Author: Maarten Koning

The Basler Fasnacht 2022

On 27 February 2020, the Bundesrat/Conseil fédéral (the national government) and the canton of Basel-Stadt decided to cancel the Fasnacht of 2020 (from 2 to 4 March) because of the Covid epidemic. The disappointment was omnipresent, but the following year, the cancellation was self-evident.

Finally, on 7 March 2022, at 4 a.m., the Vorwärts Marsch order was given again in the centre of Basel. At 4 a.m., the lights went off in the city centre, and thousands of piccolos and tambourines resounded in the narrow alleys, bridges, and large squares.

Many thousands marched through the city. The cliques (the associations of Fasnächtler) of Kleinbasel and Grossbasel met at the Wettstein Bridge and the Mittlerebrücke. The lanterns on their heads and large illuminated lanterns (satirical square screens) accompanied the processions, with magnificent costumes in a fairy-tale setting.

Business as usual, no, not as usual. This time it is not Corona but aggression in the middle of Europe that is the day’s talk. This crime is as surrealistic as the masquerades on Fasnacht.

However, it is a bitter reality and another defeat for Europe after the already almost forgotten wars in the Balkans (1991-1999), the massacre of 196 Dutch citizens on 14 July 2014 and many other crimes by the same perpetrators.

Desperate, sad and distraught, inhabitants of the invaded European country were present with their yellow-blue flags on the Marktplatz of Basel on the eve of Fasnacht.

A few hours later, the Vorwärts Marsch! order was given, and the traditional marching music of the piccolos and tambourines sounded.

Most European leaders still hide behind self-deception, tough talk and symbolic, even cynical, declarations of support. The crocodile will become hungrier, however. A masquerade is not even needed anymore.

Swiss neutrality doesn’t seem to be an option in this case. Many blue and yellow colours decorate the clothing of the cliques. It is about humanity, democracy and the rule of law.

Proofreading: Adrian Dubock

Liestal and the Törli

Liestal (Canton of Basel-Landschaft) was an ancient Roman and Alemannic settlement. The town was first mentioned in 1189 under the name Lihstal.

Count Hartman IV of Froburg extended Liestal to a fortified settlement in 1240 and elevated it to a city. Liestal received a fortification, gates and towers, a rampart and a moat, a market and a customs house.

The Prince-Bishop of Basel bought the town in 1305 and turned it into a garrison town. After the devastation caused by the earthquake of 1356 and the great fire of 1381, the town was a large construction site until 1415.

The Obere Tor, the Törli, from the 14th century, lies in the axis of Rathausstrasse, Marktgasse and Burgstrasse and follows the Roman and medieval road.

The gate was painted in 1499 with heraldic motifs and coats of arms. The facade painting dates back to 1950, after many other frescoes from previous centuries.

The artist Otto Plattner (1886-1951) painted a stylised version of a warrior dressed in armour holding the Swiss flag. He painted and adapted the Rütli oath and George the dragon slayer on the other side of the tower.

In 1972 and 2019, new restorations of the frescoes were carried out, and the many building phases and frescoes since the 14th century were analysed. These provide a good insight into the political history of the city.

Today, the townscape is still dominated by the well-preserved historic centre, the old town, and the Törli.

You can reach the forests and hills just outside the town quickly or visit the Poetry and Town Museum (Dichter- und Stadtmuseum), the MuseumBL, the Harmonium Museum, the zoo, the theatre or musical events within walking distance. Since 1832/1833, Liestal has been the seat of the cantonal government.

(Source and further information: www.liestal.ch).

The townhall (Das Rathaus)

The reformed city church (die Evangelische Stadtkirche)

Monument for the poet and politician Georg Herwegh (1817-1875)

Bach in Arlesheim

The complete organ works of Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) will be played on the Silbermann organ in the Dom of Arlesheim (Canton Basel-Landschaft) from 2022 to 2024.

