UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT LOS ANGELES THE GIFT OF MAY TREAT MORRISON IN MEMORY OF ALEXANDER F MORRISON ANNALS OF SWITZERLAND ANNALS SWITZERLAND BY JULIA M. COLTON NEW YORK A. S. BARNES AND COMPANY LONDON: HODDER & STOUGHTON l8 97 Copyright, 1897, By A. S. Barnes & Co. All rights reserved. SSntoetsitg $tess: John Wilson and Son, Cambridge, U. S. A. t i TO A. L. P. " Ah, Fredome is a noble thing ; Fredome makes man to haiff lyking Fredome all solace to man giffis, He levys at ease that freely levys." 427903 PREFACE It seems strange that Switzerland, a country so popular among tourists, so extolled by every lover of nature, so appreciated by those who realize " What pleasure lies in height ! " should have found few to chronicle in the Eng- lish tongue the inspiring events of her history. Many records have been written in the native German and French languages, but for the English reader, the fragmentary facts of the guide-book have provided the chief historical information concerning a land where the blood- red of the battle-field is environed with prismatic tints of romance. It is the aim of the " Annals of Switzerland " to present a brief, consecutive narrative of the struggles, progress, and attainments of a race of freemen ; but traditions which belong as Vlll Preface truly to the land as do its glaciers and ava- lanches cannot be ignored in pages which seek to depict the development of this de- mocracy, founded three centuries before the Reformation. J. M. C. Brooklyn, May 6, 1897. CONTENTS. CHAPTER PAGB I. Helvetia 5 II. Supremacy of the Franks, Imperial Rule, and Zeringen Dynasty 13 III. The League of Three Lands 21 IV. Growth of the Confederacy 37 V. The Era of Sempach and Nafels ... 51 VI. The Council of Constance 64 VII. Civil Wars and the Everlasting Compact . 74 VIII. War with Burgundy 85 IX. Grandson, Morat, and Nancy .... 95 X. League of Thirteen Districts 112 XI. Mercenary Service and the French Alliance, 123 XII. The Apostle of Switzerland 131 XIII. The Religious Struggle 141 XIV. Geneva 153 XV. Conflicts and Controversies 170 XVI. The Victory Won 180 XVII. Calvin in Geneva 192 XVIII. The Borromean League 204 2 Contents. CHAPTER PAGE XIX. Freedom from the Empire 214 XX. Progress in Political Enfranchisement . 226 XXI. The Era of the French Revolution . . . 237 XXII. The League of Rothen 252 XXIII. The Sonderbund War 271 XXIV. The Constitutions of 1848 and 1874. . . 281 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. Cantonal Coats of Arms Frontispiece. Map of Switzerland facing p. vii Chamonix : Le Groupe de De Saussure et le 5 *9 31 35 37 57 7i 81 91 95 119 127 140 H5 161 i73 187 195 209 Mont-Blanc Brunnen Tell's Chapel Altdorf : Statue of William Tell . Luzern Lake of Thunn Martigny : The Castle .... Bluebeard's Castle, near Interlaken The Jungfrau Map of Burgundy Clock Tower at Bern Lauterbrunnen Seal of Zurich Zurich Castle of Chillon The Reformers Lake of Geneva Cathedral of St. Peter, Geneva St. Gothard Pass List of Illustrations Wesen facing p. 221 Maloja " 227 Lion of Luzern " 237 Goeschennen " 261 Near Klosters — Silbretta Glacier ... " 275 The Axenstrasse " 285 AUTHORITIES. Daguet Abrege de l'Histoire Suisse. Zschokke History of Switzerland. Duruy History of France. Hallam History of Middle Ages. Kirk History of Charles the Bold. Coxe House of Austria. D*Aubign6 History of Reformation. Fisher History of Reformation. Seebohm ..... History of Reformation. Bryce Holy Roman Empire. Christoffel Life of Zwingli. Grote Letters on Switzerland. Winchester Swiss Republic. Adams & Cunningham, Swiss Confederation. Bernard Moses . . . Federal Government of Switzerland. ANNALS OF SWITZERLAND CHAPTER I HELVETIA Borne upon wavering wings of tradition, a legend floated long ago over the Alps, to begin the story of Switzerland. Falling to earth in the region near the sources of the Rhine and the Inn, the legend told of a people from Italy, — perhaps kindred to the Etruscans, — who, wandering northward during years veiled amid myths, rested where the district of Rhetia pre- served the name of the tribe, as well as that of their god Rhetus. Neither revelatory legend, nor archaeological research has traced the ties of kinship between the Rhetians and the Latin race of Lake-dwel- lers, whose architectural and domestic remains have procured their introduction to the modern world, but both claim recognition among ances- tors of the Swiss. Wanderers from Scandinavia, under the guidance of the brothers Switer and 6 Annals of Switzerland Swen, are reputed to lia^e founded the Canton of Scbwy?",* and the Grecian emigrants from Massilia, whose jo'Urrie^to the Lake of the remote Wilderness x was chronicled by Herod- otus, have also been named among predeces- sors of the Helvetic nation. In the region bounded by the Rhine, the Jura mountains, Lake Leman, and the Lake of Con- The Hei- stance, authentic history begins four vetians. or £ ye cen t ur i es before the Christian era, when the land was occupied by a valorous people, living in separate communities. Each community was independent within its own dis- trict, unless a common interest rendered union of strength advantageous, as in the case of peo- ples on the Rhine and the Thor, whose com- pact gave to their united lands the surviving name of Thurgau. We find records of warlike expeditions among the tribes occupying this territory dur- ing the last years of the second century B. C, when a martial impulse had been excited by the exploits of their neighbors, the Cimbri and Teutones, and in search of both glory and spoil forces of their strong men were sent to join the " confederates from many nations " in an inva- sion of Gaul. The Gauls, thus menaced, sought 1 Lake Leman. Helvetia 7 Roman aid ; a Roman army was directed to march toward the homes of the men of Thur- gau, who, suddenly recalled from pursuit of plunder, hastened under a valorous young leader, named Diviko, to encounter the contact with Roman legions. On the banks of Lake Rome. Leman, 1 Diviko achieved a brilliant victory; the Romans lost their commander — the consul Lucius Cassius — were forced to sue for quarter, and, after passing disarmed under the yoke erected for their humiliation by command of the conqueror, they were sent over the moun- tains with the story of their disgrace. The victorious Diviko then returned to Gaul, and, uniting his forces with those of the Cimbri, passed into Italy : but Rome summoned v J Wviko. her Consul Marius out of Africa, and in the battles of Aix and Vercellae (102-101 B. c.) the barbarian hosts suffered such overwhelm- ing defeats that the survivors from their ranks sought hasty refuge amid the mountains. The fugitives settled in a district afterwards divided into the four cantons of Uri, Schwyz, Unter- walden, and Luzern, where, in conjunction with occupants of the neighboring valleys, they were 1 Most historians name the shores of Lake Leman as the theatre of this battle, but Mommsen, and a few other authori- ties place it on the borders of the Garonne, near Santons. 8 Annals of Switzerland known as Helvetians, a people mentioned by Caesar as inhabitants of twelve towns and four hundred villages. The glory gained at Lake Leman, and glow- ing reports from the adjacent pasture-lands of Gaul, sufficed to stimulate again the ambition of this stalwart people, and Hordrich, or Orget- orix, an influential man among them, proposed that the entire community should emigrate and seek possessions in that more fruitful district. The project was received with a degree of favor Project of tnat i nsure d immediate preparations for orgetorix. j ts execution, — preparations continued until the leader's zeal had well-nigh wrecked the enterprise. To consummate friendly compacts with princes of Gaul, Orgetorix bound his daughter by a marriage contract with one of the number; but the prospective alliance aroused suspicion that personal aggrandizement was the principal aim of the Helvetian, and he was im- mediately summoned before a popular tribunal, to answer this accusation. Orgetorix responded by defiantly arming his retainers, whereupon the entire community denounced him as a traitor and demanded his death by fire. To escape this fate the chief committed suicide. This tragic episode did not divert the Helve- tians from the pursuit of their purpose; and, Helvetia 9 after three years spent in preparation for the emigration, they burned their houses „ t b ' J Emigration to preclude all thought of a return, and subjuga- and carrying provisions for three months went forth under the guidance of the aged Diviko. With their allies from neighboring lands they were computed to number three hundred and sixty-eight thousand, of whom ninety-two thousand were warriors. This exodus occurred in the year 60 B. c, and Caesar was then in Gaul. He first encoun- tered the Helvetians near Geneva, where an attack upon the rear-guard of their army re- sulted in victory for the trained legions of Rome; but, instead of seeking an immediate engagement with the entire force of invaders, Caesar, while strengthening his own army, al- lowed the enemy to advance, until on the bor- ders of the Saone he was able to strike so effective a blow that the surviving remnant of the Helvetian host were powerless to resist the decree which ordained their immediate return to their desolated land. Caesar annexed their territory to Gallia Celtica, and granted to the humbled people the title of Roman allies ; but he erected on Lake Leman the new fortress of Noviodunum (Nyon), in order, from that point, as from other strongholds, soon scattered along io Annals of Switzerland their frontiers, to keep the tribes of Helvetia under the Argus eye of Rome. Heedless of the subjugation of their neigh- bors, the sturdy folk in Rhetia, with allies along the borders of the Inn, and in the The Rhetians. valleys of the Tyrol, pursued their custom of plundering travellers across their borders, and, secure in the retreats afforded by their mountain passes, often descended into Italy for purposes of pillage. In the reign of Augustus these incursions grew formidable, and legions under the successive commands of Dru- sus and Tiberius were sent against the intruders. After an obstinate struggle the Rhetians were subdued ; their district, with the mountain lands east, was included in the empire under the name of Rhetian, Norican, and Pannonian provinces, and permanent Roman garrisons were estab- lished to secure the subjection of the people. Although thus under imperial control, the peasants were permitted to retain their simple The Roman l aws 5 an< ^> ' n an assembly of deputies sway. from the combined districts, they chose their own magistrates, and decided ques- tions of common interest. Under the imme- diate successors of Augustus, the inhabitants of Helvetia paid taxes and served in the Roman armies, as good and loyal subjects of the em- Helvetia n pire, while Aventicum, their seat of government, became a magnificent city with institutions simi- lar to those in Italian towns of the period. In the year 70 A. D. the emperor Galba was assassinated in Rome, and in the provinces Roman officials speedily formed leagues for the election of his successor. Before the people of Helvetia had heard of Galba's death, Aulus Cecina, their governor, sent messengers through- out every district to command allegiance to Vitellius. Believing that they were loyal to their emperor in their act, the Helvetians inter- cepted the messengers, and armed to oppose the governor. Cecina marched against them with a large force, sacked Baden, then one of their principal cities, and having defeated the insurgents in battle, sold many into slavery, and commanded the immediate execution of Julius Alpinus, the chief man in the community. 1 With the tidings of their defeat, the Helve- 1 Fifteen hundred years afterwards this inscription is said to have been discovered in the ruins of Aventicum : " I lie here ; Julia Alpinula ; unfortunate child of an unfortunate father. Priestess of the goddess Aventia, my prayers failed to avert the death of my father ; fate had decreed that he should die ignominiously. I lived to the age of twenty-three." Although, through the criticism of Lord Mahon, this alleged memorial has been denominated a forgery of the seventeenth century, Byron accords the priestess a credulous note of sym- pathetic admiration. 12 Annals of Switzerland tians first heard of the death of Galba, and ambassadors were immediately dispatched to implore pardon for an unintentional opposition to legitimate authority. But the arrogant sol- diers who had raised Vitellius to the throne, demanded the total extirpation of the race of peasants whose loyalty had opposed their will ; and, although the eloquent pleading of the Hel- vetian envoy obtained a mitigation of the pen- alty and rescued the lives of the offenders, the punishment ordained terminated their history as a nation. Their country was incorporated with the province of Gaul, and the distinctive name of Helvetia was legally ignored. Gradu- ally Roman customs were introduced, the Latin language encroached to some extent upon the ancient speech, and, under the mild dominion of Nerva, Trajan, Hadrian, and the Antonines, the people, turning from warlike pursuits to the cultivation of their land, again achieved prosperity. CHAPTER II SUPREMACY OF THE FRANKS, IMPERIAL RULE AND ZERINGEN DYNASTY A. D. 200-1200. During the closing years of the Roman suprem- acy, and through several succeeding decades, the region north of the Alps lay open to occu- pation by the nomadic tribes who were pushing their way toward Italy, and much obscurity rests upon its annals. From a confusing record of conflicts which indicate frequent interchange of realm among the migrating nations, we emerge in the year 500, when the south- western portion of the country now called Switzerland belonged to the Burgundians, the northern territory was shared between the Franks and the Allemanni, and Rhetia was claimed by the Ostrogoths. The distinction between the languages spoken in Switzerland has been traced to this period, when the people in the dominions of the Allemanni spoke a Gothic tongue, and those under Burgundian 14 Annals of Switzerland rule a Gallo-Roman dialect, from which was developed the Provencal, to be followed by the modern French. In the latter part of the fifth century, during an inroad upon Gallic territory, the Allemanni Divisions met the army of Clovis, King of the under Clovis. Franks, and suffered a defeat which implied subjection; and during the sixth cen- tury, by the dissolution of the old Burgundian kingdom and the fall of the empire of the Ostrogoths, the remaining districts, formerly occupied by the three nationalities, were trans- ferred to the kingdom of the Franks. The new sovereign divided the land accord- ing to the languages spoken therein. One division was joined to Swabia, while another, under the name of Little Burgundy, became a part of Savoy. The population included the conquered inhabitants, ingrafted colonies from Rome, and remnants of the various Teutonic tribes who had in succession occupied the dis- tricts. The subjugated people became serfs of the Gallic lords, and, although occasionally allowed a voice in matters of legislation, they were denied the privilege of bearing arms, introduction Varied legends ascribe the entrance of Christi- anity. of Christianity among them to Beatus, in the first century; to Lucius, a Rhetian, Supremacy of the Franks 15 in the third; and at the close of the fourth century to members of the Theban Legion. Gallus, a disciple of St. Columbanus, had, previous to that period, established his her- mitage near the Lake of Constance, where stands to-day the sadly-modernized convent of St. Gall ; and Meinrod had built his cell, lived in poverty, and died a violent death on the spot marked by the stately Abbey of Einsiedeln, which legendary lore designates as having been consecrated by angels. As early as 843 was founded there the "record-chamber," the nucleus of a noted library. Religious institutions multiplied under the sovereignty of the Franks, and whoever was baptized, had learned a prayer, and could make the sign of the cross, was called a Christian, even though heathen customs and superstitions continued to dominate his life. Laws were few in an age that regarded pro- tection of property for the individual as the ultimate object of jurisdiction, and when theft was regarded as a greater crime than murder. A form of trial by jury was occasionally prac- tised, but judgment was more frequently ren- dered through the medium of the ordeal. Knowledge of letters was an almost exclusive endowment of the clergy, who, through this 1 6 Annals of Switzerland instrumentality, were enabled to acquire wide political as well as spiritual influence. The monastery of St. Gall became noted as a centre of learning where medieval culture attained its zenith, while its temporal prosperity was at- tested by the possession of one hundred and sixty thousand acres of land. With Charlemagne's sovereignty a new era dawned, for under his liberal patronage many charie- institutions for popular instruction magne. were founded. To his bounty, sym- bolized as a "fountain of intellectual life," Zurich attributes her first schools, and other cities included within the boundaries of Switzer- land ascribe their early literary impulses to the stimulating influence of the first sovereign of the "Holy Roman Empire." In the division of Charlemagne's empire, the Helvetian territory was tossed like a ball from hand to hand, until caught in the grasp of the newly-organized German monarchy. Counts and seignors in the land from thenceforth paid feudal allegiance to the Emperor, but in his own domain each was allowed absolute control of "the soil, with man, beast, and tree." Upon these vast feudal estates, in addition to the customary tribute of fowls and eggs, rendered to the seignor, each householder was assessed Supremacy of the Franks 17 for an annual tax of a tenth of his crops or other wealth, and upon the death of the father of a family his children yielded up whatever had been his most valued possession, — beast, garment, or furniture. The seignors in adjacent districts were usually at feud with one another, unless some common danger threatened, when individual jealousies were temporarily controlled, and forces were joined for mutual protection. Gradually the inhabitants of the open coun- try gathered in villages, for which a religious house or a baronial mansion served as Growth of a nucleus. Each village enjoyed a citle8, special jurisdiction under its vogt or bailiff; but at a general assembly, held in the open air, all important questions were settled, and any person who possessed "seven feet of land before or behind him " might claim a voice in this council. In the tenth century, when Magyar hordes, from the north and east, swept with barbaric fury through Germany, the Emperor Henry I. commanded that the larger villages should be walled, that, thus protected, they might serve as places of refuge for peasants of the neighboring country. In the unsettled state of the empire, the population of villages thus fortified rapidly 1 8 Annals of Switzerland increased, and when an imperial decree con- ferred special privileges upon all their resi- dents who were not bondsmen, a thrifty burgher class 1 arose, and prospered. The name of a city often records some dis- tinctive characteristic of its early days, as Schaffhausen on the Rhine, which originated in a cluster of boathouses, or Schiffhausern, and Luzern, where the old Lticerna, or light-house (now called the Wasserthurm), indicates the origin of the city. Freemen of noble birth who possessed small landed estates were chosen members of the councils in these villages, and, proud of a posi- tion of authority in the " Holy Roman Empire," they assumed the name of "patrician," — a title retained until the close of the middle ages. In the eleventh century, when contests be- tween the Emperor Henry IV. and Pope Gregory VII. had called forth the bull of ex- communication that freed all imperial subjects from their oaths of allegiance, a Diet held at Forschew deposed Henry and declared Rudolf of Swabia Emperor of Germany ; Henry return- ing from his enforced pilgrimage to Rome, found himself crownless, and Rudolf in pos- session of sovereign power. In the war that 1 Residents of a burg, or fortress. Zeringen Dynasty 19 ensued, although the Pope sent a consecrated crown to Rudolf, fortune declared in favor of Henry; Rudolf was slain in the battle of Merseburg, by the hand of Godfrey de Bouil- lon, and his Swabian dukedom was bestowed upon Frederick of Hohenstaufen, son-in-law of Henry IV. Rudolf's son, however, continued the war until his death, ten years later, when his claims were transferred to his brother-in-law Berchthold II. of Zeringen. A compromise was then effected, by which the greater portion of the Helvetian territory was given to Berchthold, as a fief of the empire, and, during several genera- tions, dukes of his family, known as the "thirty lords of Zeringen," retained the sovereignty. It was during the period of Zeringen rule that the name of the free men of Schwyz came for the first time into prominence. The Free r Men of In a sheltered district upon Lake schwyz. Luzern dwelt these descendants of the Helve- tians, who had continued to exercise, unmo- lested, all the privileges of a free community throughout the stormy years in which their land had been passed from sovereign to sove- reign. Although they recognized the Emperor of Germany as their feudal superior, these peas- ants had remained unrestricted in their choice of the Ammann who presided over their local 20 Annals of Switzerland courts of justice, and had acknowledged no foreign obligation beyond the payment of imperial tribute-money. Ignorant of the fact that Henry II. had donated large tracts of land, adjacent to their own, for the enrichment of monasteries, or as rewards to seignors, these shepherds of Schwyz came into unforeseen conflict with the Abbot of Einsiedeln, whose flocks were feeding upon their mountains. The Abbot claimed as much as he chose of the uninclosed territory, and appealed for support to the head of the empire, whose decision in favor of the ecclesiastic apprised the inhabitants of the valley that their allegiance was no guarantee of protec- tion. Rejecting, thenceforth, all obligations imposed by imperial mandate, they declared, " We have no need of an emperor if he cannot secure our rights," and having cemented a defensive alliance with their neighbors of Uri and Unterwalden, they defied the imperial au- thority. Despite anathemas and decrees from Emperor and from Pope, the attitude of hostil- ity toward Einsiedeln was maintained; priests were compelled to conduct religious services, though papal sanction was denied, and during an age of universal servitude the brave peasants of Schwyz preserved a prosperous independence. CHAPTER III THE LEAGUE OF THREE LANDS 1200-1315. After the extinction of the house of Zeringen, the entire territory, formerly subject to their control, was ruled by the counts and seignors whose castles clung to the mountain sides or dotted the level country. According to Watte- ville, there were in the thirteenth century no less than fifty counts, one hundred and fifty barons, and one thousand noble families within the confines of modern Switzerland. Promi- nent among these petty sovereigns were three ecclesiastical princes, — the Bishop of Chur, the Abbot of St. Gall, and the Abbess of Sackingen, — and the Counts of Kyburg, Rap- perswyl and Hapsburg in the list of temporal lords. The last-named nobles owned only a small territory west of the Steinen, but Count Albert III. secured the office of vogtship or imperial bailiff over a larger district than any member of his family had previously controlled, 22 Annals of Switzerland and his son Rudolf obtained the advocacy of a region embracing the three districts of Uri, Schwyz, and Unterwalden. His duties in this office included those of the president of crim- inal tribunals, arbitrator in civil dissensions, guardian of the highway, and representative of the people at the imperial court. In 1217 the intervention of the advocate Rudolf I. secured a temporary cessation of the prolonged hostilities between Schwyz and Einsiedeln; but when Rudolf II. claimed hereditary authority to govern the district, and attempted to restrict the liberty of the peasants, the three valley-communities sought imperial sanction in their defence of privileges exercised by their ancestors. In response to the appeal from Uri, a formal release from Hapsburg Rule of over-lordship was granted in 1231, Hapsburg Lords. with a special charter of franchises, and in 1240 a document, addressed "to all the inhabitants in the valley of Swites," gave that district also deliverance from the jurisdiction of the counts of Hapsburg, and immunity from all but imperial taxation. But the domineering knight who continued to claim the authority of an advocate in the territory practically ignored the imperial charters, and compelled obedience to his arbitrary decree from the peasants of The League of Three Lands 23 Schwyz and Uri, as well as in Unterwalden, where he possessed estates. In protestation against this bondage, the men of the three dis- tricts in 1245 concluded, by a verbal compact, their first defensive league. As a means of establishing his authority on the shores of Lake Luzern, Rudolf erected there a castle; but this was destroyed five years later, and for half a century no fortress walls marred the Arcadian landscape. During the contests between Frederick II. and Inno- cent IV. the Hapsburgers sided with the Pope, and the men of the forest cantons took the part of the Emperor; but in the decline of Frederick's authority, the Hapsburgs, like other nobles of the empire, found opportunity for their own aggrandizement, and in 1273 Count Rudolf III. was elected Emperor of Germany. For a score of years the imperial crown had been loosely controlled by various factions, who, by turns, bestowed it upon one Rudolf foreign candidate or another, until, Hapstmrg. weary of the existing confusion, yet jealous of their own authority, the electors sought a man strong enough to punish criminals, with whom the country was flooded, yet weak enough to need for every mandate the sanction of the 24 Annals of Switzerland princes. Their desires were bluntly defined by the Bishop of Olmutz, who wrote to the Pope : " They wish to obtain, through the grace of the Holy Ghost, a gracious emperor, — through the wisdom of the Son of God, a wise emperor; but they ignore the first person in the Trinity, and power is their abhorrence." Rudolf's rival for the imperial honors was Ottacar of Bohemia, a war with whom, follow- ing the election, resulted in the acquisition by the Hapsburgs of Styria, Carniola, and Carinthia. These provinces Rudolf bestowed upon his two sons, whereupon Albert, the elder son, assumed the title of " Duke of Austria. " Rudolf's elevation is said to have been largely due to the influence of Werner, Archbishop of Mentz, who had received favors at the hands of the Count of Hapsburg, for which he promised recompense. In order to insure the necessary votes for Rudolf, the Archbishop hinted to the electors, who were chiefly unmarried men, that his candidate had six marriageable daugh- ters; whereupon the election was immediate and unanimous. But the Count of Hapsburg had not so favorably impressed all ecclesiastics, for the Bishop of Basle is reported to have exclaimed, when he heard of the election, " Lord God ! The League of Three Lands 25 set thyself fast upon thy throne, else surely this Rudolf will pluck thee down from it." Rudolf's imperial administration of eighteen years, popular and widely equitable, induced a confiding submission to legitimate authority. But although the Emperor recognized the char- ter of Uri, he refused to confirm the privileges claimed by Schwyz, and two weeks after his death the men of that community joined the patriots of Uri and Unterwalden in a " Perpetual Alliance " for mutual aid in uai aui- A anceor resisting oppressions. August 1, 129 1, "Bundes- deputies from the three districts signed brie£ -" the Bundesbrief, which embodied in written form the terms of the verbal contract of 1245. This Latin Bundesbrief, still preserved in the archives of Schwyz, records the formal inauguration of the oldest free state in the world. With the motto " All for one, and each for all," it united the members of the league against any "who should use violence toward them, or cause injury to one or to all." While recognizing the duty of allegiance to the Em- peror, the communities declared a resolution to preserve their prerogatives in matters of legis- lation, and in case dissensions should arise, they claimed perfect freedom in the choice of arbitrators. i6 Annals of Switzerland Upon the death of the Emperor Rudolf, his son Albert assumed the imperial crown, with- Aibertof out awaiting the action of a diet; but Austria. received proof of his unpopularity when Adolf of Nassau was chosen head of the empire. The new sovereign possessed little influence among princes, but he confirmed the imperial franchises of Uri and Schwyz, and the three forest districts (Waldstatten) embraced his cause. Thereupon Albert, conciliating some of the electors, kindled a partisan war, in which Adolf was defeated and slain ; Albert, succeeding to his authority, refused to recognize the franchises claimed by the Waldstatten, and by imperious and unscrupulous acts thoroughly alienated the people. Although there is no authentic record of a direct attack upon the liberties of the land, yet a host of legends, bearing reference to tyrannical aggressions, have centred around the period, and mingle so indissolubly with the history of the age that they demand narration. According to these stories, Albert sent an Austrian official to exercise authority in the oppressions districts of the Waldstatten, and when of imperial , . Bailiffs. the allied peasants claimed the right to demand in his place an imperial bailiff, Hermann Gesler, and Berengen of Landenberg, The League of Three Lands 27 contrary to all former usages, took up their abode in the land. Gesler built a fortress, which he called "Uri's Restraint," while Landenberg located himself with equal secu- rity in Unterwalden, and both by arbitrary and tyrannical rule violated the franchises, and exasperated the people. The taxes were in- creased, the smallest offence severely punished, and the peasants continually insulted. In Landenberg' s district of Unterwalden lived Arnold of Melchthal, whose punishment for some trifling offence was the confiscation of his oxen. The official sent to seize them jeer- ingly said, "If peasants wish for bread they may draw the plough themselves." Stung by this insult, Arnold offered resistance, and broke the fingers of one of the men. He then fled to the mountains to escape the bailiff's vengeance; but Landenberg caused the arrest of his aged father, whose eyes were put out in expiation of the son's offence. "That puncture," says an old chronicler, " went so deep into many a heart that numbers resolved to die rather than leave it unrequited." In the village of Steinen, the freeman Werner Stauffacher built a house whose com- fort aroused the jealousy of Gesler, and the bailiff's comment, "Shall a vile peasant build 28 Annals of Switzerland himself a house without permission from his lord ? " was quoted throughout the region. Urged onward by his heroic wife, Stauffacher joined Arnold of Melchthal and Walther Fiirst of Uri in a solemn oath to free the land from its tyrants; and in the meadow of Riitli, on the shore of Lake Luzern, the three men held mid- night consultations, when each brought assur- ances from the persecuted communities they represented, that death was more desirable than bondage. On the night of November u, 1307, each leader guided to the trysting-place ten trusted men, to whom their heroic purposes were revealed; and at sunrise, raising their hands to heaven, all joined in an oath which consecrated them to the service of freedom. Then, appointing New Year's night, 1308, for the accomplishment of their enterprise, they returned to their homes. Meanwhile, Gesler, suspicious of the fidelity of the people in his district, had ordered a pole to be erected in the village of Altorf, upon which the ducal cap of Austria was fastened, that homage to th is symbol of authority m ight be publicly rendered. For disregard of this decree, wuiiam William Tell, the son-in-law of Walther Teii. Fiirst, and one of the oath-bound men of Riitli, was seized and carried before the The League of Three Lands 29 bailiff. His reputation as a marksman was widespread, and, making his skill the instru- ment of punishment, Gesler commanded him to shoot an apple from the head of his son. The amazing deed was successfully accomplished; but a second arrow in the archer's quiver aroused inquiry, and upon receiving a promise of pardon, Tell incautiously revealed his reso- lution to shoot Gesler had his son been the first victim. The terrified bailiff, declaring that his promise secured the life but not the freedom of the marksman, commanded the immediate arrest of Tell, who, securely bound, was placed in the boat awaiting Gesler's return to his castle at Kiissnacht. Half-way across the lake a storm arose, the boat became unmanageable by the boatmen, and the prisoner, known to be a superior seaman, was unbound, and ordered to take the helm. Steering the craft toward a rocky shelf of land that protruded at the base of the Axenberg, Tell suddenly seized his bow, and sprang ashore, while the boat, rebounding, carried Gesler and his men far out upon the lake. They succeeded in landing when the storm had abated; but Tell meanwhile had sought a hiding-place, from whence, as the bailiff passed, was sent forth a well-aimed arrow, that pierced the tyrant's heart. 