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35-722: The president of the PCS is Rita Famos . The Reformation spread primarily into the cities of Switzerland, which was then composed of loosely connected cantons . Breakthroughs began in the 1520s in Zurich under Zwingli , in Bern in 1528 under Berchtold Haller , and in Basel in 1529 under Johannes Oecolampadius. After the death of Zwingli in 1531, the Reformation continued. The French-speaking cities Neuchâtel , Geneva and Lausanne changed to

70-689: A church context. As early as 1999, the Reformed Churches in St. Gallen, Fribourg, and Lucerne had permitted prayer and celebration services for same-sex couples to recognize their civil unions. Since then, the Reformed Church in Aargau has also allowed for prayer services to celebrate same-sex couples. To date, seven other Swiss Reformed churches, including Bern-Jura-Solothurn, Graubünden, Schaffhausen, Ticino, Thurgau, Vaud, and Zürich, have allowed

105-563: A federal state in 1848. The cantons retained far-reaching sovereignty but were no longer allowed to maintain individual standing armies or international relations. As the revolutions of 1848 in Western Europe had failed elsewhere, Switzerland during the later 19th century (and with the exception of the French Third Republic , until the end of World War I ) found itself as an isolated democratic republic, surrounded by

140-407: A federation of states was restored, at the time including 19 cantons (the six accessions to the early modern Thirteen Cantons being composed of former associates and subject territories: St. Gallen , Grisons , Aargau , Thurgau , Ticino , Vaud ). Three additional western cantons, Valais , Neuchâtel and Geneva , acceded in 1815. The process of "Restoration", completed by 1830, returned most of

175-482: A particular municipality (the place of origin ) and the canton in which that municipality is part. Cantons, therefore, have a role in and set requirements for the granting of citizenship (naturalisation), though the process is typically undertaken at a municipal level and is subject to federal law. Switzerland has only one federal public holiday (1 August); public holidays otherwise vary from canton to canton . The cantons are listed in their order of precedence given in

210-538: A popular vote to amend the cantonal constitution or laws or to veto laws or spending bills passed by the parliament. Other than in the instances of general popular assemblies in Appenzell Innerrhoden and Glarus, democratic rights are exercised by secret ballot. The right of foreigners to vote varies by canton, as does whether Swiss citizens living abroad (and registered to vote in a canton) can take part in cantonal voting. Swiss citizens are citizens of

245-478: A principality in 1848, all Swiss cantons can be considered to have a republican form of government . Some cantons formally describe themselves as republics in their constitutions. This applies to the Romance-speaking cantons in particular: Geneva (formally République et canton de Genève , 'Republic and canton of Geneva'), Jura , Neuchâtel , Valais , Vaud and Ticino . In the 16th century,

280-629: A same-sex civil union. The Reformed Church of Vaud, in 2013, also permitted prayer services as a way for same-sex couples to celebrate their civil union. Other member churches that allow either prayer services or blessings for same-sex union are the churches in Bern-Jura-Solothurn, Schaffhausen, Tessin, Thurgau, and Zürich. Like many European Protestant denominations, several of the Swiss Reformed churches have openly welcomed gay and lesbian members to celebrate their civil unions within

315-552: The Federation of Swiss Protestant Churches ( Schweizerischer Evangelischer Kirchenbund , Fédération des Eglises protestantes de Suisse , Federazione delle Chiese evangeliche della Svizzera - SEK-FEPS), with 24 member churches - 22 cantonal churches and 2 free churches (Free Church of Geneva and the Evangelical-Methodist Church of Switzerland), was formed to serve as a legal umbrella before

350-693: The Holy Roman Empire , they had become de facto independent when the Swiss defeated Emperor Maximilian I in 1499 in Dornach. In the early modern period, the individual confederate allies came to be seen as republics ; while the six traditional allies had a tradition of direct democracy in the form of the Landsgemeinde , the urban states operated via representation in city councils, de facto oligarchic systems dominated by families of

385-649: The Old Swiss Confederacy was composed of 13 sovereign confederate allies (the Thirteen Cantons ; German : Die Dreizehn Alten Orte ), and there were two different kinds: five rural states ( German : Länder ) – Uri , Schwyz (which became eponymous of the confederacy), Unterwalden , Glarus , Appenzell – and eight urban states ( German : Städte ) – Zürich , Bern , Luzern , Zug , Basel , Fribourg , Solothurn , Schaffhausen . Though they were technically part of

