View source for Place:St. Gallen

{{Infobox Swiss town
|subject_name                = St. Gallen
|image_photo                 = St.Gallen vonDreiweieren 09.jpg
|image_caption               = A view of St. Gallen
|municipality_name           = St. Gallen
|municipality_type           = City
|imagepath_coa               = Coa stgallen.svg
|imagepath_flag              = CHE Gemeinde St. Gallen Flag.svg
|map                         = Karte Gemeinde St. Gallen 2007.png
|languages                   = German
|canton                      = St. Gallen
|iso-code-region             = CH-SG
|district                    = St.&nbsp;Gallen
|coordinates                 = {{coord|47|25|27|N|9|22|15|E|display=inline,title}}
|postal_code                 = 9000, 9008, 9010-9012, 9014-9016 St. Gallen (partly: 9037 Speicherschwendi, 9042 Speicher)
|municipality_code           = 3203
|area                        = 39.38
|elevation                   = 669
|elevation_description       = Bahnhofsplatz
|highest                     = Birt
|highest_m                   = 1074
|lowest                      = Goldachtobel
|lowest_m                    = 496
|population                  = {{Swiss populations NC|CH-SG|3203}} |populationof = {{Swiss populations YM|CH-SG}}
|popofyear                   = {{Swiss populations Y|CH-SG}}
|executive_name              = Stadtrat
|executive_number_of_members = 5
|mayor                       = Maria Pappa
|mayor_asof                  = January 2021
|mayor_party                 = SP
|mayor_title                 = Stadtpräsidentin
|list_of_mayors              = List of mayors of St. Gallen
|parliament_name             = Stadtparlament
|parliament_number_of_members= 63
|places                      = Wolfganghof, Winkeln, Bruggen, Lachen, Rosenberg, Riethüsli, St. Georgen, Innenstadt, St. Jakob, Linsenbühl-Dreilinden, Rotmonten, Langgass-Heiligkreuz, St. Fiden, Notkersegg, Neudorf, Achslen, Guggeien
|demonym                     = {{lang-de|Sankt-Galler(in)}}
|neighboring_municipalities  = Eggersriet, Gaiserwald, Gossau, [[Place:Herisau|Herisau]] (AR), Mörschwil, Speicher (AR), Stein (AR), Teufen (AR), Untereggen, Wittenbach
|twintowns                   = Liberec (Czech Republic)
|website                     = www.stadt.sg.ch
}}

'''St. Gallen'''{{efn|[[Social:German language|German]], sometimes '''Sankt Gallen''' {{IPA-de|saŋkt ˈɡalən|pron|De-StGallen.ogg}}; {{lang-fr|Saint-Gall}}; {{lang-it|San Gallo}}; {{lang-rm|Son Gagl}}.}} is a {{wipe|Switzerland}} city and the capital of the canton of St.&nbsp;Gallen. It evolved from the [[Philosophy:Hermit|hermit]]age of Saint Gall, founded in the 7th century.<ref name=HDSC>{{HDS|1321|Sankt Gallen (Gemeinde)|author=Stefan Sonderegger, Marcel Mayer|date=2012-01-16}}</ref> Today, it is a large urban agglomeration (with around 167,000 inhabitants in 2019)<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/de/home/statistiken/kataloge-datenbanken/daten.assetdetail.9847210.html |title=Lebensqualität in den Städten und Agglomerationen (Agglo 2012): Demographischer Kontext |website=bfs.admin.ch |date=24 September 2019 |access-date=2020-01-09}}</ref> and represents the center of eastern Switzerland. Its economy consists mainly of the [[Finance:Tertiary sector of the economy|service sector]]. The city is home to the [[Organization:University of St. Gallen|University of St. Gallen]], one of the best business schools in Europe.<ref>As of 3 December 2018. {{cite web |url=https://www.businessbecause.com/news/best-business-schools-for/5743/best-european-business-schools-2018-financial-times |title=Best European Business Schools In 2018, According To The Financial Times |year=2018 |access-date=15 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191015175410/https://www.businessbecause.com/news/best-business-schools-for/5743/best-european-business-schools-2018-financial-times |archive-date=15 October 2019 |url-status=live }}</ref>

The main tourist attraction is the Abbey of Saint Gall, a [[Organization:UNESCO|UNESCO]] World Heritage Site. The Abbey's renowned library contains books from the 9th century. The official language of St.&nbsp;Gallen is (the Swiss variety of Standard) [[Social:Swiss Standard German|German]], but the main spoken language is the local variant of Alemannic Swiss German. The city has good transport links to the rest of the country and to neighbouring Germany and Austria. It also functions as the gate to the Appenzellerland.

==History==
{{Moresources|section|date=May 2023}}
[[File:Stiftskirche St.Gallen.jpg|thumb|240px|The Abbey Cathedral of Saint Gall]]

===Early history===
The town of St. Gallen grew around the Abbey of St Gall, founded in the 8th century.<ref name=HDSPA>{{HDS|8394|Sankt Gallen (Fürstabtei)|author=Ernst Tremp|date=2017-03-16}}</ref> The abbey is said to have been built at the site of the hermitage of Irish missionary Gallus, who according to legend had established himself by the river Steinach in AD 612.<ref name=EB>{{cite EB1911|wstitle= St Gall (town) |volume= 24 | page = 4 |last1= Coolidge |first1= William Augustus Brevoort |author-link= William Augustus Brevoort Coolidge}}</ref> The monastery itself was founded by Saint Othmar in {{Circa|720}}.<ref name=HDSPA/> The abbey prospered in the 9th century and became a site of pilgrimage and a center of trade, with associated guest houses, stables and other facilities, a hospital, one of the first monastery schools north of the Alps. By the tenth century, a settlement had grown up around the abbey.<ref name=HDSPA/>

In 926 Magyar raiders attacked the abbey and surrounding town. Saint Wiborada, the first woman formally canonized by the [[Organization:Holy See|Vatican]],<ref>{{cite web |last= Jones| first=Terry|title=Wiborada|work=Patron Saints Index|url=http://www.catholic-forum.com/saints/saintw27.htm|access-date=2 May 2008|url-status=dead|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20070501005719/http://www.catholic-forum.com/saints/saintw27.htm|archive-date=1 May 2007|df=dmy-all}}</ref> reportedly saw a vision of the impending attack and warned the monks and citizens to flee. While the monks and the abbey treasure escaped, Wiborada chose to stay behind and was killed by the raiders.<ref>{{cite web|last=McNamara|first=Robert F. (Rev.)|title=St. Wiborada |work=stthomasirondequoit.com |publisher=St. Thomas the Apostle Church|date=20 February 2007|url=http://www.stthomasirondequoit.com/SaintsAlive/id811.htm|access-date=2 May 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20070930023817/http://www.stthomasirondequoit.com/SaintsAlive/id811.htm|archive-date=30 September 2007|df=dmy-all}}</ref>
Between 924 and 933 the Magyars again threatened the abbey, and its books were removed for safekeeping to Reichenau. Not all the books were returned.<ref name=Zeittafel>{{cite web |url= http://www.sg.ch/home/kultur/stiftsarchiv/geschichte/abtei_st_gallen/_jcr_content/RightPar/downloadlist/DownloadListParTeaser/download.ocFile/Abtei_StGallen_Zeittafel.pdf|title=Zeittafel zur Geschichte der Abtei St. Gallen|trans-title=Chronological History of St Gall Abbey|publisher=Staatskanzlei St. Gallen|language=de|access-date=25 January 2015|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150924101007/http://www.sg.ch/home/kultur/stiftsarchiv/geschichte/abtei_st_gallen/_jcr_content/RightPar/downloadlist/DownloadListParTeaser/download.ocFile/Abtei_StGallen_Zeittafel.pdf |archive-date=24 September 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref>

On 26 April 937 a fire consumed much of the abbey, spreading to the adjoining settlement. However, the library was spared.<ref name=Zeittafel/> Muslim slave-raiders attacked the abbey in 939.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Mohammad Ballan |title=FRAXINETUM: AN ISLAMIC FRONTIER STATE IN TENTH-CENTURY PROVENCE |journal=Comitatus: A Journal of Medieval and Renaissance Studies|volume=41 |pages=20, 27 |url=https://history.ubc.ca/wp-content/uploads/sites/23/2019/06/Ballan_Fraxinetum.pdf |access-date=17 October 2023 |quote= their primary economic concern: the capture of Europeans for the slave markets of the Islamic world […] Shortly after their establishment at Fraxinetum, the Andalusīs […] By 939 the Andalusīs had crossed the Alps (all the chroniclers praise their mountaineering abilities) and raided what is today northern Italy as well as southern Switzerland, where they attacked the renowned monastery of St. Gall}}</ref> About 954 a protective wall was raised around the abbey. By 975, Abbot Notker finished the wall, and the adjoining settlement began growing into the town of St. Gall.<ref name=Zeittafel/><ref name=EB/><ref name=HDSPA/>

