The canton of Bern or Berne (german: Kanton Bern; rm, Chantun Berna; french: canton de Berne; it, Canton Berna) is one of the
26 cantons forming the
Swiss Confederation. Its capital city,
Bern
german: Berner(in)french: Bernois(e) it, bernese
, neighboring_municipalities = Bremgarten bei Bern, Frauenkappelen, Ittigen, Kirchlindach, Köniz, Mühleberg, Muri bei Bern, Neuenegg, Ostermundigen, Wohlen bei Bern, Zollikofen
, website ...
, is also the ''de facto'' capital of Switzerland. The bear is the heraldic symbol of the canton, displayed on a red-yellow background.
Comprising
ten districts, Bern is the second-largest canton by both surface area and population. Located in west-central Switzerland, it is surrounded by eleven cantons. It borders the
canton of Jura and the
canton of Solothurn
The canton of Solothurn or canton of Soleure (german: Kanton Solothurn rm, Chantun Soloturn french: Canton de Soleure; it, Canton Soletta) is a canton of Switzerland. It is located in the northwest of Switzerland. The capital is Solothurn.
Hi ...
to the north. To the west lie the
canton of Neuchâtel
The Republic and Canton of Neuchâtel (french: République et Canton de Neuchâtel); rm, Chantun Neuchâtel; it, Cantone di Neuchâtel is a French-speaking canton in western Switzerland. In 2007, its population was 169,782, of whom 39,654 (o ...
, the
canton of Fribourg
The canton of Fribourg, also canton of Freiburg (french: Canton de Fribourg ; german: Kanton Freiburg ; frp, Canton de Fribôrg rm, Chantun Friburg it, Canton Friburgo) is located in western Switzerland. The canton is bilingual, with French ...
and
canton of Vaud. To the south lies the
canton of Valais
Valais ( , , ; frp, Valês; german: Wallis ), more formally the Canton of Valais,; german: Kanton Wallis; in other official Swiss languages outside Valais: it, (Canton) Vallese ; rm, (Chantun) Vallais. is one of the 26 cantons forming the Sw ...
. East of the canton of Bern lie the cantons of
Uri,
Nidwalden
Nidwalden, also Nidwald (german: Kanton Nidwalden, ; rm, Chantun Sutsilvania; french: Canton de Nidwald; it, Canton Nidvaldo) is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of eleven municipalities and the seat of the ...
,
Obwalden
Obwalden, also Obwald (german: Kanton Obwalden, rm, Chantun Sursilvania; french: Canton d'Obwald; it, Canton Obvaldo), is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of seven municipalities and the seat of the govern ...
,
Lucerne
Lucerne ( , ; High Alemannic German, High Alemannic: ''Lozärn'') or Luzern ()Other languages: gsw, Lozärn, label=Lucerne German; it, Lucerna ; rm, Lucerna . is a city in central Switzerland, in the Languages of Switzerland, German-speaking po ...
and
Aargau
Aargau, more formally the Canton of Aargau (german: Kanton Aargau; rm, Chantun Argovia; french: Canton d'Argovie; it, Canton Argovia), is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of eleven districts and its capita ...
. The geography of the canton includes a large share of all three natural regions of Switzerland: the
Jura Mountains
The Jura Mountains ( , , , ; french: Massif du Jura; german: Juragebirge; it, Massiccio del Giura, rm, Montagnas da Jura) are a sub-alpine mountain range a short distance north of the Western Alps and mainly demarcate a long part of the Frenc ...
(the
Bernese Jura), the
Swiss Plateau (the Bernese Mittelland) and the
Alps (the
Bernese Oberland).
The canton of Bern is
bilingual
Multilingualism is the use of more than one language, either by an individual speaker or by a group of speakers. It is believed that multilingual speakers outnumber monolingual speakers in the world's population. More than half of all E ...
, officially
German- and
French
French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents
** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
-speaking, and has a population (as of ) of . The largest city, Bern, is also the seat of the federal government of Switzerland. Other major cities are
Thun and
Biel/Bienne. The canton is also renowned for its numerous Alpine resort towns, notably
Interlaken and
Gstaad.
Formerly part of the
Holy Roman Empire, the canton of Bern entered an alliance with the Swiss Forest Cantons in 1323 and joined the
Old Swiss Confederacy
The Old Swiss Confederacy or Swiss Confederacy (German language, Modern German: ; historically , after the Swiss Reformation, Reformation also , "Confederation of the Swiss") was a loose confederation of independent small states (, German or ...
in 1353.
History
Bern joined the
Old Swiss Confederation in 1353. Between 1803 and 1814 it was one of the six ''directorial cantons'' of the
Napoleonic Swiss Confederation.
Early prehistory
The earliest traces of a human presence in the area of the modern Canton is found in three caves in the
Simmental region; Schnurenloch near
Oberwil, Ranggiloch above
Boltigen and Chilchlihöhle above
Erlenbach. These caves were used at various times during the
last ice age. The first open-air settlement in the area is an upper
paleolithic
The Paleolithic or Palaeolithic (), also called the Old Stone Age (from Greek: παλαιός ''palaios'', "old" and λίθος ''lithos'', "stone"), is a period in human prehistory that is distinguished by the original development of stone too ...
settlement at Moosbühl in Moosseedorf. During the warmer climate of the
mesolithic
The Mesolithic (Greek: μέσος, ''mesos'' 'middle' + λίθος, ''lithos'' 'stone') or Middle Stone Age is the Old World archaeological period between the Upper Paleolithic and the Neolithic. The term Epipaleolithic is often used synonymous ...
period, increasing forest cover restricted the movement of hunters, fishers and gatherers. Their temporary settlements were built along lake and marsh edges, which remained free of trees due to fluctuations in water level. Important mesolithic sites in the Canton are at Pieterlenmoos and Burgäschisee lake along with alpine valleys at Diemtig and Simmental. During the
neolithic period, there were a number of settlements on the shores of
Lake Biel, the Toteisbecken (Lobsigensee, Moossee, Burgäschisee and Inkwilersee) and along rivers (
Aare,
Zihl).
Several of these sites are part of the
Prehistoric Pile dwellings around the Alps, a
UNESCO World Heritage Site.
One of the best explored neolithic sites is at
Twann (now
Twann-Tüscherz). In the Twannbach delta there were about 25
Cortaillod culture and
Horgen culture villages that existed between 3800 and 2950 BC. One of the oldest examples of bread from Switzerland, a
sourdough
Sourdough or sourdough bread is a bread made by the fermentation of dough using wild lactobacillaceae and yeast. Lactic acid from fermentation imparts a sour taste and improves keeping qualities.
History
In the ''Encyclopedia of Food Microbio ...
from 3560 to 3530 BC, came from one of these villages.
Simple copper objects were already in use in the 4th millennium BC, including a copper pin from
Lattrigen from 3170 BC and a knife blade from Twann. Shortly before 2000 BC
bronze
Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals, such as phosphorus, or metalloids such ...
production entered the area and brought about a surge in development. Settlements began to spread into the pre-Alpine and Alpine areas. The area between
Lake Thun and the Niedersimmental were densely settled. Archeological finds include scattered items along mountain passes, a fortified hilltop settlements at Spiezberg, Cholis Grind by Saanen and at Pintel by Wimmis, along with cemeteries at Thun-Allmendingen, Einigen and Hilterfingen. Late
Bronze Age (ca. 1000–800 BC) settlements along
Lake Biel (Mörigen, Vinelz) have yielded up a wealth of items.
Iron Age
During the
Early Iron Age changes in climate forced the
Hallstatt culture
The Hallstatt culture was the predominant Western Europe, Western and Central European Archaeological culture, culture of Late Bronze Age Europe, Bronze Age (Hallstatt A, Hallstatt B) from the 12th to 8th centuries BC and Early Iron Age Europe ...
