Growth of the Old Swiss Confederacy

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The

and to ensure the peace along the important trade routes through the mountains. The

liege lords

and thus were largely autonomous.

With the rise of the

and regarded them as potential useful allies against the rival Habsburgs.

By 1460, the confederates controlled most of the territory south and west of the

under their control.

Two similar federations sprang up in neighboring areas in the Alps in the 14th century: in the

but both maintained very close connections with it.

Territorial development

Under the

, had died out.

When

the city, which had to accept him as its patron.

This time of turmoil prompted the Waldstätten to cooperate more closely, trying to preserve or regain their immediacy. The first alliance started in 1291 when Rudolph bought all the rights over the town of

.

Nucleus

The

and others) is 1307.

King

, from trying to reassert their sovereignty over the territories south of the Rhine.

In the struggle for the crown of the

in 1315. The three cantons renewed their alliance in the pact of Brunnen,^[3] and Louis IV reconfirmed their Imperial immediacy.^[4]

The

(1470), which records that

wa böse Türnli waren, die brachen sy vnd viengen ze Uere am ersten an die hüser brechen

wherever there were hostile forts (towers), they broke (slighted) them and first began in Uri to break these buildings[5]

The text names

The Burgenbruch was long seen as historical, substantiated by the numerous ruined castles in Central Switzerland, but archaeological excavations have shown that these castles were abandoned gradually, not during a sudden uprising, during the period of roughly 1200 to 1350. By the 1970s, the "demythologization" of the foundational period of the Confederacy was at its peak, and the default view was to regard the reports of the late-15th-century chronists as essentially legendary. Since the late 1970s, systematic surveys of medieval castles in Central Switzerland have shown that a number of castles were indeed destroyed during the early 14th century, so that a possible historical nucleus of the Burgenbruch accounts may be granted, even though the destruction of these forts in itself was of limited military import and could not have resulted in a lasting political change.[7]

Expansion to the Acht Orte

Subsequently, the three communities (their territories did not yet correspond to the areas of the modern-day

issued in January of that same year.

The confederacy had signed "perpetual" pacts with both Glarus and Zug in 1352,^[3] and thus, even if these pacts apparently were disregarded only a few years later. This date is often considered the entry of these two cantons into the confederation despite their remaining under Habsburg rule for a few more years.^[8]

In the west, the Vier Waldstätten had already formed an alliance with the city of

: Bund der Acht Orte).

This alliance of the Eight Cantons was not a homogeneous state but rather a conglomerate of eight independent cities and lands, held together not by one single pact but by a net of six different "eternal" pacts, none of which included all eight parties as signatories. Only the three Waldstätten Uri, Schwyz, and Unterwalden were part of all these treaties. All eight parties would still pursue their own particular interests, most notably in the cases of the strong cities of Zürich and Bern. Zürich was also part of an alliance of cities around

.

An external threat during this time arose in the form of the Guglers, marauding mercenary knights from France who were beaten back under the leadership of Bern in December 1375.^[11]

Consolidation

In 1364, Schwyz reconquered the city and land of Zug and renewed the alliance the following year. In the 1380s,

The loose federation of states was reinforced by additional agreements amongst the partners. In the Pfaffenbrief of 1370, the signatory six states (without Bern and Glarus) for the first time expressed themselves as a territorial unity, referring to themselves as unser Eydgnosschaft ("our confederacy"). They assumed in this document authority over clericals, subjecting them to their worldly legislation. Furthermore, the Pfaffenbrief forbade feuds and the parties pledged to guarantee the peace on the road from Zürich to the St. Gotthard pass. Another important treaty was the Sempacherbrief in 1393. Not only was this the first document signed by all of the Eight Cantons (plus the associated Solothurn), but it also defined that none of them was to unilaterally start a war without the consent of all the others.

Beginning in 1401, the confederates supported the

. Appenzell became a protectorate of the Eight Cantons in 1411, which concluded a 50-year peace with Frederick IV in 1412.