===Independence from the Abbey===
From the later 12th century, the town of St. Gall increasingly pushed for independence from the abbey. In 1180, an [[Social:Advocatus|imperial reeve]], who was not answerable to the abbot, was installed in the town.<ref name=HDSC/>
 
In 1207, Abbot Ulrich von Sax was granted the rank of Imperial Prince (''Reichsfürst'') by Philip of Swabia, King of the Germans.<ref name=HDSPA/><ref name=EB/> As an ecclesiastical principality, the Abbey of St.&nbsp;Gallen was to constitute an important [[Earth:Territorial state|territorial state]] and a major regional power in northern Switzerland.<ref name=HDSPA/>

The city of St.&nbsp;Gallen proper progressively freed itself from the rule of the abbot. Abbot Wilhelm von Montfort in 1291 granted special privileges to the citizens.<ref name=HDSC/> By about 1353 the guilds, headed by the cloth-weavers guild, had gained control of the civic government.<ref name=EB/> In 1415 the city bought its liberty from the German king Sigismund.<ref name=EB/>

===Ally of the Swiss Confederacy===
In 1405, the Appenzell estates of the abbot successfully rebelled and in 1411 they became allies of the Old Swiss Confederation. A few months later, the town of St.&nbsp;Gallen also became an ally. They joined the "everlasting alliance" as full members of the Confederation in 1454 and in 1457 became completely free from the abbot.<ref name=EB/>

However, in 1451 the abbey became an ally of [[Place:Zürich|Zürich]], [[Place:Lucerne|Lucerne]], [[Place:Schwyz|Schwyz]], and [[Place:Glarus|Glarus]] who were all members of the Confederation.

Ulrich Varnbüler was an early mayor of St.&nbsp;Gallen and perhaps one of the most colorful. Hans, the father of Ulrich, was prominent in city affairs in St.&nbsp;Gallen in the early 15th century. Ulrich entered public affairs in the early 1460s and attained the various offices and honours that are available to a talented and ambitious man. He demonstrated fine qualities as field commander of the St.&nbsp;Gallen troops in the Burgundian Wars.

In the Battle of Grandson (1476) his troops were part of the advance units of the Confederation and took part in their famous attack. A large painting of Ulrich returning triumphantly to a hero's welcome in St.&nbsp;Gallen is still displayed in St.&nbsp;Gallen.

After the war, Varnbüler often represented St.&nbsp;Gallen at the various parliaments of the Confederation. In December 1480, Varnbüler was offered the position of mayor for the first time. From that time on, he served in several leadership positions and was considered the city's intellectual and political leader.

According to Vadian, who understood his contemporaries well, "Ulrich was a very intelligent, observant, and eloquent man who enjoyed the trust of the citizenry to a high degree."

His reputation among the Confederates was also substantial. However, in the late 1480s, he became involved in a conflict that was to have serious negative consequences for him and for the city.
[[File:Sankt Gallen Stumpf 1548.jpg|thumb|left|230px|St.&nbsp;Gallen in 1548]]
[[File:Stadtplan St Gallen 1642.png|thumb|left|230px|St.&nbsp;Gallen in 1642]]
In 1463, Ulrich Rösch had assumed the management of the abbey of Saint Gall. He was an ambitious prelate, whose goal was to return the abbey to prominence by every possible means, following the losses of the Appenzell War.

His restless ambition offended the political and material interests of his neighbours. When he arranged for the help of the Pope and the Emperor to carry out a plan to move the abbey to Rorschach on [[Earth:Lake Constance|Lake Constance]], he encountered stiff resistance from the St.&nbsp;Gallen citizenry, other clerics, and the Appenzell nobility in the Rhine Valley, who were concerned for their holdings.

At this point, Varnbüler entered the conflict against the prelate. He wanted to restrain the increase of the abbey's power and at the same time increase the power of the town that had been restricted in its development. For this purpose he established contact with farmers and Appenzell residents (led by the fanatical Hermann Schwendiner) who were seeking an opportunity to weaken the abbot.

Initially, he protested to the abbot and the representatives of the four sponsoring Confederate cantons (Zürich, Lucerne, Schwyz, and Glarus) against the construction of the new abbey in Rorschach. Then on 28 July 1489 he had armed troops from St.&nbsp;Gallen and Appenzell destroy the buildings already under construction, an attack known as the Rorschacher Klosterbruch.<ref name=EB/>

When the Abbot complained to the Confederates about the damage and demanded full compensation, Ulrich responded with a countersuit, and in cooperation with Schwendiner rejected the arbitration efforts of the non-partisan Confederates. He motivated the clerics from Wil to Rorschach to abandon their loyalty to the abbey and spoke against the abbey at a meeting of the townspeople at Waldkirch, where the popular league was formed. He was confident that the four sponsoring cantons would not intervene with force, due to the prevailing tensions between the Confederation and the Swabian League. He was strengthened in his resolve when the people of St.&nbsp;Gallen re-elected him as their highest magistrate in 1490.

===Invasion of 1490===
Ulrich Varnbüler had made a serious miscalculation. In early 1490, the four cantons decided to carry out their duty to the abbey and to invade the St.&nbsp;Gallen canton with an armed force. The people of Appenzell and the local clerics submitted to this force without significant resistance, while the city of St.&nbsp;Gallen braced itself for a fight to the finish. However, when they learned that their compatriots had given up the fight, they lost confidence, and they agreed to a settlement that greatly restricted the city's power and burdened the city with serious penalties and reparation payments.

Ulrich, overwhelmed by the responsibility for his political decisions, panicked in the face of the approaching enemy who wanted him apprehended. His life was in great danger, and he was forced to escape from the city disguised as a messenger. He made his way to Lindau and to [[Place:Innsbruck|Innsbruck]] and the court of King Maximilian. The victors confiscated those of his properties that lay outside of the city of St.&nbsp;Gallen and banned him from the Confederation. Ulrich then appealed to the imperial court (as did Schwendiner, who had fled with him) for the return of his property.

The suit had the support of Friedrich II and Maximilian and the trial threatened to drag on for years: it was continued by Ulrich's sons Hans and Ulrich after his death in 1496, and eventually the Varnbülers regained their properties. However, other political ramifications resulted from the court action, because the Confederation gained ownership of the city of St.&nbsp;Gallen and rejected the inroads of the empire. Thus, the conflict strengthened the relationship between the Confederation and the city of St.&nbsp;Gallen. On the other hand, the matter deepened the alienation between Switzerland and the German [[Religion:Holy Roman Empire|Holy Roman Empire]], which eventually led to a total separation after the Swabian War.

Despite the unpropitious end of his career, Ulrich Varnbüler is immortalized in a famous woodcut by Albrecht Dürer, which is now part of the Smithsonian Institution's woodcut collection in the National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC.

Among Varnbüler's sons, the eldest (Hans/Johann) became the mayor of Lindau. He is the patriarch of the [[Place:Baden|Baden]] and [[Place:Württemberg|Württemberg]] Varnbülers.

===Reformation===
Starting in 1526 then-[[Social:Mayor|mayor]] and [[Philosophy:Humanism|humanist]] Joachim von Watt (Vadian) introduced the Protestant Reformation into St.&nbsp;Gallen. The town converted to the new religion while the abbey remained Roman Catholic. While [[Religion:Iconoclasm|iconoclastic]] riots forced the monks to flee the city and remove images from the city's churches, the fortified abbey remained untouched.<ref name=is>[http://www.switzerland.isyours.com/e/guide/northeast/stgallenhistory.html Switzerland is yours.com-St. Gallen History] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081026073545/http://switzerland.isyours.com/e/guide/northeast/stgallenhistory.html |date=26 October 2008 }} accessed 20 November 2008</ref> The abbey would remain a Catholic stronghold in the Protestant city until 1803.

===Modern history===
In 1798 Napoleon invaded the Old Swiss Confederation, destroying the Ancien Régime. Under the [[Place:Helvetic Republic|Helvetic Republic]] both the abbey and the city lost their power and were combined with Appenzell into the Canton of Säntis. The Helvetic Republic was widely unpopular in Switzerland and was overthrown in 1803. Following the Act of Mediation the city of St.&nbsp;Gallen became the capital of the Protestant Canton of St.&nbsp;Gallen.

One of the first acts of the new canton was to suppress the abbey.<ref name=is/> The monks were driven from the abbey; the last abbot died in Muri in 1829.<ref>{{Cite CE1913|wstitle=Abbey of St. Gall}}</ref> In 1846 a rearrangement in the local [[Religion:Diocese|diocese]]s made St. Gall a separate diocese, with the abbey church as its [[Religion:Cathedral|cathedral]] and a portion of the monastic buildings designated the bishop's residence.

Gustav Adolf IV, former king of Sweden, spent the last years of his life in St.&nbsp;Gallen, and died there in 1837.

