Rapperswil (

Swiss German Swiss German (Standard German: , ,Because of the many different dialects, and because there is no #Conventions, defined orthography for any of them, many different spellings can be found. and others; ) is any of the Alemannic German, Alemannic ...

: or ;Andres Kristol, ''Rapperswil SG (See)'' in: ''Dictionnaire toponymique des communes suisses – Lexikon der schweizerischen Gemeindenamen – Dizionario toponomastico dei comuni svizzeri (DTS, LSG)'', Centre de dialectologie, Université de Neuchâtel, Verlag Huber, Frauenfeld/Stuttgart/Wien 2005, and Éditions Payot, Lausanne 2005, , p. 727. short: ''Rappi'') is a former municipality and since January 2007 part of the

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

of Rapperswil-Jona in the ''Wahlkreis'' (

constituency An electoral (congressional, legislative, etc.) district, sometimes called a constituency, riding, or ward, is a geographical portion of a political unit, such as a country, state or province, city, or administrative region, created to provi ...

) of See-Gaster in the canton of St. Gallen in

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

, located between '' Obersee'' and the main part of

Lake Zurich Lake Zurich (, ; ) is a lake in Switzerland, extending southeast of the city of Zurich. Depending on the context, Lake Zurich or can be used to describe the lake as a whole, or just that part of the lake downstream of the Hurden peninsula and ...

Geography

Rapperswil is located on the northern shore of

at the point at which the lake is cut in two by the

Seedamm The Rapperswil Seedamm is the artificial causeway at the narrowest area of Lake Zurich between Hurden, Hurden (SZ) and Rapperswil (SG). The structure contains two bridge segments and is approximately long. The Seedamm carries a road () and ...

isthmus, which is an

ice age An ice age is a long period of reduction in the temperature of Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Earth's climate alternates between ice ages, and g ...

moraine A moraine is any accumulation of unconsolidated debris (regolith and Rock (geology), rock), sometimes referred to as glacial till, that occurs in both currently and formerly glaciated regions, and that has been previously carried along by a gla ...

. The upper (or eastern) part of Lake Zurich is called '' Obersee''. Part of the old town, the castle and monastery are situated on a

peninsula A peninsula is a landform that extends from a mainland and is only connected to land on one side. Peninsulas exist on each continent. The largest peninsula in the world is the Arabian Peninsula. Etymology The word ''peninsula'' derives , . T ...

Sights

The town's main sights are concentrated in the Altstadt of Rapperswil and can be seen while strolling through the medieval alleys. The main sights of Rapperswil are its rose gardens, Rapperswil Castle, the reconstructed wooden bridge to Hurden with its bridge chapel '' Heilig Hüsli'' located at

, the ''Kapuzinerkloster'' (Capuchin's monastery), the remains of the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

fortifications located on

, ''Lindenhof'' hill, ''Herrenberg'', ''Engelplatz'', ''Hauptplatz'', ''Bühlerallee'' and ''Fischmarktplatz'' at Rapperswil harbour. Rapperswil is often referred to as the "town of roses" (''Rosenstadt'') because of its extensive displays of roses in three designated parks. No less than 15,000 plants of 600 different kinds may be viewed between June and October. There is also a rose garden in the town center, accessible to blind and disabled people. The old town ( Altstadt) is dominated by the ''Schloss'' Rapperswil located at the peninsula called ''Endingen'', ''Lindenhof'' and ''Herrenberg'' on Lake Zurich perched atop this rocky hill at the bay of Kempraten. The castle dates back to the early 13th century (first mentioned in 1229). In 1350, it was destroyed by Rudolf Brun, the mayor of

Zurich Zurich (; ) is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich. , the municipality had 448,664 inhabitants. The ...

