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The Grisons () or Graubünden,Names include: *german: (Kanton) Graubünden ; * Romansh: ** rm, label=
Sursilvan Sursilvan (; also ''romontsch sursilvan'' ; Sursilvan, Vallader, Surmiran, Sutsilvan, and Rumantsch Grischun: ''sursilvan''; Puter: ''sursilvaun'') is a group of dialects of the Romansh language spoken in the Swiss district of Surselva. It is ...
, (Cantun) Grischun ** rm, label= Vallader, (Chantun) Grischun ** rm, label= Puter, (Chantun) Grischun ** rm, label= Surmiran, (Cantun) Grischun ** rm, label=
Sutsilvan Romansh (; sometimes also spelled Romansch and Rumantsch; Sursilvan: ; Vallader, Surmiran, and Rumantsch Grischun: ; Putèr: ; Sutsilvan: , , ; Jauer: ) is a Gallo-Romance language spoken predominantly in the Swiss canton of the Gr ...
, (Cantùn) Grischùn ** rm, label= Rumantsch Grischun, (Chantun) Grischun; * it, (Cantone dei) Grigioni ; *french: (Canton des) Grisons . See also other names.
more formally the Canton of the Grisons or the Canton of Graubünden, is one of the twenty-six cantons of
Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
. It has eleven regions, and its capital is
Chur , neighboring_municipalities= Arosa, Churwalden, Tschiertschen-Praden, Domat/Ems, Felsberg, Malix, Trimmis, Untervaz, Pfäfers , twintowns = Bad Homburg (Germany), Cabourg (France), Mayrhofen (Austria), Mondorf-les-Bains (Luxe ...
. The
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...
name of the canton, , translates as the "Grey Leagues", referring to the canton's origin in three local alliances, the Three Leagues. The other native names also refer to the
Grey League The Grey League (german: Grauer Bund, it, Lega Grigia, rm, Ligia Grischa or ), sometimes called ''Oberbund'', formed in 1395 in the ''Vorderrhein'' and '' Hinterrhein'' valleys, Raetia. The name Grey League is derived from the homespun grey cl ...
: in
Sutsilvan Romansh (; sometimes also spelled Romansch and Rumantsch; Sursilvan: ; Vallader, Surmiran, and Rumantsch Grischun: ; Putèr: ; Sutsilvan: , , ; Jauer: ) is a Gallo-Romance language spoken predominantly in the Swiss canton of the Gr ...
, in the other forms of Romansh, and in Italian. ''"
Rhaetia Raetia ( ; ; also spelled Rhaetia) was a province of the Roman Empire, named after the Rhaetian people. It bordered on the west with the country of the Helvetii, on the east with Noricum, on the north with Vindelicia, on the south-west with ...
"'' is the Latin name for the area. The
Alpine ibex The Alpine ibex (''Capra ibex''), also known as the steinbock, bouquetin, or simply ibex, is a species of wild goat that lives in the mountains of the European Alps. It is a sexually dimorphic species: males are larger and carry longer, curved ...
is the canton's heraldic symbol. The largest and easternmost canton of Switzerland, it is also one of the three large southern
Alpine Alpine may refer to any mountainous region. It may also refer to: Places Europe * Alps, a European mountain range ** Alpine states, which overlap with the European range Australia * Alpine, New South Wales, a Northern Village * Alpine National P ...
cantons, along with
Valais Valais ( , , ; frp, Valês; german: Wallis ), more formally the Canton of Valais,; german: Kanton Wallis; in other official Swiss languages outside Valais: it, (Canton) Vallese ; rm, (Chantun) Vallais. is one of the 26 cantons forming the S ...
and
Ticino Ticino (), sometimes Tessin (), officially the Republic and Canton of Ticino or less formally the Canton of Ticino,, informally ''Canton Ticino'' ; lmo, Canton Tesin ; german: Kanton Tessin ; french: Canton du Tessin ; rm, Chantun dal Tessin . ...
. It is the most diverse canton in terms of natural and cultural geography, as it encompasses both sides of the Alps and several natural and cultural regions. The diversity of the canton is often compared to that of Switzerland as a whole and warrants it the name of "Little Switzerland". The Grisons is bordered by four cantons:
Ticino Ticino (), sometimes Tessin (), officially the Republic and Canton of Ticino or less formally the Canton of Ticino,, informally ''Canton Ticino'' ; lmo, Canton Tesin ; german: Kanton Tessin ; french: Canton du Tessin ; rm, Chantun dal Tessin . ...
to the south; Uri to the west; and
Glarus , neighboring_municipalities= Glarus Nord, Glarus Süd, Muotathal (SZ), Innerthal (SZ) , twintowns= Wiesbaden-Biebrich (Germany) } Glarus (; gsw, Glaris; french: Glaris; it, Glarona; rm, Glaruna) is the capital of the canton of Glarus ...
and St. Gallen to the north. The canton is also bordered by
Liechtenstein Liechtenstein (), officially the Principality of Liechtenstein (german: link=no, Fürstentum Liechtenstein), is a German language, German-speaking microstate located in the Alps between Austria and Switzerland. Liechtenstein is a semi-constit ...
to the north;
Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
's federated states of
Vorarlberg Vorarlberg ( , ; gsw, label= Vorarlbergisch, Vorarlbearg, , or ) is the westernmost state () of Austria. It has the second-smallest geographical area after Vienna and, although it also has the second-smallest population, it is the state with th ...
and
Tyrol Tyrol (; historically the Tyrole; de-AT, Tirol ; it, Tirolo) is a historical region in the Alps - in Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Emp ...
to the north and east; and
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
's autonomous province of
South Tyrol it, Provincia Autonoma di Bolzano – Alto Adige lld, Provinzia Autonoma de Balsan/Bulsan – Südtirol , settlement_type = Autonomous province , image_skyline = , image_alt ...
and region of
Lombardy (man), (woman) lmo, lumbard, links=no (man), (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , ...
to the south. The Grisons is the only trilingual canton of Switzerland. It is also the only one where Romansh, Switzerland's fourth national language, has official status. Romansh language and culture is an important part of local identity. In the canton had a population of . It is the least densely populated canton of Switzerland. The only sizable city in the canton is Chur, as the majority of the population lives in mountainous areas, including some of the most remote valleys of the country. One of the birthplaces of winter sports, the canton is a major tourist destination year-round, including a large number of Alpine resort towns, notably
Davos , neighboring_municipalities= Arosa, Bergün/Bravuogn, Klosters-Serneus, Langwies, S-chanf, Susch , twintowns = } Davos (, ; or ; rm, ; archaic it, Tavate) is an Alps, Alpine resort town and a Municipalities of Switzerland, muni ...
and St. Moritz. The canton is also renowned for its extensive narrow-gauge railway network, operated by the
Rhaetian Railway The Rhaetian Railway (german: Rhätische Bahn; it, Ferrovia retica; rm, Viafier retica), abbreviated RhB, is a Swiss transport company that owns the largest network of all private railway operators in Switzerland. Headquartered in Chur, the Rh ...
, and linking the capital with most valleys of the Grisons. Formerly occupied by the Rhaeti, most of the lands of the canton became part of the Roman province called
Raetia Raetia ( ; ; also spelled Rhaetia) was a province of the Roman Empire, named after the Rhaetian people. It bordered on the west with the country of the Helvetii, on the east with Noricum, on the north with Vindelicia, on the south-west ...
, which was established in 15 BC, with ''
Curia Curia (Latin plural curiae) in ancient Rome referred to one of the original groupings of the citizenry, eventually numbering 30, and later every Roman citizen was presumed to belong to one. While they originally likely had wider powers, they came ...
'', a settlement dating back to the Pfyn culture, as capital city. The area later became part of the lands of the diocese of Chur. The late middle ages saw the foundation of the League of God's House, the
Grey League The Grey League (german: Grauer Bund, it, Lega Grigia, rm, Ligia Grischa or ), sometimes called ''Oberbund'', formed in 1395 in the ''Vorderrhein'' and '' Hinterrhein'' valleys, Raetia. The name Grey League is derived from the homespun grey cl ...
and the League of the Ten Jurisdictions. In 1471 an alliance gave birth to the Three Leagues, and before the end of the 15th century, the latter became an ally of the
Old Swiss Confederacy The Old Swiss Confederacy or Swiss Confederacy ( Modern German: ; historically , after the Reformation also , "Confederation of the Swiss") was a loose confederation of independent small states (, German or In the charters of the 14th centur ...
. In 1803 the Three Leagues finally became one of the cantons of the Confederation.


