Local history in Switzerland.
14 June 2021
The village of Concise (canton of Vaud) and the surrounding villages (Corcelles-près-Concise, Onnens, La Golette, Concise-Sous-Colachoz) did not exist five thousand years ago. However, along the Neuchâtel-Yverdon-les-Bains railway line, built between 1859 and 1870, 25 sites of pile dwellings have been found. These were covered by two metres of earth and are partially well preserved. … Read more » “The Village of Concise and Surroundings”
3 June 2021
Available in German, French and Dutch
3 June 2021
Available in German (Lengnau und Bern) and Dutch.
2 June 2021
Available in French (La ligue des chevaliers de la Cuiller) and Dutch.
1 June 2021
Ligurians were the first inhabitants of the region. The Rhaetians succeeded them, who were subdued by the Romans in 15 BC. Their rule lasted for 400 years. The origin of the name is the Latin word “mollis,” meaning soft. Around 400, the Romans had to cede the area to the Alemanni. In the 9th century, … Read more » “Mollis”
30 May 2021
Three architects from Neuchâtel designed the Hôtel des Postes: Jean Béguin, Ernest Prince and Alfred Rychner. The Hôtel des Postes, situated near the port of Neuchâtel, was constructed over three years and inaugurated on April 1, 1896. The building formerly housed the World Union of Postal Companies, founded by the former Federal Councillor, the Neuchâtelois … Read more » “The Hôtel des Postes in Neuchâtel”
1 May 2021
Filisur in Parc Ela (Canton Graubünden) is a village of national monumental importance with 14 magnificent Engadine houses. In 1262, Filisur was called Villa Fallisour in a document. At that time, the village belonged to the dominion of Greifenstein. Filisur converted to the Reformation in 1590. The Landwasser Bridge is the best-known landmark nowadays.
31 March 2021
The name “Switzerland”, in German “die Schweiz”, in French “la Suisse”, in Italian “Svizzera”, and in Romansh “Svizra”, is derived from the canton Schwyz. This name comes from the Germanic word Sueit, sengen, or to scorch or to burn off the grass. Schwyz is not a city in the traditional medieval sense, but the canton … Read more » “Schwyz, Forum Swiss History and Bundesbriefmuseum”
17 March 2021
Le Pays-d´Enhaut belonged to the Count of Gruyère until 1555. After his bankruptcy, the region was ruled by Bern (the city also introduced the Reformation). The region was assigned to the new canton of Vaud by the Act of Mediation (Mediationsakte) in 1803. The three most important villages are Rougemont, Château-d´Oex, and Rossinière; smaller villages … Read more » “Le Pays-d´Enhaut”
17 March 2021
A walk along the shores of Lake Geneva in Montreux (canton Vaud) encounters politicians, journalists, artists and royals from the 19th and 20th centuries. Freddie Mercury (1946-1991), Gustave Coubert (1819-1877), Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky (1821-1881), Empress Sisi (1837-1898), Ignacy Paderewski (1860-1941), Henryk Sienkiewics (1846-1916), Charlie Chaplin (1889-1977), Carl Gustaf Emil von Mannerheim (1867-1951) or, for example, … Read more » “Montreux”
