Editing Jonas Furrer (section)

==Biography==
Furrer was born in [[Winterthur]], in the [[canton of Zürich]], on 3 March 1805, the son of Anna Magdalena Hanhart and Jonas Furrer, a [[locksmith]]. He received his early education in his hometown, and in 1824 went to study law at the [[University of Zürich]]. He soon continued his studies in [[University of Heidelberg|Heidelberg]], and between 1825 and 1826 studied at the [[University of Göttingen]]. After finishing his education, Furrer returned to Winterthur and established himself as a [[jurist]].<ref name=HDS>{{HDS|003637}}</ref>

Furrer was [[admitted to the bar]] in 1832, and that year he married Friederike Sulzer, daughter of [[Johann Heinrich Sulzer]]. In 1834, aged 29, he was elected to the [[Cantonal Council of Zürich]]. He served until 1839, and was again elected in 1842. At the Cantonal Council, he was the leader of the Liberal opposition to the Conservative government of [[Johann Kaspar Bluntschli]]. In 1845 he became president of the [[Conseil d'État (Switzerland)|Council of State]] of Zürich.<ref name=HDS/>

In 1847, Furrer was appointed member of the commission tasked with reaching a peaceful settlement for the [[Sonderbund War]]. After the Federal victory and the end of the civil war, in 1848 he was [[1848 Swiss federal election|elected]] by the canton of Zurich to the [[Council of States (Switzerland)|Council of States]]. For his significant contribution to the drafting of the 1848 constitution, which established [[Switzerland as a federal state]], Furrer was elected [[President of the Swiss Confederation]] by the legislature, becoming the head of the newly created [[executive power]] of Switzerland, the seven-member [[Swiss Federal Council|Federal Council]].<ref name=HDS/>

[[File:Bundesrat 1848.jpg|thumb|The first Federal Council, 1848 (president Jonas Furrer in the middle)]]

Furrer served as Federal Councilor from 1848 until his death in 1861. During his time in office, he headed a number of [[Ministry (government department)|government departments]], most notably the [[Federal Department of Justice and Police]] due to the reforms he implemented, and also distinguished himself as head of the [[Federal Department of Foreign Affairs|Political Department]] for his diplomatic skill. He resolved the question regarding [[stateless person]]s, enacted a law in 1850 protecting [[Interfaith marriage|religiously mixed couples]], and founded government agencies responsible for settling conflicts of jurisdiction between the Confederation and the cantons.<ref name=HDS/>