His early works will be played in the first year (2022). he composed these works during his youth and as an organist in Arnstadt (1703-1708) and Mühlhausen (1707-1708). These chorale arrangements and free organ works are unknown even to some experts and are rarely played in concerts. Most chorale preludes come from the so-called Neumeister-Sammlung (Neumeister collection), discovered in 1985.

The second year, 2023, will be dedicated to his Weimar period (1708-1717), during which Bach, as court organist to Duke Wilhelm Ernst of Saxe-Weimar (1662-1728), created most of his organ works. The great preludes, toccatas, fantasies, and their corresponding fugues will be heard. The programme also includes the chorale preludes of the “Orgelbüchlein”.

After Bach had previously oriented himself primarily on North German models, an Italian composer became the focus of his attention during his Weimar period.
The concerti grossi of the Venetian Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741) are heard in Bach’s arrangements for the organ, and Bach’s organ music breathes a good portion of talianità.

The third year (2024) is devoted mainly to late organ works, including die kleine Liebhaberkollektion der sechs Schübler-Choräle; “Vom Himmel hoch”; the “Dritte Theil der Clavier Übung”, the trio sonatas, the sonatas and the “Leipziger Originalhandschrift” (although the pieces were written thirty years earlier).

(Source and further information: www.bach-im-dom.ch).

Stockalper Castle in Brig

Kaspar Stockalper von Thurm (1609-1691) built this castle in 1658-1678, next to his residence in Brig (canton of Valais).

He was the wealthiest banker, merchant and entrepreneur in Valais. He controlled the postal services and trade over the Simplon Pass and became the Valais’s most influential politician and diplomat. He was also called the Fugger of the Alps.

The castle is one of the most significant Baroque buildings in Switzerland. The Renaissance features and the three towers of the complex are remarkable.

He gave the three towers the names Kaspar, Melchior and Balthasar, referring to the three kings who visited the newly born Jesus. For this reason, his other nickname is “King of the Alps”.

Brig was Catholic and founded the Ursulinen Monastery next to the castle in 1661. This monastery still exists. The Kollegium Spritus Sanctus, a Jesuit church and – school built on the opposite hill in 1662, was also his initiative.

Brig (and Naters on the other side of the Rhone) lie at the foot of the Simplon Pass, and the road to it was next to the castle. It was no coincidence. The castle controlled the transit trade and traffic over the pass, a lucrative business.

He was well acquainted with European kings and Popes. His trading empire extended to the Mediterranean and the (Protestant) Republic of the Seven United Provinces. However, he also traded with the Spanish Habsburgs, who were involved in the Eighty Years’ War with the Republic.

He received the highest honorary and noble titles from French, Austrian, and Spanish kings, emperors, and the Vatican. He was a devout Catholic during the religious wars (including the Thirty Years’ War (1618-1648 and the lifting of the Edict of Nantes in 1685).

He became so powerful that the rulers of Leuk, Visp, Sitten, and Siders (four of the seven Tithings, Zenden or Zehnden in German, dizains in French) expelled him from Valais in 1679, forfeiting a large part of his fortune. In 1685 he could return through the mediation of his powerful European friends.

He was too powerful in the eyes of Upper-Valais rulers (Oberwallis). The other three Tithings were Brig, Raron and Goms.

The Seven Tithings of the Upper-Valais governed the French-speaking Lower-Valais (Unterwallis) as subject-territory or Untertanengebiet (territoire sujet in French) from 1512-1536 until 1798.

Kaspar Stockalper von Thurm gave Brig the appearance of a (Catholic) royal residence. The castle houses a museum nowadays, showing the history of the Simplon Pass, the postal service (Passage Simplon) and the Stockalper dynasty.

Source: Bernhard Truffer, Historisches Lexikon der Schweiz, Valais, www.hls-dhs-dss.ch).