3<3 Annals of Switzerland So runs the tale, and with it belongs the legend, current in Switzerland, that Tell and the three men of Riitli are asleep in the moun- tains, but will awake to the rescue of their land should tyranny ever again enchain it. 1 The ancient chroniclers proceed to relate that at midnight on New Year's eve, 1308, a capture of girl in Landenberg's castle threw L.3ndcnt)crc*s castie. a rope to her lover, waiting below her window, and by this device twenty of the 1 Although the pitiless criticism of modern historical work has forced the exploits of Tell into the domain of the mythi- cal, yet a degree of credence is given to the story that may render interesting a summary of evidence in favor of its truth. As early as 1307 a religious service is claimed to have been instituted in Switzerland to commemorate the deed of the hero, and in the following year a chapel was erected on the spot where he was reputed to have landed from Gesler's boat. This chapel was dedicated in the presence of one hundred and twenty-four persons said to have known Tell personally. The history of the marksman is given in the chronicle of Klingen- berg that bears record through the fourteenth century ; in an ancient " Ballad of Tell " preserved in the archives of Sarnen ; in the " Chronicle of Russ " which bears the date of 1482 ; and in the " Chronicle of Eglof " of the fifteenth century. His deeds are recorded by Tschudi in 1570, and allusion is made to them as historical by other early writers. At the end of the sixteenth century doubts of the authenticity of the stories were first circulated, and in 1760 the book of a Bernese named Freudenberger, was publicly burned in Uri, for denial of the historical accuracy of current accounts of Tell's life. But other works were soon written to spread the awakened incre- dulity; and Voltaire contributed to the scepticism by his com- ment, " Ces histoires des pommes sont toujours suspectes." The League of Three Lands 31 oath-bound men of Rutli were secretly drawn within the walls of Rotzberg. In the early morning twenty of their confederates, who came with customary gifts to the bailiff, were invited within the gates, when, drawing out concealed pikeheads, they fixed them upon their staves, and sounded a call that brought re- inforcements from neighboring hiding-places. Almost without resistance, the stronghold of the tyrant was captured ; but Landenberg and his men were suffered to go free upon taking an oath to quit the country forever. The spirit of liberty was now fully aroused; Gesler's " Re- straint " and other fortresses were demolished, and the people in the three districts bound themselves by the oath of Rutli. Under Albert's direction was compiled "The Terrier," a kind of Doomsday Book for the Austrian provinces. It enumerated . IThe the estates of the Hapsburgers, and TerrIer -" recorded the quit-rents, dues, etc., for which the tenants were liable. The inventory for a similar record was begun in Switzerland, but was interrupted by the death of the Emperor, who, while returning from a confer- Assassina- . ttonof ence at Baden, was assassinated by Albert, his nephew, John of Swabia. On the banks of 32 Annals of Switzerland the Reuss, at Windisch, Albert became acci- dentally separated from his suite, and John found his opportunity for revenge upon the relative who had defrauded him of his paternal estates. By the aid of Walter of Eschenbach and Rudolf of Balm, 1 the fatal assault was made, and the royal victim was left to die in the arms of a peasant woman. The assassins soon realized that they had been deceived in the expectation of support after this bloody deed, and safety was sought by flight, while the terrified land offered no resistance to the vengeance of the Emperor's adherents, who, believing that a formidable league existed, punished all suspected of com- plicity. Castles were burned to the ground, and a thousand victims perished. Agnes, the daughter of Albert, is said to have witnessed the executions, and her exclamation, " Now I bathe in May dew ! " interprets the spirit with which the house of Austria pursued the unfortunate confederates through many succeeding years. On the accession of the new emperor, Henry of Luxemburg, the freemen of Schwyz opposed the work of the officials charged with the sur- vey of their land for " The Terrier, " and Henry confirmed to Schwyz and Uri the franchises 1 Ulric de Baum is the name given by some historians. The League of Three Lands 33 covered by their earlier charters, and granted to Unterwalden all privileges enjoyed under his predecessors. But failing thus to keep a promise to the Hapsburgers for the recogni- tion of their claims in the districts, he incited the dukes of Austria to efforts for the mainten- ance of prerogatives which they regarded as hereditary. In 13 13 Henry of Luxemburg died, and Frederick, the eldest son of Albert of Austria, opposed Louis of Bavaria as candidate contests for imperial honors ; Frederick, being ^perua the first to secure recognition, deter- Rulers - mined to regain the inheritance of his family in the three valley districts; and when an attack made by the men of Schwyz upon the domains of their ancient enemy, the Abbot of Einsiedeln, afforded a pretence for interference, he charged his brother, the gloomy Leopold of Austria, with the execution of the project. In 1 31 5, prepared "to tread the boors under foot," and carrying with him wagonloads of cordage, wherewith to hang the ring- leaders among the confederates, Leo- pold proceeded to Baden, where he held a coun- cil of war. A triple attack was concerted. The main force, fifteen or twenty thousand strong, was ordered to advance from Zug 3 34 Annals of Switzerland under Leopold himself, while Count Otho of Strassburg, with four thousand men, was to march over the Briinig, and one thousand troops from Luzern, crossing the lake, would join the others at Unterwalden. Confident of victory, the Duke's division ad- vanced in stalwart battalions, their leader the ideal of chivalry. The confederates, concluding hasty terms of alliance with Glarus, Urseren, and Interlaken, scornfully rejected the offered terms of peace, stationed themselves by com- mand of Rudolf Reding on a ridge of the Sattel, offered their prayers, and awaited the enemy. At early dawn, on the 1 5th of November, the Battle of narrow defile of Morgarten, where the Morgarten. asce nt into the uplands of Schwyz begins, was crowded with Austrian troops. Tradition relates that fifty men of Schwyz, who had returned from banishment on this eventful day, but were denied admittance into the ranks of their countrymen, ascended another ridge of the mountain, and hurled down rocks upon the advancing hosts. Into the confusion thus created rushed the confederate bands, striking down with their heavy clubs Austrian knight and soldier, many of whom were trodden to death by their own cavalry. There was no room for retreat except in the universal flight The League of Three Lands 35 which ensued after an hour and a half of des- perate strife. The invading army left the flower of their nobility upon the field, and Leopold, escaping with difficulty, reached Winterthur, says the chronicle, "pale and in despair. " The following morning, confederate troops marched to meet the men from Luzern, who had landed at Biirgenstadt, and easily forced them to retreat to their ships. The victors then turned toward a third detachment of the enemy, who had advanced across the Briinig, but who, learning of the defeat of their associ-, ates, hastily retreated. In a chapel dedicated to St. Jacob, on the confines of the canton of Zug, the Swiss erected a memorial of their victory, and here, on the anniversary of " the glorious battle of Morgarten," a commemora- tive service is annually held. A few weeks after the battle (Dec. 9, 13 15), deputies from the Waldstatten met at Brunnen, 1 and The Brunnen concluded a new treaty of alliance, by "Bund." which obedience to the seignors of the districts was still yielded, unless it should conflict with duty toward the confederacy, loyalty to which was forever to dominate all other claims. 1 At Brunnen is this inscription : " Hier wurde der ewige Bund geschworen, Anno 1315, die Grundfeste der Schwyz." 36 Annals of Switzerland The confederates appealed to Louis IV. for the removal of the ban launched against them by Frederick, and an imperial decree annulled all prerogatives of the house of Hapsburg in the Waldstatten. Involved in wars for the compensating possession of the imperial throne, the Duke of Austria made peace with the con- federates, in 1 318, renouncing all claims in their territory except over hereditary estates of the Hapsburgs; and the three communities, treating with Austria on equal terms, cove- nanted to enter no alliance antagonistic to their ancient enemy. This treaty, annually renewed, preserved peace until the year 1323. CHAPTER IV GROWTH OF THE CONFEDERACY The protective strength of the three valley- communities, in an age of general oppression, tempted neighboring towns to seek admission to their league, and entrance was first granted to Luzern. The burghers of that city had enjoyed many franchises under the mild government of Murbach Abbey, until finan- cial embarrassments had compelled the sale, to Rudolf of Hapsburg, of certain rights of feu- dal jurisdiction over the territory. When the Duke by an increase of taxes, forcible enlist- ment of troops, and other acts of arbitrary despotism, rendered his authority oppressive, Luzern was stimulated to throw off the recently- imposed yoke, and, as a preliminary step, con- cluded with the Waldstatten a treaty for twenty years. Upon learning of this alliance, the Hapsburg nobility in Aargau declared war, in the name of 38 Annals of Switzerland Austria, while within Luzern the aristocratic families united in a conspiracy for opening the gates to the enemy's forces. A legend tells how a boy who chanced to overhear their plans was discovered by the conspirators and made prisoner, but, regarded as too young to betray them, he was released after having taken an oath to reveal the secret to no man. Passing from the custody of his captors into a hall where some burghers were assembled, the boy related his story in a loud voice to the stove, easily attracting the attention of the citizens, who, through this timely warning, were able to arrest the leaders in the plot. Before sun- rise of the following day the giant peaks of Pilatus and Rigi, which shadow the ancient city, were watch-towers for a free 1332. people. The government of Luzern was taken from the families who had controlled it under the Duke of Austria, and was vested in a council of three hundred burghers. Zurich next joined the confederacy. That city, the Roman " Turicum, " endowed by the early Carlovingians with privileges Zurich. that insured its rapid growth, had become eminent both for commercial and in- tellectual activity. Its minster, enlarged and enriched by Charlemagne, dates backward to Growth of the Confederacy 39 the period of the introduction of Christianity by the Theban legion. The oldest Christian legend of the country tells how two members of the Theban band, Felix and Regula, refused to sacrifice to the gods, and were condemned to death by the Romans. After prolonged suffer- ings the martyrs were executed, but picking up their severed heads, they walked with them to the summit of a hill in the vicinity of Zurich, and buried themselves there in a spot now con- secrated to the patron saints of the city. In 853, Louis the German donated extensive lands to the convent of Felix and Regula, of which his daughter Hildegarde was abbess, and the district was granted exemption from all juris- diction save that of the king. The Emperor, Frederick II., made Zurich a free city, and in the thirteenth century it be- came a centre of intellectual life, where minne- singers and scholars received liberal patronage. During the interregnum new privileges were acquired, which were confirmed by Albert of Austria. The government was vested in the hands of a council elected by the citizens, but official caprice obtained frequent opportunity for indulgence through the wide liberty of action allowed in unforeseen circumstances. Com- plaints of oppression were rife, when a member 4 ach - July, 1386, met the Swiss army near Sempach, in the canton of Luzern. The nobles, finding 54 Annals of Switzerland their horses useless among the mountains, dis- mounted, cut the long peaks from their shoes that they might not become entangled in the high meadow grass, and closed in an appar- ently impenetrable phalanx, which bristled with pointed lances. The fifteen hundred Swiss bore only boards for bucklers, and at the first charge many fell before the extended spears of the enemy. Undismayed, the peasants rushed forward a second time, but only to meet a similar re- pulse. The utter annihilation of the brave little band seemed inevitable, but suddenly the tide of battle turned, and winged Victory rested on the side of the patriots. The chronicled solution of this caprice of fortune was undis- puted by early Swiss writers, though too roman- Arnoidvon iic to De credited by modern his- winkeiried. torians. According to the ancient records, a knight of Unterwalden, named Arnold von Winkelried, heroically devoted his life to save his country, and at the third charge, ex- tending his arms, with the words, " I will open a path to freedom ; provide for my wife and children ; honor my race ! " he clasped as many as he could gather of the iron lances, and bore them to the earth. Over his prostrate body his comrades forced their way into the Austrian The Era of Sempach and Nafels 55 ranks, and, beneath Swiss maces, armored prince and knight fell to the ground, until six hundred of their number, with two thousand soldiers, had been slain by a band of fourteen hundred poorly-armed peasants. Thrice the Austrian banner sank, thrice was it raised again, until, Duke Leopold himself falling beside it, a disastrous flight ensued. Thus, seventy-one years after Morgarten, the intrepid confederates again triumphed over Austria. Their leader, Gundoldingen, was slain in the battle, and their loss in num- bers was great ; but they were unsubdued. A truce for eighteen months was concluded with Austria, but so numerous were the acts of ill- faith committed on both sides during the period covered by the compact, that it be- The "Bad came notorious as the "Bad Peace." Peace." The spirit of animosity continued so intense, that in all Switzerland no man dared to display the peacock-feather (the symbol of the Austrian dukes) ; no peacock was permitted to live in the land; and it is recorded in Swiss annals that once a patriot shivered to fragments the drink- ing-glass he held, because through it, refracted sun-rays produced the variegated colors of the abhorred bird. Believing that the power of Austria had been 56 Annals of Switzerland broken at Sempach, Glarus, which since the treaty of 1352 had remained subservient to the Revoitof Duke, now rose in rebellion; but in Giams. ^ e dosing months of the "Bad Peace, " Austrian emissaries succeeded, through the treachery of citizens, in obtaining posses- sion of the town of Wesen in the canton of Glarus, where they put to death the native gar- rison. Confederate assistance could not be expected while the mountain passes were blocked by snow, and the men of Glarus sought alone to redeem their city from the foe. The demands of the Austrians were peremptory. "You must obey Austria as serfs, have only such laws as your lord shall grant you, repu- diate the bond with the confederate Swiss and serve against them, make compensation for the damage you have done, and expiate your mis- deeds until you deserve the grace of the Duke. " These terms Glarus refused to consider, and Battle of when all attempts at a compromise Hiifeia. failed, the patriots, barely six hun- dred in number, stationed themselves at Nafels to encounter the Austrian army. Eleven simple stones, bearing only the date "1388," mark the spot where that handful of shepherds under Matthias Am Buel, lands- captain, kept in check the hosts of the enemy. The Era of Sempach and Nafels 57 In the height of the struggle, shouts were heard upon the mountains, raised by thirty men of Schwyz hastening to assist their allies. The Austrians, ignorant of the number approach- ing, were startled and plunged into confusion. Their cavalry retreated, and their infantry fled in dismay, while the men of Glarus pursued, until twenty-five hundred of the enemy were slain, and many more drowned in the waters of the Linth. This closed the list of battles against Austrian encroachments in the eight cantons, 1 Zug hav- ing been won by the men of Schwyz ^vm Years' in 1364. The Duke, with both finan- Trnce - cial and military strength seriously impaired, willingly concluded a truce for seven years, which secured to the confederates all their acquisitions. Although private prerogatives of the house of Hapsburg as landed proprietors were guaranteed by Bern, Zurich, and "ISolo- thurn, with the acquiescence of the entire con- federacy, the authority of Austria in all other respects was finally broken. The seven years' truce was in 1394 extended to twenty years. Gradually the cities of the league multiplied their franchises, and purchased freedom from 1 On the 5th of April, 1888, a monument was dedicated near Nafels to commemorate the victory. 58 Annals of Switzerland the feudal jurisdiction of Austrian seignors. Luzern, Bern, and Zurich grew so prosperous that the privileges of their citizenship were sought by the neighboring nobility, who by this means acquired coveted prerogatives, one of which was the right to persecute the Jews. Leopold IV. of Austria repeatedly attempted to sow dissensions among the confederates, but, sempach convinced of the importance of inter- wFraueji- na * narmonv > the cantons concluded, brief. at Zurich, in 1393, a State compact, known as the Sempach Declaration. By special provisions therein recorded, federal sovereignty was strengthened, revengeful acts among mem- bers of the confederacy were prohibited, safety of intercourse and of commerce was insured, and unnecessary plunder of invaded territory was forbidden. Churches and convents were to be respected, but in time of war an enemy might be pursued even into churches. Women were never to be molested unless they took the offensive, hence this covenant was some- times called the Frauenbrief, or "Woman's Charter." The organization of the new state of Appen- zell soon augmented the strength of AppenzeU. the confederacy. A current tradition, of questionable historic The Era of Sempach and Nafels 59 accuracy, traces the settlement of Appenzell to a time when the devil, flying over the Sentis with a sackful of houses, tore a hole in the sack, and dropped the houses down in their present confusion; but a more credible reason for the habitation of the district is found in its proximity to the abbot's cell (Abtzelle), from which the name is derived. On the extensive lands early granted to the Abbot of St. Gall, serfs of that ecclesiastic resided, who cultivated the ground and paid tithes of their harvests to the Abbot's bailiff. In this neighborhood freemen of the empire claimed the right to choose their own council, and were under the supervision of an imperial bailiff alone. By a gradual purchase of land the Abbots of St. Gall obtained from the Emperor jurisdiction over this adjacent territory, and then to the faithful abbey-people privileges were granted which raised them more nearly to the level of their neighbors. In 1379, Kuno of Staufen became Abbot of St. Gall. He refused to confirm the fran- chises of the peasantry in either district, but increased their taxes, and enforced every claim of his early predecessors. When his bailiff caused a grave to be opened that he might obtain a coat, which had been the most valu- 60 Annals of Switzerland able chattel of the dead tenant, the peasants rose in resistance to his tyranny, and attacked the Abbot's castle. Kuno obtained aid from six Swabian cities, reinstated his ejected officer, and refused heed to the request that his tenants might be permitted to nominate men from whom he should choose a bailiff. Then the Appenzellers sought a defensive alliance with the town of St. Gall, but, failing to secure this, asked aid of the confederates. Glarus and Unterwalden each sent two hundred men, and Schwyz promised support, though other members of the league stood aloof. When coercion was again attempted by the Abbot, his allies, to the number of five thousand, were totally overthrown in the defile of Speicher, Batue on the by eighteen hundred shepherds of vbgeiinsegg. Appenzell, with their few allies from Schwyz and Glarus. This battle, on the hill Vogelinsegg, has been called "The Morgarten of Appenzell." With success, the men of Appenzell gained courage, and the Abbot fled to implore aid of Austria. The Duke, Leopold IV., hesitated to render active assistance, but the influence of his nobility prevailed, and he made prepara- tions for invading Appenzell with a formidable force. The peasants obtained an ally in Count The Era of Sempach and Nafels 61 Rudolf of Werdenberg, whose hereditary estates had been seized by Austria, and who, uniting his retainers with the troops of Appenzell, fought with them on foot, sharing their hardships, and inspiring them both by courage and counsel. On a day in June, 1405, the Austrian army appeared, ascending the hill of Stoss, which leads to the heights of Appenzell. Battle of Made slippery by the abundant rain t^s* 058 - which was falling, the narrow pass proved a difficult path for mail-clad troops, into whose ranks bare-footed peasants hurled masses of heavy rock, increasing thus the confusion of their wavering advance. When the enemy had mounted the hill half-way, Count Rudolf gave the signal for assault, and a desperate conflict began. The rain had rendered the crossbows of the Austrians useless, but they fought valiantly, until put to rout by the sudden assault of a band of peasants who had been in ambuscade. The stories tell also of the sudden appearance of another army upon the heights above the pass, at sight of whom the enemy's courage failed, and they fled precipitately, unaware that the force whose advent discomfited them was com- posed of the women of Appenzell, clad in shep- herds' frocks, who were advancing to share the fate appointed for their husbands and fathers. 61 Annals of Switzerland After this victory the Appenzellers destroyed more than sixty castles belonging to the Aus- trian nobility, and restored to the Count of Werdenberg his entire patrimony. Some vic- tories over scattered forces from Appenzell were gained by troops attached to a band of Swabian League of nobles, and known as the League of st. George. St George ; 1 but the Duke of Austria had retreated to the Tyrol, and terms of peace were soon arranged which freed Appenzell from the jurisdiction of the Abbot of St. Gall. The district was then placed under the protection of the confederacy, although in the compact then framed Bern refused to co-operate, having already negotiated a private treaty for ten years with St. Gall. On the death of Leopold IV. of Austria (141 1), Frederick of the Empty Pocket suc- ceeded to the Hapsburg possessions. The strength of the confederacy was in- Tracewith creasing; Bern had formed an alli- ance with Freyburg, and all the cantons were prompt, either secretly or openly, in proffering assistance to enemies of Austria. To prevent the total alienation of his dominions, 1 The Swabian League, or League of St. George, was deri- sively called the " Petticoat League," from the style of coat worn by members. The Era of Sempach and Nafels 63 Frederick concluded a peace for fifty years with the confederates, and by the terms of the treaty, Appenzell and Solothurn, as well as the cantons, were confirmed in their possession of all newly- acquired territory. CHAPTER VI THE COUNCIL OF CONSTANCE 1414 Long before the close of the middle ages, Europe was tossed in the tumult of religious controversy that culminated in the Reforma- tion. Hallam characterizes the greater por- tion of the literature disseminated between the twelfth and sixteenth centuries, as "artillery levelled against the clergy," and the wide- spread luxury and immorality among the priestly class tended greatly to diminish the traditional reverence for its authority. The fourteenth century witnessed the so-called "Babylonish exile of the Papacy," at Avignon (1308-1378), and after the election of 1378, when Christ- endom beheld two rival pontiffs fulminating anathemas against each other, inquiry into the nature of the priestly office was instituted in a critical temper before unknown. The council of Pisa sought, by the deposition of both Popes and the elevation of Martin V. to The Council of Constance 65 the ecclesiastical supremacy, to soothe the pre- vailing anarchy, but this proceeding served only to add fuel to the flames, and to sanction the pretensions of a third claimant for the papal chair. For the consideration of these disputes and of kindred subjects, a General Council was sum- moned to convene at Constance. There gath- ered princes and nobles from all the kingdoms of Europe, with deputies from universities and representatives of monasteries. Their work was undertaken with zeal, the contending claimants for the papal chair were all deposed, and the Catholic world was once more united under a single head. This "most august eccle- siastical assemblage of the middle ages " also distinguished itself by breaking the spell that had formerly environed papal enactments, by the declaration that a council held authority in religious matters above the pontiff at Rome, — a tenet first propounded by Marsilius of Padua, in the foregoing century. At this epoch, the doctrines of the English Wycliffe had become widely disseminated in Bohemia through the teachings of John Hues. John Huss, "the John Baptist of the Reformation." Huss boldly proclaimed the necessity for holiness of life, and appealed from 5 66 Annals of Switzerland the Pope to the Bible. By attacking the scan- dalous lives of the clergy, the reformer aroused a bitter personal animosity, whose first fruit was his excommunication. Driven by this sen- tence from his home in Prague, Huss was fol- lowed in his wanderings by many adherents, eager to receive his instructions, and when summoned to appear at the Council of Con- stance, his steps toward Switzerland were protected by an imperial safe-conduct. Commanded by the Council to retract his heretical assertions, Huss steadily refused to comply, unless convinced of error through the Scriptures; and the Emperor Sigismund, noted as a sovereign "above the rules of grammar," was easily induced, despite his guarantee, to permit the imprisonment of the reformer. Every effort to force from Huss a recantation of his opinions proved ineffectual, and he stead- fastly asserted his right to form private judg- ments, until led from the prison to the stake. On the forty-second anniversary of his birth, June 6, 141 5, Huss was publicly burned to death, and his ashes thrown into the Rhine. 1 1 Huss used to say, in allusion to his own name, which in the Bohemian dialect signifies a goose, " The goose is a weak and tame creature, and cannot fly high, but stronger birds will follow it ; falcons and eagles will soar aloft, breaking through all snares." The Council of Constance 67 The following year the same sentence was ex- ecuted upon Jerome of Prague, the jeromeof learned and zealous associate of Huss- Pra ^ ie - Upon the death of King Wenceslaus of Bohemia, in 1419, the Emperor Sigismund laid claim to his dominions, but his succes- sion was disputed by the Hussites, under their brave, though blind leader, John of Trocznow, surnamed "Ziska," whose skill in warfare baffled the efforts of Sigismund during fifteen years. The Hussites were divided into two sects, — the Calixtines or Utraquists, and the Saborites. The main point for which the Calixtines contended was the right of the laity to receive the cup in the communion, but they went beyond Huss in the claim that both ele- ments were necessary in the administration of the sacrament. The Saborites, still more ultra than the Calixtines, sought an entire separation from the existing church. In 1433 an agree- ment was reached between the mod- The erate party and the Council of Basle, compactata. and in a document known as the " Compactata," the Calixtines were granted many points for which they had long contended. Succeeding popes made efforts to annul the Compactata, but the Hussites strenuously insisted upon the 68 Annals of Switzerland prerogatives it sanctioned, until they finally attained a legal equality with the Catholics. The summons to the three rival popes to appear before the Council of Constance was answered only by John XXII. Finding his position in the city an equivocal one, he fled thence to Schaffhausen, and sought refuge in the castle of the Duke of Austria, Frederick of the Empty Pocket. The protection afforded the deposed pontiff called forth against Fred- erick a bill of excommunication from the Coun- cil, which was followed by the ban of the empire, and a summons to all faithful imperial subjects to unite against Austria. The Swiss hesitated to obey; their treaty for fifty years having been recently concluded, Zurich, Zug, Luzern, and Glarus declared with the Wald- statten that the violation of this compact was impossible. But Bern, anxious to avail herself of the opportunity for acquisition of new terri- tory, armed her troops, and when an imperial manifesto guaranteed to each canton permanent possession of whatever lands it might conquer from the enemy, she took the field without awaiting the concurrence of her allies. This aroused the jealousy of Zurich, who desired to share the prospective booty, and at length the entire confederacy, with the exception of Uri, The Council of Constance 69 followed the example of Bern. Aargau was quickly captured, the revolt of many vassals of Austria resulted in the loss of war against Thurgau, and misfortunes multiplied Anatria - around Frederick until his resolution was broken, and, taking measures to prevent the escape of the Pope, he repaired to Constance, and ten- dered his submission to the Emperor. After months of humiliation the ban was removed, and the greater portion of the Duke's posses- sions were restored, though meanwhile his strong castle of Baden had been captured by the confederates and burned to the ground. This deed, committed just before the arrival of the imperial heralds with peace proclamations, excited the indignation of Sigismund, and he demanded that the Swiss should relinquish their conquests. They replied by quoting his pre- vious decree with reference to the acquisition of territory, and Uri alone declined her share in the newly-won land, proposing that it should all be transferred to the Emperor in return for a guaranteed immunity from reprisals for viola- tion of the truce with Austria. This proposi- tion the other cantons refused to consider, but agreed to place their common acquisitions under the control of bailiffs who should be appointed by each canton in turn, and from whom, annu- 70 Annals of Switzerland ally-rendered accounts of their administration should be received by the confederacy. Thus Pree were established common or so- Baiiiwicks. ca n e d "free " bailiwicks, a travesty upon the word, as the districts possessed politi- cally only such rights as were granted by the cantons. These wars for the acquisition of territory, says the Swiss historian, Miiller, "soiled the pure robe of the primitive confederacy." The century, which began with civil wars and for- eign conquests ended in degrading mercenary service. In the thirteenth century the opening of the St. Gothard pass had promoted friendly inter- course between the Waldstatten and their Italian neighbors, and a lively traffic in their respec- tive articles of produce was long maintained. In 1403 quarrels occurred among the mer- chants at the Valaisian fairs, and, in retaliation Conflicts f° r the seizure of their cattle, some with savoy. men f rom |jri occupied the Duomo d'Ossola. The Duke of Milan had sold this valley to the Count of Savoy, and the latter' s troops soon drove the Swiss peasants over the mountains ; but the Savoyards had been guided to the valley by the Baron of Raron, a lord of Valais, who claimed citizenship with Bern, The Council of Constance 71 and complaints to that canton were accordingly entered by the aggrieved men of Uri and Unter- walden. Failing to receive satisfaction from this quarter, the Swiss then agreed to assist the oppressed vassals of the Baron of Raron in a revolt against their lord. For the purpose of exciting the peasantry and securing their co- operation, an ancient custom, called the "rais- ing of La Mazze," was resorted to. At one end of a large club was carved a human face, which, to represent suffering, was ^^ surrounded with thorns; and this Ka33Si " figure, named La Mazze, was exhibited on the highway. The crowds who gathered, ques- tioned it unavailingly upon its grievance, until, designating the object of their antagonism, they inquired, "Art thou afraid of the Baron of Raron ? " when the figure responded by an affirmative gesture. The man in attendance, who represented the master of "La Mazze," then harangued the assembled crowd, urging all who would fight for La Mazze to hold up their hands, and the mob, thus excited, was led through the country, pillaging the castles, and desolating the estates of the Baron. Luzern joined Uri and Unterwalden, and supported Valais in these proceedings, but Bern opposed them, and suggested a settle- 72 Annals of Switzerland ment of differences by a Bernese diet. This method of pacification the Valaisians declined, and soon found themselves abandoned by Luzern, while Bern despatched against them an army of thirteen thousand men. Battles of J uirichen and At the village of Ulrichen six hun- dred resolute peasants, led by Thomas Riedie, almost exterminated the Bernese army, while (1419) near Miinster another band in- flicted upon their titled adversaries an equally overwhelming blow. The Baron of Raron was sent a fugitive into Savoy, but, through the mediation of Duke Amadeus VIII. , a peace was concluded, which left the Swiss in posses- sion of the Val d'Ossola and the Levantina. But the Duke of Milan, jealous of these acquisitions, declared war against the confed- Battie of erates, and after a bloody conflict at Arbeddo. Arbeddo, forced them to relinquish (1422) the new territory. A Schwyzer, named Peter Rysig, resolved to revenge this humilia- tion, and, having raised a force of six hundred men, crossed the mountains, and descended suddenly upon the inhabitants of the Val d'Ossola. The Milanese army, thirty thou- sand strong, marched to meet them ; but when summoned to surrender, the valiant Rysig replied, "The Swiss are not conquered by The Council of Constance 73 words ! " and with heroic resolution encoun- tered repeated assaults of the enemy. Stimu- lated by his enthusiastic bravery, twenty-two thousand confederates hurried to his aid; but the Duke of Milan won many through intrigue; and by the payment of thirty thousand florins and the grant of certain desirable commercial privileges, he ultimately secured possession of the Levant ina. Among the strangers gathered at Constance appeared a band of dark-complexioned, scantily- clad people, under a leader who called Gypsies. himself Duke Michael of Egypt. His followers, known as Zingari, or gypsies, pretended to be descendants of tribes of Lower Egypt, who had refused to receive Joseph and Mary. Having now become Christians, the band was on a seven-years' pilgrimage. It has been thought by philologists of a recent day that they were remnants of the race driven from India upon the overthrow of the dynasty of the Sultan of Ghaur. CHAPTER VII CIVIL WARS AND "THE EVERLASTING COMPACT " 1436-1474. Subsequent to the period of Frankish sove- reignty, the peasants in the district of Rhetia were governed by feudal lords, either Rhetia. 