830. A struggle that shaped the 19th century also flared up between liberal and conservative ideology. The constitution of 1848 introduced after the Sonderbund War created the modern canton of Schwyz with the institutional structure that exists today. In addition to the cantonal administration, many powers remained with municipalities, districts and agricultural and forestry corporations.

Prehistoric times and antiquity

Formation of the natural landscape

The Schwyz Alps were formed in the Tertiary by plate tectonic thrust. Marine deposits in the Tethys Ocean since the Triassic formed the basis for this. In the course of the ice ages , the landscape was shaped by mountain erosion. During the Pleistocene, today's canton of Schwyz was located in the river basin of the Reuss and the Linth glaciers . Crystalline rock from the Aar massif reached the valleys and mineralized the lean limestone and flysch soils .

Palaeolithic and Mesolithic

The presence of Neanderthals and cave bears in the Middle Paleolithic has not been archaeologically documented enough in Central Switzerland. What is certain, however, is the presence of hunters from the Upper Palaeolithic in the late Würm Ice Age (14,500 to 12,000 years ago), thanks to flint tools found in the Langrüti on the north bank of the (prehistoric) Sihlsee . Mesolithic camp sites have also been found in the Langrüti as well as at balms and caves in the Muotatal .

Neolithic and Bronze Age

Site of a Silex knife blade on the Nüsellstock, Rothenthurm

Settlement finds near Freienbach on Lake Zurich date from the time of the Young Neolithic (around 4000 BC). The people of the Horgen culture in particular built pile dwellings in the damp soil. After 2400 BC Chr. The settlement of the lake shores broke off due to climate deterioration.

In the Bronze Age , marked by the introduction of metallurgy, a return of the lakeside settlements can be assumed. Sites on the Rosshorn near Hurden from the period 1800 to 1200 BC Are of supraregional importance. In 2011 they became part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site Prehistoric pile dwellings around the Alps . The nearby lake dam has been used since 1500 BC. Crossed by bridges. As a transition on a north-south trade route, it goes back to the Bronze Age.

Iron age

The island of Lützelau in Lake Zurich was settled in the Latène period. Traces of an Iron Age settlement were also found during excavations near the church in Altendorf . In the alpine areas of the canton there is no evidence of permanent settlement for the Iron Age or the previous Bronze Age, but finds of animal bones and charcoal from fireplaces, for example in the Abri Stali in Hürital, indicate that the valleys and plateaus were used as nomadic pastures.

Roman times

In Roman times, Ausserschwyz was on the border between the Roman provinces Germania superior and Raetia , and also on the traffic route from Turicum ( Zurich ) via the vicus Centum Prata ( Kempraten ) towards Lake Walen . The only structures discovered from this period are a Gallo-Roman temple on the island of Ufenau and a bridge over the lake dam. In the inner part of the canton, Roman coins and metal objects came to light, namely the treasure trove of Küssnacht (1809) and that of Rickenbach (1857). An aureus from Emperor Florianus from the year 276, which was excavated in Schwyz, is considered a showpiece among the Schwyz found coins from Roman times .

Early middle ages

Settlement by the Alemanni

In Schwyz historiography, the early Middle Ages were often treated as a turning point as the beginning of a story of their own. Until the mid-19th century, the prevailing opinion was that the local population had immigrated from Sweden . This was attributed to the consonance of the words "Schwyzer" ( Schwidonis ) and "Schweden" ( Schwedones ). Even earlier, at the end of the 15th century, the Ulm monk Felix Fabri from Zurich wrote that the immigrants came from their mother country Suevia on the Danube and that the Suebi established a colony “in a foreign environment” there. The Alemanni also emerged from the Germanic tribe of the Suebi .

Contrary to these assumptions, political structures from the late Roman period continued to exist. From 536 the Schwyz canton area belonged to the Frankish Empire , after the division of 561 probably to the Austrasian ducatus alamannorum , whereby the Alemannic dukes held a relatively independent position until the second quarter of the 8th century. Alemannic settlement activity is likely to have started from around 680, although Alemannic and Romanic population groups still existed side by side for the time being. The Romansh influence was still effective in the March in the 10th century.

