St. Gallen Rhine Valley

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The St. Gallen Rhine Valley region
in the east of the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland , on the border with Austria and Liechtenstein

The St. Gallen Rhine Valley is a political / geographic region in the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland , on the left bank of the Rhine between Bad Ragaz and Lake Constance . It is part of the Alpine Rhine Valley region .

geography

Relief map St. Gallen.png

The term St.Gallen Rhine Valley is used in various contexts.

The geographic region of St. Gallen Rhine Valley corresponds to the part of the Alpine Rhine Valley that lies in the canton of St. Gallen. It covers the left-hand river and valley area of ​​the Alpine Rhine and its tributaries and has an area of ​​550.32 km².

This roughly corresponds to the two political constituencies of Werdenberg and Rheintal as well as parts of the Sarganserland cultural landscape . It is bounded in the east by the Alpine Rhine , with two exceptions: the villages of Diepoldsau and Schmitter, which were cut off from the rest of the municipality by the Rhine regulation in 1923 through the Diepoldsau breakthrough. The border from St. Margrethen also follows the former course of the river, the Old Rhine . In the west, the valley is formed by the slopes of the Alvier group , parts of the Churfirsten , the foothills of the Alpstein and the Appenzeller Vorderland. The plain in the valley is in the south near Bad Ragaz at around 480  m above sea level. M. and in the north on Lake Constance at almost 400  m altitude. The bottom of the valley is up to 5 km wide and borders Austria and Liechtenstein to the east and Obertoggenburg and Appenzellerland to the west .

Neighboring countries

The St. Gallen Rhine Valley has a 148 km long national border, over which it borders on Austria (state of Vorarlberg ) for 107 km and the Principality of Liechtenstein for 41 km .

Cultural landscape of the St.Gallen Rhine Valley

The Rhine Valley region is divided into Upper Rhine Valley (green), Middle Rhine Valley (yellow) and Lower Rhine Valley (red). The municipality of Thal has been part of the Rorschach constituency since 2003.

The cultural landscape of the St. Gallen Rhine Valley roughly includes the former Reingau . This essentially corresponds to the Rheintal district and the municipality of Thal , which has been part of the Rorschach constituency since January 2003 . In terms of cultural history, Thal continues to be counted as part of the St. Gallen Rhine Valley . Depending on your perspective, only the area from St. Margrethen to Rüthi is considered to be the St. Gallen Rhine Valley.

Historically and culturally determined nesting

The St. Gallen Rhine Valley, in turn, is further divided into:

history

The oldest prehistoric finds in the Rhine Valley date from around 5500–2200 BC. According to the historian Werner Kuster, the finds from the Bronze Age (approx. 2200–800 BC) are more spectacular. These include an early grave site on the Hirschensprung , references to settlements in Altstätten , Lienz and Rebstein , as well as a prehistoric excavation site on the Montlingerberg.

Early days

In the early days, the St. Gallen Rhine Valley was populated by Celts . It is believed that it was the Vindeliker tribal group . The main settlement area of ​​the Vindeliker, in the Alpine Rhine Valley , was the oppidum Brigantion (Bregenz), where finds have been found to have been settled since around 1500 BC. Suggest.

Switzerland in the 1st – 3rd Century AD under Roman rule. The provincial borders approx. 90 AD to 284 AD (Imperial reform of Diocletian)

Antiquity and Migration

In ancient times , the St. Gallen Rhine Valley belonged to the province of Raetia (originally Raetia et Vindelicia). It was in the course of the Alpine campaigns around 15 BC. Conquered by Drusus and Tiberius .

On the left side of the valley, a footpath was created at a considerable distance from the Rhine.

Gaul in 481, shortly before Clovis came to power; his sphere of influence initially included only part of the Franconian territories

After the fall of the Roman Empire around 476, the northern Rhine valley, in the area of ​​the mouth of Lake Constance , was annexed by the Alamanni as part of the migration of peoples , but in fact it was still part of the province of Raetia. It is believed that Charlemagne (768-814) replaced the Rhine Valley from Raetia.

middle Ages

Map of the counties in what is now Eastern Switzerland
The Rhine Valley before the founding of the Helvetic Republic (1798)

In the empire of the Franks ( Carolingians ) the empire was divided into different Gaue . Officials served as administrators, as representatives of the king. These bore the title comes ( counts ). Those counts who administered the Rheingau in the Franconian Empire were the Counts of Bregenz. These came from the noble family of Udalrichingen , which was named after the frequently used name Uodalrich ( Ulrich ). At that time, the Rheingau still extended from Blattenberg - Kummenberg to Lake Constance .