Geography and climate

The Grisons is Switzerland's largest and at the same time easternmost canton. Its geography, essentially marked by the
Alps The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Sw ...
, is complex and encompasses a wide range of climates and ecosystems. It is one of the three large southern Alpine cantons, along with
Ticino Ticino (), sometimes Tessin (), officially the Republic and Canton of Ticino or less formally the Canton of Ticino,, informally ''Canton Ticino'' ; lmo, Canton Tesin ; german: Kanton Tessin ; french: Canton du Tessin ; rm, Chantun dal Tessin . ...
and
Valais Valais ( , , ; frp, Valês; german: Wallis ), more formally the Canton of Valais,; german: Kanton Wallis; in other official Swiss languages outside Valais: it, (Canton) Vallese ; rm, (Chantun) Vallais. is one of the 26 cantons forming the S ...
, which comprehend regions on the south side of the Alps. But contrary to those (and all other cantons), it fully extends on both sides of the great Alpine barrier, from the northern plains at
Maienfeld Maienfeld ( rm, Maiavilla) is a municipality in the Landquart Region in the Swiss canton of Graubünden. It is a tourist destination in the Alps, both because of the local wine and because it was the setting of the story ''Heidi''. History ...
to the southern plains at Roveredo. However, a large portion of the canton is neither clearly north nor south of the Alps, it is the
Engadin The Engadin or Engadine ( rm, ;This is the name in the two Romansh idioms that are spoken in the Engadin, Vallader and Puter, as well as in Sursilvan and Rumantsch Grischun. In Surmiran, the name is ''Nagiadegna'', and in Sutsilvan, it is ...
(the "garden of the Inn"), a large inner Alpine valley oriented towards eastern Europe. Therefore the canton comprehends four of the five drainage basins of the country. The north of the canton is drained by the
Rhine ), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland , source1_coordinates= , source1_elevation = , source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein , source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland , source2_coordinates= , source ...
(ending in the North Sea), the south by the Po and
Adige The Adige (; german: Etsch ; vec, Àdexe ; rm, Adisch ; lld, Adesc; la, Athesis; grc, Ἄθεσις, Áthesis, or , ''Átagis'') is the second-longest river in Italy, after the Po. It rises near the Reschen Pass in the Vinschgau in the pro ...
through several affluents (Mediterranean Sea), and the Engadin by the
Danube The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , pa ...
through the Inn (Black Sea).Topographic map of the Grisons
Swisstopo Swisstopo is the official name for the Swiss Federal Office of Topography (in German: ''Bundesamt für Landestopografie''; French: ''Office fédéral de topographie''; Italian: ''Ufficio federale di topografia''; Romansh: ''Uffizi federal d ...
. Retrieved 8 March 2021
The Grisons lies fully within the Alps, with elevations above sea-level ranging from . It is both one of the highest and lowest cantons, and the second-highest when considering mean elevation. As a consequence, its topography is extremely rugged and many of the highest settlements in the country (and Europe) are found there, notably in the Upper Engadin. The mountains are numerous and largely over 1,000 summits can be found in the canton. The highest is Piz Bernina, closely followed by numerous peaks in the homonymous range. Other prominent mountains are
Piz Russein Piz may refer to: * Piz Gloria, a mountain-top restaurant in Switzerland * Piz Buin, a mountain * Piz Dolf, a mountain * Piz Segnas, a mountain * Piz Buin (brand), a suncream brand * Piz (river) The Piz (russian: Пизь) is a right tributary ...
,
Piz Kesch Piz Kesch ( German) or Piz d'Es-cha ( Rumantsch) is a peak in the Albula Alps of the Rhaetian Alps in Switzerland. At , it is the highest peak in the Albula Alps and the municipality of Bergün, Grisons. The first ascent was made 1846 by J. Co ...
, Calanda, Aroser Rothorn and
Rheinwaldhorn The Rheinwaldhorn ( it, Adula) is the highest point in the Swiss canton of Ticino at 3,402 metres above sea level. It lies on the border between the cantons of Graubünden and Ticino, in the Adula massif, part of the St. Gotthard massif of the ...
, see
list of mountains of Graubünden This is a list of mountains of the Swiss canton of Graubünden. Graubünden is a very mountainous canton and lies entirely within the Alps. It is also one of the three cantons (with Valais and Bern) having summits over 4,000 metres. Topographica ...
for a more exhaustive list. The canton includes numerous subranges of the Alps other than the Bernina. These are the Albula, the Bregaglia, the
Glarus , neighboring_municipalities= Glarus Nord, Glarus Süd, Muotathal (SZ), Innerthal (SZ) , twintowns= Wiesbaden-Biebrich (Germany) } Glarus (; gsw, Glaris; french: Glaris; it, Glarona; rm, Glaruna) is the capital of the canton of Glarus ...
, the Gotthard, the Lepontine, the
Livigno Livigno (; local lmo, Livígn ; german: Luwin) is a town, ''comune'' and a special-administered territory in the province of Sondrio, in the region of Lombardy, Italy, located in the Italian Alps, near the Swiss border. History Livigno's firs ...
, the Plessur, the Oberhalbstein, the
Ortler Ortler (; it, Ortles ) is, at above sea level, the highest mountain in the Eastern Alps outside the Bernina Range. It is the main peak of the Ortler Range. It is the highest point of the Southern Limestone Alps, of South Tyrol in Italy, of ...
, the Rätikon, the Samnaun, the Sesvenna and the Silvretta ranges. The regions on the north side of the Alps are all drained by the Rhine and form an intricate network of valleys. The Rhine is both one of the longest rivers within the canton and the only one flowing directly into a sea. The
sources of the Rhine Lake Toma in the Swiss canton of Graubünden is generally regarded as the Source of the Rhine. Its outflow is called Rein da Tuma and after a few kilometers, it forms the '' Vorderrhein/Rein Anteriur'' ( en, Anterior Rhine). The course of this riv ...
are found in the west of the canton and form the Anterior Rhine and the Posterior Rhine. These two rivers converge at Reichenau to form the Rhine in the strict sense of the term. Just after the convergence, the valley opens and its floor constitutes the flattest plains of the canton, from
Domat/Ems Domat/Ems ( rm, Domat ; german: Ems) is a municipality in the Imboden Region in the Swiss canton of Graubünden. History Domat/Ems is first mentioned in 765 as ''colonia de Amede''. Ems is the German name for the municipality, Domat is the ...
to Fläsch at the St. Gallen border. In the area around
Chur , neighboring_municipalities= Arosa, Churwalden, Tschiertschen-Praden, Domat/Ems, Felsberg, Malix, Trimmis, Untervaz, Pfäfers , twintowns = Bad Homburg (Germany), Cabourg (France), Mayrhofen (Austria), Mondorf-les-Bains (Luxe ...
