Maarten Koning – Page 54 – The Swiss Spectator

The Renaissance in Ticino

The church of Santa Maria degli Angioli in Lugano was built between 1499 and 1515 as the church of the monastery of the Franciscan Order. The Passion or Crocifissione by Bernardino Luini (1480-1532) is a masterpiece of the Swiss-Italian Renaissance.

This fresco is also in the church today. Around 1504, Luini also painted the Passion in the Santa Maria delle Grazie church in Bellinzona. These frescoes are the best-preserved Renaissance art treasures in Switzerland.

Bernardino Luini (1480-1532)

The Santa Maria degli Angioli

In 1513, the Confederation came into possession of Lugano. Two years later, in 1515, the Confederation suffered its great defeat at Marignano against the French King Francis I (1494-1547). Only a few years earlier, the Confederates had seemed invincible in their struggle against the Habsburgs, the Dukes of Burgundy and Savoy, the most powerful monarchs in Europe at the time.

However, the Confederation remained in possession of Ticino and some territories in Lombardy, including Chiavenna, Bormio and Veltlina (until 1797). These Italian contacts also influenced the culture on the other side of the Alps.

The monastery was dissolved in 1848 and absorbed mainly into other buildings. Some drawings from the 18th and 19th centuries, which can be seen as documentation in the church, give an impression of the size of the monastery.

Source and pictures: Santa Maria degli Angioli

The Natural beauty of Tessin

A canton of the Swiss Confederation since 1815 (or 1803), Tessin (Ticino) has traditionally been a haven for refugees, writers, painters, sculptors and other artists.

It was also an economically poor area, however, until 1945. While many intellectuals and refugees settled in Tessin, many young people left the canton searching for work.

What it meant to live as a small farmer or labourer in Tessin at this time was expressed by the writer Plinio Martini (1923-1979) in his book: Il fondo del sacco (1970): “In autumn there were chestnuts. We ate those for three months, for breakfast, lunch and supper”.

Ascona

Today, the region is a prosperous immigration canton. Not only Swiss citizens from other cantons but also other nationalities settle in Tessin. Moreover, tens of thousands of Italians cross the border for work.

What is the attraction of this canton? From the nineteenth and twentieth centuries until 1945, it was mainly an idyllic residence with a southern European atmosphere and mild climate, good (train) connections in a safe, neutral and democratic country.
After 1945, the tourism, industrial and service sectors experienced strong growth.

Mendrisio, teatro dell’architettura

The establishment of a university (Lugano), a film festival (Locarno), an architecture centre (Mendrisio), Swissminiatur (Melide), the opening of natural parks, numerous museums, historical buildings and other cultural institutions gave the canton allure and grandeur.

The four regions of Bellinzona/Leventina, Ascona-Locarno/Valli, Luganese and Mendrisiotto already had extraordinary natural beauty and peculiarities. The Piora Valley in the northern Leventina, the Blenio Valley in Bellinzona, the Brissagio Island in Lake Maggiore or the Maggiate Valley in Ascona-Locarno or the UNESCO World Natural Heritage Site San Giorgio in Mendrisiotto are just a few examples.

Brissagio

It also applies to the Luganese with Lugano and Lake Lugano as the focus. Monte Bré, Gandria, Morcote, the ridge Denti della Vecchia (the old woman’s teeth) or San Salvatore are well-known attractions.

De Denti della Vecchia

De San Salvatore

Origlio

There are also numerous lesser-known places in the canton, with over 4,000 kilometres of well-maintained hiking trails. Valleys, mountains, waterfalls, streams, rivers, villages, towns, chapels, churches, castles, and magnificent views alternate.

One of these lesser-known places is the commune of Origlio, 10 kilometres from Lugano. The village has its nature reserve, with Lake Origlio at its centre. This lake was created 13,000 years ago by the melting waters of glaciers from the last ice age.

