Editing Switzerland (section)

== History ==
{{Main|History of Switzerland}}
The state of Switzerland took its present form with the adoption of the [[Swiss Federal Constitution]] in 1848. Switzerland's precursors established a defensive alliance in 1291, forming a loose [[confederation]] that persisted for centuries.

=== Beginnings ===
{{Main|Early history of Switzerland|Switzerland in the Roman era}}
The oldest traces of hominid existence in Switzerland date to about 150,000 years ago.<ref name="Early">{{Cite web |title=History |url=http://www.swissworld.org/en/history/prehistory_to_romans/prehistoric_times/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100419174957/http://www.swissworld.org/en/history/prehistory_to_romans/prehistoric_times/ |archive-date=19 April 2010 |access-date=27 June 2009 |website=swissworld.org.}}</ref> The oldest known farming settlements in Switzerland, which were found at [[Gächlingen]], date to around 5300 BC.<ref name="Early" />

[[File:Theater Kaiseraugst.jpg|thumb|Founded in 44 BC by [[Lucius Munatius Plancus]], [[Augusta Raurica]] (near Basel) was the first Roman settlement on the Rhine and is now among the most important archaeological sites in Switzerland.<ref>{{Cite web |date=11 September 2005 |title=Switzerland's Roman heritage comes to life |url=https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/switzerland-s-roman-heritage-comes-to-life/4707054 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220915103928/https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/switzerland-s-roman-heritage-comes-to-life/4707054 |archive-date=15 September 2022 |access-date=15 September 2022 |website=swissinfo.ch}}</ref>]]

The earliest known tribes formed the [[Hallstatt culture|Hallstatt]] and [[La Tène culture]]s, named after the archaeological site of La Tène on the north side of [[Lake Neuchâtel]]. La Tène culture developed and flourished during the late [[Iron Age]] from around 450 BC,<ref name="Early" /> possibly influenced by [[Ancient Greek|Greek]] and [[Etruscan civilization|Etruscan]] civilisations. One of the most prominent La Tène tribes were the [[Helvetii]], who primarily occupied the [[Swiss Plateau]], alongside the [[Rhaetian people|Rhaetians]] in the eastern regions. Facing pressures from Germanic tribes, in 58 BC, the Helvetii, influenced by [[Orgetorix]], a wealthy aristocrat, decided to abandon the Swiss Plateau for better opportunities in western Gallia. After Orgetorix's mysterious death, the tribe continued their migration but was decisively defeated by Julius Caesar's armies at the [[Battle of Bibracte]], in present-day eastern France. Following their defeat, the Helvetii were forced by Caesar to return to their original lands, where they were subjected to stringent restrictions on their autonomy and movements.<ref name="Early" /> In 15 BC, [[Tiberius]] (later the second Roman emperor) and his brother [[Nero Claudius Drusus|Drusus]] conquered the Alps, integrating them into the [[Roman Empire]]. The area occupied by the Helvetii first became part of Rome's [[Gallia Belgica]] province and then of its [[Germania Superior]] province. The eastern portion of modern Switzerland was integrated into the [[Roman province]] of [[Raetia]]. Sometime around the start of the [[Common Era]], the Romans maintained a large camp called [[Vindonissa]], now a ruin at the confluence of the [[Aare]] and [[Reuss (river)|Reuss]] rivers, near the town of [[Windisch, Switzerland|Windisch]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Trumm |first=Judith |title=Vindonissa |url=https://hls-dhs-dss.ch/articles/012287/2015-04-22/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220503210248/https://hls-dhs-dss.ch/articles/012287/2015-04-22/ |archive-date=3 May 2022 |access-date=3 May 2022 |website=[[Historical Dictionary of Switzerland]] |language=de}}</ref>

The first and second century AD was an age of prosperity on the Swiss Plateau. Towns such as [[Aventicum]], [[Iulia Equestris]] and [[Augusta Raurica]] reached a remarkable size, while hundreds of agricultural estates ([[Villae rusticae]]) were established in the countryside.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book |last1=Zschokke |first1=Heinrich |url=http://archive.org/details/historyswitzerl00zschgoog |title=The history of Switzerland, for the Swiss people |last2=Zschokke |first2=Emil |last3=Shaw |first3=Francis George |date=1855 |publisher=New York, C. S. Francis & Co.; London, S. Low, Son & Co. |others=New York Public Library |pages=22–24 |language=English}}</ref>