, at the foot of the Calanda, the Rhine progressively changes its direction, from eastward to northward. The Anterior Rhine and Posterior Rhine include numerous tributaries as well before their own convergence. The former constitutes a long and straight valley, the Surselva, shut off from the lower plains by the Rhine Gorge. Its biggest tributaries are the rivers Glogn, Valser Rhine, Rabiusa, forming respectively the
Val Lumnezia Lumnezia is a valley region and a municipality in the Surselva Region in the Swiss of canton of Graubünden. The former municipalities of Cumbel, Degen, Lumbrein, Morissen, Suraua, Vignogn, Vella, and Vrin merged on 1 January 2013 into the new ...
, the Vals Valley and the Safiental. The other one, the Posterior Rhine, notably collects the waters of the
Avers Rhine , image = Averser Rhein im Ferreratal 1827.jpg , image_size = , image_caption = The Avers Rhine in Val Ferrera valley, lithograph from 1827 , subdivision_type2 = Canton , subdivision_name2 = Graubünden, Swi ...
and the Albula, which in turn collects the waters of the Gelgia and the Landwasser. Similarly to the Anterior Rhine, the upper portion of the Posterior Rhine is also shut off from the plains by the Viamala Gorge. After the convergence with the Albula, the Posterior Rhine forms a wide valley, the Domleschg, until it meets its anterior counterpart. After that, the Rhine collects the water of two important rivers: the Plessur at Chur, forming the valley of the Schanfigg, and the Landquart at the homonymous town, forming the Prätigau. The Engadin is entirely drained by the Inn and is the only valley in Switzerland in the Danube basin. The Inn is one of the longest rivers in the canton and forms an almost straight valley, from the
Maloja Pass Maloja Pass ( Italian: ''Passo del Maloja'', German: ''Malojapass'') (1815m a.s.l.) is a high mountain pass in the Swiss Alps in the canton of Graubünden, linking the Engadine with the Val Bregaglia, still in Switzerland and Chiavenna in It ...
to Martina, with a change of direction near Zernez. Despite its length and numerous tributaries, only a few long rivers converge with the Inn. These are the
Flaz The Flaz is a river in the Swiss region of Engadin. The Flaz starts at the confluence of Bernina with Roseg; after that Flaz flows in the territory of Pontresina and Samaden where its waters reaches the Inn Inns are generally establishments ...
(forming the Val Bernina), the Spöl (forming the Val da Spöl) and the Clemgia (forming the Val S-charl). In the lower part of the Engadin is also the side valley of Samnaun. The main passes connecting the Engadin with the northern Grisons are (from west to east): the Julier Pass, the
Albula Pass The Albula Pass ( Romansh: ''Pass d'Alvra'' or , german: Albulapass) (el. 2312 m) is a Swiss mountain pass in the canton of Graubünden. It lies at the heart of the Albula Alps, on the watershed between the Albula, tributary of the Rhine and t ...
and the
Flüela Pass The Flüela Pass (german: Flüelapass, rm, Pass dal Flüela, elevation ) is a high mountain pass of the Swiss Alps in Graubünden. Traditionally considered the boundary between the Albula and Silvretta Alps, the pass crosses the watershed / dr ...
. The valleys on the south side of the Alps are not contiguous to each other and form four distinct regions. The
Mesolcina The ''Valle Mesolcina'', also known as the ''Val Mesolcina'' or ''Misox'' (German), is an alpine valley of the Grisons, Switzerland, stretching from the San Bernardino Pass to Grono where it joins the Calanca Valley. It is the valley formed by ...
, drained by the
Moesa The Moesa is a river, a tributary of the Ticino, which flows through the Swiss cantons of Graubünden and Ticino. It rises in Val Vignun near the San Bernardino Pass and descends, along with the A13 motorway, through the Val Mesolcina towar ...
, the Val Bregaglia, drained by the Mera, the Val Poschiavo, drained by the Poschiavino, and the
Val Müstair Val Müstair (german: Münstertal) is a municipality in the Engiadina Bassa/Val Müstair Region in the Swiss canton of Graubünden. It was formed on 1 January 2009 through the merger of Tschierv, Fuldera, Lü, Valchava, Santa Maria Val Müs ...
, drained by the Rom. The first three are in the Po basin and the last one is in the Adige basin. While the first two (Mesolcina and Bregaglia) are contiguous to the region north of the Alps, through the San Bernardino Pass, and the Septimer Pass respectively, the three last ones (Bregaglia, Poschiavo and Müstair) are contiguous to the Engadin, through the
Maloja Pass Maloja Pass ( Italian: ''Passo del Maloja'', German: ''Malojapass'') (1815m a.s.l.) is a high mountain pass in the Swiss Alps in the canton of Graubünden, linking the Engadine with the Val Bregaglia, still in Switzerland and Chiavenna in It ...
, the Bernina Pass, and the
Ofen Pass Fuorn Pass or Ofen Pass ( Romansh: ''Pass dal Fuorn'', german: Ofenpass, it, Passo del Forno) (el. 2149 m.) is a high alpine mountain pass in the canton of Graubünden in Switzerland. The name is based on the ovens that were used in ironworks ...
. Although no large bodies of water are found in the canton, numerous mountain lakes (above 800 m elevation) dot the landscape, some of them being used as reservoirs for hydroelectricity production. The largest natural lakes are Lake Sils,
Lake Silvaplana Lake Silvaplana (german: Silvaplanersee; rm, Lej da Silvaplauna) is a lake in the Upper- Engadine valley of Grisons, Switzerland. It takes its name from the village of Silvaplana. The lake is also connected to the nearby Lej da Champfèr. Togethe ...
,
Lago di Poschiavo Lago di Poschiavo is a natural lake in the Val di Poschiavo in the Swiss canton of Graubünden. Geography It has an elevation is , a length of , a surface area of and a maximum depth of . The lake is both fed and drained by the Poschiavino riv ...
and Lake St. Moritz (all in Upper Engadin except that of Poschiavo). Artificial lakes are more numerous, the largest (over 100 ha) being Lago di Livigno, Lago di Lei,
Lai da Sontga Maria __NOTOC__ Lai da Sontga Maria (Italian: ''Lago di Santa Maria'') is a lake, located north of the Lukmanier Pass in Switzerland. It lies almost entirely in the municipality of Medel (canton of Graubünden), a tiny fraction of the south-west par ...
, Zervreilasee, Lago Bianco,
Lai da Marmorera Lai da Marmorera is a reservoir in the Grisons, Switzerland. It is part of the Parc Ela nature park. The lake with a surface area of formed after the completion of the Marmorera dam in 1954 when the old village of Marmorera was flooded. The vil ...
and Lägh da l'Albigna. The total number of lakes has been estimated to 600. See list of mountain lakes of Switzerland for a more exhaustive list. Unlike other large cantons, the Grisons includes very few cities. The largest (and capital city) is
Chur , neighboring_municipalities= Arosa, Churwalden, Tschiertschen-Praden, Domat/Ems, Felsberg, Malix, Trimmis, Untervaz, Pfäfers , twintowns = Bad Homburg (Germany), Cabourg (France), Mayrhofen (Austria), Mondorf-les-Bains (Luxe ...
. It is followed by
Davos , neighboring_municipalities= Arosa, Bergün/Bravuogn, Klosters-Serneus, Langwies, S-chanf, Susch , twintowns = } Davos (, ; or ; rm, ; archaic it, Tavate) is an Alps, Alpine resort town and a Municipalities of Switzerland, muni ...
, Landquart,