The ancient village is an idyllic green oasis surrounded by the raw mountains of Tessin. The small town is also close to Switzerland’s oldest Capuchin monastery and Lake Lugano.

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

The Grand Tour in Swissminiatur

The creation of the Swissminiatur Park in 1959, modelled on the Dutch Madurodam project, took place with twelve models. Today there are 129 models of the most famous buildings and monuments, plus a 3 560-metre-long rail network with 18 trains, cable cars, ships, and cars and at Zurich-Kloten airport, aircraft are preparing for take-off.

Swissminiatur is the largest open-air miniature museum in Switzerland. It is located in Melide on the shores of Lake Lugano (Canton Ticino), surrounded by the impressive mountain scenery of Monte Generoso, Monte San Salvatore and Monte San Giorgio; the latter is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. From 29 March, Swissminiatur will be part of the Grand Tour of Switzerland, the Grand Tour in Miniature!

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

The Churches, Chapels and Towers of Tessin

The churches and chapels of Tessin (Ticino) are among the many charms of southern Switzerland. The many religious buildings, old and new, including those by Mario Botta, the Romanesque churches and chapels and their frescoes at the foot of the southern side of the Alps, hint at a different, ancient culture.

Vaglio, San Antonio di Padova

Near Ligornetto

Near Bigorio

They are all beautiful, without exception, as the inhabitants of this region have always been excellent architects and builders, and have also contributed to the construction of some of the most significant and beautiful buildings in Italy, such as Rome, Milan, and Florence. Like all buildings in this country, rich in stone but poor in wood, the churches and chapels have always been built of stone.

Locarno, San Antonio

Locarno, San Francesco

From the Luini murals in Lugano to the unknown mountain chapels, everywhere in the churches of Ticino, one can find a painting, fresco, altar relief, baptismal font, and stucco figure that testifies to the intimate connection with Italian culture and the talent and feeling for the fine arts. (After Hermann Hesse, ‘Kirchen und Kapellen’ in F. Schläpfer, Tessin fürs Handgepäck (Zurich 2016).

It is incredible how many variations can arise from the simple basic shape of the bell tower. The bell tower should also be seen separately from its religious function: as the focal point of the village, community and landscape.

Bell towers are among the most striking features of the canton. Campanile towers from the Romanesque, Gothic, Renaissance, or Baroque periods can be seen everywhere (according to Piero Bianconi, ‘Glockentürme’ in F. Schläpfer, Tessin fürs Handgepäck (Zurich, 2016).

There is only a little to add to these descriptions by writers and connoisseurs of Tessin, except to experience it for yourself.

Ascona, San Pietro e San Paulo

Ascona, Santa Maria della Misericordia

Bellinzona, St. Pietro e Stefano

Morcote, Maria del Sasso

Lugano, Convento Santa Maria degli Angioli

Lugano, Cattedrale di San Lorenzo

The Enclaves of Switzerland

The borders of cantons in Switzerland have a patchwork pattern. If, for example, you take a ride by car or bike south of Lac Morat/Murtensee, you find yourself alternately in the cantons of Vaud, Fribourg or Bern.

Even in other regions, the boundaries of the cantons are often erratic. The origins of these borders date back to the Middle Ages and the 16th century and the fixing of the boundaries of the (new) cantons in the Napoleonic era (1803-1813) and the New Confederation of 1815. Whole or partial enclaves are no exception. However, these are Swiss territories.

The Swiss territory on the right bank of the Rhine is also remarkable and has its origins in the Middle Ages. The canton of Schaffhausen lies mainly on the right bank of the Rhine, a kind of Swiss enclave in Baden-Württemberg.

Only the cantons Basel-Stadt and Zurich have territory on this right bank. (and perhaps Diepoldsau (canton St. Gall along the Old Rhine (der Alte Rhine, the frontier with Austria). Furthermore, the Rhine has been the land border with Germany since Napoleonic times.

However, Switzerland also has a German (Büsingen in the canton of Schaffhausen) and an Italian (Campione in the canton of Tessin) enclave.

