Stans and Nidwalden

27 July 2021

The village of Stans is the capital of Canton Nidwalden. It is the oldest settlement in the Nidwalden Valley. The Roman name was Stagnum. The Alemanni settled in the 7th and 8th centuries, during which time they built the first churches.

The Tagsatzung of Stans (meeting of the eight cities/Orte of the Confederation/Eidgenossenschaft) led to the Treaty of Stans (die Verkommnis) in 1481 and the Formation of the Confederation, comprising ten members.

The Verkommnis is the treaty of the eight old members of the Confederation that, together with the other alliance with Freiburg and Solothurn, ended state formation (until 1501).

The construction of the Rosenberg, the Fruenzhaus, the Oberhaus, the Zeigerhaus, the Busingerhaus, the town hall (Rathaus), Winkelriedhaus, the Leuw ‘sches Haus, the Wammer ‘sches Haus, the Zeiger ‘sches Haus, the presbytery, the Capuchins, and the nunnery took place between the 13th and 18th centuries.

The early Baroque parish church of St. Peter and Paul was built between 1642 and 1647.

The Ossuary is a chapel dating from the 15th to 16th century. On the east side is a memorial plaque with the Ars Moriendi for the victims of the French invasion of 1798.

(Source: Historisches Lexicon der Schweiz, Stanser Verkommnis (www.hls-dhs-dss.ch); www.stans.ch).