Oberägeri, until 1798 simply known as Ägeri, is a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

in the

canton of Zug The canton of Zug or canton of Zoug (, Standard German: , Alemannic German: ; ; ; ) is one of the 26 cantons of Switzerland. It is located in central Switzerland and its Capital (political), capital is Zug. At the canton is one of the smallest ...

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

History

Oberägeri first appears in historical documents in 1150 as ''Agregia''. In 1538 it was mentioned as ''Ober Egere''. The first church in the valley was built in 876. After 1100, the land belonged to the monastery of

Einsiedeln Einsiedeln () is a municipalities of Switzerland, municipality and Districts of Switzerland#Schwyz, district in the canton of Schwyz in Switzerland known for its monastery, the Benedictine Einsiedeln Abbey, established in the 10th century. Histor ...

, and was influenced by the

Battle of Morgarten The Battle of Morgarten took place on 15 November 1315, when troops of Schwyz, supported by their allies of Uri and Unterwalden, ambushed an Austrian army under the command of Leopold I, Duke of Austria on the shores of Lake Ägeri, in the ...

. The Battle of Morgarten occurred on 15 November 1315 at Morgarten (now part of Oberägeri) and near neighboring Sattel. It began when a

Swiss Confederation Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerlan ...

force of 1,500 infantry archers, led by

Werner Stauffacher Werner Stauffacher was supposedly the name of the representative of the canton of Schwyz, one of the three founding cantons at the legendary Rütlischwur of 1291, as told by Aegidius Tschudi. Many members of the Stauffacher family held the off ...

, ambushed a group of Austrian soldiers of the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...

under the command of Duke Leopold I of Austria near the Morgarten Pass. The Swiss thoroughly defeated the Austrians. The Confederates prepared a road-block and an ambush at a point between Lake Aegeri and Morgarten Pass where a small path led between the steep slope and a swamp. When about 1500 men attacked from above with rocks, logs and

halberds A halberd (also called halbard, halbert or Swiss voulge), is a two-handed polearm that was in prominent use from the 13th to 16th centuries. The halberd consists of an axe blade topped with a spike mounted on a long shaft. It may have a hook or t ...

, the Austrian knights had no room to defend themselves and suffered a crushing defeat, while the foot soldiers in the rear fled back to the city of

Zug Zug (Standard German: , Alemannic German: ; ; ; ; )Named in the 16th century. is the largest List of cities in Switzerland, town and capital of the Swiss canton of Zug. Zug is renowned as a hub for some of the wealthiest individuals in the wor ...

. A chronicler described the Confederates, unfamiliar with the customs of battles between knights, as brutally butchering everything that moved and everyone unable to flee. This founded the reputation of the Confederates as barbaric, yet fierce and respectable fighters. Within a month of the battle, in December 1315, the Confederates renewed the oath of alliance made in 1291, initiating the phase of

growth of the Old Swiss Confederacy The Old Swiss Confederacy began as a late medieval alliance between the communities of the valleys in the Central Alps, at the time part of the Holy Roman Empire, to facilitate the management of common interests such as free trade and to ensure ...

. Within forty years, cities including

Lucerne Lucerne ( ) or Luzern ()Other languages: ; ; ; . is a city in central Switzerland, in the Languages of Switzerland, German-speaking portion of the country. Lucerne is the capital of the canton of Lucerne and part of the Lucerne (district), di ...

Zürich Zurich (; ) is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich. , the municipality had 448,664 inhabitants. The ...

and

Bern Bern (), or Berne (), ; ; ; . is the ''de facto'' Capital city, capital of Switzerland, referred to as the "federal city".; ; ; . According to the Swiss constitution, the Swiss Confederation intentionally has no "capital", but Bern has gov ...

had joined the confederation. The victory of the Confederates left them in virtual autonomy and gave them a breathing-space of some sixty years before the next Habsburg attack resulted in 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 ...