From the 9th century the Rhine Valley was part of the Duchy of Swabia . The Lower Rhine Valley was first mentioned in writing in 890/91 as Ringowe ( Rheingau ) with reference to the possessions of the St. Gallen Monastery . The Upper Rhine Valley (south) belonged to the County of Raetia .

Late Middle Ages

The late Middle Ages were marked by the fragmentation of the counties, mostly by the division of inheritance by the Counts of Montfort , their conflict with the monastery of St. Gallen and the advance of the Habsburgs into the Rhine Valley.

During the Appenzell Wars (1401 to 1429), the people of the Rhine Valley sided with the Appenzeller and joined the Bund above the lake . In 1424 the bailiwick of the Rhine Valley fell to the Counts of Toggenburg . In 1460 the Appenzeller bought the bailiwick of the Rhine Valley for 6,000 guilders. As a result of the Werdenberg feud , the counties of the St. Gallen Rhine Valley became bailiffs in 1491 as common lordships of the Old Confederation ( Grafschaft Sargans 1460, Vogtei Rheintal 1491) or became subject areas of the old places ( Lordship Sax 1248 from Zurich, County Werdenberg 1259 from Glarus) and remained so until the end of the Old Confederation in 1798.


Modern times

In 1798 the areas were divided between the cantons of Säntis and Linth of the Helvetic Republic . After the founding of the canton of St. Gallen in 1803, the communities in the Rhine Valley from Thal (with Altenrhein, Buechen and Staad) to Lienz formed the Rhine Valley district . The city of Werdenberg and the communities of Wartau, Sax and Gams make up the Werdenberg district . The Sargans district lost Wartau, but received fourths. In 1831 the Rhine Valley district was divided into the Lower and Upper Rhine Valley districts, which was reversed in 2003 as part of the reorganization of the Canton of St. Gallen into constituencies. The municipality of Thal switched to the constituency of Rorschach .

population

In the St. Gallen Rhine Valley, around 135,910 people live in an area of ​​412.45 km², spread across 23 communities.

A total of 507,697 people live in the canton of St. Gallen. According to this, almost 27% of the canton's population live in the St. Gallen Rhine Valley. In the list of the largest municipality in the canton of St.Gallen , Buchs ranks sixth and Altstätten seventh.

Population development

Data source: Swiss Confederation

Territory status January 1, 2013, the municipalities Thal (belongs to the constituency of Rorschach since 2003) as well as Sargans , Vilters-Wangs , Bad Ragaz and Pfäfers (belong to the constituency of Sarganserland) were missing

Between 1900 and 2000 the population almost doubled from almost 50,000 to a good 95,000. During the war years in the middle of the last century the population declined only slightly.

language

The spoken dialect belongs to the High Alemannic dialect, just like the Liechtenstein and Vorarlberg dialects on the other side of the Rhine. In the northern part of the Rhine Valley, near Lake Constance, the influence of the Lake Constance or Middle Alemannic can be felt. Here is an example of a dialect word that only occurs in the St. Gallen Rhine Valley: "ännig"

politics

→ see section Politics and Economy in the article Wahlkreis Rheintal
→ see section Politics and Education in the article Wahlkreis Werdenberg

climate

The Rhine Valley climate is basically the same as in the rest of Eastern Switzerland . However, different weather situations can occur. The alpine foehn contributes to this, influencing the weather around 38 days a year and often holding back rain fronts.

The hair dryer (dialect: Pföa) also has its downsides. Wind speeds of 150 km / h and above are not uncommon, and they sometimes tear up entire forests. Fanned by the warm wind, even the smallest embers can develop into a catastrophic fire. Numerous village fires are evidence of this, for example:

economy

Historic aerial photo of the ETH Zurich of the Wild Heerbrugg factory area

Viticulture was already practiced in the St. Gallen Rhine Valley before the 9th century . In 2001 it was 1/3 of the communities in the canton of St. Gallen , especially on the steep, well-sunlit southern slopes of the St. Gallen Rhine Valley, which is an important source of work for the area. This is made possible, among other things, by the Alpenföhn, also known as the grape cooker. The largest wine-growing village is Berneck with 42 hectares of vines. Other important growing areas are Balgach , Thal and Sargans . viticulture is largely organized on a cooperative basis.

