Following the French invasion and Helvetic revolution, rebels in the canton of Basel set fire to medieval castles in which the bailiffs resided. Pictured is the burning Farnsburg Castle near Ormalingen in the canton of Basel-Landschaft in an undated gouache by J. J. Ketterlin (detail). Archaeology and Museum Baselland Liestal

Vandalism as a political tool in the Helvetic period

The French invasion 225 years ago not only brought about major political upheaval in Switzerland, but also death and destruction. Vestiges of acts of vandalism to cultural property can still be seen today.

Benno Schubiger

Benno Schubiger is a freelance art historian and museologist in Basel and mainly publishes material relating to the Baroque period and historicism.

The 175th anniversary of the founding of the Swiss Confederation in 1848 was a recurring theme in 2023 for anyone with an interest in Swiss history. Meanwhile, another historic event exactly 50 years earlier almost went unnoticed: the creation of the Helvetic Republic following the French invasion of 1798. The revolutionary processes it unleashed transformed the thirteen-canton Confederacy into the centralised unitary state of the Helvetic Republic and their impact on Switzerland was no less radical than what happened in 1848. However, “1798” failed to bring any lasting stability to the country. A mere five years later, in 1803, the centralised Helvetic state was replaced by a federalist structure under the Act of Mediation – a modified form of government that more closely reflected Switzerland’s diverse political landscape. Napoleon Bonaparte, at the time First Consul but not yet Emperor, played a central role in the formulation of the Act of Mediation in 1803.

Napoleon and the conquest of the Old Swiss Confederacy

Napoleon was also involved in the French invasion of March 1798, when he was still a general. In November 1797, he crossed through Switzerland on his way from Campo Formio in northern Italy to Rastatt in Baden-Württemberg Germany. Napoleon already enjoyed great popularity in Switzerland at the time and was welcomed with open arms pretty much throughout the country. However, although no-one realised it then, it was on this journey that Napoleon decided to act on an earlier plan to subjugate the Old Swiss Confederacy by force, free its subject territories (such as Vaud or Ticino), reform its anachronistic political structure from the bottom up and abolish its patrician traditions.

**Napoleon Bonaparte enters Basel, 1797.** Swiss National Museum

In early March 1798, the French armies swarmed into Switzerland in a pincer movement from Geneva and Alsace; after a few days the patrician cantons of Fribourg, Bern and Solothurn, where the main pockets of resistance were, had been subdued. The Swiss cantons had neither the military means nor the political will to unite in defence of the country. The Old Swiss Confederacy with its rebellious subject territories was much too decentralised, and the political ambitions of the different cantons and their bailiwicks were much too diverse. This led to the Helvetic Republic, with its centralised constitution and institutionalised allegiance to France, being proclaimed on 12 April – all under the revolutionary mantra of “Freedom. Equality.” The resistance, however, lasted until the autumn, by which time the central Swiss cantons were also governed by the Helvetic authorities, in office by the good grace of the French.

**French soldiers plundering cottages during the “days of terror in Nidwalden” in September 1798.** Swiss National Museum

Where does vandalism come into it?

The French invasion of March 1798 was an act of war that brought major political change to Switzerland. Wars or regime changes almost invariably entail damage to cultural property and power symbols. And that hasn’t changed: look at the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, with its malicious destruction and removal of listed buildings, cultural assets, museum exhibits, statues, etc. While this destruction often tends to happen in the heat of the moment, it can also be ordered from above. Spontaneous and ordered vandalism were both in evidence during the Helvetic revolution of 1798. Moreover, the conflict didn’t just happen all of a sudden, it was actually a long time in the making. Calls for a new social order and political change in Switzerland had been growing in the years following the French Revolution of 1789. By the winter of 1797/98, the country was a powder keg ready to explode as rebels in the canton of Basel set fire at the end of January 1798 to medieval castles used as residences by the bailiffs. There ensued similar attacks on castles in the canton of Solothurn.

**Farnsburg Castle near Ormalingen in the canton of Basel Landschaft on fire, in a caricature of a cartoon by Franz Feyerabend on the legendary flight of the last bailiff, carried away in a big basket.** Swiss National Library

Other acts of vandalism were counted as ‘collateral damage’ while the war continued until September 1798. They included the burning down of the ossuary from the battle of Murten by French troops on 3 March – an act of revenge for the defeat suffered there by Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy, in 1476. At the end of April and start of May 1798, the French troops under the command of General Alexis von Schauenburg stormed through outer Schwyz laying waste to Freienbach, Pfäffikon and Wollerau as well as Ufenau island: they plundered, damaged and destroyed churches and chapels all over. In Einsiedeln monastery, the French removed the contents of the library and even tore down the Baroque Mercy Chapel. At least they did it in such a way that it could be restored at a later date.