Emperor Sigismund placed the imperial ban on Frederick IV in 1415, who had sided with Antipope John XXIII at the Council of Constance, and encouraged others to take over the duke's possessions, amongst which was the Aargau. After being granted far-reaching privileges by the emperor (all eight cantons became immediate) and a decree that placed the ban over the peace treaty of 1412, the confederates conquered the Aargau.^[12] A large part became Bernese, while the County of Baden was subsequently administered by the confederation as a common property until 1798. Only the Fricktal remained a Habsburg possession.

In the Valais, the conflict between the Bishop of Sion and the Duchy of Savoy, which had led to a separation in 1301 (the bishop controlling the upper Valais and the Savoyards the lower part), broke out again. Twice the Savoyards temporarily occupied the whole Valais, but both times they were ultimately defeated. Both peace treaties from 1361 and 1391 restored the status quo of 1301. As a result of these struggles, the villages in the upper Valais organized themselves in the Sieben Zenden ("seven tenths") around 1355, emerging after these wars as largely independent small states, much like the cantons of the Confederacy.

In the

Internal crisis

The relationships between the individual cantons of the confederation were not without tensions, though. A first clash between Bern and the four Waldstätten over the

The

The end of the dynasty of the counts of Toggenburg in 1436 also had effects on the

Further expansion

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In the second half of the 15th century, the confederation expanded its territory further. In the north, the formerly Habsburg cities of Schaffhausen and Stein am Rhein had become immediate in 1415, with the ban of Frederick IV. The two strategically important cities—they offered the only two fortified bridges over the river Rhine between Constance and Basel—not only struggled with the robber barons from the neighbouring Hegau region but also were under pressure from the Habsburg dukes, who sought to re-integrate the cities into their domain. On June 1, 1454, Schaffhausen became an associate (Zugewandter Ort) of the confederacy by entering an alliance with six of the eight cantons (Uri and Unterwalden did not participate). With the help of the confederates, a Habsburg army of about 2,000 men was warded off east of Thayngen. Stein am Rhein concluded a similar alliance on 6 December 1459.

The city of

within confederate territory, a pro-confederate coup d'état in 1458 led to the city becoming a protectorate of the confederacy in 1464.

Duke

in the autumn of 1460, which became both commonly administered property. In a peace treaty from 1 June 1461, the duke had no choice but to accept the new situation.

The Swiss also had an interest in extending their influence south of the

valley. Twice, the Milanese reconquered all these territories except the Leventina. Both times, the Swiss managed, despite their defeats, to negotiate peace treaties that were actually favorable for them.

Burgundy Wars

The Burgundian Wars were an involvement of confederate forces in the conflict between the

prompted these to turn to Bern for help.

The conflicts culminated in 1474, after duke

There is a proverbial saying in Switzerland summarizing these events as "Bi Grandson s'Guet, bi Murte de Muet, bi Nancy s'Bluet" [hät de Karl de Küeni verloore] ("[Charles the Bold lost] his goods at Grandson, his boldness at Murten and his blood at Nancy").

As a result of the Burgundian Wars, the dynasty of the

Jura mountains

, especially Grandson and Murten, as common dependencies of Bern and Fribourg. The whole Valais, however, would henceforth be independent, and Bern would reconquer the Vaud in 1536. While the territorial effects of the Burgundian Wars on the confederation were minor, they marked the beginning of the rise of Swiss mercenaries on the battlefields of Europe.

Swiss mercenaries

In the Burgundian Wars, the Swiss soldiers had gained a reputation of near invincibility, and their mercenary services became increasingly sought after by the great European political powers of the time.

Shortly after the Burgundy Wars, individual cantons concluded mercenary contracts, so-called "

would play an initially important, but later minor, role on European battlefields until well into the 18th century.

Swiss forces soon got involved in the

.

Dreizehn Orte

Further information:

Thirteen Cantons

Both Fribourg and Solothurn, which had participated in the Burgundy Wars, now wanted to join the confederation, which would have tipped the balance in favour of the city cantons. The rural cantons were thus strongly opposed. In 1477 they marched upon the cities in protest.

At

). Fribourg and Solothurn were admitted into the confederation.

