Modern history of Switzerland
Encyclopedia
This article deals with the history of Switzerland
since 1848.
See Early Modern Switzerland
for the Early Modern period, Switzerland in the Napoleonic era
for the period of 1798-1814, and Restoration and Regeneration (Switzerland) for the period of 1815-1848.
was passed on 12 September 1848.
The constitution was heavily influenced by the US Constitution and the ideas of the French Revolution
. The constitution establishes the Swiss Confederation, governed by a comparatively strong federal government
, instead the model of a confederation
of independent cantons
bound by treaties.
and Baden
.
The Gotthard Rail Tunnel
was completed in 1881.
The Swiss watchmaking industry has its origins in the 18th century, but boomed during the 19th century, turning the village of La Chaux-de-Fonds
into an industrial center. Rapid urban growth also enlarged Zürich
, which incorporated its industrial suburb Aussersihl
into the municipality in 1891.
Banking
emerged as a significant factor in Swiss economy with the foundation of the Union Bank of Switzerland
in 1862, the Swiss Bank Corporation
in 1872.
The Golden age of alpinism
in the 1850s to 1860s lay the foundation to the tourism industry
.
and World War II
, Switzerland managed to keep a stance of armed neutrality
, and apart from minor skirmishes was not involved militarily.
Because of its neutral status, Switzerland was of considerable interest to the warring parties, as a scene for diplomacy
, espionage
, commerce
, and as a safe haven for refugees.
During World War I, Switzerland was situated between the Central Powers
to the north and east, and the Entente Powers to the south and west. During World War II, Switzerland was entirely surrounded by the Axis Powers
from 1940 to 1944.
From 1959, the Federal Council
, elected by the parliament, is composed of members of the four major parties, the liberal Free Democrats
, the Catholic Christian Democrats
, the left-wing Social Democrats
and the right-wing People's Party
, essentially creating a system without a sizeable parliamentary opposition (see concordance system
), reflecting the powerful position of an opposition in a direct democracy
.
Women were granted the right to vote
in the first Swiss cantons in 1959, at the federal level in 1971 and, after resistance, in the last canton Appenzell Innerrhoden
in 1990. After suffrage
at the federal level women quickly rose in political significance, with the first woman on the seven member Federal Council
executive being Elisabeth Kopp
who served from 1984–1989. The first female president was Ruth Dreifuss
, elected in 1998 to become president during 1999.
(The Swiss president is elected every year from those among the seven member high council and cannot serve two consecutive terms). The second female president is Micheline Calmy-Rey
who held the 2007 Swiss high office. She is originally from the western area of the French-speaking canton Geneve. She is presently joined on the seven member cabinet/high council by two other women, Doris Leuthard
, from the canton of Aargau
and Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf
, from the canton of Graubünden
.
In 1979, parts of the Bernese Jura
attained independence
while remaining in the Federation, forming the new canton of Jura
.
The Demographics of Switzerland
has changed in similar ways as in other states in Western Europe. Since 1945, the population of Switzerland has grown from roughly 4.5 to 7.5 million, mostly between 1945 and 1970, with a brief negative growth in the late 1970s, and a population growth hovering around 0.5% per year since the 1990s, mostly due to immigration. With a population composed of a roughly balanced combination of Roman Catholics and Protestants, together amounting to more than 95%, the population without any religious affiliation has grown to more than 10% in the 2000s, while the Muslim population grew from practically nil to some 4% over the past decades. Italians
had been the largest group of resident foreigners since the 1920, but with the Yugoslav wars
of the 1990s, large-scale immigration of refugees has changed this picture, and residents with origins in the former Yugoslavia
now constitute the largest group of resident foreigners, with some 200,000 people (roughly 3% of the population).
History of Switzerland
Since 1848, the Swiss Confederation has been a federal state of relatively autonomous cantons, some of which have a history of confederacy that goes back more than 700 years, arguably putting them among the world's oldest surviving republics. For the time before 1291, this article summarizes...
since 1848.
See Early Modern Switzerland
Early Modern Switzerland
The early modern history of the Old Swiss Confederacy , lasting from formal independence in 1648 to the French invasion of 1798 came to be referred as Ancien Régime retrospectively, in post-Napoleonic Switzerland.The early modern period was characterized by an increasingly...
for the Early Modern period, Switzerland in the Napoleonic era
Switzerland in the Napoleonic era
During the French Revolutionary Wars, the revolutionary armies marched eastward, enveloping Switzerland in their battles against Austria. In 1798 Switzerland was completely overrun by the French and became the Helvetic Republic. The Helvetic Republic encountered severe economic and political problems...
for the period of 1798-1814, and Restoration and Regeneration (Switzerland) for the period of 1815-1848.