Around 260 AD, the fall of the [[Agri Decumates]] territory north of the [[Rhine]] transformed today's Switzerland into a frontier land of the Empire. Repeated raids by the [[Alamanni]] tribes provoked the ruin of the Roman towns and economy, forcing the population to shelter near Roman fortresses, like the [[Castrum Rauracense]] near Augusta Raurica. The Empire built another line of defence at the north border (the so-called Donau-Iller-Rhine-Limes). At the end of the fourth century, the increased Germanic pressure forced the Romans to abandon the linear defence concept. The Swiss Plateau was finally open to [[Germanic tribes]].{{citation needed|date=September 2022}}

In the [[Early Middle Ages]], from the end of the fourth century, the western extent of modern-day Switzerland was part of the territory of the [[Kingdom of Burgundy|Kings of the Burgundians]], who introduced the French language to the area. The [[Alemanni]] settled the Swiss Plateau in the fifth century and the [[valleys of the Alps]] in the eighth century, forming [[Alamannia|Alemannia]]. Modern-day Switzerland was then divided between the kingdoms of Alemannia and [[Burgundy (region)|Burgundy]].<ref name="Early" /> The entire region became part of the expanding [[Frankish Empire]] in the sixth century, following [[Clovis I]]'s victory over the Alemanni at [[Tolbiac]] in 504 AD, and later Frankish domination of the Burgundians.<ref name="Nationsencyclopedia-Hist">{{Cite web |title=Switzerland history |url=http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/Europe/Switzerland-HISTORY.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140301050628/http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/Europe/Switzerland-HISTORY.html |archive-date=1 March 2014 |access-date=27 November 2009 |website=Nations Encyclopedia}}</ref><ref name="Nationsonline">{{Cite web |title=Brief History of Switzerland |url=http://www.nationsonline.org/oneworld/History/Switzerland-history.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140508043011/http://www.nationsonline.org/oneworld/History/Switzerland-history.htm |archive-date=8 May 2014 |access-date=27 November 2009 |website=Nations Online}}</ref>

Throughout the rest of the sixth, seventh and eighth centuries, Swiss regions continued under Frankish hegemony ([[Merovingians|Merovingian]] and [[Carolingian Empire|Carolingian]] dynasties) but after its extension under [[Charlemagne]], the [[Frankish Empire]] was divided by the [[Treaty of Verdun]] in 843.<ref name="Early" /> The territories of present-day Switzerland became divided into [[Middle Francia]] and [[East Francia]] until they were reunified under the [[Holy Roman Empire]] around 1000&nbsp;AD.<ref name="Early" />

In the 10th century, as the rule of the Carolingians waned, [[Magyars]] destroyed [[Basel]] in 917 and [[St. Gallen]] in 926. In response, [[Henry the Fowler]], the then ruler of East Francia, decreed the fortification of key settlements to defend against these invasions. Large villages and towns, including strategic locations like Zurich and St.Gallen, were fortified. This initiative led to the development of what were essentially early urban strongholds and city governments in Eastern Switzerland.<ref name=":1" />

By 1200, the Swiss Plateau comprised the dominions of the houses of [[House of Savoy|Savoy]], [[Zähringer]], [[Habsburg]], and [[House of Kyburg|Kyburg]].<ref name="Early" /> Some regions ([[Canton of Uri|Uri]], [[Canton of Schwyz|Schwyz]], [[Unterwalden]], later known as {{lang|de|[[Waldstätte]]n}}) were accorded the [[Imperial immediacy]] to grant the empire direct control over the mountain passes. With the extinction of its male line in 1263, the Kyburg dynasty fell in AD 1264. The Habsburgs under [[Rudolph I of Germany|King Rudolph I]] (Holy Roman Emperor in 1273) laid claim to the Kyburg lands and annexed them, extending their territory to the eastern Swiss Plateau.<ref name="Nationsencyclopedia-Hist" />

=== Old Swiss Confederacy ===

{{Main|Old Swiss Confederacy}}
{{Further|Growth of the Old Swiss Confederacy|Reformation in Switzerland|Early Modern Switzerland}}

[[File:Old Swiss Confederation.jpg|thumb|upright=1|right|The Old Swiss Confederacy from 1291 (dark green) to the sixteenth century (light green) and its associates (blue). In the other colours shown are the subject territories.]]
[[File:Bundesbrief.jpg|thumb|right|The 1291 ''Bundesbrief'' (federal charter)]]

