Michael van Orsouw13.06.2025Napoleon III, Emperor of the French (1808–1873) grew up in Salenstein in the canton of Thurgau, which is why he spoke the local Swiss German dialect. Although he was French, the people of Thurgau awarded him honorary citizenship. When Switzerland refused to expel him, it almost resulted in war with France.
Michael van Orsouw11.06.2025Louis-Philippe (1773–1850), Duke of Orléans and the man who would eventually become King of the French, spent some time in Switzerland after fleeing the turmoil that followed the French Revolution. He lived in the cantons of Zurich, Zug, Aargau and Graubünden – and his story continues to inspire Swiss novelists to this day.
Dominik Landwehr05.06.2025Johann Philipp Ziegler was a merchant from Winterthur. In the late 19th century, his company was the biggest exporter of Oriental carpets from what is now Iran.
Michael van Orsouw03.06.2025Prince Philip, the Queen’s consort and father of the current British monarch, visited Switzerland many times ‒ far more often than his wife. On one such occasion, he took part in the 1981 European Four-in-Hand Carriage Driving Championship held in Zug, where his actions placed the jury in a delicate situation.
James Blake Wiener29.05.2025On May 29, 1914, the RMS Empress of Ireland met a tragic fate in the freezing waters of Canada's St. Lawrence River. A heavy fog obscured visibility, leading to a catastrophic collision with the Norwegian collier Storstad. The disaster claimed 1,012 lives. Among those aboard were four Swiss citizens en route to Liverpool from Quebec City.
Marc Ribeli27.05.2025In 1975, the SBB (Swiss Federal Railways) opened its first new route in a long time: the just under eight-kilometre-long Heitersberg line between Limmattal and Lenzburg. The new inter-city Swiss Express train became an eye-catching feature on this new stretch of railway.
Alice Hertzog22.05.2025Looted from Benin in 1897, a 400- to 500-year-old figurine of a headless horseman found its way to Switzerland through the collector Han Coray. When he was declared bankrupt, the University of Zurich acquired the statuette and attempted to reunite the rider with his missing head. What at first sight looked like a good fit proved to be deceptive.
Tomás Bartoletti20.05.2025In 1858, Swiss naturalist and diplomat Johann Jakob von Tschudi illegitimately appropriated a Pucara-style figure from the sacred place of Tiwanaku. Some 150 years later, the sculpture was returned to Bolivia, a significant event that reflects Switzerland's approach to its colonial legacy.