A Short History of the Constitution

The old Confederation (Eidgenossenschaft) of thirteen cantons or Orte (situation 1513) did not yet have a Constitution but was a loose confederation of cantons. Its members were: Appenzell, Basel, Bern, Freiburg, Glarus, Lucerne, Schaffhausen, Schwyz, Solothurn, Unterwalden, Uri, Zug and Zurich.

The Confederation 1291-1515

The Confederation, or Eidgenossenschaft, was based on mutual treaties concluded between two or more cantons over centuries. From the very beginning, the Eidgenossenschaft was a bottom-up process of state-building. More and more cities or Orte joined until 1513.

A critical moment was the conquest of Aargau in 1415. The cantons decided to rule the conquered and subject areas (Untertanengebiet) together (Gemeine Herrschaft). The Tagsatzung, the general assembly of the cantons, was created for this purpose.

Thurgau was conquered in 1460 and became a subject area for the Eidgenossenschaft. The Burgundian wars (1474-1477), the expansion into the Italian territories (Tessin, 1512), and the conquest of Vaud (1536) led to the joint administration of more territories.

The Swabian War (Schwabenkrieg, Schweizerkrieg, or Engadinerkrieg) of 1499 expanded the Eidgenossenschaft to include five new members. In addition, more regions and cities joined as allies or zugewandte Orte.

The Freistaat includes St. Gallen, Graubünden, Valais, Geneva, and Neuchàtel, as well as several cities in Germany and France (e.g., Rottweil, Besançon, Mulhouse, Strasbourg, Colmar).

Until 1515 and the defeat at Marignano, the Eidgenossenschaft was a military superpower with no political unity or Constitution in Central Europe.

1515-1798

The Eidgenossenschaft even survived the Reformation. This is an indication of the strong bond that already existed between the cantons despite the religious strife and other (economic) disputes.

The Eidgenossenschaft without a Constitution survived mainly due to the local constitutions, (shared) interests, and wisdom of the members.

In Zurich, for example, the reformer Huldrych Zwingli (1484-1531) was not immediately burned but was heard by the city council. He even convinced them, and Zurich became a Protestant city in 1525.

The two (Catholic and Protestant) Appenzellers were created after a vote in the Landsgemeinde (Appenzell Ausserrhoden, Protestant) and the parish of the church (Appenzell Innerrhoden, Catholic) in 1597. Protestant Berne remained an ally of Catholic Solothurn and Freiburg.

1798-1803

The Eidgenossenchaft functioned without a Constitution until 1798. From 1798-1803 the Helvetic Republic was a unitary state with a Constitution based on the French model and principles of unity, legal equality and fraternity.

1803-1815

The Swiss cantons did not fit into the straitjacket of a unitary state. On 19 February 1803, the new (French) Constitution (the  Mediation Act) created a new Confederation of nineteen independent cantons (with the new cantons of  Vaud, Aargau, Thurgau, Tessin, St. Gallen and  Graubünden).

1815-1848

After Napoleon’s defeat, the new Eidgenossenschaft and the Constitution of the twenty-two cantons (with Geneva, Neuchâtel and Valais as new cantons) was founded on 7 August 1815. The Bundesvertrag was the constitutional fundament. The Bund, at the federal level, had minimal powers. The cantons remained sovereign.

The years 1815-1848 represent a crucial period. The old (oligarchic) structures were back in power in most cantons. However, the ideals of popular sovereignty, (direct) democracy and referendums enjoyed the support of the liberal bourgeoisie.

This caused tensions between and within the cantons, between federalists (confederation) and unionists (unitary state), old structures (ancien régime) and radical-liberal groups, and between Catholic and Protestant cantons.

In this complicated situation, the Constitution of 1815 could not be reformed, and a short civil war (Sonderbundskrieg) was the climax in 1847.

This escalation led to the Constitution of 1848 (after approval by a referendum), which was amended 140 times until the year 2000.

