Delémont (; ; , ) is the

capital Capital and its variations may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** Capital region, a metropolitan region containing the capital ** List of national capitals * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Econom ...

of the

Swiss canton The 26 cantons of Switzerland are the Federated state, member states of the Switzerland, Swiss Confederation. The nucleus of the Swiss Confederacy in the form of the first three confederate allies used to be referred to as the . Two important ...

of Jura. The city has approximately 12,000 inhabitants .

History

The area 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' ...

was already settled in the middle

Bronze Age The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...

. Fifteen urn burials have been discovered in the municipality. There were late Bronze Age settlements south and west of the modern city. Several

Iron Age The Iron Age () is the final epoch of the three historical Metal Ages, after the Chalcolithic and Bronze Age. It has also been considered as the final age of the three-age division starting with prehistory (before recorded history) and progre ...

buildings have been discovered south of town. There is also evidence of a

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

settlement, including a

Gallo-Roman Gallo-Roman culture was a consequence of the Romanization (cultural), Romanization of Gauls under the rule of the Roman Empire in Roman Gaul. It was characterized by the Gaulish adoption or adaptation of Roman culture, Roman culture, language ...

mausoleum and a small cache of coins. One or possibly several villas in the area may indicate the existence of a

vicus In Ancient Rome, the Latin term (plural ) designated a village within a rural area () or the neighbourhood of a larger settlement. During the Republican era, the four of the city of Rome were subdivided into . In the 1st century BC, Augustus ...

near the town. The first historic mention of the name dates from 736 to 37 as ''Delemonte''. In 1131, the first mention of the German name ''Telsperg'' was recorded. It is also mentioned as Laimunt (1181) and Deleymunt (1225). The name is a combination of the Germanic ''Tello'' or ''Dagili'' with the Latin word ''mons'' for ''mountain''. Since the 7th century, the region belonged to the lands of the counts of

Alsace Alsace (, ; ) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in the Grand Est administrative region of northeastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine, next to Germany and Switzerland. In January 2021, it had a population of 1,9 ...

. In 1271, it was sold to the Bishop of

Basel Basel ( ; ), also known as Basle ( ), ; ; ; . is a city in northwestern Switzerland on the river Rhine (at the transition from the High Rhine, High to the Upper Rhine). Basel is Switzerland's List of cities in Switzerland, third-most-populo ...

. At this time it consisted of a fortified village and two castles, which were probably the homes of the Telsberg family. The city was declared to have municipal rights by Bishop Peter Reich von Reichenstein on 6 January 1289. This charter allowed the city some self-governance and allowed it to distribute land, which created favorable conditions for the growth of the town. In 1338 they received the right to collect a tax on wine and food and in 1461 they were allowed to sell and tax salt in the valleys of Delémont and Moutier. From this income, as well as the money from a brick factory, two mills and eight farms, which were in use between the 15th and 17th centuries the city was able to meet all of its financial obligations. From 1289 to 1793, it was the capital of the estate of Delémont. The old town was nearly square, with two large longitudinal streets that are intersected by three cross streets. The city was surrounded by city walls, which were strengthened in the southwest, near the

Bishop's Castle Bishop's Castle is a market town in the south west of Shropshire, England. According to the 2011 Census it had a population of 1,893. Bishop's Castle is east of the Wales–England border, about north-west of Ludlow and about south-west of ...

, during the 14th century. In the north-east corner a large round tower was built in the 13th century. There were four gates into the city: Porte Monsieur (or de Porrentruy), the Porte au Loup, the Porte des Moulins and the Porte des Près (or de Bâle). The latter was bricked up in 1487, when a fire destroyed a large part of the city. One characteristic of Delémont are the monumental fountains in the late

Renaissance style Renaissance architecture is the European architecture of the period between the early 15th and early 16th centuries in different regions, demonstrating a conscious revival and development of certain elements of Ancient Greece, ancient Greek and ...

