View source for Place:Helvetic Republic

{{Infobox former country
|native_name = {{native name|de|Helvetische Republik}}<br/>{{native name|fr|République helvétique}}<br/>{{native name|it|Repubblica Elvetica}}<br/>{{native name|rm|Republica helvetica}}
|conventional_long_name = Helvetic Republic
|common_name = Switzerland
|
|image_flag  = Republiquehelv.svg
|flag_type   = Flag (reverse side)
|image_coat  = Sceau Republique helvetique.png
|symbol_type = Official seal
|coa_size    = 110px
|image_map   = Karte Helvetik 3-EN.png
|image_map_caption = Helvetic Republic, with borders according to First Helvetic constitution of 12 April 1798
|
|continent = Europe
|region = Central Europe
|era = French Revolutionary Wars
|status = Client
|empire = France
|status_text = Client state of France
|
|common_languages = Swiss French, Swiss German, Swiss Italian, Romansh
|government_type = Constitutional republic
|year_start = 1798
|year_end = 1803
|event_pre = Confederation collapsed on French invasion
|date_pre = 5 March 1798
|event_start = Proclaimed
|date_start = 12 April
|event1 = Elections in Zürich
|date_event1 = 14 April 1798
|event2 = Mutual defence treaty with France
|date_event2 = 19 August 1798
|event3 = Diplomatic recognition by French allies
|date_event3 = 19 September 1798
|event4 = Malmaison constitution
|date_event4 = 29 May 1801
|event5 = Federal constitution
|date_event5 = 27 February 1802
|event_end = Act of Mediation
|date_end = 19 February
|
|p1 = Old Swiss Confederacy
|flag_p1 = Early Swiss cross.svg
|p2 = Seven Tithings
|flag_p2 = Valais coa old.svg
|border_p2 = no
|p3 = Three Leagues
|flag_p3 = Wappen Gotteshausbund.svg <!--the ibex was occasionally used to represent the three leagues as a whole-->
|border_p3 = no
|s1 = Swiss Confederation (Napoleonic)
|flag_s1 = XIX Cantone coa.svg
|border_s1 = no
|s2 = Rhodanic Republic
|flag_s2 = Flag of the Rhodanic Republic.svg
|
|capital = [[Place:Aarau|Aarau]], later [[Place:Lucerne|Lucerne]]
|footnotes = '''Note:''' See below for a full list of predecessor states
}}
In  Swiss history, the '''Helvetic Republic''' (1798–1803) represented an early attempt to impose a central authority over Switzerland, which until then had consisted of self-governing cantons united by a loose military alliance (and ruling over subject territories such as Vaud).

The French invaded Switzerland and turned it into an ally known as the "Helvetic Republic".  The interference with localism and traditional liberties was deeply resented, although some modernizing reforms took place.<ref>Marc H.  Lerner, "The Helvetic Republic: An Ambivalent Reception of French Revolutionary Liberty," ''French History'' (2004) 18#1 pp 50-75.</ref><ref>R.R. Palmer, ''The Age of the Democratic Revolution'' 2:394-421</ref>  Resistance was strongest in the more traditional Catholic bastions, with armed uprisings breaking out in spring 1798 in the central part of Switzerland. The French Army suppressed the uprisings but support for revolutionary ideals steadily declined, as the Swiss resented their loss of local democracy, the new  taxes, the centralization and the hostility to religion. Nonetheless, there were long-term impacts.<ref>{{cite book |author1=Otto Dann |author2=John Dinwiddy |title=Nationalism in the Age of the French Revolution |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qrujM36H7qUC&pg=PA194 |year=1988 |publisher=Continuum |pages=190–98 }}</ref>

The Republic being named ''Helvetic'' after the {{lang|la|Helvetii}}, the Gaulish inhabitants of the Swiss Plateau in antiquity, was not an innovation; rather, the Swiss Confederacy had occasionally been dubbed ''{{lang|la|Republica Helvetiorum}}'' in humanist Latin since the 17th century, and ''{{lang|la|Helvetia}}'', the Swiss national allegory, made her first appearance in 1672.

==History==
[[File:Strategic Situation of Europe 1796.jpg|thumb|195px|left|Strategic situation of Europe in 1796]]

During the French Revolutionary Wars of the 1790s, the French Republican armies expanded eastward. The French Republican armies enveloped {{wipe|Switzerland}} on the grounds of "liberating" the Swiss people, whose own system of government was deemed as feudal, especially for annexed territories such as Vaud.