1 secular or ecclesiastical, whose tyran- nical rule caused frequent revolts. As early as 1396, defensive alliances against the des- potism of their bishops were formed among subjects of the convents, who were known as "God's-House people "; and in 1424 the com- munity of upper Rhetia, known as the " Gray League," from the color of the frocks worn by their deputies, secured from their seignors a guarantee of privileges. Upon the death of the Count of Toggenburg, a district extending from the Lake of Zurich to the Tyrol was claimed by various heirs, and to protect their hereditary rights the inhabitants united in a compact known as the " League of the Ten Jurisdic- tions." The localities occupied by the God's- "The Everlasting Compact" 75 House league, the Gray league, and the league of the Ten Jurisdictions were then The Griaona joined in a federal union, and by a modification of the designation bestowed upon the second league, gave the name of Grisons to the entire territory of Rhetia. The Count of Toggenburg had been co-burgher with Zurich, and also with Schwyz; but after his death it was discovered that permanent jurisdiction over his vast estates had been left solely to Schwyz. Madame Elizabeth, the Count's widow, fearing a division of her prop- erty among various claimants, sought, by a liberal donation of lands, to gain the protec- tion of Zurich. Hereupon Schwyz requested the heirs of the Count to forbid the alienation of any portion of the estates, and the two cities under their chief men, — Stiissi, burgo- master of Zurich, and Itel Reding, landam- mann of Schwyz, — were incited to acts of bit- ter antagonism. Each leader was ambitious to strengthen his own canton, at any expense. Schwyz sought the aid of Glarus, and, oblivious of more ancient bonds, stood ready for war; and Zurich, incited by jealousy and ' * ' Quarrel be- resentment, had already assumed tween Zurich arms, when the other confederates " c wyz ' interfered. A council was convened at Luzern, y6 Annals of Switzerland but adjourned after a session of four weeks, without having reconciled the antagonists. A second and a third assembly proved equally powerless, and Schwyz finally declared that she would accept no compromise. Then a gen- eral meeting was called at Bern, from whence messages were sent to the two wrathful cities, announcing the intention of the united con- federacy to intervene should the terms pro- •posed be rejected. Against such intervention Zurich protested, claiming the right of appeal to the empire; but in 1440 the troops of Uri and Unterwalden, in conjunction with those from Schwyz and Glarus, desolated her land with fire and sword, until, overpowered by the combination of hostile agencies, the city was forced to sign a disadvantageous peace. Stiissi then appealed to Austria for aid, and entered Alliance into an offensive and defensive league AustriTand w * tn t ^ ie hereditary enemy of his Zurich. land, offering to cede the city of Kyburg to Frederick V., who in 1440 had been elected Emperor of Germany. In the hats of the troops of Zurich, the red crosses worn by the Austrians supplanted the white confederate badges, and even the peacock's plume was occa- sionally displayed. Thus outraged by members of their own league, the other confederates "The Everlasting Compact" 77 hastened to join Schwyz in a declaration of war against Zurich and Austria; and in 1443 the army of Zurich was defeated at St. Jacob on the Sihl. In an attempt to rally , . „ . , Battle of St. his flying troops, the burgomaster, jacobon Stiissi, was struck down by the lance theSiW - of a Schwyzer, when the furious soldiers, after tearing out his heart, madly rubbed their boots with portions of his flesh. The confederates next besieged Baden and Rapperswyl ; but failing to take the latter city, they agreed to a cessation of hostilities, and signed a treaty known as the "Rotten Peace," because so badly kept. Both parties then en- deavored to acquire strength through outside al- liances, and the Emperor asked aid of Burgundy and France. Philip the Good of Burgundy rejected every solicitation to open hostilities toward a people with whom his intercourse had long been both cordial and profitable; but France and Austria joined hands, invasion of and the Dauphin, "that troublesome Armagnacs. heir to the throne," afterwards Louis XL, ad- vanced upon Basle, with the rapacious mer- cenary troops known as Armagnacs. 1 A mere 1 So called from their leader, the Count of Armagnac, by whom they had been enlisted to serve in the war waged by Charles VII. of France against England. 78 Annals of Switzerland handful of Swiss, numbering not more than i . , two thousand, met his army near Battle of ' * st. Jacob on St. Jacob on the Birs, Aug. 26, 1/144, an d> with the cry " Our souls to God, our bodies to the Armagnacs," rushing dauntlessly into the fray, they fought with the heroic valor of their race until nearly all were slain. The remnant who escaped were disci- plined with Spartan rigor, and proscribed throughout the land. But the victory was dearly bought by the French, and the victors dared not advance. "A more obstinate people Treaty with cannot be found," wrote the Dauphin France. to Charles VII. A treaty 1 negoti- ated by Louis — the first ever concluded be- tween the Swiss and the house of Valois — secured the confederacy against further moles- tation from France; but there were many fruit- less attempts to effect a compromise in home interests before unity was restored. Stussi and Itel Reding were both dead, the Emperor weary of the war, and through the arbitration of Louis, Elector-Palatine, and other princes, the founda- tion of a general peace was laid at Constance in 1450. The league of Zurich with Austria 1 In this treaty, negotiated between the French and the Swiss, at Ensisheim Oct. 28, 1444, the name " canton " first appears as a designation for individual states of the confederacy. "The Everlasting Compact" 79 was pronounced contrary to the obligations of the confederacy, therefore null and void, and Toggenburg was left in the possession of a rela- tive of the late Count, who subsequently sold it to the Abbot of St. Gall. A ratification of the treaty consummated with France in 1444 not only riveted the friendly relations between that country and Switzer- land, but induced Charles VII. to truce with undertake the office of an arbitrator Anstria - between Austria and the confederacy. Through his intervention, a truce between these habitual foes was arranged in 1459; but it was signed only to be broken, rearranged, and broken again. Austrian knight-robbers plundered the bag- gage of merchants in Switzerland; the Swiss retaliated by laying waste the Austrian lands in Thurgau, Alsace, and the Schwarzwald, and besieging the town of Waldshut on S i egeo f the Rhine. A lengthy war seemed WaWshnt - again imminent, until the influence of neigh- boring princes secured a peace in which Sigis- mund of Austria guaranteed to the Swiss all the territory they had conquered, and promised to ransom Waldshut by the payment of one hundred thousand florins. This sum he was unable to pay; the Emperor approved the con- 80 Annals of Switzerland tract, but contributed advice only, and the Duke made application for pecuniary aid to his ally, Louis XL, who, on the death of Charles VII., had succeeded to the throne of France. Louis, with whom a chronic condition of bankruptcy was an inevitable result of his insatiable delight in intrigue, sug- Intrigues. gested Charles of Burgundy as the banker most opulent, and the ally most service- able. A double motive was always essential to this sovereign of France, of whom contem- poraries said that " he slept with one eye closed during war, but kept both open in time of peace ; " and Louis aimed at involving Charles in complications with the Swiss, hoping, by the promotion of strife between the confederacy and Burgundy, effectually to weaken an enemy whom he, both by deeply-laid schemes and through open hostilities, had striven in vain to humiliate. Charles of Burgundy, the " Napoleon of the middle ages," cherished secretly a project for Austrian the establishment of a new Burgun- gaged™ 01 *" ^ian kingdom, which should equal in Burgundy. extent the realm dismembered by Charlemagne. Realizing that these plans would be promoted by possession of the Rhineland, he readily agreed to advance the funds "The Everlasting Compact" 81 solicited, together with an additional sum for the private use of the indigent Duke. At St. Omer, in May, 1469, the chief hereditary pos- sessions of the Hapsburgs on both sides of the Rhine were mortgaged to Burgundy, "with full enjoyment of all rights of lordship and sove- reignty," subject only to the pleasure of the Duke of Austria in redeeming them. The debt to the Swiss was then discharged, and the Emperor disannulled the treaty of Waldshut. Charles intrusted the . . Hagenbach. administration of his newly-acquired territory to Peter von Hagenbach, who had proved his devotion to the interests of Bur- gundy through years of service, but whose predilection for absolutism in the rule of the nobility rendered his conduct of affairs so tyrannical, that the borrowed appellation, "Scourge of God," distinguished him. Com- plaints of the severity of his government were sent to the Duke of Burgundy, but availed nothing, for, confident that his possession of the land would be permanent, Charles had resolved to subject it to a rule more arbitrary than that of the Hapsburgs. When his designs became evident to the free cities of Alsace, they deter- mined to unite in a defiance of the authority thus gravely menacing their freedom; and, as 6 82 Annals of Switzerland the readiest means of effecting their purpose, they agreed to furnish Sigismund with the means of redeeming his property. But the designs of the Duke of Austria, in entering upon the contract with Burgundy, had reached beyond the circle of protection afforded by the alliance. Sigismund discerned in his valorous ally, not a mediator between Austria and the Swiss, but a subjugator of those hered- itary antagonists of his house. By the terms of the league of St. Omer, the Swiss were warned against molesting the Austrians, who were thenceforth under Burgundian protection, although, unless hostilities were provoked by overt or secret acts toward his ally, the rela- tions between Charles and the confederacy were to continue on the same amicable footing as formerly. When, therefore, Sigismund de- manded that "a great and good army" should be despatched against the Swiss, the Duke replied that any act of aggression on his part would be wholly inconsistent with the rela- tions existing between Burgundy and the con- federacy, and only in case of provocation from the latter would a hostile attitude toward them be justifiable. Failing in every effort to achieve his purpose through his alliance with Burgundy, Sigismund "The Everlasting Compact" 83 then secretly projected another intrigue, and again sent emissaries to the Court of France. At the time of the first Austrian embassy, the Swiss, fearing some arrangement inimical to their interests, had also despatched The ambassadors, to mediate, if neces- Diesbachs - sary, in their favor. These men, the Dies- bachs, prominent citizens of Bern, had ingra- tiated themselves with the French king, and Louis, who never permitted an opportunity for the exercise of craft to escape him, beguiled them into acting as his instruments upon their return home. When the second proposition from Sigismund was received, it was combined in the mind of Louis with the design of inveig- ling the Swiss into his alliance, and present- ing them as a strong bulwark of defence against Burgundy. Sigismund's offensive de- signs toward the Swiss were subordinated to these projects, and the French king, through the influence he was secretly, and by Leagae bribery, able to exert at Bern, con- between France, summated his scheme of uniting Austria, and Austria, France, and the confed- eracy in an alliance antagonistic to Burgundy. The union promised nothing to the Swiss, and the consent of a majority of the cantons was at first withheld ; but French gold at length pre- 84 Annals of Switzerland vailed to influence all save Unterwalden; and one hundred and fifty-nine years after Morgar- ten, eighty-eight years after Sempach, an " eter- nal covenant " was signed at Feldkirch, between Austria and the confederacy, under the guar- antee of France. In this compact, Sigismund renounced all claim in Switzerland to former Austrian prerogatives, and exchanged with the cantons pledges of friendship and support. He covenanted to redeem the mortgaged lands with gold furnished by Alsace, and a general defiance to Burgundy was declared. CHAPTER VIII WAR WITH BURGUNDY 1474-1475 Charles the Bold had long been suspicious of clandestine dealings on the part of Sigis- mund, but the envoys from Austria indignantly repudiated every implication of treachery, and denied the intimation that their sovereign's intercourse with the French might be inimical to the interests of Burgundy. The fidelity of the Swiss was presumably secured, for the Duke's officers in Alsace had received strict commands to preserve inviolate every preroga- tive claimed by the confederacy. When, therefore, the Alsatian towns advanced the sum for payment of the mortgage, spurred to action by a report that at Treves the Duke had been crowned King of Burgundy, Charles refused to receive the proffered gold, or to relinquish possession of the territory. In a revolt at Breisach, Hagenbach was seized and carried before a tribunal which included some 86 Annals of Switzerland Swiss officials. Accused of many private mis- demeanors, as well as of violating the fran- chises of the people under his government, he Death of was cruelly tortured, condemned, and Hagenbach. publicly beheaded (1474). Charles, although enraged, postponed his retaliation while occupied with affairs incident to the extension of his dominions on the Rhine. Louis, in the meantime, had won over the Emperor Frederick V., who, as soon as affairs between Austria and Burgundy had reached an open rupture, summoned the confederates to Message to take P art i n the approaching conflict. Burgundy. aj- Bern, where executive authority for the confederacy had been vested, a message to the Duke of Burgundy was prepared, and inserted, after the usual custom, in a split in the herald's staff. It announced that, in obe- dience to the command of the Emperor, and on account of the invasion of Sigismund's terri- tory, whose adherents they declared themselves, the Swiss were thenceforth enemies to their quondam ally, and in substantiation of this announcement they were ready to execute hos- tile purposes against him "by slaying, by burn- ing, by plundering, in the day or in the night. " Thus far, the King of France had executed with perfect success the scheme he had so care- War with Burgundy 87 fully concocted. * He had succeeded in provid- ing himself with valiant, skilful, and reliable troops, secretly under his control, through their greed of gold, while ostensibly they were mar- shalled against the foe of the empire, in obedi- ence to their duty as imperial subjects. Before the letter to Charles had reached its destination, troops from Bern, with a small force from Freyburg and Solothurn, had set forth upon an expedition into the enemy's terri- tory. With five hundred Austrian cavalry the army numbered about eight thousand men, all of whom adopted as their badge the white cross of the Swiss confederacy. The fort- Attack upon ress of He>icourt, in Franche-Comt6, H & lconrt - was besieged, and a Burgundian force, under Henri de Neuchatel, governor of the district, advanced to its relief. The savage assault of the Swiss scattered this army in immediate flight, and secured the capitulation of the fortress. Louis of France was profuse in the expression of pleasure and commendation, but the more tangible aid of French troops was still delayed, and when the money promised for the payment of the Swiss soldiers failed to be delivered, Bern became uneasy, and, with five other cantons, expressed openly her suspicions of the good faith of the French ally. Com- 88 Annals of Switzerland plications increased when Yolande, Queen- Regent of Savoy, who had been in alliance with Yoiande of both Burgundy and the confederacy, savoy. allowed the passage through her terri- tory of Lombard troops on their way to join the army of Charles the Bold. The demand sent forth from Bern, that Savoy should dissolve her treaty with the Duke, on the ground of his antagonism both to the empire and to France — to whose king Yolande was sister — was met by many remonstrances from the ingenious queen, whose agents, profiting by the divided opinions in the cantons, concerning the treaty with France, endeavored to stir up strife in the Gaieas confederacy. Yolande courted, and Sforza. obtained for herself and for Charles, the alliance of Gaieas Sforza, Duke of Milan; but this support failed to prove the safeguard for Savoy that the Queen had anticipated. The demand that she should renounce the alliance with Burgundy and unite her strength with that of the confederacy was repeated, and upon the receipt of her absolute refusal a severe punishment was threatened, and subsequently executed. In the conduct of these affairs, Bern, influ- enced by a private retainer from Louis, had frequently acted upon her own responsibility, War with Burgundy 89 without waiting for the sanction of the other cantons. As hired troops in the service of the King of France, the confederates considered themselves summoned to the battlefield at his command, and with sublime confidence in the assertion, "A handful of Swiss is a match for an army," they feared no foreign foe. But they regarded their compact as one for mer- cenary service, without responsibility, and they were unaffected by incidental circumstances of the war, that might be of supreme importance either to Austria or the empire. Sigismund's call for troops to protect Alsace was disre- garded; but when the safety was threatened of a small force from Bern and Solothurn, which, on a predatory excursion, had entered Burgun- dian territory, the alarum from Bern summoned from Luzern, Schwyz, and other cantons, swift aid to meet the emergency. This danger past, the Diet refused to continue their pro- vision for reinforcing the army; but Diesbach, who held command of troops already in the field, projected a private expedition into the Jura, with the aim of possessing himself of territory long coveted by Bern. At Orbe, a castle — belonging to the house of Chalons, which paid allegiance to Burgundy — was attacked and taken, although the garrison re- 9 Schemes of in Geneva; but syndics, councillors, Amadeus and deputies combined to resist even the papal will, in defence of their threatened liberties, and Duke Amadeus was obliged to defer the execution of his project; although he finally succeeded in effecting it through a laby- rinth of manoeuvres, and with the connivance of Rome. 156 Annals of Switzerland Having abdicated the throne of Savoy to his son, he assumed the hermit's frock, but relin- quished this for pontifical robes, when, under the name of Felix V., he was raised to the papacy by the Council of Basle. Upon the death of the Bishop of Geneva he made himself administrator of that diocese, which he governed by a vicar, until persuaded by the Emperor, Fred- erick III., to resign the papal chair. Then, transferring himself to the see of Geneva, he attained the object of his ambition, with power to transmit its prerogatives to his heirs. The dependents of these intruders encroached upon the rights of the citizens, and thronged the city, until it was asserted that more Savoyards than Genevans heard the bells of St. Peter's. The right to appoint Bishops of Geneva, formerly monopolized by the canons of the cathedral, unless the Pope chose thus to assert his authority, was thenceforth claimed by the Dukes of Savoy; and upon the sudden death, in 1513, of Charles de Syssel, a partisan of the people against the usurpations of the reigning Duke, the suspicion was widely circulated that further encroachments upon the liberties of the city were contemplated. Influenced by the conscientious, resolute, and heroic Berthelier, Geneva 157 the patriots resolved that successive bishops should be chosen by themselves ; but Charles of Savoy succeeded in securing papal co-operation in the execution of his schemes, and Leo X. rejected the candidate freely chosen in the city. A manifesto was then issued j ohn0 f by the Pope in favor of John, "the Savoy - Bastard of Savoy," a creature wholly devoted to the interests of the Duke, whose installation into the bishopric speedily followed. His oath, in presence of the syndics, to preserve inviolate their ancient liberties, preceded by only a few hours the declaration to his courtiers, that "the next step would be to Savoyardize Geneva." The period of his tyrannical rule over the city was red with the tortures of the rack, and tumultuous through the resistance of patriots. The year which inaugurated the sway of the Bastard of Savoy brought also to Geneva the young Savoyard nobleman, Francis Bonnivard. His uncle, John Aim6 Bonnivard, * Bonnivard the prior of St. Victor's monastery, and had bequeathed to him a small terri- tory just without the city, over which, as prior of St. Victor's, he became sovereign prince. The young man, who had been educated in Turin, was brilliant, scholarly, liberal. Be- tween him and Berthelier a warm friendship 158 Annals of Switzerland was soon established, and their hands joined in a compact to rescue Geneva from the power of Savoy, — a purpose to which Berthelier had consecrated his life. Charles of Savoy found the influence of his Bishop counteracted by the diplomacy of these patriots, and in 15 19, resolving upon coercive measures for the subjugation of the city, he approached the gates with a large army, and demanded free entrance. The syndics offered a welcome to the Duke and his retinue, but refused admission to the army. Characterizing them as rebellious subjects, Charles imperi- ously announced his determination personally to administer justice within their walls. An appeal to arms seemed inevitable, until the adherents of Savoy within the city succeeded in effecting a compromise. Upon receiving various friendly protestations from the Duke, the council consented to his entrance with a selected guard ; but as soon as the gates were opened the entire army was set in Treachery of § . the Duke motion, and the authorities of Geneva realized, too late, the danger of put- ting their faith in the princes of Savoy. The Savoyard army was stationed within the city, the cannon removed from the walls, and placed around the Duke's quarters, the keys of the Geneva 159 arsenal were demanded, and in a few days Geneva was prostrate at the feet of the usurper. Previous to these events, an alliance with Freyburg and Bern had been negotiated for Geneva, through Berthelier's diplomacy, and in this extremity Besan^on Hugues, Besa iicon a zealous patriot, contrived to escape Hu s^ e »- from the city. Fleeing to Freyburg, he de- picted before the council of that place the perfidy of the Duke of Savoy and Geneva's need, until, in the words of an old writer, " Every one who had anything like a heart in his breast resolved to rescue Geneva, and punish the Duke." A large force was immediately despatched to aid the imperilled city; the Duke, alarmed, agreed to retire with his troops to Savoy, and the immediate danger was averted. At this period the appellation of Huguenots was given to the liberal party in Geneva. Pre- vious to the Reformation, the name Huguenot*. had a purely political significance. From the cognomen, Eidgenossen, or, oath- companions, by which the members of the Swiss league were known, it has been ingen- iously traced through the variations Eidguenots, Eignots, and Eyguenots. It seems as reason- able to conjecture that the appellation may 160 Annals of Switzerland have been derived from the name of Besancon Hugues, a prominent member of the liberal league. The opposing party were characterized as Mamelukes, and compared to the Egyptian soldiers, who, having entered the service of the Sultan, relinquished their liberty, and became Mohammedans. The Duke's entrance into Geneva had threat- ened serious consequences to the young prior of St. Victor's, and he was induced temporarily to desert his monastery, and to seek a refuge at Echallons, a town under the pro- Bonnivard. tection of Bern. Having trusted to the guidance of two perfidious nobles, Bonni- vard found himself entrapped by them, and forced to sign a renunciation of his priory. He was then delivered into the hands of the Duke, by whose orders he was imprisoned in the castle of Grol6e, on the banks of the Rhone, while one of his betrayers was installed at St. Victor's, and the other rewarded with a portion of the revenue pertaining to the priory. Berthelier, destined to reap even more bitter fruit of patriotism, though warned of danger, refused to leave the city. Soon after the Duke's departure he was arrested by order of the Bishop, and confined in Caesar's tower at Geneva 161 the Chateau de l'lle. Arrested without an accuser, he was as unrighteously tried, judged, and condemned to death, for espousing the cause of freedom. August 23, 1 5 19, the founder of the league, "Who touches one touches all," was executed. His head was exhibited as that of a Death of traitor, and his property was confis- Be 1 * 1 "^*- cated. After his death, the Duke of Savoy, tri- umphant over principles and liberties, effected various changes in the constitution of Geneva. The syndics, "more ready to lose their maces than their heads," resigned their offices, and the places were filled by adherents of the Duke. A heavy gloom overshadowed the city ; the patriots, benumbed, held only rare and secret meetings; servitude and ruin seemed their inevitable doom. During three days a young girl went through the streets, refusing food or drink, and ever crying, in a monotonous and dismal voice, "Wicked Miller! Wicked Mill! Wicked Meal! All is lost! All is lost ! " It seemed the farewell wail of the phantom of freedom Geneva had cherished. But in 1520 the Duke returned to Turin, and the Bishop, having been seized with illness, left the city. Then the liberal party aroused themselves, and demanded the restoration of 11 1 62 Annals of Switzerland their franchises and the release of their impris- oned compatriots. The vicar in authority dared not resist, and the patriots, gaining courage, despatched one of their number to the Pope, with a petition that the city should be relieved Banishment from the surveillance of John of Bastard of Savoy. Their request was granted; savoy." the Bastard was forbidden to return to Geneva, but, commanded to appoint his coad- jutor, chose Pierre de la Baume, who entered the city the following year. Two years later John of Savoy died, suffering great agony and discerning upon the crucifix, when it was pre- sented for his comfort, only the features of his victim, Berthelier. Even at this early period, Geneva had evinced a tendency toward religious, as well as political enfranchisement, — through the influence, an old writer declares, of " some people called Evan- gelicals, who had come from France." Duke Charles of Savoy, still more exasperated by the discovery of these predilections on the part of the people, threatened to make the city " smaller than the smallest village in Savoy," but find- ing threats and commands equally unavailing, he resorted to artifice to establish his influence. Under the pretence of entertaining a special partiality for the city, he expressed a desire to Geneva 163 present there his bride, Beatrice of Portugal, whose sister was soon to wed the Emperor, Charles V. The princely pair were received with honor, but the Duke's efforts proved fruit- less to win a peopje whom he had so frequently deceived. Relinquishing the disguise of friend- ship, he then issued orders for the j^t arrest of Aime" Levrier, judge of the Levrier - council of Geneva, who had dared to maintain the prerogatives of the city in opposition to the demands of Savoy. Levrier was secretly seized, carried to the castle of Bonne, and, after a few days' imprisonment, was beheaded. This deed served to estrange the few friends Charles had won in Geneva, and the indigna- tion, universally expressed, caused him to frame a hasty excuse for his departure. His arbitrary efforts to subjugate the city were nevertheless continued, until against such tyranny another appeal to the Pope was determined upon. For this purpose deputies were despatched to Rome; but, through the machinations of the Savoyards, they were stopped on their way, and detained until the influence of the Mameluke party in Geneva had again prevailed, and the city council withdrew the appeal. Charles, called "the Good," in the annals of his coun- try, then proceeded to prepare a proscription 164 Annals of Switzerland list, which included the names of all who had opposed his capricious sway. After the death of Levrier, the most influen- tial citizen was Besanc_on Hugues, "the Nestor of Geneva," a young man, bold, devoted, and wise. He had been the chief obstacle to the progress of the Savoyard influence, and he now seemed threatened with the fate of Berthelier and Levrier. Upon his return to Savoy, the Duke had secretly mustered another army. Silently it advanced toward Geneva, startling the patriots, who had barely time to secure the flight of their leaders. Attempting to reach the Swiss cantons, many were turned back by officers of Savoy, posted to prevent their escape. Hugues, who happened to be at his farm, a short distance out of the city, contrived to elude the traitor deputed to capture him, and reached Freyburg in safety. There he was received with honor, and in a fervid address in the council-hall he enlisted the sympathy of all present. Deputies from Freyburg accom- panied the fugitives to Bern and to Solothurn, imploring the intervention of the Swiss league