Domat/Ems Domat/Ems ( rm, Domat ; german: Ems) is a municipality in the Imboden Region in the Swiss canton of Graubünden. History Domat/Ems is first mentioned in 765 as ''colonia de Amede''. Ems is the German name for the municipality, Domat is the ...
and St. Moritz, which are, however, far less populated. The canton is particularly renowned for its numerous Alpine resort towns, notably two of the aforementioned ones (Davos and St. Moritz), but also
Klosters Klosters is a Swiss village in the Prättigau, politically part of the municipality of Klosters-Serneus, which belongs to the political district Prättigau/Davos in the canton of Graubünden. In 2021, the municipality shortened its name to Kl ...
, Arosa, Lenzerheide, Disentis,
Flims Flims ( rm, Flem) is a municipality in the Imboden Region in the Swiss canton of Graubünden. The town of Flims is dominated by the Flimserstein which one can see from almost anywhere in the area. Flims consists of the village of Flims (called ...
, Pontresina and Scuol. The diversity of the climate of the Grisons is high and comparable to that of Switzerland. In the southernmost and lowest regions, vineyards and olives are grown,Montagne e riscaldamento globale
rsi.ch. Retrieve 7 March 2021. ("Con le temperature più alte si stanno sperimentando le coltivazioni di specie diverse. Ne testimonia quella di ulivi, zafferano e fichi d’India a San Vittore in Mesolcina.")
while on the highest summits, snow is found year-round. The inner valleys, particularly the Engadin, are significantly drier than the north and south side of the Alps, being sheltered by the high mountains of the range. On the south side of the Alps,
Grono Grono may refer to: Places * Grono, Switzerland, municipality in Graubünden * Mount Grono Mount Grono () is a peak on Secretary Island, part of New Zealand's Fiordland National Park Fiordland National Park occupies the southwest corner ...
is one of the top warmest places in the country with an average of 12.4 °C. The nationwide record temperature of was registered there. The southern valleys are also significantly wetter than the rest of the canton (1,476 mm of rain in Grono, 849 mm in Chur, and 705 mm in Scuol). The coldest places are naturally at high elevations, such as on
Piz Corvatsch Piz Corvatsch () is a mountain in the Bernina Range of the Alps, overlooking Lake Sils and Lake Silvaplana in the Engadin region of the canton of Graubünden. With an elevation of , it is the highest point on the range separating the main Inn ...
. The localities of the Upper Engadin are amongst the coldest inhabited regions in the country, notably Samedan with an average temperature of 2.0 °C. The cantonwide record-low temperature of was registered there. The low-elevation region of Chur, including the Bündner Herrschaft, experiences naturally less harsh temperatures with an average of 10.0 °C. File:Maienfeld Falknis 02.JPG, Lowlands: Vineyards of the Bündner Herrschaft, at the foot of the
Falknis The Falknis is a mountain in the Rätikon range of the Alps, located on the border between Liechtenstein and Switzerland. It is 8406 ft. (2562 m) at its highest peak. The nearest locality is Balzers. In literature The Falknis is ...
File:Stairs with a view.jpg, Montane zone: Val Bregaglia, at the foot of Piz Badile File:Val Frisal.jpg, Alpine zone: Val Frisal, at the foot of Piz Durschin File:PizBernina.jpg, Nival zone: Piz Bernina from Piz Morteratsch
The area of the Grisons is , 19.2% larger than the
canton of Bern The canton of Bern or Berne (german: Kanton Bern; rm, Chantun Berna; french: canton de Berne; it, Canton Berna) is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. Its capital city, Bern, is also the ''de facto'' capital of Switzerland. ...
, the second largest canton. Only about a third of this is commonly regarded as productive land of which
forest A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...
s cover about a fifth of the total area. The canton is almost entirely mountainous and it is the most sparsely populated region of the country. In its southeastern part lies the only official Swiss National Park. In its northern part, the mountains were formed as part of the thrust fault that was in 2008 declared a geologic
UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international coope ...
World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...
, under the name
Swiss Tectonic Arena Sardona The Glarus thrust (german: Glarner Überschiebung) is a major thrust fault in the Alps of eastern Switzerland. Along the thrust the Helvetic nappes were thrust more than 100 km to the north over the external Aarmassif and Infrahelvetic comp ...
. Another
Biosphere Reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...
is the Biosfera Val Müstair adjacent to the Swiss National Park, while Ela Nature Park is one of the regionally supported parks. The Grisons is sometimes included in the larger region of Eastern Switzerland, together with six other cantons. The Grisons shares border with numerous regions of Europe, reflecting its cultural diversity, and is the only canton adjacent to three different countries. On the national level it shares borders with four other cantons: Uri,
Glarus , neighboring_municipalities= Glarus Nord, Glarus Süd, Muotathal (SZ), Innerthal (SZ) , twintowns= Wiesbaden-Biebrich (Germany) } Glarus (; gsw, Glaris; french: Glaris; it, Glarona; rm, Glaruna) is the capital of the canton of Glarus ...
, St. Gallen to the northwest (essentially across the Glarus Alps) and
Ticino Ticino (), sometimes Tessin (), officially the Republic and Canton of Ticino or less formally the Canton of Ticino,, informally ''Canton Ticino'' ; lmo, Canton Tesin ; german: Kanton Tessin ; french: Canton du Tessin ; rm, Chantun dal Tessin . ...
to the west (essentially across the
Gotthard Massif The Gotthard Massif or Saint-Gotthard Massif (german: Gotthardmassiv or ; it, Massiccio del San Gottardo; rm, Massiv dal Gottard) is a mountain range in the Alps in Switzerland, located at the border of four cantons: Valais, Ticino, Uri and Gra ...
and the Lepontine Alps but also at the level of the plain at Roveredo). On the international level, the canton shares borders with three countries:
Liechtenstein Liechtenstein (), officially the Principality of Liechtenstein (german: link=no, Fürstentum Liechtenstein), is a German language, German-speaking microstate located in the Alps between Austria and Switzerland. Liechtenstein is a semi-constit ...
to the north, the Austrian regions of
Vorarlberg Vorarlberg ( , ; gsw, label= Vorarlbergisch, Vorarlbearg, , or ) is the westernmost state () of Austria. It has the second-smallest geographical area after Vienna and, although it also has the second-smallest population, it is the state with th ...
and
Tyrol Tyrol (; historically the Tyrole; de-AT, Tirol ; it, Tirolo) is a historical region in the Alps - in Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Emp ...
to the northeast and the Italian regions of Trentino-South Tyrol and
Lombardy (man), (woman) lmo, lumbard, links=no (man), (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , ...
to the south.


