The canton of Schaffhausen, also canton of Schaffouse (german: Kanton Schaffhausen; rm, Chantun Schaffusa; french: Canton de Schaffhouse; it, Canton Sciaffusa) is the northernmost

canton Canton may refer to: Administrative division terminology * Canton (administrative division), territorial/administrative division in some countries, notably Switzerland * Township (Canada), known as ''canton'' in Canadian French Arts and ent ...

of Switzerland. The principal city and capital of the canton is

Schaffhausen Schaffhausen (; gsw, Schafuuse; french: Schaffhouse; it, Sciaffusa; rm, Schaffusa; en, Shaffhouse) is a town with historic roots, a municipality in northern Switzerland, and the capital of the canton of the same name; it has an estimat ...

. The canton's territory is divided into three non-contiguous segments, where German territory reaches the

Rhine The Rhine ; french: Rhin ; nl, Rijn ; wa, Rén ; li, Rien; rm, label=Sursilvan, Rein, rm, label=Sutsilvan and Surmiran, Ragn, rm, label=Rumantsch Grischun, Vallader and Puter, Rain; it, Reno ; gsw, Rhi(n), including in Alsatian dialect, Al ...

. The large central part, which includes the capital, in turn separates the German

exclave An enclave is a territory (or a small territory apart of a larger one) that is entirely surrounded by the territory of one other state or entity. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is sometimes used improperly to deno ...

of Büsingen am Hochrhein from the rest of

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...

History

Schaffhausen was a city-state in the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

; it is documented that it struck its own coins starting in 1045. It was then documented as ''Villa Scafhusun''. Around 1049, Count Eberhard von Nellenburg founded a Benedictine monastery which led to the development of a community. This community achieved independence in 1190. In 1330, the town lost not only all its lands but also its independence to the Habsburgs. In 1415, the Habsburg Duke

Frederick IV of Austria Frederick IV (1382 – 24 June 1439), also known as Frederick of the Empty Pockets (german: Friedrich mit der leeren Tasche), a member of the House of Habsburg, was Duke of Austria from 1402 until his death. As a scion of the Habsburg Leopoldian ...

sided with the

Antipope John XXIII Baldassarre Cossa (c. 1370 – 22 December 1419) was Pisan antipope John XXIII (1410–1415) during the Western Schism. The Catholic Church regards him as an antipope, as he opposed Pope Gregory XII whom the Catholic Church now recognizes a ...

at the

Council of Constance The Council of Constance was a 15th-century ecumenical council recognized by the Catholic Church, held from 1414 to 1418 in the Bishopric of Constance in present-day Germany. The council ended the Western Schism by deposing or accepting the res ...

, and was banned by the

Emperor An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife ( empress consort), mother ( e ...

Sigismund. As a result of the ban and Frederick's need of money, Schaffhausen was able to buy its independence from the Habsburgs in 1418. The city allied with six of the Swiss confederates in 1454 and allied with a further two ( Uri and Unterwalden) in 1479. Schaffhausen became a full member of the Old Swiss Confederation in 1501. The first railroad came to Schaffhausen in 1857. In 1944, Schaffhausen suffered from a

bombing A bomb is an explosive weapon that uses the exothermic reaction of an explosive material to provide an extremely sudden and violent release of energy. Detonations inflict damage principally through ground- and atmosphere-transmitted mechan ...

raid by

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

planes that accidentally strayed from Germany into neutral Switzerland. The cantonal constitution was written in 1876 and revised in 1895. The distinctive coat of arms bears the ''Schaffhauser Bock'' (Billy Goat of Schaffhausen).

Geography

Schaffhausen is the northernmost canton of Switzerland and lies almost entirely on the right bank of the

, with only part of

Stein am Rhein Stein am Rhein (abbreviated as Stein a. R.) is a historic town and a municipality in the canton of Schaffhausen in Switzerland. The town's medieval centre retains the ancient street plan. The site of the city wall, and the city gates are prese ...

on the left bank. It lies west of

Lake Constance Lake Constance (german: Bodensee, ) refers to three bodies of water on the Rhine at the northern foot of the Alps: Upper Lake Constance (''Obersee''), Lower Lake Constance (''Untersee''), and a connecting stretch of the Rhine, called the Lak ...

and has an area of . Much of the canton is productive agricultural land, with (about 45%) of the canton used for agriculture while an additional (about 43%) is wooded. Most of the rest of the canton, (about 10%), is developed, while only (1.3%) of the canton is unproductive (rivers, lakes or mountains). The canton's territory is divided into three non-contiguous segments where German territory reaches the Rhine. The large central part, which includes the capital

, in turn partially (along with territory of two neighbouring cantons, separates the German

of Büsingen am Hochrhein from the rest of Germany. The small exclave of

Rüdlingen Rüdlingen is a municipality in the canton of Schaffhausen in Switzerland. History Rüdlingen is first mentioned in 827 as ''Ruodiningun''. Geography Rüdlingen has an area, , of . Of this area, 47.6% is used for agricultural purposes, while ...

- Buchberg lies to the southwest, and the third part contains

Ramsen Ramsen may refer to: * Ramsen, Rhineland-Palatinate Ramsen is a municipality in the Donnersbergkreis district, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It ...

and

to the east. With the exception of Vor der Brugg, part of Stein am Rhein, all three segments are separated from the rest of Switzerland by the Rhine. The canton of Schaffhausen is bordered by the Swiss cantons of Zurich and

Thurgau Thurgau (; french: Thurgovie; it, Turgovia), anglicized as Thurgovia, more formally the Canton of Thurgau, is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of five districts and its capital is Frauenfeld. Thurgau is pa ...