High Middle Ages

Schwyz state seal from 1294

Old Schwyz , which is mentioned for the first time in 970, appears from the beginning as a community of mostly free farmers with local ammen at the head; but the Habsburgs, as counts of the Zürichgau, to which it belonged, were its judges. In December 1240 it received a letter of freedom from Frederick II in gratitude for having moved in, which withdrew it from the jurisdiction of the Habsburgs; but they did not recognize the letter, and after a long feud Schwyz had to return to their domination . After it had concluded the Eternal Covenant with Uri and Unterwalden in 1291 , in 1309 after the march controversy of Henry VII it obtained the legally binding confirmation of its imperial freedom and secured this through the victory in the Battle of Morgarten on November 15, 1315.

Late Middle Ages

The tenacious energy and wild heroism that the people of Schwyz showed at every opportunity gave them a kind of unwritten claim to leadership among the Eight Old Places , so that their name was soon transferred to the entire Waldstätte by the non-confederates and since the Battle of Sempach on July 9, 1386 was applied to the whole Confederation . Partly through conquest, partly through purchase, Schwyz acquired the jurisdiction and patronage due to Austria over Einsiedeln , the March and Küssnacht am Rigi .

Early modern age

It fought against the Reformation with all its might and stood with zeal for the Catholic special efforts. Only a few, as in the village of Arth , have there been supporters of the Reformation since 1520, thanks to the Protestant pastor Balthasar Trachsel , the von Hospenthal family is known by name. Until 1655 they could exist covertly as nicodemites or cryptoprotestants and celebrate evangelical church services with communion in private houses. Because of peasant uprisings and political uncertainties, they were no longer tolerated. In the so-called Hummelhandel 37 evangelicals fled to Zurich, around 25 people were arrested, four stood firm and were beheaded in Schwyz. This provoked the reformed Zurich and led to the first Villmerger War in 1656 .

Helvetic and mediation

The Helvetic unit Republic from 1798 added it only when it comes to the fighting on the Schindellegi recognized and Morgarten (May 2) the futility of further resistance. Schwyz was then incorporated into the canton of Waldstätte , but remained the focus of federalism under Aloys Reding's leadership . The mediation act restored Schwyz's cantonal independence in 1803. The Republic of Gersau , which had been an independent Free State allied with the Waldstätten from 1390, was united with the Canton of Schwyz in 1817.

Impending cantonal split

In the reaction of 1814 Altschwyz forced his former subjects March, Einsiedeln and Küssnacht to a comparison, according to which Altschwyz had to order ² / ₃, but these only ¹ / ₃ of the district administrator. In 1830 the outer districts demanded the restoration of legal equality and, since Altschwyz refused, constituted themselves as an independent canton "Schwyz outer land" (May 1832). When Schwyz prepared to subdue the fallen regions by force of arms on July 31, 1833, it was militarily occupied by the Diet until October 13, 1833, a new constitution reunited the two parts of the country on the basis of legal equality.

In addition to the Republic of Gersau, Reichenburg had a special position in the March when it came to creating cantons. The place was a medieval donation to the monastery Einsiedeln, which exercised the jurisdiction in particular. The incorporation into the canton did not take place without resistance from the monastery and negotiations with the Einsiedeln monastery. In 1814 there was a first connection, then again a split and a compulsory incorporation. Even today, the people of Reichenburg like to refer to themselves as princely children and their community as princely land.

Sonderbund War and constitutional revisions

In the aftermath, too, Schwyz remained loyal to clerical politics and proved to be an ardent member of the Sonderbund . As a result of the constitutional revisions of 1848 and 1855, Schwyz moved from the ranks of rural parish cantons to that of representative democracies.

