New York-born Hélène de Pourtalès (1868-1945) of Geneva won gold at the 1900 Olympic Games. Largely unknown today, this pioneering yachtswoman paved the way for other women to compete at the Olympics.
In the Swabian War of 1499, the Old Swiss Confederation fought against Habsburg Austria and the Swabian League. The cruel and devastating victory of the Swiss underscored their independence within the Holy Roman Empire.
While Zwingli was preaching the Reformed faith in Zurich in the 16th century, the altered circumstances of life led to frictions in the countryside on a greater and lesser scale.
This is the story of a political refugee in Switzerland who went on to become Emperor of France. Along the way, Napoleon III left behind traces that still shine brightly today.
Germaine de Staël was a Swiss author and thinker during the French Revolution. Even Napoleon feared the strong and well-connected personality and banished her from Paris.
The search for utopia and the ideal society, a fairer world and a happy life is as old as humankind itself. Every era produces its own utopias; the concept, created by Thomas More, dates from 1516.
We mentally associate schwingen, traditional Swiss wrestling, with brawny herdsmen fighting a clean fight in idyllic mountain surroundings. But it’s not as straightforward as that. Urban dwellers played a bigger role in popularising the sport than one might think.
