This section contains an overview of the most relevant commemorations in Switzerland.
8 November 2021
The BIS (Bank for International Settlements) was established in the context of the Young Plan, adopted on January 20, 1930, at the Hague Conference. On the same date, the governments of Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the United Kingdom, on the one hand, and Switzerland, on the other, signed a convention respecting the establishment … Read more » “Bank for International Settlements in Basel”
1 November 2021
31 October 1971 was a special day in Hérémence, a village in the Hérémence Valley (canton of Valais). On this day, the new St. Nicolas Church was consecrated. Its predecessor, from 1770, was severely hit by the 1946 earthquake. The first church in the village dates from the eleventh century. A new church was built … Read more » “Fifty years St. Nicolas Church in Hérémence”
15 September 2021
The present-day Swiss Confederation came into being on 12 September 1848. On that day, the parliament (Tagsatzung) approved the text after the cantons had adopted it with a majority of 15 ½ cantons against 6 ½. Of these 6 ½ opponents (Zug, Valais, Uri, Tessin, Schwyz, Appenzell Innerrhoden (1/2), Nidwalden (1/2) and Obwalden (1/2), 3 ½ … Read more » “12 September 1848 and the Swiss Constitution”
11 August 2021
Road Traffic between Engadin (Canton of Graubünden) and Tirano in the Valtellina (Veltin, Italy) has a long tradition. For centuries, horses, stagecoaches, and sledges were the means of transport to cross the Bernina Pass. Travelling time was at least nine hours in the summer. Crossing the Bernina Pass in the winter was almost impossible and … Read more » “The Bernina Express and UNESCO”
9 August 2021
The Pestalozzi Children’s Village Foundation (Stiftung Kinderdorf Pestalozzi) in Trogen (Canton of Appenzell Ausserhoden) was founded in 1946. The foundation is active in 13 countries on four continents for 150,000 children since 1982. The idea was prompted by the wartime suffering of children during the Second World War. The children’s village aimed to provide shelter … Read more » “The Pestalozzi Children’s Village”
7 July 2021
The Accademia di Architettura, the Academy of Architecture, was founded in 1996 in Mendrisio, Canton of Ticino. One of its founders was the architect Mario Botta (born in 1947). The starting point was to create an interdisciplinary centre of expertise with architecture at its core. The Academy accommodates various disciplines, such as biology, philosophy, genetics, … Read more » “Accademia di Architettura in Mendrisio 25 years”
7 June 2021
In 2021, the „Prehistoric Pile Dwellings around the Alps“celebrated the tenth anniversary of its status as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The transnational site was entered into the UNESCO World Heritage registry on June 27th, 2011. Of the more than 1,000 known pile dwellings in Central Europe, only 111 representative sites in France, Italy, Switzerland, … Read more » “Pile Dwellings around the Alps”
1 April 2021
Number double 007, not just number 7, but just as legendary. To commemorate the 150th Anniversary of Mount Rigi Railways (Rigi Bahnen AG), the steam locomotive Number 7 will be restored and brought back into operation in 2021. On May 21st, 2021, 150 years after its maiden voyage, the locomotive will journey up the Rigi, … Read more » “Mount Rigi Railways 150 Years”
29 December 2020
Safety in the mountains became a concern as more tourists ventured into the high mountains after 1850. Since the mid-19th century, mountaineers have climbed, descended slopes, and hiked on mountain paths and glaciers. The number of accidents also rose sharply. However, organised mountain rescue did not exist. In Engadin, doctor Oscar Bernhard (1861-1939) from Samedan … Read more » “Alpine Rescue Service.”
1 December 2020
The Association of the Most Beautiful Swiss Villages (Verein die schönsten Schweizer Dörfer) was founded five years ago in the canton of Ticino. The first village was Poschiavo in Graubünden. After 5 years, the association represents forty towns in fourteen cantons. (Source and further information: www.borghisvizzera.ch)
