Author: Maarten Koning

The Bulletin of the Parliament

In 2016, it will be 125 years since the debates in the Swiss parliament first appeared publicly in the three official languages (German, French and Italian).

The debate began immediately after the adoption of the new Constitution of 1848. It would take until 1891 for the first Bulletin to see the light of day: Amtliches Bulletin der Bundesversammlung, Bulletin officiel de l’Assemblée fédérale, Bollettino ufficiale dell’Assemblea federale.

Previously, that publication was mainly a matter of journalism by the first pioneers of the civil service.

They began to publish at the end of the eighteenth and beginning of the nineteenth centuries, during the Helvetic Republic (1798-1803), the old Confederation (1803-1813 and 1815-1848), and the new Confederation after 1848. Gradually, they became increasingly professional.

In 1799, the Helvetic Republic (1798-1803) established a publicly accessible archive for matters at the federal level, which was revived after 1848. The aim was also to give interested parties effective access to federal matters.

After 125 years, the Bulletin remains a prominent feature in this archive. However, digital media, including video, the Internet, and integrated broadcasts of all parliamentary assemblies, have replaced paper and printing ink. The Bulletin’s content was initially limited to discussions of referendums (from 1874 onwards) and Initiatives (from 1891 onwards).

It was not until 1971 that all discussions in the parliamentary assembly were literally and wholly reproduced. Nowadays, all council meetings can be followed directly, the Bulletin is available online, and the parliament’s archive is digitised.

The Tunnels of the Gotthard

In the context of the opening of the new Gotthard Base Tunnel, the Forum of Swiss History in Schwyz is exhibiting from April 16th until October 2nd, 2016, about this gigantic construction project, the biggest yet in Switzerland.

The two earlier Gotthard tunnel projects – the railway tunnel and later the road tunnel – were technological masterpieces, but the new base tunnel breaks all records.

A mountain massif tunnelled three times within 150 years for traffic facilitation is a unique phenomenon. The exhibition explains why and how the three tunnels were built in response to changing economic and political circumstances.

Comparisons show that the Gotthard tunnels set new technological standards and brought profound economic and social changes. Visitors learn about the mountain’s history, from the medieval bridle paths to Switzerland’s most costly and prestigious construction project. This mountain has become more like an imposing edifice, traversed millions of times each year.

The exhibition’s first part explains how the three tunnels have changed the traffic flow across and through the mountain massif. As numerous documents and objects make clear, the Gotthard route is Europe’s most important transport artery, giving rise to national ambitions and leading to consequences for the region.

The exhibition’s second part highlights the economic relevance and cultural influence of the tunnel systems. Once one of the most important links between north and south, the old medieval bridle path over the Gotthard pass has been converted into Switzerland’s most costly construction project. Fifteen million tons of goods annually are carried by rail through the Gotthard, while seven million cars cross the Alps by this route.

(Source and further information: Forum Schweizerische Geschichte www.nationalmuseum.ch).

The First World War and Switzerland

The association Switzerland in the First World War (La Suisse dans la Première Guerre mondiale/Die Schweiz im Ersten Weltkrieg) was founded during the centenary of the First World War in 1914.

It aims to analyse the history of Switzerland during this period and make it understandable to the public. The war also strongly influenced and changed neutral Switzerland.

Tensions between social classes, as well as between French- and German-speaking Switzerland, workers and peasants, and officers and soldiers, increased sharply during the four years of war. They culminated in the general strike of November 1918.

Using a visual scenography, the exhibition presents these growing tensions in thematic chapters: economy, society, army, and politics.

Hundreds of photographs, documents, films, and objects tell the story of a Switzerland that, although spared from war, faced political, economic, and social challenges.

(Source and further information: www.grandeguerre.ch and  www.14-18.ch).

Forum of Swiss History

The new permanent exhibition at the Forum of Swiss History (Forum Schweizer Geschichte) in Schwyz shows ‘Switzerland in the Making’. The exhibition focuses on the foundation and early development of the Swiss Confederacy in the Middle Ages. The history of the Swiss Confederation goes back more than seven hundred years.

The beginning of Switzerland is still debated: when, where, and how did the country’s history as a nation, confederation or Eidgenossenschaft begin? The exhibition places these questions within the context of the economic, political, cultural, and social developments of the 13th-14th centuries.

(Further information Forum Schweizer Geschichte, www.forumschwyz.ch).