1848-2000

Every amendment of the Consitution must be submitted to the People in the form of a mandatory referendum, whether it concerned the first major revision in 1874  (including the optional referendum), the revision of 1891 (including the People’s Initiative), the introduction of the voting system of proportionality (1918), women’s suffrage (1971), the new canton of Jura (1979) or the major revision of 1999 (which came into force on 1 January 2000).

Most adaptations are related to the transfer of new powers to the federal level (der Bund) because of an increasing number of governmental tasks (e.g. concerning the environment, social security, immigration, and transport).

The principles of the Constitution of 1848 have not changed. Switzerland is a confederal, decentralised democratic state. The citizens always have the final say at federal, cantonal and municipal levels, thus controlling the political parties and their networks.

The Eidgenossenschaft and the Constitution are a centuries-old bottom-up project on behalf of the cantons and the People.  Switzerland boasts the maximum alliance of four sovereign cantons and four languages.

The Romandy

The Swiss artist Ben Vautier exhibited his art by the claim “La Suisse n’existe pas” at the world exhibition in Seville (1992).

Switzerland exists, but what about the Romandy or La Suisse romande, the French-speaking part of Switzerland?

Although religion plays a less critical role nowadays, the Catholic and Protestant dividing lines crisscross through the cantons. The economic and political situation and history also differ from canton to canton.

Suisse romande

The Romandy is a nineteenth-century creation, first used in 1837 by the Societé d’histoire de la Suisse romande. The term Suisse romande was used in the Interbellum (1918-1939) by German-speaking Switzerland.

The First World War strengthened its identity in the Romandy. French-speaking Switzerland supported France, and German-speaking Switzerland favoured Germany and Austria-Hungary.

L’Orchestre de la Romande was founded in 1918. The increased French newspapers, radio and later TV contributed to the awareness, and la Suisse romande became an institutionalized and collective identity.

Cantons

The Romandy consists of six cantons: Jura, Valais (Wallis), Genève (Genf), Vaud (Waadt), Fribourg (Freiburg) and Neuchâtel (Neuenburg).

Jura (see also Swiss Spectator 16 February 2020)

The canton Jura has existed since 1979. Until the French occupation in 1792-1798, the territory belonged to the Prince-Bishop of Basel. The area was assigned to Bern and Basel-Stadt (later Basel-Landschaft, in 1833) in 1815 (Congress of Vienna).

History does not end in 1979. There is an ongoing discussion in some French-speaking communes in the Jura Bernois to join the canton of Jura.

A (new) referendum will take place in Moutier in 2021 (see Swiss Spectator 15.2.2019, Mexit in Switzerland).

Fribourg and Valais 

The complication is the bilingualism of Fribourg and Valais. Freiburg, founded by the German-speaking Dukes of Zähringen in the twelfth century, became more and more Fribourg, in particular after the conquest of French-speaking territories (1474-1536).

Geneva

Geneva has always focused on keeping Savoy out and conquering Chablais, Gex and Faucigny. The difficult relationship between the bishop of Geneva and the Protestant city council after the Reformation complicated the situation.

Neuchâtel

Neuchâtel was a sovereign county, then belonged to German and French dynasties (1395-1706). The Prussian king became Prince of Neuchâtel in 1707 (formally until 1857).

Vaud

Vaud has never been independent until 1803. The area was first governed by Savoy and then by Bern (Protestant) and Fribourg (Catholic), hence the region’s patchwork of languages and religions. Vaud became an administrative unit in the Helvetic Republic (1798-1803) and a canton in 1803 (Mediationsakte)

Identity

The cantons of the Suisse romande have their language and some cultural features in common and there is even the Tour de Romandie nowadays.

There are also some identical voting patterns in the French-speaking cantons. The urban- and rural differences seem more important nowadays. The same development takes place in German-speaking cantons.

The French-speaking part of Switzerland has never been a cultural and political unity, and history also shows a different path. The cantons and the communes are still the most relevant political unities regarding identity.

