20 historic places
Historic Places in Switzerland
Alpine castles, the Reformation, and the birth of a confederation
A map-based guide to historic places to visit in Switzerland — the founding meadow of the confederation, lakeside castles, Reformation Geneva and Zurich, and the great Alpine passes.
Historical50Avenches (Aventicum)
The forgotten Roman capital of Switzerland that once held 20,000 souls.
Cultural719Abbey Library of St. Gallen
The Rococo hall that saved the written word through Europe's dark centuries.
Heritage1160Cathedral of St. Peter, Geneva
The cathedral stripped bare where Calvin thundered for a quarter-century.
Heritage1160Chillon Castle
The lakeside dungeon Byron carved his name into after meeting its ghost.
Heritage1191Bern Old Town (Zytglogge)
The medieval capital whose clock tower Einstein watched while dreaming up relativity.
Nature1200Gotthard Pass
The Alpine gateway a devil's bridge unlocked for armies and emperors.
Heritage1270Château de Gruyères
The hilltop seat of counts whose name became the world's cheese.
Historical1291Rütli Meadow
The alpine field where three farmers swore an oath that became a nation.
Historical1315Morgarten Battlefield
Where peasants with halberds crushed a Habsburg army and stunned Europe.
Heritage1333Chapel Bridge (Kapellbrücke), Lucerne
Europe's oldest covered wooden bridge, nearly lost to a single cigarette.
Historical1386Sempach Battlefield
Where one man threw himself onto a wall of spears to open a gap for freedom.
Historical1519Grossmünster, Zurich
The pulpit where Zwingli ignited the Swiss Reformation—and abolished Lent.
Historical1536Reformation Wall, Geneva
The city Calvin turned into the 'Protestant Rome' of Europe.
Historical1821Lion Monument, Lucerne
The dying lion Mark Twain called 'the most mournful stone in the world.'
Historical1863International Red Cross Museum, Geneva
Born from one man's horror at a battlefield of 40,000 dead and dying.
Nature1865Matterhorn
The peak whose first conquest turned to tragedy on the descent.
Historical1902Federal Palace, Bern
The seat of a republic that stayed neutral while wars raged around it.
Cultural1905Einstein House, Bern
The second-floor flat where a clerk rewrote the laws of the universe.
Historical1920Palace of Nations, Geneva
The failed parliament of the world that tried to end all wars.
Cultural1954CERN, Meyrin
Where post-war enemies rebuilt science together—and the Web was born.