. The most important public buildings were rebuilt in the 18th century. The Bishop's Castle, which served as a summer residence, was rebuilt in 1716-21 by Pierre Racine from Tramelan. The

Châtelain Châtelain was originally the French title for the keeper of a castle.Abraham Rees Ebers, "CASTELLAIN", in: The Cyclopædia, or Universal Dictionary of Arts, Sciences, and Literature' (London: Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & Brown, 1819), vol. 6. H ...

's building was rebuilt in 1717, followed in 1742-45 the

town hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or municipal hall (in the Philippines) is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses the city o ...

by Johann Caspar Bagnato and in 1753 the private residence of the family of Rinck Baldenstein, the county's administrator. The church of Saint-Marcel was built 1762-67 from plans by Pierre-Francois Paris, and replaced a

Gothic style Gothic architecture is an architectural style that was prevalent in Europe from the late 12th to the 16th century, during the High and Late Middle Ages, surviving into the 17th and 18th centuries in some areas. It evolved from Romanesque ar ...

building which stood on the same location. The steeple was completed in 1850–51. Couvent des Capucins

The town's

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

was first mentioned in 1255. The parish was administered by either a priest or a rector and seven or four (after 1760) chaplains. The rector of the Church of Saint-Marcel was also the

dean Dean may refer to: People * Dean (given name) * Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin * Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk * Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean * Dean Sw ...

of the rural

diaconate A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian denominations, such as the Catholi ...

of Salignon in the diocese of Basel. Between 1534 and 1792 the parish church served as the

collegiate church In Christianity, a collegiate church is a church where the daily office of worship is maintained by a college of canons, a non-monastic or "secular" community of clergy, organised as a self-governing corporate body, headed by a dignitary bearing ...

for the

collegiate chapter In Christianity, a collegiate church is a church where the daily office of worship is maintained by a college (canon law), college of canon (priest), canons, a non-monastic or secular clergy, "secular" community of clergy, organised as a self-gover ...

of Moutier-Grandval, who had fled to Delémont during the

Protestant Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the papacy and ...

. During the

Counter-Reformation The Counter-Reformation (), also sometimes called the Catholic Revival, was the period of Catholic resurgence that was initiated in response to, and as an alternative to or from similar insights as, the Protestant Reformations at the time. It w ...

a monastery of the

Order of Friars Minor Capuchin The Order of Friars Minor Capuchin (; postnominal abbr. OFMCap) is a religious order of Franciscan friars within the Catholic Church, one of three " First Orders" that reformed from the Franciscan Friars Minor Observant (OFMObs, now OFM), the ...

and an Ursuline convent were established, which remained until 1793. The Ursulines were established in 1698 to provide an education for young girls, which they did for almost a century. The chapel of Saint-Imier, the former chapel of Telsberg castle, was rebuilt in 1586 and dedicated to

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a female given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religion * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also called the Blesse ...

. During the increase in popularity of the Marian cult in the 17th century, the chapel was expanded and rebuilt several times. After the coronation of the statue of Notre-Dame in 1869 the chapel became the most popular pilgrimage place in the Catholic Jura. In 1793, Delémont was conquered by French Revolutionary troops and became the seat of one of the districts of the Département du Mont Terrible. In 1800, this was incorporated into the Département du

Haut-Rhin Haut-Rhin (); Alsatian: ''Owerelsàss'' or '; , . is a department in the Grand Est region, France, bordering both Germany and Switzerland. It is named after the river Rhine; its name means Upper Rhine. Haut-Rhin is the smaller and less pop ...

. After the fall of

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 ...

, the region was given to the Canton of Bern in 1815. Under the French, the old power structure in the city was suppressed. The ''

Bürgergemeinde The Bürgergemeinde (also Burgergemeinde, Ortsgemeinde, Ortsbürgergemeinde, Tagwen, commune bourgeoise, vischnanca burgaisa; ) is a statutory corporation in public law in Switzerland. It includes all individuals who are citizens of the Bürgerg ...

