Local history in Switzerland.
2 July 2021
Cossonay (canton of Vaud) is derived from the Gallo-Roman name Cossinus or Cossonus. In the Middle Ages, it became Cossinacum or Cossonacum. The first document with the name Cossonay dates from 1096. Uldric of Cossonay donated his goods in Cossonay to the Romainmôtier convent. In 1405, the dynasty of the Lords of Cossonay came to … Read more » “Cossinus, Cossonus or Cossonay”
1 July 2021
The possessions of the lords of Tarasp, von Wildenberg and von Frickingen in Zernez date back to the 12th and 13th centuries. These then passed to the bishop of Chur and, in the 14th century, to the Plantas, the most powerful family in Upper Engadine. The Gotteshausbund was founded in Zernez in 1367. The village … Read more » “Zernez, the National Park Centre and the Von Plantas”
29 June 2021
Cornaux (canton of Neuchâtel) has been a well-known archaeological site since 1965. During the second phase of correcting the lakes and rivers in the Jura (Juragewässerkorrektion 1962-1973), a wooden bridge over the Zihl, dating back to the 2nd and 1st centuries BC, was discovered between the lakes of Neuchâtel and Biel. The first correction took … Read more » “Cornaux and the Celtique Bridge”
25 June 2021
As early as the Neolithic period (4000-1800 B.C.), the area around Ins (Anet in French) was inhabited. The Roman period has also left its traces. The first mention dates from 851 in a chronicle called Villa de Anes. In 1009, the first mention of the village was found in an old French charter; it was … Read more » “Anestre became Ins”
23 June 2021
The Capuchin monastery in Sion is the only building in Canton Valais from the 20th century that has been classified as a cultural object of national importance. In 1631, the Capuchins settled in Sion and began construction of the building. The church was consecrated in 1643 by Bishop Adrien III de Riedmatten (1610-1646). More than … Read more » “Capuchin monastery in Sion”
21 June 2021
Every street corner in the centre of (ancient) Basel, Basilea, has its history. On the hill of the Münster, the cathedral, the Celts built a defensive wall, the murus gallus, in the first century BC. The Romans founded the Colonia Augusta Raurica around 44 BC to defend against the Germanic tribes on the other side of … Read more » “City History set in Stone”
20 June 2021
At Lake Biel (Bielersee/lac de Bienne), more than 35 sites of pile dwellings from the period between 4300 and 800 B.C. are known. They were the villages of the first farmers and fishermen in this region. The village of Lüscherz (canton Bern) is one of the most relevant sites in Switzerland. Several Neolithic shore settlements … Read more » “Pile dwelling museum Lüscherz”
19 June 2021
The village of Lüscherz (canton of Bern) is one of the most important places of pile dwellings in Switzerland. The village is first mentioned in a document dated 1271. The knights of Biel donated the vineyards “next to the path leading to the lake” to the Frauenkappelen monastery. Until the reformation, the village belonged to … Read more » “The village of Lüscherz”
19 June 2021
In 1870, the architect Friedrich Ludwig von Rütte (1829-1903) bought the former 15th-century estate of a Bernese patrician family and converted it into a stately holiday home. As a result of the lowering of Lake Biel following the correction of the Jura waters (1868-1891), the estate gained additional land. On this new land, he created … Read more » “Von Rütte Estate”
15 June 2021
The region of Cortaillod (canton of Vaud) has been inhabited since prehistoric times. The oak stilts that appeared when the lake level was lowered due to the first correction of the Jura waters (1869-1891) are evidence of the pile dwellings of the Neolithic and Bronze Ages. The village of Cortaillod (from the Latin ‘Curtile’ or … Read more » “The world-famous industries of Cortaillod”