The Old Swiss Confederacy was an alliance among the valley communities of the central Alps. The Confederacy was governed by [[Swiss nobility|nobles]] and [[Patrician (post-Roman Europe)|patricians]] of various cantons who facilitated management of common interests and ensured peace on mountain trade routes. The [[Federal Charter of 1291]] is considered the confederacy's founding document, even though similar alliances likely existed decades earlier. The document was agreed among the [[Medieval commune|rural communes]] of [[Canton of Uri|Uri]], [[Canton of Schwyz|Schwyz]], and [[Unterwalden]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Greanias |first=Thomas |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/255970548 |title=Geschichte der Schweiz und der Schweizer |publisher=Schwabe |year=2004 |isbn=978-3-7965-2067-9 |location=Basel |oclc=255970548}}</ref>{{Page needed|date=April 2023}}<ref name="Brief">{{Cite web |title=A Brief Survey of Swiss History |url=http://www.eda.admin.ch/eda/en/home/reps/ocea/vaus/infoch/chhist.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090626222448/http://www.eda.admin.ch/eda/en/home/reps/ocea/vaus/infoch/chhist.html |archive-date=26 June 2009 |access-date=22 June 2009 |publisher=Federal Department of Foreign Affairs}}</ref>

By 1353, the three original [[Cantons of Switzerland|cantons]] had joined with the cantons of [[Canton of Glarus|Glarus]] and [[Canton of Zug|Zug]] and the [[Lucerne]], [[Zurich]] and [[Bern]] city-states to form the "Old Confederacy" of eight states that obtained through the end of the 15th century.<ref name="Brief" /> The expansion led to increased power and wealth for the confederation. By 1460, the confederates controlled most of the territory south and west of the Rhine to the Alps and the [[Jura mountains]], and the [[University of Basel]] was founded (with a faculty of medicine) establishing a tradition of chemical and medical research. This increased after victories against the Habsburgs ([[Battle of Sempach]], [[Battle of Näfels]]), over [[Charles the Bold]] of [[Duchy of Burgundy|Burgundy]] during the 1470s, and the success of the [[Swiss mercenaries]]. The Swiss victory in the [[Swabian War]] against the [[Swabian League]] of [[Holy Roman Emperor|Emperor]] [[Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor|Maximilian I]] in 1499 amounted to ''de facto'' independence within the [[Holy Roman Empire]].<ref name="Brief" /> In 1501, Basel<ref>{{Cite web |title=Der Basler Bundesbrief vom 9. Juni 1501 |url=https://www.baselland.ch/themen/c_d/chronik-bl/chronik-1990er/chronik-1997/chronik-september-1997/downloads/bundesbrief-1501.pdf/@@download/file/bundesbrief-1501.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220514022408/https://www.baselland.ch/themen/c_d/chronik-bl/chronik-1990er/chronik-1997/chronik-september-1997/downloads/bundesbrief-1501.pdf/@@download/file/bundesbrief-1501.pdf |archive-date=14 May 2022 |access-date=3 May 2022}}</ref> and Schaffhausen joined the Old Swiss Confederacy.<ref>{{Cite web |last=E.Hofer |first=Roland |title=Schaffhausen (Kanton) |url=https://hls-dhs-dss.ch/articles/007388/2017-05-11/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220503210244/https://hls-dhs-dss.ch/articles/007388/2017-05-11/ |archive-date=3 May 2022 |access-date=3 May 2022 |website=[[Historical Dictionary of Switzerland]] |language=de}}</ref>

The Confederacy acquired a reputation of invincibility during these earlier wars, but [[Growth of the Old Swiss Confederacy|expansion of the confederation]] suffered a setback in 1515 with the Swiss defeat in the [[Battle of Marignano]]. This ended the so-called "heroic" epoch of Swiss history.<ref name="Brief" /> The success of [[Zwingli]]'s [[Reformation in Switzerland|Reformation]] in some cantons led to inter-cantonal religious conflicts in 1529 and 1531 ([[Wars of Kappel]]). It was not until more than one hundred years after these internal wars that, in 1648, under the [[Peace of Westphalia]], European countries recognised Switzerland's independence from the Holy Roman Empire and its [[neutral country|neutrality]].<ref name="Nationsencyclopedia-Hist" /><ref name="Nationsonline" />

During the [[Early Modern Switzerland|Early Modern]] period of Swiss history, the growing authoritarianism of the patriciate families<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Bertholet |first1=Auguste |url=https://www.sgeaj.ch/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/bertholet-kapossy-la-physiocratie-et-la-suisse-2023.pdf |title=La Physiocratie et la Suisse |last2=Kapossy |first2=Béla |publisher=Slatkine |year=2023 |isbn=9782051029391 |location=Geneva |language=fr}}</ref> combined with a financial crisis in the wake of the [[Thirty Years' War]] led to the [[Swiss peasant war of 1653]]. In the background to this struggle, the conflict between [[Roman Catholicism in Switzerland|Catholic]] and [[Protestantism in Switzerland|Protestant]] cantons persisted, erupting in further violence at the [[First War of Villmergen]], in 1656, and the [[Toggenburg War]] (or Second War of Villmergen), in 1712.<ref name="Brief" />