(800–450 BCE) to abandon settlements along many waterways and in the valley floors and move to the plateaus and hills. With increased trade contacts across the Alps, the cultural influence of the
Mediterranean region grew in the area. Evidence of this trade include a
hydria which was discovered in Grächwil. Burial rituals and social classes became more developed during this time. The so-called ''princely graves'' became more common, many of the burial mounds were over in diameter and high and richly outfitted with grave goods. In a grave mound in Bützberg the first burial in the mound was followed by several later burials. Often, several grave mounds combined to become a necropolis, such as at
Grossaffoltern,
Ins INS or Ins or ''variant'', may refer to:
Places
* Ins, Switzerland, a municipality
* Creech Air Force Base (IATA airport code INS)
* Indonesia, ITF and UNDP code INS
Biology
*''Ins'', a New World genus of bee flies
* INS, the gene for the insulin ...
,
Bannwil,
Langenthal and Bützberg. Most of the knowledge about the Hallstatt culture in the Canton comes from graves. The only discovered settlement is around Blanche Church in
La Neuveville.
The grave goods show that iron was forged into swords, daggers, spearheads, knives and wagon accessories. Gold, which was probably collected from river sand, was made into diadems, rings and pendants. Thin bronze arm, leg and neck plates with geometric designs were often buried, especially in the graves at Allenlüften in Mühleberg, at Ins and at Bützberg. The jewelry that was buried included bracelets and rings which were also made of
jet
Jet, Jets, or The Jet(s) may refer to:
Aerospace
* Jet aircraft, an aircraft propelled by jet engines
** Jet airliner
** Jet engine
** Jet fuel
* Jet Airways, an Indian airline
* Wind Jet (ICAO: JET), an Italian airline
* Journey to Enceladus a ...
and
lignite
Lignite, often referred to as brown coal, is a soft, brown, combustible, sedimentary rock formed from naturally compressed peat. It has a carbon content around 25–35%, and is considered the lowest rank of coal due to its relatively low heat ...
coal. At Münchringen, the grave pottery was both shaped by hand or thrown on a potter's wheel, and was painted with multi-colored ornamentation.
The transition to the
Late Iron Age of the
La Tène culture (450−1st century BCE) is indicated by a sudden change of style in the metalworking and ceramic industries. Numerous graves (from unknown settlements), along with the two ''
oppida'' at Bern-Engehalbinsel and Jensberg by
Studen, mark the population centers during the late
Iron Age. Gold coins (from
Melchnau) along with silver and bronze coins first start to appear during this era. A sword with
Greek characters that said ''Korisios'' was found at the Port site. At the
oppidum at Bern-Engehalbinsel, there were studios for glass and ceramic production, and iron working achieved a high level of skill, along with craftsmen who worked in wood, leather and goldsmithing. There was a nearby place of worship in the Bremgarten wood, and cemeteries at
Münsingen and Bern-Engehalbinsel.
Roman era
After the
Roman era victory at
Battle of Bibracte in 58 BCE, the
Helvetii
The Helvetii ( , Gaulish: *''Heluētī''), anglicized as Helvetians, were a Celts, Celtic tribe or tribal confederation occupying most of the Swiss plateau at the time of their Switzerland in the Roman era, contact with the Roman Republic in the ...
were forced to return to their homes as
foederati
''Foederati'' (, singular: ''foederatus'' ) were peoples and cities bound by a treaty, known as ''foedus'', with Rome. During the Roman Republic, the term identified the ''socii'', but during the Roman Empire, it was used to describe foreign stat ...
of the Romans. Under increasing Roman influence, the local economy and trade flourished. The main settlements lay at the foot of the
Jura Mountains
The Jura Mountains ( , , , ; french: Massif du Jura; german: Juragebirge; it, Massiccio del Giura, rm, Montagnas da Jura) are a sub-alpine mountain range a short distance north of the Western Alps and mainly demarcate a long part of the Frenc ...
and on the
Central Plateau.
The existing roads were expanded, especially the
Aventicum-
Vindonissa and the
Petinesca-
Augusta Raurica roads. A fourth alpine pass, the
Rawil pass, was added to the traditional three; the
Grimsel,
Brünig and
Susten
Susten Pass (German: ''Sustenpass'') (el. 2260 m.) is a mountain pass in the Swiss Alps. The pass road, built from 1938–1945, connects Innertkirchen in the canton of Bern with Wassen in the canton of Uri. A 300-metre long tunnel crosses the pass ...
passes. In the Bernese Jura the
Mont Raimeux
Mont Raimeux is a mountain of the Jura range, located on the border between the Swiss cantons of Jura and Berne
Bern () or Berne; in other Swiss languages, gsw, Bärn ; frp, Bèrna ; it, Berna ; rm, Berna is the ''de facto'' Capital city ...
and
Pierre Pertuis passes opened.
Under the Romans, many of the old fortified places were expanded and refortified. The old Helvetii oppidum at the Engehalbinsel became a Roman
vicus, which was probably known as Brenodor or Brenodurum. At the foot of the Jens mountain, the fort Petinesca was built to guard the roads over the Jura Mountains. This was reinforced in the late-Roman era (368–369 CE) by a fortified bridge over the
Thielle/Zihl river between Aegerten and Brügg.
A number of Roman villas were built around the Canton. At
Oberwichtrach both the main building (''pars urbana'') and the industrial section (''pars rustica'') of a Roman villa have been discovered. The villas at Münsingen,
Toffen and
Herzogenbuchsee have richly detailed
Roman mosaics that are still partly visible.
The religious practices of the local population merged with Roman beliefs and the Canton of Bern is home to a number of unique cult centers. They include the larger than life statues of gods (including enthroned Jupiter) at Petinesca, Engehalbinsel, and Thun-Allmendingen; and a number of stone inscriptions. At the beginning of the 5th century CE, Rome withdrew its troops from the Rhine garrisons, but allowed the
Burgundians
The Burgundians ( la, Burgundes, Burgundiōnes, Burgundī; on, Burgundar; ang, Burgendas; grc-gre, Βούργουνδοι) were an early Germanic tribe or group of tribes. They appeared in the middle Rhine region, near the Roman Empire, and ...
to settle on Helvetii lands in 443 CE.
Early Middle Ages
East of the
Aare, the transition from the Gallo-Roman dominated population to a
Germanic population in the
Early Middle Ages happened relatively peacefully. One exception was the Battle of Wangen in 610, but elsewhere it generally was a slow process of cultural infiltration. By the 7th century, the
Alamanni
The Alemanni or Alamanni, were a confederation of Germanic tribes
*
*
*
on the Upper Rhine River. First mentioned by Cassius Dio in the context of the campaign of Caracalla of 213, the Alemanni captured the in 260, and later expanded into pres ...
c settlers had already taken most of the good locations southeast of the Aare and they began moving up the Aare to the regions of Lake Thun and
Lake Brienz. All areas west of the Aare belonged to the romanised Burgundian kingdom, which became part of the
Merovingian Frankish kingdom in the 534. During the
Carolingian era, the political structure of the Franks had spread into parts of what became Switzerland. In 762/778 the County of Aargau was founded, followed in 861 by the County of Oberaargau and in 965 the County of Bargen. The
Treaty of Verdun in 843 put the border between Central and Eastern Frankish Empires at the Aare, and divided the Aare region in half. The population west of the Aare generally spoke a
Romance language
The Romance languages, sometimes referred to as Latin languages or Neo-Latin languages, are the various modern languages that evolved from Vulgar Latin. They are the only extant subgroup of the Italic languages in the Indo-European languages, I ...