'' (an association of all full citizens) no longer had authority over most of the city lands and the town council became an advisory only organization. After the city came under Bernese authority, the old power structure rushed back into power. The Bürgergemeinde, which owned all the common lands, accepted only a few dozen new members, until 1820 when it closed itself to new members. This unequal power structure remained in place until the liberal revolution in 1831, known as the Regeneration, granted full citizenship rights to all residents of the town. The distribution of the Bürgergemeinde lands dragged on until 1866, when the

Canton of Bern The canton of Bern, or Berne (; ; ; ), is one of the Canton of Switzerland, 26 cantons forming the Switzerland, Swiss Confederation. Its capital city, Bern, is also the ''de facto'' capital of Switzerland. The bear is the heraldic symbol of the c ...

finally pushed through an agreement. During the 19th century industrialization, the German-speaking population increased greatly, and in 1880 reached nearly 40%. The city was briefly bilingual, but since 1920, the German-speaking minority has continuously decreased. Since 1947, the city became a center for agitation for separation from the Canton of Bern. In the referendums in 1959 and 1974, a large majority voted for the creation of the Canton of Jura. From 1976 to 1978, Delémont was the meeting place for the drafting of the cantonal constitution for the new canton, which was created 1 January 1979, with Delémont as its capital.

Geography

Delémont has an area of . Of this area, or 37.0% is used for agricultural purposes, while or 42.0% is forested. Of the rest of the land, or 20.1% is settled (buildings or roads), or 0.8% is either rivers or lakes 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, industrial buildings made up 2.8% of the total area while housing and buildings made up 9.8% and transportation infrastructure made up 5.2%. Power and water infrastructure as well as other special developed areas made up 1.2% of the area while parks, green belts and sports fields made up 1.1%. Out of the forested land, 40.2% of the total land area is heavily forested and 1.8% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 17.8% is used for growing crops and 12.2% is pastures and 6.5% is used for alpine pastures. All the water in the municipality is flowing water. Delémont lies southwest of

, about halfway between Basel and

Bienne Biel/Bienne (official bilingual wording; German: ''Biel'' ; French: ''Bienne'' ; locally ; ; ; ) is a bilingual city in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. With over 55,000 residents, it is the country's tenth-largest city by population. Th ...

. It stretches along both sides of the Sorne river, shortly before it flows into the

Birs The Birs (French: ''Birse'') is a long river in Switzerland that flows through the Jura region and ends as a tributary to the Rhine between Basel and Birsfelden. It is the most important river of the Swiss Jura. Course The Birs has its sour ...

on the northern edge of the Delémont valley, a wide depression in the

Jura Mountains The Jura Mountains ( ) are a sub-alpine mountain range a short distance north of the Western Alps and mainly demarcate a long part of the French–Swiss border. While the Jura range proper (" folded Jura", ) is located in France and Switzerla ...

. The area of the

is largely given to intensive cultivation. At the south end of the valley is the Montchaibeux, an isolated hill. On the north, the valley is bounded by the Les Rangiers range, with la Chaive () as the highest point in the municipality. The eastern boundary is the

River. The towns Les Rondez and Les Vorbourgs are part of the municipality. The surrounding municipalities are

Develier Develier is a municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the district of Delémont (district), Delémont in the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Jura (canton), Jura in Switzerland. History Develier is first mentioned in 1139 as ''Divilier''. ...

Courtételle Courtételle is a municipality in the district of Delémont in the canton of Jura in Switzerland. History Courtételle is first mentioned in 1178 as ''Curtetele''. Geography Courtételle has an area of . Of this area, or 55.6% is used for a ...

, Rossemaison,

Courrendlin Courrendlin (; ) is a municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the district of Delémont (district), Delémont in the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Jura (canton), Jura in Switzerland. On 1 January 2019 the former municipalities of Rebeuv ...

Courroux Courroux (, ; ) is a municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the district of Delémont (district), Delémont in the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Jura (canton), Jura in Switzerland. History Courroux is first mentioned in 1146 under its ...