=== Napoleonic era ===
{{Main|Switzerland in the Napoleonic era|Helvetic Republic|Act of Mediation}}

[[File:Acte de Médiation mg 0643.jpg|thumb|The Act of Mediation was Napoleon's attempt at a compromise between the [[Ancien Régime]] and a Republic.]]
In 1798, the [[French Revolution|revolutionary French]] government invaded Switzerland and imposed a new unified constitution.<ref name="Brief" /> This centralised the government of the country, effectively abolishing the cantons: moreover, [[Mulhouse|Mülhausen]] left Switzerland and the [[Valtellina]] valley became part of the [[Cisalpine Republic]]. The new regime, known as the Helvetic Republic, was highly unpopular. An invading foreign army had imposed and destroyed centuries of tradition, making Switzerland nothing more than a French [[satellite state]]. The fierce French suppression of the [[Nidwalden]] Revolt in September 1798 was an example of the oppressive presence of the [[French Army]] and the local population's resistance to the occupation.{{citation needed|date=March 2022}}

When war broke out between France and its rivals, Russian and [[Habsburg monarchy|Austrian]] forces invaded Switzerland. The Swiss refused to fight alongside the French in the name of the Helvetic Republic. In 1803 [[Napoleon I of France|Napoleon]] organised a meeting of the leading Swiss politicians from both sides in Paris. The [[Act of Mediation]] was the result, which largely restored Swiss autonomy and introduced a Confederation of 19 cantons.<ref name="Brief" /> Henceforth, much of Swiss politics would concern balancing the cantons' tradition of self-rule with the need for a central government.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Linder |first1=Wolf |last2=Vatter |first2=Adrian |date=2001 |title=Institutions and outcomes of Swiss federalism: The role of the cantons in Swiss politics |url=http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01402380108425435 |journal=[[West European Politics]] |language=en |volume=24 |issue=2 |pages=95 |doi=10.1080/01402380108425435 |issn=0140-2382 |access-date=11 June 2024 |archive-date=22 June 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230622141822/https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01402380108425435 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 1815, the [[Congress of Vienna]] fully re-established Swiss independence, and the European powers recognised permanent Swiss neutrality.<ref name="Nationsencyclopedia-Hist" /><ref name="Nationsonline" /><ref name="Brief" /> Swiss troops served foreign governments until 1860 when they fought in the [[Siege of Gaeta (1860)|siege of Gaeta]]. The treaty allowed Switzerland to increase its territory, with the admission of the cantons of [[Valais]], [[Canton of Neuchâtel|Neuchâtel]] and [[Canton of Geneva|Geneva]]. Switzerland's borders saw only minor adjustments thereafter.<ref>{{HDS|7841|Swiss border ("Les principales rectifications postérieures à 1815 concernent la vallée des Dappes en 1862 (frontière Vaud-France, env. 7,5 km2), la valle di Lei en 1952 (Grisons-Italie, 0,45 km2), l'Ellhorn en 1955 (colline revendiquée par la Suisse pour des raisons militaires, Grisons-Liechtenstein) et l'enclave allemande du Verenahof dans le canton de Schaffhouse en 1967.")}}. It should be noticed that in [[Lago di Lei|valle di Lei]], Italy got in exchange a territory of the same area. [http://www.admin.ch/opc/it/classified-compilation/19520241/196306260000/0.132.454.21.pdf See here] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140521110525/http://www.admin.ch/opc/it/classified-compilation/19520241/196306260000/0.132.454.21.pdf |date=21 May 2014}}</ref>

=== Federal state ===
{{Main|Restoration and Regeneration (Switzerland)|Switzerland as a federal state}}
[[File:Bern, Federal Palace, 1857.jpg|thumb|The first [[Federal Palace]] in Bern (1857). One of the three cantons presiding over the [[Tagsatzung]] (former legislative and executive council), Bern was chosen as the permanent seat of federal legislative and executive institutions in 1848, in part because of its closeness to the French-speaking area.<ref name="Bundesstadt" />]]

The restoration of power to the patriciate was only temporary. After a period of unrest with repeated violent clashes, such as the [[Züriputsch]] of 1839, civil war (the ''[[Sonderbundskrieg]]'') broke out in 1847 when some Catholic cantons tried to set up a separate alliance (the ''Sonderbund'').<ref name="Brief" /> The war lasted less than a month, causing fewer than 100 casualties, most of which were through [[friendly fire]]. The Sonderbundskrieg had a significant impact on the psychology and society of Switzerland.{{citation needed|date=September 2022}}{{who|date=September 2022}}

