The Schächental (''Schächen Valley'') is an

alpine Alpine may refer to any mountainous region. It may also refer to: Places Europe * Alps, a European mountain range ** Alpine states, which overlap with the European range Australia * Alpine, New South Wales, a Northern Village * Alpine National Pa ...

valley of

Uri Uri may refer to: Places * Canton of Uri, a canton in Switzerland * Úri, a village and commune in Hungary * Uri, Iran, a village in East Azerbaijan Province * Uri, Jammu and Kashmir, a town in India * Uri (island), an island off Malakula Islan ...

, Switzerland, formed by the river Schächen. The valley stretches to the east of Altdorf for some 10 km. Situated in the Schächental are the municipalities of Bürglen (525 m),

Spiringen Spiringen is a village and a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the canton of Uri in Switzerland. The municipality comprises two disjoint areas, separated by the Unterschächen, municipality of Unterschächen and the Klausen Pass. The w ...

(923 m) and

Unterschächen Unterschächen is a municipality in the canton of Uri in Switzerland, situated in the upper Schächental. Geography Unterschächen has an area, , of . Of this area, 35.6% is used for agricultural purposes, while 9.4% is forested. Of the rest ...

(995 m). The valley terminates in the

Klausenpass Klausen Pass (German: ''Klausenpass''; elevation: ) is a high mountain pass in the Swiss Alps connecting Altdorf in the canton of Uri with Linthal in the canton of Glarus. Somewhat unusually, the boundary between the two cantons does not ...

(1948 m), which connects to the

Urner Boden The Urnerboden is a village in the high valley of Urner Boden, and also an alp and a small high Alpine permanent settlement in the Swiss canton of Uri. At in length, it is believed to be the largest alp in Switzerland. It forms a disconnected ...

, leading towards

Glarus , neighboring_municipalities= Glarus Nord, Glarus Süd, Muotathal (SZ), Innerthal (SZ) , twintowns= Wiesbaden-Biebrich (Germany) } Glarus (; gsw, Glaris; french: Glaris; it, Glarona; rm, Glaruna) is the capital of the canton of Glarus in S ...

. A side valley, the Brunnital branches to the south of Unterschächen, extending for some 4 km. It terminates abruptly, in the steep northern slope of the

Gross Windgällen The Gross Windgällen is a 3,187 m high mountain in the Glarus Alps, overlooking the valley of the Reuss in the canton of Uri. The name Gross Windgällen derives from Gälle or gellen, meaning as much as wailing, shrilling or whistling. ...

. Upon leaving the valley, the Schächen flows past Altdorf and joins the

Reuss Reuss may refer to: *Reuss (surname) *Reuss (river) in Switzerland *Reuss (state) or Reuß, several former states or countries in present-day Germany, and the Republic of Reuss *Reuss Elder Line and Reuss Younger Line (House of Reuss), members incl ...

Attinghausen Attinghausen is a village and a municipality in the canton of Uri in Switzerland. History Attinghausen is first mentioned in 1240 as ''Attingenhusen'' by the HDS. Geography Attinghausen has an area, , of . Of this area, 35.3% is used for agricul ...

. The inhabitants of the Schächen valley figure prominently in the formative phase of 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 the context of the struggle against the

Habsburg The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...

feudal lords. According to

Aegidius Tschudi Aegidius (or Giles or Glig) Tschudi (5 February 150528 February 1572) was a Swiss statesman and historian, an eminent member of the Tschudi family of Glarus, Switzerland. His best known work is the Chronicon Helveticum, a history of the earl ...

(1570),

William Tell William Tell (german: Wilhelm Tell, ; french: Guillaume Tell; it, Guglielmo Tell; rm, Guglielm Tell) is a folk hero of Switzerland. According to the legend, Tell was an expert mountain climber and marksman with a crossbow who assassinated Albr ...

was a native of the Schächen valley.

References

Valleys of Switzerland Valleys of the Alps Landforms of the canton of Uri Reuss basin {{Uri-geo-stub

See also

References