The cultivation of the Rheintaler Ribelmais (Alemannic Türggenribel ) plays a special role in the agriculture of the Rhine Valley . Corn cultivation gained a foothold in the Rhine Valley in the 17th century. The corn should for those days, from the Balkans have come, was making the designation Türggen or Türggenkorn for corn. Other important agricultural products are fruit-growing (apples and pears) and vegetables mainly carrots (carrots) and chicory .

Unemployment is around 3.7%. However, this value has been constant for several years. Cross-border commuters from Vorarlberg and Liechtenstein work in the St. Gallen Rhine Valley. Internationally known companies are located in the Rhine Valley: Bauwerk Parkett , Coltene Holding , Jansen AG , Leica Geosystems , SFS Holding AG , etc. There are also companies based in the St. Gallen Rhine Valley: EgoKiefer , Hongler Kerzen , Plaston , Sefar , sonnenäu and Züco , as well as the Banks Alpha Rheintal Bank and Clientis Biene Bank in the Rhine Valley .

traffic

Rail transport

The Chur – Rorschach railway runs through the Rhine Valley . It is accessed by the SBB with the InterRegio 13 and by the trains of the St. Gallen S-Bahn . Mainline stations are Bahnhof St. Margrethen , Heerbrugg train station , railway station Buchs , Trübbach station and the Sargans train station .

At Reineck station, the Rheineck-Walzenhausen mountain railway runs to Walzenhausen with a unique type BDeh 1/2 motor vehicle, built in 1958 by the companies SLM , FFA and BBC .

From Altstätten Stadt, the Appenzeller Bahn trains to St.Gallen run on the tracks of the former St. Gallen-Gais-Appenzell-Altstätten Railway .

Road traffic

Motorway A13 Montlingen tunnel

The motorway (A1) also leads from St. Gallen into the St. Gallen Rhine Valley. This merges into the A13 at St. Margrethen and runs parallel to the Rhine southwards to Sargans, where it takes the A3 (from Zurich). At the end of the 20th century, plans arose to create a direct connection between the Swiss motorway (A1 / A13) near St. Margrethen and the A14 in the state of Vorarlberg with the Bodensee Schnellstrasse (S18) .

Border traffic

Important border crossings to neighboring countries are St. Margrethen - Höchst , Au - Lustenau , Diepoldsau - Hohenems , Haag - Bendern and Sevelen - Vaduz . The border crossings St. Margrethen- Lustenau and Buchs - Schaan are served by rail.

additional

The St. Gallen-Altenrhein airfield has been located in Altenrhein on Lake Constance since 1927 , and the Bad Ragaz airfield in Bad Ragaz . In Rheineck there is a ship connection to Altenrhein - Rorschach .

Attractions

Werdenberg Castle , the seat of the aristocratic Werdenberg family
Heerbrugg Castle was the seat of the Schmidheiny family dynasty until 2006, today owned by Peter von Rotz
Sargans Castle Landmark of the Sarganserland region

The Rhine Valley in general is considered to be castles and palaces. Due to the many fragmentation of historical areas, above all due to the division of inheritance by the Counts of Montfort , their conflict with the St.Gallen monastery and the advance of the Habsburgs into the Rhine Valley. On the left bank of the Rhine Valley, from Sargans to Thal, there are no fewer than 20 castles and palaces, 13 of which are located on the approx. 10 km long stretch from Altstätten to Berneck. There are also numerous castle ruins.

