Author: Maarten Koning

INFOBEST Palmrain Thirty Years

The German-French-Swiss INFOBEST PALMRAIN has provided free bilingual information, mediation and advice to citizens, associations, companies, public authorities and political actors on a wide range of cross-border issues for 30 years.

The organisation was founded on 1 July 1993. The trinational institution celebrated its 30th anniversary on 21 April in the former customs station at the Weil am Rhein – Village-Neuf border crossing.

Background

Since its establishment, this information and advice centre has answered about 150,000 (!) individual questions. In addition, around 1.2 million contacts have obtained information via the INFOBEST website.
Background

The Upper Rhine region (Haut-Rhin/Oberrhein) covers the German-French-Swiss border area. It comprises the four regions of Alsace, northwest Switzerland (the cantons of Basel-Stadt, Basel-Landschaft, Solothurn, Aargau and Jura), South Palatinate and Baden.

INFOBEST is the abbreviation for “INFOrmations- und BEratungsSTelle”. The four INFOBESTs are the first contact points for cross-border issues with Germany, France and Switzerland.

The organisation advises on numerous topics such as social security, work, taxes, moving to the neighbouring country, education, health insurance or transport. INFOBEST also guides and supports citizens in their administrative procedures in the other countries.

The INFOBEST network also acts as a hinge between the administrations of the three countries and promotes mutual exchange and cross-border cooperation. It identifies regulatory gaps or incompatibilities and helps find solutions.

The four advice centres are located in Lauterbourg, Kehl/Strassburg, Vogelgrun/Breisach and in Palmrain-Village-Neuf (the trinational French-German-Swiss advice centre).

Home office on the Upper Rhine 

On behalf of the German-French-Swiss Upper Rhine Conference  (Oberrheinkonferenz) and in cooperation with the Euro-Institut and EURES-T Upper Rhine, the INFOBEST network has also developed a guide for cross-border commuters and their employers on cross-border home office working in the Upper Rhine region.

The guide provides answers to various questions that may arise in connection with home office work in the country of residence, especially in the areas of social security, taxation and labour law. It also addresses possible risks for cross-border workers and their employers in the private sector and contains recommendations and practical examples. In addition, it refers to helpful documents and names the relevant contact persons.

Upper Rhine Service Centre

Under the title Service Zentrum Oberrhein (Service Centre Upper Rhine)  INFOBEST is working on strengthening and further developing the digital network. This task is implemented in three pillars: One Stop Agency (for help with digital applications), digitalisation, coordination, and communication. The project may start in autumn 2023 or next year.

(Source and further information: INFOBEST)

Santa Maria dei Frati Cappuccini monastery in Bigorio

Founded in 1535, the Santa Maria dei Frati Cappuccini monastery in Bigorio (canton of Ticino/Tessin) was the first Capuchin monastery in Switzerland. Its founders were the Cappucciners Pacifico Carli from Lugano and Ludovico Filicaia from Florence.

A Romanesque chapel from the 11th century already stood on the site of the monastery. It is no coincidence that these monks founded the monastery. For centuries, the Italian-speaking region of Ticino was under the secular and spiritual rule of dukes and bishops from Lombardy and their relatives in Florence.

Swiss Orte (not called cantons until the 16th century) conquered the territory of present-day Tessin (as well as Bormio, Veltlina and Chiavenna) in the 15th and early 16th centuries. A fresco in the church Maria del Sasso in Morcote commemorates the conquest of Lugano in 1513.

The Capuchins

The Capuchins were an Italian order founded in 1515 on the principles of Francis of Assisi, the founder and spiritual father of the Franciscan Order. The first monasteries were founded in Lombardy. Given the centuries-old cultural and political ties with Lugano, the foundation of a monastery in this region was prominent.

1535 was also the time of the Reformation in the cantons of Zurich, Basel, Schaffhausen and Bern. These cantons were relatively far from Tessin and had different geographical and economic orientations. The Catholic cantons of Unterwalden, Lucerne, Uri and Schwyz had been present in these areas since the 13th century (around 1230 Gotthard Pass) and the 15th century as traders and later occupiers.

Although the Reformation also spread to these Italian areas, the Catholic Church remained the predominant religion. Many Protestants even fled to Zurich, where they played an essential role in the textile industry.

The path to Bigorio

The monastery

The monastery still exists after almost five centuries, although many monasteries in Ticino and other cantons were abolished in the nineteenth century.
The façade (c. 1535-1577) on the south side is reminiscent of a castle. The north side has a more monastic appearance and was extensively rebuilt in the 18th century. The refectory (the dining hall), the wine cellar (as the monastery was still producing wine at the time), and new rooms for the monks had already been completed by 1658.

