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Border Line (Switzerland)
The Border Line defenses of Switzerland were constructed in the late 1930s in response to increasing tensions between Switzerland and its neighbours, chiefly the Axis powers of Germany and Italy. The Border Line was planned to slow or hold an invading force at the border. It consisted of a series of bunkers spaced at short intervals along the French, German and Austrian borders. The bunkers were reinforced by larger multi-blockhouse forts at key points. Most of the positions were within two or three kilometers of the frontier. Description The Border Line bunkers were spaced between and along the northern border of Switzerland.Kauffmann, pp. 155-156 A number were integrated into bridge crossings of the Rhine and other rivers. The large forts were armed with 75mm artillery and anti-tank weapons, and were usually built into the forward slope of a hill. The blockhouses were connected and supported by an underground gallery system giving access and shelter to underground barracks, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stollen Festung Reuenthal IMG 1612
Stollen ( or ) is a fruit bread of nuts, spices, and dried or candied fruit, coated with powdered sugar or icing sugar and often containing marzipan. It is a traditional German Christmas bread. During the Christmas season the cake-like loaves are called Weihnachtsstollen (after "Weihnachten", the German word for Christmas) or Christstollen (after Christ). Ingredients Stollen is a cake-like fruit bread made with yeast, water and flour, and usually with zest added to the dough. Orangeat (candied orange peel) and candied citrus peel (Zitronat), raisins and almonds, and various spices such as cardamom and cinnamon are added. Other ingredients, such as milk, sugar, butter, salt, rum, eggs, vanilla, other dried fruits and nuts and marzipan, may also be added to the dough. Except for the fruit added, the dough is quite low in sugar. The finished bread is sprinkled with icing sugar. The traditional weight of Stollen is around , but smaller sizes are common. The bread is slathered ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Basel
, french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese , neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (BS), Saint-Louis (FR-68), Weil am Rhein (DE-BW) , twintowns = Shanghai, Miami Beach , website = www.bs.ch Basel ( , ), also known as Basle ( ),french: Bâle ; it, Basilea ; rm, label=Sutsilvan, Basileia; other rm, Basilea . is a city in northwestern Switzerland on the river Rhine. Basel is Switzerland's third-most-populous city (after Zürich and Geneva) with about 175,000 inhabitants. The official language of Basel is (the Swiss variety of Standard) German, but the main spoken language is the local Basel German dialect. Basel is commonly considered to be the cultural capital of Switzerland and the city is famous for its many museums, including the Kunstmuseum, which is the first collection of art accessible t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prangins
Prangins () is a municipality in the district of Nyon in the canton of Vaud in Switzerland. It is located on Lake Geneva. History Prangins is first mentioned around 1135-85 as ''Prengins''. Following the fall of the Second French Empire, Prince Napoléon Bonaparte and his wife, Princess Maria Clotilde of Savoy, resided in exile at Château de Prangins, where Charles I of Austria and his family would later take residence briefly, beginning 20 May 1919. Geography Prangins has an area, , of . Of this area, or 54.7% is used for agricultural purposes, while or 13.1% is forested. Of the rest of the land, or 31.3% is settled (buildings or roads), or 0.7% is either rivers or lakes and or 0.2% is unproductive land.Swiss Federal Statistical Office-Land Use Statistics ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bassins, Switzerland
Bassins is a municipality in the district of Nyon in the canton of Vaud in Switzerland. The village of Bassins is located in the foothills of the Jura, at an average altitude of about 800 metres. History Bassins is first mentioned in 1095 as ''Bassins''. Geography Bassins has an area, , of . Of this area, or 35.6% is used for agricultural purposes, while or 61.2% is forested. Of the rest of the land, or 3.4% is settled (buildings or roads) and or 0.1% is unproductive land.Swiss Federal Statistical Office-Land Use Statistics 2009 data accessed 25 March 2010 Of the built up area, housing and buildings made up 2.0% and transportation infrastructure made up 1.3%. Out of the forested land, 58.9% of the total land area is heavily forested and 2.4% is ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Geneva
Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland. Situated in the south west of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the capital of the Republic and Canton of Geneva. The city of Geneva () had a population 201,818 in 2019 (Jan. estimate) within its small municipal territory of , but the Canton of Geneva (the city and its closest Swiss suburbs and exurbs) had a population of 499,480 (Jan. 2019 estimate) over , and together with the suburbs and exurbs located in the canton of Vaud and in the French departments of Ain and Haute-Savoie the cross-border Geneva metropolitan area as officially defined by Eurostat, which extends over ,As of 2020, the Eurostat-defined Functional Urban Area of Geneva was made up of 93 Swiss communes and 158 French communesFederal Statistical O ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lausanne
Lausanne ( , , , ) ; it, Losanna; rm, Losanna. is the capital and largest city of the Swiss French speaking canton of Vaud. It is a hilly city situated on the shores of Lake Geneva, about halfway between the Jura Mountains and the Alps, and facing the French town of Évian-les-Bains across the lake. Lausanne is located northeast of Geneva, the nearest major city. The municipality of Lausanne has a population of about 140,000, making it the List of cities in Switzerland, fourth largest city in Switzerland after Basel, Geneva, and Zurich, with the entire agglomeration area having about 420,000 inhabitants (as of January 2019). The metropolitan area of Lausanne-Geneva (including Vevey-Montreux, Yverdon-les-Bains, Valais and foreign parts), commonly designated as ''Lake Geneva region, Arc lémanique'' was over 1.3 million inhabitants in 2017 and is the fastest growing in Switzerland. Initially a Celtic and Roman settlement on the shores of the lake, Lausanne became a town at ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Toblerone Line