[[File:CH-NB - St. Gallen, Altstadt - Eduard Spelterini - EAD-WEHR-32028-A.tif|thumb|A view of St.&nbsp;Gallen ca. 1900 by Spelterini ]]
[[File:ETH-BIB-St. Gallen, Altstadt, Bahnhof-Inlandflüge-LBS MH01-000602.tif|thumb|Aerial view by Walter Mittelholzer (1919)]]
In the 15th century, St.&nbsp;Gallen became known for producing quality textiles. In 1714, the zenith was reached with a yearly production of 38,000 pieces of cloth. The first depression occurred in the middle of the 18th century, caused by strong foreign competition and reforms in methods of cotton production. But St.&nbsp;Gallen recovered and an even more prosperous era arrived.

At the beginning of the 19th century, the first embroidery machines were developed in St.&nbsp;Gallen. In 1910 the embroidery production constituted the largest export branch (18% of the total export value) in Switzerland and more than half of the worldwide production of embroidery originated in St.&nbsp;Gallen. One fifth of the population of the eastern part of Switzerland was involved with the textile industry. However, [[Social:World War I|World War I]] and the [[Finance:Great Depression|Great Depression]] caused another severe crisis for St. Gallen embroidery. Only in the 1950s did the textile industry recover somewhat. Nowadays, because of competition and the prevalence of computer-operated embroidery machines, only a reduced textile industry has survived in St.&nbsp;Gallen; but its embroidered textiles are still popular with Parisian haute couture designers.

==Geography and climate==
===Topography===
St.&nbsp;Gallen is situated in the northeastern part of Switzerland in a valley about {{convert|700|m|ft|sp=us}} above sea level. It is one of the highest cities in Switzerland and thus receives abundant winter snow. The city lies between [[Earth:Lake Constance|Lake Constance]] and the mountains of the Appenzell Alps (with the Säntis as the highest peak at {{convert|2502|m|ft|sp=us}}). It therefore offers excellent recreation areas nearby.

As the city center is built on an unstable turf ground (its founder Gallus was looking for a site for a hermitage, not for a city), all buildings on the valley floor must be built on [[Engineering:Deep foundation|piles]]. For example, the entire foundation of the train station and its plaza are based on hundreds of piles.

St.&nbsp;Gallen has an area, {{as of|2017|lc=on}}, of {{convert|39.38|km2|sqmi|abbr=on}}. Of this area, 27.7% is used for agricultural purposes, while 28.2% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 42.1% is settled (buildings or roads) and the remainder (1.9%) is non-productive (rivers or lakes).<ref>[https://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/de/home/statistiken/raum-umwelt/bodennutzung-bedeckung/gesamtspektrum-regionalen-stufen/gemeinden.assetdetail.11007176.html Swiss Federal Statistical Office] Retrieved 26 July 2020</ref>

===Climate===
St. Gallen has a [[Earth:Humid continental climate|humid continental climate]] ([[Earth:Köppen climate classification|Dfb]]) with short, warm summers and long, moderately cold winters. Precipitation is very high year round. St. Gallen has a very cloudy climate.

Between 1981 and 2010 St.&nbsp;Gallen had an average of 141 days of rain or snow per year and on average received {{convert|1248|mm|in|abbr=on}} of precipitation. The wettest month was July during which time St.&nbsp;Gallen received an average of {{convert|172|mm|in|abbr=on}} of rain. During this month there was precipitation for an average of 13.8 days. The month with the most days of precipitation were June and July May. The driest month of the year was February with an average of {{convert|57|mm|in|abbr=on}} of precipitation over 9.1 days.<ref name="ClimatSTG">{{cite web|url=http://www.meteoswiss.admin.ch/product/output/climate-data/climate-diagrams-normal-values-station-processing/STG/climsheet_STG_np8110_e.pdf|title=Climate normals St.&nbsp;Gallen (Reference period 1981−2010)|publisher=Swiss Federal Office of Metreology and Climatology, MeteoSwiss|location=Zurich Airport, Switzerland|date=2 July 2014|access-date=5 April 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150410223242/http://www.meteoswiss.admin.ch/product/output/climate-data/climate-diagrams-normal-values-station-processing/STG/climsheet_STG_np8110_e.pdf|archive-date=10 April 2015|url-status=live}}</ref>

{{Weather box
|location = St. Gallen (1991–2020)
|metric first = Yes
|single line = Yes
| Jan high C = 2.9
| Feb high C = 3.8
| Mar high C = 7.9
| Apr high C = 12.2
| May high C = 16.5
| Jun high C = 19.9
| Jul high C = 21.7
| Aug high C = 21.3
| Sep high C = 16.8
| Oct high C = 12.4
| Nov high C = 7.0
| Dec high C = 3.9
| year high C = 12.2
| Jan mean C = 0.2
| Feb mean C = 0.8
| Mar mean C = 4.4
| Apr mean C = 8.1
| May mean C = 12.2
| Jun mean C = 15.7
| Jul mean C = 17.5
| Aug mean C = 17.2
| Sep mean C = 13.1
| Oct mean C = 9.2
| Nov mean C = 4.3
| Dec mean C = 1.3
| year mean C = 8.7
| Jan low C = -2.3
| Feb low C = -2.0
| Mar low C = 1.0
| Apr low C = 4.2
| May low C = 8.2
| Jun low C = 11.8
| Jul low C = 13.6
| Aug low C = 13.6
| Sep low C = 9.9
| Oct low C = 6.3
| Nov low C = 1.6
| Dec low C = -1.6
| year low C = 5.4
| precipitation colour = green
| Jan precipitation mm = 67
| Feb precipitation mm = 64
| Mar precipitation mm = 87
| Apr precipitation mm = 103
| May precipitation mm = 156
| Jun precipitation mm = 170
| Jul precipitation mm = 174
| Aug precipitation mm = 185
| Sep precipitation mm = 138
| Oct precipitation mm = 105
| Nov precipitation mm = 93
| Dec precipitation mm = 90
| year precipitation mm = 1433
| Jan snow cm = 33
| Feb snow cm = 45
| Mar snow cm = 27
| Apr snow cm = 10
| May snow cm = 1
| Jun snow cm = 0
| Jul snow cm = 0
| Aug snow cm = 0
| Sep snow cm = 0
| Oct snow cm = 3
| Nov snow cm = 21
| Dec snow cm = 37
| year snow cm = 177
| unit precipitation days = 1.0 mm
| Jan precipitation days = 10.6
| Feb precipitation days = 9.4
| Mar precipitation days = 12.0
| Apr precipitation days = 11.3
| May precipitation days = 13.5
| Jun precipitation days = 13.8
| Jul precipitation days = 13.4
| Aug precipitation days = 12.8
| Sep precipitation days = 11.6
| Oct precipitation days = 10.5
| Nov precipitation days = 10.5
| Dec precipitation days = 11.6
| year precipitation days = 141.0
| unit snow days = 1.0 cm
| Jan snow days = 6.3
| Feb snow days = 6.4
| Mar snow days = 4.8
| Apr snow days = 1.7
| May snow days = 0.2
| Jun snow days = 0.0
| Jul snow days = 0.0
| Aug snow days = 0.0
| Sep snow days = 0.0
| Oct snow days = 0.4
| Nov snow days = 3.5
| Dec snow days = 6.0
| year snow days = 29.3
| Jan humidity = 80
| Feb humidity = 76
| Mar humidity = 72
| Apr humidity = 68
| May humidity = 71
| Jun humidity = 72
| Jul humidity = 71
| Aug humidity = 74
| Sep humidity = 79
| Oct humidity = 81
| Nov humidity = 82
| Dec humidity = 80
| year humidity = 76
| Jan sun = 57
| Feb sun = 79
| Mar sun = 132
| Apr sun = 168
| May sun = 186
| Jun sun = 200
| Jul sun = 227
| Aug sun = 209
| Sep sun = 154
| Oct sun = 101
| Nov sun = 59
| Dec sun = 48
| year sun = 1619
| Jan percentsun = 27
| Feb percentsun = 32
| Mar percentsun = 38
| Apr percentsun = 43
| May percentsun = 42
| Jun percentsun = 44
| Jul percentsun = 50
| Aug percentsun = 50
| Sep percentsun = 44
| Oct percentsun = 34
| Nov percentsun = 26
| Dec percentsun = 25
| year percentsun = 40
|source 1 = MeteoSwiss<ref name=MeteoSwiss>{{cite web
| url = https://www.meteoswiss.admin.ch/product/output/climate-data/climate-diagrams-normal-values-station-processing/STG/climsheet_STG_np9120_e.pdf
| title = Climate Normals St. Gallen (Reference period 1991−2020) 
| publisher = Swiss Federal Office of Meteorology and Climatology, MeteoSwiss 
| date = 13 January 2022 
| access-date = 14 January 2022}}</ref>
}}