Formation of the Federal State (1848)
Following a 27-day civil war in Switzerland, the Sonderbundskrieg, the Swiss Federal ConstitutionSwiss Federal Constitution
The Federal Constitution of 18 April 1999 is the third and current federal constitution of Switzerland. It establishes the Swiss Confederation as a federal republic of 26 cantons , contains a catalogue of individual and popular rights , delineates the responsibilities of the...
was passed on 12 September 1848.
The constitution was heavily influenced by the US Constitution and the ideas of the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
. The constitution establishes the Swiss Confederation, governed by a comparatively strong federal government
Swiss Federal Council
The Federal Council is the seven-member executive council which constitutes the federal government of Switzerland and serves as the Swiss collective head of state....
, instead the model of a confederation
Confederation
A confederation in modern political terms is a permanent union of political units for common action in relation to other units. Usually created by treaty but often later adopting a common constitution, confederations tend to be established for dealing with critical issues such as defense, foreign...
of independent cantons
Cantons of Switzerland
The 26 cantons of Switzerland are the member states of the federal state of Switzerland. Each canton was a fully sovereign state with its own borders, army and currency from the Treaty of Westphalia until the establishment of the Swiss federal state in 1848...
bound by treaties.
Industrialisation and economic growth (1848-1914)
The 1847 to 1914 period saw the development of the Swiss railway network. The Schweizerische Nordbahn (SNB) society opened the first railway line on Swiss soil in 1847, connecting ZürichZürich
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
and Baden
Baden, Switzerland
Baden is a municipality in the Swiss canton of Aargau, on the west bank of the river Limmat, located in the Limmat Valley , northwest of Zürich. It is the seat of the district of Baden...
.
The Gotthard Rail Tunnel
Gotthard Rail Tunnel
The Gotthard Rail Tunnel, is a 15-kilometre long railway tunnel and forms the summit of the Gotthard Railway in Switzerland. It connects Göschenen with Airolo and was the first tunnel through the Gotthard massif...
was completed in 1881.
The Swiss watchmaking industry has its origins in the 18th century, but boomed during the 19th century, turning the village of La Chaux-de-Fonds
La Chaux-de-Fonds
La Chaux-de-Fonds is a Swiss city of the district of La Chaux-de-Fonds in the canton of Neuchâtel. It is located in the Jura mountains at an altitude of 1000 m, a few kilometres from the French border. After Geneva and Lausanne, it is the third largest city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of...
into an industrial center. Rapid urban growth also enlarged Zürich
Zürich
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
, which incorporated its industrial suburb Aussersihl
Aussersihl
Aussersihl is a district in the Swiss city of Zurich. It is District number 4. The district is colloquially known as Chreis Cheib, cheib being the Zurich German word for an animal cadaver; the area historically contained pits for the deposition of dead animals.The district comprises the quarters...
into the municipality in 1891.
Banking
Banking in Switzerland
All banks in Switzerland are regulated by Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority , which derives its authority from a series of federal statutes...
emerged as a significant factor in Swiss economy with the foundation of the Union Bank of Switzerland
Union Bank of Switzerland
Union Bank of Switzerland was a large integrated financial services company located in Switzerland. The bank, which at the time was the second largest bank in Switzerland, merged with Swiss Bank Corporation in 1998, to become UBS to form what was then the largest bank in Europe and the second...
in 1862, the Swiss Bank Corporation
Swiss Bank Corporation
Swiss Bank Corporation was a large integrated financial services company located in Switzerland...
in 1872.
The Golden age of alpinism
Golden age of alpinism
The golden age of alpinism was the period between Alfred Wills's ascent of the Wetterhorn in 1854 and Edward Whymper's ascent of the Matterhorn in 1865, during which many major peaks in the Alps saw their first ascents....
in the 1850s to 1860s lay the foundation to the tourism industry
Tourism in Switzerland
Tourists are drawn to Switzerland's Alpine climate and landscapes, in particular for skiing and mountaineering.As of 2006, tourism accounted for an estimated 3.6% of Switzerland's gross domestic product.- History :...