, and was rebuilt in 1352/54 by Albrecht II, Duke of Austria. Deer inhabit lands surrounding the castle. Since 1870, the castle has been home to the Polish National Museum created by Polish émigrés, including the castle's lessee and restorer, Count Wladyslaw Broel-Plater. A small Capuchin's monastery was established in 1606 at the lakeside ''Endingerhorn'' as a Catholic counterpart to the Reformation's centre in the city of

. The monastery buildings belong to the citizens of Rapperswil (''Endingen'' itself belongs to the Einsiedeln Abbey) rather than to the monks who inhabit it, and is still in use. The main churches in town include the Roman Catholic St. John's Church (built in early 13th century), the cemetery chapel ( ''Liebfrauenkapelle'') and a small Protestant church. The locational advantage of the place attracted the national Circus Knie who built its headquarters in Rapperswil in 1919. The circus is now also responsible for the Circus Museum and the Knie's Kinderzoo located in Rapperswil which is particularly aimed at children. Rapperswil also hosts the Hochschule für Technik Rapperswil HSR (University of Applied Sciences Rapperswil) and an Economics school for parts of the cantons Zurich and St. Gallen. Zürichsee-Schifffahrtsgesellschaft (commonly abbreviated to ''ZSG'') operates passenger vessels on

(''Zürichsee''), connecting the surrounding towns between Zürich-Bürkliplatz and the Rapperswil peninsula with its harbour area.

History

Early history

Einsiedlerhaus - Endingerturm - Schlossberg-Lindenhof - Rosengarte 2011-07-02 15-00-10 ShiftN

Settlements in the region of Rapperswil date back to at least 5000 years ago. Archaeological relicts have been found at the ''Technikum'' island settlement, and the remains of a first wooden bridge (1523 BC, reconstructed in 2001) to Hurden located on the ''Obersee'' lakeshore nearby the Technical University (HSR) respectively the so-called '' Heilig Hüsli'' at the northwestern part of the

area. The three neighbouring Prehistoric settlements, as well as the early lake crossings, are part of the

UNESCO World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

'' Prehistoric Pile dwellings around the Alps''. In Kempraten, two kilometers away, there was a probably Helvetic settlement;

Neue Zürcher Zeitung The (''NZZ''; "New Newspaper of Zurich") is German language daily newspaper, published by NZZ Mediengruppe in Zurich. The paper was founded in 1780. It has a reputation as a high-quality newspaper, as the German Swiss newspaper of record ...

(20/21 January 2001): ''Die Brücke auf dem Grund des Zürichsees'' and in the beginning of the 1st century AD, the Roman vicus '' Centum Prata'' (meaning ''100 meadows'') became an important trade center on the way to the Roman heartland. The

Neolithic The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Ancient Greek, Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revo ...

bridge between Hurden and Rapperswil was renewed by the Romans at least around 165 AD. Historians mention a 10th-century ferry station assumably at the so-called '' Einsiedlerhaus'' in Rapperswil – in 981 AD as well as the vineyard on the

Lindenhof hill The Lindenhof (''"Tilia, linden yard"'') is a moraine hill and public square in the historic center of Zurich, Switzerland. It is the site of the Switzerland in the Roman era, Roman and Carolingian era Kaiserpfalz around which the city has histor ...

– between Kempraten on Kempratnerbucht, Lützelau and Ufenau island and assumably present Hurden, which allowed the pilgrims towards Einsiedeln to cross the lake before the prehistoric bridge at the

isthmus was re-built in 1358.

Counts of Rapperswil

Rapperswil Castle and the fortifications of the former locus ''Endingen'' (given by the Einsiedeln Abbey) were built by the Counts of Rapperswil, i.e. by ''Rudolf II'' and his son ''Rudolf III von Rapperswil'' around 1200: The town was founded when the nobility of Rapperswil moved from Altendorf across the lake to Rapperswil. On the peninsula at Oberbollingen, the St. Nicholas Chapel is mentioned, where around 1229 a small Cistercian (later Premonstratensian) monastery was established by the house of Rapperswil; in 1267 it was united with the nearby Mariazell-Wurmsbach Abbey. St. Martin Busskirch is one of the oldest churches around upper Lake Zürich. Even the citizens of Rapperswil had to attend services in Busskirch until Count Rudolf II built the ''Stadtpfarrkirche'' on ''Herrenberg'' next to Rapperswil Castle on ''Lindenhof'' hill. Known members of the family are Countess Elisabeth von Rapperswil (around 1252/62 –1309), her sons Wernher von Homberg, Reichsvogt and minnesang poet, and Count Johann I. von Habsburg-Laufenburg-Rapperswil (* around 1295/97, † 1337). His son Johann II († 1380), the opposition's leader against Rudolf Brun, the mayor of Zürich, was arrested for two years, and the town walls of Rapperswil, its castle and Altendorf castle were destroyed by Brun in 1350.