The war convinced most Swiss of the need for unity and strength. Swiss from all strata of society, whether Catholic or Protestant, from the liberal or conservative current, realised that the cantons would profit more from merging their economic and religious interests.{{citation needed|date=September 2022}}

Thus, while the rest of Europe saw [[revolutions of 1848|revolutionary uprisings]], the Swiss drew up a constitution that provided for a [[Swiss Federal Constitution|federal layout]], much of it inspired by the [[United States Constitution|American example]]. This constitution provided central authority while leaving the cantons the right to self-government on local issues. Giving credit to those who favoured the power of the cantons (the Sonderbund Kantone), the national assembly was divided between an [[upper house]] (the [[Swiss Council of States|Council of States]], two representatives per canton) and a [[lower house]] (the [[National Council of Switzerland|National Council]], with representatives elected from across the country). [[Referendum]]s were made mandatory for any amendments.<ref name="Nationsonline" /> This new constitution ended the legal power of [[Swiss nobility#Current situation|nobility in Switzerland]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Noblesse en Suisse |url=http://www.diesbach.com/sghcf/n/noblesse.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303192147/http://www.diesbach.com/sghcf/n/noblesse.html |archive-date=3 March 2016 |access-date=22 October 2015}}</ref>

[[File:Gotthard Eröffnungszug Bellinzona.jpg|thumb|left|Inauguration in 1882 of the [[Gotthard rail tunnel]] connecting the southern canton of Ticino, the longest in the world at the time]]
A single system of weights and measures was introduced, and in 1850 the [[Swiss franc]] became the Swiss [[single currency]], complemented by the WIR franc in 1934.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The WIR, the supplementary Swiss currency since 1934 |url=https://www.theeconomyjournal.eu/texto-diario/mostrar/758830/wir-moneda-complementaria-suiza-activo-desde-1934 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210612070424/https://www.theeconomyjournal.eu/texto-diario/mostrar/758830/wir-moneda-complementaria-suiza-activo-desde-1934 |archive-date=12 June 2021 |access-date=12 June 2021 |website=The Economy Journal |language=en}}</ref> Article 11 of the constitution forbade sending troops to serve abroad, marking the end of foreign service. It came with the expectation of serving the [[Holy See]], and the Swiss were still obliged to serve [[Francis II of the Two Sicilies]] with Swiss Guards present at the [[Siege of Gaeta (1860)|siege of Gaeta in 1860]].{{citation needed|date=September 2022}}

An important clause of the constitution was that it could be entirely rewritten, if necessary, thus enabling it to evolve as a whole rather than being modified one amendment at a time.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Ducrest |first1=Jean Pierre |url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/702317703 |title=Histoire de la Suisse |last2=Dorand |first2=Michel |publisher=Editions Fragnière |year=1987 |oclc=702317703}}</ref>{{Page needed|date=April 2023}}

This need soon proved itself when the rise in population and the [[Industrial Revolution]] that followed led to calls to modify the constitution accordingly. The population rejected an early draft in 1872, but modifications led to its acceptance in 1874.<ref name="Brief" /> It introduced the [[Referendum#Switzerland|facultative referendum]] for laws at the federal level. It also established federal responsibility for defence, trade, and legal matters.

In 1891, the constitution was revised with uncommonly strong elements of [[direct democracy]], which remain unique today.<ref name="Brief" />

=== Modern history ===
{{Main|Switzerland during the world wars|Modern history of Switzerland}}
[[File:Ulrich Wille.jpg|thumb|General [[Ulrich Wille]], appointed commander-in-chief of the Swiss Army for the duration of World War I]]
Switzerland was not invaded during either of the world wars. During [[World War I]], Switzerland was home to the revolutionary and founder of the [[Soviet Union]] Vladimir Illych Ulyanov ([[Vladimir Lenin]]) who remained there until 1917.<ref>{{Cite web |date=19 May 2006 |title=Lenin and the Swiss non-revolution |url=https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/vladimir-ilyich-ulyanov_lenin-and-the-swiss-non-revolution/12812 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230208144512/https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/vladimir-ilyich-ulyanov_lenin-and-the-swiss-non-revolution/12812 |archive-date=8 February 2023 |access-date=8 February 2023 |website=SWI swissinfo.ch |language=en}}</ref> Swiss neutrality was seriously questioned by the short-lived [[Grimm–Hoffmann affair]] in 1917. In 1920, Switzerland joined the [[League of Nations]], which was based in [[Geneva]], after it was exempted from military requirements.<ref name=":0" />