, while those to the east spoke a
Germanic language. The region between the rivers Saane and Aare became the language border.
Christianity spread slowly into the Aare valley. The dioceses of
Lausanne,
Basel,
Sion,
Chur and
Constance were all established before the new faith made inroads into the valley. The Aare valley was bordered by three dioceses; Lausanne, Constance and Basel. However, the first Christian missionaries came into the valley from
Alsace and other western areas. In 630 the
Abbey of Luxeuil established the Abbey of
Moutier-Grandval along the old transit route through the Pierre Pertuis Pass. By the 9th or 10th Century, this Abbey had property and influence all the way to Lake Biel and into the Balsthal valley. The first monastic cells of what would become the Abbey of
Saint-Imier was also founded in 600. In the Seeland and Aare valleys, wooden churches were first built during the Merovingian period. The current churches in Kirchlindach, Oberwil bei Buren and Bleibach were all built above the ruins of these early churches. About 30 churches in the Bern and Solothurn portions of the Aare valley were created over ruins of Roman villas and subsequent burial grounds in the 7th Century (including Meikirch and Oberbipp). In Mett, the church was built over a 5th-century mausoleum, which was built over a 4th-century tomb. In 700, six sarcophagi were buried on
St. Peter's Island
__NOTOC__
St. Peter's Island (french: Île Saint-Pierre; german: Sankt Petersinsel) is a peninsula and former island situated in Lake Biel in the canton of Bern, Switzerland. It has a length of about and a maximum width of . Its highest point ...
next to a Roman temple complex. A wooden monastery was built over the complex in the 8th–9th century.
Middle Ages
During the 10th century, the Aare valley came fully under the
Second Kingdom of Burgundy. Under King
Rudolph I and his son
Rudolph II Burgundy's influence reached across most of modern Switzerland. They established royal courts at Bümpliz, Münsingen, Uetendorf, Wimmis, Kirchberg and Utzenstorf to allow them to govern the Aare valley. Later, the Aare valley moved toward closer ties with the
Holy Roman Empire during the
Ottonian and
Salian
The Salian dynasty or Salic dynasty (german: Salier) was a dynasty in the High Middle Ages. The dynasty provided four kings of Germany (1024–1125), all of whom went on to be crowned Holy Roman emperors (1027–1125).
After the death of the la ...
dynasties.
The succession dispute following the death of
Rudolph III in 1032 allowed the Salian kings to acquire the Kingdom of Upper Burgundy and with it the Aare valley. As a part of the Holy Roman Empire, the valley was involved when the
Investiture Controversy broke out in 1056. In 1077, the Regent of Burgundy, Count
Rudolf of Rheinfelden, declared himself as an anti-king against King
Henry IV. The Bishops of Basel and Lausanne remained loyal to King Henry IV, and took the Rheinfelden lands in Oberaargau and the upper Aare valley. After Rudolf's death in 1090, his lands went to his son,
Berchtold II of Zähringen
Berthold II ( – 12 April 1111), also known as Berchtold II, was the Duke of Swabia from 1092 to 1098.
After he conceded the Duchy of Swabia to the Staufer in 1098, the title of "Duke of Zähringen" was created for him, in use from c. 1100 and c ...
. He and his son, Berchtold III, tried to use these lands to expand their power. In 1127 the
Zähringer were appointed Rector or delegate of the king in Burgundy. Their hopes for a new, independent Burgundy were dashed in 1156, and the last Zähringen count, Berchtold V, embarked on a program of city founding. The cities of
Burgdorf,
Murten,
Thun and Bern were all founded by Berchtold V. When he died without an heir, the Zähringen lands went to the
House of Kyburg
The Kyburg family (; ; also Kiburg) was a noble family of ''grafen'' (counts) in the Duchy of Swabia, a cadet line of the counts of Dillingen, who in the late 12th and early 13th centuries ruled the County of Kyburg, corresponding to much of wha ...
, while the offices and
fiefs reverted to the empire.
During the
High Middle Ages both the Aare valley and the
Bernese Oberland were divided into a number of small counties, each with their own
baron
Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knig ...
. Nobles from the Holy Roman Empire began to marry into the local noble families and a number of the Zähringen
Ministerialis
The ''ministeriales'' (singular: ''ministerialis'') were a class of people raised up from serfdom and placed in positions of power and responsibility in the High Middle Ages in the Holy Roman Empire.
The word and its German translations, ''Minis ...
families (unfree knights in the service of a
feudal
Feudalism, also known as the feudal system, was the combination of the legal, economic, military, cultural and political customs that flourished in Middle Ages, medieval Europe between the 9th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a wa ...
overlord) moved into the Oberland. The nobles also began to found monasteries to spread their power into the Oberland. During the period between 1070 and 1150, at least ten large monasteries were founded by local nobles. These include; the
Cluniac Priory of
Rüeggisberg (Lords of Rümligen in 1072), Münchenwiler (Wiler family in 1080),
St. Peter's Island
__NOTOC__
St. Peter's Island (french: Île Saint-Pierre; german: Sankt Petersinsel) is a peninsula and former island situated in Lake Biel in the canton of Bern, Switzerland. It has a length of about and a maximum width of . Its highest point ...
(Count of Hochburgund-Mâcon in the late 11th century), Hettiswil (1107), Röthenbach im Emmental (Lords of Rümligen or Signau), the
Benedictine monastery at
St. Johannsen in Erlach (Fenis family in 1100), Trub (Lords of Lützelflüh before 1130) and Rüegsau (possibly also the Lords of Lützelflüh in first half of the 12th century), the
Augustinian Collegiate church in Interlaken (Oberhofen family in 1130) and the
Cistercian
The Cistercians, () officially the Order of Cistercians ( la, (Sacer) Ordo Cisterciensis, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint ...
Frienisberg Abbey
Frienisberg Abbey is a former Cistercian religious house in the Swiss municipality of Seedorf in the Canton of Bern.
History
In 1131 Count Udelhard of Saugern granted his land at Frienisberg to the Cistercian Lützel Abbey. In 1138, the Lütz ...
(Count Saugern around 1130). However, in 1191 the Oberland barons revolted against Berchtold V of Zähringen and many of the Oberland barons were killed in the battle of Grindelwald.
During the 13th Century a number of the cities near Bern were granted the
city right and appointed mayors and city councils. Bern became an
imperial city. During the mid-13th century, the Empire's presence weakened in the Aare valley, forcing the local nobles to find allies to protect themselves. Bern entered into a number of treaties with its neighbors in the 13th century. In 1274, the Emperor
Rudolph I of Habsburg, confirmed Bern's imperial immediacy. However, in 1285 he imposed an imperial tax which drove the city to support Rudolph's enemies. Although it withstood two sieges by the Emperor in 1288, after the defeat at Schosshalde in 1289 it had to pay taxes and a penalty.
In 1298 Bernese forces won a victory at
Oberwangen in
Köniz against the
County of Savoy and the Habsburg Austrian nobility. In 1300, the city acquired the four surrounding parishes of Bolligen, Vechigen, Stettlen and Muri, destroyed the threatening castles of Bremgarten and Belp and gave the Baron of Montenach Bernese citizenship. After the victory of
Louis IV of Bavaria over the Habsburg
Frederick the Fair in the battle of Mühldorf (Bavaria) in 1322, Bern entered an alliance with the anti-Habsburg Swiss
Forest Cantons
A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...
in 1323.
Old Swiss Confederacy
Bern joined the
Old Swiss Confederation in 1353.
14th century
In 1310
Emperor Henry VII pledged Laupen Castle,
Laupen
Laupen is a municipality in the Bern-Mittelland administrative district and its district capital, situated in the canton of Bern in Switzerland.