Büsingen

A few kilometres from Schaffhausen, the German village of Büsingen lies on the Rhine. On the other side of the Rhine are the cantons of Thurgau and Zurich. After a few minutes on the bike, however, one is back in Switzerland. Of course, the Enclaveweg is not missing!

The village’s appearance is Swiss, and 95% of the working population works in Switzerland. Only the number plate, bus stop, banks and letterboxes are German. However, the telephone area code (052 for Switzerland and 07734 for Germany) and the postal code (CH-8238) and German (D-78266) are shared, as were Swiss and German telephone booths in the past.

Julian Fleischer/ Wikipedia

History

The presence of Habsburg was also significant in this case. Until the Napoleonic era, Habsburg was represented in southern Germany as large landowners, German kings, and emperors of the Holy Roman Empire. Büsingen was owned by the Habsburgs. Schaffhausen made several unsuccessful attempts to acquire the village in the 18th century.

Dörflingen. Zurich bought the nearby village of Dörflingen from Habsburg. Canton Schaffhausen acquired the village in 1798 during the Helvetische Republiek (1798-1803). Büsingen is a German enclave eversince.

The Kingdom of Württemberg acquired the village in 1805 (Treaty of Pressburg/Bratislava), and in 1810, the Grand Duchy of Baden acquired the town. After World War I (1914-1918), the village fell under the Weimar Republic, although 96% of Büsingen’s inhabitants voted to join the Swiss Confederation in 1918. However, Switzerland refused accession (as the country ignored the wish of the inhabitants of Vorarlberg in 1919).

Since World War II (1939-1945), the village has been part of the state of Baden-Württemberg. Since 1964, a state treaty regulates the most practical legal, social and fiscal issues for the approximately 1,500 inhabitants and a customs union with Switzerland. However, the legal situation sometimes remains complicated as German and Swiss laws are applicable.

St. Michael Church (Bergkirche St. Michael), 11th-century

The Old Mill (die Alte Mühle)

The introduction of the euro further complicates the situation. About 95% of the workforce works in Switzerland and receives salaries in Swiss francs. However, they pay taxes in Germany after conversion into DM and, from 2002, into euro. Since the DM has depreciated about 55% and the euro almost 20% against the Swiss currency since 2002, the tax burden is much higher while the price level is Swiss.

Campione and the San Salvatore

Campione

Campione d’Italia, a municipality on Lake Lugano in the province of Como, has a similar problem. Since 1 January 2020, this municipality no longer has a customs union with Switzerland, and the rise in the Swiss franc was one of the causes of the problem for the casino, its principal employer. From 2002, revenues were in euros, and salaries were in Swiss francs.

History

The village of Campione was owned by the Benedictine monastery of Sant’Ambrogio in Milan from 789 (!) until 1797. 1797 Napoleon annexed the municipality to the Cisalpine Republic (1797-1805). In 1861, the commune became part of the Kingdom of Italy. As an Italian municipality in neutral Switzerland, Campione made the (wise) decision not to recognise Mussolini’s Repubblica Sociale Italiana (the infamous Repubblica de Salò) in 1944.

Conclusion

Today, the two enclaves are a curiosity rather than a source of potential conflict. Practical day-to-day affairs are settled. However, one privilege for Campione residents ended: the province of Como no longer reimburses expensive Swiss health insurance. Residents must pay for it themselves or buy Italian insurance, just as cars have had to be registered in Como since 2020.

On the other hand, football unites: the local football clubs FC Büsingen and Campionese are the only German and Italian clubs in the Swiss football league.

(Source: Historisches Lexicon der Schweiz: M. Dubini, Campione d’Italia und F. Götz, Büsingen)

Santa Maria dei Ghirli (674) and its wall paintings (13th-18th centuries).

The chapel Oratorio de San Pietro (1148)

Campione

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

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).

Author: Maarten Koning