(Source: C. Meuwly e.a. (Red.), Histoire vaudoise, Lausanne 2015), F. Walter, Une histoire suisse, Neuchâtel, 2016).

The Swiss National Anthem

Switzerland did not have an official national anthem until 1961. The decision was preceded by almost a century of searching, including competitions to find a suitable melody and text.

Until the end of the 1950s, the tunes most commonly played at official events in Switzerland were Rufst Du mein Vaterland (“When my Fatherland calls”) and the Schweizer Psalm (Swiss Psalm) Trittst im Morgenrot daher… (“When the morning skies grow red…”).

Johann Rudolf Wyss (1782-1830) wrote the poem Rufst Du mein Vaterland. It was sung to the tune of the British national anthem, “God Save the King/ Queen.” In the 19th century, it was used by numerous kings, dukes, and princes of the German Reich.

It survives as the tune of the British national anthem and the national anthem of the Principality of Liechtenstein (Oben am jungen Rhein lehnet sich Liechtenstein an Alpeshöhn).

The Swiss Psalm

The Swiss Psalm was composed by Alberik Zwyssig (1808-1854). The tune was originally a church hymn based on the psalm Diligam te Domine. In 1841, Zwyssig set the text of the Swiss Psalm to the tune of his melody.

Over time, the lyrics of Rufst Du mein Vaterland came to be seen as outdated, and the tune led to growing confusion when both the Swiss and British anthems were played. For this reason, there were calls to declare the Swiss Psalm the official national anthem.

The Federal Council expressed its views on the issue on several occasions. The first was in 1894. In 1933, a further submission to the Federal Council followed on the same terms as the 1894 request. The Federal Council issued the same reply as in 1934: the people and cantons should decide.

In 1941, a hundred years had passed since the Swiss Psalm was first performed. To mark this centenary, together with the celebrations of 650 years of the Swiss Confederation (1291), another request was made to make the Swiss Psalm Switzerland’s national anthem instead of Rufst Du mein Vaterland. The debate continued in the years that followed.

A parliamentary request by 30 members of the Council of States in 1954 invited the Federal Council to conduct a survey and take steps towards recognising a song that accords with the people’s sensibilities as the national anthem.

1961

In 1955, the decision was taken to enter into discussions with the cantonal governments. In 1961, the Federal Council chose Trittst im Morgenrot daher…  to become the national anthem, initially for a trial period of three years.

In 1981, consultation among the cantons resulted in the final decision. The trial period, which had been renewed every three years since 1961, was abolished.

The Trittst im Morgenrot daher…  was retained as the official national anthem. A motion submitted in the National Council in 2004 calling for the lyrics of the anthem to be modernised was withdrawn in 2006.

The history does not end here, however. Many people regard the text as outdated, too religious, and too Biedermeier; new initiatives are pending.

It shows the careful Swiss decision-making procedures and cultural complexity in action. It is not regarded as a problem, though. For most citizens, the cantons and the communes are the true fatherland; most citizens do not know the text anyway.

The nation is multicultural and cosmopolitan, and one could imagine an Albanese, Portuguese, Eritrean or Kosovar version, as the national football team, the Nati, shows.

The Swiss national anthem of four couplets is available in French, Italian, Romansh and German.

(Source and further information: www.nb.admin.ch).

The Celtic Tribes of the Alps

The Alps had various names in ancient times: the Alps Poenines (Alpes Poeninae), the Alps Graies (Alpes Graiae), the Alps Cottiennes (Alpes Cottiae) and the Alps Maritimes (Alpes Maritimes).

The Alpes Graiae and Alpes Poenines extended over different Celtic regions and peoples. The Alpes Graiae included the Tarentaise, the Beaufortain and the Haut-Faucigny. Valais belonged to the Poenine Alps. The Alpes Cottiae and The Alpes Maritimes were in France. The Tarentaise and the Valais were important routes to Italy, Gaul and Britain.