History
Laupen is first mentioned in 1130-33 as ''Loupa''. In 1173 it was mentioned, in French, ...
and the surrounding lands as collateral for a loan. In 1324, Bern acquired the pledged castle and lands. When the Emperor was unable to repay the loan, Laupen became the first
bailiwick
A bailiwick () is usually the area of jurisdiction of a bailiff, and once also applied to territories in which a privately appointed bailiff exercised the sheriff's functions under a royal or imperial writ. The bailiwick is probably modelled on th ...
of Bern.
In 1322, the brothers Eberhard II of
Neu-Kyburg and Hartmann II of Neu-Kyburg started fighting with each other over who would inherit the family's lands around Thun. The fighting led to the "
fratricide at
Thun Castle" where Eberhard killed his brother Hartmann. To avoid punishment by his Habsburg overlords, Eberhard fled to
Bern
german: Berner(in)french: Bernois(e) it, bernese
, neighboring_municipalities = Bremgarten bei Bern, Frauenkappelen, Ittigen, Kirchlindach, Köniz, Mühleberg, Muri bei Bern, Neuenegg, Ostermundigen, Wohlen bei Bern, Zollikofen
, website ...
. In the following year, he sold the town of
Thun, its castle and the land surrounding Thun to Bern. Bern then granted the land back to Eberhard as a
fief.
Bern's support of Eberhard, their resulting expansion into the Oberland and their alliance with the Forest Cantons brought the city into conflict with the Habsburgs during the 14th Century. The
Gümmenenkrieg in 1333 between Bern and
Fribourg over rights and influence in the
Sense/Singine area ended without resolving anything.
In 1334, Bern fought with the Barons of Weissenburg and occupied
Wimmis and
Unspunnen in the Oberland. Bern's victory allowed them to bring the
Oberhasli region, its capital of
Meiringen and Weissenburg under their control. Bern's continued expansion was at the expense of the feudal lords in the surrounding lands. In 1339 the Habsburgs, Kyburgs and Fribourg, marched against Bern with 17,000 men and besieged the border town of Laupen. To raise the siege, Bern raised a force of 6,000, consisting of Bernese, supported by the Forest Cantons, and other allies (
Simmental, Weissenbur and Oberhasli). The allied Bernese forces were victorious at the
Battle of Laupen and Bern drew closer to the Swiss Forest Cantons. It entered into a permanent or eternal alliance with Uri, Schwyz and Unterwalden in 1353. This date is usually considered the date of Bern's entrance into the Swiss Confederation, however the alliance only indirectly tied Bern to Zürich and Lucerne.
In 1358 the cash-strapped Count Peter II of Aarberg pawned the County of
Aarberg to Bern. However, in 1367 he sold it, without repaying Bern, to his cousin Rudolf IV of Nidau. After Rudolf's death (1375) Bern acquired clear right to the Aarberg lands from the other heirs.
Throughout the 14th Century, Bern entered into alliances and treaties with many of its neighbors, including members of the
Swiss Confederation. Bern entered into a series of agreements with
Biel/Bienne, which led to a conflict with Biel's ruler,
Jean de Vienne, the
Prince-Bishop of Basel, in 1367–68. The bishop marched south and destroyed Biel along with a number of towns in the southern
Jura Mountains
The Jura Mountains ( , , , ; french: Massif du Jura; german: Juragebirge; it, Massiccio del Giura, rm, Montagnas da Jura) are a sub-alpine mountain range a short distance north of the Western Alps and mainly demarcate a long part of the Frenc ...
. During the
Gugler war
The Guglers (also Güglers) were a body of mostly English and French knights who as mercenaries invaded Alsace and the Swiss plateau under the leadership of Enguerrand VII de Coucy during the Gugler War of 1375.
Origin of the term
The term Gugle ...
in 1375, there were several battles between Bernese troops and English mercenaries under
Enguerrand de Coucy.
By the 1370s, the Kyburgs (which still held Thun as a fief for Bern) were deeply in debt to Bern. On 11 November 1382, Rudolf II of Neu-Kyburg made an unsuccessful raid on
Solothurn. The ensuing conflict with the
Old Swiss Confederacy
The Old Swiss Confederacy or Swiss Confederacy (German language, Modern German: ; historically , after the Swiss Reformation, Reformation also , "Confederation of the Swiss") was a loose confederation of independent small states (, German or ...
(known as the ''
Burgdorferkrieg'' or ''Kyburgerkrieg'') allowed Bern to move against the Habsburgs in Aargau. After the Bernese laid siege to Burgdorf, Neu-Kyburg was forced to concede an unfavourable peace. Bern bought Thun and Burgdorf, the most important cities of Neu-Kyburg, and their remaining towns passed to Bern and Solothurn by 1408. The last of the Neu-Kyburgs, Berchtold, died destitute in Bern in 1417.
In 1386, the
Austrians under
Leopold of Habsburg invaded eastern Switzerland. When they besieged the city of
Sempach, troops from Zürich, Lucerne and the Forest Cantons marched out and defeated the Austrians at the
Battle of Sempach
The Battle of Sempach was fought on 9 July 1386, between Leopold III, Duke of Austria and the Old Swiss Confederacy. The battle was a decisive Swiss victory in which Duke Leopold and numerous Austrian nobles died. The victory helped turn the lo ...
. While Bern was not involved at Sempach they took advantage of the Austrian weakness to march into the Oberland in 1386, followed by the
Seeland (the region south of the Jura Mountains containing the
Morat (Murten),
Neuchâtel
, neighboring_municipalities= Auvernier, Boudry, Chabrey (VD), Colombier, Cressier, Cudrefin (VD), Delley-Portalban (FR), Enges, Fenin-Vilars-Saules, Hauterive, Saint-Blaise, Savagnier
, twintowns = Aarau (Switzerland), Besançon (France), ...
and
Bienne (Biel) lakes) in 1388 and the
Aargau
Aargau, more formally the Canton of Aargau (german: Kanton Aargau; rm, Chantun Argovia; french: Canton d'Argovie; it, Canton Argovia), is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of eleven districts and its capita ...
in 1389. In the peace agreement of 1389 Bern got
Unterseen and the Upper Simme valley (
Simmental) from the Habsburgs. In the same year, Fribourg accepted Berns acquisition of the Iselgaus, i.e. the area between Lake Biel and the Seeland. Over the next several decades Bern continued to expand to the detriment of the Habsburgs and Fribourg. They acquired the following towns: 1391 Simmenegg, 1399
Signau, 1400
Frutigen, 1407
Wangen, 1408
Trachselwald and
Huttwil, 1412 Oltigen and in 1413 (together with Solothurn) Bipp and Bechburg.
15th century
By 1400, Bern controlled the entire Bernese Oberland. Under their control, the five valleys of the Oberland enjoyed extensive rights and far-reaching autonomy in the
Bäuert In some areas of Switzerland (Berner Oberland or Graubünden) a Bäuert is a small farming community. It is a type of agricultural cooperative with shared equipment and land.
References
*
Cooperatives in Switzerland
Local government in Swi ...
en (farming cooperative municipalities) and ''Talverbänden'' (rural alpine communities). However, throughout the Late Middle Ages, the Oberland, as a whole or in part, revolted several times against Bernese authority. The Evil League (''Böser Bund'') in 1445 fought against Bernese military service and taxes following the
Old Zürich War,
in 1528 the Oberland rose up in resistance to the Protestant
Reformation and in 1641
Thun revolted.