The Toblerone line is a 10 km long defensive line made of " dragon's teeth" fortifications built during the Second World War between Bassins and Prangins, in the Canton of Vaud, Switzerland. These lines of defensive blocks can be found all over Switzerland, though more commonly in border areas. Their purpose was to stop tank invasions. The 2,700 9-ton concrete blocks that make up the defences are similar to the shape of the Toblerone chocolate bar, which gave its name to the line. Since the line has been left to nature since its construction, it was decided to keep these concrete blocks and to make a hiking trail along their route. The line was built along twelve fortresses, the most well known being the "Villa Rose" in Gland, which was transformed into a museum and opened to the public in 2006. History The Toblerone line is a part of the Promenthouse defence line, which more or less follows the watercourse of the brooklets Promenthouse and Serine. First reconnaissa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fort Heldsberg
Fort Heldsberg was built 1938–1940 near St. Margrethen in Switzerland, overlooking the Rhine, which forms the Swiss-Austrian border at that location, just south of Lake Constance. The fort was part of the Swiss Border Line defenses, built between 1938 and 1941. Concept In March 1938, Austria was annexed by Germany under the ''Anschluss'', creating a new, potentially hostile section of frontier. The fort at Heldsberg was planned to stop or delay an attack across the nearby Rhine, as well as providing artillery coverage on the southern end of Lake Constance. The German plan for a Swiss invasion, Operation Tannenbaum, noted the presence of the Heldsberg position and concluded: A very desirable approach is to attack from the east at Rheineck, the shortest way to the enemy flank, but the mountainous terrain and the strong fortifications at Rheineck (Heldsberg) promise no success. However, the Border Line fortifications shared common faults, including less-than-thorough attention ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Schaffhausen
Schaffhausen (; gsw, Schafuuse; french: Schaffhouse; it, Sciaffusa; rm, Schaffusa; en, Shaffhouse) is a town with historic roots, a municipality in northern Switzerland, and the capital of the canton of the same name; it has an estimated population of 36,000 It is located right next to the shore of the High Rhine; it is one of four Swiss towns located on the northern side of the Rhine, along with , the historic , and . The old town has many fine Renaissance era buildings decorated with exterior frescos and sculpture, as well as the old canton fortress, the ''Munot''. Schaffhausen is also a railway junction of Swiss and German rail networks. One of the lines connects the town with the nearby Rhine Falls in , Europe's largest waterfall, a tourist attraction. The official language of Schaffhausen is (the Swiss variety of Standard) German, but the main spoken language is the local variant of the Alemannic Swiss German dialect. Name The town is first mentioned in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fort Ebersberg
Fort Ebersberg, also known as Fort Rüdlingen, was built between 1938 and 1940 in the Swiss Canton of Zurich to guard the Rhine against a German invasion at the opening of World War II. It is the only such position in the Zurich canton, located near the town of Berg am Irchel. The fort was part of the Swiss Border Line defenses, Swiss military designation A5438. Description The fort was built between 1938 and 1940, buried in sandstone on a north-facing slope. In 1978, the weapons were removed. The fort was decommissioned April 2003. Ebersberg's primary weapons were two semi-automatic 75mm guns in separate blockhouses,Kauffmann, pp. 157-158 intended to hamper a German crossing of the Rhine The Rhine ; french: Rhin ; nl, Rijn ; wa, Rén ; li, Rien; rm, label=Sursilvan, Rein, rm, label=Sutsilvan and Surmiran, Ragn, rm, label=Rumantsch Grischun, Vallader and Puter, Rain; it, Reno ; gsw, Rhi(n), including in Alsatian dialect, Al .... Present situation The surface installa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Zurich
Zurich (; ) is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich. , the municipality had 443,037 inhabitants, the urban area 1.315 million (2009), and the Zurich metropolitan area 1.83 million (2011). Zurich is a hub for railways, roads, and air traffic. Both Zurich Airport and Zurich's main railway station are the largest and busiest in the country. Permanently settled for over 2,000 years, Zurich was founded by the Romans, who called it '. However, early settlements have been found dating back more than 6,400 years (although this only indicates human presence in the area and not the presence of a town that early). During the Middle Ages, Zurich gained the independent and privileged status of imperial immediacy and, in 1519, became a primary centre of the Protestant Reformation in Europe under the leadership of Huldrych Zwingli. The official language of Zurich is Germ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fort Reuenthal
Fort Reuenthal is a 20th-century Swiss fortification located in the Aargau canton near the Swiss border with Germany. Built between 1937 and 1939, the fort overlooks the Rhine where it bends around the town of Full-Reuenthal, and was intended to prevent a crossing of the Rhine at the hydroelectric plant at Dogern. It was a component of the Swiss Border Line of defenses. It is armed with two artillery blocks for 75mm guns and two machine gun blocks. The fort uses camouflage, with house-like superstructures over some positions. Deactivated as a military post in 1988, it is operated as a museum. Description Fort Reuenthal is located just south of Full-Reuenthal. It overlooks the Rhine and the hydroelectric station spanning the river at Dogern. It is part of the Border Line defenses built by Switzerland in the late 1930s, prior to a shift in Swiss priorities to the National Redoubt in the Alps.Kauffmann, pp. 155-156 Work on the fort was started in 1937, and completed in 1939. The ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