During [[World War II]], [[Operation Tannenbaum|detailed invasion plans]] were drawn up by the Germans,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Urner |first=Klaus |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/46472272 |title="Let's Swallow Switzerland": Hitler's Plans against the Swiss Confederation |publisher=Lexington Books |year=2002 |isbn=978-0-7391-0255-8 |location=Lanham, Maryland |pages=4, 7 |oclc=46472272}}</ref> but Switzerland was never attacked.<ref name="Brief" /> Switzerland was able to remain independent through a combination of military deterrence, concessions to Germany, and good fortune, as larger events during the war intervened.<ref name="Nationsonline" /><ref name="Stonebrooks">{{Cite web |title=Book Review: Halbrook, Stephen P. ''Target Switzerland: Swiss Armed Neutrality in World War II''. Rockville Centre, NY: Sarpedon, 1998 |url=http://stonebooks.com/archives/981111.shtml |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091201171926/http://stonebooks.com/archives/981111.shtml |archive-date=1 December 2009 |access-date=2 December 2009 |website=Stone & Stone}}</ref> General [[Henri Guisan]], appointed the [[General (Switzerland)|commander-in-chief for the duration]] of the war ordered a general mobilisation of the armed forces. The Swiss military strategy changed from static defence at the borders to organised long-term attrition and withdrawal to strong, well-stockpiled positions high in the Alps, known as the [[National Redoubt (Switzerland)|Reduit]]. Switzerland was an important base for espionage by both sides and often mediated communications between the [[Axis Powers|Axis]] and [[Allies of World War II|Allied]] powers.<ref name="Stonebrooks" />

Switzerland's trade was blockaded by both the Allies and the Axis. Economic cooperation and extension of credit to [[Nazi Germany]] varied according to the perceived likelihood of invasion and the availability of other trading partners. Concessions reached a peak after a crucial rail link through [[Vichy France]] was severed in 1942, leaving Switzerland (together with [[Liechtenstein]]) entirely isolated from the wider world by Axis-controlled territory. Over the course of the war, Switzerland interned over 300,000 refugees<ref name="Asylum">{{HDS|10374|Asylum}}</ref> aided by the [[International Red Cross]], based in Geneva. Strict immigration and [[Right of asylum|asylum]] policies and the financial relationships with Nazi Germany raised controversy, only at the end of the 20th century.<ref name="UEK Report">{{Cite book |url=http://www.uek.ch/en/schlussbericht/synthesis/ueke.pdf |title=Final Report of the Independent Commission of Experts Switzerland |publisher=Pendo Verlag |year=2002 |isbn=978-3-85842-603-1 |location=Zurich |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090530053737/http://www.uek.ch/en/schlussbericht/synthesis/ueke.pdf |archive-date=30 May 2009 |url-status=live}}</ref>{{rp|521}}

During the war, the Swiss Air Force engaged aircraft of both sides, shooting down 11 intruding [[Luftwaffe]] planes in May and June 1940, then forcing down other intruders after a change of policy following threats from Germany. Over 100 Allied bombers and their crews were interned. Between 1940 and 1945, [[Bombings of Switzerland in World War II|Switzerland was bombed by the Allies]], causing fatalities and property damage.<ref name="Stonebrooks" /> Among the cities and towns bombed were [[Basel]], [[Brusio]], [[Chiasso]], [[Cornol]], Geneva, [[Koblenz, Switzerland|Koblenz]], [[Niederweningen]], [[Rafz]], [[Renens]], [[Samedan]], [[Schaffhausen]], [[Stein am Rhein]], [[Tägerwilen]], [[Thayngen]], [[Vals, Switzerland|Vals]], and Zurich. Allied forces maintained that the bombings, which violated the 96th [[Article of War]], resulted from navigation errors, equipment failure, weather conditions, and pilot errors. The Swiss expressed fear and concern that the bombings were intended to put pressure on Switzerland to end economic cooperation and neutrality with Nazi Germany.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Helmreich |first=JE |title=Diplomacy of Apology |url=http://www.airpower.maxwell.af.mil/airchronicles/apj/apj00/sum00/helmreich.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070505083348/http://www.airpower.maxwell.af.mil/airchronicles/apj/apj00/sum00/helmreich.html |archive-date=5 May 2007 |access-date=5 May 2007}}</ref> Court-martial proceedings took place in England. The US paid SFR 62M for reparations.{{citation needed|date=March 2022}}

Switzerland's attitude towards [[Switzerland during the World Wars#Refugees|refugees]] was complicated and controversial; over the course of the war, it admitted as many as 300,000 refugees<ref name="Asylum" /> while refusing tens of thousands more,<ref name="UEK Report" />{{rp|107}} including Jews persecuted by the Nazis.<ref name="UEK Report" />{{rp|114}}