===Radioactivity===
St.&nbsp;Gallen is notable for reporting the highest maximum radioactivity measurements of any Swiss city, as published in the 2009 yearly report by the Federal Office of Public Health. While the daily average level of gamma-ray radioactivity in the city is unremarkable at 105 nSv/h, the maximum can reach 195 nSv/h, as high as the average for Jungfraujoch, the location with the highest reported level of radioactivity in Switzerland, due to its high elevation and therefore greater exposure to cosmic rays. The same report explains that the unusually high spikes of radioactivity measured in St.&nbsp;Gallen are due to radioactive products of [[Chemistry:Radon|radon]] gas being washed to the ground during heavy storms, but does not explain where the sufficient quantities of radon gas and its products to account for the anomaly would come from.<ref>[http://www.bag.admin.ch/themen/strahlung/00043/00065/02239/index.html?lang=de Jahresberichte Umweltradioaktivität und Strahlendosen] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110411104633/http://www.bag.admin.ch/themen/strahlung/00043/00065/02239/index.html?lang=de |date=11 April 2011 }}. See ''Jahresbericht 2009 (Alle Kapitel)''. BAG, Switzerland. 17 June 2010</ref> The yearly report for 2009 on risks associated with radon published by the same governmental agency shows St.&nbsp;Gallen to lie in an area of the lowest level of radon exposure.<ref>[http://www.bag.admin.ch/themen/strahlung/00043/00065/02238/index.html?lang=de Jahresbericht Radon] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110319024255/http://www.bag.admin.ch/themen/strahlung/00043/00065/02238/index.html?lang=de |date=19 March 2011 }}. See ''Jahresbericht 2009 Radon''. BAG, Switzerland. 7 July 2010</ref> In addition to the measured gamma-radiation, the city may be subject to radioactive [[Physics:Tritium|tritium]] pollution in Teufen, a satellite town situated 4&nbsp;km south of the city in the canton of Appenzell Outer Rhodes (this pollution is also covered in the report).

==Politics==

===Coat of arms===
The blazon of the municipal coat of arms is ''Argent a Bear rampant Sable langued and in his virility Gules and armed and gorged Or.''<ref>[http://www.fotw.us/flags/ch-sg045.html Flags of the World.com] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110604205018/http://www.fotw.us/flags/ch-sg045.html |date=4 June 2011 }} accessed 11 January 2010</ref>

===Subdivisions===

===Government===
The City Council ('''Stadtrat''') constitutes the [[Social:Executive (government)|executive]] government of the City of St.&nbsp;Gallen and operates as a collegiate authority. It is composed of five councilors ({{lang-de|Stadtrat/ Stadträtin}}), each presiding over a directorate. The president of the presidential directorate acts as [[Social:Mayor|mayor]] (''Stadtpräsident''). In the mandate period 2017–2020 (''Legislatur'') the City Council is presided by ''Stadtpräsidentin'' Maria Pappa. Departmental tasks, coordination measures and implementation of laws decreed by the City Parliament are carried by the City Council. The regular election of the City Council by any inhabitant valid to vote is held every four years. Any resident of St.&nbsp;Gallen allowed to vote can be elected as a member of the City Council. The current mandate period is from 1 January 2021 to 31 December 2024. The mayor is elected as such by public election by means of a system of Majorz, while the heads of the other directorates are assigned by the collegiate. The delegates are elected by means of a system of Majorz.<ref name=SR>{{cite web |url=http://www.stadt.sg.ch/home/verwaltung-politik/demokratie-politik/stadtrat.html |title=Stadtrat |publisher=Stadt St. Gallen |type=official site |language=de |location=St. Gallen, Switzerland |date=13 October 2017 |access-date=2021-02-06}}</ref>

{{As of|2017}}, St.&nbsp;Gallen's City Council is made up of two representatives of the SP (Social Democratic Party) of which one is the mayor, one member of the FDP (FDP.The Liberals), one of the GLP (Green Liberal Party), and one independent. The last regular election was held on 27 September 2020.<ref name=SR/>

{|class="wikitable"
|+ ''Stadtrat'' of St.&nbsp;Gallen<ref name=SR/>
! City Councillor<br/>(Stadtrat/ Stadträtin) !! Party !! Head of Directorate (''Direktion'', since) of !! elected since
|-
| '''Maria Pappa'''<ref group=CC>Mayor (''Stadtpräsidentin'')</ref> || {{Color box|{{party color|Social Democratic Party of Switzerland}}|border=silver}} SP || Home Secretary and Finances (''Direktion Inneres und Finanzen'', 2021) || 2016
|-
| Dr. Sonja Lüthi<ref group=CC>Vice-Mayor (''Vize-Stadtpräsident'')</ref> || {{Color box|{{party color|Green Liberal Party of Switzerland}}|border=silver}} glp || Social Services and Security (''Direktion Soziales und Sicherheit'', 2017) || Nov 2017<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.stadt.sg.ch/home/verwaltung-politik/demokratie-politik/abstimmungen-wahlen/wahlen/wahlen-legislatur-2017-2020/stadtrat-26-11-2017.html |title=Ersatzwahl eines Mitglieds des Stadtrates, 2. Wahlgang vom 26. November 2017 |publisher=Stadt St. Gallen |type=official site |language=de |location=St. Gallen, Switzerland |date=26 November 2017 |access-date=2018-02-08 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180209062942/https://www.stadt.sg.ch/home/verwaltung-politik/demokratie-politik/abstimmungen-wahlen/wahlen/wahlen-legislatur-2017-2020/stadtrat-26-11-2017.html |archive-date=9 February 2018 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| Markus Buschor || {{Color box|grey|border=silver}} ''independent'' || Civil Engineering and Construction and Planning (''Direktion Bau und Planung'', 2021) || 2012
|-
| Peter Jans || {{Color box|{{party color|Social Democratic Party of Switzerland}}|border=silver}} SP || Industrial Facilities (''Direktion Technische Betriebe'', 2015) || 2014
|-
| Mathis Gabathuler || {{Color box|{{party color|FDP.The Liberals}}|border=silver}} FDP || Education and Spare Time (''Direktion Bildung und Freizeit'', 2021) || 2020
|}
{{reflist|group=CC}}

Manfred Linke is City Chancellor (''Stadtschreiber'') since for the City Chancellary.

===Parliament===
{{Pie chart
| thumb =right
| caption =The ''Stadtparlament'' of St.&nbsp;Gallen for the mandate period of 2021-2024
| other  =
| label1 =JUSO
| value1 ={{#expr: 1/(63/100) round 1}}
| color1 =#FD66D2
| label2 =JungeGr
| value2 ={{#expr: 1/(63/100) round 1}}
| color2 =#9AD266
| label3 =SP
| value3 ={{#expr: 17/(63/100) round 1}}
| color3 ={{party color|Social Democratic Party of Switzerland}}
| label4 =GPS
| value4 ={{#expr: 7/(63/100) round 1}}
| color4 ={{party color|Green Party of Switzerland}}
| label5 =PFG
| value5 ={{#expr: 1/(63/100) round 1}}
| color5 =#CD1866
| label6 =glp
| value6 ={{#expr: 8/(63/100) round 1}}
| color6 ={{party color|Green Liberal Party of Switzerland}}
| label7 =EVP
| value7 ={{#expr: 1/(63/100) round 1}}
| color7 ={{party color|Evangelical People's Party of Switzerland}}
| label8 =CVP
| value8 ={{#expr: 8/(63/100) round 1}}
| color8 ={{party color|Christian Democratic People's Party of Switzerland}}
| label9 =FDP
| value9 ={{#expr: 11/(63/100) round 1}}
| color9 ={{party color|FDP.The Liberals}}
| label10 =SVP
| value10 ={{#expr: 8/(63/100) round 1}}
| color10 ={{party color|Swiss People's Party}}
}}
The City Parliament ('''Stadtparlament''') holds legislative power. It is made up of 63 members, with elections held every four years. The City Parliament decrees regulations and by-laws that are executed by the City Council and the administration. The delegates are selected by means of a system of [[Social:Proportional representation|proportional representation]] (Proporz).

The sessions of the City Parliament are public. Unlike members of the City Council, members of the City Parliament are not politicians by profession, and they are paid a fee based on their attendance. Any resident of St.&nbsp;Gallen allowed to vote can be elected as a member of the City Parliament. The parliament holds its meetings in the ''Waaghaus'' once a week on Tuesdays.<ref name=CP>{{cite web | url=https://www.stadt.sg.ch/home/verwaltung-politik/demokratie-politik/stadtparlament/parteien.html |title=Parteien |publisher=Stadt St. Gallen |type=official site |location=St. Gallen, Switzerland |language=de |access-date=2020-02-05}}</ref>

The last regular election of the City Parliament was held on 27 September 2020 for the mandate period ({{lang-de|Legislatur}}) from January 2021 to December 2024. Currently the City Parliament consists of 17 members of the Social Democratic Party (SP/PS) and one of its junior section, the ''JUSO'', 11 The Liberals (FDP/PLR), 8 Green Liberal Party (GLP/PVL), 8 Christian Democratic People's Party (CVP/PDC), 8 Swiss People's Party (SVP/UDC), 7 Green Party (GPS/PES) and 1 of its junior section, the ''JungeGr'', one representative of the Evangelical People's Party (EVP), and one member of the ''Politische Frauengruppe (PFG)'' (Political Women Group).<ref name=CP/>