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420-600: The Swiss Constitution of 1848. The term Stand ( French : état , Italian : stato ) remains in synonymous usage and is reflected in the name of the upper chamber of the Swiss Parliament, the Council of States ( German : Ständerat , French : Conseil des États , Italian : Consiglio degli Stati , Romansh : Cussegl dals Stadis ). In the modern era, since Neuchâtel ceased to be

455-604: The Treaty of Westphalia (1648) until the establishment of the Swiss federal state in 1848, with a brief period of centralised government during the Helvetic Republic (1798–1803). The term Kanton has been widely used since the 19th century. The number of cantons was increased to 19 with the Act of Mediation (1803), with the recognition of former subject territories as full cantons. The Federal Treaty of 1815 increased

490-713: The blessing of same-sex unions for same-sex civil unions. In August 2019 with the Evangelical Reformed Church of the Canton of Zürich the first church of the Swiss Reformed Church allowed the blessing of same-sex marriages and the Swiss Reformed Church allowed blessing of same-sex marriages for their member churches. Organizationally, the Reformed Churches in Switzerland remain separate, cantonal units. The German churches are more in

525-541: The patriciate . The old system was abandoned with the formation of the Helvetic Republic following the French invasion of Switzerland in 1798. The cantons of the Helvetic Republic had merely the status of an administrative subdivision with no sovereignty. The Helvetic Republic collapsed within five years, and cantonal sovereignty was restored with the Act of Mediation of 1803. The status of Switzerland as

560-570: The Confederation, a directorial system of government is followed by the cantons. The cantonal legislatures are unicameral parliaments , with their size varying between 58 and 200 seats. A few legislatures also involve or did involve general popular assemblies known as Landsgemeinden ; the use of this form of legislature has declined: at present, it exists only in the cantons of Appenzell Innerrhoden and Glarus . The cantonal executives consist of either five or seven members, depending on

595-488: The Federal Constitution). The cantonal constitutions determine the internal organisation of the canton, including the degree of autonomy accorded to the municipalities , which varies but almost always includes the power to levy taxes and pass municipal laws; some municipalities have their own police forces. As at the federal level, all cantons provide for some form of direct democracy . Citizens may demand

630-610: The French-speaking Reformed movement bastion was Geneva. A feature of the Swiss Reformed churches in the Zwinglian tradition is their historically very close links to the cantons, which is only loosening gradually in the present.. In cities where the Reformed faith became leading theology, several confessions were written, some of them: In the mid-19th century, opposition to liberal theology and interventions by

665-548: The Reformation ten years later under William Farel and John Calvin coming from France. The Zwingli and Calvin branches had each their theological distinctions, but in 1549 under the lead of Bullinger and Calvin they came to a common agreement in the Consensus Tigurinus (Zürich Consent), and 1566 in the Second Helvetic Confession . The German Reformed ideological center was Zurich, while

700-622: The Swiss cantons: International churches Rita Famos Rita Famos (born 11 January 1966) is a Swiss theologian. Since 2 November 2020, she has served as President of the Protestant Church of Switzerland and is the first woman to hold this position. Rita Famos studied theology in Bern , Halle (GDR) and Richmond (USA). After her ordination, she worked as a parish priest in Uster and Zurich-Enge . From 2009 to 2011, she

735-517: The Zwinglian tradition; the French more in the Calvinist tradition. They are governed synodically and their relation to the respective canton (in Switzerland, there are no church-state regulations at a national level) ranges from independent to close collaboration, depending on historical developments. The exception is the Evangelical-Methodist Church, which is nationally active. Reformed Churches in

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770-562: The canton. For the names of the institutions, see the list of cantonal executives and list of cantonal legislatures . The cantons retain all powers and competencies not delegated to the Confederation by the federal constitution or law: most significantly the cantons are responsible for healthcare , welfare , law enforcement, public education , and retain the power of taxation . Each canton defines its official language(s). Cantons may conclude treaties not only with other cantons but also with foreign states (respectively Articles 48 and 56 of

805-446: The development of the Old Swiss Confederacy are summarized by the terms Acht Orte ('Eight Cantons'; from 1353 to 1481) and Dreizehn Orte ('Thirteen Cantons', from 1513 to 1798). Each canton of the Old Swiss Confederacy , formerly also Ort ('lieu/locality', from before 1450), or Stand ('estate', from c.  1550 ), was a fully sovereign state with its own border controls, army, and currency from at least