Some Swiss nationals, including Frédéric-César de La Harpe, had called for French intervention on these grounds. The invasion proceeded largely peacefully, since the Swiss people failed to respond to the calls of their politicians to take up arms.

On 5 March 1798, French troops completely overran Switzerland and the Old Swiss Confederation collapsed. On 12 April 1798, 121 cantonal deputies proclaimed the Helvetic Republic, "One and Indivisible". On 14 April 1798, a cantonal assembly was called in the canton of Zürich, but most of the politicians from the previous assembly were re-elected. The new régime abolished cantonal sovereignty and feudal rights. The occupying forces established a centralised state based on the ideas of the {{wipe|French Revolution}}.

Many Swiss citizens resisted these "[[Philosophy:Progressivism|progressive]]" ideas, particularly in the central areas of the country. Some of the more controversial aspects of the new regime limited freedom of worship, which outraged many of the more devout citizens.

[[File:Alois von Reding.jpg|thumb|left|Alois von Reding led Central Swiss troops against the French]]
In response, the Cantons of Uri, [[Place:Canton of Schwyz|Schwyz]] and Nidwalden raised an army of about 10,000 men led by Alois von Reding to fight the French. This army was deployed along the defensive line from Napf to Rapperswil. Reding besieged French-controlled [[Place:Lucerne|Lucerne]] and marched across the Brünig pass into the Berner Oberland to support the armies of Bern.  At the same time, the French General Balthasar Alexis Henri Antoine of Schauenburg marched out of occupied [[Place:Zürich|Zürich]] to attack [[Place:Zug|Zug]], Lucerne and the Sattel pass.  Even though Reding's army won victories at Rothenthurm and Morgarten, Schauenburg's victory near Sattel allowed him to threaten the town of [[Place:Schwyz|Schwyz]].  On 4 May 1798, the town council of Schwyz surrendered.<ref>{{HDS|8915<!--Section 1-1-->|The French Invasion}}</ref>

On 13 May, Reding and Schauenburg agreed to a cease-fire, the terms of which included the rebel cantons merging into a single one, thus limiting their effectiveness in the central government. However, the French failed to keep their promises in respecting religious matters and before the year was out there was another uprising in Nidwalden which the authorities crushed, with towns and villages burnt down by French troops.

No general agreement existed about the future of Switzerland. Leading groups split into the ''{{lang|fr|Unitaires}}'', who wanted a united republic, and the ''Federalists'', who represented the old [[Social:Aristocracy|aristocracy]] and demanded a return to cantonal sovereignty. Coup-attempts became frequent, and the new régime had to rely on the French to survive. Furthermore, the occupying forces insisted that the accommodation and feeding of the soldiers be paid for by the local populace, which drained the economy. The treaty of alliance with France also broke the tradition of neutrality established by the Confederation. All this made it difficult to establish a new working state.

In 1799, Switzerland became a virtual battle-zone between the French, Austrian, and Imperial Russian armies, with the locals supporting mainly the latter two, rejecting calls to fight with the French armies in the name of the Helvetic Republic.

Instability in the Republic reached its peak in 1802–1803, which included the ''{{lang|frp|Bourla-papey}}'' uprising and the ''{{lang|de|Stecklikrieg}}'' civil war of 1802. By then, it was 12 million francs in debt having started with a treasury of 6 million francs.<ref>Hughes, Christopher, '' Switzerland '' (London, 1975) p.98</ref> This together with local resistance caused the Helvetic Republic to collapse, and its government took refuge in [[Place:Lausanne|Lausanne]].

At that time, Napoleon Bonaparte, then First Consul of France, summoned representatives of both sides to [[Place:Paris|Paris]] in order to negotiate a solution. Although the Federalist representatives formed a minority at the conciliation conference, known as the "Helvetic Consulta", Bonaparte characterised Switzerland as federal "by nature" and considered it unwise to force the country into any other constitutional framework.

On 19 February 1803, the Act of Mediation restored the cantons. With the abolition of the centralized state, Switzerland became a confederation once again.