.
World Wars (1914-1945)
During both World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
and World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Switzerland managed to keep a stance of armed neutrality
Neutral country
A neutral power in a particular war is a sovereign state which declares itself to be neutral towards the belligerents. A non-belligerent state does not need to be neutral. The rights and duties of a neutral power are defined in Sections 5 and 13 of the Hague Convention of 1907...
, and apart from minor skirmishes was not involved militarily.
Because of its neutral status, Switzerland was of considerable interest to the warring parties, as a scene for diplomacy
Diplomacy
Diplomacy is the art and practice of conducting negotiations between representatives of groups or states...
, espionage
Espionage
Espionage or spying involves an individual obtaining information that is considered secret or confidential without the permission of the holder of the information. Espionage is inherently clandestine, lest the legitimate holder of the information change plans or take other countermeasures once it...
, commerce
Commerce
While business refers to the value-creating activities of an organization for profit, commerce means the whole system of an economy that constitutes an environment for business. The system includes legal, economic, political, social, cultural, and technological systems that are in operation in any...
, and as a safe haven for refugees.
During World War I, Switzerland was situated between the Central Powers
Central Powers
The Central Powers were one of the two warring factions in World War I , composed of the German Empire, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Bulgaria...
to the north and east, and the Entente Powers to the south and west. During World War II, Switzerland was entirely surrounded by the Axis Powers
Axis Powers
The Axis powers , also known as the Axis alliance, Axis nations, Axis countries, or just the Axis, was an alignment of great powers during the mid-20th century that fought World War II against the Allies. It began in 1936 with treaties of friendship between Germany and Italy and between Germany and...
from 1940 to 1944.
Government
- See also Politics of SwitzerlandPolitics of SwitzerlandThe politics of Switzerland take place in the framework of a multi-party federal parliamentary democratic republic, whereby the Federal Council of Switzerland is the head of government. Executive power is exercised by the government and the federal administration and is not concentrated in any one...
From 1959, the Federal Council
Swiss Federal Council
The Federal Council is the seven-member executive council which constitutes the federal government of Switzerland and serves as the Swiss collective head of state....
, elected by the parliament, is composed of members of the four major parties, the liberal Free Democrats
Free Democratic Party of Switzerland
The Free Democratic Party was a classical liberal political party in Switzerland. It was one of the major parties in Switzerland until its merger with the smaller classical liberal Liberal Party, to form FDP.The Liberals on 1 January 2009....
, the Catholic Christian Democrats
Christian Democratic People's Party of Switzerland
The Christian Democratic People's Party of Switzerland is a Christian democratic political party in Switzerland. It is the fourth-largest party in the National Council, with 31 seats, and the largest in the Council of States, with 15 seats. It has one seat, that of Doris Leuthard, on the Swiss...
, the left-wing Social Democrats
Social Democratic Party of Switzerland
The Social Democratic Party of Switzerland is the largest centre-left political party in Switzerland....
and the right-wing People's Party
Swiss People's Party
The Swiss People's Party , also known as the Democratic Union of the Centre , is a conservative political party in Switzerland. Chaired by Toni Brunner, but spearheaded by Christoph Blocher, the party is the largest party in the Federal Assembly, with 58 members of the National Council and 6 of...
, essentially creating a system without a sizeable parliamentary opposition (see concordance system
Concordance system
In Swiss politics, concordance system refers to the presence of all major parties in the Federal Council, also referred to as the integration of the political opposition into government....
), reflecting the powerful position of an opposition in a direct democracy
Direct democracy
Direct democracy is a form of government in which people vote on policy initiatives directly, as opposed to a representative democracy in which people vote for representatives who then vote on policy initiatives. Direct democracy is classically termed "pure democracy"...
.
