(Redirected from Berne (canton))
The
Swiss 'Canton of Berne' is bilingual (German: ''Kanton ''; French ''Canton de Berne'') and has a population of about 947,000. The
canton is located in west-central Switzerland and the city of
Berne is its capital.
Geography
The Simmental
The
Mönch(13'474 ft) covered in ice and glaciers
The 'canton of Berne' is the second largest of all Swiss cantons. It borders the
Canton of Jura and the
Canton of Solothurn to the north. To the west lie the
Canton of Neuchâtel, the
Canton of Fribourg and
Vaud. To the south lies the
Valais. East of the canton of Berne lie the cantons of
Uri,
Nidwalden,
Obwalden,
Lucerne and
Aargau.
The canton of Berne is mainly drained by the River
Aar and its tributaries. The area of the canton is commonly divided into three areas. The
Bernese Oberland (''Berner Oberland'') lies in the south of the canton and is part of the
Alps. The highest mountain in the Bernese Oberland is the
Finsteraarhorn (4,274 m; 14,022 ft). The famous hiking and ski resorts in the eastern Oberland around
Interlaken and the
Jungfrau (4,158 m) are located within this area, such as car-free
Wengen and
Mürren, and
Gimmelwald and
Grindelwald. Further east are the
Aareschlucht and the town of
Meiringen, famous for the fateful scene of
Sherlock Holmes's 'death' at the hands of
Professor Moriarty on the nearby
Reichenbach Falls. In the Western Bernese Oberland there are many other resorts and small villages catering to visitors who prefer greater isolation. These are accessed from the large scenic lake town of
Thun, and the most notable of them are
Kandersteg and the
Oeschinensee, as well as
Kiental and
Adelboden. Going further west up the even more secluded
Simmental river valleys, one reaches
Zweisimmen,
Lenk,
Gstaad, and
Saanen.
The whole area in the south 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 and even when going over a remote pass one often finds a small farmhouse on the way up or a mountain cabin willing to give accommodation and dinner to the passerby. Typically these sell the local cheeses and specialty products, with the ubiquitous spring water pouring out of the fountains and taps for the hikers to quench their thirst. The region also has an extensive train network as well as many
cable cars,
gondolas,
lifts, and
funiculars, with the highest train station in Europe, the longest funicular in Europe, and the longest gondola cableway in the world.
Mountains in Berne include:
The Bernese Midlands (''Berner Mittelland'') is made up of the valley of the rivers Aare, the river
Emme, some of the foothills of the Bernese Alps, as well as the plain around the capital Berne, and has many small farms and hilly forested regions with mid-sized to small towns scattered throughout. It is perhaps best known by foreigners and visitors for the
Emmental, and the classic mild Swiss cheese with holes
Emmentaler comes from this region's forests and pastures of hilly and low mountainous countryside in the 1000 to 2000 m range.
In the north of the canton of Berne lies the third more French influenced region: the Lake Region (''Seenland'') concentrated around
Lake Biel which rises from the plain up to the northernmost Swiss mountain chain of the
Jura.
The area of the canton is
5959 km².
History
Wetterhorn, 1824 painting
Canton of Berne map in 1790.
''See also:
History of Berne,
Heraldry of Berne,
Swiss peasant war of 1653''
The area of the 'canton of Berne' consists of lands acquired by its capital, mostly between the
14th and the
16th century, both by conquest and purchase. Acquired districts include (with dates of acquisition):
★ Laupen (1324)
★ Hasli and Meiringen (1334)
★ Thun and Burgdorf (1384)
★ Unterseen and the Upper Simme valley (1386)
★ Frutigen, etc. (1400)
★ Lower Simme valley (1439 -
1449)
★ Interlaken, with Grindelwald,
Lauterbrunnen and
Brienz (1528, all the suppression of the Austin Canons of Interlaken)
★
Saanen or Gessenay (1555)
★ Köniz (
1729)
★ the
Bernese Jura with
Biel/Bienne (1815, from the bishopric of
Basel).
Some regions previously left the canton: Aargau (
1415),
Aigle and
Grandson (
1475), Vaud (
1536), and the ''Pays d'En-Haut'' including
Château-d'Œx (
1555). From
1798 to
1802 the Oberland formed a separate canton of the
Helvetic Republic called ''canton of Thun'' with
Thun as its capital. Certain French-speaking portions of the canton of Berne broke away from the canton only in the late 20th century and since
1979 comprise the Canton of Jura.
Berne joined the Swiss Confederation in
1353 and was between
1803 and
1814 one of the six ''direcorial cantons'' of the
Swiss Confederation.
Politics
The Grand Council, the cantonal parliament.
''Rathaus'' (town hall), seat of the government since medieval times.
Legislative Branch
''Main article:
Grand Council of Bern''
The 'Grand Council' (
German: ''Grosser Rat'' /
French: ''Grand conseil'') is the
parliament of the canton of Berne. It consists of 160 representatives elected by
proportional representation for a four-year term 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.
Executive Branch
''Main article:
Executive Council of Bern''
The Executive Council (German: ''Regierungsrat'' / French: ''Conseil-éxecutif'') is the
government of the canton of Berne. 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.
Judicial Branch
The canton has a two-tiered court system, consisting of district courts and a cantonal Supreme Court (''Obergericht''/''Cour suprême''). There is also an administrative court (''Verwaltungsgericht''/''Tribunal administratif'') as well as other specialised courts and judicial boards. See
[1] for details.
Economy
Cheese making is an important industry in Berne.
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
Emmental cheese 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 Berne. There is a nuclear power plant at
Mühleberg.
The area around the 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 worldwide well known watch industry and its mechanical industry (high precision machine tools, automation and machining).
Language
The canton of Berne is
bilingual: Both
German (22 districts, with 84% of the population) and
French (three districts, 8.2%) are spoken. The German-speaking majority speaks
Bernese German, a
Swiss German dialect. French-speakers live in the northern part of the canton, in the
Bernese Jura. Both German and French are spoken in the bilingual city of
Biel/Bienne. In the government and administration, both languages are official languages of equal standing.
Religion
Protestantism
Most Bernese are
Protestant, and most Protestants belong to the
Swiss Reformed Church, which is officially recognised as a
state church (''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 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.
Other faiths
Berne features substantial
Roman Catholic and
Christian Catholic 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
Sikhs (who have a prominent
Gurdwara, or temple, in
Langenthal),
Mormons (who worship at the
Bern Switzerland Temple) and
Muslims. As of 2006, the plans to expand a backyard
mosque in Langenthal with a symbolical
minaret have, as elsewhere in Switzerland, caused a public stir due to vocal opposition from local conservative and evangelical leaders.
[1]
Districts and municipalities
Photographs
References
★
See also
★ Bernese newspapers:
★
★ ''
Berner Zeitung''
★
★ ''
Der Bund''
★
★ ''
Bieler Tagblatt''
External links
★
Official Page
★
Official Statistics
★
Berner Oberland Tourism
★
Biel/Bienne and Seeland Tourism
★
Bernese Jura Tourism
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