In the Bernese Oberland during the 13th and the beginning of the 14th century
Interlaken Monastery grew to become the largest landholder in the region. The Monastery controlled the towns of
Grindelwald,
Lauterbrunnen and numerous farms along
Lake Brienz. However, in 1350 a period of crises and conflicts led to a decline in the number of monks and nuns and increasing debt. In 1348, the people of
Grindelwald and
Wilderswil joined a mutual defense league with
Unterwalden. Bern responded with a military expedition to the
Bernese Oberland, which ended in defeat for Unterwalden and its allies. By 1472, Bern was the patron of the Monastery. During the Protestant
Reformation, the Monastery was secularized in 1528. The
canons received a financial settlement and the properties were now managed by a Bernese
bailiff
A bailiff (from Middle English baillif, Old French ''baillis'', ''bail'' "custody") is a manager, overseer or custodian – a legal officer to whom some degree of authority or jurisdiction is given. Bailiffs are of various kinds and their offi ...
. The tenants of the Monastery who had expected the abolition of all owed debts, responded by rioting, which was suppressed by Bern.
The lands around the northern shore of
Lake Geneva and between
Lake Neuchâtel were the next area into which Bern expanded. The region had originally been part of the
Carolingian Empire. Then, in 1032 the Zähringens of Germany defeated the Burgundians, who were then replaced by the counts of
Savoy
Savoy (; frp, Savouè ; french: Savoie ) is a cultural-historical region in the Western Alps.
Situated on the cultural boundary between Occitania and Piedmont, the area extends from Lake Geneva in the north to the Dauphiné in the south.
Savo ...
in 1218. Under the counts of Savoy the area was given political unity, and established as the
Barony of Vaud
The Barony of Vaud was an appanage of the County of Savoy, corresponding roughly to the modern Canton of Vaud in Switzerland. It was created by a process of acquisition on the part of a younger brother of the reigning count beginning in 1234 and cu ...
. However, as the power of the Savoys declined at the beginning of the 15th century the land was occupied by troops from
Bern
german: Berner(in)french: Bernois(e) it, bernese
, neighboring_municipalities = Bremgarten bei Bern, Frauenkappelen, Ittigen, Kirchlindach, Köniz, Mühleberg, Muri bei Bern, Neuenegg, Ostermundigen, Wohlen bei Bern, Zollikofen
, website ...
. By 1536 the area was completely annexed. Reformation was started by co-workers of
John Calvin
John Calvin (; frm, Jehan Cauvin; french: link=no, Jean Calvin ; 10 July 150927 May 1564) was a French theologian, pastor and reformer in Geneva during the Protestant Reformation. He was a principal figure in the development of the system ...
, including
Viret, who engaged in a famous debate at the cathedral of Lausanne; but it was only decisively implemented when Bern put its full force behind it. Vaud was another French-speaking region in the mostly German-speaking canton, which caused several uprisings.
Both Château-d'Œx and Saanen were part of the county of
Gruyère. Both districts had quite a bit of independence and often entered into treaties against the will and best interests of the Counts. In 1340 the Saanen valley concluded a peace treaty with the
Simmental, which provided for arbitration in disputes. They entered into another treaty in 1393 with the Valais. In 1401, Count Rudolph of Gruyère entered into a treaty with Bern which included Saanen. Two years later Saanen
and Château-d'Œx
negotiated their own alliances with Bern. Due to the Bernese alliance, Saanen sent troops, under their own banner, to support the Bernese invasions of Aargau in 1415 and Valais in 1418. The military losses and taxes following the Old Zürich War led Saanen to support the Evil League (''Böser Bund'') in 1445 against Bern.
In 1475, during the
Burgundian Wars, the mountain regions of
Saanen and
Pays-d'Enhaut
Pays-d'Enhaut District ( en, Highlands) is a district in the canton of Vaud in Switzerland. The seat of the district is the town of Château-d'Œx.
Three municipalities are located within the district: Château-d'Œx, Rossinière, and Rougemont ...
, who were allied with Bern, attacked and burned the tower of
Aigle Castle
Aigle Castle is a castle in the municipality of Aigle of the Canton of Vaud in Switzerland. It is a Swiss heritage site of national significance.
History
The Barons of Aigle were first mentioned in 1179. At that time they had a small fortif ...
. They then gave
Aigle town and the surrounding district to Bern in exchange for not having to pay one-third of their income to Bern. In the treaty of Fribourg from 1476, Fribourg received rights over the Aigle district, which they gave up to Bern in 1483. Bern rebuilt Aigle Castle in 1489 and made it the seat of the
bailiwick
A bailiwick () is usually the area of jurisdiction of a bailiff, and once also applied to territories in which a privately appointed bailiff exercised the sheriff's functions under a royal or imperial writ. The bailiwick is probably modelled on th ...
of Aigle.
Also in 1475, the Confederation attacked and captured
Grandson Castle. In the next year,
Charles the Bold retook the castle and executed the Bernese garrison. In 1476, at the
Battle of Grandson, Charles' forces retreated and the Bernese retook Grandson. After Charles' defeat at the
Battle of Murten, Grandson became a shared territory between Bern and Fribourg. Each city appointed a
vogt for five-year periods.
Aigle and Grandson were the first French speaking regions in the Canton of Bern.
During the Burgundian War in 1475, Saanen, together with troops from Château-d'Œx and the Simmental captured the Savoy district of Aigle for Bern. Saanen and the surrounding district enjoyed a great deal of independence during the 16th century. However, in 1555 the last
Count of Gruyère lost both districts to Bern when his county went bankrupt. Bern took over the entire Saanen valley in the following year and introduced the Protestant Reformation.
They incorporated the
Pays-d'Enhaut
Pays-d'Enhaut District ( en, Highlands) is a district in the canton of Vaud in Switzerland. The seat of the district is the town of Château-d'Œx.
Three municipalities are located within the district: Château-d'Œx, Rossinière, and Rougemont ...
with Château-d'Œx into the new Bernese district of Saanen.
Acquired districts
The area of the canton of Bern consists of lands acquired by the city of Bern mostly between the 14th and the 16th century during the original
Swiss Confederacy period, both by conquest and purchase.
Acquired districts, with dates of acquisition, include:
*
Laupen
Laupen is a municipality in the Bern-Mittelland administrative district and its district capital, situated in the canton of Bern in Switzerland.
History
Laupen is first mentioned in 1130-33 as ''Loupa''. In 1173 it was mentioned, in French, ...
(1324)
*
Oberhasli (1334)
*Aarberg (1375)
*Thun and Burgdorf (1384)
*Unterseen and the Upper Simme valley (1386)
*
Frutigen and other towns in the Bernese Oberland (1400)
*
Aargau
Aargau, more formally the Canton of Aargau (german: Kanton Aargau; rm, Chantun Argovia; french: Canton d'Argovie; it, Canton Argovia), is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of eleven districts and its capita ...
(1415)
*Lower Simme valley (1439–1449)
*
Aigle and
Grandson (1475)
*Interlaken, with Grindelwald,
Lauterbrunnen and
Brienz
Brienz ( , , ) is a village and municipality on the northern shore of Lake Brienz, at the foot of the Brienzer Rothorn mountain, and in the Bernese Oberland region of Switzerland. Besides the village of Brienz, the municipality includes the sett ...
(1528, all the suppression of the
Augustinian Canons at
Interlaken Monastery)
*
Vaud (1536)
*
Saanen or Gessenay (1555)
*the ''Pays d'En-Haut'' including
Château-d'Œx (1555)
*
Köniz (1729).
Social changes in Early Modern Bern
In the Middle Ages, upwards mobility and access to public offices was relatively easy for successful traders and craftsmen, but Bernese society became ever more stratified and aristocratic as the power and wealth of the city grew.
By the 17th century in the
Early Modern period, citizenship had become an inherited prerogative, all political bodies elected one another and officials were elected for life.