, Soyhières, Mettembert, and

Bourrignon Bourrignon is a municipality in the district of Delémont in the canton of Jura in Switzerland. History Bourrignon is first mentioned in 1136 as ''Borognuns''. In 1295 it was mentioned as ''Burgis''. The municipality was formerly known by its ...

Climate

Delémont has an

oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate or maritime climate, is the temperate climate sub-type in Köppen climate classification, Köppen classification represented as ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of co ...

(Cfb), according to the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

, bordering a

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers, and cold ...

(Dfb). Between 1981 and 2001 Delémont had an average of 134.3 days of rain or snow per year and on average received of

precipitation In meteorology, precipitation is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls from clouds due to gravitational pull. The main forms of precipitation include drizzle, rain, rain and snow mixed ("sleet" in Commonwe ...

. The wettest month on average is May during which time Delémont received an average of of rain. During this month there was precipitation for an average of 12.9 days. The driest month of the year is February with an average of of precipitation over 9 days.

Coat of arms

The

blazon In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct an accurate image. The verb ''to blazon'' means to create such a description. The visual d ...

of the municipal

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...

is ''Gules, a Crosier Argent over Coupeaux of Six of the same.''

Demographics

Delémont has a population () of . , 23.9% of the population are resident foreign nationals.Swiss Federal Statistical Office - Superweb database - Gemeinde Statistics 1981-2008
accessed 19 June 2010 Over the last 10 years (2000–2010) the population has changed at a rate of 1.7%. Migration accounted for 0.5%, while births and deaths accounted for 1.4%.
accessed 21-December-2011 Most of the population () speaks

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

(9,574 or 84.3%) as their first language,

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

is the second most common (449 or 4.0%) and

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

is the third (350 or 3.1%). There are 5 people who speak Romansh. , the population was 48.6% male and 51.4% female. The population was made up of 4,114 Swiss men (35.5% of the population) and 1,512 (13.1%) non-Swiss men. There were 4,669 Swiss women (40.3%) and 1,291 (11.1%) non-Swiss women. Of the population in the municipality, 3,673 or about 32.4% were born in Delémont and lived there in 2000. There were 2,823 or 24.9% who were born in the same canton, while 1,703 or 15.0% were born somewhere else in Switzerland, and 2,720 or 24.0% were born outside of Switzerland. , children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 21.9% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 60.6% and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 17.5%. , there were 4,501 people who were single and never married in the municipality. There were 5,379 married individuals, 832 widows or widowers and 641 individuals who are divorced.STAT-TAB Datenwürfel für Thema 40.3 - 2000
accessed 2 February 2011 , there were 5,039 private households in the municipality, and an average of 2.2 persons per household. There were 1,883 households that consist of only one person and 269 households with five or more people. , a total of 4,783 apartments (89.0% of the total) were permanently occupied, while 321 apartments (6.0%) were seasonally occupied and 270 apartments (5.0%) were empty.Swiss Federal Statistical Office STAT-TAB - Datenwürfel für Thema 09.2 - Gebäude und Wohnungen
accessed 28 January 2011 , the construction rate of new housing units was 1.6 new units per 1000 residents. The vacancy rate for the municipality, , was 1.06%.

