The Rhaetian Alps (; ) are a

mountain range A mountain range or hill range is a series of mountains or hills arranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with similarity in form, structure, and alignment that have aris ...

of the

Eastern Alps The Eastern Alps are usually defined as the area east of a line from Lake Constance and the Alpine Rhine valley, up to the Splügen Pass at the Main chain of the Alps, Alpine divide, and down the Liro (Como), Liro River to Lake Como in the south. ...

. The SOIUSA classification system divides them into the

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

Southern Rhaetian Alps The Southern Rhaetian Alps (''Südliche Rätische Alpen'' in German, ''Alpi Retiche meridionali'' in Italian) are a mountain range in the southern part of the Alps. Geography Administratively the range belongs to the Italian regions of Tren ...

and Eastern Rhaetian Alps, while the Alpine Club classification of the Eastern Alps places most of the Rhaetian subranges within the Western Limestone Alps. Cevedale 2005

They are located along the Italian–Swiss and Austrian–Swiss borders, in the

canton of Graubünden The Grisons (; ) or Graubünden (),Names include: * ; * Romansh: ** ** ** ** ** **; * ; * ; * . 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. I ...

in eastern

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 ...

; in the state of

Tyrol Tyrol ( ; historically the Tyrole; ; ) is a historical region in the Alps of Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Empire and Austria-Hungary, f ...

in Austria; and in the Italian regions of Trentino-Alto Adige and

Lombardy The Lombardy Region (; ) is an administrative regions of Italy, region of Italy that covers ; it is located in northern Italy and has a population of about 10 million people, constituting more than one-sixth of Italy's population. Lombardy is ...

. The name relates to a Roman province and the

Rhaetian people The Raeti ( ; spelling variants: ''Rhaeti'', ''Rheti'' or ''Rhaetii'') were a confederation of Alpine tribes, whose language and culture were related to those of the Etruscans. Before the Roman conquest, they inhabited present-day Tyrol in Austr ...

subdued under

Emperor Augustus Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian (), was the founder of the Roman Empire, who reigned as the first Roman emperor from 27 BC until his death in ...

in 15 BC.

Geography

The Rhaetian Alps contain multiple subranges including: # Albula Range (Western) #

Bernina Range The Bernina Range is a mountain range in the Alps of eastern Switzerland and northern Italy. It is considered to be part of the Rhaetian Alps within the Central Eastern Alps. It is one of the highest ranges of the Alps, covered with many glaciers ...

(Western) # Brenta group (Southern) #

Ortler Alps The Ortler Alps ( ; ; ) are a mountain range of the :Southern Limestone Alps, Southern Limestone Alps mountain group in the Central Eastern Alps, in Italy and Switzerland. Geography The Ortler Alps are separated from: # the Sesvenna Alps in the n ...

(Southern) #

Rätikon The Rätikon is a mountain range of the Central Eastern Alps, located at the border between Vorarlberg, Liechtenstein and Canton of Grisons, Graubünden. It is the geological border between the Eastern Alps, Eastern and Western Alps and stretch ...

(Western) #

Silvretta The Silvretta Alps are a mountain range of the Central Eastern Alps shared by Tirol, Vorarlberg (both in Austria) and Graubünden (Switzerland). The Austrian states of Tirol and Vorarlberg are connected by a pass road ( Silvretta Hochalpenst ...

(Western) The

Swiss National Park The Swiss National Park (; ; ; ) is located in the Western Rhaetian Alps, in eastern Switzerland. It lies within the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Graubünden, between Zernez, S-chanf, Scuol, and the Fuorn Pass in the Engadin valley on the ...

is located in the Western Rhaetian Alps.

Peaks

The highest peak in the range is

Piz Bernina Piz Bernina (Romansh language, Romansh, , ) is the highest mountain in the Eastern Alps, the highest point of the Bernina Range, and the highest peak in the Rhaetian Alps. It rises and is located south of Pontresina in the Bernina Region and ne ...

at , located in

Grisons The Grisons (; ) or Graubünden (),Names include: * ; *Romansh language, Romansh: ** ** ** ** ** **; * ; * ; * . See also list of European regions with alternative names#G, other names. more formally the Canton of the Grisons or the Canton ...

/Graubünden canton, Switzerland, adjacent to the Italian border. The main peaks of the Rhaetian Alps are:

References

Mountain ranges of the Alps Southern Limestone Alps Mountain ranges of Italy Mountain ranges of Switzerland Mountain ranges of Graubünden Mountain ranges of Lombardy Mountain ranges of Trentino Mountain ranges of Tyrol (federal state) {{Italy-mountain-stub