===National elections===
====National Council====

In the 2019 federal election for the Swiss National Council the most popular party was the PS which received 24.4% (-3.8) of the vote. The next five most popular parties were the Green Party (17.5%, +8.3), the SVP (16.5%, -4.6), FDP (14.4%, +0.1), the CVP (12.6%, +0.4), and the GLP (10.9%, +4.4).<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfsstatic/dam/assets/9386461/appendix |title=NR - Ergebnisse Parteien (Gemeinden) (INT1) |format=CSV |editor=Swiss Federal Statistical Office, FSO |type=official statistics |publisher=Swiss Federal Statistical Office, FSO |via=opendata.swiss |location=Neuchâtel, Switzerland |date=28 November 2019 |language=de, fr, it |access-date=2020-05-18}}</ref> In the federal election a total of 18,821 votes were cast, and the [[Social:Voter turnout|voter turnout]] was 42.9%.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfsstatic/dam/assets/9386463/appendix |title=NR - Wahlbeteiligung (Gemeinden) (INT1) |format=CSV |editor=Swiss Federal Statistical Office, FSO |type=official statistics |via=opendata.swiss  |publisher=Swiss Federal Statistical Office, FSO |location=Neuchâtel, Switzerland |date=28 November 2019 |language=de, fr, it |access-date=2020-05-18}}</ref>

In the 2015 election for the Swiss National Council the most popular party was the SPS which received 28.1% of the vote. The next five most popular parties were the SVP (21.1%), the FDP (14.3%), the CVP (12.2%), the GPS (9.2%), and the GLP (6.6%). In the federal election, a total of 20,768 voters were cast, and the voter turnout was 46.0%.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/de/home/statistiken/politik/wahlen/nationalratswahlen/parteistaerken.assetdetail.317521.html |title=Nationalratswahlen 2015: Stärke der Parteien und Wahlbeteiligung nach Gemeinden |format=XLS |type=official statistics |publisher=Swiss Federal Statistical Office |location=Neuchâtel, Switzerland |date=9 March 2016 |language=de, fr |access-date=2017-10-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612142739/https://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/de/home/statistiken/politik/wahlen/nationalratswahlen/parteistaerken.assetdetail.317521.html |archive-date=12 June 2018 |url-status=live }}</ref>

== International relations ==

St. Gallen is twinned with:
{| class="wikitable"
|- valign="top"
|
* {{flagicon|CZE}} Liberec, Czech Republic
|}

==Demographics==
===Population===
{| class="infobox" style="float:right;"
| colspan="2" |'''Largest groups of foreign residents 2019'''<ref>{{Cite web|title=Ständige und nichtständige Wohnbevölkerung nach institutionellen Gliederungen, Geburtsort und Staatsangehörigkeit|url=https://www.pxweb.bfs.admin.ch/pxweb/de/px-x-0102010000_104/-/px-x-0102010000_104.px|access-date=6 October 2020|website=Bundesamt für Statik}}</ref>
|-\
!Nationality || Numbers 
|-
||{{flag|Germany}}|| 4,979
|-
||{{flag|Italy}} || 2,713
|-
||{{flag|Kosovo}}|| 1,935
|-
||{{flag|Serbia}}|| 1,339
|-
||{{flag|Portugal}}|| 1,163
|-
||{{flag|Austria}}|| 1,144
|-
||{{flag|Bosnia-Herzegovina}}|| 995
|-
||{{flag|North Macedonia}}|| 894
|-
||{{flag|Turkey}}|| 725
|-
||{{flag|Spain}}|| 707
|}
St.&nbsp;Gallen has a population (as of {{Swiss populations date|CH-SG}}) of {{Swiss populations|CH-SG|3203}}.{{Swiss populations ref|CH-SG}} {{as of|2019|}}, about 31.4% of the population was made up of foreign nationals.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Ständige und nichtständige Wohnbevölkerung nach institutionellen Gliederungen, Staatsangehörigkeit (Kategorie), Geschlecht und Alter|url=https://www.pxweb.bfs.admin.ch/pxweb/de/px-x-0102010000_101/-/px-x-0102010000_101.px|access-date=6 October 2020|website=Bundesamt für Statik}}</ref> The population has grown at 4.4% per year. Most of the population ({{as of|2000|lc=on}}) speaks German (83.0%), with Italian being second most common (3.7%) and Serbo-Croatian being third (3.7%).<ref name="SFSO">[http://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/portal/en/index/regionen/02/key.html Swiss Federal Statistical Office] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160105172441/http://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/portal/en/index/regionen/02/key.html |date=5 January 2016 }} accessed 11 January 2010</ref> Of the Swiss national languages ({{as of|2000|lc=on}}), 60,297 speak [[Social:German language|German]], 575 people speak [[Social:French language|French]], 2,722 people speak [[Social:Italian language|Italian]], and 147 people speak Romansh.<ref name=SG_personen/>

The age distribution, {{as of|2000|lc=on}}, in St.&nbsp;Gallen is: 6,742 (9.3%) between 0 and 9 years old; 7,595 (10.5%) between 10 and 19; 12,574 (17.3%) between 20 and 29; 11,735 (16.2%) between 30 and 39; 9,535 (13.1%) between 40 and 49; 8,432 (11.6%) between 50 and 59; 6,461 (8.9%) between 60 and 69; 5,633 (7.8%) between 70 and 79; 3,255 (4.5%) between 80 and 89; 655 (0.9%) between 90 and 99; 9 people (0.0%) aged 100 or more.<ref name=SG_personen>[http://www.statistik.sg.ch/home/portraet/Regionen-Gemeinden/reggem-quer.html Canton St. Gallen Statistics-Hauptergebnisse der Volkszählung 2000: Regionen- und Gemeindevergleich-Personen] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100909205553/http://www.statistik.sg.ch/home/portraet/Regionen-Gemeinden/reggem-quer.html |date=9 September 2010 }} {{in lang|de}} accessed 30 December 2009</ref>

{{as of|2000|alt=In 2000}} there were 16,166 people (22.3%) who were living alone in private dwellings; 17,137 (or 23.6%) who were part of a couple (married or otherwise committed) without children, and 27,937 (or 38.5%) who were part of a couple with children. There were 4,533 (or 6.2%) people who lived in single parent home, while there are 419 persons who were adult children living with one or both parents, 475 persons who lived in a household made up of relatives, 2,296 who lived household made up of unrelated persons, and 3,663 who are either institutionalized or live in another type of collective housing.<ref name=SG_personen/>

===Historical population===
The historical population is given in the following table:<ref name=HDSC/>
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! year
! population
! Swiss Nationals
! % [[Social:German language|German Speaking]]
! % [[Social:Italian language|Italian Speaking]]
! % Romansh Speaking
! % [[Religion:Protestantism|Protestant]]
! % Roman Catholic
|-
| 1411 || align="center" | ca. 2,300–2,900|| || || || || ||
|-
| about 1500 || align="center" | ca. 3,000–4,000|| || || || || ||
|-
| 1680 || align="center" | ca. 6,000|| || || || || ||
|-
| 1766 || align="center" | ca. 8,350|| || || || || ||
|-
| 1809 || align="center" | 8,118|| || || || || ||
|-
| 1837 || align="center" | 9,430|| || || || || ||
|-
| 1850 || align="center" | 17,858 || align="center" | 16,529|| align="center" | || align="center" | || align="center" | || align="center" | 50.4% || align="center" | 49.3%
|-
| 1870b || align="center" | 26,398 || align="center" | 23,805|| align="center" | || align="center" | || align="center" | || align="center" | 49.8% || align="center" | 49.9%
|-
| 1888 || align="center" | 43,296 || align="center" | 34,168|| align="center" | 97.5% || align="center" | 1.4% || align="center" | 0.5% || align="center" | 49.0% || align="center" | 49.7%
|-
| 1900 || align="center" | 53,796 || align="center" | 40,342|| align="center" | 94.9% || align="center" | 3.6% || align="center" | 0.7% || align="center" | 46.8% || align="center" | 52.1%
|-
| 1910 || align="center" | 75,482 || align="center" | 50,582|| align="center" | 88.7% || align="center" | 9.5% || align="center" | 0.8% || align="center" | 43.5% || align="center" | 54.2%
|-
| 1930 || align="center" | 63,947 || align="center" | 52,679|| align="center" | 95.9% || align="center" | 2.5% || align="center" | 0.8% || align="center" | 48.5% || align="center" | 49.0%
|-
| 1950 || align="center" | 68,011 || align="center" | 61,009|| align="center" | 95.4% || align="center" | 2.6% || align="center" | 1.0% || align="center" | 49.3% || align="center" | 47.8%
|-
| 1970 || align="center" | 80,852 || align="center" | 66,270|| align="center" | 86.3% || align="center" | 8.6% || align="center" | 0.8% || align="center" | 42.1% || align="center" | 55.1%
|-
| 1990 || align="center" | 75,237 || align="center" | 58,300|| align="center" | 82.4% || align="center" | 5.6% || align="center" | 1.1% || align="center" | 35.1% || align="center" | 50.8%
|-
| 2000 || align="center" | 72,626 || align="center" | 53,132|| align="center" | 83.0% || align="center" | 3.7% || align="center" | 0.8% || align="center" | 28.9% || align="center" | 44.0%
|-
|}