Historic population

The historical population is given in the following chart: Colors= id:lightgrey value:gray(0.9) id:darkgrey value:gray(0.8) ImageSize = width:900 height:500 PlotArea = height:350 left: 100 bottom:90 right:100 Legend = columns:3 left:220 top:70 columnwidth:160 AlignBars = justify DateFormat = x.y Period = from:0 till:12000 TimeAxis = orientation:vertical AlignBars = justify ScaleMajor = gridcolor:darkgrey increment:2000 start:0 ScaleMinor = gridcolor:lightgrey increment:400 start:0 Colors= id:TO value:yellowgreen legend:Total id:FR value:teal legend:French_Speaking id:GE value:green legend:German_Speaking id:PR value:lightpurple legend:Protestant id:CA value:oceanblue legend:Catholic id:SW value:red legend:Swiss PlotData= color:yellowgreen width:40 mark:(line,white) align:center bar:1850 from:start till:1650 text:"1,650" color:TO bar:1880 from:start till:2793 text:"2,793" color:TO bar:1910 from:start till:6161 text:"6,161" color:TO bar:1930 from:start till:6393 text:"6,393" color:TO bar:1950 from:start till:7504 text:"7,504" color:TO bar:1970 from:start till:11797 text:"11,797" color:TO bar:1990 from:start till:11548 text:"11,548" color:TO bar:2000 from:start till:11353 text:"11,353" color:TO LineData = points:(200,141)(300,195) color:FR points:(300,195)(400,222) color:FR points:(400,222)(500,261) color:FR points:(500,261)(600,348) color:FR points:(600,348)(700,365) color:FR points:(700,365)(800,369) color:FR points:(200,126)(300,157) color:GE points:(300,157)(400,141) color:GE points:(400,141)(500,132) color:GE points:(500,132)(600,122) color:GE points:(600,122)(700,103) color:GE points:(700,103)(800,100) color:GE points:(200,111)(300,154) color:PR points:(300,154)(400,160) color:PR points:(400,160)(500,159) color:PR points:(500,159)(600,162) color:PR points:(600,162)(700,139) color:PR points:(700,139)(800,132) color:PR points:(200,154)(300,203) color:CA points:(300,203)(400,204) color:CA points:(400,204)(500,238) color:CA points:(500,238)(600,357) color:CA points:(600,357)(700,350) color:CA points:(700,350)(800,318) color:CA points:(100,133)(200,167) color:SW points:(200,167)(300,244) color:SW points:(300,244)(400,266) color:SW points:(400,266)(500,297) color:SW points:(500,297)(600,365) color:SW points:(600,365)(700,356) color:SW points:(700,356)(800,336) color:SW

Government

Delémont hosts the parliament and government of the Canton of Jura, but many other governmental functions are housed in

Porrentruy Porrentruy (; ; ) is a Swiss municipality and seat of the district of the same name located in the canton of Jura. Porrentruy is home to National League team, HC Ajoie. History The first trace of human presence in Porrentruy is a Mesolit ...

, such as the cantonal courts.

Politics

In the 2007 federal election the most popular party was the SPS which received 48.54% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the CVP (14.95%), the FDP (13.53%) and the SVP (11.96%). In the federal election, a total of 3,090 votes were cast, and the

voter turnout In political science, voter turnout is the participation rate (often defined as those who cast a ballot) of a given election. This is typically either the percentage of Voter registration, registered voters, Suffrage, eligible voters, or all Voti ...

was 42.6%.

Economy

By 1770, the city had already begun to develop as a strong trading and manufacturing center. Only about 25% of the population was still engaged in agriculture. In the 19th century, industrialization began, led by steel mills, watchmaking, and machine, cigar, and cement manufacturing. Perhaps the most well known firm based here is

Wenger Wenger was a Economy of Switzerland, Swiss cutlery manufacturer that exists today as a brand of once-rival Victorinox, used for knives, watches and licensed products. Founded in 1893, it was best known as one of two companies to manufacture Swi ...

. Their factory does not have a show room. Today, Delémont is the economic and governmental hub of the canton, as well as the neighboring Jura region of the Canton of Bern. In addition to its traditional manufacturing core, it has developed much employment in the service sector. Although, it is plagued by a large unemployment rate, forcing its inhabitants to seek for jobs in the larger neighboring cities such as Basel or Biel. , Delémont had an unemployment rate of 7.4%. , there were 50 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 19 businesses involved in this sector. 3,094 people were employed in the

secondary sector In macroeconomics, the secondary sector of the economy is an economic sector in the three-sector theory that describes the role of manufacturing. It encompasses industries that produce a finished, usable product or are involved in constructi ...

and there were 133 businesses in this sector. 6,946 people were employed in the

tertiary sector The tertiary sector of the economy, generally known as the service sector, is the third of the three economic sectors in the three-sector model (also known as the economic cycle). The others are the primary sector (raw materials) and the ...