After the war, the Swiss government exported credits through the charitable fund known as the {{lang|de|Schweizerspende}} and donated to the [[Marshall Plan]] to help Europe's recovery, efforts that ultimately benefited the [[Economy of Switzerland|Swiss economy]].<ref name="UEK Report" />{{rp|521}}

During the [[Cold War]], Swiss authorities [[Switzerland and weapons of mass destruction|considered the construction]] of a Swiss [[nuclear bomb]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=States Formerly Possessing or Pursuing Nuclear Weapons |url=http://nuclearweaponarchive.org/Nwfaq/Nfaq7-4.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150126234705/http://nuclearweaponarchive.org/Nwfaq/Nfaq7-4.html |archive-date=26 January 2015 |access-date=6 March 2014}}</ref> Leading nuclear physicists at the [[ETH Zurich|Federal Institute of Technology Zurich]] such as [[Paul Scherrer]] made this a realistic possibility.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Fischer |first=Patrick |date=8 April 2019 |title=Als die Schweiz eine Atombombe wollte |url=https://blog.nationalmuseum.ch/2019/04/plaene-fuer-eine-schweizer-atombombe/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220511180845/https://blog.nationalmuseum.ch/2019/04/plaene-fuer-eine-schweizer-atombombe/ |archive-date=11 May 2022 |access-date=3 May 2022 |website=[[Swiss National Museum]] |language=de-DE}}</ref> In 1988, the [[Paul Scherrer Institute]] was founded in his name to explore the therapeutic uses of [[neutron scattering]] technologies.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Vuilleumier |first=Marie |date=15 October 2018 |title=Paul Scherrer Institut seit 30 Jahren im Dienst der Wissenschaft |url=https://www.swissinfo.ch/ger/wissen-technik/wissenschaftliche-forschung_paul-scherrer-institut-seit-30-jahren-im-dienst-der-wissenschaft/44475052 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220503204037/https://www.swissinfo.ch/ger/wissen-technik/wissenschaftliche-forschung_paul-scherrer-institut-seit-30-jahren-im-dienst-der-wissenschaft/44475052 |archive-date=3 May 2022 |access-date=3 May 2022 |website=[[Swissinfo]] |language=de}}</ref> Financial problems with the defence budget and ethical considerations prevented the substantial funds from being allocated, and the [[Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty]] of 1968 was seen as a valid alternative. Plans for building nuclear weapons were dropped by 1988.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Westberg |first=Gunnar |date=9 October 2010 |title=Swiss Nuclear Bomb |url=http://peaceandhealthblog.com/2010/10/09/swiss-nuclear-bomb/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140305115926/http://peaceandhealthblog.com/2010/10/09/swiss-nuclear-bomb/ |archive-date=5 March 2014 |access-date=6 March 2014 |publisher=[[International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War]]}}</ref> Switzerland joined the [[Council of Europe]] in 1963.<ref name="Nationsonline" />

[[File:Bundesrat_der_Schweiz_2003.jpg|thumb|In 2003, by granting the [[Swiss People's Party]] a second seat in the governing cabinet, the Parliament altered the [[Magic formula (Swiss politics)|coalition]] that had dominated Swiss politics since 1959.]]
Switzerland was the last Western republic (the [[Principality of Liechtenstein]] followed in 1984) to [[Women's suffrage in Switzerland|grant women the right to vote]]. Some Swiss cantons approved this in 1959, while at the federal level, it was achieved in 1971 and, after resistance, in the last canton [[Appenzell Innerrhoden]] (one of only two remaining ''[[Landsgemeinde]]'', along with [[Canton of Glarus|Glarus]]) in 1990.<ref name="Brief" /><ref>{{HDS|010380|Women's suffrage|author=Yvonne Voegeli & Werner Seitz|date=4 April 2023}}</ref> After obtaining suffrage at the federal level, women quickly rose in political significance. The first woman on the seven-member [[Federal Council (Switzerland)|Federal Council]] executive was [[Elisabeth Kopp]], who served from 1984 to 1989,<ref name="Brief" /> and the first female president was [[Ruth Dreifuss]] in 1999.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Parlamentsgeschichte |url=https://www.parlament.ch/de/%C3%BCber-das-parlament/parlamentsgeschichte/parlamentsgeschichte-detail?historyId=353 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220503205539/https://www.parlament.ch/de/%C3%BCber-das-parlament/parlamentsgeschichte/parlamentsgeschichte-detail?historyId=353 |archive-date=3 May 2022 |access-date=3 May 2022 |website=www.parlament.ch}}</ref>