==Constitution==
Before the advent of the Helvetic Republic, each individual canton had exercised complete sovereignty over its own territory or territories. Little central authority had existed, with matters concerning the country as a whole confined mainly to meetings of leading representatives from the cantons: the  Diets.<ref name="HistoiredelaSuisse">
''Histoire de la Suisse'', Éditions Fragnière, Fribourg, Switzerland</ref>

The constitution of the Helvetic Republic came mainly from the design of Peter Ochs, a [[Social:Magistrate|magistrate]] from [[Place:Basel|Basel]]. It established a central two-chamber [[Social:Legislature|legislature]] which included the Grand Council (with 8 members per canton) and the Senate (4 members per canton). The [[Social:Executive (government)|executive]], known as the Directory, comprised 5 members. The Constitution also established actual Swiss [[Social:Citizenship|citizenship]], as opposed to just citizenship of one's canton of birth.<ref name="HistoiredelaSuisse"/>  Under the [[Place:Old Swiss Confederacy|Old Swiss Confederacy]], citizenship was granted by each town and village only to residents.  These citizens enjoyed access to community property and in some cases additional protection under the law.  Additionally, the urban towns and the rural villages had differing rights and laws.  The creation of a uniform Swiss citizenship, which applied equally for citizens of the old towns and their tenants and servants, led to conflict.  The wealthier villagers and urban citizens held rights to forests, common land and other municipal property which they did not want to share with the "new citizens", who were generally poor.  The compromise solution, which was written into the municipal laws of the Helvetic Republic, is still valid today.  Two politically separate but often geographically similar organizations were created.  The first, the so-called municipality, was a political community formed by election and its voting body consists of all resident citizens.  However, the community land and property remained with the former local citizens who were gathered together into the ''{{lang|de|Bürgergemeinde}}''.<ref name="HDS_Burger">{{HDS|26443|Bürgergemeinde}}</ref>

After an uprising led by Alois von Reding in 1798, some cantons were merged, thus reducing their anti-centralist effectiveness in the legislature. Uri, [[Place:Schwyz|Schwyz]], [[Place:Zug|Zug]] and Unterwalden together became the canton of Waldstätten; [[Place:Glarus|Glarus]] and the Sarganserland became the canton of Linth, and Appenzell and  St. Gallen combined as the canton of Säntis.

Due to the instability of the situation, the Helvetic Republic had over 6 constitutions in a period of 4 years.<ref name="HistoiredelaSuisse"/>

==Legacy==
The Helvetic Republic did highlight the desirability of a central authority to handle matters for the country as a whole (as opposed to the individual cantons which handled matters at the local level). In the post-Napoleonic era, the differences between the cantons (varying currencies and systems of weights and measurements) and the perceived need for better co-ordination between them came to a head and culminated in the Swiss Federal Constitution of 1848.

The Republic's 5-member Directory resembles the 7-member Swiss Federal Council, Switzerland's {{as of|2008|alt=present-day}} executive.

The period of the Helvetic Republic is still very controversial within Switzerland.<ref name="Remembrance">{{HDS|9797<!--Section 1-1-->|Helvetic Republic, Historiography and Remembrance}}</ref> It represents a key step toward the modern federal state. For the first time the population was defined as Swiss, not as members of a specific canton. For cantons like Vaud, Thurgau and Ticino the Republic was a time of political freedom from other cantons. However the Republic also marked a time of foreign domination and revolution. For the cantons of Bern, Schwyz and Nidwalden it was a time of military defeat followed by occupation and military suppression. In 1995, the Federal Parliament chose not to celebrate the 200 year anniversary of the Helvetic Republic, but to allow individual cantons to celebrate if they wished.<ref name="Remembrance"/>

==Administrative divisions==
[[File:Karte Helvetik 1.png|thumb|Provisional constitution of 15 January 1798]]
[[File:Karte Helvetik 3-EN.png|thumb|Constitution of 12 April 1798]]
[[File:Karte Helvetik 4.png|thumb|Constitution of 25 May 1802]]

The Helvetic Republic reduced the formerly sovereign cantons to mere administrative districts, and in order to weaken the old power-structures, it defined new boundaries for some cantons. The Act of 1798 and subsequent developments resulted in the following cantons:

{{div col}}
* Aargau (without Baden and Fricktal)
* Baden
* Basel
* Bellinzona
* Bern (without Oberland)
* Fribourg
* Fricktal, added in 1802
* Léman (corresponding to Vaud)
* Linth
* Lugano
* Lucerne
* Oberland
* Raetia (corresponding to Graubünden/Grisons)
* Säntis
* Schaffhausen
* Solothurn
* Thurgau
* Waldstätten
* Valais
* Zürich
{{div col end}}