840-617: The federal government and represent the church in international relations. The ordination of women is allowed in all member churches. As with most mainline European denominations, the Protestant Church in Switzerland has many member churches that permit prayer services or blessings for same-sex civil unions. As early as 1999, the Reformed churches in St. Gallen, Fribourg, and Lucerne had allowed church celebration services for same-sex couples. The Reformed Church in Aargau has also permitted prayer services of thanksgiving to celebrate

875-483: The former feudal rights to the cantonal patriciates , leading to rebellions among the rural population. The Radicals embodied these democratic forces calling for a new federal constitution. This tension, paired with religious issues ("Jesuit question") escalated into armed conflict in the 1840s, with the brief Sonderbund War . The victory of the Liberal-Radicals resulted in the formation of Switzerland as

910-399: The members of the early confederacy is recorded in the mid-14th century, used interchangeably with Stett und Lender ('cities and lands', 'city cantons and rural cantons') until the late 15th century. Ort was increasingly replaced by Stand (plural: Stände ) ' estate ' about 1550, a term taken to imply liberty and sovereignty. Abolished in the Helvetic Republic, the term 'Stand'

945-517: The number to 22 due to the accession of former associates of the Old Swiss Confederacy . The canton of Jura acceded as the 23rd canton with its secession from Bern in 1979. The official number of cantons was increased to 26 in the federal constitution of 1999 , which designated former half-cantons as cantons. The areas of the cantons vary from 37 km (15 sq. mi.) ( Basel-Stadt ) to 7,105 km (2743 sq. mi.) ( Grisons );

980-544: The populations (as of 2018) range from 16,000 ( Appenzell Innerrhoden ) to 1.5 million ( Zürich ). The term canton , now also used as the English term for administrative subdivisions of other countries, originates in French usage in the late 15th century (recorded in Fribourg in 1467), from a word for "edge, corner", at the time the literal translation of Early Modern High German ort . After 1490, canton

1015-623: The program management for training and further education in pastoral care. Famos is married to theologian and lawyer Cla Famos and has two children. Swiss canton The 26 cantons of Switzerland are the member states of the Swiss Confederation . The nucleus of the Swiss Confederacy in the form of the first three confederate allies used to be referred to as the Waldstätte . Two important periods in

1050-631: The restored monarchies of France , Italy , Austria-Hungary and Germany . The Swiss Federal Constitution declares the cantons to be sovereign to the extent that their sovereignty is not limited by federal law. Areas specifically reserved to the Confederation are the armed forces, currency, the postal service, telecommunications, immigration into and emigration from the country, granting asylum, conducting foreign relations with sovereign states, civil and criminal law, weights and measures, and customs duties. Each canton has its own constitution , legislature , executive , police and courts . Similar to

1085-618: The state led to secessions in several cantonal churches. One of these secessionist churches still exists today, the Evangelical Free Church of Geneva , founded in 1849, while two others reunited with the Swiss Reformed Church in 1943 and 1966. An important issue to liberal theologians was the Apostles' Creed . They questioned its binding character. This caused a heated debate. Until the late 1870s, most cantonal reformed churches stopped prescribing any particular creed. In 1920

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1120-542: The turbulence surrounding Gottfried Locher, Famos is to lead the Evangelical Reformed Church out of the crisis as a beacon of hope. In interviews, she emphasized that she wanted to "establish a participatory leadership culture" and work towards the Reformed Church moving together. She is President of the Association for Couples Counseling and Mediation in the Canton of Zurich and a member of

1155-557: Was increasingly used in French and Italian documents to refer to the members of the Swiss Confederacy. English use of canton in reference to the Swiss Confederacy (as opposed to the heraldic sense ) dates to the early 17th century. In the Old Swiss Confederacy, the term Ort (plural: Orte ) was in use from the early 15th century as a generic term for the member cantons. The founding cantons specifically were also known as Waldstätte 'forest settlements' (singular: Waldstatt ). The formulaic Stette und Waldstette for

1190-500: Was revived in 1815 and remains in use today. The French term canton adopted into German after 1648 , and then only in occasional use until the early 19th century: prominent usage of Ort and Stand gradually disappeared in German-speaking Switzerland from the time of the Helvetic Republic . Only with the Act of Mediation of 1803 did German Kanton become an official designation, retained in

1225-482: Was spokeswoman for the word on Sunday at Schweizer Radio und Fernsehen (SRF). Since 2013, she has been head of the department for special pastoral care at the Evangelical Reformed Church of the Canton of Zürich . Famos succeeded Gottfried Locher as President of the Protestant Church of Switzerland. He resigned in May 2020 after a complaint about abuse of power and "psychological and sexual violations of boundaries". After

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