, with 715 businesses in this sector. There were 5,515 residents of the municipality who were employed in some capacity, of which women made up 44.4% of the workforce. the total number of

full-time equivalent Full-time equivalent (FTE), or whole time equivalent (WTE), is a unit of measurement that indicates the workload of an employed person (or student) in a way that makes workloads or class loads comparable across various contexts. FTE is often use ...

jobs was 8,362. The number of jobs in the primary sector was 41, of which 38 were in agriculture and 3 were in forestry or lumber production. The number of jobs in the secondary sector was 2,963 of which 2,236 or (75.5%) were in manufacturing and 607 (20.5%) were in construction. The number of jobs in the tertiary sector was 5,358. In the tertiary sector; 1,165 or 21.7% were in wholesale or retail sales or the repair of motor vehicles, 396 or 7.4% were in the movement and storage of goods, 315 or 5.9% were in a hotel or restaurant, 117 or 2.2% were in the information industry, 374 or 7.0% were the insurance or financial industry, 432 or 8.1% were technical professionals or scientists, 497 or 9.3% were in education and 1,125 or 21.0% were in health care. , there were 6,137 workers who commuted into the municipality and 1,711 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net importer of workers, with about 3.6 workers entering the municipality for every one leaving. About 7.6% of the workforce coming into Delémont are coming from outside Switzerland, while 0.1% of the locals commute out of Switzerland for work.Swiss Federal Statistical Office - Statweb
accessed 24 June 2010 Of the working population, 13.7% used public transportation to get to work, and 55.3% used a private car.

Religion

From the , 7,826 or 68.9% were

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

, while 1,272 or 11.2% belonged to the

Swiss Reformed Church The Protestant Church in Switzerland (PCS), formerly named Federation of Swiss Protestant Churches until 31 December 2019, is a federation of 25 member churches – 24 cantonal churches and the Evangelical-Methodist Church of Switzerland. The P ...

. Of the rest of the population, there were 58 members of an Orthodox church (or about 0.51% of the population), there were 19 individuals (or about 0.17% of the population) who belonged to the Christian Catholic Church, and there were 339 individuals (or about 2.99% of the population) who belonged to another Christian church. There were 9 individuals (or about 0.08% of the population) who were

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

, and 547 (or about 4.82% of the population) who were

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

ic. There were 13 individuals who were

Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

, 40 individuals who were

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

and 7 individuals who belonged to another church. 917 (or about 8.08% of the population) belonged to no church, are

agnostic Agnosticism is the view or belief that the existence of God, the divine, or the supernatural is either unknowable in principle or unknown in fact. (page 56 in 1967 edition) It can also mean an apathy towards such religious belief and refer to ...

atheist Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...

, and 474 individuals (or about 4.18% of the population) did not answer the question.

Transportation

At Delémont railway station the railway from Delle, connecting from Paris via Belfort, meets the Bienne to Basel line. The section of line between Belfort and Delle is currently being electrified and a
hourly optymo bus service
maintains the connection between Delle and Belfort. Delémont has good road connections to the surrounding cities. It lies on the main road between

and

, as well as

La Chaux-de-Fonds La Chaux-de-Fonds (; archaic ) is a Swiss city in the canton of Neuchâtel. It is located in the Jura Mountains at an altitude of 992 metres, a few kilometres south of the French border. After Geneva, Lausanne, Biel/Bienne, and Fribourg, ...

. In 1998, the first stretch of motorway in the canton of Jura (the A 16) was opened between Delémont and

. The first stretch of rail line reached Delémont from Basel in 1875. The continuation to

Moutier Moutier () is a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in Switzerland. Currently, the town belongs to the Jura bernois (administrative district), Jura bernois administrative district of the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Bern (canton), Ber ...

was completed in 1876. All trains from Basel to Bienne must reverse in Delémont. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the railway station was accidentally bombed on 8 September 1944 by the

Allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not an explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are calle ...

, injuring a number of railway employees. A well-developed bus system serves the surrounding countryside.