In effect, public offices were now the exclusive prerogative of the ''gnädige Herren'', the "merciful lords", as the small number of noble families now ruling Bern came to be called. In 1605 there were 152 families that were qualified to rule, by 1691 that number was only 104, while towards the end of the 18th century there were only 69 such families. Meanwhile, the land ruled by the town was extending over more and more territory, so that finally it governed 52 bailiwicks.
These offices became very lucrative as the Bernese territories grew. Patrician ''Landvögte'',
sheriffs, ruled the politically powerless countryside, often using armed force to put down
peasant revolts.
In Vaud the Bernese occupation was not popular amongst the population. In 1723, Major
Abraham Davel led a revolt against Bern, in protest at what he saw as the denial of political rights of the French-speaking Vaudois by the German-speaking Bernese, and was subsequently beheaded.
[''Histoire de la Suisse'', Éditions Fragnière, Fribourg, Switzerland.]
Napoleonic period
Inspired by the
French Revolution, the Vaudois drove out the Bernese governor in 1798 and declared the
Lemanic Republic. Vaud nationalists like
Frédéric-César de La Harpe had called for French intervention in liberating the area and French Revolutionary troops moved in, taking over the whole of Switzerland itself in the process and setting up the
Helvetic Republic
The Helvetic Republic (, , ) was a sister republic of France that existed between 1798 and 1803, during the French Revolutionary Wars. It was created following the French invasion and the consequent dissolution of the Old Swiss Confederacy, ma ...
.
In 1798, with the establishment of the Helvetic Republic, Bern was divided, the
canton of Oberland with
Thun as its capital and the
canton of Léman with
Lausanne as its capital were detached from what was left of the Canton of Bern.
Within the new canton of Oberland, historic borders and traditional rights were not considered. As there had been no previous separatist feeling amongst the conservative population, there was little enthusiasm for the new order.
The situation in the canton of Léman was quite different. The French-speaking Vaudois had never felt like part of the German-speaking Canton of Bern. When they joined the Swiss Confederation in 1803, it was as the Canton of Vaud.
Under the Helvetic Republic, Pays-d'Enhaut with Château-d'Œx became part of the
Canton of Léman while Saanen and the rest of the district became part of the
Canton of Oberland. When the Helvetic Republic collapsed in 1803, Saanen and its district became a district in the new Canton of Bern
while Château-d'Oex and its district joined Vaud.
The 1801
Malmaison Constitution proposed reuniting the Oberland with Bern, but it was not until the
Act of Mediation, two years later, with the abolition of the Helvetic Republic and the partial restoration of the
''ancien régime'', that the two cantons were reunited.
Between 1803 and 1814 Bern was one of the six ''directorial cantons'' of the
Napoleonic Swiss Confederation.
Modern history
With the post−Napoleonic
Restoration of 1815, Bern acquired the
Bernese Jura with
Biel/Bienne from the
bishopric of Basel
The Prince-Bishopric of Basel (german: Hochstift Basel, Fürstbistum Basel, Bistum Basel) was an ecclesiastical principality within the Holy Roman Empire, ruled from 1032 by prince-bishops with their seat at Basel, and from 1528 until 1792 at Po ...
, while the canton of Léman became the
canton of Vaud and remained separate from Bern.
Bern still remained the largest canton of the confederacy from 1815 to 1979, when parts of the Bernese Jura broke away to form the
canton of Jura. In 1994 the
Laufen District was transferred to the
canton of Basel-Landschaft.
Geography
The canton of Bern is mainly drained by the river
Aare and its tributaries. The area of the canton is commonly divided into six regions. The most populated area is the
Bernese Mittelland
Bern-Mittelland District in the Canton of Bern was created on 1 January 2010. It is part of the Bern-Mittelland administrative region, and is the only district in the region. It contains 75 municipalities with an area of and a population () of .
...
on the plateau north of the Alps, with the capital city of Bern. The northmost part of the canton is the
Bernese Jura bordering the
Canton of Jura. The
Bernese Oberland is the mountainous region which lies in the south of the canton.
The area of the canton is . Of this area, 6.9% is occupied with houses, businesses or roads. 42.6% of the canton is agricultural land, and 31.3% is forested. Less than 19.2% is considered non-productive, which includes glaciers, cliffs and lakes.
[Swiss Federal Statistical Office](_blank)
– Key Data. Retrieved 18 August 2020
Bernese Mittelland
The Bernese Mittelland (Bernese Midlands) is made up of the valley of the rivers Aare, the
(Grosse) Emme, some of the foothills of the Bernese Alps, as well as the plain around the capital Bern, and has many small farms and hilly forested regions with small to mid-sized towns scattered throughout. It is perhaps best known by foreigners and visitors for the
Emmental. The classic Swiss cheese with holes
Emmentaler comes from this region's forests and pastures, of hilly and low mountainous countryside in the range.
Three Lakes Region and Bernese Jura
In the north of the canton lies the predominantly French-speaking Three Lakes Region (
Seeland), concentrated around
Lake Biel,
Neuchâtel
, neighboring_municipalities= Auvernier, Boudry, Chabrey (VD), Colombier, Cressier, Cudrefin (VD), Delley-Portalban (FR), Enges, Fenin-Vilars-Saules, Hauterive, Saint-Blaise, Savagnier
, twintowns = Aarau (Switzerland), Besançon (France), ...
, and
Murten, which rises from the plain up to the northernmost Swiss mountain chain of the
Jura. This area, culminating at the
Chasseral, has more relaxed geography, although still some lower mountains and some waterfalls, and large lakes.
Bernese Oberland
The Bernese Oberland (german: link=no, Berner Oberland) constitute the north side of the
Bernese Alps and the west side of the
Urner Alps within the canton of Bern. The highest mountain in the Bernese Alps is the
Finsteraarhorn at , but the best known mountains are
Eiger
The Eiger () is a mountain of the Bernese Alps, overlooking Grindelwald and Lauterbrunnen in the Bernese Oberland of Switzerland, just north of the main watershed and border with Valais. It is the easternmost peak of a ridge crest that extends a ...
,
Mönch, and
Jungfrau.
The well known hiking and ski resorts in the eastern Oberland are located around
Interlaken and the Jungfrau, such as car-free
Mürren and
Wengen in the
Lauterbrunnen valley, and
Grindelwald. Further east, in the
Haslital
The Oberhasli is a historical '' Landvogtei'' or '' Talschaft'' in the Bernese Highlands, Switzerland, bordering on the cantons of Obwalden (OW), Nidwalden (NW), Uri (UR) and Wallis (VS).
From 1833 to 2009, Oberhasli was incorporated as the ...
are the
Aareschlucht
The Aare Gorge (german: Aareschlucht) is a section of the river Aare that carves through a limestone ridge near the town of Meiringen, in the Bernese Oberland region of Switzerland. The gorge is an indirect product of glaciation; 10,000 year ...
and the town of
Meiringen, famous for the fateful scene of
Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes () is a fictional detective created by British author Arthur Conan Doyle. Referring to himself as a " consulting detective" in the stories, Holmes is known for his proficiency with observation, deduction, forensic science and ...
's 'death' at the hands of
Professor Moriarty
Professor James Moriarty is a fictional character and criminal mastermind created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle to be a formidable enemy for the author's fictional detective Sherlock Holmes. He was created primarily as a device by which Doyle could ...
on the nearby
Reichenbach Falls. In the Western Bernese Oberland there are many other resorts and small villages catering to visitors. These are accessed from the lake town of
Thun, and the most notable of them are
Kandersteg with the
Oeschinensee and
Adelboden. Further west is the
Simmental with
Lenk and
Zweisimmen and the Saanenland with the famous resorts
Gstaad and
Saanen.