in behalf of Geneva; and the cantons, thus appealed to, despatched ambassadors to Savoy, declaring their determination to espouse the Geneva 165 cause of liberty, and to oppose the unjust claims of the Duke. Meanwhile Charles had again entered Geneva, and, availing himself of the opportunity pre- sented by the absence of many patriots, he con- vened a council composed almost wholly of the Savoyard party. Even there he dared not ven- ture save under guard of a company of archers, who, carrying their weapons high in The council air, gave the name of the "Council oiE ^ ier ^ a - of Halberds " to the assembly. Thus sup- ported, the Duke proclaimed his intention to spare neither money nor effort for the benefit of the city, and promised pardon to all who had opposed him, excepting only the fugitives who had sought Swiss protection. In return, he asked recognition as sovereign protector of Geneva. His address elicited applause from the assembled Mamelukes, but the adverse, and dominating influence of the city council, was revealed the day following, when the Duke's demand for the supreme jurisdiction in crim- inal affairs was received by the syndics with a prompt and firm refusal. Immediately after the Council of Halberds, the Mamelukes despatched messengers to an- nounce the result to the Swiss. The Huguenot fugitives refused to credit the humiliating state- 1 66 Annals of Switzerland ments, but when convinced of their truth, Return of the resolved to take their lives in their Huguenots, hands, and return to Geneva. With- out safe-conduct or other protection, they hastened back, to rescue their city from the threatened servitude, or to die in the attempt. But already the Duke had departed for Turin, — never to return. In Geneva a reaction had occurred, the recall of the fugitives was de- manded, and on a fete-day children paraded the streets, shouting, "Long live the Huguenots!" The Mamelukes, surprised and enraged, fluctu- ated in action. "They will go mad, please God," wrote one of the opposite party to Besanc,on Hugues. The Bishop, still beyond the mountains, was entreated to return, but on his arrival was greeted by a greater number of Huguenots than Mamelukes, both parties desiring to secure his co-operation. A fear that his own authority would be reduced to a minimum, should he support the decisions of the Council of Halberds, acted as the strongest influence upon La Baume's decision, and al- though he rejected any alliance with the Swiss, he declared, before the syndics, his approval of the fugitives, and his determination to preserve the rights of Geneva. As the time approached for the election of syndics, the resolution of Geneva 167 the majority of citizens to reject Mameluke candidates became more and more manifest. Quietly, and without confusion, the election passed, and only when informed that four Huguenots had been appointed to rule the council did the Bishop realize how great an advance toward the freedom of the city had been attained. His command for the assem- bling of another general council was obeyed, but his appeal to the members there gathered failed to effect any change in their resolute purpose. Restrictions that the Duke of Savoy had enforced were annulled, and the ancient constitution, with all its franchises, was restored. The Bishop, seeking thus his only means of safety, despatched envoys to recall the fugi- tives, and made extensive prepara- tions to welcome them. A salute of guns heralded their approach, and the syndics set forth to meet them, when, accompanied by deputies from Freyburg and Bern, they tri- umphantly entered the city. The Council of Two Hundred convened, and received for rati- fication the form of alliance proposed by the Swiss. With promises of friendly intercourse, the two cantons declared themselves bound to give to Geneva " favor, aid, and succor, should 1 68 Annals of Switzerland any molest htr syndics, council, or freemen," Alliance with an ^ also at the city's charge to march the Swiss. out armies in its defence. The coun- cil testified its approbation of these terms, and the opposition offered by the Bishop was un- availing. Some conspiracies were formed, but they were detected before any serious conse- quences had been developed, and the partisans of Savoy soon quitted the city. On the nth of March, eight Swiss ambassadors arrived, to receive the oath of alli- ance and to take it on behalf of their two can- tons. This ceremony having been observed, eight citizens of Geneva were deputed to accom- pany the Swiss back to Freyburg and Bern to take the oath in those cities, on behalf of Geneva. The Duke made fruitless attempts to break the alliance. The Bishop, terror- stricken, sought to win favor from the Hugue- nots, and, conferring valuable gifts upon Besancon Hugues, despatched private envoys to Freyburg and Bern, to seek for him admis- sion into the pivileges of their citizenship. His application was promptly rejected; but information of the overtures reached the Duke of Savoy, who, to punish this treachery, com- manded the seizure of the Bishop. In a des- perate attempt to save himself, La Baume Geneva 169 ordered the arrest of the canons of Geneva, and then craved from the council permission to register his name as a freeman of the city. His protestations in favor of a liberal govern- ment gave opportunity for a request presented by the syndics for the transfer to them of all jurisdiction over civil affairs, and, having yielded this authority, the abject ecclesiastic received from the city a promise of protection. A demand from the Duke for the release of the imprisoned canons was also granted by La Baume, and twenty-four of the number sought safety in Savoy, thus freeing Geneva from the most strenuous opposers of her liberties. "God himself is conducting our affairs," said Besancon Hugues. CHAPTER XV CONFLICTS AND CONTROVERSIES 1527-153° Frequent intercourse between Geneva and the cities of the Swiss league facilitated the dis- semination of Reformed doctrines on the shores of Lake Leman. As early as 1527, Thomas ab Hofen, a friend and disciple of Zwingli, visited Geneva upon a diplomatic errand from Bern, and, filled with the missionary spirit, devoted himself, at the completion of his official duties, to the work of promulgating the tenets of the Swiss reformers. Opposed by the clergy of the city, and discouraged by the indifference of the masses, he returned to Bern without wit- nessing the blossoming of the seed he had planted; but the awakening of Geneva to the truth of the new doctrines were tidings spread abroad before the death of Zwingli. Gradually opinions subversive of papal author- ity gained influence. The sacking of Rome by Constable Bourbon inflicted a severe shock Conflicts and Controversies 171 upon the faith that had regarded papal prerog- atives as divinely guarded, and proportionately strengthened the factions opposed to episcopal sway. The measures adopted by his opponents in Geneva so alarmed Pierre La Baume that he fled from the city. Freed from the surveil- lance of the Bishop, the citizens pro- _ . „ sr ' r The " Golden ceeded to reconstruct their constitu- Bull" of tion upon a liberal basis; the crest of Savoy disappeared from the Chateau de l'lle, and in a popular assembly the terms of a "Golden Bull" — rejecting any authority save that of Bishop and Emperor — were unanimously adopted. Threatened with excommunication, the council decreed that no mandate emanating from the papal dominion should be received, and, despite the opposition of priests and Mamelukes, and the timid apprehensions of the superstitious, a burlesque procession, " The Funeral of the Papacy," paraded the city streets. These ultra demonstrations stimulated the antagonism of Savoyard nobles who resided in the vicinity of Geneva ; and, having assembled at the castle of Bursinal to discuss xne spoon methods of intervention, they there Ie *« ue - inaugurated the "Spoon League," with the boast that its members would "sup up the Huguenots like spoon-meat." The fraternity 172 Annals of Switzerland rapidly increased in numbers. "Men took the spoon," says an old writer, "as Crusaders took the Cross," and again the independence of Geneva was seriously threatened. The flight of his Bishop had so enraged the Duke of Savoy, that in revenge he seized upon castles belonging to La Baume, and confiscated their revenues; but, failing to advance his per- sonal projects by this policy, he consented to a reconciliation with the Bishop, and based the new covenant upon fresh schemes for control- ling Geneva. A mandate from La Baume, which forbade a trial by the magistrates alone, in any civil case, was posted upon the doors of churches ; but the placards were soon removed by command of the syndics, whereupon the Bishop resorted to threats, and again the city was in wild confusion. The episcopal party, led by Hugues, declared their willingness to accept the administration of La Baume, but rejected any authority emanating from Savoy, and, in defence of their principles, stood ready to hazard their possessions and their lives. The Sire de Pontverre, chief of the Spoon League, commanded his knights to assemble " with swords and spears, " for the attack upon Geneva; but before the consummation of his schemes, in arrogant assurance of authority, he " V'tl/t 7.: til ^VwjJk ®@0 Limn ©«id JJfriJ ttV 4Hi : !dluM>il THE REFORMERS. Conflicts and Controversies 173 attempted to ride at night through the city, attended by a small escort. His insults and taunts called forth retaliatory action from the populace, and he was chased through the streets until he sought shelter in a house by the city wall, with whose occupants he was in secret league, but where he was caught by the mob and slain. Despite this disaster, the Spoon League persevered in their purpose of capturing the city, and chose a new leader for the enter- prise. Everything promised a successful con- summation of their plans, as amid the gloom of a moonless night the band approached Geneva, carrying long ladders with which to scale the walls. But at the moment when success seemed certain, a spirit of timidity overpowered the leaders, and, pretending to have re- The Day of ceived messages from the Duke and the Ladders, the Emperor, forbidding the execution of their project, they retreated as rapidly and as silently as they had advanced. " The gentlemen had undertaken to attack the city, which God has preserved hitherto," Geneva's chronicle records in its note of "The Day of the Ladders." Throughout this period of tumultuous polit- ical life, the Reformed religious doctrines had been steadily propagated in Geneva, through the efforts of Swiss evangelists, and the Duke 174 Annals of Switzerland of Savoy made that fact his pretext for seeking the co-operation of Pope and Emperor, in his farther efforts to humiliate and control the city. Insinuating himself into the confidence of the Swiss, he at the same time endeavored, by gifts, to gain their good-will, and by guile to sever their alliance with Geneva. The horizon of the brave city was dark with threat- ening clouds. Bulls of excommunication were fulminated by the Pope against all heretics, while the Emperor gave command for the arrest of any who should preach the doctrine of Re- form. The reply of the Genevans to the letter containing this decree was simple and direct : — * Sire, — We intend to live as in past times ; ac- cording to God, and the law of Jesus Christ." The citizens then proceeded to secure for themselves a preacher of the Evangelical faith. Through the influence of La Baume, and of the city council, Bonnivard, after his release from imprisonment at Grol6e, had recovered his priory, although its revenues remained under the control of his enemies. The friends of the new faith suggested a transfer of St. Victor's to the control of Bern, in order that under Conflicts and Controversies 175 Swiss protection an Evangelical preacher might be there established. But the Duke of Savoy coveted this stronghold so near to Geneva, and when Bonnivard, desirous of visiting his aged mother at his ancestral home of Syssel, secured a safe-conduct from the Duke, and under its protection entered Savoy, his enemies insinu- ated that he had gone to surrender St. Victor's. In the excitement thus engendered, threatened by the Duke's partisans on the one hand, and by the patriots of Geneva on the other, Bonni- vard 's return seemed so hazardous that in ex- change for a pension he proposed to resign his priory to the Bishop of Montfaucon. The Bishop accepted the proposal, provided the acquiescence of Geneva and Savoy could be secured, and to consummate the matter it be- came necessary for Bonnivard to journey to Moudon. At Moudon he was met by the Sire de Belle- garde, the murderer of the " father of the French Revolution," — Jacques Lefebvre. Under the guise of an admiring friendship, Bellegarde offered every attention to Bonnivard, and when the prior announced his intention of returning to Lausanne, he insisted upon sending a servant to attend him as guide. The proverbial saying of the Council of Con- 176 Annals of Switzerland stance, " No faith ought to be kept with here- capture of ^ cs > " was repeated among those who Bonnivard. connived at the deed that followed. Near Lausanne a party of horsemen appeared suddenly in the road, who demanded Bonni- vard' s surrender, and, despite the guarantee of safety borne by the prior, he was made pris- oner, and immured in the castle of Chillon. There he was at first com- fortably lodged and respectfully treated; but soon, by a special order from the Duke, he was removed to the dungeons of the castle, while the agents of Savoy in Geneva pretended igno- rance of the place of his concealment. Alas for Geneva ! Berthelier was dead, Bon- nivard in prison, the Emperor and the Pope alienated; while Charles of Savoy and Pierre La Baume, having become reconciled to one another, were concocting new schemes for her subjugation, and the Spoon League, swearing that the city should fall, stood ready to take the field at the summons of the Duke. An attack by the combined forces of the Duke, the Bishop, and the Spoon League, was projected, under the pretence of an enterprise in behalf of the "holy faith," while, as yet, in Geneva, there was not a church where mass was not celebrated. The united troops surrounded the Conflicts and Controversies 177 city, but this time rescue appeared in the form of an imperial mandate, which deferred all action until spring; and, although he believed himself to be on the verge of consummating his long-cherished projects, Charles of Savoy dared not disobey the Emperor. Even while with failing hearts the citizens looked from their watch-towers, the army of the enemy was withdrawn from before their walls. So, through repeated alarms, perils, and rescues, Geneva passed, braving assault with heroic courage, resolute in the face of intim- idation, strong amid calamities, grateful for deliverances. Intelligence of the operations of the Spoon League brought an army from Freyburg and Bern to the aid of their allies, and fifteen thousand Swiss, entering the Pays de Vaud on their way to Geneva, destroyed many castles, and desolated much property belonging to the knights of the Spoon. Upon their arrival in Geneva the large army was quartered in monas- teries, where the affrighted monks were forced to provide accommodation. The Bernese, desir- ous of celebrating divine service according to the Evangelical forms, opened the doors of the cathedral, read the Scriptures from its pulpit, and preached there the truths of their faith, 12 178 Annals of Switzerland inaugurating thus a service thenceforth unin- terrupted in the city. At the end of the year, through the media- tion of the allies, the truce of St. Julien was Trace of concluded between Geneva and Savoy, st. juiien. w ith reciprocal assurances of amity and good faith. Should Geneva prove recreant to her promises, the Swiss stood pledged to take up arms against her; while in case of a violation of the treaty on the part of Savoy, the Pays de Vaud would be forfeited to Freyburg and Bern. But the Bishop was not reinstated, and the Duke of Savoy had failed in his attempt to sever the union between Geneva and the Swiss. After the battle of Kappel, believing that he could easily extirpate heresy, Charles renewed his aggressions, and Savoyard troops again threatened the city, cutting off all its means of supply. The agents of the Duke had been active in Freyburg and Bern, and representa- tives of the aristocratic classes in those cities were sent to Geneva to demand the renuncia- tion of the Swiss alliance, and the submission of the Genevans to the authority of Savoy. The citizens indignantly refused compliance with this dictate, and appealed to the Grand Council at Bern, where their deputies pro- Conflicts and Controversies 179 claimed their firm resolution to endure any- thing rather than separate from the Swiss. It was the aristocratic party alone in Bern that had been won to the interests of Savoy; the Grand Council in full assembly voted 1530. to maintain the alliance. Freyburg adopted the resolutions of Bern, and Geneva was once more in safety. CHAPTER XVI THE VICTORY WON i53 2 " I 536 From Orbe, Grandson, and neighboring places where they were laboring to disseminate the doctrines of the Reformed faith, William Farel, a refugee from France, and Viret, an evangelist from Vaud, watched with keenest interest the progress of affairs in Geneva. Farel, a man whom difficulties never deterred, reverses never discouraged, bold, energetic, direct in effort, entered Geneva in 1532, in company with his countryman Saunier. They were welcomed by a cousin of Calvin, Peter Robert Olivetan, who in 1530 had established himself as a tutor in Geneva. From his pen was to come the first French translation of the Bible, a work which a contemporary Waldensian synod had resolved to see accomplished. The Huguenots assembled at once, eager to hear these " Evangelicals " ; but their frequent gatherings alarmed the Catholics, and the The Victory Won 181 magistrates summoned the preachers before the council. Farel produced credentials from Bern that in an assembly divided in religious opinions procured his release, but the priestly party plotted his ruin, and summoned him be- fore the episcopal body, ostensibly for discus- sion of doctrine. Incited by those who had sworn that the evangelist should not escape alive, the assembly worked itself into a frenzy of antagonism, and heaped upon their prisoner insult and abuse, while refusing him any oppor- tunity for defence. With the cry, "To the Rhone ! To the Rhone ! Kill him, kill him ! " they struck and spat upon their helpless vic- tim, until some of the syndics, realizing, like the official of Ephesus, that they were likely to be accused for that day's riot, opened a way of escape into the street. There the menaces of the mob were encountered, but under the protection of armed troops the evangelist escaped from the city. The year 1533 opened tumultuously in Geneva. On the first day of January, Froment, a schoolmaster of the Reformed faith Evangelic preached in the streets, by demand ^Geneva. of the Huguenots. The day following, a prop- osition to forbid all preaching, either in pub- lic places, or in private houses, was brought 1 82 Annals of Switzerland before the council. This suggestion met strong opposition, but nothing decisive followed. From Bern came complaints of the persecution of Farel and his allies, together with a demand for liberty of worship to the Huguenots. The Mameluke party resented this intervention, and united in a conspiracy for putting to death all who professed the Reformed religion. Cries of " Down with the Lutherans ! " resounded through the streets. Even women bore arms, and placed hatchets and stones in the hands of their children, until for self-protec- Confllcts. . . . tion the most peaceful citizens were forced to carry weapons. The Catholics plotted a combined attack upon the Huguenots on the 28th of March. The Huguenots desired to avoid the shedding of blood, but upon learning that the destruction of their homes was threat- ened, they sallied forth, prepared for resistance. A bitter conflict seemed inevitable, until troops, ordered out by the syndics, dispersed the rioters. Some blood had been shed, but Freyburg's deputies in the city undertook the task of arbi- tration, peace-hostages were given on both sides, and a trumpet summoned the citizens to hear the herald's proclamation, "Every man shall lay down his arms, and return quietly home, without quarrel or dispute, under pain of being hanged." The Victory Won 183 "For a time, reconciliation was the fashion," writes a chronicler of the period; and the Coun- cil of Two Hundred made attempts Recon . to frame a compromise in religious cmatlons belief that might satisfy both parties. The Bible and liberty of conscience were granted on the one side, while the authority of the bishops and the observance of fast days were retained for the Catholics, and apparent har- mony was temporarily restored. But both par- ties were suspicious of the good faith of their former adversaries, and in May another riot was provoked, during which Pierre Wernli, a Freyburger, and a distinguished leader of the Catholic party, was killed. Freyburg demanded reparation, the Catholics gained strength, and the Pope commanded the return of the Bishop. Pierre La Baume had been living at ease in Arbois, and felt no disposition to encounter the difficulties that at this juncture threatened his return to the seat of episcopal authority. But the papal will was not to be opposed with impunity, and, after obtaining from Freyburg a promise of protection, he prepared to obey. The Catholic party, believing their triumph insured, made extensive preparations for his reception, while all the Mamelukes who had 184 Annals of Switzerland left the city anticipated returning in company with the Prince-Bishop. When the subject was broached in the assembly of Two Hundred, such confusion ensued that the magistrates prohibited the admission of the exiles into the city; but, on the day appointed, eighty armed Catholics, utterly ignoring the decree of their syndics, announced their intention to form a bodyguard, Return of an d escort the Bishop home. Thus UBaume. protected, La Baume entered the city, with a large company, including the chiefs of the Mameluke refugees, and magistrates from Freyburg. Hastily summoning a council, the Bishop inquired if the Genevans were prepared to recognize his authority. The stanch magis- trates who replied, affirmed their determination to limit obedience to the terms of their consti- tution, and once again patriots and Mamelukes in the unhappy city plunged into a series of evasions, plots, and reprisals, while from Frey- burg recompense for Wernli's death was de- manded, and Bern strove in vain to reconcile the angry opponents. The priests, hoping to establish their personal authority, confused the people with syllogistic sophistry. " He is best fitted to be judge who is nearest God. Eccle- siastics are nearest God, therefore ecclesiastics are best fitted to judge." "As there are two The Victory Won 185 great lights in the universe, so there are two in society. The Church is the sun and the State is the moon. The moon has no light of her own, all is derived from the sun. It is therefore evident that the Church possesses temporal jurisdiction over the State." The timid Bishop felt no confidence in the fidelity of his supporters, and a few demonstra- tions of resistance from his oppo- pughtof nents were sufficient to excite alarm tteBisll0 P- for his personal safety. He had returned on the 1 st of July, loudly proclaiming his deter- mination to "bury the sect of Reformers." Before daylight, on the 14th of the same month, with only a few attendants, he fled secretly from the city. The citizens awoke to receive news of his departure ; and the Evangel- icals were jubilant, while the Catholics were in despair. By his flight the Bishop was con- sidered to have relinquished his authority, and, ceasing to preserve for him even a semblance of respect, the citizens coined a proverb indica- tive of indifference: "Je ne m'en soucie pas plus que de Baume." The priests, powerless now to prevent the circulation of the Reformed doctrines, applied to the absentee Bishop for authority to forbid preaching, and soon presented to the council 1 86 Annals of Switzerland the desired edict. It served, however, rather to aid than to oppress their antagonists, for the magistrates, when called upon to register a decision, ordained that " in accordance with the truth of the Scriptures, the Gospel should be preached in Geneva." When, to strengthen the Catholic influence, a Dominican priest, named Furbity, was appointed to conduct ser- vice in the cathedral, and the Evangelicals were challenged to dispute with him, the influence of Bern sent William Farel again to the city. The right to hear their preacher from their cathedral desk was claimed by the Reformed party, but to prevent so great a desecration of the sanctuary, the Catholics declared them- selves ready to risk their lives. At this junc- Bern supports ture, Baudichon de la Maisonneuve, Farei. an influential and diplomatic citizen of Geneva, presented to the council a letter from Bern, which demanded that a pulpit be provided for Farel, and threatened the prosecu- tion of Furbity for his attacks upon a man under Bernese protection. Soon a Bernese embassy arrived, bringing another supporter of the Reformed faith, — the young and modest Viret, — destined to prove a formidable adver- sary to the Catholics. Meanwhile the Bishop of Geneva watched the The Victory Won 187 progress of affairs from afar, and, too timid to trust himself in the vicinity of the city, yet unwilling to relinquish his semblance of power, he signed at Arbois a document which gave authority to a lieutenant to execute law in his name. A new scheme was concocted by the crafty ecclesiastic, in conjunction with the Freyburg council, the Duke of Savoy, and the Mameluke party ; but the accidental capture by the patriots of some private papers belonging to La Baume rendered these projects abortive. The documents revealed the Bishop as an insti- gator of discord in Geneva, and convinced the syndics that to secure themselves against his intrigues the most ultra measures were neces- sary. Then in the Great Council of the " White City of the Lake" a resolution was deliberately and solemnly adopted to renounce, J ^ ' Authority of thenceforth, the authority of a bishop, the Bishop 1 . , 111 • renounced. and to be governed only by magis- trates favorable to the Reformation and to the Swiss alliance. Still the churches were claimed for the old worship, and, failing to find another place large enough to accommodate the crowds who gathered to listen to Farel, de la Maisonneuve led the Huguenots to Rive, and, taking possession of the convent and court, informed the scandalized 1 88 Annals of Switzerland monks that Farel would preach there. Service was publicly announced by the ringing of the convent bells, and a motley assembly, embrac- ing priests and monks, as well as Huguenots, gathered to listen to the ardent and earnest preacher, whose influence from that day ex- tended over many of the priestly class. Some advocates of the new doctrines, impelled to a fanatical zeal, destroyed images in the Fran- ciscan cloister, but the syndics of Geneva quickly enforced order, and imprisoned the iconoclasts. Instigated by Catholic princes and prelates, and influenced by the Emperor's wish for the Destruction reinstallation of the Bishop, the of st. victor's. D u ke of Savoy sought to force from the Genevans a recantation of the doctrines they had accepted, and ere long castles in the city's vicinity were garrisoned by Savoyards, while at Luzern a Swiss assembly consented to the Duke's demand for the return of La Baume. While from Gex, where he had located himself in safety, the Bishop hurled bolts of excommun- ication against his recreant subjects, Geneva received the bitter tidings that Bern had de- serted her. But the resolute citizens declared their determination sooner to set fire to the four corners of their town than surrender their right The Victory Won 189 to freedom of worship, and, more securely to fortify themselves against assault, they demol- ished many strong places in their suburbs. 1 Still undismayed, although in extreme peril of their lives, Farel, Viret, and the evangelist Froment, pursued their work. In a public theological discussion, a victory was won by the Reformers, which silenced the champions of the Pope and procured the abolition of the Mass. The Duke of Savoy pronounced Geneva plague- stricken, and in obstinate pursuit of victory again appealed for Bernese aid; but, weary of the long struggle, Bern declined again to par- ticipate, unless as mediator. A little band from Neuchatel, roused to sympathy for Geneva, ventured to her relief under the command of Jacques Baillod, surnamed, from his courageous temperament, " Wildermuth. " Near Gingins they defeated a force belonging to the knights of the Spoon ; but before any actual relief for the beleaguered city had been secured, Bernese dep- uties persuaded Wildermuth to retire, and with strategies and reprisals the conflict continued. A change of policy on the part of Bern was at last induced by the ambitious projects of the 1 The first walls destroyed were those of St. Victor's : The priory had been founded in the sixth century by Queen Sede- lenba, sister to Clotilda, in memory of the victories of Clovis. 190 Annals of Switzerland King of France. Francis L, desirous of pos- interfereuce sessing Milan, regarded Savoy as a of France. profitable preliminary acquisition, and, with the ultimate aim of provoking a war with the Duke, he despatched a body of troops to the relief of Geneva. Bern, jealous of French influence on territory that she coveted, immediately declared war against Savoy, on the pretext of violations of the treaty of St. Julien; and, marching an army into the district of Vaud, the Bernese set fire to Savoyard fort- resses, and desolated the land. Geneva was capture of speedily relieved from the environ- chiuon. ment of the Spoon League, and the entire Pays de Vaud passed into the possession of Bern. On the 27th of March, Chillon was captured by an army of combined Bernese and Genevese troops. When, having sought out the dungeon of the prior of St. Victor's, the liberators shouted, "Bonni- Reieaseof vard, you are free!" the captives Bonnivard. response echoed along the vaulted archways, "Et Geneve?" Triumphantly the answering shout was repeated, " Geneva also is free ! " and Bonnivard came forth to find the city he had left under papal sway and subject to Savoyard tyranny, a free republic, strong in the Evangelical faith. The Victory Won 191 An unanticipated danger was presented in the attempt made by the lords of Bern to claim the prerogatives of former bishops in the city, but the threatened feud ended in an amicable agreement of co-burgher- ship between "the free towns of Bern and Geneva. " Meanwhile a French army had invaded Savoy, and Charles III., abandoned by the Emperor, and robbed of his possessions, ended his life, at the close of the year, in dejection and misery. His son, Emanuel Philibert, succeeded in recovering his inherit- ance from the French, but left Geneva unmo- lested. On the 27th of May, 1536, the bell of St. Peter's again summoned the citizens to assemble within the cathedral walls. With unanimity, unbroken by a dissenting voice, an TheEstab- oath was solemnly taken, "to abolish ^Reformed the mass, images, idols, and other Religion, papal abuses," and to live "according to the Word of God, as it is daily preached." CHAPTER XVII CALVIN IN GENEVA 1536-1564 From the tottering republic of Geneva, neither political nor religious anarchy could be imme- diately banished, although the council legalized the new form of worship, and decreed the administration three times a year of the sacra- ment of the Lord's Supper. When the same authority abolished all festival days except Sunday, and forbade all worldly entertain- ments, restraints were imposed, against which a large number of the citizens rebelled, and the stentorian voice of Farel inveighed ineffectually against indulgence in prohibited recreations. The zealous, resolute, and fearless evangelist was struggling against antagonistic influences that threatened to overpower him, Calvin. when, in August, 1536, Calvin arrived in Geneva. A fugitive from his native France, on account of his advocacy of ecclesiastical reform, Calvin, during two years, had been a Calvin in Geneva 193 wanderer. At Strassburg he had published the first Latin edition of his " Institutes of the Christian Religion," — a work styled, by his enemies, "the Koran of the Heretics." In the spring of the same year he visited the court of Ferrara, where the good Duchess Ren^e wel- comed all who were in sympathy with the new religion. Returning thence to Strassburg, with the intention of remaining in that city for a period of quiet study, Calvin rested over-night in Geneva. News of his arrival having been carried to Farel, the evangelist at once deter- mined to secure the assistance of his fellow- countryman in the toilsome task of reforming the pleasure-loving city of the Lake. With characteristic vehement eloquence he pleaded for assistance, while Calvin, protesting unfit- ness for the duty and desire for study, resolutely refused to listen to his importunities. At length, the inflexible Farel declared that the curse of God would rest upon his compatriot if he persisted in his refusal, and so vehemently urged the claims of his work that Calvin de- clared he felt as if the hand of the Almighty had been stretched out from Heaven and laid upon him. The promise to remain was gained, but for a while Calvin seems to have worked almost 13 194 Annals of Switzerland incognito in Geneva. A decree of the coun- cil is recorded, showing that, in response to a request from Farel, "six ^cus 1 and a cloth coat " were bestowed upon " that Frenchman recently arrived," whose lectures were declared upon the authority of his co-laborer to be "very necessary to the welfare of the city. " Public attention was directed toward the preacher by his eloquent utterances in an important dispu- tation at Lausanne, which, in September, 1536, he attended in company with Farel. Upon his return his instructive extemporaneous lectures at St. Peter's were continued, and a catechism, which he formulated, was sanctioned by the council, in conjunction with a confession of faith drawn up by Farel. Regulations for the conduct of daily life were at this time publicly promulgated, and any violation of their restric- tions was punished by the magistrates. The following laws are recorded : — "Violators of the Sabbath shall receive pub- lic admonition from the pulpit." "The gamester shall be exposed in the pillory, with a pack of cards tied around his neck." "A dinner for ten persons shall consist of no more than five dishes. " 1 About eighteen francs. Calvin in Geneva 195 On the 20th of May, 1537, the records show that a bride who had walked out on the pre- ceding Sunday, with her hair curled to an extent deemed unseemly, was sentenced to imprisonment, together with her companions and the hairdresser whose art had been thus exhibited. Such limitations, in minor matters of con- duct, provoked a fierce opposition from the liberal party in Geneva, who were known as "Libertines," and the discord was increased when the council made the acceptance of the Evangelical confession of faith obligatory upon every citizen. November 12, was appointed for those who had not already taken the oath of assent to assemble in the cathedral for that pur- pose, and whoever refused to comply was sen- tenced to banishment. Calvin had insisted upon his authority to exclude from the sacra- ment of the Lord's Supper any whom he deemed unworthy to partake, and disputes upon this point threatened anarchy. The Bernese blamed the council for the disorder, and at length the syndics decreed that the sacrament should not be refused to any one. 1 At the next election, the magistrates chosen were all antag- onistic to the Reformation, and Calvin was soon 1 See " Registers of Geneva," January 3 and 4, 1538. 