The city of Bern, English traditionally Berne (Swiss German Bärn, German
Bern, French Berne, Italian Berna, Romansh Berna) is the capital of
Switzerland.
Inhabitants: 127,000 (2004) (fourth most populous Swiss city after Zürich,
Geneva and Basel).
Language: German, or more specifically, Bernese German, which is a high-Alemannic
dialect. The Canton of Bern has a French-speaking part. Very few people
still speak the Matteänglisch, a secret language used in the former workers
quarter Matte, but several words found their way in the Bernese German.
Bern also functions as the capital of the Canton of Bern, the second most
populous of Switzerland's cantons.
Illustrious Bernese include the scientist Albrecht von Haller, the poet
Albert Bitzius and the painters Ferdinand Hodler and Paul Klee. The German-born
physicist Albert Einstein worked out his theory of relativity while employed
as a clerk at the Bern patent office.
Duke Berthold V of Zähringen founded the city on the River Aare in 1191 and
allegedly named it after a bear (Bär in German) he had killed. It was made a
free imperial city by the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II in 1218 after
Berthold died without an heir. In 1353 Bern joined the young Swiss
Confederation, becoming a leading member of the new state. It invaded and
conquered Aargau in 1415 and Vaud in 1536, as well as other smaller
territories, becoming the largest city-state the north of the Alps. It was
occupied by French troops in 1798 during the French Revolutionary Wars, and
was stripped of most of its territories. The city became the Swiss capital
in 1848.
The city grew out of the peninsula on the river Aare towards the west. The
Zytglogge tower was on the western boundary of the city from 1191 until
1256, then the Käfigturm took this role until 1345 and was then succeeded by
the Christoffelturm (close to today's train station) until 1622. During the
time of the Thirty Years' War two new fortifications, the so-called big and
small Schanze (entrenchment), were built that protected the whole area of
the peninsula. The area protected by these edifices was sufficient for the
growth of Bern up to the 19th century.
Geography
Bern lies in the midlands of the Canton of Bern, roughly in the middle of
Switzerland. The landscape around Bern was formed by glaciers in the last
ice age. The two mountains closest to Bern are the Gurten with a height of
858 meters and the Bantiger with a height of 947 meters. The observatory in
Bern is the origin (600 000/200 000) of the Swiss coordinate system. The
international coordinates are 46° 57' north, 7° 25' east. The city was
originally built on a peninsula of the river Aare but outgrew the natural
boundaries of the river in the 19th century.
Sights
Bern's city centre is largely medieval and has been recognised by UNESCO as
a World Heritage Site. Perhaps its most famous sight is the Zytglogge, an
elaborate medieval clock tower with moving puppets. It also has an
impressive 15th century Gothic cathedral, the Münster, and a 15th century
town hall. Since the 16th century, the city has had a bear pit, which can be
visited off the Nydeggbrücke. The federal parliament building and
administration building or Bundeshaus, dating from the 19th century, can
also be visited. The Rosengarten (German for: garden of roses) is a former
cemetery which was 1913 converted into a park. Probabely the newest sight of
Bern is the fountain in front of the Bundeshaus. It was inducted August 1,
2004, the Swiss national holiday.
Transportation
The public transport works well in Bern, there are at the moment 3 tram
lines and several Bus lines which connect the different parts of the City.
Bern Rail Station connects the City to the national and international train
network. A little outside of Bern is Bern Airport. Notable is a cable
railway which leads from the marzili quarter to the Bundeshaus. This railway
is, with a length of 106 m the shortest public cable railway in europe.
Several bridges connect the old parts of the city with the newer quarters
outside of the peninsula.