History

The deep Alpine valleys of the present-day Grisons were originally settled by the Raetians (''Rhaeti''). In Chur, archaeological evidence of settlement goes back as far as the Pfyn culture (3900-3500 BC), making the capital city of the Grisons one of the oldest settlements in Switzerland. Most of the lands of the canton were once part of a Roman province called ''Raetia'', which was established in 15 BC. The current capital of the Grisons,
Chur , neighboring_municipalities= Arosa, Churwalden, Tschiertschen-Praden, Domat/Ems, Felsberg, Malix, Trimmis, Untervaz, Pfäfers , twintowns = Bad Homburg (Germany), Cabourg (France), Mayrhofen (Austria), Mondorf-les-Bains (Luxe ...
, was known as Curia in Roman times. The area later was part of the lands of the diocese of Chur. In 1367 the League of God's House (''Cadi'', ''Gottes Haus'', ''Ca' di Dio'') was founded to resist the rising power of the Bishop of Chur. This was followed by the establishment of the
Grey League The Grey League (german: Grauer Bund, it, Lega Grigia, rm, Ligia Grischa or ), sometimes called ''Oberbund'', formed in 1395 in the ''Vorderrhein'' and '' Hinterrhein'' valleys, Raetia. The name Grey League is derived from the homespun grey cl ...
(''Grauer Bund''), sometimes called ''Oberbund'', in 1395 in the Upper Rhine valley. The name ''Grey League'' is derived from the homespun grey clothes worn by the people and was used exclusively after 16 March 1424. The name of this league later gave its name to the canton of the Grisons. A third league was established in 1436 by the people of ten
bailiwick A bailiwick () is usually the area of jurisdiction of a bailiff, and once also applied to territories in which a privately appointed bailiff exercised the sheriff's functions under a royal or imperial writ. The bailiwick is probably modelled on th ...
s in the former Toggenburg countship, as the dynasty of Toggenburg had become extinct. The league was called League of the Ten Jurisdictions (''Zehngerichtebund''). The first step towards the canton of the Grisons was when the league of the Ten Jurisdictions allied with the League of God's House in 1450. In 1471 the two leagues allied with the Grey League. In 1497 and 1498 the Leagues allied with the
Old Swiss Confederacy The Old Swiss Confederacy or Swiss Confederacy ( Modern German: ; historically , after the Reformation also , "Confederation of the Swiss") was a loose confederation of independent small states (, German or In the charters of the 14th centur ...
after the
Habsburgs The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...
acquired the possessions of the extinct Toggenburg dynasty in 1496, siding with the Confederacy in the
Swabian War The Swabian War of 1499 ( gsw, Schwoobechrieg (spelling depending on dialect), called or ("Swiss War") in Germany and ("War of the Engadin") in Austria) was the last major armed conflict between the Old Swiss Confederacy and the House of ...
three years later. The Habsburgs were defeated at Calven Gorge and
Dornach : ''Dornach is also a quarter of the French city of Mulhouse and the Scots name for Dornoch in the Scottish Highlands, and Dòrnach is the Gaelic name for Dornoch in the Scottish Highlands.'' Dornach (Swiss German: ''Dornech'') is a municipality ...
, helping the Swiss Confederation and the allied leagues of the canton of the Grisons to be recognised. However the Three Leagues remained a loose association until the ''Bundesbrief'' of 23 September 1524. The last traces of the Bishop of Chur's jurisdiction were abolished in 1526. The
Musso war The Musso War (or War of Musso) was an armed conflict between the federation of the Three Leagues (german: Drei Bünde), which functioned as an associate state of the Old Swiss Confederacy, and the Duchy of Milan early in the 16th century. The conf ...
of 1520 drove the Three Leagues closer to the Swiss Confederacy. Between 1618 and 1639 it became a battleground between competing factions during the Bündner Wirren. The
Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...
party was supported by
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
and
Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400  ...
, while the
Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
party was supported by the
Habsburg The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...
s in Spain and Austria. Each side sought to gain control of the Grisons to gain control over the important
alpine Alpine may refer to any mountainous region. It may also refer to: Places Europe * Alps, a European mountain range ** Alpine states, which overlap with the European range Australia * Alpine, New South Wales, a Northern Village * Alpine National P ...
passes. In 1618, the young radical Jörg Jenatsch became a member of the court of 'clerical overseers' and a leader of the anti-Habsburg faction. He supervised the torture to death of the arch-priest Nicola Rusca of
Sondrio Sondrio (; lmo, Sùndri; rm, Sunder; archaic german: Sünders or ; la, Sundrium) is an Italian city and ''comune'' and Provincial Capital located in the heart of the Valtellina. , Sondrio counts approximately 21,876 inhabitants (2015) and it is ...
. In response, Giacomo Robustelli of the pro-Catholic Planta family, raised an army of rebels in the
Valtellina Valtellina or the Valtelline (occasionally spelled as two words in English: Val Telline; rm, Vuclina (); lmo, Valtelina or ; german: Veltlin; it, Valtellina) is a valley in the Lombardy region of northern Italy, bordering Switzerland. Tod ...
. On the evening of 18/19 July 1620, a force of Valtellina rebels supported by Austrian and Italian troops marched into Tirano and began killing Protestants. When they finished in Tirano, they marched to
Teglio Teglio (''Téi'' in Valtellinese dialect) is a '' comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Sondrio in the Italian region Lombardy, located about northeast of Milan and about east of Sondrio Sondrio (; lmo, Sùndri; rm, Sunder; archaic ...
,
Sondrio Sondrio (; lmo, Sùndri; rm, Sunder; archaic german: Sünders or ; la, Sundrium) is an Italian city and ''comune'' and Provincial Capital located in the heart of the Valtellina. , Sondrio counts approximately 21,876 inhabitants (2015) and it is ...
and further down the valley killing every Protestant that they found. Between 500 and 600 people were killed on that night and in the following four days. The attack drove nearly all the Protestants out of the valley, prevented further Protestant incursions and took the Valtellina out of the Three Leagues. In response, in February 1621, Jenatsch led a force of anti-Habsburg troops to attack Rietberg Castle, the home of a leader of the pro-Catholic faction, Pompeius Planta.Graubünden's religious history
(PDF; 3.95 MB)
They surprised Planta and according to legend he was killed by Jörg Jenatsch with an axe. The murder of Planta encouraged the Protestant faction and they assembled a poorly led and disorganized army to retake the Valtellina and other subject lands. However, the army fell apart before they could attack a single Catholic town. This Protestant invasion provided the Spanish and Austrians with an excuse to invade the Leagues. By the end of October, Spain and Austria had occupied all of the Grisons. The resulting peace treaty of January 1622, forced Grisons to cede the
Müstair Müstair is a village in the Val Müstair municipality in the district of Inn in the Swiss canton of Graubünden. In 2009 Müstair merged with Fuldera, Lü, Switzerland, Santa Maria Val Müstair, Tschierv and Valchava to form Val Müstair.
, the Lower Engadine and Prättigau valleys.Swiss History
accessed 16 January 2012
The treaty also forbade the Protestant religion in these valleys. In response, in 1622, the Prättigau valley rebelled against the Austrians and drove them out of the valley. The Austrians invaded the valley twice more, attempting to reimpose the Catholic faith, in 1623–24 and 1629–31. In 1623 the Leagues entered into an alliance with France, Savoy and Venice. Jürg Jenatsch and Ulysses von Salis used French money to hire an 8,000-man mercenary army and drive out the Austrians. The peace treaty of Monzon (5 March 1626) between France and Spain, confirmed the political and religious independence of the Valtellina. In 1627 the French withdrew from the Valtellina valley, which was then occupied by Papal troops. Starting in 1631 the League, under the French Duke Henri de Rohan, started to expel the Spaniards. However, Richelieu still did not want to hand the valley over to its residents. When it became clear that the French intended to remain permanently in the Leagues, but would not force the Valtellina to convert to Protestantism, Jürg Jenatsch (now a mercenary leader) converted in 1635 to the Catholic faith. In 1637, he rebelled and allied with Austria and Spain. His rebellion along with the rebellion of 31 other League officers forced the French to withdraw without a fight. On 24 January 1639, Jürg Jenatsch was killed during
Carnival Carnival is a Catholic Christian festive season that occurs before the liturgical season of Lent. The main events typically occur during February or early March, during the period historically known as Shrovetide (or Pre-Lent). Carnival t ...
by an unknown attacker who was dressed as a bear. The attacker may have been a son of Pompeius Planta or an assassin hired by the local aristocracy. According to legend he was killed by the same axe that he used on Pompeius Planta. On 3 September 1639 the Leagues agreed with Spain to bring the Valtellina back under League sovereignty, but with the promise to respect the free exercise of the Catholic faith. Treaties with Austria in 1649 and 1652, brought the Müstair and Lower Engadine valleys back under the authority of the Three Leagues. In 1798, the lands of the canton of the Grisons became part of the
Helvetic Republic The Helvetic Republic (, , ) was a sister republic of France that existed between 1798 and 1803, during the French Revolutionary Wars. It was created following the French invasion and the consequent dissolution of the Old Swiss Confederacy, m ...
as the
canton of Raetia Raetia was the name of a canton of the Helvetic Republic from 1798 to 1803, corresponding to modern Graubünden and composed of the Free State of the Three Leagues. Until 1799, the canton was administered by the central government of the Helvet ...
except
Valtellina Valtellina or the Valtelline (occasionally spelled as two words in English: Val Telline; rm, Vuclina (); lmo, Valtelina or ; german: Veltlin; it, Valtellina) is a valley in the Lombardy region of northern Italy, bordering Switzerland. Tod ...
, which was separated in 1797 for joining the
Cisalpine Republic The Cisalpine Republic ( it, Repubblica Cisalpina) was a sister republic of France in Northern Italy that existed from 1797 to 1799, with a second version until 1802. Creation After the Battle of Lodi in May 1796, Napoleon Bonaparte organiz ...
. It was later part of the Empire of Austria in 1814 before joining the
Kingdom of Italy The Kingdom of Italy ( it, Regno d'Italia) was a state that existed from 1861, when Victor Emmanuel II of Kingdom of Sardinia, Sardinia was proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy, proclaimed King of Italy, until 1946, when civil discontent led to ...
in 1859. With the
Act of Mediation The Act of Mediation () was issued by Napoleon Bonaparte, First Consul of the French Republic on 19 February 1803 establishing the Swiss Confederation. The act also abolished the previous Helvetic Republic, which had existed since the invasi ...
the "perpetual ally" of
Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
became a canton in 1803. The constitution of the canton dates from 1892. In the following century, there have been about 30 changes made to the constitution. The arms of the three original leagues were combined into the modern cantonal coat of arms in 1933.