After isolated bilateral pacts between the leagues in the Grisons and some cantons of the confederation had already existed since the early 15th century, the federation of the Three Leagues as a whole became an associate state of the confederation, in 1498, by concluding alliance agreements with the seven easternmost cantons.

When the confederates refused to accept the resolutions of the

in 1500.

As a direct consequence of the Swabian War the previously associated city states of

as well as the Three Leagues in the Grisons were all associates of the confederation (Zugewandte Orte); the Valais would become an associate state in 1529.

Annexation of the Ticino and the Veltlin

The Ticino region consisted of several city-states along the Ticino river. Following the conquest of the region, it was divided into four 'Ticino Bailiwicks' which were under the joint administration of the Thirteen Cantons after 1512. The four bailiwicks were Valle di Maggia (German: Meynthal or Maiental), Locarno (German: Luggarus), Lugano (German: Lugano) and Mendrisio (German: Mendris). The area also included several other territories that were owned by one or more cantons. These included: the Bailiwick of Bellinzona (German: Bellinzona), Blenio (German: Bollenz) and Riviera (German: Reffier) which were owned by Uri, Schwyz, and Nidwalden as well as the bailiwick Leventina (German: Livinental) (owned by Uri) and even the Val d'Ossola (German: Eschental). There were also three Italian-speaking subject areas of the Three Leagues (Bormio, Valtellina and Chiavenna) which were not included in the Ticino Bailiwicks.^[23]

Between 1403 and 1422 some of these lands were annexed by forces from Uri, but subsequently lost after the

Some of the land and the town of Bellinzona were annexed by Uri in 1419 but lost again in 1422. In 1499 nearly one and a half centuries of Milanese rule in Bellinzona ended with the invasion of Milan by

in 1798.

Between 1433 and 1438 the Duke of Milan, Aloisio Sanseverino, sat as a feudal lord over Lugano. Under the reign of his heirs in the following decades rebellions and riots broke out, which lasted until the French invasion of 1499.^[27]

Myths and legends

The events told in the saga of

a collection of folk tales from 1470, and is generally considered a fictitious glorification of the independence struggles of the Waldstätten.

The legend of Arnold von Winkelried likewise is first recorded in the 16th century;^[29] earlier accounts of the Battle of Sempach do not mention him. Winkelried is said to have opened a breach in the lines of the Austrian footsoldiers by throwing himself into their lances, taking them down with his body such that the confederates could attack through the opening.

Social developments

The developments beginning in about the 13th century had profound effects on the society. Gradually the population of

and increasingly took over political control, especially in the cities along the Rhine, e.g. in the Alsace, in Basel, Schaffhausen, Zürich, or Chur. (But not, for instance, in Bern or Lucerne—or, in Germany, Frankfurt—where a stronger aristocracy seems to have inhibited such a development.) The guild cities had a relatively democratic structure, with a city council elected by the citizens.

In the rural areas, people generally had less freedom, but some lords furthered the colonization of remote areas by granting some privileges to the colonists.

Landamman

.

As free farmers moved into the mountain valleys, construction and maintenance of the mountain pass roads became possible. In the 12th and 13th centuries, the passes into

Although both poor and rich citizens or peasants had the same rights (though not the same status), not all people were equal. Immigrants into a village or city had no political rights and were called the Hintersassen. In rural areas, they had to pay for their use of the common lands. They were granted equal rights only when they acquired citizenship, which not only was a question of wealth (for they had to buy their citizenship), but they also had to have lived there for some time; especially in the rural areas.^[32]

The

. It was the cities, now, that instituted reeves to manage the administration, but this only sometimes and slowly led to a restriction of the communal autonomy of the villages. The peasants owned their land, the villages kept administering their commons; and the villagers participated in the jury of the city reeve's court. They had, however, to provide military service for the city, which on the other hand included the right to own and carry weapons.

.

Economy

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The population of the cantons numbered about 600,000 in the 15th century and grew to about 800,000 by the 16th century. The grain production sufficed only in some of the lower regions; most areas were dependent on imports of oats, barley, or wheat. In the Alps, where the yield of grains had always been particularly low due to the climatic conditions, a transition from farming to the production of cheese and butter from cow milk occurred. As the roads got better and safer, a lively trade with the cities developed.