The library

Museum Bigorio

The chapel and the Madonna and Child

As befits a monastery, the inner, the interior, is the most important thing. The beautiful frescoes, the statue of the Madonna and Child from 1567, the centuries-old library, the walnut altar and fences, the painted windows, the cloister leading to the village and the many centuries-old utensils in the monastery and monastery church are of exceptional quality. The monastery’s museum is housed in two separate rooms, where some objects are displayed.

The design of the new chapel was one of the first projects of the architect Mario Botta (b. 1943) in 1970.

So much for the past, the monastery also has a presence. Although the number of monks is limited (three), the number of activities is large and not only religious. The monastery produces alcoholic beverages (cider) and honey, and offers bed and breakfast, seminar rooms, and spiritual courses. So the sanctuary also has a future.

Brother Gianlucca Lazzaroni

Moreover, on request, one of the Capuchins is happy and proud to give a tour of the complex, which has been adapted to the requirements of the times without denying its religious and spiritual origins.

Lake Lugano’s view and the canton’s mountainous landscape are a source of inspiration. Not surprisingly, deceased monks are buried in the cemetery with this view.

(Source and further information: Kloster Bigorio).

Meeting- and seminar rooms

Bed & Breakfast

The wine cellar

The honey- and ciderproduction

The innercourt and the nails of the fire of 1987

 

Tulip Festival Morges

The festival was organised for the first time in 1971 to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the Vaud Horticultural Society (la Société Vaudoise d’Horticulture).

The festival takes place until 14 May in the Parc de l’Indépendance, located on the shores of Lake Geneva, between the Château de Morges and the river La Morges.

The Parc de l’Indépendance offers, in all seasons, a magnificent view of the Alps and a green setting of fifty varieties of trees such as impressive chestnut trees or giant sequoias.

(Source and further information: www.tulipfestival.ch).

The Roots of Habsburg

It is hard to imagine, but even the prestigious House of Habsburg has a beginning. The roots are in Aargau (Switzerland) and southern Alsace (France).

The first and most important source is the Acta Murensia. This document is a chronological record of the foundation of the Muri monastery (canton of Lucerne) around 1160. The Counts of Habsburg were the founders.

(Staatsarchiv Aargau, Aarau, AA/4947).

The document also mentions their other possessions, including the Habsburg castle in Habichtsburg (Habsburg) and the Wildegg castle in Aargau, estates in Alsace (especially the Ottmarsheim and Murbach monasteries), properties in Baden-Breisgau and the Kaiserstuhl region, and locations between Lake Zug and Lake Lucerne.

Breisach

The Habsburgs appear in early documents in the context of feudal relations. They received offices and land as compensation and a reward for their military and political contributions to the Holy Roman Emperor. The connection with the royal house of the Hohenstaufen runs like a thread through the Habsburgs’ history from 1137 to 1254.

Rudolf IV of Habsburg (1218-1291) rose from count to king. He succeeded his father in 1240 and became king in 1273. By then, the Habsburgs were a powerful dynasty in Switzerland, but kinghood and emperorship did not protect them.

Tarasp

Rhäzuns

After several devastating defeats on the battlefield ( in 1315, 1386, 1415 and 1460), the political and military presence was over in 1499, except for influence through abbeys and bishops and a few scattered possessions, including the Fricktal (until 1803, afterwards canton Aargau), Rhäzuns (until 1819), Tarasp (until 1803) and the Lower Engadin (until 1652) in canton Graubünden.

(Source: B. Meier, Ein Königshaus aus der Schweiz, Baden 2010).

The Landskron, regional History from European Perspective

At the end of the 13th century, the Landskron castle was built by the Münch dynasty from Basel. This strategically important place on the mountain of this name (about 530 m above sea level) dominated the route along the northern foot of the Jura. The Romans already recognised its excellent location and built a watchtower at this spot.

The Landskron, Münchenstein and Basel

The name Landskron was first mentioned in 1312 as Lantzkrone. The Münch family belonged to the city nobility of Basel and served the prince-bishop. They also built a castle in Münchenstein (hence the name of this town) near Basel (today the canton of Basel-Landschaft).

Emanuel Büchel (1705-1775), Münchenstein castle and Kirche, 1754.

The castle and the church in 2023

Three members of this family were bishops, and others held the position of mayor of Basel. The castle is located near the French village of Leymen in Alsace.

In 1461, the Landskron came into the possession of the Reich von Reichenstein family, also known for the miracle painting in the Reichenstein chapel in Mariastein (canton Solothurn). This family was also in the service of the prince bishop and (thus) of Habsburg, emperors of the Holy Roman Empire. They expanded the Landskron into a comfortable residence.

