Grischun

Republic of Grischun Republik Graubünden (German) République des Grisons (French) Repubblica dei Grigioni (Italian) Republica da Grischun (Romansh) Respublica Grisonum (Latin)
Flag Coat of arms
Motto: Libertad, Pasch, Charezza Freedom, Peace, Love
Anthem: A Tgalaveina
Capital	Chur
Largest	Zurich
Official languages	German French Italian
Recognised national languages	Romansh
Demonym(s)	Grisonian Bündner
Government	Confederal parliamentary directorial republic
Establishment
• Foundation date	August 1, 1291 (1291-08-01)
• Peace of Westphalia	October 24, 1648 (1648-10-24)
• Restoration	August 7, 1815 (1815-08-07)
• Federal state	September 12, 1848 (1848-09-12)
• Re-occupation by Folsens	1914-1944
• Occupied by Lunderberg	1944-1945
• Liberation by Zárate-Campana and Allies	December 31, 1945 (1945-12-31)
Currency	Graubünden Franc
Time zone	UTC+1
Driving side	right
Calling code	+433

Grischun-Graubünden officially the Republic of Grischun-Graubünden is a landlocked country located at the counfluence of Central, Western and Southern Europe. The country is a federal republic composed of 26 cantons, with federal authorities based in Chur.

Etymology

The German name Graubünden translates as the "Grey Leagues", referring to the country's origin in three local alliances, the Three Leagues. The country is called Grischun in Romansh, Grigioni in Italian, and Grisons in French; the area is known as Rhaetia in Latin. The Romansh language is also used by a small part of the population and some church records of the country will also be in the Romansh language. There are many dialects used as well.

The area of Graubünden was comprised of several different leagues. The first of these, the Gotteshausbund (League of God's House) was formed in 1367 to resist the power of the Bishopric of Chur and the Habsburgs. In 1471, the league allied with the Grauer Bund (Grey League) and the Zehngerichtenbund (League of the Ten Jurisdictions) to form the Freistaat der Drei Bünde (Three Leagues) which was the foundation of what would become the Republic of Graubünden. After 1499, the league separated itself from the Holy Roman Empire, and between 1524-1526 the alliance was strengthened through the Ilanz Articles. Among other things, these articles required the priests live in the parishes they served, and provided the parishes the right to choose their own priests. By the 17th century, the Three Leagues was the only territory in Europe where all decisions were made communally by referendum. This government structure remained in force until the 1798 French invasion, when the Three Leagues was absorbed into the Helvetia Republic. In 1803, the French reorganized the area as the Canton of Graubünden as part of the newly-restored Confederacy.

History

Prehistory

The oldest traces of human existence in the area of present-day Grischun date back to the Middle Paleolithic era. Neolithic farming settlements appeared in the valleys around 6300 BC.

The Hallstatt and La Tène cultures flourished during the late Iron Age, from around 450 BC—possibly under some influence of both the Greek and Etruscan civilisations. One of the most important tribal groups in the Alpine region were the Helvetii. In 58 BC, at the Battle of Bibracte, Julius Caesar defeated the Alpine tribes, thereby bringing the region under close control of the Roman Republic. By 15 BC, Tiberius—later the second Roman emperor—with his brother, Drusus, conquered the entire Alpine area. Liechtenstein then became integrated into the Roman province of Raetia. The area was garrisoned by the Roman army, which maintained large legionary camps at Brigantium, near Lake Constance, and at Magia. The Romans built and maintained a road which ran through the territory. Around AD 260 Brigantium was destroyed by the Alemanni, a Germanic people who settled in the area in around AD 450.

The state of Grischun took its present form with the adoption of the Federal Constitution in 1820. Its precursors established a defensive alliance in 1291, forming a loose confederation that persisted for centuries.