Modern history

Between 1358 and 1360

Rudolf IV, Duke of Austria Rudolf IV (1 November 1339 – 27 July 1365), also called Rudolf the Founder (), was a scion of the House of Habsburg who ruled as duke of Austria (self-proclaimed archduke), Styria and Carinthia from 1358, as well as count of Tyrol from 136 ...

, built a wooden bridge across the lake that has been used to 1878 – measuring approximately in length and wide; 546 oak piles have been installed. In 1415, the town bought freedom for itself. In 1442, during Old Zurich War, Rapperswil was in alliance with Zürich and the Habsburg Dynasty. In 1458 Rapperswil was controlled by the Swiss Confederation as a so-called ''Gemeine Herrschaft'', i.e. under control of two cantons (Glarus and Schwyz) of the Old Swiss Confederation and their representative, a ''Vogt'' at Rapperswil castle. Because of its strategic location along important infrastructure lines, and because of flourishing trade, the town grew rich. This allowed a certain degree of freedom (especially within the Habsburg-controlled territories and) within the Swiss Confederation which ended with the formation of the Swiss cantons by

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

in 1799. In 1656 and 1712 (the First War of Villmergen and the Toggenburg War, or Second War of Villmergen, respectively), Rapperswil was involved in wars between the Catholic and Reformed cantons of the Old Swiss Confederation. Rapperswil was at first part of the Helvetic and the canton of Linth's capital city. After the 1803 Act of Mediation, it joined the canton of St. Gallen, and the former ''Herrschaft Rapperswil'' was split into the municipalities of Rapperswil and Jona. On 1 January 2007 the former municipalities of Rapperswil and Jona merged to form a new political entity: Rapperswil-Jona has a population of 25,777 (December 2007). This makes it the second-largest town in the canton after the capital of St. Gallen itself.

Culture

Ironman 70.3 An Ironman 70.3, also known as a Half Ironman, is one of a series of long-distance triathlon races organized by the World Triathlon Corporation (WTC). The "70.3" refers to the total distance in miles (113.0 km) covered in the race, consisting ...

Switzerland and the Triathlon Challenge took place in Rapperswil-Jona on 6 June 2010, and was repeated several times. The ''blues'n'jazz'' festival, taking place since 1998, is held at the end of June. Every three years ''Seenachtsfest'' is celebrated one weekend in August, attracting nearly 100,000 visitors to a spectacular fireworks, for the next time in summer 2018. Rapperswil is the home of the Rapperswil-Jona Lakers, and their ''Diners Club Arena'' is situated on ''Obersee'' lakeshore. ''Kunst(Zeug)Haus'' is a vibrant center of Swiss contemporary art, housed in a former Swiss Military armory (''Zeughaus''). '' Herzbaracke'' is a swimming theatre, cabaret and restaurant on Lake Zürich at different locations, among them Zürich-Bellevue and Rapperswil harbour. '' Eis-zwei-Geissebei'' is a Carnival festival in Rapperswil on Shrove Tuesday, and ''Christkindlymärt'' is a Christmas funfair celebrated in late December, and last but not least, '' Radio Zürisee'' is situated in Rapperswil opposite of the Rapperswil railway station, and Obersee Nachrichten at ''Hauptplatz'' plaza. In Rapperswil there are several sites situated that are listed as Swiss heritage sites of national significance: '' Schloss Rapperswil'' with the Polish Museum including the Polish national archive, the medieval ''Rathaus'' (town hall) located at the ''Hauptplatz'' square, and the

region including Heilig Hüsli and the remains of the prehistoric wooden bridges respectively the neolithic stilt house settlements located there. The latter are part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site "Prehistoric Pile dwellings around the Alps".

Cultural heritage

Located at the ''

'' isthmus in Lake Zurich, the area is in close vicinity to the prehistoric lake crossings discovered at the Hurden Rosshorn site. One Prehistoric pile dwelling settlement, Rapperswil-Jona–Technikum, was located on a former island and directly linked to these sea crossings. The Feldbach settlement was located at a 3 km footwalk distance to the north and the west. The Hurden Seefeld settlement was located close to the other end of the sea crossings, on the Hurden side. Because the lake has grown in size over time, the original piles are now around to under the water level of . As well as being part of the 56 Swiss sites of the UNESCO World Heritage Site ''Prehistoric pile dwellings around the Alps'', the settlements are also listed in the

Swiss inventory of cultural property of national and regional significance #REDIRECT Swiss Inventory of Cultural Property of National and Regional Significance {{R from other capitalisation ...

as ''Class A'' objects of national importance.