===Economy===
{{as of|2007|In 2007}}, St.&nbsp;Gallen had an unemployment rate of 2.69%. {{as of|2005}}, there were 336 people employed in the [[Finance:Primary sector of the economy|primary economic sector]] and about 95 businesses involved in this sector. 11,227 people are employed in the [[Finance:Secondary sector of the economy|secondary sector]] and there are 707 businesses in this sector. 48,729 people are employed in the [[Finance:Tertiary sector of the economy|tertiary sector]], with 4,035 businesses in this sector.<ref name=SFSO/> {{as of|2009 | October}} the average unemployment rate was 4.5%.<ref>[http://www.statistik.sg.ch/home/themen/b03/arblos.html St Gallen Canton statistics-Unemployment] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090922023525/http://www.statistik.sg.ch/home/themen/b03/arblos.html |date=22 September 2009 }} {{in lang|de}} accessed 30 December 2009</ref> There were 4857 businesses in the municipality of which 689 were involved in the secondary sector of the economy while 4102 were involved in the third.<ref>[http://www.statistik.sg.ch/home/themen/b03/BZ/TabellenBZ08.html St Gallen Canton statistics-Businesses] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110707003729/http://www.statistik.sg.ch/home/themen/b03/BZ/TabellenBZ08.html |date=7 July 2011 }} {{in lang|de}} accessed 31 December 2009</ref> {{as of|2000}} there were 28,399 residents who worked in the municipality, while 8,927 residents worked outside St.&nbsp;Gallen and 31,543 people commuted into the municipality for work.<ref>[http://www.statistik.sg.ch/home/themen/b03/erwerb.html St Gallen Canton statistics-Commuters] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090722130804/http://www.statistik.sg.ch/home/themen/b03/erwerb.html |date=22 July 2009 }} {{in lang|de}} accessed 31 December 2009</ref>

Helvetia Insurance is a major company headquartered in St.&nbsp;Gallen.

===Religion===
According to the {{as of|2000|alt=2000 census}}, 31,978 or 44.0% are Roman Catholic, while 19,578 or 27.0% belonged to the Swiss Reformed Church. Of the rest of the population, there are 112 individuals (or about 0.15% of the population) who belong to the Christian Catholic faith, there are 3,253 individuals (or about 4.48% of the population) who belong to the Orthodox Church, and there are 1,502 individuals (or about 2.07% of the population) who belong to another Christian church. There are 133 individuals (or about 0.18% of the population) who are [[Religion:Judaism|Jewish]], and 4,856 (or about 6.69% of the population) who are [[Religion:Muslim|Muslim]]. There are 837 individuals (or about 1.15% of the population) who belong to another church (not listed on the census), 7,221 (or about 9.94% of the population) belong to no church, are [[Philosophy:Agnosticism|agnostic]] or [[Philosophy:Atheism|atheist]], and 3,156 individuals (or about 4.35% of the population) did not answer the question.<ref name=SG_personen/>

==Education==
[[File:St Gallen University.jpg|thumb|HSG campus with the Abbey in the background]]
St.&nbsp;Gallen is known for its business school, now named the [[Organization:University of St. Gallen|University of St. Gallen]] (HSG). It was ranked as the top business school in [[Earth:Europe|Europe]] by [[Finance:Wirtschaftswoche|Wirtschaftswoche]], a weekly {{wipe|Germany}} business news magazine and is highly ranked by several other sources.<ref>[http://www.mba.unisg.ch/org/es/mba.nsf/wwwContentEng/Ranking?opendocument University of St Gallen, International MBA rankings] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081226122359/http://www.mba.unisg.ch/org/es/mba.nsf/wwwContentEng/Ranking?opendocument |date=26 December 2008 }} accessed 29 April 2009</ref> Recently, HSG has been building a reputation for Executive Education, with its International MBA recognised as one of Europe's leading programmes,<ref>{{cite news|first=Christoph|last=Mohr|title=Wo steht der deutsche MBA-Markt?|url=http://www.wiwo.de/handelsblatt/wo-steht-der-deutsche-mba-markt-272337/|work=Wirtschafts Woche|date=9 April 2008|access-date=29 April 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110724050133/http://www.wiwo.de/handelsblatt/wo-steht-der-deutsche-mba-markt-272337/|archive-date=24 July 2011|url-status=live}} {{in lang|de}} mentions that there are only 7 "true" German MBAs with international appeal, of which HSG is one</ref> and runs a PhD programme.<ref>[http://www.unisg.ch/hsgweb.nsf/wwwPubInhalteEng/Doctoral+studies?opendocument University of St Gallen, Doctoral programs] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090313023345/http://www.unisg.ch/hsgweb.nsf/wwwPubInhalteEng/Doctoral+studies?opendocument |date=13 March 2009 }} accessed 29 April 2009</ref> HSG is a focused university that offers degrees in business and management, economics, political science and international relations as well as business law.<ref>[http://www.studies.unisg.ch/org/lehre/soe.nsf/wwwPubInhalteEng/The+University+of+St.Gallen+at+a+glance?opendocument University of St Gallen portal] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090429205101/http://www.studies.unisg.ch/org/lehre/soe.nsf/wwwPubInhalteEng/The+University+of+St.Gallen+at+a+glance?opendocument |date=29 April 2009 }} accessed 29 April 2009</ref> The Master in Management course was Ranked number 1 in 2014 by The Financial Times ahead of HEC Paris.<ref>[http://rankings.ft.com/businessschoolrankings/masters-in-management-2014] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150417164900/http://rankings.ft.com/businessschoolrankings/masters-in-management-2014 |date=17 April 2015 }} Financial Times Masters in Management Rankings 2014</ref> It is comparatively small, with about 6,500 students enrolled at present, has both EQUIS and AACSB accreditations, and is a member of CEMS (Community of European Management Schools).<ref>[http://www.mba.unisg.ch/org/es/mba.nsf/wwwContentEng/Programme?opendocument University of St Gallen-MBA Programme] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090618134102/http://www.mba.unisg.ch/org/es/mba.nsf/wwwContentEng/Programme?opendocument |date=18 June 2009 }} accessed 29 April 2009</ref> The university maintains student and faculty exchange programs around the world. The University of St.&nbsp;Gallen is also famous for its high density of clubs. Particularly well known is the International Students’ Committee, which has organised the St. Gallen Symposium for over forty years. The St.&nbsp;Gallen Symposium is the leading student-run economic conference of its kind worldwide and aims to foster the dialogue between generations.

St.&nbsp;Gallen's state school system contains 64 kindergartens, 21 primary schools and 7 secondary schools and about 6,800 students.<ref>[http://www.stadt.sg.ch/home/schule_und_sport/schulamt.html St Gallen Public School Office] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090420224649/http://www.stadt.sg.ch/home/schule_und_sport/schulamt.html |date=20 April 2009 }} {{in lang|de}} accessed 29 April 2009</ref> In addition to the state system, St.&nbsp;Gallen is home to the Institut auf dem Rosenberg — an élite boarding school attracting students from all over the world. The Institut provides an education in English, German and Italian and prepares the students to enter: American, British, Swiss, Italian, German and other European university programmes.<ref>[http://www.swiss-schools.ch/index.php?SL_Key=10&subpage=C Swiss Federation of Private Schools website] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071213001921/http://www.swiss-schools.ch/index.php?SL_Key=10&subpage=C |date=13 December 2007 }} accessed 29 April 2009</ref>

The canton's ''Gewerbliches Berufs- und Weiterbildungszentrum'' is the largest occupational school in {{wipe|Switzerland}} with over 10,000 students and various specialty institutes. One for example, the ''GBS Schule für Gestaltung'' teaches students design fundamentals in the practice of graphic design. The school is located in Riethüsli, a small section of the city of St.&nbsp;Gallen.

In St.&nbsp;Gallen about 68.8% of the population (between age 25–64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either university or a ''Fachhochschule'').<ref name=SFSO/> Out of the total population in St.&nbsp;Gallen, {{as of|2000|lc=on}}, the highest education level completed by 15,035 people (20.7% of the population) was Primary, while 27,465 (37.8%) have completed their secondary education, 10,249 (14.1%) have attended a Tertiary school, and 2,910 (4.0%) are not in school. The remainder did not answer this question.<ref name=SG_personen/>

==Culture and sightseeing==
[[File:Sankt Gallen houses.jpg|thumb|Old houses of St. Gallen]]
[[File:St.Gallen Abbey.JPG|thumb|The interior of the Cathedral is one of the most important baroque monuments in Switzerland]]
[[File:Stiftsbibliothek St. Gallen 1.jpg|thumb|Library of St. Gallen]]
[[File:Kulisse St.Gallen.jpg|thumb|An opera rehearsal in front of St. Gallen Cathedral, 2007]]
[[File:Stadtlounge auf dem Raiffeisenplatz in St. Gallen.jpg|thumb|Citylounge ("Stadtlounge") at Raiffeisen square]]
After the years of Gallus' death, the place became one of the centers of Germanic culture. This is because of the creative works of the monks who followed the footsteps of the city's founder Gallus.<ref>{{cite book|title=Berlitz: Switzerland Pocket Guide|date=April 1999|publisher=Berlitz Publishing Company|location=Princeton, NJ|page=40|chapter=Where to Go|isbn=2-8315-7159-6}}</ref> This resulted to numerous heritage sites of national significance of the country.