196 Annals of Switzerland seriously fettered in his work, while, through- out the city, disorders prevailed to such an extent that the evangelists informed the council that it would be " impos- sible to administer the sacrament in the midst of such profligacies and blasphemies." There- upon Calvin, Farel, and Viret were alike for- bidden to hold any religious services; but, despite the injunction, each entered Banishment * of the his pulpit at the customary hour on 11118:6 ' Easter Sunday. Motley crowds, in- cluding both adversaries and friends, attended, and at the evening service, in Calvin's church, the excitement reached such a crisis that swords were drawn, and bloodshed was with difficulty prevented, while the escort of a guard was necessary to attend the preacher home. The following day the proposition of the syn- dics, to imprison the ministers for violation of magisterial ordinances, was changed by the council to sentences of banishment. Calvin went to Strassburg, where he entered upon the charge of a church of French refugees, while Farel was warmly welcomed at Neuchatel, and Viret became pastor at Lausanne. Bernese envoys to Geneva remonstrated against the expulsion of the preachers, but the Libertine party swayed the council, and no repeal of the Calvin in Geneva 197 decree could be obtained. Many institutions opposed by the evangelists were soon re-estab- lished; and so strong was the reaction in the city, that the Bishop even cherished a hope of reinstalment. The Pope solicited the aid of neighboring ecclesiastics in the work of prose- lytizing anew the Genevese, and a letter was written, inviting them to return to the bosom of the Church. This document, prepared by a French bishop, named Sadoleto, was received by the council on the 26th of March, 1539. They were in deliberation upon a reply, when an address sent to Sadoleto by Calvin was made public, and produced everywhere a profound impression. Calvin had read, at Strassburg, the letter of Sadoleto to the Genevese; and at the sugges- tion of his Strassburg friends, "ap- r Calvin's prehending what evil it might bring Letterto to Geneva," he undertook the task of composing a reply. His letter, said Luther, "had hands and feet," and struck an effective blow at the Catholic party. Published in Geneva, it induced a strong reaction in favor of the banished preacher. Already the politi- cal clique that had exiled the evangelists was divided; the leaders of the Libertine party, having become offensive to their partisans, had 198 Annals of Switzerland been in their turn banished; and the distract- ing condition of the city, where disorders were rapidly increasing, caused the magistrates to repent the expulsion of the pastors. The citi- Caivin'a zens united with the council in an Recan. urgent call for Calvin's return, and in 1 541, reluctantly yielding to the repeated summons, the preacher re-entered the city, was installed in a house near the cathedral, and decreed an annual salary of five hundred florins, twelve measures of wheat, and two tubs of wine. While in Strassburg he had married Idelette de Buren, "a grave and pious widow," whose first husband he had converted from the Ana- baptist belief. Calvin returned to Geneva, he states, "with sadness, tears, anxiety, and distress of mind, at taking again so great a burden. " The number of Libertines in the city was still sufficient to form a dangerous faction, and in sympathy with them upon many points was another party, who called themselves Patriots. To deter the reformer from the prosecution of his work, various acts of insubordination were attempted. Shots were fired in the night at his door. He was set upon by dogs, and his clothing and flesh torn. But unflinchingly and without vin- Calvin in Geneva 199 dictiveness he pursued his way, and under his controlling influence both the civil and the ecclesiastical laws of the " Protestant Rome " were reformulated upon the basis of a co-oper- ative union of Church and State. The city councils retained their prerogatives, but eccle- siastical discipline was vested in the hands of six preachers and twelve laymen, who formed the Consistory. This body also exercised a general moral supervision over the citizens, and held the power of excommunication, with that of transferring to the magistrates, for dis- cipline, all criminals deemed by them guilty of penal offences. By the stern code of laws then adopted, death by fire was the penalty of heresy. All dancing and card-playing were forbidden. To give the name of a Catholic saint to a child was a penal offence ; drunkenness and blasphemy were pun- ished with severity, and in 1568 a child was beheaded for striking its parents, while another, for attempting the same offence, was whipped through the streets, and banished from the city. The ministers, who were known as the "Venerable Company," met once a week for "mutual fraternal censure." A school was established which received pupils from Basle, 200 Annals of Switzerland Bern, and even from Zurich. Instruction was given in " the three most excellent languages, Greek, Hebrew, and Latin," as well as in French, and lessons began at five o'clock in the morning. Geneva, "the theological city," became an asylum for religious refugees, while from thirty-four printing-presses the Reformed doctrines were scattered abroad. 1 Here Calvin continued to labor uninterruptedly for twenty- three years, preaching and teaching, writing theological treatises, and corresponding with theologians, nobles, and princes, attending the meetings of the Consistory and of the Senate, entertaining strangers, and counselling all who appealed to him for advice. The biographers, who censure most severely his bigotry and the harshness of his judgments, admit the purity of his motives, and his unswerving fidelity to duty. His personal humility and his strict- ness in self-discipline were prominent traits, often overlooked in the contemplation of his austerity and censoriousness. He has been compared to a Roman censor, and to a Hebrew prophet, 2 while despotic treatment of all who 1 The so-called " five points of Calvinism " are : Uncondi- tional election, limited atonement, the impotency of the human will, irresistible grace, and the perseverance of all believers. 2 Review of German authors on Calvin by Dr. Schaff in " Princeton Review," April, 1875. Calvin in Geneva 201 differed from him in religious opinion is ascribed to his strong conviction of the responsibility of rulers for the extermination of heresy; a principle universally accepted, previous to the seventeenth century. 1 A conspicuous instance of Calvin's unyield- ing severity was shown in the doom decreed to the Spanish theologian, Michael Servetus. Servetus, whose denial of the doc- trine of the Trinity had placed him in antag- onism to both Catholics and Protestants. In a correspondence with Calvin, Servetus did not hesitate to attack the Christian creed, and in his books, "Errors of the Trinity," and "The Restoration of Christianity," he gave publicity to sentiments so obnoxious that difficulty was experienced in getting the latter work printed. Arrested in Lyons, Servetus was carried before an ecclesiastical court, but contrived to escape that surveillance, and was on his way to Italy, where he anticipated less opposition, when, by Calvin's command, he was arrested in Geneva. It has been asserted that Calvin believed he would be able to force from his adversary a recantation of his published dogmas, and that the Reformer did not anticipate the fatal result of the arrest he commanded, although personal 1 See Fisher's " History of the Reformation." 202 Annals of Switzerland antipathies were doubtless united to doctrinal differences between the controversialists. After the imprisonment of Servetus, Calvin wrote to Farel : " I hope the sentence will be capital, but desire the atrocity of the punishment to be abated." 1 But Servetus steadfastly refused to retract or to modify any of his doctrines, and boldly demanded Calvin's punishment for malicious prosecution. Contrary to his expectation, his claims failed to receive consideration from the council, who condemned him to die at the stake on the 27th of October, 1553. At this period Calvin had many political adversaries in Geneva. At the head of the Libertine party stood a son of the patriot Berthelier, to whom the Reformer had recently refused the sacrament. A conflict with Ber- thelier's adherents ensued, when they attempted to supplant the authority of the Consistory by that of the Senate; but their efforts, though culminating in armed insurrection, were soon overpowered, Berthelier was executed, and the Libertine party was rendered impotent for further manoeuvres. Geneva was at last free from faction; and, although called by the Pope "a nest of devils 1 See Dyer's " Life of Calvin." Calvin in Geneva 203 and apostates," the industrious and Christian republic became "the hearthstone of Protes- tantism," the city of which John Knox wrote: "Elsewhere the word of God is taught as purely, but never, anywhere, have I seen God obeyed as faithfully." In this fair city of his adoption, at the close of a day in May, 1564, Calvin died, worn out with labor and anxiety, although not quite forty-five years of age. The republic mourned for the preacher who had served it with unde- viating conscientious faithfulness, but his com- mands forbade them to mark his grave by any monument in the cemetery of Plainpalais. The traveller seeks in vain for the resting-place of the Reformer, who has been called by a modern sceptic " the most Christian man of his generation." CHAPTER XVIII THE BORROMEAN LEAGUE I 555" I 64i In Locarno, and other Italian districts over which Swiss authority had been extended, the Unitarian doctrines, promulgated by Socinius, gained many adherents ; but ere long the instal- lation of Catholic bailiffs drove into exile all who had openly embraced the new faith. In Emigrants J 555 one hundred and fifty Italian from Italy, families emigrated to the north of the Alps, carrying with them the Southern art of silk-weaving. A powerful coalition against Protestantism was formed in Europe soon after the accession to the throne of Spain of the gloomy and bigoted Philip II., and, fortified by the new orders of Jesuits and Capuchins, the coadjutants extended their influence into Switzerland. In 1564, profiting by the stimulated antipathy to Reform, Emanuel Philibert of Savoy demanded The Borromean League 205 of the Swiss the restitution of lands conquered by them in 1536, and Bern was forced reluc- tantly to relinquish a portion of territory. In the region restored to him, the Duke installed a company of Jesuits under the guidance of the gentle and strong Francois de Sales, and through the instrumentality of this "Bishop of Geneva " Catholicism was re-established in a portion of the district recently evangelized. Meanwhile, Cardinal Charles Borromeo, the zealous Archbishop of Milan, journeyed on foot through Switzerland, laboring to unite the mem- bers of the confederacy in a league pledged to support Catholicism, and to wage a holy war against the Protestants, while other emissaries of the Pope exerted themselves to sow through- out the cantons seeds of civil dis- . • Influence of cord, in order thus to arrest the Charles spread of the Reformation. Antag- omeo ' onisms thus excited waxed so bitter between adherents of differing faiths that in 1582 the Protestants refused to receive the new calendar of Pope Gregory XIII. In 1580 Borromeo succeeded in establishing a papal nuncio in Luzern, and in r r 'The 1586 the oath of the Borromean or Borromean Golden League was taken by seven cantons, — the four Waldstatten, Zug, Freyburg, 206 Annals of Switzerland and Solothurn. 1 By one of its articles this compact was pronounced superior in authority to the original Bundesbrief of the confed- eracy. It bound the cantons to take up arms against any in their midst who should tolerate the doctrines of the Reformed religion, and a necessary sequence of its acceptance was the severance of ties with all who had embraced Protestantism. The incorporation of the Borro- mean league marked the final division of the cantons into two antagonistic religious parties. In 1557, the desire of Geneva to enter the Helvetic league met refusal, owing to a Catho- lic majority in the Diet; and the adverse vote was emphasized by Louis Pfyffer, the avoyer of Luzern, and a dominating spirit among the Catholics, who publicly expressed a wish for Savoyard tne verv extermination of the city of Ambition. Calvin. Emanuel Philibert of Savoy, becoming cognizant of the antagonistic disposi- tion fostered throughout Catholic Switzerland toward Geneva, projected fresh schemes for the conquest of the city ; but, baffled in these, turned toward the Pays de Vaud, and marched an army against Lausanne. There the burgo- master, Isbrand d'Aux, a pensioner of Savoy, 1 These cantons with Valais and Ticino form the present Catholic Switzerland. The Borromean League 207 stood ready to deliver everything into his hands; but the traitorous designs were revealed by a Vaudois, named David de Cronsaz, and evoked from Bern a declaration of war against the Duke. The commander of the Bernese army, Jean de Wattenwyl, was secretly in league with Savoy, and when his transactions were exposed the indignant citizens of Bern forced him into exile. But as city-avoyer, his sentiments had influenced the senate of Bern in large measure, and Geneva must have remained subject to Savoyard aggressions, had it not received the support of the French king. Henry of Navarre volunteered to protect the city, and in 1598, by the treaty of Vervins, France received, in compensation for this service, the district of Gex. A final attempt to grasp Geneva was made in 1602, when the reigning Duke, Charles Emanuel of Savoy, deemed the opportunity for success at hand, and on a dark December night approached the unsuspicious city. Incited by words from the Jesuit priests, "Mount cour- ageously; every round of the ladder is a step toward Heaven," the Savoyard soldiers scaled the walls without alarming the sentinels. The citizens, awakened by outcries in the streets, found several hundreds of the enemy already 208 Annals of Switzerland within their gates, but, defending themselves with intrepid bravery, they repulsed the in- vaders, and took captive thirteen nobles of Savoy, who, after the Duke and his army had been forced to retire, were speedily put to death. This audacious exploit of the " Escalade " roused Protestant Europe against the Duke of Tne Savoy. His embassy to Bern, sent "Escalade." w } tn excuses f or infringement of the treaty with that canton, was received with disrespect, and a general war then threatened was averted only by the instrumentality of France, Spain, and the Pope. At St. Julien, peace of July 21, 1603, the terms of a peace st. julien. we re dictated, which prohibited the advance of Savoyard troops within sixteen miles of Geneva. Again was Switzerland doomed to be deso- lated by disasters. A plague visited Basle in 1 6 10, sweeping away nearly four thousand inhabitants, and the year following nearly a quarter of the entire population of the interior were destroyed by a similar scourge. In 161 8 the rich town of Pleurs, in the Chia- venna, was buried beneath a land- Disasters. slide, and twenty-five hundred lives were lost. But. these calamities failed to divert The Borromean League 209 the survivors from their civil conflicts, and a new apple of discord between the Swiss and the Hapsburgers was fast ripening. After the victory of Pavia (1525) had secured to Spain all Lombardy, the district of the Valtelina J was coveted by the Spanish king as affording the most direct route between the Tyrol and Milan. France, watching with jeal- ous eyes every effort of her formidable rival for the acquisition of territory, warned the Grisons of designs to despoil them. Many Mvistonsin lords of the region had been bribed tteGrison »- to partisanship, and cliques, led by members of the two most influential families in the country, Planta and Sal is, espoused respec- piantaand tively the Spanish and the French SalI, • interests, while the faction of Travers worked for the Venetians, and the national party re- fused any foreign alliance or influence. Be- tween the years 1574 and 1665 civil war raged in the Grisons, and the intervention of the con- federates secured only a temporary calm. A free Rhetia was to be the Phoenix born of many desolated villages. A crisis of excitement occurred when the communes established a criminal court at Chur, 1 The Valtelina was acquired by the Swiss after the battle of Marignano. 14 210 Annals of Switzerland for trial of all who were suspected of an influ- ence prejudicial to the interests of the country. Innocent as well as guilty were proscribed, and religious differences fanned the flames of polit- ical opposition. A report that the Viceroy of Milan meditated a massacre of Protestants moved the people to such a frenzy that Planta was forced to fly, and the Reformed party, tem- porarily triumphant, banished or put to death many of the opposite faith. The exiled per- sons conspired with the Hapsburgs for an inva- sion of their country and the extirpation of the Protestant religion. The brothers Planta were leaders of a band who, in 1620, attacked villages in the Valtelina, perpetrated fright- ful barbarities, and ruthlessly murdered men, women, and children. Six hundred persons The st Bar- are est i mate d to have perished in thoiomewof this so-called "St. Bartholomew of the Grisons. " Two thousand Bernese and one thousand Zurichers marched to the res- cue of their brethren in the faith, but suffered defeat in a bloody battle (September, 1620). The Gray League, Catholic in its preferences, declined to render aid, and, animated by the sug- gestions of Pompey Planta, discussed the project of a separation from the union of the Grisons, and an alliance with the Waldstatten. Their The Borromean League 211 schemes were opposed by Jenatsch, a Protes- tant pastor in command of troops belonging to the national party. By adherents of this fac- tion Planta was assassinated, at his chateau of Rielberg, the Catholics were soon afterward de- feated in a battle near Varendas, and Jenatsch was master of the Valtelina. Then Austria, declaring, "Since you wish for war, you shall have war," ordered her troops into the Grisons, and the unhappy land suffered such chastisement as had been endured by the Waldstatten in the days of their Austrian subjugation to the arbitrary bailiffs ^i™ 10118 - of Austria. The peasantry were treated like cattle, and driven before the lash, while Bal- deron, commander of the invading . . . . Balderon. forces, perpetrated so many atrocities that he obtained the name of "the new Holo- fernes. " The Reformed clergy were summarily ejected from their pulpits, and seventy-five churches became pastorless; but when an at- tempt to compel attendance at Mass was made, the limit of submission was passed. " If we must lose our liberty, let us save our souls ! " was the cry of the helpless peasants, as they fled from their persecutors into the woods. The men of Prettigau attempted resistance, and, hav- ing armed themselves with sticks and clubs, 212 Annals of Switzerland surprised an Austrian garrison on Palm Sunday, 1622, killed four hundred, and drove the remnant from the land. But Balderon returned with ten thousand troops, and again there were massa- cres and battles in the valleys and upon the mountains. A little band of thirty patriots, with heroism worthy of the men of Ther- mopylae, faced the crowded Austrian ranks in a bitter battle, and fell there, one by one. Attempted intercession for the unfortunate people, by the confederates, proved unavailing; the Austrian grasp was strong and unyielding. At length France interfered, and, veiling secret designs under the guise of a protective friend- ship, sent into the Grisons an army under com- mand of " the good Due de Rohan. " By this assistance Austria's troops were driven from the district, and the Valtelina, that " Helen of French a new Trojan war," was ransomed, interference. But t ^ e cra f t y Duke who guided the helm of France had projected further achieve- ments, and too late the people of the Grisons perceived that they had only changed masters. Then, in a secret gathering at Chur, the patriots, with Jenatsch at their head, took a solemn oath to liberate their land, and three months later, rising as one man, the people of the Grisons expelled the French. Ambassa- The Borromean League 213 dors were then despatched to the courts of France, Spain, and Austria, and while the bur- den of the "Thirty Years' War" was pressing heavily upon the nations they entered readily into peaceful negotiations with Grisons. Soon afterward the district included in the freedom of league of the Ten Jurisdictions pur- *••«*"* chased the remaining rights of Austria in that territory, and when the lower Engadine had obtained equal immunities the Hapsburgs re- mained in possession of but a few insignificant prerogatives, and the Grisons called itself free. This independence was in 1641 formally recog- nized by Austria, France, and Spain, in the treaties of Milan and Feldkirch. CHAPTER XIX FREEDOM FROM THE EMPIRE 1618-1712 During the period covered by the "Thirty Years' War" the aid of the Swiss was solicited The Thirty b° tn openly and privately by Protes- Tetrs'War. tants and by Catholics; but every temptation to engage in the conflict was opposed by the Diet, and, with the exception of a few unforeseen complications, a strict neutrality was preserved. In one or two places, where the guaranteed neutrality had been ignored by subordinate local officials, temporary disturbances occurred. A garrison of Zurichers, who guarded the fron- tier at Stein, in Thurgau, allowed the Swedish army to pass on its way to Constance. The Austrians speedily imitated the example of the Swedes, and traversed Swiss territory en route to the city of Rheinfelden. The canton of Schaffhausen and the bishopric of Basle suffered seriously from the inroads of the Freedom from the Empire 215 Swedes, who, in their greed for plunder, often suspended the unhappy peasants by their feet, upon their own hearthstones, in the hope of forcing from them a renunciation of the wealth they were suspected to possess. A spirit of universal suspicion was awakened by these depredations, and between Protestant and Catholic cantons accusations of treason were freely interchanged. One side threatened to send reinforcements to the Swedish army if the other evinced partiality for the Austrians, and the jealous dissensions ceased only with the termination of the war. While peace negotiations were in progress at Westphalia, the confederates despatched to the council a firm and wise ambassador, The Peace of Rudolf Wettstein, burgomaster of wertitaiit. Basle, through whose skilful diplomacy, aided by the French envoy, Henri de Longueville, a formal imperial acknowledgment of the independence and self-sover- eignty of the Swiss was obtained. No longer the Emperor's mandates were addressed to "Subjects, beloved and faithful to ourselves and to the empire," but by the epithets, "strong, steadfast, honored, and especially dear," the position of the Swiss nation was recognized. 216 Annals of Switzerland The kingdoms of Europe offered honorable fellowship, and with the music of trumpets and drums the imperial message was promulgated in cities, while in every village of the confed- eracy the declaration of independence was pub- licly read, amid rejoicings only paralleled in the heroic days of Morgarten and Sempach. Although the principles of democracy had exerted controlling authority in the formation of many Swiss institutions, the spirit of the community had not been penetrated to the entire exclusion of aristocratic sovereignty, and in many portions of the land the peasantry were no better off than when their government had been more absolute in form. After the Peace of Westphalia had established the con- federacy upon its firm basis of national free- dom, the peasants in the larger cantons, having borne willing part in the wars for indepen- dence, believed themselves entitled to the privileges long possessed by the men of the Waldstatten, and, in conjunction with some less legitimate prerogative, they demanded the right to elect their own magistrates. As the towns The Peasants' na d sought freedom from the rule Revolt. f counts and seignors, the peasants throughout the country now sought emancipa- Freedom from the Empire 217 tion from the rule of the towns, and complaints were frequent of heavy taxes imposed by city officials. Upon the promulgation of a govern- ment ordinance which depreciated the value of the currency and rejected agricultural products in payment of taxes, the widespread discontent ripened into resistance. Three men from the town of Entlibuch assumed the antique cos- tume of the men of Riitli, and, followed by companions sounding Alpine horns, led a mul- titude to the town of Dorf, where deputies from the cities were in session. A demand for de- creased taxes, increased interest upon loaned money, and other concessions to the populace, was presented to the council through the ban- neret Emmenegger, and then, in company with malcontents from ten bailiwicks, the Entli- buchers joined at Wollhausen in a solemn league to maintain all the rights thus claimed, and to meet opposing decrees with armed resistance. The spirit of rebellion thus manifested rapidly spread, and when the magistrates of Bern sum- moned their peasantry to arm for the protec- tion of the confederacy, refusals to march against their fellow-sufferers and complaints of individual wrongs to be redressed were the response to the call. The united troops of the 2i 8 Annals of Switzerland thirteen cantons were then demanded by the Vorort, but at the suggestion of Zurich and Luzern arbitration was attempted. While deliberations were pending, the peasantry of Bern were excited by the entrance upon their territory of some troops from Schaffhausen, who had been despatched in immediate response to the call of the Vorort, and a general rising followed, in which the castles of the land-vogts were assaulted, and numerous acts of violence committed, while through the French ambas- sador the peasants solicited foreign aid. These overtures were quickly betrayed to the Bernese government, and many persons who had been in sympathy with the insurgents while their fidelity to their land remained un- impeachable, became opponents of their course when aware that French interference had been sought. At length the deputies assembled at Bern succeeded in effecting a compromise between the prerogatives claimed by the magistrates, and the demands made by the communes, and, according to a prescribed programme, delegates from the revolted districts asked pardon of the city council for acts of insubordination. When this transaction was made public in the canton of Luzern, the people censured the humiliating Freedom from the Empire 219 action of their delegates, and refused to recog- nize the obligations imposed by the terms of the compromise. Their messengers, despatched into other cantons, stimulated anew the popu- lace to rebellion; but the extravagance of the measures suggested by inexperienced leaders, and their want of concerted action, rendered disaster inevitable when the strength of the confederacy was united against them. Des- perate conflicts preceded their final subjuga- tion ; but a decisive battle was fought in June, 1653, when General Erlach, with an „ _. M JJ ' ' Battle of army of Bernese, encountered the Herzogen- insurgents near Herzogenbuchsee. Upon arriving at this point, Erlach discovered that his force was surrounded by antagonists, who were concealed in the neighboring woods ; and when he commanded the village to be fired, the desperate peasants fought from burning windows and roofs, and sent death-dealing shots from the falling walls of their homes. When at last they were overpowered, a punish- ment, universal in extent was decreed, and neither the young for his strength, nor the old for his white hair, was spared. Many were put to death with bitter suffering ; upon others heavy fines were imposed, while all who fled were declared outlaws of the empire. The 220 Annals of Switzerland three men who had personated the heroes of Riitli were shot or executed, and Emmenegger was summarily hung. The Peasants' Revolt had hardly been sub- dued when religious differences in the confed- eracy were fanned into a flame, and war again burst forth. A number of families in the can- ton of Schwyz had secretly embraced Protes- tantism, and this fact having transpired, their lives were threatened by the authorities, and they fled for safety to Zurich. To secure their possessions in Schwyz, they begged the media- tion of Zurich magistrates, and by the govern- ment of that canton, property claims against Schwyz were accordingly advanced. Schwyz responded by the confiscation of everything belonging to the fugitives, and, while the mag- istrates also imprisoned or put to death rela- tives of the thirty-six families who had fled, they proclaimed that for actions within their own boundaries they would render account only to God and to their own people. No further impulse was necessary to induce the reformed cantons to take up arms, and Religions Catholic members of the confederacy Antagonisms. were equally prompt in preparation for the conflict. The campaign was chiefly characterized by deeds of pillage and plunder, Freedom from the Empire 221 and among the troops from the Reformed can- tons so little discipline existed, that a Battle of force of twelve thousand Bernese, sur- vwmergen. prised at Villmergen by four thousand Luzern- ers, was thrown into confusion, and easily routed. Shortly after the attack, orders to avoid a conflict, as peace negotiations were in progress, were delivered to the commander of the Catholic army, Colonel Pfyffer, but he failed to read the official document when it was de- livered, and pursuit of the flying enemy was continued, until eight hundred of their number had been slain. The peace then consummated restored to individual cantons the same authority in religious matters that had been previously possessed, and secured only a temporary tran- quillity. A violent antagonism, which resisted diplomacy, had been awakened among the con- federates, and slight causes of dispute insured a renewal of hostilities. When the war of the Spanish Succession divided the nations of Europe by strong par- tisanship, troops from Luzern were secured for the armies of Louis XIV. In their pas- sage through Thurgau, a band of these soldiers, entered, with drawn swords, a Protestant church in Rapperswyl. A frightened woman, escaping from the building, rushed through the streets 222 Annals of Switzerland and into a neighboring village, shrieking for help. The people in both districts seized their arms, and five Luzerners were killed. When this episode was reported, the Catholic cantons called out their troops, and demanded from the opposite party a heavy recompense. In Zurich, and other Protestant cities, collections were taken in the churches to defray expenses thus entailed; but all propitiatory meas- Second "Religious ures failed where so wide a ground War " for dispute existed, and a second so- called " religious war " was soon precipitated. In territory formerly owned by the Counts of Toggenburg, privileges early secured to the peasantry had been greatly curtailed after the purchase of the land by the Abbots of St. Gall. These ecclesiastics, strengthened by alliances with Schwyz and Glaris, ventured to The * Toggenburg ignore, by degrees, the known fran- chises of their people, and in the middle of the seventeenth century, the Abbot Leodegar, claimed absolute lordship upon his estates. His oppressive rule at last induced the peasants to carry their grievances before the Swiss Diet; and soon the Toggenburg question became a serious one in the cantons. As the population of the district included both Protes- tants and Catholics, partisanship of either side Freedom from the Empire 223 was largely determined by religious sympathy, while the recent alliance consummated between Austria and the Abbot excited against the latter a strong personal prejudice. Perplexity increased as the prerogatives on both sides were discussed, and diet after diet assembled and adjourned without settling the Toggenburg question. Finally the Emperor asserted his superior right to decide the dis- pute, claiming the district as a fief of the empire, but Zurich and Bern repudiated the imperial claim, asserting that the territory lay within Swiss boundaries, and power to arbi- trate for the people rested with the confeder- ates alone. At last the Toggenburgers rose in revolt against the Abbot's officials, and drove them from the land. Leodegar sought to regain his authority by force of arms, but succeeded only in eliciting a declaration of war from the peasantry, who, supported in the action by Bern and Zurich, besieged the castle of the Abbot, and ravaged the district of St. Gall. Then the Catholic cantons prepared to enter the field, and, aided by gold from the papal nuncio, and by the consecrated bullets and amulets freely distributed among their men they assembled a large army, while princes of the empire were hastily summoned to the aid of the exiled Abbot. 