The whole area is very mountainous, with steep cliffs, many glaciers, and countless waterfalls. It is renowned for its scenic beauty and the charm of the small Swiss villages that dot the area. As a result of this, tourism is one of the main sources of income in the Bernese Oberland. The region also has an extensive train network as well as many
cable cars and
funiculars, with the highest train station in Europe at the
Jungfraujoch and the longest
gondola cableway in the world from Grindelwald to the
Männlichen
The Männlichen is a mountain in the Swiss Alps
The Alpine region of Switzerland, conventionally referred to as the Swiss Alps (german: Schweizer Alpen, french: Alpes suisses, it, Alpi svizzere, rm, Alps svizras), represents a major natural ...
.
Mountains in the Bernese Oberland include:
Government
The
Grand Council of Bern (german: link=no, Grosser Rat / french: link=no, Grand conseil) is the parliament of the canton of Bern. It consists of 160 representatives elected by
proportional representation for four-year terms of office. The French-speaking part of the canton, the
Bernese Jura, has 12 seats guaranteed and 3 seats are guaranteed for the French-speaking minority of the bilingual district of Biel/Bienne.
The
Executive Council of Bern (german: link=no, Regierungsrat / french: link=no, Conseil-éxecutif) is the
government of the canton of Bern. This seven-member collegial body is elected by the people for a period of four years. The cantonal constitution reserves one seat in the Executive Council for a French-speaking citizen from the Bernese Jura.
The canton has a two-tiered court system, consisting of district courts and a cantonal Supreme Court (german: link=no, Obergericht, french: link=no, Cour suprême). There is also an administrative court (german: link=no, Verwaltungsgericht; french: link=no, Tribunal administratif) as well as other specialised courts and judicial boards.
Political subdivisions
On 1 January 2010, the 26 districts (''
Amtsbezirke'') were combined into 10 new districts (''
Verwaltungskreise''):
*
Bern-Mittelland
Bern-Mittelland District in the Canton of Bern was created on 1 January 2010. It is part of the Bern-Mittelland administrative region, and is the only district in the region. It contains 75 municipalities with an area of and a population () of .
...
with capital
Ostermundigen, made up of all or part of the former districts of
Bern
german: Berner(in)french: Bernois(e) it, bernese
, neighboring_municipalities = Bremgarten bei Bern, Frauenkappelen, Ittigen, Kirchlindach, Köniz, Mühleberg, Muri bei Bern, Neuenegg, Ostermundigen, Wohlen bei Bern, Zollikofen
, website ...
,
Fraubrunnen,
Konolfingen,
Laupen
Laupen is a municipality in the Bern-Mittelland administrative district and its district capital, situated in the canton of Bern in Switzerland.
History
Laupen is first mentioned in 1130-33 as ''Loupa''. In 1173 it was mentioned, in French, ...
,
Schwarzenburg and
Seftigen
*
Biel/Bienne with capital
Biel/Bienne, made up of all of the former district of
Biel and about half of the former district of
Nidau
*
Emmental with capital
Langnau im Emmental, made up of all or part of the former districts of
Burgdorf,
Signau and
Trachselwald
*
Frutigen-Niedersimmental
Frutigen-Niedersimmental District in the Canton of Bern
The canton of Bern or Berne (german: Kanton Bern; rm, Chantun Berna; french: canton de Berne; it, Canton Berna) is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. Its capital city ...
with capital
Frutigen, made up of all or part of the former districts of
Frutigen and
Niedersimmental
*
Interlaken-Oberhasli with capital
Interlaken, made up of all or part of the former districts of
Interlaken and
Oberhasli
*
Jura bernois
Bernese Jura (french: Jura bernois, ) is the name for the French-speaking area of the Swiss canton of Bern, and from 2010 one of ten administrative divisions of the canton.
Comprising the three French-speaking districts in the northern part of th ...
with capital
Courtelary, made up of all or part of the former districts of
Courtelary,
Moutier and
La Neuveville
*
Oberaargau with capital
Wangen an der Aare, made up of all or part of the former districts of
Aarwangen and
Wangen
*
Obersimmental-Saanen with capital
Saanen, made up of all of the former districts of
Obersimmental
Obersimmental District was one of the 26 administrative districts in the Canton of Bern, Switzerland. Its capital was Blankenburg in the municipality of Zweisimmen. The district had an area of 334 km² and consisted of 4 municipalities
A m ...
and
Saanen
*
Seeland with capital
Aarberg, made up of all or part of the former districts of
Aarberg,
Büren,
Erlach and
Nidau
*
Thun with capital
Thun, made up of all of the former district of
Thun
Demographics
The canton of Bern is
bilingual
Multilingualism is the use of more than one language, either by an individual speaker or by a group of speakers. It is believed that multilingual speakers outnumber monolingual speakers in the world's population. More than half of all E ...
: () both German (85.1% of the population) and French (10.4%) are spoken.
The German-speaking majority speaks
Bernese German, a
Swiss German
Swiss German (Standard German: , gsw, Schwiizerdütsch, Schwyzerdütsch, Schwiizertüütsch, Schwizertitsch Mundart,Because of the many different dialects, and because there is no defined orthography for any of them, many different spelling ...
dialect. French-speakers live in the western and northern part of the canton, the
Bernese Jura. Both German and French are spoken in the bilingual district of
Biel/Bienne. In the cantonal government and administration, both languages are official languages of equal standing.
Bern has a population () of . , 15.0% of the population are resident foreign nationals. Over the last 4 years (2010–2014) the population has changed at a rate of 3.0%. Most of the population () speaks German (804,190 or 84.0%) as their first language, French is the second most common (72,646 or 7.6%) and Italian is the third (18,908 or 2.0%). There are 688 people who speak
Romansh.
Based on the new methodology of the
2014 census, the percentage of German native speakers increased to 85.1%, French speakers increased to 10.4% as did Italian speakers to 3.1%. The number of Romansh speakers was too small to accurately estimate, but was around 0.1%. The census also reported that 2.9% of the population speaks English as their native language. Respondents could choose up to three native languages, leading to a total above 100%.
, the population was 47.5% male and 52.5% female. The population was made up of 44,032 Swiss men (35.4% of the population) and 15,092 (12.1%) non-Swiss men. There were 51,531 Swiss women (41.4%) and 13,726 (11.0%) non-Swiss women.
[Statistical office of the Canton of Bern](_blank)
. Retrieved 4 January 2012 Of the population in the canton, 292,559 or about 30.6% were born in Bern and lived there in 2000. There were 339,659 or 35.5% who were born in the same canton, while 154,709 or 16.2% were born somewhere else in Switzerland, and 129,864 or 13.6% were born outside of Switzerland.
, children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 19.1% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 60.9% and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 19.9%.
The 2000 census recorded 22%, 60.9% and 17.1% respectively.
, there were 397,095 people who were single and never married in the canton. There were 449,014 married individuals, 61,206 widows or widowers and 49,882 individuals who are divorced.
[STAT-TAB Datenwürfel für Thema 40.3 – 2000](_blank)
. Retrieved 2 February 2011
, there were 454,000 private households in the canton, and an average of 2.2 persons per household.
, the construction rate of new housing units was 4.4 new units per 1000 residents.
the average price to rent an average apartment in Bern city was 1108.92
Swiss franc
The Swiss franc is the currency and legal tender of Switzerland and Liechtenstein. It is also legal tender in the Italian exclave of Campione d'Italia which is surrounded by Swiss territory. The Swiss National Bank (SNB) issues banknotes and the f ...
s (CHF) per month (US$890, £500, €710 approx. exchange rate from 2003). The average rate for a one-room apartment was 619.82 CHF (US$500, £280, €400), a two-room apartment was about 879.36 CHF (US$700, £400, €560), a three-room apartment was about 1040.54 CHF (US$830, £470, €670) and a six or more room apartment cost an average of 2094.80 CHF (US$1680, £940, €1340). The average apartment price in Bern was 99.4% of the national average of 1116 CHF.