Transportation

is a nodal point of the IR '' Voralpen Express'' (VAE) of SOB, the Zurich S-Bahn lines S5, S7, S15 and S40, and the St. Gallen S-Bahn lines S4, S6 and S17. This

railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

is a 36-minute (S5/S15, combined quarter-hourly service) ride away from

Zürich Hauptbahnhof Zürich Hauptbahnhof, often shortened to Zürich HB or just HB, and known in English as Zurich Main Station, is the largest railway station in Switzerland and one of the busiest in Europe. It is a major railway hub, with services to and from a ...

and a 48-minute ride away from St. Gallen with the VAE (or 56 min with the S4), which provide a combined half-hourly service. The VAE also provides a direct link to . The railway tracks and the infrastructure, excluded the train station's building, have been renewed by June/July 2016. The harbour is located adjacent to Rapperswil railway station and served by regular boat lines of ZSG. Boats run to/from

and other lakeside towns. Since 2008, the bus service in Rapperswil-Jona (''Stadtbus Rapperswil-Jona'') has been provided by the Verkehrsbetriebe Zürichsee und Oberland (VZO). In addition, '' Schneider Busbetrieb'' operates line 622 to Wagen (continues to St. Gallenkappel/ Wattwil) and line 621 to Buech/St. Dyonis. As of 2016, an average of 26,000 road vehicles cross the

causeway and the ''Bahnhofstrasse'' road in Rapperswil every day. As of 30 June 2016, Rapperswil-Jona is expected to participate as the first Swiss city in a pilot project for so-called Mobility pricing in order to relieve the traffic on road and rail during rush hours.

Gallery

File:Rapperswil - Stadtmuseum - Abschluss Erneuerung 2011-11-18 16-27-38 ShiftN.jpg, Stadtmuseum Rapperswil File:Fischmarktplatz - Rapperswil Hafen 2011-07-09 14-21-02.JPG, ''Fischmarktplatz'' File:Rapperswil - Engelplatz IMG 2409 ShiftN.jpg, ''Engelplatz'' File:Rapperswil - Herrenberg IMG 4818 ShiftN.jpg, ''Herrenberg'' File:Rapperswil - Stadtpfarrkirche-Schloss - Kempraten IMG 5536.JPG, Stadtmuseum Rapperswil, Liebfrauenkapelle, ''Stadtpfarrkirche'' St. Johann (St. John's church) and the ''Schloss'', as seen from Kempraten-Lenggis File:Liebfrauenkapelle & Mariensäule - Stadtpfarrkirche-Schlossgasse 2011-07-02 14-51-50 ShiftN3.jpg, '' Liebfrauenkapelle'' (St Mary's church) between ''Schloss'' and ''Stadtpfarrkirche'' File:Kempraten-Rapperswil - Kapelle St Ursula IMG 5550 ShiftN.jpg, ''St. Ursula chappel (re-built in 1607'') File:Rapperswil - Reformierte Kirche - Friedhof 2011-05-25 11-13-12 ShiftN.jpg, ''Reformierte Kirche'' (built in 1841) File:Eis-Zwei-Geissebei (2010) IMG 8578 ShiftN.jpg, '' Eis-zwei-Geissebei on the main square at Rathaus Rapperswil (townhall)'' File:Herzbaracke - Rapperswil IMG 5573.JPG, '' Herzbaracke'' cabaret-theater at Rapperswil harbour File:Rapperswil - Seedamm IMG 2913 ShiftN.jpg, ''See-Quai'' in Rapperswil, ''Bühlerallee'' to the left, ''Lindenhof'' hill in the background File:Rapperswil - Hirschpark - Schloss - Lindenhof 2011-06-19 15-11-56.JPG, ''Lindenhof'' and Deer park towards to the ''Schloss''

Personalities

Codex Manesse 192v - Albrecht von Rapperswil

; Early times * (Saint) Kunigunde of Rapperswil died in early 4th century AD, a Christian saint, beatified 1504 * Elisabeth von Rapperswil (c.1251 – 1309) the last countess of the House of Rapperswil * Albrecht von Rapperswil (13th century) one of the Minnesingers featured in the

Codex Manesse The Codex Manesse (also or Pariser Handschrift) is a (a German term for a manuscript containing songs) which is the single most comprehensive source of Middle High German ''Minnesang'' poetry. It was written and illustrated manuscript, illustr ...

