In the spotlight
La Chaux-de-Fonds, The Sapin-Style and Charles L’Eplattenier
Between 1905 and 1914, students at the École d’Art (Art School) de la Chaux-de-Fonds (canton of Neuchâtel), under the guidance of their teacher Charles L’Eplattenier (1874-1946), devised an original artistic language (le Style sapin) inspired by the Jura’s local nature. Sapin means pine, and there are plenty of them in this region. In the early … Read more » “La Chaux-de-Fonds, The Sapin-Style and Charles L’Eplattenier”
In the spotlight
The Trient Valley from Martigny to Châtelard-Frontière and the Espace Mont Blanc
The distance from Zermatt to Chamonix is 60 kilometres as the crow flies. The route by rail or road is about 140 kilometres. The distance of the hiking trail depends on the route and difficulty and is between 170 and 200 kilometres, but then you get something. Mountain passes, glaciers, numerous streams and waterfalls, valleys, … Read more » “The Trient Valley from Martigny to Châtelard-Frontière and the Espace Mont Blanc”
Events
The Sky is the Limit in Binningen
As is well known, the unit of account of a year is the time taken by planet Earth for its orbit around the sun. The moon and stars also play a role in this measurement of time. In Switzerland, there are 46 obervatories 26 of which are affiliated to the national organisation Schweizerische Astronomische Gesellschaft/Société … Read more » “The Sky is the Limit in Binningen”
Commemorations
The Battle at the Trient Bridge and the Sonderbund War
The Sonderbundskrieg of 1847 is a well-known historical fact. However, who remembers the military confrontation between Old Switzerland (die Alte Schweiz) and Young Switzerland (die Junge Schweiz) on May 21 1844, at the Trient bridge (le pont du Trient) near Vernayaz in (Lower) Valais? Yet this battle, with about 60 dead, was a rehearsal of … Read more » “The Battle at the Trient Bridge and the Sonderbund War”
Monuments
The well-kept Christian Heritage of Switzerland
Even Switzerland, with its many (dissolved or still-functioning) monasteries and monumental (Reformed and Catholic) churches, will not formally be a Christian country in the foreseeable future. In the foreseeable future, most of its citizens will be ‘without religion’. However, in terms of symbolism, a country cannot be more Christian than Switzerland. The Swiss cross in … Read more » “The well-kept Christian Heritage of Switzerland”
Latest news
Quadrilingual Switzerland in the picture by HistoriaHelvetica
29 January 2024
The website historiaHelvetica.ch is a new quadrilingual initiative which publishes documents from four history platforms: notreHistoire.ch (French), lanostraStoria.ch (Italian), nossaistorgia.ch (Romansh) and unsereGeschichte.ch (German). The portal combines the best photos, videos and audio archives published by the public and institutions in the country’s four language regions. The content, selected by regional publishers, offers a unique … Read more » “Quadrilingual Switzerland in the picture by HistoriaHelvetica”
Agenda
Augusto Giacometti in Aarau and Chur
10 March 2024
The exhibition Freiheit | Auftrag (Freedom, Commission) focuses on a multi-faceted artistic personality whose oeuvre counts among the highest expressions of art in the first half of the 20th century. The exhibition travels along the “Freedom” and “Commission” issues to explore the relationship between free creation and commissioned art. It reveals the tension within which … Read more » “Augusto Giacometti in Aarau and Chur”
Constitution, Democracy, cantons
What do foreigners know about Switzerland?
14 February 2024
In the last edition of the Neue Zürcher Zeitung am Sonntag of 2023, the Financial Times correspondent asked, ‘Ist die Schweiz sympatisch’ (Is Switzerland sympathetic). He then lists several examples of Switzerland’s image abroad: prosperous by Jewish assets and looted goods, neutrality and profiting from World War II (1939-1945), the banking secret and dirty and … Read more » “What do foreigners know about Switzerland?”
Local history
Aarau, or the emergence of a capital
7 March 2024
The city of Aarau (Canton Aargau) takes its name from the river Aare, the largest supplier to the Rhine. A few kilometres away, the Aare flows into the Rhine at the Swiss town of Koblenz, continuing its journey to Rotterdam. The Aare and the hydropower plant near Aarau Aarau is not just any town but … Read more » “Aarau, or the emergence of a capital”
Nature and Tourism
The Cave Bear of Wenslingen, Grossholz near Ormalingen and the Ergolz in Oltingen
7 March 2024
The stream Ergolz in canton Basel-Landschaft has a length of about 30 Kilometres. It originates at an altitude of 830 metres at the Geissflue on the cantonal border of Basel-Landschaft and Solothurn. It then flows through, among others, the villages of Anwil, Oltingen, Rothenfluh and Ormalingen on its way to the Rhine. Anwil The Ergolz … Read more » “The Cave Bear of Wenslingen, Grossholz near Ormalingen and the Ergolz in Oltingen”