Heritage sites of national significance

The Vorbourg Chapel, the Prince-Bishops' Castle, St-Marcel's Church, the Museum jurassien d’art et d’histoire and the Tour Rouge, the historic

turntable A phonograph, later called a gramophone, and since the 1940s a record player, or more recently a turntable, is a device for the mechanical and analogue reproduction of sound. The sound vibration waveforms are recorded as corresponding phys ...

for locomotives and the

railway roundhouse A railway roundhouse is a building with a circular or semicircular shape used by rail transport, railways for servicing and storing locomotives. Traditionally, though not always the case today, these buildings contained or were adjacent to a Rail ...

are listed as Swiss heritage site of national significance. The entire old town of Delémont is part of the

Inventory of Swiss Heritage Sites The Federal Inventory of Heritage Sites (ISOS) is part of a 1981 Ordinance of the Swiss Federal Council implementing the Federal Law on the Protection of Nature and Cultural Heritage. Sites of national importance Types The types are based on t ...

. File:Chapelle Du Vorbourg.JPG, Vorbourg Chapel File:Château de Delémont (5).jpg, Prince-Bishops' Castle File:Delémont Eglise Saint-Marcel.jpg, St-Marcel Church File:Delémont Porte de Porrentruy.jpg, Museum jurassien d’art et d’histoire et Tour Rouge File:Rotonde pour locomotives 2.JPG,

Turntable A phonograph, later called a gramophone, and since the 1940s a record player, or more recently a turntable, is a device for the mechanical and analogue reproduction of sound. The sound vibration waveforms are recorded as corresponding phys ...

for locomotives,

Tourism

The medieval city center still has its original outline. Two of the city gates date from the 18th century: the Porte au Loup (1775) and the Porte de Porrentruy (1756–59). There are also still parts of the city wall, with the Tour des Archives, which was originally built in the 13th century. The city squares are marked by monumental fountains dating from the 16th century, in

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...

style. The

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

church of Saint-Marcel was built from 1762 to 1767 with a mixture of architectural styles from the

baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

to the classical. Other important buildings from the time of the Bishops of Basel are the Hôtel de Ville (built from 1742 to 1745), the Châtellenie (now used as the Cantonal Parliament, remodeled in 1717), and the Episcopal Palace (1716–21). The late gothic chapel of Saint-Michel dates from the 17th century. The synagogue of Delémont is in the western part of the city. The Castle of Domont, built in 1560, is now a restaurant. There are also ruins of an early medieval castle, the Vorbourg, on the west side of the Birs. Next to them stands a chapel, dedicated in 1049 and repeatedly renovated. The main altar with the Madonna dates from the 16th century.

International relations

Twin towns – sister cities

Delémont is twinned with: *

Belfort Belfort (; archaic , ) is a city in northeastern France, situated approximately from the Swiss border. It is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Territoire de Belfort. Belfort is from Paris and from Basel. The residents of the city ...

, France * La Trinidad, Nicaragua

Culture

Delémont was awarded the

Wakker Prize The Wakker Prize (German: ''Wakkerpreis'', French: ''Prix Wakker'', Italian: ''Premio Wakker'') is awarded annually by the Swiss Heritage Society to a Municipality of Switzerland for the development and preservation of its architectural herita ...

for preservation of its architectural heritage in 2006.

Education

In Delémont about 3,706 or (32.6%) of the population have completed non-mandatory

upper secondary education Secondary education is the education level following primary education and preceding tertiary education. Level 2 or ''lower secondary education'' (less commonly ''junior secondary education'') is considered the second and final phase of basic e ...

, and 1,308 or (11.5%) have completed additional higher education (either

university A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly ...

or a ''

Fachhochschule A (; plural ), abbreviated FH, is a university of applied sciences (UAS), in other words a Hochschule, German tertiary education institution that provides professional education in many applied sciences and applied arts, such as engineering, te ...