224 Annals of Switzerland To support Bern and Zurich, other Protestant cantons sent troops, and soon, arrayed in hos- tile ranks, stood a larger number of confeder- ates than had ever been united against a foreign foe. Treachery was not unknown, and in the face of proposed treaties for peace surprises were plotted. After a series of minor Second r Battle of encounters, the decisive battle oc- Villmergen. , . ,, - curred, as in the first campaign, near Villmergen. The two armies, almost equal in numbers, contended for nearly ten hours with fatal bitterness. Victory for the 1712. Catholics seemed insured, when, by a manoeuvre of the Protestant general — Duval — one division of the adverse army was separated from its main body, and the position of the antagonists was swiftly reversed. Disastrous confusion occurred in Catholic ranks, and two thousand corpses covered the battlefield, when, pressed on every side, they were forced to sue for peace. Both par- ties had lost valued commanders, and both desired a final cessation of hostilities, when negotiations were opened at Aarau. By the terms of peace accepted, Protestant Peace of control was secured in Baden, Thur- Aarau - gau, Sargans, and the Rheinthal, but only slight alleviation of burdens was Freedom from the Empire 225 obtained for the Toggenburg peasants, whose grievances had been the ostensible cause of the war. The Abbot, indeed, remained in exile, refusing to recognize the terms of the treaty; but after his death, in 1718, the territory was restored to his successor, upon condition of a grant of franchises to the people. The Pope never recognized the treaty, although compelled to recall the nuncio, who had been a leading instigator of the disastrous dissensions. The moral influence of the war upon the people of Switzerland was deplorable. The cantons, separated by mutual jealousies and hatred, sought sympathy and support in foreign alliances. Bern entered into a treaty with England, while the Catholics were promised aid from France in forcing from their brother confederates a renunciation of lands acquired in the religious wars. " In a political and social light," writes the Swiss historian, Daguet, " the eighteenth century is one of the saddest in our history." iS CHAPTER XX PROGRESS IN POLITICAL ENFRANCHISE- MENT 1712-1796 Although for nearly a century succeeding the Villmergen wars, the Swiss territory remained nominally undisturbed by domestic or foreign strife, yet religious and political differences continued to separate the people. Jealous can- tonal governments, suspicious and critical of one another, justified themselves in the pursuit of individual prosperity, regardless of the effect upon the confederacy at large. The Diet had avoided entanglement in the political game of the Spanish Succession war, but rival parties, in various cantons advocated respectively the French or the Austrian claims, and rendered continually imminent volcanic disturbances. France had assumed proprietary rights in Switzerland, since the consummation of the treaty that secured her an annual subsidy of Swiss troops, and in return for her payment of Political Enfranchisement 227 gold exacted from the people an undeviating allegiance. 1 If this was not voluntarily ren- dered, efforts were made to enforce it, and the French ambassador did not hesitate to use vio- lent measures for the accomplishment of his purpose. An instance of his arbitrary proceed- ings was made public when a son of Thomas Massner, a wealthy citizen of Chur, was kid- napped in Geneva, and placed under strict confinement because his father had expressed sympathy for Austria. Massner retaliated by seizing the person of a French official at Chur, but his act was loudly denounced as a violation of the law of nations. An exchange of pris- oners having been arranged, the Frenchman was set at liberty, but the deluded father failed to find his son. He then plotted a more sure revenge, and succeeded in capturing the Due de Venddme, grand-prior of France, whom he delivered to the Austrians. For this act France demanded from the government of the Grisons an indemnification, and efforts to negotiate an exchange of prisoners were again put forth. These proved futile, and, to pacify the French, 1 " Sire," said Louvois to Louis XIV., " With all the gold the French have given to the Swiss, the road from Paris to Basle might be well paved ! " "Sire," responded a Swiss officer who was present, " With all the blood shed by the Swiss for the French, a canal from Basle to Paris might be well filled." 228 Annals of Switzerland the government of Grisons was obliged to banish Massner, to destroy his house, and to confiscate his property. With a price upon his head, the fugitive sought refuge in Austria, and when, after years had elapsed, he ventured to re-enter Switzerland he was immediately claimed by the French ambassador, and again forced to seek safety in a foreign land. His life ended in exile, and only after the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle had closed the contest between France and Austria was young Massner released from captivity. In the large cities of Switzerland the seven- teenth century marked the growth of a new aristocracy. After the acquisition by Bern of the district of Vaud, the canton abandoned its antique custom of burgher assemblies, and relegated public affairs to the decisions of a Great Council. As time passed on, member- ship in this body was claimed as an hereditary right among three hundred and sixty families of the city, and when male heirs failed, the office was frequently bestowed, as a marriage portion, upon daughters. Although the government of Bern was dis- tinguished for its probity and power, an effort to establish a more liberal form of administra- tion was made in 1742, and a demand was Political Enfranchisement 229 forwarded to the council for prerogatives guaranteed to the citizens by the Charter of Berchthold of Zeringen. This petition the magistrates elected to regard as an act of in- subordination, and the twenty-six burghers who had signed it were summarily arrested or ban- ished. Samuel Henzi, one of the 1749. exiled men, returned to Bern at the expiration of his term of proscription, and headed there a band of malcontents, who were working to establish burgher authority. The aim of the leader was honestly directed at the removal of abuses in the govern- Disturbances ment, but many joined him whose inBern ' object was less laudable, and Henzi found himself unable to stem the tide of criminal schemes concocted by members of his train. He sought, by flight, to escape responsibility for deeds he disapproved ; but revelations that caused his arrest had already been made to the government, and, as leader of the inculpated band, Henzi suffered the contumely that attached itself to the most revolting of their projects. With two companions, Werner and Fuetor, he was beheaded, while others, less prominent in the conspiracies, were banished. The council of Bern, aroused by these events to a realiza- tion of danger, proposed a free discussion of 230 Annals of Switzerland state affairs, and eventually the burgher class in that city gained a wider influence. In Freyburg, as in Bern, an oligarchical rule had limited the freedom of early years, and in iMurrection I 7^4 tne "secret families " who com- in Freyburg. p 0sec j the council, excluded all others from entrance into their coterie. The people vainly recalled the days of old, when in one district alone the city boasted of two thousand tanners, and when more than two thousand pieces of cloth were annually woven for expor- tation to Venice. In vain the burghers sought release from the decrees of autocratic magis- trates, and at last an embassy of sixty men, under Nicholas Chenaux, was deputed to pre- sent complaints before the council. When this measure proved ineffectual to procure a redress of grievances, adherents from the adjacent country were notified, and three thousand insur- gents, bearing consecrated banners, encamped before the city walls. The council begged aid of Bern, and troops from that city, promptly despatched, led the Freyburg council to a swift victory. Chenaux, fleeing with his troops, was struck down by a member of his own band and delivered to his pursuers, who mounted his head upon the gate- way of Freyburg. Having visited with severe Political Enfranchisement 231 punishment all known to be implicated in the revolt, the government then invited a pre- sentation of complaints from the people; but no satisfactory concessions were allowed when delegates from various districts were de- spatched to Freyburg, and the position taken by Bern, Luzern, and Solothurn dissipated all hope of the favorable mediation of other cantons. These three influential states de- clared themselves prepared to maintain the Constitution of Freyburg, and, although recom- mending that the burdens of the country people should be lightened, stigmatized the demands of the burgher class as both "groundless and unconstitutional." This sentence was promul- gated from the pulpits, and terminated all pub- lic exhibition of dissatisfaction; but Chenaux was regarded as a martyr, and pilgrimages, which the government was powerless to pre- vent, were regularly made to his grave. In the small territory of Geneva, where Vol- taire remarked that by shaking his wig he pow- dered the republic, permanence of government had been secured by a clause in the constitution which decreed the death penalty to any one who should suggest a modification of the laws. But as increased wealth and distinction were ac- quired by the citizens, a new aristocracy arose 232 Annals of Switzerland who revived ancient patrician customs, and claimed exclusive privileges. 1 The councils of Twenty-five and of Two Hun- dred were largely swayed by this class, and in 1 71 7, without consulting the citizens in gen- eral assembly, the magistrates, to defray the expenses attending repairs upon the city forti- fications, imposed a new tax. This was stren- uously opposed by the burghers, and their cause was powerfully espoused by Micheli of Crest, a member of the Great Council. For his published criticism of magisterial ordinances, Micheli was deprived of his position in the assembly, and threatened with imprisonment, and although he sought safety in flight, he was hung in effigy, and his writings were torn by Excitements tne hangman. But opposition was in Geneva. no j. overborne by these ultra meas- ures; the citizens continued to demand the repeal of the tax, and in 1734 the council called upon Bern for aid in enforcing their unpopular decrees. Then a mob took possession of the highway by which the Bernese must advance, and convoked there a general council ; but influence was exerted which secured the vote 1 In 1697 a decree was passed in the council " d'empecher que Ton donne aussi facilement le titre de madame aux femmes de toutes conditions." Political Enfranchisement 233 of a majority for the completion of the fortifi- cations of their city, and the consequent impo- sition of the tax for ten years, and upon this basis a compromise was effected and temporary peace secured. But the volcanic condition of the city was again revealed when the populace de- manded the banishment of the syndic Trembly, against whom, as director of the fortifications, hostile sentiments had long been accumulat- ing. Again the burghers took up arms, and only through the mediation of Bern, Zurich, and France, was tranquillity restored. The French ambassador, with the assistance of delegates from the two cantons, then undertook to prepare a new constitution for the distracted city. By its decree the power of the aristocracy and the authority of the smaller councils were restricted, and a peace, which endured for a quarter of a cen- tury, was bequeathed to Geneva. In 1762, a native of Geneva, though long a wanderer, the "man in convulsions," Jean Jacques Rousseau, had so excited the Parisian world that his books were burned by the hang- man. Geneva imitated the example of the French, and refused to consider the remon- strances presented by a number of her citi- zens. The disputes, thus inaugurated, served 234 Annals of Switzerland as sparks to kindle fires whose fuel had long been accumulating, and the two antagonistic parties known as Representatives and Nega- tives held riotous meetings, and multiplied their grounds of dispute until the magistrates again threatened to seek foreign intervention. This method of arbitration was odious to both disputants, and to prevent its adoption they agreed in registering an act of pacification which entitled the burghers to greater authority than they had formerly possessed in minor mat- ters of legislation, and gave them power to elect one-half the members of the Great Coun- cil. But the aristocratic party, unwilling to relinquish their perquisites, endeavored, during eight years, to evade the fulfilment of their contract, and, intriguing with the French, sought from that government support in their usurpations. Plots and counterplots overlapped one another, party strife waxed hot and violent, and at last the intervention of the former arbi- ters was requested. Zurich refused her aid in the crisis, but Bern, Sardinia, and France stationed troops in Geneva. From "Les D6- lices," the country-seat of Voltaire, the French battalions pointed their guns against the fair city, while the arbiters, sentencing seven mem- bers of the aristocracy to perpetual banishment, Political Enfranchisement 235 established the authority of the "Negatives," who immediately proscribed "secret societies, military exercises, and recent books." At this period, in close proximity to the tumultuous city, the cyclone of revolution was sweeping away all landmarks of ancient usage, and solving political problems with unauthor- ized legislation. A similarity of language ren- dered the dissemination of French ideas easy in Geneva, and soon peasants of the surround- ing country united in a demand for the annexa- tion of their territory to France. Incited by the spirit of their neighbors, a bolder band organized independent tribunals, and by such authority banished or put to death all obnox- ious persons. Anarchy once more prevailed, but, in 1794, too weary of the long Changing confusion for further conflict, the constitutions . . 1.1 . • . in Genera. citizens adopted a new constitution, which invested syndics and councils with an authority long denied them. The inaugura- tion of this form of government was officially announced to Bern and to Zurich, but the magistrates in those cantons hesitated to give it recognition, and their doubts of its perma- nence were justified. Again, with the rise of breadstuff s and other commodities, tumults occurred; the arsenals were seized, and the 236 Annals of Switzerland magistrates imprisoned. Again, by the failure of both parties to attain their objective posi- tions, concessions were forced from antagonis- tic factions. In 1796 another constitution was framed, which gave to all persons born on Genevese territory equal prerogatives, and upon this basis tranquillity was maintained for two years. At the end of that period the fortunes of war united Geneva to France. CHAPTER XXI THE ERA OF THE FRENCH REVOLUTION 1789-1820 "We are Swiss! and the Swiss never surren- der but with their lives ! " were words that the world heard, even through the clang and clamor of demoniacal Paris in 1792, for they were a defiance to peril and to death, uttered by the leader of eight hundred heroic men, whose martyrdom Luzern's carved rock records. The report of the massacre of the Tuileries guard sent through Switzerland a prolonged quiver of that political earthquake, that, ad- vancing in swift waves, had already shaken the confederacy. The aggressive tendency of French revolutionary tribunals was keenly real- ized in the cantons, and the governments hesi- tated to offend a nation who were disposed to offer only a Pandora-box to the world at large; consequently, the Diet was prompt in the recog- nition of forms of legislation, successively established on territory adjacent to its own. 238 Annals of Switzerland But in the midst of the maelstrom of reaction from established constitutional rule, many can- tonal governments endeavored to preserve their authority by an increased severity of adminis- tration, and through this impolitic course pre- cipitated the crisis they were seeking to avert. When the inhabitants of Staeffa, on the shore of Lake Zurich, manifested an inclination to obtain civil enfranchisement, the village was immediately occupied by a military force, and the people oppressed by heavy fines. The magistrates of Grisons exercised so imperious and rigorous an authority over the Valtelina that the occupants of that valley sought the interference of Napoleon in their behalf. His demand that the district should be admitted as a fourth member of the Grison league having been disregarded, the autocrat summarily an- nexed it to the newly-organized Cisalpine Republic. Among the Vaudois, a people little disposed to political excitement, the temper of opposi- tion to foreign domination had been induced and stimulated by a few wealthy men, at whose head stood the refugee, Francis Caesar La Harpe. Antagonism to the sway of Bern was rapidly developed, and when Napoleon Era of the French Revolution 239 traversed the Pays de Vaud, on his way to the congress of Rastadt, triumphal arches greeted him, bearing inscriptions quoted from his ver- dict in the Valtelina : " One nation cannot be subject to another, without violation of the principles of national and of public rights." At the instigation of the " Helvetic Club " of Paris, French troops were sent, in xheLemanic 1798, to the shores of Lake Geneva, Re J> nWlc - and a transitory result was the establishment by the Vaudois of a "Lemanic Republic." Bern, thus despoiled of a province, was divided into two political parties : one led by Frederick Steiger, "the last great man of ancient Switzer- land," who advocated resistance to foreign en- croachments, while a powerful faction under French influence insisted upon the superior policy of peace-negotiations. Meanwhile, an army was advancing from Vaud, under General Brune, and troops sent to oppose its progress fought ineffectually, or fled before facing the foe. The Diet, which had assembled in alarm, separated in the distraction of fear; mutual distrust of one another had been too long fos- tered in the cantons, and no united effort could now be anticipated. Gradually France appro- priated districts within Swiss boundaries, and unceremoniously assumed the right to dismem- 240 Annals of Switzerland ber the confederacy. On the advance of French troops, Luzern, Schaffhausen, and Zurich declared their dependencies free, and released their prisoners. Bern received into her aristocratic council fifty-two representatives from the country, and Freyburg agreed to make equal concessions. But the foreign foe pursued his unimpeded way, and, as he moved, his in- flexible grasp covered each canton in turn, closing upon each the iron door that stifled every whisper of opposition. Solothurn and Freyburg fell, and Bern was summoned to sur- render. The city magistrates replied by arming twenty-five hundred troops to confront fifteen hundred of the enemy; but by the crafty Brune the superior forces were beguiled with peace propositions until the army of the Rhine, under Schauenburg, had joined its strength to his. Then Bern, surrounded by foes, was forced to capitulate, and to yield to the invaders all her garnered wealth. While French soldiers, pro- claiming themselves liberators of the people, Dissolution pillaged the land, the French Direc- confederacy. tory declared : " The confederacy is no more ! " and arbitrarily dissolving the union of five hundred years, inaugurated 1798. , J £ ,_f J upon the territory a new Helvetic Republic." This state, "one and indivisible," Era of the French Revolution 241 was partitioned into nineteen cantons, 1 and four deputies from each received power to exercise legislative authority in a Grand The Helvetic Council and a Senate, while the Re P nWic - central executive authority was vested in a Directory of five members, holding its seat at Luzern. Neither the civil nor religious liberties for which the Swiss had contended were infringed by the new constitution, but against the accept- ance of any ordinances imposed by a conqueror the spirit of the nation rebelled. The three Waldstatten, with Zug, Appenzell, and Glarus, recalling their ancient traditions and the deeds of heroic ancestors, leagued together once again to resist subjugation. " In battle and in blood, " they said, "our fathers won the glorious jewel of our independence, and we will not lose it but in battle and in blood. " Led by the valiant Aloys Reding, a hero descended from heroes, they joined in solemn oaths of fidelity unto death, and marched to meet the intruding army. Overpowered in two encounters, they ^Me f rallied for the third at Rosenthurm, *oatnthvrm. near the field of Morgarten, where an enemy four times their numbers confronted them. 1 A name then officially used in Switzerland for the first time. 16 242 Annals of Switzerland Thrice on that memorable ground the foe was repulsed, but, although "every Swiss soldier fought like a Caesar," the little band 1798. of patriots was finally overpowered, the oath of allegiance to the new constitution was forced upon each district, and "the first year of Swiss slavery " opened. The nation was not blind to the fact that its fall had been due to the indulgence of selfish greed for individual cantonal aggrandizement and the consequent weakening of the tie that had formerly upheld the confederation; but in spite of this conviction, local antagonisms continued to be fostered, and no efforts were made to allay the spirit of discontent fomented among the masses by the new division of land. When oaths of allegiance to the new govern- ment were required, numerous outbreaks oc- curred, for the French commissioners, living in luxury and extravagance at the expense of the country, regarded neither the unpaid salaries of the clergy, nor the poverty of the people, and the Executive Directory, established at Aarau, commanded neither confidence nor respect. The ecclesiastics of Nidwalden, anticipating the abolition of the monasteries, declared that the new constitution was the work of Satan, and quickly excited a formidable disturbance. Era of the French Revolution 243 Led by a Capuchin monk, named Paul Steiger, the peasants at Stanz offered desperate resist- ance to the French troops; but after a conflict of ten hours they were overcome, and, by the merciless punishment that followed, nearly four thousand victims perished amid their burning homes. In the autumn of 1798, after a victory over the French in Swabia, an Austrian army entered Switzerland. In alarm at the proximity of this foe, the Helvetic government quitted Luzern, and sought security at Bern ; but French troops soon encountered the Austrian force, and Swit- zerland again became a theatre of foreign war, while in both antagonistic armies Swiss soldiers were enrolled, to oppose their brothers in a bitter strife. Swiftly the French were expelled from Schwyz, and the Austrians, with their Russian allies, advanced toward Zurich. The Abbot of St. Gall, confidently anticipating the resumption of his former authority, deprived his people, prematurely, of their charter, and forced them again into slavery. But Massena met the Russians, and the tide of victory turned ; the French entered Zurich, again masters of the country, while Austrians and Russians were in full retreat; and during three succeeding years a French army, quartered upon the people, 244 Annals of Switzerland reduced them to a condition of poverty unknown before in their history. Powerless in this humiliation to resist the bayonets of their oppressors, they made their misery manifest by four attempts to effect changes in their govern- ment ; and insurrectionists insisted upon a res- toration of ancient forms, even after the treaty of Amiens (1802) had withdrawn foreign garri- sons from the country. The unprotected gov- ernment officials fled to Lausanne, and a Diet was summoned to meet in Schwyz for the establishment of the old constitution. But the sovereign power of France was yet dominant, and Napoleon commanded peace. His ambassadors arrived at Lausanne, and immediately the malcontents laid down their arms, burgher and magistrate bowing silently before the messenger of the First Consul. In an address to the Swiss, through General Rapp, Napoleon dwelt upon the anarchy that had so long prevailed among them, and declared that only the country's desperate need induced him to retract his resolution against interfering in its affairs. He offered to mediate, upon condition that within five days three deputies, accompanied by delegates from the cantons, should be sent to Paris. "Every rational man," he said, "must per- Era of the French Revolution 245 ceive that my mediation is a blessing conferred upon Switzerland by that Providence which, amid so many concurring causes of social dis- solution, has always preserved your national existence and independence. It would be pain- ful to think that destiny has singled out this epoch, which has called to life so many new re- publics, as the hour of destruction to one of the oldest communities in Europe." The Helvetic senate replied in a spirit of gratitude and submission; cantonal deputies were immediately chosen, and in December, 1803, the sixty-three Swiss delegates in Paris were informed by letter of the basis upon which Napoleon would consent to mediate in their behalf. The "Act of Mediation," provided for the addition to the thirteen old members of the confederation of six new cantons; The "Act of two of these, St. Gall and Grisons, Mediation." having formerly been "associates," and the remaining four, Aargau, Ticino, Thurgau, and Vaud, to be formed from subject territory, which had been at various periods conquered. In this confederacy of nineteen members, a central government, resembling the old Diet, but with functions enlarged, should direct national affairs at the cities of Freyburg, Bern, 246 Annals of Switzerland Solothurn, Basle, Zurich, and Luzern, in annual rotation ; each canton, during the period of its pre-eminence, assuming the name of Vorort, or directorial canton, while the burgomaster of the distinguished city became president of the confederation with the title of " Landammann of Switzerland." Independent cantonal sover- eignty was to be restored, directed in Demo- cratic districts by Landesgetneinden, and in other cantons by "great" and "small" coun- cils, but no exclusive privileges, either for families or cities, would be tolerated. Free- dom in trade, and license to establish himself according to his pleasure, should be the pre- rogative of every inhabitant of the land, and full liberty of worship was granted to Protes- tants and Catholics alike. In this document, which also stated the pro- visions of a close alliance with France, the name "Switzerland," was for the Name of "Switzer- first time officially employed. The prescribed conditions were accepted by the deputies at Paris, and, the dissolution of the Helvetic government having been formally proclaimed, French troops were withdrawn from Swiss territory. Allegiance to the new order of things was promptly tendered, except in the canton of Zurich, where, on the ground of diffi- Era of the French Revolution 247 culties concerning the redemption of titles, ground-rents, etc., the officials authorized to demand the oath of acceptance, met resistance. But the opposition was speedily quelled, and six years of tranquillity followed. A stronger sense of fellowship had been promoted by the common trials through which the cantons had passed, and enterprises of mutual advantage were projected. In 1807 the great work was proposed of draining twenty-eight thousand acres of annually-inundated swamp-land, and within a few years an unhealthy valley was converted into an attractive and habitable dis- trict, while the water there accumulated formed the navigable channel of the great xheidnth Linth Canal. Meanwhile, schools were Canal - multiplied; industrial and commercial pursuits, untrammelled, prospered; each canton sent cheerfully its contingent to guard the frontier, while the Diet declared its unanimous resolu- tion, by the maintenance of a strict neutrality in European disputes, to preserve the tranquillity of the land. In 1806 Napoleon gave NeuchAtel to his general, Berthier, and in 18 10 the Swiss were again made to feel the authority of the capri- cious autocrat, for, on the plea that the posses- sion of the Simplon was essential to France 248 Annals of Switzerland and to Italy, a decree was issued, incorporat- ing the Valais with the French empire, and, although the Diet protested against this rob- bery, they were powerless to resist it. Their contract to furnish France with an uninter- rupted contingent of sixteen thousand troops had, through the constant warfare of Napoleon, become an agreement burdensome beyond toler- ation. In 1807, the promised number being incomplete, a conscription was ordered by the Emperor, and to avoid this measure the can- tons took the desperate course of emptying the prisons to fill up the regiments. When the star of the great commander sank in "the battle of the nations," at Leipsic, the hour seemed to have struck for the wis. , ,. , r „ . . , re-establishment of Swiss indepen- dence; but, ignoring the pledged neutrality of the country, the allied sovereigns, en route for Paris, attempted to traverse Switzerland with their victorious armies. Suddenly, from the Diet, an edict was promulgated which with- drew home troops from the Rhine frontier, and allowed the allies unimpeded passage. In many cities the wealthy classes welcomed the presence of the foreigners, anticipating from them support in efforts to re-establish the old system of aristocratic sovereignty and peasant Era of the French Revolution 249 servitude. Bern, Solothurn, Freyburg, and Luzern declared the "Act of Mediation " an- nulled, and claimed their former dominion over adjacent districts. Zurich headed an opposi- tion to this assumption of authority, and in various localities tumults, which the local authorities were impotent to suppress, became of such frequent occurrence that the " Long Diet " continued at Zurich, seemed the only tie to prevent the dismemberment of the nation. Meanwhile the allied sovereigns had entered Paris; Napoleon was at Elba, and the con- gress assembled at Vienna began its congress of peace deliberations. Ambassadors Vienna - from Switzerland were despatched to this as- sembly, where an intention to guarantee the perpetual neutrality of Swiss territory was an- nounced ; but, before the pledge could be ful- filled, the tramp of armies and the roar of artillery once more aroused the world, for Napoleon had returned, and again monarchs trembled. This interlude was a brief one ; the day of Waterloo came and passed (June 18, 181 5), and the reassembled Congress of Vienna, recogniz- ing the new act of confederation adopted by a majority of the Swiss cantons, agreed to rec- ompense the confederacy for districts detached 250 Annals of Switzerland from their territory by the new divisions of Europe, excepting only Chiavenna, Valtelina, and Bormio, which, though claimed by the Grisons, had been annexed to Austria. The entrance of the allies had delivered Geneva, Valais, and Neuchatel from French domination, and, by vote of the " Long Diet" of 1 8 14, they were joined with the Swiss Confed- eration. In 1707, Neuchatel, to escape the grasp of Louis XIV., had voluntarily placed itself under the ducal sway of Prussia, and now appeared both as a Swiss canton, and a Hohen- zollern principality. Napoleon had restored Ticino to the Swiss, and twenty-two cantons formed the nation whose deputies to the Con- ine Federal gress solemnly presented a Federal Ptct of wis. p act> formulated in the Diet at Zurich. Its terms were accepted by the allies, and, by the stipulations of the Peace of Paris, the future inviolability of Swiss territory was guaranteed. The Federal Pact of 181 5 formed the sixth constitution given to the Swiss nation since the formation of the confederacy in Nov. 20, 1815. 