Government

The Grand Council (german: Grosser Rat; it, Gran Consiglio, rm, Cussegl Grond), the legislature of the canton, sits in Chur, the cantonal capital. Its 120 members, elected in 39 districts using a majority system, are in office for four years. The last district elections were in 2014. The cantonal government, exercising executive authority, is made up of five members, elected by the people for a term of four years and limited to three terms using a majority system. The constitution of the Grisons, last revised on 14 September 2003, states in its
preamble A preamble is an introductory and expressionary statement in a document that explains the document's purpose and underlying philosophy. When applied to the opening paragraphs of a statute, it may recite historical facts pertinent to the subj ...
that the canton's purpose is to "safeguard freedom, peace, and human dignity, ensure democracy and the Rechtsstaat, promote prosperity and
social justice Social justice is justice in terms of the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society. In Western and Asian cultures, the concept of social justice has often referred to the process of ensuring that individuals ...
and preserving a sane environment for the future generations, with the intention of promoting
trilingualism Multilingualism is the use of more than one language, either by an individual speaker or by a group of speakers. It is believed that multilingual speakers outnumber monolingual speakers in the world's population. More than half of all Eu ...
and cultural variety and conserving them as part of our historical heritage". The constitution allows for the enfranchisement of foreign residents at a municipal level, at discretion of the local governments. In 2009, the municipality of Bregaglia became the first in the canton to make use of this provision, granting voting rights to foreigners.


Politics


Federal election results

: FDP before 2009, FDP.The Liberals after 2009 : "*" indicates that the party was not on the ballot in this canton.


Political subdivisions


Regions

as of January 2017 * Albula with capital Tiefencastel * Bernina with capital
Poschiavo Poschiavo ( it, Poschiavo, lmo, Pusciaaf, german: Puschlav, rm, Puschlav) is a municipality in the Bernina Region in the canton of Grisons in Switzerland. History Poschiavo is first mentioned in 824 as ''in Postclave'' though this comes fro ...
* Engiadina Bassa/Val Müstair with capital Scuol * Imboden with capital
Domat/Ems Domat/Ems ( rm, Domat ; german: Ems) is a municipality in the Imboden Region in the Swiss canton of Graubünden. History Domat/Ems is first mentioned in 765 as ''colonia de Amede''. Ems is the German name for the municipality, Domat is the ...
* Landquart with capital
Igis Igis ''( Romansh: Eigias)'' is a former municipality in the district of Landquart in the Swiss canton of Graubünden. Far better known than its proper name Igis is its hamlet Landquart, because of its Rail Station and motorway exit. The municip ...
* Maloja with capital Samedan *
Moesa The Moesa is a river, a tributary of the Ticino, which flows through the Swiss cantons of Graubünden and Ticino. It rises in Val Vignun near the San Bernardino Pass and descends, along with the A13 motorway, through the Val Mesolcina towar ...
with capital Roveredo * Plessur with capital
Chur , neighboring_municipalities= Arosa, Churwalden, Tschiertschen-Praden, Domat/Ems, Felsberg, Malix, Trimmis, Untervaz, Pfäfers , twintowns = Bad Homburg (Germany), Cabourg (France), Mayrhofen (Austria), Mondorf-les-Bains (Luxe ...
* Prättigau/Davos with capital
Davos , neighboring_municipalities= Arosa, Bergün/Bravuogn, Klosters-Serneus, Langwies, S-chanf, Susch , twintowns = } Davos (, ; or ; rm, ; archaic it, Tavate) is an Alps, Alpine resort town and a Municipalities of Switzerland, muni ...
*
Surselva Surselva Region is one of the eleven administrative districts in the canton of Graubünden in Switzerland. It was created on 1 January 2017 as part of a reorganization of the canton.Ilanz Ilanz ( rm, Glion) is a former municipality in the district of Surselva in the Swiss canton of Graubünden. The former municipality of Ilanz was congruent with the town of Ilanz. On 1 January 1978, the former municipality of Strada merged into ...
* Viamala Region with capital Thusis


Municipalities

There are 114 municipalities in the canton ().


Demographics

The inhabitants of the Grisons are called ''Bündner'' or (rarely) Grisonians. The population of the canton (as of ) is . , the population included 28,008 foreigners, or about 14.84% of the total population. The main religions are
Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
and
Protestantism Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...
. Both are well represented in the canton, with Roman Catholics forming a slight plurality (47% Catholic to 41% Protestant).


Languages

The Grisons is the only canton of Switzerland with three official languages:
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...
(74.7%), Romansh (13.9%), and Italian (13.9%) with the remaining 13% speaking another language natively. The
Romansh language Romansh (; sometimes also spelled Romansch and Rumantsch; Sursilvan: ; Vallader, Surmiran, and Rumantsch Grischun: ; Putèr: ; Sutsilvan: , , ; Jauer: ) is a Gallo-Romance language spoken predominantly in the Swiss canton of the Gr ...
is spoken only in the Grisons. It consists of five dialect groups, each with its own written language:
Sursilvan Sursilvan (; also ''romontsch sursilvan'' ; Sursilvan, Vallader, Surmiran, Sutsilvan, and Rumantsch Grischun: ''sursilvan''; Puter: ''sursilvaun'') is a group of dialects of the Romansh language spoken in the Swiss district of Surselva. It is ...
, Vallader, Puter, Surmiran and
Sutsilvan Romansh (; sometimes also spelled Romansch and Rumantsch; Sursilvan: ; Vallader, Surmiran, and Rumantsch Grischun: ; Putèr: ; Sutsilvan: , , ; Jauer: ) is a Gallo-Romance language spoken predominantly in the Swiss canton of the Gr ...
. There also exists a common written language called Rumantsch Grischun. Romansh has been recognized as one of four "national languages" by the
Swiss Federal Constitution The Federal Constitution of the Swiss Confederation (SR 10; german: Bundesverfassung der Schweizerischen Eidgenossenschaft (BV); french: Constitution fédérale de la Confédération suisse (Cst.); it, Costituzione federale della Confederaz ...
since 1938. It was declared an "official language" of the Confederation in 1996, meaning that Romansh speakers may use Romansh for correspondence with the federal government and expect to receive a response in Rumantsch Grischun. Romansh has official language status at the canton level. Municipalities in turn are free to specify their own official languages.