[Swiss Federal Statistical Office-Rental prices](_blank)
2003 data . Retrieved 26 May 2010 The vacancy rate for the canton, , was 1.19%.
Historic population
The historical population is given in the following chart:
Colors=
id:lightgrey value:gray(0.9)
id:darkgrey value:gray(0.8)
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Politics
In the
2011 federal election, the most popular party was the
SVP which received 29.0% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the
SP/PS (19.3%), the
BDP (14.9%) and the
Green Party (9.4%). The SVP received about the same percentage of the vote as they did in the
2007 Federal election
This electoral calendar 2007 lists the national/federal direct elections held in 2007 in the de jure and de facto sovereign states and their dependent territories. Referendums are included, although they are not elections. By-elections are not i ...
(33.6% in 2007 vs 29.0% in 2011). The SPS retained about the same popularity (21.2% in 2007), the BDP moved from below fourth place in 2007 to third and the GPS moved from below fourth place in 2007 to fourth.
Federal election results
: FDP before 2009, FDP.The Liberals after 2009
: "*" indicates that the party was not on the ballot in this canton.
: Part of a coalition with Separatist Party
: Part of a coalition with the FGA
: Party fragmented, part remained in a coalition with the FGA and the remainder formed the Green Party of Bern
: Part of a coalition with the Green Party
Coat of arms
The
blazon of the
coat of arms is ''Gules, on a bend or, a bear passant sable, langued, armed and vilené of the field.'' The official blazon specifies that the tongue, claws and penis are red—and by extension it is important to always depict the bear as male.
Religion
Most Bernese are Protestant (, 67%),
and most Protestants belong to the
Swiss Reformed Church
The Protestant Church in Switzerland (PCS), (EKS); french: Église évangélique réformée de Suisse (EERS); it, Chiesa evangelica riformata in Svizzera (CERiS); rm, Baselgia evangelica refurmada da la Svizra (BRRS) formerly named Federation o ...
, which is officially recognised as a
state church
A state religion (also called religious state or official religion) is a religion or creed officially endorsed by a sovereign state. A state with an official religion (also known as confessional state), while not secular, is not necessarily a t ...
(german: link=no, Landeskirche), although it is autonomous in its governance and is organised along democratic principles. The canton is also home to a great number of small
Evangelical Christian denominations unaffiliated with the state church. Bernese evangelical groups are mostly found in the
Emmental and
Berner Oberland, where they have a long tradition; several contemporary North American religious groups, such as the
Amish and
Mennonites, were founded or co-founded by Bernese emigrants to the United States. Two small Evangelical political parties are represented in the
Bernese cantonal parliament.
Bern features substantial Roman Catholic (16%)
and
Christian Catholic
The Christian Catholic Church of Switzerland is an Old Catholic denomination in Switzerland. This denomination is part of the Union of Utrecht (Old Catholic).
Recent developments
In 1871 the Zürich Catholic community planned to build a chu ...
minorities. These churches also have state church status, and the small Jewish community is similarly recognised by law. As everywhere in Switzerland, there are also significant religious communities of immigrants, including
Sikh
Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism, Sikhism (Sikhi), a Monotheism, monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Gu ...
s (who have a prominent
Gurdwara, or temple, in
Langenthal),
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (who have built the
Bern Switzerland Temple) and
Muslims. , the plans to expand a backyard mosque in Langenthal with a symbolic
minaret
A minaret (; ar, منارة, translit=manāra, or ar, مِئْذَنة, translit=miʾḏana, links=no; tr, minare; fa, گلدسته, translit=goldaste) is a type of tower typically built into or adjacent to mosques. Minarets are generall ...
have, as elsewhere in Switzerland, caused a public stir due to vocal opposition from local conservative and evangelical leaders.
From the , 607,358 or 63.5% belonged to the
Swiss Reformed Church
The Protestant Church in Switzerland (PCS), (EKS); french: Église évangélique réformée de Suisse (EERS); it, Chiesa evangelica riformata in Svizzera (CERiS); rm, Baselgia evangelica refurmada da la Svizra (BRRS) formerly named Federation o ...
, while 153,357 or 16.0% were Roman Catholic. Of the rest of the population, there were 9,153
members of an Orthodox church (or about 0.96% of the population), there were 1,064 individuals (or about 0.11% of the population) who belonged to the
Christian Catholic Church, and there were 71,233 individuals (or about 7.44% of the population) who belonged to another Christian church. There were 807 individuals (or about 0.08% of the population) who were Jewish, and 28,377 (or about 2.96% of the population) who were Muslims. There were 2,662 individuals who were
Buddhist, 5,991 individuals who were
Hindu
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
and 913 individuals who belonged to another church. 74,162 (or about 7.75% of the population) belonged to no church, are agnostic or
atheist
Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...
, and 37,059 individuals (or about 3.87% of the population) did not answer the question.
Economy
Tourism is the main source of income in the Bernese Oberland. Other important sectors are agriculture (especially cattle breeding), cheese making, and hydroelectric power generation. The Bernese cheese
Emmentaler is known around the world. In the Bernese Midlands the lands are more fertile. Agriculture is of great importance, but this part of the canton is also the most industrialized. Small and middle-sized businesses are important employers in this part of the canton of Bern. There is a nuclear power plant at
Mühleberg
Mühleberg is a municipality in the Bern-Mittelland administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland.
History
Mühleberg is first mentioned in 1011–16 as ''Mulinberg''.
There are several Hallstatt era grave mounds around Mühleb ...
.
The area around Lake Biel is renowned for its wine production. The 3 French-speaking districts of the Bernese Jura and the bilingual district of
Biel/Bienne are renowned for their watch industry and its mechanical industry (high precision machine tools, automation and machining).
, Bern had an unemployment rate of 2.58%, compared to the Swiss national average of 3.3%. , there were 34,200 people employed in the
primary economic sector and about 11,563 businesses involved in this sector. About 132,800 people were employed in the
secondary sector and there were 11,925 businesses in this sector. Approximately 453,800 people were employed in the
tertiary sector, with 55,347 businesses in this sector.
Of the working population, 31.0% used public transportation to get to work, and 51.0% used a private car.
Education
In Bern about 385,640 or (40.3%) of the population have completed non-mandatory
upper secondary education
Secondary education or post-primary education covers two phases on the International Standard Classification of Education scale. Level 2 or lower secondary education (less commonly junior secondary education) is considered the second and final ph ...
, and 121,749 or (12.7%) have completed additional higher education (either
university or a ''
Fachhochschule
A ''Fachhochschule'' (; plural ''Fachhochschulen''), abbreviated FH, is a university of applied sciences (UAS), in other words a German tertiary education institution that provides professional education in many applied sciences and applied arts ...
''). Of the 121,749 who completed tertiary schooling, 65.0% were Swiss men, 24.8% were Swiss women, 6.2% were non-Swiss men and 4.0% were non-Swiss women.
See also
*
Municipalities of the canton of Bern
*
Canton of Bern castles and fortresses
*
List of mountains of the canton of Bern
*
Berner Zeitung
*
Bernese March
The Bernese March (German Berner Marsch; French La Marche de Berne) is the traditional anthem of the Swiss Canton of Bern and is played at official occasions.
The march is of uncertain date; originally sung by Bernese mercenaries, it was adopte ...
, traditional anthem of the canton
*
Bieler Tagblatt
*
Der Bund
Notes and references
External links
Official websiteBerne Economic Development Agency*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bern
Cantons of Switzerland
Cantons of the Helvetic Republic
Regions of Europe with multiple official languages
1353 establishments in Europe