Castles

Castles

Ruins (selection)

Historic cities and houses

The historic old town has been preserved in Altstätten and Rheineck . Werdenberg is the smallest city in Switzerland. In Berneck, some historic quarters are still largely intact, in particular the area Rathausplatz - Kirchplatz - Städtilgasse - Burggasse. A 600-year-old Walser house has been preserved on Palfries in the municipality of Wartau . The old mill in Gams (Müliweg), the Rothus in Oberriet (Staatsstrasse), the old town hall in Balgach (Steigstrasse) and the Haus zum Torkel in Berneck (Weierbüntstrasse) serve as museums today.

leisure

The Moosanger nature reserve, one of the numerous recreational areas in the Rhine Valley

Various sports can be practiced in the Rhine Valley. Club life plays an important role and the variety of clubs is large (over 800 clubs; as of March 2016). There are also some national club sizes, but they are not necessarily active in the very big popular sport:

  • The Rhine Valley is a stronghold of wrestling. The clubs of Kriessern (NLA) and Oberriet (NLB) are regularly at the top of national championships. For more than 45 years, the Kriessern wrestling squad has organized the borderland tournament for senior citizens and young people from Switzerland, Austria and Germany.
  • The fistball clubs Diepoldsau and Widnau play in the National League A.
  • The gymnastics club Staad has been one of the regular medal winners at national level for years.

The Rhine Valley also offers interesting flora and fauna. It has indoor pools as well as swimming pools and natural pools in summer, plus an ice rink and much more. Skating and cycling, mountain biking and hiking are also popular leisure activities in the St. Gallen Rhine Valley.

The Old Rhine near Diepoldsau is a popular destination for sport fishermen from the region. Pikes over 120 cm long and weighing more than 15 kg have been caught, albeit rarely. The sport fisherman Gjordjevic Miodrag caught a record carp in October 2009 . The mirror carp was 94 centimeters long and 23.8 kilograms. It was the heaviest carp ever caught in Switzerland.

Baths

Tamina Therme in Bad Ragaz

The villages of Altstätten, Balgach and Buchs have a public indoor swimming pool. The famous Ragaz spa and the Tamina Therme are located in Bad Ragaz , and the St. Margrethen mineral spa in St. Margrethen .

Winter sports

Marc Girardelli , a ski racer from Vorarlberg , lived in the St. Gallen Rhine Valley . The Pizol ski area with numerous lifts and slopes is located in the Rhine Valley near Sargans . The Rheintal Ice Skating Club (SCR) (formerly SC Mittelrheintal) trains in the Widnau ice rink. Guido Lindemann and Lukas Sieber played with him . Ivo Rüthemann , the Swiss ice hockey player from Mosnang (Toggenburg) began his career at SCR.

additional

Individual athletes such as tennis stars Roger Federer and Martina Hingis or Patrik Merk, who became Swiss champion in track cycling , also come from the St. Gallen Rhine Valley .

Personalities

Born in the Rhine Valley

  • Gallus Alt (1610–1687) clergyman, was as Gallus II from 1654 to 1687 Prince Abbot of St. Gallen
  • Gabriel Walser (* 1695; † 1776) Swiss pastor, historian and geographer. His main work was the self-published Neue Appenzeller-Chronick or Description of the Canton Appenzell der Innern- and Aussern-Rooden in 1740
  • Anna Goeldi (1734-1782), the last being a witch killed by the judiciary Swiss woman was in Sennwald born
  • Gallus Jakob Baumgartner (1797–1869) one of the leading liberal and later conservative Swiss politicians during the regeneration and emergence of the modern federal state
  • Wilhelm Matthias Naeff (1802–1881) politician and member of the first Federal Council (FDP), came from Altstätten
  • Eduard Graf (1845–1918) politician and entrepreneur, founder of the Sun brewery
  • Maria Bernarda Bütler (1848–1924) Real name: Verena Bütler, beatification by Pope John Paul II in 1995, canonization by Pope Benedict XVI in 2008.
  • Jacob Rohner (1852–1926) was one of the most important embroidery merchants in Eastern Switzerland
  • Carl Zurburg (1859–1928) was a lawyer and politician . In 1919/1920 he advocated the connection of Vorarlberg to Switzerland
  • Jacob Schmidheiny II. (1875–1955) entrepreneur and politician was one of the most important Swiss industrialists
  • As a leading border official, Paul Grüninger (1891–1972) saved several hundred Jewish and other refugees from National Socialist persecution and extermination
  • Benedikt Frei (1904–1975) He was particularly interested in prehistory and especially the Laugen-Melaun culture
  • Hans Huber (1927–2018) entrepreneur and co-founder of the ( SFS Group)
  • Edgar Oehler (* 1942) entrepreneur and politician, was a member of the National Council from 1971 to 1995 and during this time a member of the parliamentary committee of the CVP / EPP / glp parliamentary group in the Federal Assembly.
  • Jolanda Spirig (* 1953) is an important contemporary Rheintaler author who dedicates her books to historical aspects of life in the Rheintaler
  • Gardi Hutter (* 1953) actress and author and, above all, clown comedian with her own cabaret programs, mostly away from circus arenas, she is now internationally recognized as the female role model for clown theater