Economy

Agriculture is still essential to keep remote valleys inhabited and cultivated, differing it from sheer
wilderness Wilderness or wildlands (usually in the plural), are natural environments on Earth that have not been significantly modified by human activity or any nonurbanized land not under extensive agricultural cultivation. The term has traditionally re ...
. Agriculture is therefore supported by subsidies by the authorities both national and regional. Eight per cent of the population work in agriculture and forestry, where 50 per cent of the production is certified as organic. Agriculture includes forests and mountain pasturage in summer, particularly of cows, sheep and goats. Since wolf and bear have returned, the use of
Maremma Sheepdog The Maremmano-Abruzzese Sheepdog, ( it, ), also called Maremmano, the Maremma Sheepdog or Abruzzese Sheepdog, and Cane da Pastore Abruzzese or Pastore Abruzzese (''Abruzzese Sheepdog'' and ''Abruzzese Shepherd'', respectively) is an Italian ...
s is not unusual. Although mountain pastures are predominant, there is also wine production in the Rhine Valley, particularly in Fläsch,
Maienfeld Maienfeld ( rm, Maiavilla) is a municipality in the Landquart Region in the Swiss canton of Graubünden. It is a tourist destination in the Alps, both because of the local wine and because it was the setting of the story ''Heidi''. History ...
,
Jenins Jenins ''( Romansh: Gianin)'' is a municipality in the Landquart Region in the Swiss canton of Graubünden. History Jenins is first mentioned in 1139 as ''Uienennes''. In 1142 it was mentioned as ''Gininnes''. Geography Jenins has an area, ...
and Malans. This areas is referred to as the Bündner Herschaft. In the southern valleys of
Mesolcina The ''Valle Mesolcina'', also known as the ''Val Mesolcina'' or ''Misox'' (German), is an alpine valley of the Grisons, Switzerland, stretching from the San Bernardino Pass to Grono where it joins the Calanca Valley. It is the valley formed by ...
and Val Poschiavo there is corn (
maize Maize ( ; ''Zea mays'' subsp. ''mays'', from es, maíz after tnq, mahiz), also known as corn (North American English, North American and Australian English), is a cereal grain first domesticated by indigenous peoples of Mexico, indigenous ...
) and
chestnut The chestnuts are the deciduous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Castanea'', in the beech family Fagaceae. They are native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The name also refers to the edible nuts they produce. The unrel ...
farming, allowed by the milder climate. In the Mesolcina, olive trees are also grown. 24 per cent of the workforce are employed in industry whereas 68 per cent work in the service industry. The most industrialized region is naturally that of Chur. Ems-Chemie is based in
Domat/Ems Domat/Ems ( rm, Domat ; german: Ems) is a municipality in the Imboden Region in the Swiss canton of Graubünden. History Domat/Ems is first mentioned in 765 as ''colonia de Amede''. Ems is the German name for the municipality, Domat is the ...
and is a major employer in the area. The tourism industry is a major player and reaches a remarkable 14 per cent of the GDP. Tourism is concentrated around the towns of
Davos , neighboring_municipalities= Arosa, Bergün/Bravuogn, Klosters-Serneus, Langwies, S-chanf, Susch , twintowns = } Davos (, ; or ; rm, ; archaic it, Tavate) is an Alps, Alpine resort town and a Municipalities of Switzerland, muni ...
,
Klosters Klosters is a Swiss village in the Prättigau, politically part of the municipality of Klosters-Serneus, which belongs to the political district Prättigau/Davos in the canton of Graubünden. In 2021, the municipality shortened its name to Kl ...
, Lenzerheide, Arosa,
Flims Flims ( rm, Flem) is a municipality in the Imboden Region in the Swiss canton of Graubünden. The town of Flims is dominated by the Flimserstein which one can see from almost anywhere in the area. Flims consists of the village of Flims (called ...
, St. Moritz and Pontresina, which have large ski areas. There are, however, a great number of other tourist resorts in the canton, divided by the official tourist board for winter sports for example into categories "Top - Large - Small and beautiful". St. Moritz is one of the oldest
winter sport Winter sports or winter activities are competitive sports or non-competitive recreational activities which are played on snow or ice. Most are variations of skiing, ice skating and sledding. Traditionally, such games were only played in cold are ...
resorts, being popular in winter since 1864. The following year, Davos also saw its first tourists in winter. St. Moritz hosted the
1928 Winter Olympics The 1928 Winter Olympics, officially known as the II Olympic Winter Games (french: IIes Jeux olympiques d'hiver; german: II. Olympische Winterspiele; it, II Giochi olimpici invernali; rm, II Gieus olimpics d'enviern) and commonly known as St. M ...
and the
1948 Winter Olympics The 1948 Winter Olympics, officially known as the V Olympic Winter Games (german: V. Olympische Winterspiele; french: Ves Jeux olympiques d'hiver; it, V Giochi olimpici invernali; rm, V Gieus olimpics d'enviern) and commonly known as St. Moritz ...
. Summer tourism is also an important source of revenue. Trekking, mountaineering, and mountain biking are some of the main activities. Business tourism is also a source of revenue, notably in
Davos , neighboring_municipalities= Arosa, Bergün/Bravuogn, Klosters-Serneus, Langwies, S-chanf, Susch , twintowns = } Davos (, ; or ; rm, ; archaic it, Tavate) is an Alps, Alpine resort town and a Municipalities of Switzerland, muni ...
, where the
World Economic Forum The World Economic Forum (WEF) is an international non-governmental and lobbying organisation based in Cologny, canton of Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded on 24 January 1971 by German engineer and economist Klaus Schwab. The foundation, ...
meetings are traditionally organised.


Transport

As the canton extends on both sides of the great Alpine barrier, many important mountain passes are found there, particularly on the north-south axis. Transport has always been an important issue in the area; cart tracks from the Roman era were found on Julier Pass and Septimer Pass was rebuilt for cart use in 1387 and, although it later became unimportant, it is still in its 1800 form (for hikers only).
Corniche A corniche is a road on the side of a cliff or mountain, with the ground rising on one side and falling away on the other. The word has been absorbed into English from the French term ' or "road on a ledge", originally derived from the Itali ...
paths were necessary for long stretches, and gorges such as the Viamala gave construction problems for any kind of transport. The first real roads of width were built across the Alps from around 1816, one of which is still in a very good historical condition as this connection across Splügen Pass lost its importance after the opening of rail tunnels crossing the alps. The last valley to be connected to the road system in the Grisons was Avers, whose remote hamlet of
Juf Juf () is a village in the municipality of Avers in the canton of Grisons, Switzerland. At above sea level, it is historically the highest village with permanent residents in Europe, as well as one of its coldest localities. As of 2016, Juf had ...
was only reached in 1897. After the
Swiss Post Swiss Post (french: La Poste suisse, it, La Posta Svizzera, german: Die Schweizerische Post, rm, La Posta Svizra) is the national postal service of Switzerland. A public company owned by the Swiss Confederation, it is the country's second lar ...
expanded their Postal Bus transport services, the region's inhabitants became more used to motorized traffic. In 1925, there were already 250 vehicles in service. Eventually, the inhabitants of the Grisons gave up their resistance against individual motor traffic in 1926, In 1967 opened San Bernardino road tunnel, built to host tourism traffic, is used also by heavy goods vehicles nowadays although not really suitable for them because of its ascent gradients. Most other passes have lost their importance for goods transport nowadays. Unlike
Valais Valais ( , , ; frp, Valês; german: Wallis ), more formally the Canton of Valais,; german: Kanton Wallis; in other official Swiss languages outside Valais: it, (Canton) Vallese ; rm, (Chantun) Vallais. is one of the 26 cantons forming the S ...
and
Ticino Ticino (), sometimes Tessin (), officially the Republic and Canton of Ticino or less formally the Canton of Ticino,, informally ''Canton Ticino'' ; lmo, Canton Tesin ; german: Kanton Tessin ; french: Canton du Tessin ; rm, Chantun dal Tessin . ...
, the Grisons does not benefit from major railway axes across the Alps such as the
Lötschberg The Lötschberg is an Alpine mountain massif and usually associated with a major, historically important transit axis of the Alps in Switzerland with, at its core, the Lötschen Pass (german: Lötschenpass, Swiss German: ''Lötschepass''). The mo ...
and Gotthard. As a consequence, the only standard gauge railway in the canton is that of the Rhine Valley, ending at Chur station. Conversely, the latter has become a major railway station and a transport hub of the canton since the construction of the
Rhaetian Railway The Rhaetian Railway (german: Rhätische Bahn; it, Ferrovia retica; rm, Viafier retica), abbreviated RhB, is a Swiss transport company that owns the largest network of all private railway operators in Switzerland. Headquartered in Chur, the Rh ...
, which links most regions of the canton from the Rhine Valley. Huge efforts ensure public transport to (nearly) every settlement by an integrated timetable of different transport companies. Even Juf, inhabited by some 30 people only but holding a European record, is reached 5 times a day by public transport. The two main transport companies are PostBus, the national post bus company, and the Rhaetian Railway, essentially owned by the cantonal government. The latter uses the largest narrow-gauge railway network in Switzerland and serves most regions of the canton, with branches towards Central Switzerland and Italy. This network is notably travelled by two of the longest distance trains of Switzerland: the Glacier Express and the
Bernina Express The Bernina Express is a train connecting Chur (or Davos) in Switzerland to Poschiavo in Switzerland and Tirano in Italy by crossing the Swiss Alps, Swiss Engadin Alps. For most of its journey, the train also runs along the World Heritage Site kn ...
. The
Swiss Federal Railways Swiss Federal Railways (german: link=no, Schweizerische Bundesbahnen, ''SBB''; french: link=no, Chemins de fer fédéraux suisses, ''CFF''; it, Ferrovie federali svizzere, ''FFS'') is the national railway company of Switzerland. It is usuall ...
extend only a few kilometres into the canton, from Maienfeld, and serve essentially Landquart and Chur, where passengers transfer to the Rhaetian Railway and a large number of PostBus routes. The Albula Line became a UNESCO world heritage as did the
Bernina Railway The Bernina Railway (german: Berninalinie; it, Linea del Bernina; rm, Lingia dal Bernina) is a single-track railway line forming part of the Rhaetian Railway (RhB). It links the spa resort of St. Moritz, in the canton of Graubünden, Switze ...
, the highest and only railway to cross the Alps without the use of a tunnel at the pass. In winter some of the road passes are closed whereas several high mountain passes such as the Julier, Bernina and Lukmanier are kept open all winter (subject to restrictions). Being the highest elevated state in Switzerland, the Grisons hosts huge alpine areas that are not accessible by any means of transport but have to be walked to. A large number of cable transport facilities provide easy access to some of the mountains of the Grisons, the highest being on
Piz Corvatsch Piz Corvatsch () is a mountain in the Bernina Range of the Alps, overlooking Lake Sils and Lake Silvaplana in the Engadin region of the canton of Graubünden. With an elevation of , it is the highest point on the range separating the main Inn ...
. The
Engadin The Engadin or Engadine ( rm, ;This is the name in the two Romansh idioms that are spoken in the Engadin, Vallader and Puter, as well as in Sursilvan and Rumantsch Grischun. In Surmiran, the name is ''Nagiadegna'', and in Sutsilvan, it is ...
valley has its own airport, Samedan Airport. It is the highest airport in Switzerland.