* Wernher von Homberg (1284–1320) a knight in the service of Henry VII, Holy Roman Emperor * Count Johann I (Habsburg-Laufenburg) (c.1297–1337), son of Countess Elisabeth von Rapperswil * Count Johann II (Habsburg-Laufenburg) (c.1330 – 1380), son of Johann I ; Modern times * Valentin Molitor (1637–1713) a composer and Benedictine monk * Marianne Ehrmann (1755–1795) early woman novelist, publicist and journalist * Felix Maria Diogg (1762–1834) a painter and Swiss

Classicism Classicism, in the arts, refers generally to a high regard for a classical period, classical antiquity in the Western tradition, as setting standards for taste which the classicists seek to emulate. In its purest form, classicism is an aesthe ...

portraitist * Count Wladyslaw Plater (1808–1889) a Polish count, in 1870 co-founded the Polish Museum, Rapperswil * Joachim Raff (1822–1882) a German-Swiss composer, teacher and pianist * Agaton Giller (1831–1887) a Polish historian, journalist and politician; co-founded the Polish Museum, Rapperswil * Alwina Gossauer (1841–1926) one of the first Swiss women professional photographers * Franz Curti (1854–1898), opera composer * Stefan Zeromski (1864–1925) a Polish novelist and dramatist; nominated four times for the

Nobel Prize in Literature The Nobel Prize in Literature, here meaning ''for'' Literature (), is a Swedish literature prize that is awarded annually, since 1901, to an author from any country who has, in the words of the will of Swedish industrialist Alfred Nobel, "in ...

* Martha Burkhardt (1874–1956) a painter and photographer Information boards on occasion of the 2015 exhibition ''Der Zeit voraus - Drei Frauen auf eigenen Wegen'', Stadtmuseum Rapperswil-Jona. *

Josef Müller-Brockmann Josef Müller-Brockmann (9 May 1914 – 30 August 1996) was a Swiss graphic designer, author, and educator, he was a Principal at Muller-Brockmann & Co. design firm. He was a pioneer of the International Typographic Style. One of the main master ...

(1914–1996) a graphic designer and teacher * Kurt Aepli (1914–2002) a silversmith, designer of fine jewelry and implements and teacher * Josef Helbling (born 1935) a former cyclist, competed in the

1960 Summer Olympics The 1960 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XVII Olympiad () and commonly known as Rome 1960 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 25 August to 11 September 1960 in Rome, Italy. Rome had previously been awar ...

* Gerold Späth (born 1939) an author, poet and writer IMDb Database
retrieved 20 December 2018 * Hans Heinemann (born 1940) a former cyclist, competed in the 1960 and the

1964 Summer Olympics The , officially the and commonly known as Tokyo 1964 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 10 to 24 October 1964 in Tokyo, Japan. Tokyo had been awarded the organization of the 1940 Summer Olympics, but this honor was subseq ...

* Alfredo Battistini (1953–2008) an Italian-Swiss sculptor, illustrator and athlete * Alexander Hahn (born 1954) is an electronic media artist

References

Literature

* Beat Glaus: ''Der Kanton Linth der Helvetik''. Schwyz 2005. * Peter Röllin: ''Kulturbaukasten Rapperswil-Jona''. Rapperswil-Jona 2005.

External links

Rapperswil-Jona
(official site)
Ortsgemeinde Rapperswil-Jona

* {{Authority control Former municipalities of the canton of St. Gallen Tourist attractions in Rapperswil-Jona States and territories established in 1220 Former protectorates of Switzerland Rapperswil (1415–1458) 1798 disestablishments in Europe Rapperswil-Jona Populated places on Lake Zurich 1220s establishments in the Holy Roman Empire 1220 establishments in Europe 1460s disestablishments in the Holy Roman Empire 1464 disestablishments in Europe 15th-century establishments in the Old Swiss Confederacy 1450s establishments in the Holy Roman Empire 1458 establishments in Europe