The Hinterrhein as a Walser and Romansh cultural and trade route
15 August 2025
A journey along the Hinterrhein begins at Graubünden’s oldest Walser village. The village is named after the southern source of the Rhine, the Hinterrhein. The Vorderrhein rises in the St Gotthard massif. At Reichenau, these rivers meet.
The Hinterrhein near Hinterrhein
Hinterrhein (canton of Graubünden) is 1 kilometre from the San Bernardino tunnel. The valley extends another 10 kilometres to the Rheinwaldhorn, which also marks the border with the canton of Tessin. The Hinterrhein rises in the Paradiesglacier, which lies between the Rheinwaldhorn and the Rheinquelhorn.
The Hinterrhein, the 1693 bridge and the valley towards San Bernardino
The village is a centuries-old transit point for traders and other travellers, over the San Bernadino Pass to the Italian-speaking Val Calanca (Canton Graubünden), over Valserberg to the Walser village of Vals, via Splügen and Nufenen over Safierberg to Safiental, over the Splügen Pass to Chiavenna (Italy) or via the Rofflaschlucht and the Viamala to Reichenau-Tamins.
The Viamala
The Romans already used this route, and until the arrival of trains and cars in the 19th and 20th centuries, the primary means of transport were horse-drawn carriages, later replaced by diligences, stagecoaches, and mules or donkeys.
Collection: Museum Rheinwald
Transport with (mule) donkeys was the primary means of transport for traders until the advent of trains and cars. This trade is referred to as Säumerei over Saumwegen. The Museum Rheinwald in Splügen pays extensive attention to the history of the Säumer (traders).
Villages along the route benefited from this traffic route for centuries. The (valuable) goods were mainly stored in a large warehouse (Sust). Food products, wine, olive oil, skins, as well as luxury items such as silk, were transported along this route.
Collection: Museum Rheinwald
Inns for merchants (Säumer), coachmen, and passengers, as well as food and changing places for horses and other animals, carriages, repair shops, blacksmiths, farmers, and various other suppliers and service providers, brought prosperity and employment to this international transit route.
The trading houses and town palaces in these villages recall this period. However, the traditional wooden Walser houses and warehouses are in the middle of it all. Entrepreneurial spirit, tradition and innovation in Switzerland.
Hinterrhein
In the second half of the 13th century, German-speaking Walser settled at this spot in the Rheinwald forest. The Walser were immigrants from Valais. They likely emigrated in large numbers to Graubünden and other regions due to population surpluses and succession issues. From the village of Hinterrhein, they then headed towards Vals, Splügen and other areas of Graübünden.
Treaty between Lord Von Sax Misox and the Walser in Hinterrhein, 1286. Collection: Hinterrhein Archive
The Walser received permission and (tax) privileges from the owners of these lands. The Lords von Sax Misox (Burg Messoco) and Von Vaz concluded treaties with the Walser.
Nufenen
Further downstream is the Walser village of Nufenen. The Walserama documentation centre provides extensive information on the Walser people, their culture, trade, language and agriculture.
Splügen
The village is considered, so to speak, the model village for transit with its Walser buildings and stone Italian town palaces. The Museum Rheinwald is housed in one of these palaces. The Heimatschutz awarded Splügen the Wakkerpreis in 1995. The viaSpluga is a hiking and cultural trail between Thusis (Via Mala) and Chiavenna over the Splügen Pass.
Sufers
Today, the village is best known for its reservoir and power station, as well as the gigantic Crestawald fortress, built during the réduit period (1940-1945) as a defence against the Italian dictatorship.
Schams
The originally Romansh-speaking area includes the villages of Via Mala, Rofflaschlucht, Val Ferrera, Andeer, and Zillis, as well as several small hamlets. Until the 20th century, Romansh remained the dominant language. Walser did not settle in large numbers in the 13th century, but German-speaking Swiss did after 1800.
Andeer
Further downstream is the town of Andeer. Until a few generations ago, Andeer was also a village where Romansh was spoken. The construction of the Via Mala in 1473 and the establishment of new traffic routes in 1818-1822 led to a significant increase in prosperity, employment, and population in Andeer as well.
The Rofflaschucht and its Gasthaus also benefited until the Gotthard railway tunnel and the arrival of cars.
Reichenau
The Hinterrhein and the former Säumerweg continue their route, passing through Thusis, Fürstenau, Rhäzuns, and Bonaduz to merge with the Vorderrhein and its Säumerweg at Reichenau-Tamins.
Conclusion
What today are comfortable roads with the Via Mala and the Rofflaschlucht as tourist attractions, were for centuries dangerous and necessary traffic arteries in all (harsh) seasons.
The arrival of the Walser led to the establishment of new villages, the adoption of different agricultural methods, house building, and language, as well as the rapid development of trade and traffic routes, and the clearing of forests due to the great need for wood.
From Andeer onwards, the Romansh language survived for a long time, only giving way to German during the late 19th and 20th centuries. Today, there is again more interest in and use of the Romansh language.
Switzerland is (for the time being) a successful melting pot of languages, cultures and religions, and Graubünden, with its Italian, German, Romansh and Walser roots. However, the country also marks the maximum achievable and further ambitions might well have unforeseen and not necessarily positive consequences.