''). Of the 1,308 who completed tertiary schooling, 54.1% were Swiss men, 28.3% were Swiss women, 10.2% were non-Swiss men and 7.5% were non-Swiss women. The Canton of Jura school system provides two years of non-obligatory

Kindergarten Kindergarten is a preschool educational approach based on playing, singing, practical activities such as drawing, and social interaction as part of the transition from home to school. Such institutions were originally made in the late 18th cen ...

, followed by six years of Primary school. This is followed by three years of obligatory lower Secondary school where the students are separated according to ability and aptitude. Following the lower Secondary students may attend a three- or four-year optional upper Secondary school followed by some form of Tertiary school or they may enter an

apprenticeship Apprenticeship is a system for training a potential new practitioners of a trade or profession with on-the-job training and often some accompanying study. Apprenticeships may also enable practitioners to gain a license to practice in a regulat ...

. During the 2009–10 school year, there were a total of 1,471 students attending 78 classes in Delémont. There were 13 kindergarten classes with a total of 236 students in the municipality.Effectifs de l'école enfantine 2009-2010
accessed 19 December 2011 The municipality had 35 primary classes and 690 students.
accessed 19 December 2011 During the same year, there were 30 lower secondary classes with a total of 545 students.
accessed 19 December 2011 , there were 631 students in Delémont who came from another municipality, while 277 residents attended schools outside the municipality. Delémont is home to the ''Bibliothèque municipale de Delémont'' library. The library has () 32,698 books or other media, and loaned out 64,610 items in the same year. It was open a total of 289 days with average of 27 hours per week during that year.
accessed 14 May 2010

Sport

The

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

club

SR Delémont Sport-Réunis de Delémont (shortened to SR Delémont) is a Swiss Association football, football club based in Delémont and founded in 1909. The team currently play in Swiss 1. Liga (football), 1st League Classic from 2025–26, the fourth tier ...

play in the

Swiss Challenge League The Challenge League (known as the Dieci Challenge League for sponsorship reasons) is the second-highest tier of the Swiss football league system and lower of two professional leagues in the country. Ten teams play in the Challenge League; the wi ...

Notable people

* Eugène Daumas (1803 in Delémont – 1871), a French general and writer * Alfred Comte (1895 in Delémont – 1965), Swiss aviation pioneer *

Job Work, labor (labour in Commonwealth English), occupation or job is the intentional activity people perform to support the needs and desires of themselves, other people, or organizations. In the context of economics, work can be seen as the huma ...

(born 1927 in Delémont), aka ''André Jobin'', a Swiss francophone comics creator. * Heidi Baader-Nobs (born 1940 in Delémont), a Swiss composer * Gérard Daucourt (born 1941 in Delémont), Catholic Bishop of Nanterre 2002-2013 * Pierre Margot (born 1950 in Delémont), a Swiss forensic scientist, invented a forensic light source Polilight *

Dominique Baettig Dominique Baettig (born 22 September 1953, in Delémont) is a Swiss politician and member of the Swiss People's Party. A psychiatrist by profession, he represented the canton of Jura in the National Council in the 2007–2011 legislature. Po ...

(born 1953 in Delémont), psychiatrist and politician *

Maurice Kottelat Maurice Kottelat (born 16 July 1957 in Delémont, SwitzerlandC ...

(born 1957 in Delémont), a Swiss

ichthyologist Ichthyology is the branch of zoology devoted to the study of fish, including bony fish (Osteichthyes), cartilaginous fish (Chondrichthyes), and jawless fish (Agnatha). According to FishBase, 35,800 species of fish had been described as of March 2 ...

specializing in Eurasian freshwater fish ; Sport * Julien Vauclair (born 1979 in Delémont), a Swiss former professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

defenseman Defence or defense (in American English) in ice hockey is a player position that is primarily responsible for preventing the opposing team from Goal (ice hockey), scoring. They are often referred to as defencemen, D, D-men or blueliners (the l ...

* Marguerite Gobat (1870 –1937), Swiss editor, teacher and pacifist

References

External links

* *
Jura.ch
{{DEFAULTSORT:Delemont Cities in Switzerland Cantonal capitals of Switzerland Canton of Jura Cultural property of national significance in the canton of Jura