Several passes connected different regions. The Cormet d’Arêches and Roselend connect the Tarentaise with the Beaufortain. The Bonhomme and Forclaz du Prarion pass link the Beaufortain and Haut-Faucigny, and the Balme and Forclaz de Trento passes connect the Val de Chamonix and Valais.

The Petit Saint-Bernard connects the Tarentaise with the Valle d’Aosta and the Grand-Saint-Bernard links Valais to the Aosta Valley (Valle d’Aosta).

The Ceutrones inhabited the Alpes Graiae: their capital was Aime (Axima). Four tribes inhabited the Alpes Poeninae: the Nantuaten, the Veragri, the Sedunas and the Uberi. The Nantuaten lived in the Rhone Valley from Lake Geneva to Saint-Maurice (Agaune) and had Massongex (Tarnaiae) as their capital.

The Veragri inhabited the valley of Martigny. The Sedunas lived in Sion, and the Uberi settled between Sierre, Brig, and the Gotthard (Adulas mons or Columna Solis).

(source: A. Puéjean, Les Alpes Graies et Poenines à l’époque romaine, Nîmes, 2015).

The Iglo of Hotel Kemmeriboden-Bad

In 2008, the Landgasthof Hotel Kemmeriboden-Bad (Canton of Bern) built the first igloo in its courtyard. As the demand was great, more igloos were made yearly. Until today, there are five. The Kemmeriboden-Bad hotel was built in 1834 and is now owned by the sixth generation.

Today, the igloo restaurant has about 50 seats and a dining room for fondue. In the first year, lorries transported the snow from the mountains. This was too expensive and inefficient, so Landgasthof invested in its snow-making facility.

The hotel’s hydroelectric power station generates part of the energy. The water comes entirely from the hotel’s wells.

The symbiosis between the hotel, nature and the igloo village transforms the courtyard into a winter fairy tale along the River Emme. However, Mother Nature remains the most crucial partner from December to March.

(Source and further information: www.kemmeriboden.ch).

The Kemmeriboden-Bad-Merängg

The Kemmeriboden-Bad (also called Bedli or Schybebad, Schybe meaning shadow in Berner dialect) is located on the banks of the River Emme, on the edge of the Emmental in the canton of Bern. The land was used as a forestry area until 1794.

The healing springs were already known a century before that. In 1794, the owner opened the first spa hotel, a Gastwirtschaft with a bath. A new owner took over the hotel in 1834. It was the beginning of the dynasty of today’s owner Reto Invernizzi.

Between 1878 and 1900, the hotel was renovated and extended to reflect its present state. The large house, the Bauernhaus or Wirtshaus, was completed in 1880. The Chässpycher and the Kegelhüsi were built in 1898 and 1900. Meanwhile, a farm remained connected to the complex. It supplied the kitchen with fresh milk, eggs, meat and other products for the restaurant.

Many celebrities, poets, writers, politicians and business people found their way to the complex. The first generator to produce electricity was completed in 1916. Not only did the Spanish flu wreak havoc on the owners’ family in 1918-1920, but the covered wooden bridge also collapsed three times to the swirling waters of the usually calm Emme.

1939 was an important year for the hotel. Just before the Second World War outbreak on 3 September 1939, the hotel served the Kemmeriboden-Bad-Merängge (Nidli in Bern dialect) for the first time, a desert now nationally and internationally famous.

The following significant changes occurred in 1990 with a hydroelectric power station for electricity, a park and several other buildings.

In 2008, the next project took shape: the annual construction of an igloo made of homemade snow in December. The igloo has been extended over the years and now has five rooms, a restaurant for about guests and a separate room for fondue. The igloo only begins to melt around mid-March if the weather gods allow it.

The place is an ideal starting point for hikes to the Entlebuch and Emmental, and Postauto stops here.

(Source and further information: www. kemmeriboden.ch).