In 1979 areas from the canton of [[Bern]] attained independence from the Bernese, forming the new [[canton of Jura]]. On 18 April 1999, the Swiss population and the cantons voted in favour of a completely revised [[Swiss Federal Constitution|federal constitution]].<ref name="Brief" />

In 2002 Switzerland became a full member of the United Nations, leaving [[Holy See|Vatican City]] as the last widely recognised state without full UN membership.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Thomas Fleiner |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-S1fHJiawHUC&pg=PA28 |title=Swiss Constitutional Law |last2=Alexander Misic |last3=Nicole Töpperwien |date=5 August 2005 |publisher=Kluwer Law International |isbn=978-90-411-2404-3 |page=28 |access-date=25 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230412045122/https://books.google.com/books?id=-S1fHJiawHUC&pg=PA28 |archive-date=12 April 2023 |url-status=live}}</ref> Switzerland is a founding member of the [[European Free Trade Association|EFTA]] but not the [[European Economic Area]] (EEA). An application for membership in the [[European Union]] was sent in May 1992, but did not advance since rejecting the EEA in December 1992<ref name="Brief" /> when Switzerland conducted a referendum on the EEA. Several referendums on the EU issue ensued; due to opposition from the citizens, the membership application was withdrawn. Nonetheless, Swiss law is gradually changing to conform with that of the EU, and the government signed [[Bilateralism|bilateral agreements]] with the European Union. Switzerland, together with Liechtenstein, has been surrounded by the EU since Austria's entry in 1995. On 5 June 2005, Swiss voters agreed by a 55% majority to join the [[Schengen treaty]], a result that EU commentators regarded as a sign of support.<ref name="Nationsonline" /> In September 2020, a referendum calling for a vote to end the pact that allowed a free movement of people from the [[European Union]] was introduced by the [[Swiss People's Party]] (SVP).<ref>{{Cite web |last=Henley |first=Jon |date=25 September 2020 |title=Swiss to vote on whether to end free movement deal with EU |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/sep/25/swiss-vote-whether-end-free-movement-deal-with-eu |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200925042602/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/sep/25/swiss-vote-whether-end-free-movement-deal-with-eu |archive-date=25 September 2020 |access-date=25 September 2020 |website=The Guardian}}</ref> However, voters rejected the attempt to retake control of immigration, defeating the motion by a roughly 63%–37% margin.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Chazan |first=David |date=27 September 2020 |title=Large majority of Swiss reject bid to rein in immigration from EU, says exit poll |work=The Telegraph |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/09/27/large-majority-swiss-reject-bid-rein-immigration-eu-says-exit/ |url-status=live |url-access=subscription |access-date=27 September 2020 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220110/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/09/27/large-majority-swiss-reject-bid-rein-immigration-eu-says-exit/ |archive-date=10 January 2022}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

On 9 February 2014, 50.3% of Swiss voters approved a ballot [[Popular initiative (Switzerland)|initiative]] launched by the Swiss People's Party (SVP/UDC) to [[Federal popular initiative "Against mass immigration"|restrict immigration]]. This initiative was mostly backed by rural (57.6% approval) and suburban groups (51.2% approval), and isolated towns (51.3% approval) as well as by a strong majority (69.2% approval) in Ticino, while metropolitan centres (58.5% rejection) and the French-speaking part (58.5% rejection) rejected it.<ref>{{Cite web |date=9 February 2014 |title=Abstimmungen – Indikatoren, Abstimmung vom 9. Februar 2014: Initiative 'Gegen Masseneinwanderung' |url=http://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/portal/de/index/themen/17/03/blank/key/2014/013.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140421050627/http://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/portal/de/index/themen/17/03/blank/key/2014/013.html |archive-date=21 April 2014 |access-date=20 April 2014 |publisher=Swiss Federal Statistical Office, Neuchâtel 2014 |language=de, fr}}</ref> In December 2016, a political compromise with the EU was attained that eliminated quotas on EU citizens, but still allowed favourable treatment of Swiss-based job applicants.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Maurice |first=Eric |date=22 December 2016 |title=EU and Switzerland agree on free movement |url=https://euobserver.com/rule-of-law/136398 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230208144500/https://euobserver.com/rule-of-law/136398 |archive-date=8 February 2023 |access-date=8 February 2023 |website=EUobserver |language=en}}</ref> On 27 September 2020, 62% of Swiss voters rejected the anti-free movement referendum by SVP.<ref>{{Cite news |date=27 September 2020 |title=Switzerland referendum: Voters reject end to free movement with EU |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-54316316 |url-status=live |access-date=8 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200928032301/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-54316316 |archive-date=28 September 2020}}</ref>