Hatred between Ausser- and Innerschwyz 1975

At the time the canton of Jura was split off , the police command of the canton of Schwyz submitted a report to the federal prosecutor's office: "Incidents involving an alleged attempt to create a canton <Auserschwyz>". On March 22, 1975, Blick had reported on such an Ausserschwyz separatist movement, but it was more of a joke. Starting July 18, there were advertisements in local newspapers seeking people who would support such a movement. In September a working group, which, however, had distanced itself from the separatists, went public with a catalog of problems relating to relations outside of Switzerland with central Switzerland. This called for a decentralization of administration and schools, as well as a change in the composition of the government council commissions. The events were accompanied by a spiteful exchange of blows in the local media and nationwide reporting. According to Andreas Meyerhans, the non-existent investigations according to the cantonal government and the simultaneous existence of the police report, which only became known through the Fichen affair, left a "stale aftertaste".

See also

literature

  • Historical Association of the Canton of Schwyz (ed.): History of the Canton of Schwyz , 7 volumes. Chronos Verlag, Zurich 2012, ISBN 978-3-0340-1118-1 .
  • Markus Riek, Markus Bamert (Ed.): Masterpieces in the Canton of Schwyz :
    • Volume I: From the Early Period to the Counter Reformation . Benteli Verlag, Bern 2004, ISBN 3-7165-1354-7 .
    • Volume II: From the Baroque to the Present . Benteli Verlag, Bern 2006, ISBN 3-7165-1415-2 .

Web links

Commons : History of the Canton of Schwyz  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Harald Haarmann: Lexicon of the fallen peoples. C. H. Beck, Munich 2005. p. 37 f.
  2. ↑ Peter Zwahlen: Origin of the natural landscape , in: Geschichte des Kantons Schwyz , Vol. 1, p. 34.
  3. ↑ Catherine and Urs Leuzinger-Piccand: Paleolithic and Middle Stone Age hunters and gatherers , in: Geschichte des Kantons Schwyz , Vol. 1, p. 66/67.
  4. ↑ Urs Leuzinger: Badger discovers Stone Age finds , in: Archeology in Germany 1 (2016) 56 f. (Finds in the Muotatal).
  5. ↑ Thomas Cavelti, Philipp Wiemann, Ursula Hügi: Neolithic and Bronze Age , in: Geschichte des Kantons Schwyz , vol. 1, p. 81 ff.
  6. ↑ Valentin Kessler: From stone ax to carpentry - archaeological highlights in the canton of Schwyz , in: Archeology Switzerland No. 35.2012.2, p. 27.
  7. ↑ Thomas Cavelti, Philipp Wiemann, Ursula Hügi: Neolithic and Bronze Age , in: Geschichte des Kantons Schwyz , vol. 1, p. 91 ff.
  8. ↑ Martin Trachsel: Die Eisenzeit , in: Geschichte des Kantons Schwyz , Bd. 1, S. 107/108.
  9. ↑ Martin Trachsel: Die Zeit der Römer , in: Geschichte des Kantons Schwyz , vol. 1, p. 119 ff.
  10. ↑ Valentin Kessler: From stone ax to carpentry - archaeological highlights in the canton of Schwyz , in: Archeology Switzerland No. 35.2012.2, p. 30.
  11. ↑ Karin Fuchs, Georges Descoeudres: Early and High Middle Ages , in: Geschichte des Kantons Schwyz , Vol. 1, p. 133.
  12. ^ Karl Dändliker : History of Switzerland. Schulthess, Zurich 1904. Volume I, 1884, p. 308
  13. ↑ Julius Cramer: The history of the Alemanni as a Gau story. M. & H. Marcus, Breslau 1899. pp. 210 ff.
  14. ^ Kaspar Michel: Schwyz (Canton) - 1.2. Early middle ages. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland . May 11, 2017. Retrieved June 13, 2019 .
  15. ↑ Urs Heiniger: Nicodemites - Arther early history with reference to the Reformation , website ref-arth-goldau.ch, July 5, 2017
  16. ↑ Kulturspur Oberarth, O 12 Hummelhof, on the arth.ch website
  17. ^ Andreas Meyerhans: The "Canton of Ausserschwyz" - joke or serious in the summer of 1975? , Announcements of the historical association of the Canton Schwyz, Volume 95 (2003), p. 173