Women were granted the right to vote
Suffrage
Suffrage, political franchise, or simply the franchise, distinct from mere voting rights, is the civil right to vote gained through the democratic process...
in the first Swiss cantons in 1959, at the federal level in 1971 and, after resistance, in the last canton Appenzell Innerrhoden
Appenzell Innerrhoden
Appenzell Innerrhoden is the smallest canton of Switzerland by population and the second smallest by area, Basel-City having less area.-Foundation:...
in 1990. After suffrage
Suffrage
Suffrage, political franchise, or simply the franchise, distinct from mere voting rights, is the civil right to vote gained through the democratic process...
at the federal level women quickly rose in political significance, with the first woman on the seven member Federal Council
Swiss Federal Council
The Federal Council is the seven-member executive council which constitutes the federal government of Switzerland and serves as the Swiss collective head of state....
executive being Elisabeth Kopp
Elisabeth Kopp
Elisabeth Kopp is a Swiss politician and the first woman elected to the Swiss Federal Council .Elisabeth Kopp grew up in Bern. After finishing her law studies in 1960 she married Hans W. Kopp...
who served from 1984–1989. The first female president was Ruth Dreifuss
Ruth Dreifuss
Ruth Dreifuss is a Swiss politician affiliated with the Social Democratic Party. She was a member of the Swiss Federal Council from 1993 to 2002, representing the Canton of Geneva)....
, elected in 1998 to become president during 1999.
(The Swiss president is elected every year from those among the seven member high council and cannot serve two consecutive terms). The second female president is Micheline Calmy-Rey
Micheline Calmy-Rey
Micheline Anne-Marie Calmy-Rey is the President of the Confederation in Switzerland, head of government. She is also Switzerland's foreign minister as head of the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs. She has been a member of the Swiss Federal Council since 2003, and was President of the...
who held the 2007 Swiss high office. She is originally from the western area of the French-speaking canton Geneve. She is presently joined on the seven member cabinet/high council by two other women, Doris Leuthard
Doris Leuthard
Doris Leuthard is a Swiss politician and lawyer. Since 1 August 2006, she has been a member of the Swiss Federal Council. From 1 August 2006 till 31 October 2010 she was head of the Federal Department of Economic Affairs...
, from the canton of Aargau
Aargau
Aargau is one of the more northerly cantons of Switzerland. It comprises the lower course of the river Aare, which is why the canton is called Aar-gau .-History:...
and Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf
Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf
Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf is a Swiss lawyer, politician, and member of the Swiss Federal Council since 2008. She is currently the head of the Federal Department of Finance ....
, from the canton of Graubünden
Graubünden
Graubünden or Grisons is the largest and easternmost canton of Switzerland. The canton shares borders with the cantons of Ticino, Uri, Glarus and St. Gallen and international borders with Italy, Austria and Liechtenstein...
.
Domestic
- See also Demographics of SwitzerlandDemographics of SwitzerlandThis article is about the demographic features of the population of Switzerland, including population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population....
.
In 1979, parts of the Bernese Jura
Bernese Jura
Bernese Jura is the name for the French-speaking area of the Swiss canton of Bern, and from 2010 one of five administrative divisions of the canton....
attained independence
Jurassic separatism
Jurassic separatism is a regionalist independence movement in the Bernese Jura.The "Jurassic question" is the question of secession of the Jura region from Berne, implemented partially as three of seven districts formed the Canton of Jura in 1979, while the remaining four opted to remain with...
while remaining in the Federation, forming the new canton of Jura
Canton of Jura
The Republic and Canton of the Jura , also known as the Canton of Jura or Canton Jura, is one of the cantons of Switzerland. It is the newest of the 26 Swiss cantons, located in the northwestern part of Switzerland. The capital is Delémont...
.
The Demographics of Switzerland
Demographics of Switzerland
This article is about the demographic features of the population of Switzerland, including population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population....
has changed in similar ways as in other states in Western Europe. Since 1945, the population of Switzerland has grown from roughly 4.5 to 7.5 million, mostly between 1945 and 1970, with a brief negative growth in the late 1970s, and a population growth hovering around 0.5% per year since the 1990s, mostly due to immigration. With a population composed of a roughly balanced combination of Roman Catholics and Protestants, together amounting to more than 95%, the population without any religious affiliation has grown to more than 10% in the 2000s, while the Muslim population grew from practically nil to some 4% over the past decades. Italians
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
had been the largest group of resident foreigners since the 1920, but with the Yugoslav wars
Yugoslav wars
The Yugoslav Wars were a series of wars, fought throughout the former Yugoslavia between 1991 and 1995. The wars were complex: characterized by bitter ethnic conflicts among the peoples of the former Yugoslavia, mostly between Serbs on the one side and Croats and Bosniaks on the other; but also...
of the 1990s, large-scale immigration of refugees has changed this picture, and residents with origins in the former Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
now constitute the largest group of resident foreigners, with some 200,000 people (roughly 3% of the population).