CANTONAL CAPITALS OF SWITZERLAND
We have visited quite a number of Switzerland’s cantonal capitals in our “Spotlights”. We thought that it would be fun to test your knowledge and visit some of its lesser-known capitals. We’ll start our tour at the heart of Switzerland, the home of its founding fathers.
Located at the foot of the Mythen Mountains, the capital of Schwyz was originally named Kilchgassen. Today, of course, we know it as Schwyz. It is the home of the Forum of Swiss History and a visit to the Museum of Swiss Charters is a must. A short twenty-minute drive will take you to Altdorf, well-known by tourists for its famous statue of William Tell, the legendary Swiss hero who was forced to shoot an apple off of his son’s head. What few tourists realize is that Altdorf is the capital of Uri. No surprise that the town’s emblem is an apple with an arrow through it. Our next two stops will take us to the capitals of the other founding cantons.
In our article on Unterwalden we pointed out that you could catch the famous “Cabri-O” from Stans. Recently we covered the famous battle of Sempach and visited the Arnold von Winkelried memorial which is located there. We neglected to point out that the town was the capital of the half-canton of Nidwalden. Stans is one of the oldest settlements in the Nidwalden Valley. A short 15-minute drive from Stans will take you to Sarnen, the capital of Obwalden. This lovely town is located on the shores of the lake sharing the same name. One interesting spot to visit is its Hexenturm (witches tower) which is reputed to have been used as a prison to hold suspected witches in the 17th century.
For a giant step back in time, and for a glimpse of what Switzerland looked like a few centuries ago, a visit to Appenzell Innerrhoden is a must. Its capital bearing the same name has 7000 inhabitants making it the smallest of Switzerland. The capital of its sister half-canton of Appenzell-Ausserrhoden is the town of Herisau. Its striking old town hall dates back to the early 1600s. We have one more capital city to visit in the eastern part of Switzerland. Founded by the Kyburger dynasty in the early 13th century, Frauenfeld is located in the hinterlands of the canton of Thurgau. Each year it holds one of Europe’s biggest hip-hop festivals. This year’s revelry is scheduled to take place 7-10 July.
We’ll close our tour of lesser known Swiss capitals with quick visits to the capitals of Basel Landshaft, Jura, and Valais. In our “spotlight” visit to the canton of Basel Landshaft we introduced you to its capital Liestal where the annual “Chienbäse” fire spectacle takes place. What we neglected to tell you is that it’s only three kilometers from Frankendorf’s famous Läkerli Huus. What Girl Scout cookies are to Americans, Basel Läkerli are to the Swiss. Our next stop will take us to the youngest Swiss cantonal capital, the town of Delémont which during the Middle-Ages belonged to the Prince-Bishop of Basel. It achieved its status when the canton of Jura was established in 1979. And now a brief visit to the capital of the Valais. Sion (Sitten in German) with its famous landmark castles of Valère & Tourbillon which overlook the town is one of Switzerland’s oldest cities. Located in the middle of the wine-growing region, it’s the ideal starting point to explore the many famous Valaisan holiday resorts.
Checkout the videos & web sites by clicking on the various highlighted links above.
We have visited quite a number of Switzerland’s cantonal capitals in our “Spotlights”. We thought that it would be fun to test your knowledge and visit some of its lesser-known capitals. We’ll start our tour at the heart of Switzerland, the home of its founding fathers.
Located at the foot of the Mythen Mountains, the capital of Schwyz was originally named Kilchgassen. Today, of course, we know it as Schwyz. It is the home of the Forum of Swiss History and a visit to the Museum of Swiss Charters is a must. A short twenty-minute drive will take you to Altdorf, well-known by tourists for its famous statue of William Tell, the legendary Swiss hero who was forced to shoot an apple off of his son’s head. What few tourists realize is that Altdorf is the capital of Uri. No surprise that the town’s emblem is an apple with an arrow through it. Our next two stops will take us to the capitals of the other founding cantons.
In our article on Unterwalden we pointed out that you could catch the famous “Cabri-O” from Stans. Recently we covered the famous battle of Sempach and visited the Arnold von Winkelried memorial which is located there. We neglected to point out that the town was the capital of the half-canton of Nidwalden. Stans is one of the oldest settlements in the Nidwalden Valley. A short 15-minute drive from Stans will take you to Sarnen, the capital of Obwalden. This lovely town is located on the shores of the lake sharing the same name. One interesting spot to visit is its Hexenturm (witches tower) which is reputed to have been used as a prison to hold suspected witches in the 17th century.
For a giant step back in time, and for a glimpse of what Switzerland looked like a few centuries ago, a visit to Appenzell Innerrhoden is a must. Its capital bearing the same name has 7000 inhabitants making it the smallest of Switzerland. The capital of its sister half-canton of Appenzell-Ausserrhoden is the town of Herisau. Its striking old town hall dates back to the early 1600s. We have one more capital city to visit in the eastern part of Switzerland. Founded by the Kyburger dynasty in the early 13th century, Frauenfeld is located in the hinterlands of the canton of Thurgau. Each year it holds one of Europe’s biggest hip-hop festivals. This year’s revelry is scheduled to take place 7-10 July.
We’ll close our tour of lesser known Swiss capitals with quick visits to the capitals of Basel Landshaft, Jura, and Valais. In our “spotlight” visit to the canton of Basel Landshaft we introduced you to its capital Liestal where the annual “Chienbäse” fire spectacle takes place. What we neglected to tell you is that it’s only three kilometers from Frankendorf’s famous Läkerli Huus. What Girl Scout cookies are to Americans, Basel Läkerli are to the Swiss. Our next stop will take us to the youngest Swiss cantonal capital, the town of Delémont which during the Middle-Ages belonged to the Prince-Bishop of Basel. It achieved its status when the canton of Jura was established in 1979. And now a brief visit to the capital of the Valais. Sion (Sitten in German) with its famous landmark castles of Valère & Tourbillon which overlook the town is one of Switzerland’s oldest cities. Located in the middle of the wine-growing region, it’s the ideal starting point to explore the many famous Valaisan holiday resorts.
Checkout the videos & web sites by clicking on the various highlighted links above.
