Büren a. Aare, Brücke über die Aare. Photo/Foto: TES.

The Beginning of Federal Financial Support

25 July 1867 is an important but almost forgotten date in Switzerland’s modern history. On this day, the parliament in Bern decided, for the first time, on federal funding for projects in cantons.

These federal subsidies covered the high costs of the Jura Water Correction Project (La Correction des eaux du Jura/Juragewässerkorrektion) of the cantons Fribourg, Bern, Neuchâtel, Waadt, and Solothurn from 1868 to 1891.

By today’s standards, the Federal Government contributed about two billion CHF. The Rubicon (the Aare in this case) was crossed.