1 291. As a fundamental principle, the pact declared that no community could hold any subject-district ; no form of vassalage should be allowed. The Diet was to meet, hence- Era of the French Revolution 251 forth, by turn, at Bern, Zurich, and Luzern. One vote in this assembly was apportioned to each canton, and the sovereign right of each state in its own territory was distinctly recog- nized. Freed from the distractions of continental warfare, the people willingly relegated to their deputies the settlement of all minor questions, either of Church or of State, and from 181 5 to 1820 no political movement of importance dis- turbed the tranquillity of the land. Social and intellectual pursuits prospered, cantons vied with one another in enthusiasm for educational advantages ; steamboats appeared upon the lakes of Geneva, Neuchitel, and Constance; within Swiss boundaries new philanthropic schemes were liberally sustained, while cordial aid was extended to the Greeks, whose struggle to free themselves from the Turkish sovereignty ex- cited a sympathetic interest throughout Switzer- land. CHAPTER XXII THE LEAGUE OF ROTHEN 1830-1847 The political life of Switzerland, like that of other European nations, was struck into rapid vibration by the shock of the French revolu- tion of 1830, and once again the masses rose to combat the power of the aristocracy. Again the prizes to be obtained were revised consti- tutions, with broader definitions of popular rights, and within a few months twelve cantons modified their laws, some peaceably, others after fierce contentions. Throughout this revolutionary period in can- tonal governments, the federal constitution of the Swiss remained unaltered; but in 1832, in response to increasing evidence of popular desire, the Diet empowered a committee of fifteen to formulate a new covenant. In honor of the delegate from Geneva, who held the position of secretary to this commission, the The League of Rothen 253 document prepared was entitled the Rossi Pact. It was strongly supported in many jheRoaei districts, but failed of acceptance Pact - through the opposition of a few cantons, led by Luzern. During the period of universal agitation attending the discussion of this subject, the canton of Basle had been immersed in civil strife. The refusal of magistrates to grant to the country people a representation proportional to their numbers, led to hostilities which cul- minated in bloodshed. The city of Basle then united with the smaller cantons of Switzerland in a league known as the Sarnen- The bund, which was organized for the sarnenDtuid. purpose of presenting a united opposition to all radical tendencies. The rejection of the Rossi Pact encouraged the members of this league to open hostilities against liberal gov- ernments, and its first measure was the expul- sion from cantonal union, by a legislative vote, of forty-two antagonistic communes, while six- teen hundred troops were put into the field to suppress opposition. The Vorort of the con- federacy protested against these measures, but her troops, sent as mediators, were refused admission into the city of Basle. Then the seven large cantons formed the league of the 254 Annals of Switzerland Siebnerbund, and offered opposition, while the Diet ordered sixteen thousand troops to xhe occupy the canton of Basle. Despite siebnertnnd. tne attempted intervention of foreign ambassadors, the dissolution of the Sarnenbund was decreed, and Basle was divided into the two half cantons of Basel -Stadt, and Basel- Landschaft. Each division was privileged to send one deputy to the Diet, but each was entitled to only half a vote; hence, in case of opposition between the districts, the influence of the canton was annulled. In Neuchatel, at this period, two parties, equally opposed to their double regime, endeavored on the one hand to achieve a severance from Prussia, and on the other a separation from Switzerland. The former counted upon the sympathy of the Swiss Diet; but that authority, recognizing the claims of their early compact, sent troops to support the existing government, and the at- tempted revolution failed. In 1817, Switzerland had entered the "Holy Alliance," organized by Alexander of Russia for the maintenance of political and religious toleration; but the friendly reception now offered by the cantons to foreign refugees gave offence to arbitrary potentates, and called forth many remonstrances. In 1833 five hundred The League of Rothen 255 Poles, who had secretly procured arms at Geneva, attempted an invasion of Savoy from Swiss territory, and, although the episode was barren of result, Sardinia, Austria, and some members of the Rhine Confederation were induced to enter formal complaints against the Confederate government, and to demand the expulsion from their domain of all Difficulties disturbers of European peace. Dis- ^^ni-™ putes over these exactions, and minor »»«*■• matters, resulted in a temporary interruption of friendly intercourse with Germany; but in 1835, upon the accession of Ferdinand I. to the throne of Austria, a reconciliation was effected. A more serious exigency for the Confederacy arose from a demand enforced in the name of M. Thiers, then premier of France, for the expulsion from Switzerland of a refugee named Conseil, who was stigmatized as a dangerous agitator. When this requirement had been conceded, it was discovered that the supposititious refugee was in reality a spy sent into Switzerland by the French government. The indignation naturally expressed throughout the cantons was met by angry menaces from the Duke of Monte- bello, the French ambassador, and serious con- 256 Annals of Switzerland sequences were averted only through skilful diplomacy. The hazards of this affair were followed by other complications consequent upon the pro- longed residence of Louis Napoleon upon Swiss territory. Hortense Beauharnais had sought there an asylum, and her son became a natural- ized citizen of Thurgau, serving as captain in the federal army. In 1837 an unsuccessful attempt to gain the allegiance of the French nation drew down upon the young man a sen- tence of exile that carried him to America. Upon his reappearance in Thurgau, France demanded his expulsion, but the Thurgau deputy claimed that as a citizen of that canton the prince-presumptive could insist upon pro- tection so long as he remained inoffensive. The Diet, divided in opinion, submitted the question to the cantons, but France, impatient of this leisurely proceeding, despatched twenty- five hundred men against the Swiss, who were characterized in her angry proclamation as "turbulent neighbors." This language roused the Swiss to a fierce antagonism. Geneva and Vaud flew to arms; the French border was guarded by defiant and enthusiastic forces, while one by one the can- tons voted to resist the demands of France, and The League of Rothen 257 to maintain the right of their nation to inde- pendent judgment upon the point in dispute. But the Prince Napoleon, unwilling to com- promise the country so long his asylum, sent a letter to the Diet, announcing his voluntary departure from the land, and France, with pro- testations of friendship toward Switzerland, called home her troops. The decree of 1835, which ordained public sessions of the Diet, was a measure abetting the advance of popular freedom, and it had also tended to induce co-operation among the can- tons, for the promotion of education, ,. . .. , , 1838. military discipline, and other matters of common advantage; but with the cessation of foreign disagreements, internal jealousies revived, and these were soon augmented by religious disputes. At the close of the Reformation, seven can- tons remained in communion with the Roman Church, namely, Luzern, Schwyz, Uri, Unter- walden, Zug, Freyburg, and Solothurn; five were avowedly Protestant — Bern, Basle, Zurich, St. Gall, and Schaffhausen ; while ReU gi 01J8 the remaining cantons recognized DIvl8ion8 - both forms of worship. In the Helvetic Repub- lic ( 1 798-1 803) the exercise of either faith had been permitted, and the Act of Mediation (1803) 17 258 Annals of Switzerland stipulated for liberty of choice in religious creeds; but the pact of 181 5 took no cognizance of ecclesiastical affairs, except in the article guaranteeing convents and chapters. Rome had never ceased her efforts to regain a universal domination in Switzerland, and in 18 14, when a papal nuncio resumed his seat in Luzern, the spirit of freedom alone saved the people from the superstitious subjugation to which their ancestors had yielded. In the midst of the political turmoil of 1838-40 the Catholic party sought to establish a national archbishopric in Switzerland, and thus to secure to their faith a dominating influence; but the project was condemned by the Pope, although not until the excitement it induced had necessitated an exact definition of the limit of clerical interference in State affairs. On this point disputes waxed violent. A decree of the great council, ordaining national super- vision of cantonal monasteries, called forth open remonstrances from the abbey of Muri. The magistrates of Schwyz ignored a law forbidding the admission of Jesuits, but stimulated thereby many local animosities; while in Glarus, the decision of the Landesgemeinde, denying Cath- olic clergy an equality of privileges with those of Protestant persuasion, was rejected by a The League of Rothen 259 minority in the council, who, in opposition to advisers in Uri, Schwyz, and Unterwalden, refused the oath to their new constitution. In 1839, Zurich became Vorort of the Con- federacy, and the Diet was in session when Frederick Strauss accepted the invitation to the chair of theology in the university of that city, pre-eminent for culture. Strauss, who had been educated for the Church, had advanced from the position of a country pastor to the chair of a professor at Maulbrom, and the dis- tinction of lecturer at Tubingen. In 1835 he attained notoriety by the publication of a " Life of Jesus," in which he attempted to show that the Gospel narratives were only a collection of myths, gathered by early communities. The book cost Strauss his professorship at Tubin- gen, and he retired to private literary life, until called by the Zurich Board of Education to the theological chair in their university. In the storm of opposition that prevented his occupa- tion of this position, the government withdrew its indorsement of the invitation, but failed by the concession to quell the excitement. A " committee of faith " demanded ecclesiastical control in educational affairs, and when the magistrates charged this band with seditious acts, ten thousand men assembled at Kloten 160 Annals of Switzerland and voted for open resistance to the govern- ment. A rumor that troops from other cantons had been summoned to aid the authorities of Zurich precipitated a conflict, and messengers hurried through the country calling upon the people to rise in defence of their religion. Led by the pastor, Bernard Huzel, a motley mob of fanatics, in disorderly array, and armed with clubs, scythes, or any weapons conflicts in they could secure, marched to the gates of Zurich, chanting psalms on their way. Against slight opposition they forced an entrance into the city, but in the cathedral square a force of armed men was en- countered, with whom shots were exchanged. At this juncture intelligence arrived that the radical magistrates had abdicated, and the defenders of the city at once withdrew oppo- sition. Burgomaster Hess and other officials united with the insurgents, a conservative gov- ernment took the seats of the recent rulers, the committee of faith called upon the people to recognize the victory vouchsafed to the just cause, and for several days Zurich was given up to a celebration in which religious services mingled with excited carousals. The re-election of local officials served to propagate the temper of intolerance, which The League of Rothen 261 spread into other cantons, and impelled similar outbreaks, though less signal results ° Religious attended them. In the canton of conflicts in Aargau a grand council of two hun- eaM ' dred members had, until 1840, represented, equally the Catholic and Protestant interests. The election of delegates without reference to creed caused, in 1841, a numerical advantage on the Protestant side, and Augustine Keller, deputy from Aargau proposed, before the Diet, the abolition of religious houses, which he characterized as "hearthstones of strife." In defence of these objects of their veneration, two thousand peasants took up arms at Villmer- gen, but, at the hands of government troops, suffered an overwhelming defeat. The elec- tions of 1842 showed a majority in sympathy with the views of Keller, and the suppression of convents in Aargau followed; but in 1843 Luzern became Vorort, and the preponderat- ing influence in the confederacy swung to the Catholic side. The guaranteed pact of 1 8 1 5 was quoted, and the State council of Luzern issued a mandate annulling all sales of convent property. In the midst of a wide-spread tumult a special meet- ing of the Diet was summoned, but, sustained by the Bernese government, Aargau refused to 262 Annals of Switzerland revoke her decree, claiming that the welfare of the canton was impaired, and even its exist- ence imperilled, by the condemned institutions. After long debate, a compromise was agreed upon, and the re-establishment of a few con- vents in Aargau produced temporary quiet; although the ejected abbots continued to pre- sent annually before the Diet their unrecog- nized claims. A radical government had early been estab- lished in Luzern, but civil strife was propagated through the influence of a fanatical Joseph Leu's insurrection peasant, named Joseph Leu, who pro- uzern ' posed a withdrawal from the league of the confederacy, and the inauguration of a new state, in which the supreme guidance of educational matters should be committed to the Jesuits. Before the excited populace the city magistrates were almost powerless; a draft of the proposed constitution was submitted to the Pope, and, receiving from that potentate a politic expression of his faith in their good in- tentions, the revolutionists worked on ; liberty- trees were planted in cities and villages, State councils fled, and the triumph of the Catholic cause was manifested by the unresisted promul- gation of new laws by new magistrates. In 1845 Joseph Leu was assassinated, and, although The League of Rothen 163 the murderer expiated his crime upon the scaffold, the entire party of Leu's opponents were held responsible for the deed; and, while the peasant was exalted as a saint and martyr, and pilgrimages were made to his grave, perse- cution and imprisonment was the vengeance visited by the magistrates upon many innocent heads. One step followed another, each wider in result, and increasingly antagonistic to the Bund of the confederacy, until, at Rothen, in September, 1843, Luzern united with the other Catholic cantons in a secret defensive and offensive alliance. Consummated osten- sibly for the maintenance of the pact of 18 15, this League of Rothen ripened into the Sonder- bund of 1846, a conspiracy for the estab- lishment of Catholic supremacy throughout Switzerland. Meanwhile, in the district of Valais, the people had been quietly subservient to their priesthood; or, if aroused to emulate the liberal progress of their neighbors, had encountered a prompt opposition that quenched the Disturbances spirit of freedom. But gradually de- ^v* 1 * 18 - mands became more importunate, and local dis- putes worked toward a crisis in civil affairs. Since 1814 the six German districts of High 264 Annals of Switzerland Valais had been entitled to send twenty-four deputies to the Valaisian diet, while the seven communes of Low Valais, with a population almost double that of High Valais, were allowed only twenty-eight representatives. Low Valais claimed a right to representation proportional to population; High Valais asserted an ancient right to superiority of representation, and voted for separation rather than the relinquishment of these prerogatives. An attempted intervention by the Swiss Diet proved fruitless. Low Valais gained by force of arms an equality of privi- leges, and in 1840 established her constitution upon that basis. But, encouraged by the clergy, who feared a loss of influence through the prog- ress of liberal pinciples, members of the old council awaited an opportunity to regain author- ity. The party of "Old Switzerland" opposed the newly-formed society of " Young Switzer- land," — an organization hostile to priestly power, and whose members were declared by the clergy to be ineligible to Church privileges. The enmity between the two parties grew more pronounced, and in the elections of 1843 bribes were so freely distributed that the bounds of toleration were overpassed. On their way to the polls a band of " Young Swiss " attacked the printing-office of a paper circulated in the The League of Rothen 265 interests of the clergy, while the council called out troops, and summoned confederate aid. At the bridge of Trient a force of "Old Swiss," in ambush, attacked a detachment of liberals, and after a desperate conflict, in which thirty " Young Swiss " were slain, the remainder of their band were forced to fly. The occupation of Lower Valais by the victors followed, and a constitution was established which secured the priests in all their monopolies, gave the super- intendence of educational affairs to the Jesuits, and refused liberty of worship. Valais, it declared, must first be Catholic, then Swiss. Intelligence of these events excited fierce indignation against the Jesuits, and in Aargau a great council voted for the expulsion of the order from Switzerland. The proposition was not intentionally hostile to the Catholic re- ligion, but was regarded as a necessary precau- tion against undue influence of the priests in civil affairs. When, however, the Aargau deputy presented the measure before the Diet, he found support from the Basle representative alone, while the deputy from Valais was per- mitted to resume his seat in the council, and his vindication of the action of his canton received but slight criticism. The influence of the " Society of Jesus " was wide in the land, 266 Annals of Switzerland and when the press too openly revealed the subterfuges practised by that order, its freedom of criticism was checked by legal procedures. But in Vaud, when magistrates, subject to this Free corps priestly domination, refused a demand Expedition, presented by the people for the expul- sion of Jesuits from their canton, citizens and militia united against the ruling authorities, and without damage to person or property estab- lished a provisional government with a liberal constitution, although the hostile disposition of forty clergymen was manifested by their refusal to read the proclamation of the new magistrates. Meanwhile, in Luzern, the grand council voted in favor of intrusting public education to Jesuit supervision, prohibiting the circula- tion of newspapers from liberal cantons, and persecuting all who were suspected of hold- ing opinions opposed to the Catholic policy. Encouraged by the fall of the Vaudois govern- ment, some Luzerners — exiled since the era of Leu's influence — organized, with their par- tisans from neighboring cantons, an expedition against the city. A motley troop, known as the Free Corps, under command of Dr. Steiger, a former physician of Luzern, and Ulrich Ochsen- bein of Nidau, occupied, without difficulty, the The League of Rothen 267 height of the Giitsch, from which point it was proposed to open a cannonade upon the city. But indecision among the leaders caused a delay that proved disastrous to their projects. General Sonnenberg advanced against them with trained troops. In a disorderly conflict the Free Corps suffered defeat, and the num- ber of prisoners carried to Luzern filled the prisons and overflowed into the churches. The city magistrates refused to accept ransom for their captives, rejected the intervention of the Vorort of the confederacy, and declared their resolution to eradicate within their domain every tendency to opposition. Suddenly the veil of secrecy that, since 1843, had enshrouded the league of Rothen was swept aside ; and the alliance of the ^^ ^oj^. Sonderbund was revealed. In 1846 bund - the seven cantons who had during three years been secretly joined in the league of Rothen declared that in this union they should oppose the strength of the other confederates, until the re-establishment of the Aargau convents was decreed by the Diet, the question of the expul- sion of the Jesuits dropped, and all modifica- tions of the federal pact renounced. "We maintain," said these cantons, "that our league is not at variance with the pro- 268 Annals of Switzerland visions of our confederate pact; it is purely defensive, and has been rendered necessary by aggressions on the part of other cantons. We intend no evil to others if they do not attack us, and we shall maintain our league as long as our own security seems to require. " Hitherto the relation of the confederated cantons had been that of states bound by com- mon loyalty to the articles of their constitu- tion. Now, seven Catholic cantons — Luzern, Schwyz, Uri, Unterwalden, Zug, Freyburg, and Appenzell-Rhodes-Interieure — maintained the doctrine that each canton was at liberty to interpret for itself the terms of the federal pact. To meet the emergency created by a conspiracy which threatened the dissolution of the con- federacy, a meeting of the Diet at Bern was ordered, and the cantons were notified to send deputies with special instructions for the fore- shadowed crisis. Three measures were pro- posed; the formal expulsion of the Jesuits: the forcible dissolution of the Sonderbund, or a re- modelled constitution whose articles should be in accord with the demands of the epoch. Opposed to the seven Catholic cantons stood Zurich, Bern, Glarus, Schaffhausen, Grisons, Aargau, Thurgau, Ticino, Basel-Landschaft, and Outer- Appenzell. But as Basel-Landschaft The League of Rothen 269 was opposed by Basel-Stadt, and Outer-Appen- zell by Appenzell-Int^rieure, the votes of these two cantons were rendered nugatory. Geneva's deputy showed open partiality for the Sonder- bund party, and even suggested the appointment of a committee to supervise the proceedings at Bern. In 1841, a political party, The "Third known as the "Third of March," <*«««*•" had effected radical changes in the constitu- tion of Geneva, and under their direction the management of cantonal affairs devolved upon a constituent council. At this epoch the decision of that body was favorable to the proposition of their deputy, and tremendous excitement resulted. The liberal party declared null and void these decisions of their magistrates, the can- tonal troops were repulsed by armed citizens; the ruling officers were speedily forced to resign their positions, and a new provisional govern- ment, under the leadership of James Fazy, was inaugurated, which elected a new deputy to the Diet, and gave the eleventh vote, in favor of armed dissolution of the Sonderbund. Meanwhile, in the Reformed districts of the canton of Freyburg, a minority in opposition to the council, entered an urgent demand for withdrawal from the Sonderbund, and when 270 Annals of Switzerland this met refusal endeavored to effect their pur- pose by force. But their efforts were rendered fruitless by failure in discipline as well as by weakness in number, and Freyburg remained enrolled among the Sonderbund cantons. In the elections of 1847 tne canton of St. Gall arrived at a closely-contested point. Two parties in that district had for many years se- cured an equal constituency, and seventy-five radical deputies had opposed the same number of conservatives. But at this juncture the dis- trict of Gaster, hitherto conservative, chose liberal representatives, and the twelfth vote against the Sonderbund was secured. CHAPTER XXIII THE SONDERBUND WAR 1847 Under the pretence of threatened danger from members of the Free Corps, Luzern collected military stores, while all the Sonderbund can- tons fortified their frontiers and prepared for a conflict. Encouraged by the sanction extended by the cabinets of Vienna and Paris, the League anticipated easy victory and the speedy estab- lishment of Jesuit authority. At this crisis the meeting of the Diet was a momentous event. Its proceedings were watched with breathless interest, and, during a few days of heated debate, anxiety throughout Switzerland grew intense. But on the 20th of July, from Bern, the Vorort of the confederacy, the decree went forth: "The Sonderbund must be dis- solved ! " and immediate imperative messages commanded all rebellious cantons to desist from offensive proceedings. At the suggestion of Geneva's new deputy, the name of all staff -officers who refused imme- 272 Annals of Switzerland diate recognition of the authority of this decree were stricken from the roll of the confederacy, and the Diet then moved an adjournment to await the effect of its first mandate. On the 3d of September the representatives reassembled at Bern for the purpose of discuss- ing the postponed questions relating DletttBern. , . . ,7 - . to the Jesuits, and by vote of a large majority decreed the expulsion of the order from Switzerland. The same Diet ordained a revision of the federal pact, and, before adjourn- ment, appointed for the execution of that im- portant commission a committee of fourteen distinguished members. The portent of tremendous events shadowed the land, and excitement was intense, although suppressed. The great council of Zurich, an- nouncing its unalterable resolution to support the decisions of the Diet, exerted a widely dis- seminated influence. Quietly in the liberal cantons the councils assembled; quietly, but with firmness, their final decrees were uttered. In St. Gall, temporary disturbances were wrought by priestly interference, but liberal principles came forth triumphant, and the canton joined its loyal associates. In Uri, Schwyz, and Unterwalden, tumult- uous assemblies proclaimed a disposition to The Sonderbund War 273 support the Sonderbund League, and threat- ened loss of life or property to all who offered opposition. In Valais and Freyburg, similar measures were pursued. Zug wavered, but in Luzern only seven members of the council advised measures loyal to the Swiss Confed- eracy. After a recess of eight weeks the Diet reassembled on the 18th of October. The seven representatives of the Sonderbund can- tons remained obstinately hostile, and refused either to dissolve their separate alliance, or to expel the Jesuits from their territory. The loyal cantons opposed an open warfare, if any compromise consonant with the fundamental principles of the confederacy could be effected, and in a proclamation addressed to the rebel- lious cantons the Diet declared: — " The rights and the freedom inherited from your fathers shall continue unaltered, your faith untouched. The Diet desire no oppression of their confederate brothers, no nullifying of cantonal sovereignty, no forced change in the present confederate compact. But the exist- ence of a separate league, endangering the welfare of the whole, can never be allowed. Dissolve it while yet there is time." When this manifesto failed to elicit any response save that of resolute antagonism, and 18 274 Annals of Switzerland mediation attempted by the cantons of Zug, Grisons, and Basel-Stadt proved fruit- ClvU War. less, war was inevitable, and the Diet issued orders for the assembling of troops, over whom Henry Dufour of Geneva was appointed chief-in-command. By the Sonderbund this measure was characterized as a commence- ment of hostilities, and, casting upon the Diet the responsibility for all consequences, their deputies on the 29th of October quitted Bern. The remaining delegates to the assembly con- tinued in session, and on the 4th of November publicly proclaimed a resolution to dissolve the Sonderbund by force of arms, while an army under excellent discipline hastened to complete its preparations for war. The Sonderbunders, whose aggressive measures had been pre- arranged, were enthusiastically eager for battle. Fanatical zeal among them had been stimulated by the influence of a papal nuncio, and Jesuit chaplains, who blessed their banners, distrib- uted protective amulets, and promised to their cause the blessing of the Virgin. On the day of the Diet's proclamation of war, hostilities were opened by Sonderbund troops, one detachment passing over the St. Gothard into Ticino, while another band surprised an unprotected village in Aargau, and carried forty prisoners to Luzern. The Sonderbund War 275 Dufour made no haste to retaliate, although resolute in his determination utterly to subju- gate the rebellious cantons. The controlling temper of the commander-in-chief was mani- fested in his charge to the assembled army. " I place under your protection children, women, old men, and the ministers of the Church. Come from this conflict victorious, but without stain." An attack upon Freyburg was Dufour's first hostile exploit, and at that place an easy con- quest was attained. The colonel of capture of the Sonderbund troops, finding his rre y bur c- city surrounded by the enemy, resigned his command, and the demoralized council gave immediate orders for the capitulation of the garrison. This swift success secured the liberation of many prisoners, the termination of Jesuit influ- ence in Freyburg, and the establishment of a liberal government in that city. Meantime, a second division of the national army had directed its strength against Luzern and the forest cantons. Zug, thus threatened, hastily withdrew from the Sonderbund, and welcomed the loyal troops. At the Battles of the Rothenburg and Meyers-Kappel the SiSSS- hostile armies met, and fought val- saw* 1 - iantly until victory rested with the confed- 276 Annals of Switzerland erates. At Gislikon the advance of victori- Battieof ous divisions, under Egloff, Hausler, Gislikon. Einsberg, Benziger, and Moef, was fiercely disputed by the riflemen of Unter- walden, during a conflict enduring ten hours. The artillery of Solothurn was forced to re- treat, but at that crisis a sudden and des- perate charge of the Bernese compelled the Sonderbund troops to abandon their fortifica- tions, and decided the contest. A general flight toward Luzern ensued, and on the fol- lowing day the council of that city sent envoys to negotiate with Dufour, although, in a des- perate hope of continuing the contest, some Sonderbund leaders fled over the lake to Altorf. Dufour insisted upon the unconditional sur- render of Luzern, and after that event (Novem- ber 25th) the submission of the minor can- Surrendero* tons was inevitable. Unterwalden, Luzern. Schwyz, and Uri soon capitulated, while the men prominent in the Sonderbund sought final asylum in Valais, there to await the promised intervention of France on their behalf. But Valais, their ultimate refuge, sur- rendered on the 28th of November ; and at the end of twenty-five days the war was ended, the Sonderbund dissolved. The Sonderbund War 277 In the cities of Freyburg and Luzern pro- visional governments restored the constitutions of 1830; Uri, for the first time since her heroic era, was provided with a written consti- tution. Extensive reforms were undertaken in Valais, Zug, and Unterwalden, and the Jesuits, pursued by an edict of perpetual banishment, fled