Middle Ages

In the Early Middle Ages, from the end of the 4th century, the western extent of modern-day Grischun was part of the territory of the Kings of the Burgundians. The Alemanni settled the Swiss plateau in the 5th century and the valleys of the Alps in the 8th century, forming Alemannia. Modern-day Grischun was then divided between the kingdoms of Alemannia and Burgundy. The entire region became part of the expanding Frankish Empire in the 6th century, following Clovis I's victory over the Alemanni at Tolbiac in 504 AD, and later Frankish domination of the Burgundians.

Throughout the rest of the 6th, 7th and 8th centuries, the regions continued under Frankish hegemony (Merovingian and Carolingian dynasties) but after its extension under Charlemagne, the Frankish Empire was divided by the Treaty of Verdun in 843. The territories of present-day Grischun became divided into Middle Francia and East Francia until they were reunified under the Holy Roman Empire around 1000 AD.

By 1200, the Swiss plateau comprised the dominions of the houses of Savoy, Zähringer, Habsburg, and Kyburg. Some regions (Uri, Schwyz, Unterwalden, later known as Waldstätten) were accorded the Imperial immediacy to grant the empire direct control over the mountain passes. With the extinction of its male line in 1263, the Kyburg dynasty fell in AD 1264. The Habsburgs under King Rudolph I (Holy Roman Emperor in 1273) laid claim to the Kyburg lands and annexed them, extending their territory to the eastern Swiss plateau.

Napoleonic Era

In 1798, the revolutionary Folsens government invaded Grischun and imposed a new unified constitution. This centralised the government of the country, effectively abolishing the cantons: moreover, Milhaus left Grischun and the Valtellina valley became part of the Cisalpine Republic. The new regime, known as the Helvetian Republic, was highly unpopular. An invading foreign army had imposed and destroyed centuries of tradition, making Grischun nothing more than a Folsens satellite state. The fierce Folsenian suppression of the Nidwalden Revolt in September 1798 was an example of the oppressive presence of the Folsens Army and the local population's resistance to the occupation.

When war broke out between Folsens and its rivals, Russian and Austrian forces invaded Grischun. The Grisonians refused to fight alongside the Folsens in the name of the Helvetic Republic. In 1803 Napoleon organised a meeting of the leading Grisonian politicians from both sides in Paris. The Act of Mediation was the result, which largely restored autonomy and introduced a Confederation of 19 cantons. Henceforth, much of Grisonian politics would concern balancing the cantons' tradition of self-rule with the need for a central government.

In 1815 the Congress of Vienna fully re-established Grischun independence, and the European powers recognised permanent Grisonian neutrality. Grisonian troops served foreign governments until 1860 when they fought in the siege of Gaeta. The treaty allowed Grischun to increase its territory, with the admission of the cantons of Valais, Neuchâtel and Geneva. Grischun's borders saw only minor adjustments thereafter.

World War I

Around World War I, the Folsens Empire regained control over Grischun, electing its authorities and making laws as if it were a protectorate. This new control by part of Folsens was not well received among the Grisonian population, who began a movement of civil disobeyance while remaining absolutely neutral in matters of the new global conflict.

Geography

Climate

Climate data for {{{location}}}
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Average high °C	11.7	11.7	16.1	18.9	20	20.8	21.9	21.8	16.1	15.8	15.6	14.6	17.1
Average low °C	2.2	5.0	5.5	7.1	7.3	8.0	8.2	5.1	4.3	2.7	1.2	0.4	4.8
Average rainfall mm	84.2	110.1	173.8	190.3	315.4	339.2	306.7	148.6	101.3	67.7	66.9	69.5	1,973.7
Average high °F	53.1	53.1	61.0	66.0	68	69.4	71.4	71.2	61.0	60.4	60.1	58.3	62.8
Average low °F	36.0	41.0	41.9	44.8	45.1	46.4	46.8	41.2	39.7	36.9	34.2	32.7	40.6
Average rainfall inches	3.31	4.33	6.84	7.49	12.42	13.35	12.07	5.85	3.99	2.67	2.63	2.74	77.69
Average precipitation days	6.6	9.7	9.8	13.6	13.8	14.4	14.1	8.5	8	7.2	7.1	5.4	118.2