Benedikt Fontana (c. 1450 – 22 May 1499) was a Romansh bailiff and minister who allegedly died a heroic death during the

Battle of Calven The Battle of Calven ( Romansh: ''Chalavaina'') took place on 22 May 1499 at the exit of the Val Müstair in the Grisons (now part of Switzerland) to the Vinschgau in County of Tyrol (now part of Italy) between the forces of King Maximilian I ...

in 1499, in present-day

Grisons The Grisons () or Graubünden,Names include: *german: (Kanton) Graubünden ; * Romansh: ** rm, label= Sursilvan, (Cantun) Grischun ** rm, label=Vallader, (Chantun) Grischun ** rm, label= Puter, (Chantun) Grischun ** rm, label=Surmiran, (Cant ...

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

. As a captain in the

Three Leagues The Three Leagues, sometimes referred to as Raetia, was the alliance of 1471 of the League of God's House, the League of the Ten Jurisdictions, and the Grey League, leading eventually to the formation of the Swiss canton of Graubünden (Grisons) ...

during the

Swabian War The Swabian War of 1499 ( gsw, Schwoobechrieg (spelling depending on dialect), called or ("Swiss War") in Germany and ("War of the Engadin") in Austria) was the last major armed conflict between the Old Swiss Confederacy and the House of Hab ...

, Fontana achieved fame fighting in the Battle of Calven against the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a Polity, political entity in Western Europe, Western, Central Europe, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its Dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, dissolution i ...

. While troops were under the command of Dietrich Freuler from the

Swiss Confederacy The Old Swiss Confederacy or Swiss Confederacy (Modern German: ; historically , after the Reformation also , "Confederation of the Swiss") was a loose confederation of independent small states (, German or In the charters of the 14th century ...

, Freuler hesitated during an attack and Fontana is said to have assumed control and fought valiantly while shouting "We are Grisons, today or never!". Fontana was mortally wounded during the battle but the Swiss troops defeated the Empire's troops despite being outnumbered 2:1. According to local legend, Fontana's sword was later thrown into the headwaters of a creek in his hometown of

Salouf Salouf (until 1943 officially called Salux) is a village and former municipality in the Sursés in the district of Albula in the canton of Graubünden in Switzerland. On 1 January 2016 the former municipalities of Bivio, Cunter, Marmorera, Mule ...

and has never been found. Fontana remains a legendary figure in Romansh culture to this day, and in 1903 a statue was erected to Fontana in the cantonal capital of

Chur , neighboring_municipalities= Arosa, Churwalden, Tschiertschen-Praden, Domat/Ems, Felsberg, Malix, Trimmis, Untervaz, Pfäfers , twintowns = Bad Homburg (Germany), Cabourg (France), Mayrhofen (Austria), Mondorf-les-Bains (Luxembourg), ...

References

15th-century Swiss people 1450 births 1499 deaths Year of birth uncertain People from Graubünden {{more cats, date=September 2022