precipitately from the country. Neuchatel and Inner Appenzell, having refused to assist in the war, were compelled to pay a heavy fine to the confederacy, while the Sonderbund can- tons were held responsible for debts contracted in consequence of their rebellion. The assess- ment for these debts could be secured only by armed occupation of the land, and, pressed by this contingency, the monks of St. Bernard, emigrated to Sardinia. In the canton of Luzern many convents were suppressed, and their revenues employed for the benefit of the State, wherein serious financial embarrassment had been occasioned through the embezzlement of public funds by members of the old government. At the conclusion of the war, while many prominent European nations were swift in sending congratulations to the Swiss Diet, Austria, standing aloof, offered asylum to the Jesuits and the exiled Sonderbunders, while 278 Annals of Switzerland Rome loaded the victorious Swiss with re- proaches, and the ambassador Montalembert, recalled to France, displayed there his elo- quence in denunciations of the conquerors. It soon became evident that the purpose of the Swiss cantons to unite in a new and more inti- mate bond of federal union would encounter opposition from neighboring powers. Cabinets that had guaranteed the pact of 181 5 claimed that the dissolution of that agreement was impossible without their formal consent, and messages of remonstrance or of menace were frequently received by the deputies assembled to frame the new constitution. The Swiss Diet asserted its dignity in the brief response, " A free people must frame its own laws ; we are vassals of no foreign power. " Soon after the termination of the Sonderbund war, the spirit of insurrection in France again rose to the surface; Louis Philippe was driven from his throne, and the swiftly-spreading impetus of the revolution caused neighboring governments to totter. But Switzerland main- tained her equipoise upon the basis of federal freedom, although her borders were not un- affected by the storms without. The people of Neuchatel, with a determination to free them- selves from the compound rule of Prussian and The Sonderbund War 279 cantonal officials, and to become wholly Swiss, summoned their state-council to abdicate. Upon the refusal of the magistrates Revolution in to comply with this demand, a call *■■*■* to arms was sounded, a formidably enthusiastic company stormed the council-hall ; in place of the Prussian eagle the white cross of the Swiss Confederation was erected, and all sug- gestions of compromise were vehemently re- jected. Defensive operations, undertaken by troops of the government, showed so little zeal for the cause that the members of the council deemed it prudent to resign, with reservation of the royal rights. The republican army then secured possession of the city, and announced the termination of princely rule and the organi- zation of a provisional government. Recogni- tion was received from Bern, then Vorort of the Swiss Confederation, and to the remonstrances of the Prussian envoy, Von Sydow, the confed- eracy made reply : — " Switzerland acknowledges no covenant with any prince of Neuchatel. The canton entered our confederacy equal in rights to all others, and when she changes her government to suit herself we cannot oppose her. " Although thus supporting Neuchatel, the Diet of 1849 refused the solicitations of Charles 280 Annals of Switzerland Albert of Sardinia, to cement with him an offensive and defensive alliance against Austria. A few Swiss joined the army of Lombardy, but the majority of the nation declared their in- tention to remain neutral, although tempted to take part in the war by a widespread sympathy with the cause of Italian liberty. When fugi- tives, driven by Austrian victories into Grisons and Ticino, strove to kindle sparks of warfare in those districts, the Swiss government, guided by Ochsenbein and Munzinger, secured the ad- miration of its contemporaries by a dignified maintenance of neutrality throughout many per- plexing complications. CHAPTER XXIV THE CONSTITUTIONS OF 1848 AND 1874 The rampant spirit of war did not divert the Swiss Diet from the purpose of elaborating new articles of confederation, and April 8, 1848, a task was completed which gave to the cantons the first federal constitution compiled without foreign interference. The political divisions recognized were those of the twenty-two can- tons named in the pact of 181 5; and while each of these was endowed with a wide liberty within its own borders, the new pact united all by a stronger central tie than any previous terms of confederation had forged. Modelled in some measure upon the consti- tution of the United States of America, the new central government was vested The central in a Federal Assembly, to which Government, individual cantons yielded a portion of the authority they had hitherto claimed. This Federal Assembly was divided into two legisla- tive chambers, — the National Council {National a 8 2 Annals of Switzerland Rath) and the Council of States {Stande Rath), To the first of these, every Swiss over twenty- one years of age was eligible, the successful The national candidate entering office through an Council. election by ballot, for a term of three years. Each canton was entitled to elect one deputy for every twenty thousand of popula- tion. The Council of States consisted of two dep- Tne council uties from each canton, who were of states. nominated by the magistrates of their states. The Federal Assembly nominated the seven members of a Federal Council or Executive (Btmdesrath), which was separated into depart- ments, and presided over by the President of the Confederation. The chief officer of the confederacy was to be chosen from the members of the Federal Council, and was subject to an annual election. Bern, on account of its position between the French and German speaking districts, was chosen as the seat of the central government. Liberty of the press was established, all denom- inations of Christians within the community were guaranteed freedom of worship; but the Jesuits, with allied religious orders, were ex- cluded from the land. German, French, and Constitutions of 1848 and 1874 283 Italian were recognized as national languages, and were severally used in the pub- Languages, lished proclamations of the Assem- bly's decrees, and in the announcement of their votes; but Italian members of the Executive were supposed to understand either French or German, and speeches were to be translated into those tongues only. On the 17th of June, 1848, the new constitu- tion was completed. It was promptly accepted by thirteen and a half cantons, and with little delay by all except Schwyz, Uri, and Zug. During the summer the sanction of these states was also rendered, and on the 12th of Septem- ber, with pealing of bells and blazing of moun- tain fires, the most perfect union in Swiss annals was inaugurated. Upon a few points, where cantonal or federal authority had failed of satisfactory readjust- ment, subsequent legislation slightly modified the constitution of 1848; but for a considerable period affairs of internal interest absorbed the public attention, and important results were exhibited in an improved monetary system, and a uniform scale of weights and measures (1851). In 1852 the King of Prussia declared his intention to resume authority in Neuchatel; 284 Annals of Switzerland but three thousand royalists, who gathered at Vilangen to support his cause, found their schemes frustrated by the union of seven thou- sand republicans. In 1856, a conspiracy, formed by the royalists, to arrest the state-council at Neuchatel, was successfully carried into execu- tion, but the deed met swift revenge, and over six hundred prisoners were secured by the republicans, who, retaining but twenty-eight ringleaders for trial as insurgents, allowed the remainder to return to their homes. Frederick William IV. of Prussia demanded the release of the prisoners, and upon the refusal to grant this behest, threatened war; but French media- tion was proffered, and Louis Napoleon prom- ised freedom to the captives. The Federal government refused to permit their liberation, Freedom of without a guarantee of the freedom Heuchatei. f Neuchatel, and upon this point the dispute waxed so bitter, that in 1857 thirty thousand men were stationed along the Swiss frontier, under command of the veteran Dufour. Napoleon's tactics then became more con- ciliatory, the Federal government accepted his intervention, the prisoners were released, and a treaty was signed at Paris by which the King of Prussia, though retaining the title of "Prince Constitutions of 1848 and 1874 285 of Neuchatel, " renounced all claim to rule over the territory. During the period of the Austro-Italian wars, the neutrality of its southern frontier was jeal- ously guarded by the Swiss government, and serious entanglements were thus avoided, although some embarrassing complications oc- curred. The city of Perouse, refusing to receive a papal garrison, was taken by Swiss soldiers serving in the papal army. The Federal Coun- cil, in order utterly to repudiate responsibility for this and similar entanglements, decreed that Swiss regiments serving in Italy should not carry their national ensign. The promulga- tion of this ordinance in Naples, provoked in- subordination among the Swiss troops, which increased, until, by command of the King, their regiments were disbanded. Although some soldiers enrolled themselves under new com- manders, many returned home, where the enact- ment of rigorous laws, greatly restricted, thence- forth, the foreign military service. In i860, France, long covetous of Savoy, secured from Victor Emmanuel the cession of that district and of Nice, sacrificing thereby the favor of the Swiss; but in 1862 the restitu- tion to Vaud of the valley of Dappes, which had been seized by Napoleon I., proved a con- 286 Annals of Switzerland ciliatory measure, and in 1864 a commercial treaty of signal advantage to Switzerland was consummated with the French nation. In Geneva a new era of prosperity was inaug- urated under the liberal government of Fazy. Fazy in The city was extended by the removal Geneva. f \ft ramparts, and the Roman Catholics were granted protection in the exer- cise of their faith. Varying political interests provoked animosities during the election period of 1864, and strife in the city forced the Fed- eral government to a military occupation of the canton and the arrest of leaders from antago- nistic factions. But in 1869, in peace and har- mony, the city made glad holiday, and, by the erection of a noble statue on the border of the lake, celebrated the anniversary of its union with the Swiss Confederacy. At a convention held in Geneva in 1864, dep- uties from the chief nations of Europe chose Switzerland to be the centre of various inter- national unions subsequently consummated. The establishment at Bern, in 1865, of the International Telegraph Office was swiftly fol- lowed by that of the Postal Union, and other partnerships for the protection and promotion of industrial, literary, and artistic enterprises. At the breaking out of the Franco-Prussian Constitutions of 1848 and 1874 287 war (1870), the Federal Council, anticipating violation of Switzerland's neutrality, by armies of the antagonistic nations, ordered out troops for frontier duty. The aged Dufour was again chosen chief-in-command, but at eighty-five years of age declined the responsibility, which was then intrusted to Hans Herzog of Aargau. Under his direction, faithful surveillance along the Swiss boundaries was continued, until the line of conflict had shifted to the north and west, and danger to Switzerland seemed averted. In January, 1871, a report that Bourbaki would attempt to enter Germany by the Rhine caused the disbanded troops to be again assembled for the protection of the bridge at Basle; but soon afterwards a Prussian victory threatened the capture of the entire force under the French commander, unless in this extremity asylum upon Swiss territory could be secured. Rumors of Bourbaki 's intention to force an entrance elicited from Herzog a published protest, but the hospitality sought was subsequently granted upon condition of a surrender of arms at the frontier. Officers in command of the fugitives were prompt in their acceptance of these stipulations, and eighty-three thousand French troops were quietly disarmed and sheltered. 288 Annals of Switzerland In 1872, with the ultimate object of extend- ing the prerogatives of the central government, „ _-Z an amendment to the Constitution Constitu- tional was proposed. The proposition, then Amendments. ► ■ , • « . r 11 . • 1 rejected, met favorable reception by a large majority two years later, when, "to give the people a more direct share in legisla- te tion," the privileges of "the Initia- initiative. tive » and « the Referendum " were established. The first franchise secures the submission to popular vote of any petition endorsed by a certain number of qualified per- sons, the requisite number of signatures for cantonal affairs being five thousand, and for The federal matters fifty thousand. The Referendum. Referendum secures the reference of all laws, passed in cantonal or in federal assem- blies, to as large a body of voters as can be convened. The Federal Tribunal, a court of justice for the cantons with enlarged jurisdiction, was soon afterward established at Lausanne, where, in 1886, the new "Palace of Justice" opened its municipal doors. Universal provision for free elementary edu- cation was assured, and cantonal rights were everywhere guaranteed after a three-years' residence. Constitutions of 1848 and 1874 289 The Constitution thus amended, and accepted by fourteen and one-half cantons (1874), still remains in force. Individual cantons are authorized to treat with foreign powers only through the medium of the federal govern- ment, but the exercise of this central authority is maintained in entire harmony with cantonal rights, and each canton preserves the privilege of choosing its form of internal rule. Uri, Glarus, the Unterwalden, and Appenzell dis- tricts continue their ancient Landesgemein- detty and annually, in May, the peasants assemble in holiday garb, to meet their Land- ammann, who, at the conclusion of a religious service, recites to his "trusty, faithful, and well-beloved countrymen," the worthy deeds of their ancestors, and bids them, thus coun- selled by example, decide the course of their future story. In some cantons, representative bodies take the place of popular assemblies ; but the forms of legislation are as varied as republican prin- ciples permit. Bern, Thurgau, and a few other divisions, reserve the right to veto laws passed in their district assemblies. In Zurich any two harmonious citizens can present a new law for popular consideration. The division of cantons into communes dates 19 290 Annals of Switzerland back, according to an eminent authority, 1 to the period of the abolition of the feudal Communea. system, when the enfranchisement of the people called into existence many small communities who claimed prerogatives in ac- cordance with the freedom of their canton, but remained subservient to the enactments of their representatives. A commune answers to an English county. It has been said that in Switzerland the "first business of the State is keeping school." Education is compulsory and gratui- Systemof r * ° Public tous in all primary grades, and the Instruction. . . r , 1 • . • j provision for public instruction and for the construction and preservation of roads form the most important items of public expen- diture. The system of Pestalozzi of Zurich (born 1746), the founder of a school at Yverdon, forms the basis of the educational methods pursued, and in all villages communal authority nominates the schoolmaster, and superintends the school. Scattered throughout Switzerland are six thousand primary schools, and attend- ance, at least once a week, for six years, is enforced, although, in the season of harvesting, a half-day's attendance is remitted. In 1877 1 See Adams and Cunningham on " The Swiss Confed- eration." Constitutions of 1848 and 1874 291 a law forbade the employment in mill or in workshop of children under fifteen years. By cantonal law the lowest salary of the schoolmaster is fixed at three hundred and fifty francs per annum, and the punishment of a fine is decreed to any one accepting a smaller sum for the services of this office. In fourteen cantons, and in portions of others, German is the spoken language ; French is the common tongue in three and in portions of three others ; while Italian is confined to Ticino, and a part of Grisons. German names have been retained in the first seventeen cantons, except in Graubunden, where " Grisons " is commonly used ; cantonal the eighteenth canton keeps its Mame8 ' Italian name, "Ticino," while the remainder bear French cognomens, with the modification of Geneva for "Geneve." In September, 1890, a widespread excite- ment was induced by an uprising in the canton of Ticino, where, since 1873, a con- uprising in servative government had been in Tidao - power. Prompted by the discovery of dishonest practices at elections, ten thousand radicals signed a petition for a revision of their consti- tution ; but instead of submitting the proposal to a popular vote, as both law and custom de- 292 Annals of Switzerland manded, the authorities delayed action, on pre- tence of verifying the signatures appended to the document. Impatient of the delay, the radicals appealed to the Federal Council, and, failing to receive immediate response from that body, summarily seized and imprisoned three members of the cantonal council, while another, named Rossi, who attempted resistance, was killed, and several prominent men fled from the country. A provisional government organized by the insurgents was supported by an excited populace, who seized the telegraph offices, and defied the authorities. But the appearance of a federal commissioner, supported by a mili- tary force, sufficed to quell the storm, and to this authority the canton was temporarily sub- jected. On the 5th of October a popular vote in favor of a revision of the constitution was supported by the Federal Council, and in a trial held at Zurich, the leaders of the insur- rection were freely acquitted, with the single exception of Castione, the murderer of Rossi. The sympathy of the civilized world was ex- tended to Switzerland in 1892 when a landslide at St. Gervais-les-Bains in Savoy buried houses with their inhabitants, and, shaking the support of glaciers, swept seas of ice down the moun- tain-sides that crushed or drowned multitudes, Constitutions of 1848 and 1874 293 and completely demolished the village of Le Fayet. By the constitutions of 1848 and 1874 the Swiss Confederation ceased to be "a union without unity," and became a unified nation in which the twenty-two cantons are vital politi- cal divisions. Bound together by principles preserved through a long fellowship of conflict and of endurance, Switzerland, "an Alpine battery against oppression," has also been sur- named "The Land of Unfulfilled Destiny." INDEX Aarau, peace of, 224. Aargau, Hapsburg nobility in, 38 ; capture of, 68 ; religious conflicts in, 261. Adolf of Nassau, 26. Agnadello, battle of, 129. Aix, battle of, 7. Aix-la-Chapelle, peace of, 228. Albert of Austria, 24, 26 ; assassi- nation of, 31. Alliance, the " Perpetual," 25 ; the French, 124; the Holy, 254. Alpinus, Julius, 11. Alsace, 79,-81, 84, 90. Altorf, village of, 28. Amadeus VIII., Duke, 72. Am Buel, Matthias, 56. Amendments, constitutional, 288. Amiens, treaty of, 244. Ammann, the, 19. Amstein, John, 57. Anabaptists, the, 140; fanaticism of the, 145. Apostle of Switzerland, the, 133. Appenzell, 58, 59, 63 ; admission of, 120; the men of, 60. Arbeddo, battle of, 72. Armagnacs, the, 77. Arnold of Brescia, 131. Arnold of Cervola, 49. Arnold of Melchthal, 27, 28. Associate-districts, 113. Austria, Albert of, 24, 26, 31 ; Frederick of, 33; Leopold of, 33. 55; Leopold III. of, 49; Leopold IV. of, 58, 60, 62. Austria, truce with, 79. Austrian Alliance, 76. Aux, Isbrand d', 206. Baden, conference at, 146, 147 ; siege of, 77. Bailiffs, imperial, 26. Bailiwicks, free, 70. Baillod, Jacques, 189. Balderon, 211, 212. Balm, Rudolf of, 31. Basle, 49 ; council of, 67 ; peace of, 119; admission of, 119. Baume, Pierre del a, 162, 166, 168, 169, 171, 172, 174, 183, 184, 185, 187. Bavaria, Louis of, 33. Bayard, the Chevalier, 126. Beauharnais, Hortense, 256. Bellegarde, the Sire de, 175. Benziger, 276. Berengen of Landenberg, 26. Bern, 42, 44, 50, 52, 57, 58, 62, 68, 72 ; meeting at, 76 ; disturbances in, 229 ; Diet at, 272, 273, 274. Berthelier, 156, 157, 158, 160, 161. Berthier, 247. Bohemia, Ottacar of, 24. 296 Index Bonnivard, Francis, 157, 160, 174, 175. 176, 19°- Borromean League, the, 205, 206. Borromeo, Cardinal Charles, 205. Bourbaki, 287. Brandenburg peace, the, 46, 53. Brun, Rudolf, 40. Brune, General, 239, 240. Brunnen, Bund of, 35. Bubenberg, Adrian von, 103, 108. Bull, the Golden, 171. Bullinger, Henry, 150. Bundesbrief, the Latin, 25. Burgundy, kingdom of, 14 ; Philip of, 77; Mary of, 99; Charles the Bold of, 80, 85, 86, 107, 11 1. Biittisholtz, battle of, 50. Calixtines, the, 67 Calvin, 192, 193, 195, 196 ; mar- riage of, 198 ; letter to Sadoleto, 197; character of, 200; death of, 203. Cambray, league of, 126, 127. Campobasso, no. Canal, the Linth, 247. Cassius, Lucius, 7. Castione, 292. Cecina, Aulus, n. Cervola, Arnold of, 49. Charlemagne, 16. Charles the Bold, 80, 85, 86, 107, in. Charles IV. of Germany, 46. Charles V. of Germany, 138. Charles Albert of Sardinia, 279. Charter, the Women's, 58. Chenaux, Nicholas, 230, 231. Chillon, capture of, 190. Christianity, introduction of, 14. Chur, Bishop of, 21. Cimbri, the, 6. Cisalpine Republic, the, 238. Cities, growth of, 17. Clovis, divisions under, 14. Colonna, Prosper, 129. Communes, the, 290. Compactata, the, 67. Condottieri, the, 49. Congress of Vienna, the, 249. Conseil, 255. Constance, Council of, 65, 66,68; peace of, 79; Diet of, 126. Constitution of Switzerland, 281, 289. Controversies, religious, 138. Council of Horn, the, 117. Council of States, the, 282. Courcy, Ingram de, 49, 50. Day of the Ladders, the, 173. Deinikon, peace of, 150. Dominican brotherhood, the, 132. Diebold of Basilwind, 43. Diesbach, 83, 91, 93, 108. Diet of Constance, the, 126. Diet of Stanz, the, 114. Diet of 1522, the, 141. Diet, of Zurich the, 120. Diet, the Swiss, 278. Diviko, 7, 9. Dornach, battle of, 119. Dornbuhl, battle of the, 42. Dufour, Henry, 274, 275, 276, 287. Duomo d'Ossola, 70. Duval, General, 224. Egloff, 276. Eidgenossen, the, 159. Einsberg, 276. Einsiedeln, abbey of, 15 ; abbot of, 20, 33 ; assembly at, 141. Embassy to France, 108. Emmenegger, 217, 220. Empire, freedom from the, 119. Entlibuch, 50. Erlach, General, 219. Erlach, Rudolf von, 43, 44, 94. Escalade, the, 207, 208. Eschenbach, Walter of, 32. Estavayer, the " Bad Day " of, 92. Evangelicals, the, 162. Index 297 Evangelists in Geneva, the, 181. Everhard, 45. Farel, William, 180, 181, 182, 186, 188, 189, 192, 193, 194, 196. Fazy, James, 269 ; government of, 286. Federal Assembly, the, 281, 282; Federal Council, the, 282, 287. Feldkirch, covenant of, 84 ; treaty of, 213. Felix and Regula, 39. Felix V., Pope, 156. Flagellants, the, 47. Foix, Gaston de, 127. Foreign governments, complica- tions with, 255. France, treaty with, 78 ; interfer- ence of, 190. Francis I. of France, 129, 138, 190. Franciscan Brotherhood, the, 132. Franco-Prussian War, the, 287. Frastanz, battle of, 118. Frauenbrief, the, 58 Frederick II. of Germany, 23. Frederick V. of Germany, 76, 86. Frederick of the Empty Pocket, 62, 63, 68. Frederick of Austria, 33. Freyburg, 62; Diet at, 108; insur- rection in, 230 ; capture of, 275. Froment, 181, 189. Fuetor, 229. Furbity, 186. Fiirst, Walther, 28 Geneva, 94, 161, 162, 231 ; fairs in, 93 ; early government of, 153, 154 ; aid for, 159; laws of, 194, 195, 199 ; alliance between the Swiss and, 168 ; schools of, 200 ; constitutional changes in, 233, 235 ; united to France, 236; convention in, 2S6. Gesler, Hermann, 26, 27, 28, 29. Giants, battle of the, 129. Gingens, battle of, 189. Giornico, battle of, 1 13. Gislikon, battle of, 276. Glarus, 46, 56, 57, 60, 68. God's-House League, the, 74, 75. Government, the Helvetic, 243 ; the Central, of Switzerland. 281. Grandson, siege of, 98; battle of, 100 ; surrender of, 99. Grisons, 75 ; civil war in, 209 ; the St. Bartholomew of the, 210 ; freedom of, 213. Gundoldingen, 55. Gypsies, 73. Hagenbach, 81, 85. Halberds, Council of, 165. Halwyl, John of, 106. Hapsburg, Counts of, 21 ; Albert III. of, 21; Rudolf I. of, 22; Rudolf II. of, 22, 23; Rudolf III. of, 23, 24, 37. Hassfurter, 108. Hausler, 276. Helvetians, the, 6, 8, 9, 11, 12, 16, 19. Henry of Luxemburg, 32, 33. Henzi, Samuel, 229. Hericault, fortress of, 87. Herterstein, 108. Herzog, Hans, 287. Herzogenbuchsee, battle of, 219. Hess, Burgomaster, 260. Hesse, Landgrave of, 148, 152. Hildegarde, the Abbess, 39. Hochberg, Rudolf of, 95. Hofen, Thomas ab, 170. Hordrich, 8. Hugues, Besanoon, 159, 164, 168. Huguenots, the, 159, 166, 180, 182. Huss, John, 65, 66, 131 Hussites, the, 67. Huzcl, Bernard, 260. 298 Index Innocent IV., Pope, 23. Initiative, the, 288. " Institutes," Calvin's, 193. Instruction, system of public, 290. Italian territory, 112. Jealousies, cantonal, 114. Jenatsch, 211, 212. Jerome of Prague, 67, 131. Jesuits, the, 265, 272. Jetzer, 132, 133. John of Trocznow, 67. Julius II., Pope, 127, 128. Kappel, battle of, 149. Katzy, Ulric, 105, 108. Keller, Augustine, 261. Kuno of Staufen, 59, 60. Kiissnacht, castle of, 29. Kyburg, Counts of, 21, 52. La Harpe, Francis Caesar, 238. Lake dwellers, the, 5. " La Mazze," 71. Landammann, 45, 246. Landenberg, 26, 27, 31. Landesgemeinden, 45, 246. Languages of Switzerland, the, 13, 283, 291. Laupen, town of, 43, 44. Lausanne, 94, 97. League, the Gray, 74. League, the God's-House, 74, 75. League of the Ten Jurisdictions, the, 74. League of Three Lands, the, 23. League of St. George, the, 62. League of St. Omer, 81, 82. League, the Holy, 127. League of Cambray, 126, 127. League, the Borromean, 205, 206. League, the Spoon, 171, 176. League of Rothen, 263. Leipsic, battle of, 248. Lemanic republic, the, 239. Leo X., Pope, 136, 137. Leodegar, the Abbot, 222, 223, 225. Leopold of Austria, 33, 35. Leopold III. of Austria, 49. Leopold IV. of Austria, 58, 60, 62. Leu, Joseph, 262, 263. Levantina, the, 72. Levrier, Aim6, 163. Libertines, the, 195, 202. Longueville, Henri de, 215. Louis XI. of France, 90. Louis XII. of France, 126, 128. Louis of Bavaria, 33. Louis Philippe, 278. Luther, doctrines of, 151, 152. Luxemburg, Henry of, 32, 33. Luzern, 7, 18, 37, 38, 46, 53, 58, 68, 71, 72 ; Council at, 75 ; in- surrection in, 262. Maisonneuve, Baudichon de la, 1 86, 187. Mamelukes, the, 160, 163, 182. Marburg, disputation at, 152. Marignano, battle of, 129. Massena, 243. Massner, Thomas, 227, 228. Maximilian of Austria, 99. Maximilian the Emperor, 117, 125. Mediation, the Act 0^245,249,257. Meinrod, 15. Mercenary service, no. Meyers-Kappel, battle of, 275. Micheli of Crest, 232. Milan, the Duke of, 70, 73, 91 ; treaty of, 213. Milch-Suppe, the, 149. Moef, 276. Montalembert, 276. Montebello, the Duke of, 255. Morat, 92, 103; siege of, 104; battle of, 106. Morgarten, battle of, 34. Morgarten of Appenzell, the, 60. Miinster, battle of, 72. Murbach abbey, 37. Muri, abbey of, 258. Index 299 Nafels, battle of, 56. Names, cantonal, 291. Nancy, battle of, no. Napoleon, 238, 244, 245, 247, 248. Napoleon, Louis, 256, 257. National Council, the, 282. Navarre, Henry of, 207. Neuchatel, 247, 250, 254, 279, 2S0, 284 ; Henri de, 87 ; Margrave of, 95. Nicholas of the Flue, 115. Novara, battle of, 128. Noviodunum, 9. Nyon, 9. Oberwalden, the hermit of, 115. Oberwangen, battle of, 42. Ochsenbein, Ulrich, 266. Old Switzerland, the party of, 264. Olivetan, Peter Robert, 180. Orbe, 89. Orgetorix, 8. Ottacar of Bohemia, 24. Pact, the Federal, 250, 258; the Rossi, 253. Peace, the " Bad," 55 ; the " Rot- ten," 77; of Constance, 78; the Perpetual, 130. Peasants' Revolt, the, 216, 217, 21S, 219. Perpetual Alliance, the, 25. Pestalozzi, 290. Pfaffenbrief, the, 48. Pfyffer, Colonel, 221. Pfyffer, Louis, 206. Pisa, Council of, 64. Plague, the great, 47. Planta, Pompey, 209, 210. Pleurs, landslide at, 208. Pontverre, the Sire de, 172. Progress, intellectual, 122. Rapperswyl, counts of, 21 ; John of, 40 ; siege of, 77. Raron, the Baron of, 70, 71, 72. Rastadt, Congress of, 239. Ratisbon, Peace of, 46. Reding, Rudolf, 34. Reding, Itel, 75, 78, 108. Reding, Aloys, 241. Referendum, the, 288. Reformed Religion, establishment of the, in Geneva, 191. Regula and Felix, 39. Reichenbach, castle of, 44. Religious war, first, 221 ; second, 222. Religious divisions, 257. Ren6 of Lorraine, 105, 109. Renee, the Duchess, 193. Republic, the Helvetic, 241, 257. " Restraint," Uri's, 27, 31. Rhetia, 5, 74, 75. Rhetians, the, 5, 10, 13. Rhetus, 5. Riedi, Thomas, 72. Romans, contact with the, 7 ; sway of the, 10. Romont, Count of, 91. Rossi, 292. Rosenthurm, battle of, 241. Rothen, the League of, 263. Rothenburg, Count of, 53 ; battle of the, 275. Rott, John, 52. Rotzberg, castle of, 31. Rousseau, Jean Jacques, 233. Rudolf of Kyburg, 5 1 . Rudolf of Erlach, 43. Riitli, meadow of, 28; men of, 30; oath of, 31. Sadoleto, letter of, 197. Sales, Francis de, 205. Salis, 209. Sampson, Bernard, 136. Sarnenbund, the, 253. Saunier, 180. Savoy, 94 ; conflicts with, 70 ; Peter of, 155; Amadeus VIII. of, 155; John of, 157, 162; 3°° Index Charles III. of, 157, 158, 162, 163, 176, 177, 178," 191 ; treach- ery of, 158; Emanuel Philibert of, 191, 204, 206; Charles Em- anuel of, 207. Schaffhausen, 18; admission of, 120. Schinner, Matthew, 127. Schwarzwald, the, 79. Schwyz, 6, 7, 22, 23, 25, 26, 32, 44, 46, 60, 75; freemen of, 19; men of, 34- Sackingen, the abbess of, 21. Sempach, battle of, 53. Sentis, the, 59. Servetus, 201, 202. Service, mercenary, 123. Sforza, Galeas, 88. Sforza, Ludovico, 125. Sforza, Maximilian, 128, 129. Siebnerbund, the, 254. Sigismund of Germany, 66, 67, 68, 79,84- Silenen, Jost von, 95. Silenen, Albert von, 108. Simplon, the, 247. Socinius, 204. Solothurn, 51, 52, 57, 63. Sonderbund, the, 267, 268, 269, 270, 271, 273, 276, 277. Sonnenberg, General, 267. Speicher, defile of, 60. Spurs, battle of the, 128. Staeffa, 238. Stanz, Diet of, 114; covenant of, US- States, Confederation of Thirteen, 120. Stauffacher, Werner, 27, 28. Steiger, Frederick, 239. Steiger, Paul, 243. Steiger, Dr., 266. St. Gall, 15, 16; Abbot of, 21, 59, 62, 79, 243- St. Gervais-les-Bains, landslide at, 292. St. Gothard, 70. St. Jacob, chapel of, 35. St. Jacob on the Birs, battle of, 78. St. Jacob on the Sihl, battle of, 77. St. Julien, peace of, 208 ; truce of, 178. Stoss, battle of the, 61. Strauss, Frederick, 259. Stussi, 75, 76, 77. St. Victor's, priory of, 157, 174, 175 ; destruction of, 188. Swabia, John of, 31. Swabian wars, the, 118. Switer and Swen, 5. Switzerland, name first used, 246. Taborites, the, 67. Tell, William, 28, 29. "Terrier," the, 31, 32. Teutones, the, 6. Theilig of Luzern, 116. Thiers, M. 255. " Third of March," the, 269. Thirty Years' War, the, 214. Thorberg, Peter of, 53. Thurgau, 6, 79. Ticino, uprising in, 291. Toggenburg, Counts of, 74, 75 ; district of, 79 ; question, the, 222, 223. Trembly, 233. Tribunal, the federal, 288. Trient, battle at the, 265. Tuileries guard, massacre of the, 237- Turmann, Rudolf, 125. Ulrichen, battle of, 72. Unterwalden, 7, 22, 23, 25, 33, 44, 46, 50, 60, 71 ; the horns of, 100 ; riflemen of, 276. Uri, 7, 22, 23, 25, 26, 32, 44, 68 ; 70, 71 ; charter of, 22 ; the horns of, 100. Utraquists, the, 67. Index 301 Valais, 71, 91 ; disturbances in, 263, 264. Val d'Ossola, the, 72. Valtelina, the, 209, 210, 212, 238. Vauxmarcus, castle of, 99. Vend6me, the Due de, 227. Vercellae, battle of, 7. Vervins, treaty of, 207. Victor Emmanuel, 285. Villmergen, battle of, 221, 261 ; second battle of, 224. Viret, 180, 186, 189, 196. Vogelinsegg, battle on the, 60. Vorort, the, 44, 120, 246. Waldmann, 108; Hans, 116; convention of, 117. Waldshut, siege of, 79; treaty of, 80. Waldstatten, the, 26, 36, 41, 42, 44. 48, 49. 5°. 68, 70. Waterloo, battle of, 249. Wattenwyl, Jean de, 207. Wenceslaus, King, 67. Werdenberg, Rudolf of, 61, 62. Werner, 229. Wernli, Pierre, 183. Wesen, town of, 56. Westphalia, peace of, 215. Wettstein, Rudolf, 215. Wildermuth, 189. Winkelried, Arnold von, 54. Winterthur, 35. Wurtemberg, Count of, 45. Yolande of Savoy, 88, 91. Young Switzerland, party of, 264. Yverdon, 96. Zeringen, thirty lords of, 19; Berchthold V. of, 42. Ziska, 67. Zug, 46, 48, 57, 68. Zurich, 16, 38, 39, 41, 44, 48, 50, 57, 58, 68, 75, 137 ; the Reforma- tion in, 139, 140 ; troops of, 78. Zurich and Austria, alliance be- tween, 76. Zurich, insurrection in, 116. Zwingli Ulrich, 133, 134 ; call to Zurich, 135 ; in Zurich, 136, 137, 138, 139, »42» H3» *44 ; theology of, 145, 151, 152; death of, 149. UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY Los Angeles This book is DUE on the last date stamped below. j VHl 61949 KtCb .D-WW 'JMJ8L g»"»um SEP 2 3 1972 REC'D LD-URt MAR 3 1973 ft APR2 1 " MAR 3»3 orm L9-25m-9,'47(A5618)444 UNIVERSITY of CALIFORNIA UC SOUTHERN REGIONAL LIBRARY EACILiiT RjK 000130 031 8