In 1992, St.&nbsp;Gallen was awarded the Wakker Prize for the city's effort to create a unified structure and appearance in current and future construction.<ref>[http://www.heimatschutz.ch/index.php?id=1041 Wakker Prize] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150411224204/http://www.heimatschutz.ch/index.php?id=1041 |date=11 April 2015 }} {{in lang|de}} accessed 11 May 2009</ref>

===Heritage sites of national significance===
There are 28 sites in St.&nbsp;Gallen that are listed as Swiss heritage sites of national significance, including four religious buildings; the Abbey of St.&nbsp;Gallen, the former Dominican Abbey of St. Katharina, the Reformed Church of St. Laurenzenkirche and the Roman Catholic [[Religion:Parish church|parish church]] of St. Maria Neudorf.

There are six museums or archives in the inventory. This includes the ''Textile museum'', the ''Historical and ethnographical museum'', the Cantonal library and city archives, the ''Art and Natural History museum'', the Museum in Lagerhaus and the St. Gallen State Archive. The entire city of St.&nbsp;Gallen is the only archeological heritage site. Two bridges are listed, the Eisenbahnbrücke BT (railroad bridge) and the ''Kräzern-Strassenbrücke'' with a [[Finance:Custom house|custom house]].

The twelve other sites include the main train station, main post office, [[Organization:University of St. Gallen|University of St.&nbsp;Gallen]], Cantonal School, City Theatre and two towers; the ''Lokremise'' with ''Wasserturm'' and the ''Tröckneturm''.<ref>[http://www.babs.admin.ch/de/aufgabenbabs/kgs/inventar/a-objekte.html Swiss inventory of cultural property of national and regional significance] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160902033944/http://www.babs.admin.ch/de/aufgabenbabs/kgs/inventar/a-objekte.html |date=2 September 2016 }}, {{in lang|de}} accessed 17 August 2016</ref>

===Theatre===
* In the modern and somewhat extravagant building of the Theater St. Gallen operas, operettas, ballet, musicals and plays are performed. It has an average utilization of nearly 80 percent.
* Since 2006 a series of open-air operas have been performed in front of the Cathedral starting around the last weekend of June.<ref name=Festspiele>[http://www.stgaller-festspiele.ch/index_fest.asp St.&nbsp;Gallen festivals] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100819224540/http://www.stgaller-festspiele.ch/index_fest.asp |date=19 August 2010 }} {{in lang|de}} accessed 26 June 2010</ref>
* In the nearby concert hall, Tonhalle St. Gallen, with its grand art nouveau style, all sorts of concerts (classic, symphony, jazz etc.) are given.

===Museums===<!-- This section is linked from [[Social:List of museums|List of museums]] -->
* ''Historical and ethnographical museum'' (collections of regional early history, city history, folk art, cultural history as well ethnographical collections from all over the world)
* ''Art museum'' (painting and sculptures from the 19th and 20th century)
* ''St. Gallen art gallery'' (national and international modern art)
* ''Natural history museum'' (natural history collection)
* ''Museum in the storehouse'' (Swiss native art and art brut)
* ''Textile museum'' (historical laces, embroidery and cloth)
* ''Lapidarium of the [[Religion:Abbey|abbey]]'' (building blocks from 8th to 17th century)
* ''Point Jaune museum'' (Mail Art, Postpostism, 'Pataphysics)
* ''Beer bottle museum'' (located at the Schützengarten brewery—the oldest brewery in Switzerland)<ref>[http://www.schuetzengarten.ch/portal/Produkte/Bierflaschenmuseum/tabid/80/Default.aspx Schützengarten brewery] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090111015029/http://www.schuetzengarten.ch/portal/Produkte/Bierflaschenmuseum/tabid/80/Default.aspx |date=11 January 2009 }} accessed 14 November 2008</ref>

===Music===
* The ''[https://web.archive.org/web/20080530163230/http://www.theaterstgallen.ch/wDeutsch/sinfonie/spielplan_sinfonie.asp symphony orchestra St. Gallen]'' performs as the Orchestra of the City Theatre, presents numerous symphony concerts in the City Concert Hall.
* During the summer open-air opera and various concerts are performed at numerous locations in town.<ref name=Festspiele/>
* The well known [http://www.openairsg.ch/ St. Gallen Open Air Festival] takes place in the nearby Sitter Valley the first weekend in July.
* St.&nbsp;Gallen is home to the [http://www.nordklang.ch/ Nordklang Festival], which takes place in February.

===Buildings===
* ''Drei Weieren'' (three artificial water basins from the zenith of the textile industry with art nouveau-bath houses; reachable by the Mühleggbahn (train) from 1893). The Drei Weieren is a water park by day and a gathering place for young people by night. This results in many complaints by people who live in the vicinity about noise, drug abuse and vandalism. Locals jokingly call the three basins "Lakes with the most [[Biology:Tetrahydrocannabinol|THC]] in the country". The young people who spend their time there claim that the Drei Weieren is a place where they can spend their time in a consumer-free environment.
* ''Convent of St. Gall'' with the famous ''library'' and ''abbey'' ([[Organization:UNESCO|UNESCO]] World Heritage Site)
* ''Greek Orthodox Church of St.Constantine and Helena'', Athonite icons and a stained glass window of the Last Judgement.
* ''Wegelin & Co.'', the oldest [[Social:Bank|bank]] in Switzerland, founded in 1741
* ''Tröckneturm Schönenwegen''; the tower was built 1828 and was used to hang up freshly colored cloth panels for drying.
* ''Protestant church Linsebühl'', an impressive new [[Philosophy:Renaissance|renaissance]] building dating from 1897
* ''[[Organization:University of St. Gallen|University of St. Gallen]]'' (HSG; University for Business Administration, Economics and Law with an excellent reputation in the German-speaking world), founded 1898.
* ''Embroidery exchange'', splendid building with the god of trade [[Religion:Hermes|Hermes]] on its roof.
* ''Volksbad'', the oldest public bathhouse still in operation in Switzerland dating from 1908.
* ''Catholic church of St. Martin'' in the Bruggen district; the concrete church built in 1936 was at that time glaringly modern.
* 1992 the city of St.&nbsp;Gallen received the Wakker Prize.
* Stadtlounge (City Lounge) – a pedestrian area in the city center designed to represent a lounge room, but in the street.<ref>[http://www.raiffeisen.ch/raiffeisen/internet/home.nsf/webpagesbytitleD/77608517916387a4c1256bf8002f28b4?opendocument&Bank=] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060617183401/http://www.raiffeisen.ch/raiffeisen/internet/home.nsf/webpagesbytitleD/77608517916387a4c1256bf8002f28b4?opendocument&Bank= |date=17 June 2006 }} German only, pictures are universal though. The Stadtlounge was designed by Pipilotti Rist</ref>
* Synagogue St.&nbsp;Gallen – Built by the architects Chiodera and Tschudy, it is the only synagogue in the Lake Constance region that has been preserved in its original state.

===Parks===
* ''Wildlife park Peter and Paul''
* City park at the theater
* Cantonal school park

===Regular events===
* The '''St. Gallen Symposium''' attracts about 600 personalities from economics, science, politics and society to the University of St.&nbsp;Gallen every year. It hosts the world's largest student essay competition of its kind with about 1,000 participants, of whom the 100 best contributions are selected to participate in the St.&nbsp;Gallen Symposium. The Symposium celebrated its 40th anniversary in May 2010.
* OLMA, traditional Swiss Fair for Agriculture and Nutrition in autumn as well as numerous other exhibitions at the OLMA Fairs St.&nbsp;Gallen.
* OpenAir St. Gallen is an annual open air festival in the Sitter Valley.
* Children's Feast, a triennial observance, originally a product of the textile industry.
* Nordklang Festival takes place in multiple sites around St.&nbsp;Gallen.

==Sport==
[[File:AFG ARENA St. Gallen - Erstes Spiel CH - LIE 03.jpg|thumb|Kybunpark, home stadium of FC St. Gallen]]
* The football club FC St. Gallen play in the Swiss Super League. They are the oldest football club in Switzerland and oldest in continental Europe, founded in 1879. Their stadium is the kybunpark.
* The football club SC Brühl play in the 1. Liga Promotion. Their stadium is the Paul-Grüninger-Stadion.
* EHC St. Gallen plays in the Swiss Second League, the fourth tier of Swiss ice hockey.
* The Rugby Club St. Gallen Bishops (Men) was founded in 1990 and Cindies (Women) in 2014.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bishops.ch/teams/195746 |website=Rugby Club St. Gallen |access-date=12 September 2021|title=Rugby Club St. Gallen Bishops }}</ref> They play at the Grundenmoos sports fields.