athlete

  • Blerim Rashiti , amateur heavyweight boxing champion
  • Hugo Dietsche , youth world champion and winner of an Olympic bronze medal in Greco-Roman style
  • Lukas Sieber , Swiss national ice hockey player, from Widnau
  • Martina Hingis , tennis player, world number one for 209 weeks, won five Grand Slam tournaments in singles, nine in doubles and one in mixed
  • Sepp Zellweger , gymnast and 24-time Swiss champion, participant in 2 Olympic Games, 3 world championships and 3 European championships
  • Ivo Rüthemann , former Swiss ice hockey player and MVP in 2004, record holder with 1072 games in the NLA
  • Jolanda Neff , Swiss cyclist from Thal

With other reference to the Rhine Valley

Rheintal agglomeration association

In 2017, the canton of St. Gallen, the state of Vorarlberg and 22 municipalities on both sides of the Rhine joined forces to form the Rheintal agglomeration association.

literature

  • Walther Baumgartner, Christoph Egli, Therese Eschenmoser, Werner Kuster , Werner Ritter, Christoph Rohner, Peter Schaps: Rheintaler Köpfe, historical-biographical portraits from five centuries . Rheintaler Druckerei und Verlag, Berneck 2004, ISBN 3-03300265-X , p. 451 .
  • Education Council of the Canton of St. Gallen (Ed.): St.Gallerland . Cantonal home register for the intermediate level. Kantonaler Lehrmittelverlag St.Gallen, 1982, p. 325 .

Web links

Commons : St. Galler Rheintal  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Remarks

  1. ↑ The designation Oberrheintal or Upper Rhine Valley is used by:
  2. ↑ The term Unterrheintal or Lower Rhine Valley is used by:
  3. ↑ The designation Middle Rhine Valley or Middle Rhine Valley is used by:

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b municipalities. In: Website of the St. Gallen Rhine Valley Association. Retrieved April 15, 2017 . In addition to regional planning, the St. Gallen Rheintal Association operates a specialist integration unit and the Rheintaler Kulturstiftung.
  2. ↑ Widnau in the area. In: Website of the community of Widnau. Retrieved April 1, 2017 .
  3. ↑ a b c Werner Kuster: Rheintaler heads . Historical-biographical portraits from five centuries. Ed .: Association for the History of the Rhine Valley. Rheintaler Druckerei und Verlag AG, Berneck 2004, ISBN 3-03300265-X , settlement, administration and politics, p. 14 .
  4. ↑ Jakob Boesch: The history of the Bernang court and the municipality of Bereck . Ed .: Political Community Berneck. Rheintaler Druckerei und Verlag AG, 1968, p. 290 .
  5. ↑ Wendel Langenegger : History of the Reichshof Kriessern . 1229 - 1979. Ed .: Ortsgemeinde Kriessern. Rheintalische Volkszeitung (print), Kriessern 1979, early history to 1229, p. 9 .
  6. ^ Helmuth Schneider: Hostile Neighbors: Rome and the Germanic Peoples . 1st edition. Böhlau Köl, 2008, ISBN 978-3-412-20219-4 , pp. 320 .
  7. ↑ Jakob Boesch: The history of the Bernang court and the municipality of Bereck . Ed .: Political Community Berneck. Rheintaler Druckerei und Verlag AG, 1968, p. 5 .
  8. ↑ Jakob Boesch: The history of the Bernang court and the municipality of Bereck . Ed .: Political Community Berneck. Rheintaler Druckerei und Verlag AG, 1968, p. 9 .
  9. ↑ Jakob Boesch: The history of the Bernang court and the municipality of Bereck . Ed .: Political Community Berneck. Rheintaler Druckerei und Verlag AG, 1968, p. 9 .
  10. ^ Anton Hutter Frei, Hugo Dietsche, Wendel Langenegger and others: History of the Reichshof Kriessern . 1229 - 1979. Ed .: Ortsgemeinde Kriessern. Rheintalische Volkszeitung (print), Kriessern 1979, early history to 1229, p. 9 .
  11. ^ Association for the history of the Rhine Valley (ed.): Rheintaler Köpfe, historical-biographical portraits from five centuries . Rheintaler Druckerei und Verlag, Berneck 2004, ISBN 3-03300265-X , appendix time table, p. 408-411 .
  12. ↑ Jakob Boesch: The history of the Bernang court and the municipality of Bereck . Ed .: Political Community Berneck. Rheintaler Druckerei und Verlag AG, 1968, p. 30 .
  13. ↑ resident population . Department for Statistics Canton St. Gallen.
  14. ↑ Resident population (economic residence) constituencies and municipalities of the canton of St .Gallen 1850–2000. (PDF) Canton of St. Gallen, Statistical Office, accessed on January 2, 2014 .
  15. ↑ Permanent resident population at the end of the year, constituencies and communities in the canton of St. Gallen, 1992–2012. (PDF) Canton of St. Gallen Statistical Office, accessed on January 2, 2014 .
  16. ↑ Verständlixon - ENIG youtube.com
  17. ^ Educational Council of the Canton of St. Gallen (Ed.): St.Gallerland . Kantonaler Lehrmittelverlag St.Gallen, 1982, The hair dryer helps, the hair dryer is harmful, p. 244 .
  18. ↑ a b Politische Gemeinde Berneck (Hrsg.): Berneck 1100 years after the first documentary mention . Rheintaler Druckerei und Verlag AG, 1992, p. 12, 82-85 .
  19. ↑ a b Educational Council of the Canton of St. Gallen (Ed.): St. Gallerland . Teaching materials for the human and environmental department, 4th to 6th grade. 1st edition. Kantonaler Lehrmittelverlag St. Gallen, Rorschach 2001, ISBN 3-906784-00-2 , p. 142, 159-161 .
  20. ↑ Kurt Spiess, Christoph Bauer, Ernst Bosshardt, Hans Hunziker, Ernst Kaiser, Louis Kessely, Joseph Klaus, Josef Tschirky, Albert Saner: St. Gallerland . Cantonal home register for the intermediate level. Ed .: Education Council of the Canton of St. Gallen. Kantonaler Lehrmittelverlag St. Gallen, St. Gallen 1982, p. 275-277 .
  21. ↑ Castles of St. Gallen. swisscastles.ch, accessed on January 3, 2014 .
  22. ^ Associations rheintal.com , accessed on March 10, 2016.
  23. ↑ Big victory from favorite Kriessern. Closing course, Schwingermagazin, October 27, 2013, accessed on January 4, 2014 .
  24. ↑ The Kriessern wrestling relay wins the 2011 championship title. Swiss Wrestling, December 18, 2011, accessed on January 4, 2014 .
  25. ^ The Kriessern wrestling relay wins the Swiss Cup 2011 in Muri. Willisauer Bote from May 31st. 2011 ( Memento from September 29, 2007 in the Internet Archive )
  26. ↑ 45th Int. Grenzlandturnier 2010. Tagblatt Online, June 21, 2010, accessed on January 4, 2014 .
  27. ↑ bathing & swimming rheintal.com , accessed on March 10, 2016.
  28. ↑ skating & cycling rheintal.com , accessed on March 10, 2016.
  29. ↑ biken & Radwege rheintal.com , accessed on March 10, 2016.
  30. ↑ walken & wandern rheintal.com , accessed on March 10, 2016.
  31. ↑ Giant carp back in the Old Rhine. ( Memento from February 10, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Tagblatt Online , October 15, 2009.
  32. ↑ Markus Kaiser: Johann Labonté (1866–1945) Au-Heerbrugg in Rheintaler Heads, historical-biographical portraits from five centuries . Rheintaler Druckerei und Verlag, Berneck 2004, ISBN 3-03300265-X . P. 256 ff