, as well as the German districts of Waldshut, Schwarzwald-Baar-Kreis and

Konstanz Konstanz (, , locally: ; also written as Constance in English) is a university city with approximately 83,000 inhabitants located at the western end of Lake Constance in the south of Germany. The city houses the University of Konstanz and was ...

Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg (; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million inhabitants across a ...

. Most of the canton lies on a plateau dominated by the Hoher Randen. The summit of this mountain is at . The slopes of the mountain are gentle towards the south where it reaches the Rhine valley. Short and narrow valleys intersect these gentle slopes. The Klettgau is one such valley. The Rhine Falls are the largest waterfalls in Europe and lie on the border of the cantons of Schaffhausen and

Zürich , neighboring_municipalities = Adliswil, Dübendorf, Fällanden, Kilchberg, Maur, Oberengstringen, Opfikon, Regensdorf, Rümlang, Schlieren, Stallikon, Uitikon, Urdorf, Wallisellen, Zollikon , twintowns = Kunming, San Francisco Zürich () i ...

Municipalities

Karte Gemeinden des Kantons Schaffhausen 2009

There are 26 municipalities in the canton . * Bargen * Beggingen * Beringen * Buch * Buchberg * Büttenhardt * Dörflingen * Gächlingen * Hallau *

Hemishofen Hemishofen is a municipality in the canton of Schaffhausen in Switzerland. History The Iron Age grave sites at ''Sankert'' indicate that this area has been settled since 800-600 BC. However, Hemishofen is first mentioned after about 1100 as '' ...

* Lohn * Löhningen * Merishausen * Neuhausen am Rheinfall * Neunkirch * Oberhallau *

* Schleitheim * Siblingen *

* Stetten * Thayngen * Trasadingen * Wilchingen

Changes

* In 1947, the municipality Buchthalen merged into Schaffhausen. * In 1964, the municipality Herblingen merged into Schaffhausen. * In 2004, the municipality Barzheim merged into Thayngen. * In 2005, the municipality Osterfingen merged into Wilchingen. * On 1 January 2009, the municipalities Altdorf, Bibern, Hofen, and Opfertshofen merged into Thayngen. * In 2009, the municipality Hemmental merged into Schaffhausen. * In 2013, the municipality Guntmadingen merged into Beringen.Nomenklaturen – Amtliches Gemeindeverzeichnis der Schweiz
accessed 28 November 2017

Demographics

The population of the canton (as of ) is . , the population included 16,323 foreigners, or about 21.9% of the total population. The German language and Protestant faith predominate. The majority of the population () is Protestant (50%) while a large minority is Roman Catholic (24%).

Politics

Cantonal government

The legislature is the Cantonal Council (''Kantonsrat'') of Schaffhausen, which consists of 60 members elected proportionally every four years. Until 2008, it consisted of 80 members. The executive branch is the Government Council (''Regierungsrat''), which consists of 5 members elected every four years.

Federal election results

: FDP before 2009, FDP.The Liberals after 2009 : "*" indicates that the party was not on the ballot in this canton.

Compulsory Voting

Swiss citizens who live in the canton of Schaffhausen are required to vote in elections.

Compulsory voting Compulsory voting, also called mandatory voting, is the requirement in some countries that eligible citizens register and vote in elections. Penalties might be imposed on those who fail to do so without a valid reason. According to the CIA World ...

never existed on the national level in Switzerland. It was introduced in several cantons starting in the late 19th century. In 1974, it was abolished everywhere except in Schaffhausen. Citizens who do not vote have to pay a small fine. Rheinfall - Neuhausen - SIG IMG 3771

Economy

Schaffhausen is a part of the Zürcher Wirtschaftsraum (Zurich economic region) and the canton's economy is well integrated with that of the wider region. Well-regarded white

Riesling Riesling (, ; ) is a white grape variety that originated in the Rhine region. Riesling is an aromatic grape variety displaying flowery, almost perfumed, aromas as well as high acidity. It is used to make dry, semi-sweet, sweet, and sparkling ...

wine is grown here as well as several other varieties. The main industries, however, are the production of machinery and metal goods. There is also watch making and jewellery. Minor industrial branches are textiles, leather goods, glass, cement, paper and chemicals. There is a brewery in the canton. At Rheinau there is a hydro electrical power plant generating electricity for the canton and for export. Major electricity customers are the chemical industry in

Rheinfelden Rheinfelden may refer to: Places * Rheinfelden (Baden), a town in the county of Lörrach in Baden-Württemberg, Germany * Rheinfelden (Aargau), a town in the canton of Aargau, Switzerland * Rheinfelden District, a district in the Swiss canton of Aa ...

and the aluminium plant at Neuhausen am Rheinfall. The city of Schaffhausen also uses much of the electricity produced at Rheinau. Schaffhausen lies on the busy

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard language, Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the List of cities in Italy, second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 ...

- Zurich- Stuttgart rail line which is serviced by trains from both the

Swiss Federal Railways Swiss Federal Railways (german: link=no, Schweizerische Bundesbahnen, ''SBB''; french: link=no, Chemins de fer fédéraux suisses, ''CFF''; it, Ferrovie federali svizzere, ''FFS'') is the national railway company of Switzerland. It is usuall ...

and German Railways. The largest companies are Tyco International, Tyco Electronics, SIG, Georg Fischer AG, International Watch Company and Cilag AG.

Notes and references

External links

Official site

Archives

Digitized Edition of ''Chronik der Stadt und Landschaft Schaffhausen''
in German, 1884–1910, a
E-rara
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Schaffhausen Cantons of Switzerland Cantons of the Helvetic Republic 15th-century establishments in the Old Swiss Confederacy 1450s establishments in the Holy Roman Empire 1454 establishments in Europe