**The ossuary with a memorial to the Battle of Murten in Murten, canton of Fribourg, having been pillaged by French troops on 3 March 1798. Lithograph from c. 1820.** Bern Historical Museum

**The Mercy Chapel in Einsiedeln monastery church, canton of Schwyz, following its restoration from 1803 to 1807.** Zentralbibliothek Zürich

The days of terror in Nidwalden in September 1798

The French unleashed their greatest brutality at the start of September in Nidwalden. Some of the locals had refused to pledge allegiance to the Helvetic constitution, as it made no mention of God or of the ‘Landsgemeinde’ (an annual cantonal assembly of citizens). At the request of the central Helvetic authorities, the French troops moved against the recalcitrant people of Nidwalden. Their courage provoked a violent storm in which several dozen lives were lost and there was extensive damage to buildings: nine churches and chapels, over 300 houses and more than 200 agricultural buildings were affected. The act of vandalism performed under duress to the church at Entenmoos was particularly perfidious: “Towards evening on 9 September, the French forced the locals to carry wood into the church and set it alight. The fire completely destroyed the roof and altars.”

**The ruins of St. Jakob church and rectory in Ennetmoos Nidwalden after being burnt down on 9 September 1798.** Zentralbibliothek Zürich

Fury against historical coats of arms

The Helvetic Republic was a political construct based on “equality”, a founding principle of the French Revolution. That meant no more social classes, so it also turned people against family coats of arms, which had been displayed on many public and privately owned buildings from time immemorial. As such heraldic symbols of class distinction were incompatible with the concept of equality, all paintings or sculptures depicting coats of arms had to be removed. The authorities issued a number of decrees over several months to enforce this policy, which met with mixed success. The evidence of dozens of these officially decreed acts of vandalism can still be seen today at various locations across Switzerland.

Reconstruction of the relief of the coat of arms of Ambassador Robert Gravel on the facade of Solothurn Jesuit Church: the replica of the cartouche damaged in April 1798 with the new coat of arms modelled in plaster (left) provides a template for the reconstruction of the coat of arms in Solothurn limestone (right). Kantonale Denkmalpflege Solothurn

Vandalism of Solothurn Jesuit Church

The Baroque Jesuit Church in Solothurn bears many scars of past vandalism. Its construction in the 1680s was only possible due to the support of none other than French King Louis XIV and many patrician families. They wanted their patronage heraldically honoured: the King and his Ambassador in reliefs of coats of arms in cartouches on the church façade, the patricians in their painted coats of arms inside the church. The political authorities of 1798 naturally took a dim view of such class-based ostentation. As a result, the relief of the coats of arms of the Sun King and his Ambassador had to be removed in April 1798 and the many painted coats of arms belonging to the Solothurn patricians were painted over in May. It was not until the 20th century that monument preservation measures restored and/or reconstructed these coats of arms. The interior restoration of 1953 uncovered the patricians’ coats of arms that had been painted over. And the facade restoration of 1982 also involved the recreation of the reliefs of coats of arms.

**Restorer Ottorino Olgiati in 1953 at the uncovering and restoration of the coat of arms, painted over in May 1798, of Franz Sury-Glutz in Solothurn Jesuit Church.** Kantonale Denkmalpflege Solothurn, Franz Zappa

Eradication of an historical event?

“The church has a new shine,” as people tend to say after a restoration. Solothurn Jesuit Church is no exception. At the same time, it cannot be denied that the reconstruction and uncovering of the whitewashed insignia amount to eradicating an historical event.

Facade of Solothurn Jesuit Church in its damaged state before the restoration in 1936 (left). A cartouche above the portal bore the coat of arms of King Louis XIV, which was scraped off in April 1798. Above the sculptures at the sides, the cartouches bearing the coat of arms of the French ambassador have been erased. In the right picture is the facade of Solothurn Jesuit Church in 2023 with the restored inscription of Louis XIV and the coat of arms of the Ambassador and his wife. Kantonale Denkmalpflege und Archäologie Solothurn, Edgar Schlatter / Kantonale Denkmalpflege Solothurn, Guido Schenker

Facade of Solothurn Jesuit Church in its damaged state before the restoration in 1936 (left). A cartouche above the portal bore the coat of arms of King Louis XIV, which was scraped off in April 1798. Above the sculptures at the sides, the cartouches bearing the coat of arms of the French ambassador have been erased. In the right picture is the facade of Solothurn Jesuit Church in 2023 with the restored inscription of Louis XIV and the coat of arms of the Ambassador and his wife. Kantonale Denkmalpflege und Archäologie Solothurn, Edgar Schlatter / Kantonale Denkmalpflege Solothurn, Guido Schenker

ZAK – the academic journal of the Swiss National Museum

This is a summary of an article in the Journal of Swiss Archaeology and Art History (ZAK), which the Swiss National Museum has been publishing for exactly 80 years. ZAK is published four times a year and can be subscribed to. Further information available at: landesmuseum.ch/zak

More of: Modern Age Politics War/battle Culture Architecture Art

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