The cities were the marketplaces and important trading centers, being located on the major roads through the Alps.

or to Poland.

In the late 15th century, the mercenary services became also an important economic factor. The Reisläuferei, as the mercenary service was called, attracted many young adventurous Swiss who saw in it a way to escape the relative poverty of their homes. Not only the mercenaries themselves were paid, but also their home cantons, and the Reisläuferei, while being heavily criticized already at that time as a heavy drain on the human resources of the confederation, became popular in particular among the young peasants from the rural cantons.

Political organization

Initially, the Eidgenossenschaft was not united by one single pact, but rather by a whole set of overlapping pacts and separate bilateral treaties between various members, with only minimum liabilities. The parties generally agreed to preserve the peace in their territories, help each other in military endeavours, and defined some arbitration in case of disputes. The Sempacherbrief from 1393 was the first treaty uniting all eight cantons, and subsequently, a kind of federal diet, the Tagsatzung developed in the 15th century. The second unifying treaty later became the Stanser Verkommnis in 1481.

The Tagsatzung typically met several times a year. Each canton delegated two representatives; typically this also included the associate states. Initially, the canton where the delegates met chaired the gathering, but in the 16th century, Zürich permanently assumed the chair (Vorort), and Baden became the sessional seat.^[33]

The Tagsatzung dealt with all inter-cantonal affairs and also served as the final arbitral court to settle disputes between member states, or to decide on sanctions against dissenting members, as happened in the Old Zürich War. It also organized and oversaw the administration of the commons such as the County of Baden and the neighbouring Freiamt, the Thurgau, in the Rhine valley between Lake Constance and Chur, or those in the Ticino. The reeves for these commons were delegated for two years, each time by a different canton.

Despite its informal character (there was no formal legal base describing its competencies), the Tagsatzung was an important instrument of the eight, later thirteen cantons to decide inter-cantonal matters. It also proved instrumental in the development of a sense of unity among these sometimes highly individual cantons. Slowly, they defined themselves as the Eidgenossenschaft and considered themselves less as thirteen separate states with only loose bonds between.

Maps showing the growth of the Old Swiss Confederacy

• 
  Territorial development of Old Swiss Confederacy, 1291–1797
• 
  Switzerland in 1315, just before the Battle of Morgarten.
• 
  Switzerland in 1385, just before the Battle of Sempach.
• 
  Switzerland in 1474, just before the Burgundian Wars.
• 
  Switzerland in 1515, just before the Battle of Marignano.
• 
  Switzerland in 1536, during the

  Fribourg

  .
• 
  Switzerland in the 18th century.
• 
  Another map of Switzerland in the 18th century.

See also

• Swiss illustrated chronicles
• William Tell

References

Main sources:

• Im Hof, U.: Geschichte der Schweiz, 7th ed.,
  ISBN 3-17-017051-1
  .
• Schwabe & Co.: Geschichte der Schweiz und der Schweizer, Schwabe & Co 1986/2004.
  ISBN 3-7965-2067-7
  .

Other sources:

Further reading

• Historical Dictionary of Switzerland (in German, French, Italian and Rumanch)
• Luck, James M.: A History of Switzerland / The First 100,000 Years: Before the Beginnings to the Days of the Present, Society for the Promotion of Science & Scholarship, Palo Alto 1986.
  ISBN 0-930664-06-X
  .
• Marabello, Thomas Quinn (2023). "The Origins of Democracy in Switzerland," Swiss American Historical Society Review, Vol. 59: No. 1. Available at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/sahs_review/vol59/iss1/4
• Schneider, B. (ed.): Alltag in der Schweiz seit 1300, Chronos 1991; in German.
  ISBN 3-905278-70-7
  .
• Stettler, B: Die Eidgenossenschaft im 15. Jahrhundert, Widmer-Dean 2004; in German.
  ISBN 3-9522927-0-2
  .

External links

• The Old Swiss Confederation by Markus Jud (in English and German).
• Switzerland in the Middle Ages^{[permanent dead link]} by "Presence Switzerland", an official body of the Swiss Confederation. (In English, available also in many other languages.)