(1386). The municipality came into existence in the 15th century. Around 1500, several chapels and the first government building were built in Oberägeri. In 1669 the municipality gained the right to elect its own priest. In 1726 the church was burgled. In 1766 the governments of Oberägeri and

Unterägeri Unterägeri is a municipality in the canton of Zug in Switzerland. History Oberägeri is first mentioned in 1150 as ''Agregia''. In 1538 it was mentioned as ''Ober Egere''. The first church in the valley was built in 876. After 1100, the land ...

(at the time known as Wilägeri) became involved in an open fight during local parliamentary sessions, and the two municipalities split in 1798. In 1838 the city of

stopped collecting interest they had had a right to since medieval times. In the same year the first school-building in the municipality was built. The second school was not built until 1956. Water supplies were established in 1890 by a local pub landlord.

Geography

Oberägeri has an area, , of . Of this area, or about 0.8% is occupied with buildings and or about 2.9% is roads or transportation infrastructure. About a third or is used for agriculture, while or about 2.0% is used for small gardens. Forests or other wooded areas cover or about 37.4% of the municipality. Of the rest, or about 17.5% is covered with water, including the

Ägerisee __NOTOC__ Ägerisee or Lake Aegeri is a glacial lake in the Canton of Zug, Switzerland. The two municipalities along its shore are Oberägeri and Unterägeri. The main tributary is the ''Hüribach''; the Lorze river drains the Ägerisee. Since 1992 ...

, and or about 5.7% is

marsh In ecology, a marsh is a wetland that is dominated by herbaceous plants rather than by woody plants.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p More in genera ...

moorland Moorland or moor is a type of Habitat (ecology), habitat found in upland (geology), upland areas in temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands and the biomes of montane grasslands and shrublands, characterised by low-growing vegetation on So ...

.Oberägeri numbers
accessed 21 September 2009 The municipality is located in the eastern pre-alpine, high valley on the northern shores of the Ägerisee at an elevation of about . It consists of the village of Oberägeri and the

hamlets A hamlet is a human settlement that is smaller than a town or village. This is often simply an informal description of a smaller settlement or possibly a subdivision or satellite entity to a larger settlement. Sometimes a hamlet is defined f ...

of Morgarten/Hauptsee and Alosen (at an elevation of ) as well as scattered farm houses.

Demographics

Oberägeri has a population (as of ) of . , 19.7% of the population was made up of foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years the population has grown at a rate of 14.1%. Most of the population () speaks German (90.2%), with English being second most common ( 2.6%) and Dutch being third ( 1.1%).Swiss Federal Statistical Office
accessed 21-Sep-2009 In the 2007 federal election the most popular party was the CVP which received 33% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SVP (32.3%), the FDP (18.1%) and the

Green Party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as environmentalism and social justice. Green party platforms typically embrace Social democracy, social democratic economic policies and fo ...

(12%). In Oberägeri about 76.9% of the population (between age 25-64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either university or a ''

Fachhochschule A (; plural ), abbreviated FH, is a university of applied sciences (UAS), in other words a Hochschule, German tertiary education institution that provides professional education in many applied sciences and applied arts, such as engineering, te ...

''). Oberägeri has an unemployment rate of 1.14%. , there were 251 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 90 businesses involved in this sector. 355 people are employed in the

secondary sector In macroeconomics, the secondary sector of the economy is an economic sector in the three-sector theory that describes the role of manufacturing. It encompasses industries that produce a finished, usable product or are involved in constructi ...

and there are 44 businesses in this sector. 1,049 people are employed in the

tertiary sector The tertiary sector of the economy, generally known as the service sector, is the third of the three economic sectors in the three-sector model (also known as the economic cycle). The others are the primary sector (raw materials) and the ...

, with 198 businesses in this sector. The historical population is given in the following table: : population for the entire municipality of Ägeri 1660 (1'413); 1743 (1'519); 1798 (2'238).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Oberageri Municipalities of the canton of Zug