The Landskron, fragment from the Mirakelbild in the Reichensteinischer chapel of Mariastein 

Habsburg and France

At the request of Emperor Maximilian (1459-1519) of the Holy Roman Empire, they rebuilt the castle into a fortress with walls 5 to 7 meters thick. This defensive work was mainly directed against the Swiss Confederation and the canton of Solothurn in particular. The sandstone slab with the Habsburg imperial eagle and the date 1516 at the vaulted entrance refers to this work. The entrance still leads through a seven-meter-thick wall.

The Peace of Westphalia in 1648 brought a turning point. Alsace and thus the Landskron became part of the Kingdom of France. The Landskron became a garrison, and in 1687 and 1688, the fortress was extended according to plans by the famous fortress builder Sébastien le Prestre de Vauban (1633-1707). His forts, including Belfort and Breisach, are UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

Emanuel Büchel (1705-1775), Landskron, 1754.

Finally, from 1690 until the Revolution in 1789, the castle also served as a prison for political prisoners. The prominent prisoner was Bernard Duvergez de Soubardon (1737-1790). He had returned to France as an officer after losing the French colony of Louisiana. He lived at the royal court in Versailles. He was arrested in 1769 and imprisoned in the Landskron. The reason was a love affair with a court lady. King Louis XV (1710-1774) did not appreciate it. He died shortly after his release in 1790. It was already a scandal in 1769.

Duvergez de Soubardon in prison (reconstruction)

The end and a new beginning

The castle’s end came in 1813, when allied troops, who had defeated Napoleon near Leipzig on October 16-19 in the Battle of the Three Emperors, destroyed the castle. Only the 500-year-old tower, the Bergfried, remained. In 1984, the castle came into the possession of the Franco-Swiss association Pro Landskron, which undertook its restoration and maintained the complex.

Winemaking tradition

The first written mention of viticulture dates from 1461. A description from around 1660 reads:

” Gleich daroben ligt angeregte Vestung Landtscrone, allda es einen grossen Rebaker gibt so den besten roter Wein in selbiger Revier ausgibt ” (directly above it is the fortress of Landskron, where there is a large vineyard producing the best red wine in the region) . In 1877, the vineyard covered an area of 7.2 ha. Today, the total area is only 2.2 ha.

(Source and further information: L’Association Pro Landskron/Verein Pro Landskron).

  

Villa Senar of Rachmaninoff

In 1930, Russian composer, pianist and conductor Sergei Rachmaninoff bought a plot of land in the municipality of Hertenstein, right on Lake Lucerne in Canton Lucerne. He built the Villa Senar on this site. Senar is an abbreviation of Sergei, his wife Natalie Satina (1877-1951) and Rachmaninoff.

Rachmaninoff commissioned two architects to build the Villa Senar on the estate. The combination of the villa’s architectural value, its exceptional lakeside location and its significance because of its inhabitants makes it a monument of extraordinary value.

In late 1917, Rachmaninoff fled Russia. He composed, conducted and played successively in the United States, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, England, and France and lived in Switzerland from 1930 to 1939. At the end of August 1939, he left Europe for good and settled in the United States, where he died in Beverly Hills on 28 March 1943.

Since April 2022, the estate and villa have been owned by the Canton of Lucerne. Together with the Serge Rachmaninoff Foundation, the canton is developing the resort into a regional and international cultural and educational centre, making the villa and park accessible to the public and musicians.

While the canton is responsible for the maintenance and management of the buildings and park, the Serge Rachmaninoff Foundation develops, organises and finances the cultural programme of the Villa Senar.

The Villa Senar houses the family’s original interior and furnishings, and even the grand piano on which Rachmaninoff practised and composed.

(Source and further information: Villa Senar)

Sgraffiti in Engadine

Engadine (canton Grisons) houses are often decorated with geometric motifs, drawings, animals or sayings. Italian artists introduced the technique in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, following the Bündner expansion into Italian territories. The artists wanted to earn money, and the fresco technique was well-known in Italy.

It was a successful export product. The technology is universal and can also be found in Africa and other parts of Europe, such as in Bohemia and on the island of Chios in the Aegean Sea.

The name graffiti means ils sgrafito in Romansh. It is a simple fresco technique that involves applying white paint directly to the mortar. Motifs can be used as long as the colour is wet. The colour difference between white and grey makes the motifs visible. Graffiti is a real art.

(Source: A. Overath, Gebrauchsanweisung für das Engadin, München, Berlin, 2017).