Culture

The Grisons is culturally the most diverse region of Switzerland. Its common denominator, however, is a strong mountain culture marked by life in isolated rural communities, notably depicted in Johanna Spyri's Heidi. Traditional customs include Alpine transhumance in spring and autumn, and the Chalandamarz at the end of winter. The canton has a large concentration of medieval castles (and ruins). The most notable, in the Engadin, is that of Tarasp, guarding the Inn valley. Many ruins and castles are found in the Domleschg area. Close by lies the church of Zillis, where 1130/40 a famous romanesque illustrated ceiling was added which is now treated as national heritage. Three
World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...
s are located in the canton: the Benedictine Convent of Saint John, the
Swiss Tectonic Arena Sardona The Glarus thrust (german: Glarner Überschiebung) is a major thrust fault in the Alps of eastern Switzerland. Along the thrust the Helvetic nappes were thrust more than 100 km to the north over the external Aarmassif and Infrahelvetic comp ...
and the
Rhaetian Railway The Rhaetian Railway (german: Rhätische Bahn; it, Ferrovia retica; rm, Viafier retica), abbreviated RhB, is a Swiss transport company that owns the largest network of all private railway operators in Switzerland. Headquartered in Chur, the Rh ...
in the Albula and Bernina Landscapes. The gastronomy of the Grisons is mostly known for a dried-beef delicacy called Bündnerfleisch, often simply referred to as Grisons Meat. Other meat specialities include dried sausages (especially Salsiz, made of various meats), speck and ham. Cheeses produced in the Grisons are also numerous. Among notable dishes are the Capuns, predominantly made in the western part of the Grisons. Capuns consist of hearty dumplings with pieces of meat wrapped in chard leaves, then gratinated in oven with cheese and cream. The
Maluns Maluns are a traditional dish of the Grisons. They are essentially made of boiled and grated potatoes mixed with flour. The mixture is then slowly fried in butter until it breaks into little balls or crumbs. The dish is typically served with a com ...
are another well-known dish of the Grisons. They are made of boiled potatoes mixed with flour, then fried in butter. Maluns are typically served with a compote of apples and various other local products such as cheeses and meat specialities. The Pizzoccheri are another dish, essentially eaten in the valley of
Poschiavo Poschiavo ( it, Poschiavo, lmo, Pusciaaf, german: Puschlav, rm, Puschlav) is a municipality in the Bernina Region in the canton of Grisons in Switzerland. History Poschiavo is first mentioned in 824 as ''in Postclave'' though this comes fro ...
. They consist of buckwheat noodles, cooked with potatoes, vegetables and cheese. The emblematic dessert of the Grisons is the Bündner Nusstorte. It is essentially a shortcrust pastry filled with a mix of caramelized walnuts and honey. Another similar pastry, but containing chestnuts instead, the Torta di Castagne, is made in the southern valleys, especially in the Val Bregaglia. Wines are essentially produced in the Bündner Herrschaft. In the vineyards between Fläsch and Malans, 42 types of vines are found,
Pinot Noir Pinot Noir () is a red-wine grape variety of the species ''Vitis vinifera''. The name may also refer to wines created predominantly from pinot noir grapes. The name is derived from the French words for ''pine'' and ''black.'' The word ''pine ...
being the most popular. Wines are also naturally produced in the southern valleys but in smaller quantities. The valley of the
Mesolcina The ''Valle Mesolcina'', also known as the ''Val Mesolcina'' or ''Misox'' (German), is an alpine valley of the Grisons, Switzerland, stretching from the San Bernardino Pass to Grono where it joins the Calanca Valley. It is the valley formed by ...
is contiguous with the Ticino wine region and that of Poschiavo is contiguous with the Valtellina wine region. Numerous breweries can be found in the canton as well. The largest, located at Chur, is
Calanda Bräu Calanda Bräu (German for " Calanda Brew") is a brewery in Chur, in the Canton of Graubünden, Switzerland, owned by Heineken N.V. Its lagers, brewed using Alpine spring water, are available across Switzerland. History The Calanda Bräu name ...
.
Radiotelevisiun Svizra Rumantscha Radiotelevisiun Svizra Rumantscha (RTR, en, Radio-Television Romansh Switzerland or Swiss Romansh Radio-Television), formerly known as Radio e Televisiun Rumantscha ( en, Romansh Radio and Television), is a Switzerland, Swiss broadcasting com ...
is the Romansh-speaking division of the
Swiss Broadcasting Corporation The Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (german: Schweizerische Radio- und Fernsehgesellschaft; french: Société suisse de radiodiffusion et télévision; it, Società svizzera di radiotelevisione; rm, Societad Svizra da Radio e Televisiun; SRG ...
and focuses on the Grisons. ''
Die Südostschweiz ''Südostschweiz'' (Southeastern Switzerland) is a Swiss German-language daily newspaper, published by Südostschweiz Mediengruppe in Chur, Graubünden. Profile The ''Südostschweiz'' has the following regional editions: * since 1997 ''Regional ...
'' (in German) and ''
La Quotidiana ''La Quotidiana'' is the only Romansh daily newspaper. It is published by the Südostschweiz Mediengruppe and was founded in 1997 with support from the Romansh news agency Agentura da Novitads Rumantscha. The newspaper is based in Ilanz, previous ...
'' (Romansh) are some of the most important written media of the region.


Nature

The Grisons successfully reintroduced
ibex An ibex (plural ibex, ibexes or ibices) is any of several species of wild goat (genus ''Capra''), distinguished by the male's large recurved horns, which are transversely ridged in front. Ibex are found in Eurasia, North Africa and East Africa ...
in the early 20th century after it had all but died out from the Alps, except for an area in the Aosta Valley in Italy, Parco Nazionale Gran Paradiso. Similarly, it reintroduced the bearded vulture and lynx in the 21st century, which had been extinguished, though the
lynx A lynx is a type of wild cat. Lynx may also refer to: Astronomy * Lynx (constellation) * Lynx (Chinese astronomy) * Lynx X-ray Observatory, a NASA-funded mission concept for a next-generation X-ray space observatory Places Canada * Lynx, ...
remains rare.


See also

*
Swiss Alps The Alpine region of Switzerland, conventionally referred to as the Swiss Alps (german: Schweizer Alpen, french: Alpes suisses, it, Alpi svizzere, rm, Alps svizras), represents a major natural feature of the country and is, along with the Swis ...
* Three Leagues


Note


References


External links


Official Canton websiteCanton of the Grisons Tourism websiteShort documentary from the cantonal authorities
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Grisons Cantons of Switzerland Regions of Europe with multiple official languages States and territories established in 1803 1803 establishments in Switzerland