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The Roman Empire and Romanization
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A Roman Road without Borders.
11 December 2020
The approximately 400 km long road follows the course of the old Via Romana, which connected the Roman legionnaire’s camp Vindonissa (Windisch, canton Aargau, Switzerland), with the settlement Grinario (Köngen near Stuttgart in Germany). This road is also designated by the Tabula Peutingeriana, a Roman road map. The original map is lost, but a medieval … Read more » “A Roman Road without Borders.”
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The Helvetians
15 January 2021
The Helvetians (Helvetii in Latin) was the name for some Celtic tribes. They inhabited the Swiss Plateau. The names of some of the tribes are known, the Tigurini, Ambrones, Verbigeni and Tugini. The Rauraci and Suebi inhabited the regions of Basel, Southern Alsace and Baden during the same period. The other tribes in present-day Switzerland … Read more » “The Helvetians”
The Union and the Disunion on the first of August
Switzerland is a small country (the size of the Netherlands) in the middle of Europe. The Swiss Confederation The fascinating history and culture, the (direct) democratic, the economic, monetary, political and multicultural accomplishments are (too) often overlooked and neglected by other (neighbouring) European countries. Switzerland and the centuries of state-building (not always peaceful and neutral) … Read more » “The Union and the Disunion on the first of August”
The Middle Ages, Arts and State Building
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Dance of Death in Chur
10 October 2020
After years of renovation, the Cathedral Treasury Museum in Chur (Domschatzmuseum Chur) is scheduled to open in August 2020. The works of art come from the St. Luzi cathedral and monastery church. They illustrate 1600 years of the cultural history of the diocese of Chur, from its foundation in the 4th century. The presentation of … Read more » “Dance of Death in Chur”
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Swiss Bishoprics and their Cultural Heritage
10 January 2021
In the centuries between the (slow) dissolution of the Roman Empire (5th century) and the rise of the great Monarchies and dynasties (10th thru12th centuries), the Church and the bishop were the most dominant social, economic and political institutions with secular power. The diocese was the new sovereignty based on an ecclesiastical (diocese) territory, and … Read more » “Swiss Bishoprics and their Cultural Heritage”
The long nineteenth century 1815-1918
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The Freedom of the Swiss
7 July 2019
The history of the Freedom of the Swiss by Edward Gibbon (1737-1794) was recently published, two hundred years after the original French publication in 1815, in a German version entitled Die Freiheit der Schweizer. Gibbon is considered the father of modern historiography and is still one of the most important English historians. His best-known work … Read more » “The Freedom of the Swiss”
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The Vienna Congress
15 January 2021
In 1814 and 1815, the great 19th-century powers (Prussia, Russia, France, Austria and the United Kingdom) sought to restore the European balance and the old regimes. After the end of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806 (dissolved by Napoleon) and the fall of Napoleon (1813), the Continent was not to be dominated by one power … Read more » “The Vienna Congress”
Artists from Central- and Eastern Europe
4 March 2021
Although countries such as Czechia, Poland, Hungary and Russia are geographically close to us, they can still seem far away, even today. This exhibition casts its gaze towards this part of Europe and exhibits large work groups of several generations of artists from Central and Eastern Europe. It does not just draw a line from … Read more » “Artists from Central- and Eastern Europe”
Multicultural and Cosmopolitan Switzerland
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Romansh Language Week
21 February 2021
The slogan of the Romansh language week (Emna Rumantscha) is “Rumantsch: in ferm toc Svizra“, Romansh: an essential part of Switzerland. For more information about the Romansh language and culture: www.swiss-spectator.ch/de/multicultural-and-cosmopolitan-switzerland. The Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs is organising this event in cooperation with the Canton of Graubünden and the Romansh Radio and Television Broadcasting … Read more » “Romansh Language Week”
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The Alemannic Language
9 January 2021
The Alemannic Language refers to (German) dialects in the south of the German-speaking region. The area of Lake Constance was never a linguistic unity, apart from the present-day German language and Latin Language in the Roman period. A distinction is made between Schwäbisch (north of Tuttingen and Immenstadt in Baden-Württemberg), Oberrheinalemannisch (Alsace), Bodenseealemannisch (German and … Read more » “The Alemannic Language”
Direct democracy means much more than occasionally consulting the public. In a sense, each voting citizen is a politician and politically active, just to different degrees. Direct democracy is an embracive, relatively confusing, sometimes time-consuming, delicately balanced, permanently rotating and constantly changing mechanism, whose purpose is to include in the decision-making process all those who must live with the consequences of the decision. It is of immense value, but only functions when everyone who wants to be a part of it has an idea how it functions. W. Thurnherr, The Swiss Confederation. A Brief Guide 2018. Bern, 2018.