==Predecessor states==
As well as the [[Place:Old Swiss Confederacy|Old Swiss Confederacy]], the following territories became part of the Helvetic Republic:

===Associate states===

There were four [[Social:Associated state|associated state]]s:
{{colbegin}}
* [[File:Valais coa old.svg|20px]] Republic of the Seven Tithings
* [[File:Coa Abbey Saint Gall.svg|20px]] Imperial Abbey of St Gall
* [[File:Coa stgallen.svg|20px]] Imperial City of St Gall
* [[Place:Three Leagues|Free state of the Three Leagues]]
** [[File:Wappen Gotteshausbund.svg|20px]] [[Place:League of God's House|League of God's House]]
** [[File:Wappen Grauer Bund1.svg|20px]] Grey League
** [[File:Wappen Zehngerichtebund1.svg|20px]] [[Place:League of the Ten Jurisdictions|League of the Ten Jurisdictions]]
{{colend}}

===Condominiums===

There were 21 [[Social:Condominium (international law)|condominiums]]:
{{div col}}
* [[File:Coat of arms of Baden AG.svg|20px]] County of Baden
* [[File:Snake-coat of arms.svg|20px]] Vogtei of Bellinzona
* [[File:Blenio-coat of arms.svg|20px]] Vogtei of Blenio
* [[File:Freiamt blason.png|20px]] Freie Ämter
* [[File:Wappen Gams.png|20px]] Vogtei of Gams / Hohensax
* [[File:Grandson-coat of arms.svg|20px]] Lordship of Grandson
* [[File:Leventina-coat of arms.svg|20px]] Vogtei of Leventina
* [[File:Locarno-coat of arms.svg|20px]] Landvogtei of Locarno
* [[File:Lugano-coat of arms.svg|20px]] Landvogtei of Lugano
* [[File:Mendrisio-coat of arms.svg|20px]] Landvogtei of Mendrisio
* [[File:Murten-coat of arms.png|20px]] Vogtei of Murten
* [[File:Orbe-coat of arms.svg|20px]] [[File:Echallens district coa.png|20px]] Vogtei of Orbe-Échallens
* [[File:Wappen Pfaefers.png|20px]] Imperial Abbey of Pfäfers
* [[File:Wappen Vogtei Rheintalsvg.svg|20px]] Vogtei of Rheintal
* [[File:Vogtei Riviera wappen.svg|20px]] Vogtei of Rivera
* [[File:Wappen Grafschaft Sargans.svg|20px]] County of Sargans
* [[File:Wappen Grasburg.svg|20px]] Schwarzenburg / Grasburg
* [[File:Wappen Vogtei Thurgau.svg|20px]] Landgraviate of Thurgau
* [[File:Wappen Uznach.svg|20px]] County of Uznach
* [[File:Vallemaggia-coat of arms.svg|20px]] Landvogtei of Valmaggia
* [[File:Wappen Vogtei Windegg.svg|20px]] Vogtei of Windegg
{{div col end}}

===Protectorates===
There were five [[Social:Protectorate|protectorate]]s:
{{div col}}
* [[File:Engelberg-coat of arms.svg|20px]] Engelberg Abbey
* [[File:Wappen Gersau.svg|20px]] Republic of Gersau
* [[File:Rapperswil CoA.svg|20px]] City of Rapperswil
* [[File:Wappen Sax.svg|20px]] Barony of Sax-Forstegg
* [[File:Wappen Werdenberger1.svg|20px]] County of Werdenberg
{{div col end}}

===Unassociated territories===
The Helvetic Republic also annexed two territories not previously part of Switzerland:

* [[File:Coat of arms of the archduchy of Austria.svg|20px]] Fricktal, a part of the Breisgau, within the Habsburg Further Austria, retained by Aargau
* [[File:Konstanz Bischofswappen.jpg|20px]] Konstanz, a part of the Bishopric of Constance, later restored to the Grand Duchy of Baden

==See also==
* Switzerland in the Napoleonic era
* List of officials of the Helvetic Republic

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://www.histoire-empire.org/departements/suisse.htm Divisions of Switzerland under Napoleon] {{fr icon}}


{{Coord missing|Switzerland}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Helvetic Republic}}
[[Category:Former countries in Europe]]

{{Sourceattribution|Helvetic Republic|1}}