==Transportation==
The large urban area Zürich is 80&nbsp;km south-west of St.&nbsp;Gallen, a 60-minute drive or train ride (ICN train).

=== Road transportation ===
The A1 motorway links St.&nbsp;Gallen with St. Margrethen, [[Place:Zürich|Zürich]], [[Place:Bern|Bern]] and [[Place:Geneva|Geneva]]. In 1987 the city motorway was opened, which conveys the traffic through two tunnels (Rosenberg and Stefanshorn) almost directly below the city center.

=== Air transportation ===
The Airport St. Gallen-Altenrhein, near Lake of Constance, provides scheduled airline flights to [[Place:Vienna|Vienna]] and other destinations.

=== Public transport ===
==== By rail and tram ====
[[File:Trogenerbahn.jpg|thumb|Trogen railway running tramway-like on St.&nbsp;Gallen roads]]
St. Gallen railway station is part of the national Swiss Federal Railways network and has [[Engineering:InterCity|InterCity]] connections to Zürich and the Zurich Airport every half-hour. St.&nbsp;Gallen is the hub for many private railways such as the Südostbahn (SOB), connecting St.&nbsp;Gallen with [[Place:Lucerne|Lucerne]], the Appenzeller Bahnen, which operates the Appenzell–St. Gallen–Trogen railway, connecting to Appenzell and [[Place:Trogen, Switzerland|Trogen]], and also serves as a [[Engineering:Tram|tram]] in downtown.

==== By bus ====
The city has a dense local bus system, including the city's trolleybus network, which is operated by the VBSG and is well established on the valley floor, but less so on the hills. As St.&nbsp;Gallen is located near the Appenzell mountain area, it offers also many Postauto (post bus) connections. The agglomeration also has its own St. Gallen S-Bahn system (overground local trains).

==== Expansion - St.&nbsp;Gallen 2013 ====
The "St.&nbsp;Gallen 2013" project aimed to improve local rail services, with infrastructure upgrades and new rolling stock. By December 2013, S-Bahn services would run on six lines, at intervals of 15 to 30 minutes.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.railwaygazette.com/nc/news/single-view/view/st-gallen-2013-project-underway.html|access-date=5 January 2012|title=St Gallen 2013 project underway|work=Railway Gazette International}}</ref>

==Notable people==
[[File:Adrian Zingg.jpg|140px|thumb|Portrait of Adrian Zingg, 1796]]
[[File:Gall Morel.png|140px|thumb|Gall Morel, 1872]]
[[File:Julius Billeter (1869-1957).jpg|140px|thumb|Julius Billeter, 1899]]

=== Early times ===
* Joachim Vadian (1484–1551), humanist, scholar, mayor and reformer in St. Gallen
* [[Biography:Johannes Zollikofer|Johannes Zollikofer]] (1633–1692), reformed vicar
* Georg Gsell (1673–1740), Baroque painter, art consultant and art dealer
* Michael Schlatter (1716–1790), American German Reformed clergyman
* Rev. John Joachim Zubly (1724–1781), American pastor, planter and statesman during the American Revolution
* Adrian Zingg (1734–1816), painter, draftsman, etcher and engraver
* Prof Christopher Girtanner FRSE (1760–1800), author, physician and chemist
* Johann Baptist Isenring (1796–1860), landscape painter, printer and Daguerrotypist

=== 19th century ===
* Gall Morel (1803–1872), poet, scholar, aesthete and educationist
* Arnold Otto Aepli (1816–1897), jurist and statesman, President of the Swiss Council of States 1868–1869
* Johann Jakob Weilenmann (1819–1896), mountaineer and Alpine writer
* Karl Hoffmann (1820–1895), politician, President of the Swiss Council of States, 1877–1878 and 1889–1890
* Ernst Götzinger (1837–1896), Germanist and historian
* Alphonse Bory (1838–1891), politician, President of the Swiss Council of States 1886–1887
* Johannes Dierauer (1842–1920), historian and librarian of the Stadtbibliothek Vadiana
* Samuel Oettli (1846–1911), Protestant theologian
* Adolf Schlatter (1852–1938), Protestant theologian and professor of the New Testament
* Arthur Hoffmann (1857–1927), politician and member of the Swiss Federal Council 1911–1917
* Robert Emden (1862–1940), astrophysicist and meteorologist
* Julius Billeter (1869–1957), genealogist and Mormon missionary
* [[Biography:Ernst Rüdin|Ernst Rüdin]] (1874–1952), German psychiatrist, geneticist, eugenicist and Nazi
* Martha Cunz (1876–1961), artist and printmaker, mastered the modernist woodcut
* Joseph Joos (1878–1965), German intellectual, politician and MP in Weimar, lived in St. Gallen 1960-1965 
* Franz Riklin (1878–1938), psychiatrist
* Otto Schlaginhaufen (1879–1973), aanthropologist, ethnologist and eugenicist
* Heinrich Greinacher (1880–1974), physicist
* Fritz Platten (1883–1942), Communist politician
* Regina Ullmann (1884–1961), poet and storyteller
* Paul Scherrer (1890–1969), physicist, proponent of Switzerland developing its own nuclear weapons
* Karl Kobelt (1891–1968), politician, President of the Confederation in 1946 and 1952
* Paul Grüninger (1891–1972), police captain, Righteous Among the Nations
* Charles Stoffel (1893–1970), bobsledder and equestrian
* Walter Mittelholzer (1894–1937), aviation pioneer, pilot, photographer and travel writer
* Ottó Misángyi (1895–1977), Hungarian athletics coach, sports official and university professor
* Thomas Holenstein (1896–1962), politician, member of the Swiss Federal Council 1955–1959

=== 20th century ===
{{div col|colwidth=30em}}
* Jolanda Neff (born 1993), cross-country cyclist
* Berta Rahm (1910–1998), architect, writer, publisher and feminist activist
* [[Biography:Bärbel Inhelder|Bärbel Inhelder]] (1913–1997), psychologist and epistemologist
* Peter Maag (1919–2001), conductor
* Walter Roderer (1920–2012), actor and screenwriter
* Kurt Furgler (1924–2008), politician, member of the Swiss Federal Council 1972–1986
* Fred Iklé (1924–2011), sociologist and defense expert
* Fred Hayman (1925–2016), American fashion retailer and entrepreneur
* Hansrudi Wäscher (1928–2016), Swiss-German comics artist and comics author
* Peter Hildebrand Meienberg (1929–2021), Benedictine Missionary
* Ines Torelli (1931–2019), comedian, radio personality and actress
* Max Meier (born 1936), boxer
* Hugo Tschirky (1938–2020), scientist in the field of management science
* Hans Eugen Frischknecht (born 1939), composer and organist
* Niklaus Meienberg (1940–1993), writer and investigative journalist
* Ruth Dreifuss (born 1940), politician, member of the Swiss Federal Council 1993–2002 
* Dieter Mobius (1944–2015), German electronic musician and composer
* Daniel Thürer (born 1945), jurist and law professor 
* Karl Ammann (born 1948), conservationist and wildlife photographer
* Josef Flammer (born 1948), ophthalmologist
* Paola del Medico (born 1950), singer
* Christophe Boesch (1951–2024), [[Biology:Primatologist|primatologist]]
* Peter Liechti (1951–2014), movie director
* René Tinner (born 1953), recording engineer and producer
* Hans Fässler (born 1954), historian, politician and satirical revue artist
* Simone Drexel (born 1957), singer and songwriter
* Susan Boos (born 1963), journalist
* Michael Hengartner (born 1966), Swiss-Canadian biochemist and molecular biologist
* Prince Maximilian of Liechtenstein (born 1969), CEO of the [[Company:LGT Group|LGT Group]]
* Monika Fischer (born 1971), photographer of portrait projects
* Marco Zwyssig (born 1971), footballer
* Aurelia Frick (born 1975), Liechtensteiner politician
* David Philip Hefti (born 1975), composer and conductor
* Dominik Meichtry (born 1984), swimmer
* Tranquillo Barnetta (born 1985), footballer
* Nevin Galmarini (born 1986), snowboarder, Olympic winner
* Linda Fäh (born 1987), model and beauty pageant titleholder, Miss Switzerland 2009
* Kevin Fiala (born 1996), ice hockey player
{{div col end}}

==See also==
* List of mayors of St. Gallen

==Notes and references==
{{notelist}}
{{reflist|30em}}

==External links==
* [http://www.stgallen-symposium.org St. Gallen Symposium]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20060823062817/http://qtvr.schwiiz.org/ QuickTime Virtual Reality (QTVR) images of St. Gallen]
* {{Wikivoyage-inline}}



{{DEFAULTSORT:S Gallen}}
[[Category:Cantonal capitals of Switzerland]]

{{Sourceattribution|St. Gallen}}