Canton of Glarus
Flag of the canton
Capital:	Glarus
Abbr.:	GL
Joined:	1352
Population:	38,300
Area:	685 km²
Language:	German

Glarus (French Glaris) is a canton in east central Switzerland. The capital is Glarus. There are 29 municipalities in the canton. The 38,300 (in 2001) strong population is German speaking.

Geography

The canton of Glarus is dominated by the deep valley of Linth River. Most of the area is mountainous. The highest peak in the Glarus Alps is the Tödi with 3614m. Other mountains include the Hausstock (3158m) and the Glärnisch (2910m). There is a large lake called Lake Walen. The total area of the canton of Glarus is 685 km², of which about half is considered productive. Forestry is an important branch of industry in the canton.

History

The history of this canton is dominated by religion. The inhabitants of the Linth Valley were converted to Christianity in the 6th century by the Irish monk St. Fridolin. St. Fridolin still features in the coat of arms of the canton today. He founded the convent of Säckingen near Basel. From the 9th century, the area around Glarus was owned by the convent. By 1288 the Habsburgs bit by bit claimed all the rights of the convent. This caused the people of Glarus joining the Swiss Confederation in 1352.

Location of the canton

Between 1506 and 1516 the reformer Huldrych Zwingli was priest in Glarus, but by 1564 all of Zwingli's followers were eliminated. This, however, did not end the struggles between the Protestants and the Catholics in the area. To secure peace it was decided that each party should have its own assembly (Landsgemeinde) in 1623, and at a later stage in 1683 each side was granted the right to have its own tribunals.

Between 1798 and 1803 Glarus was part of the Canton of Linth as established by Napoleon. In 1836 the constitution was adapted to unite the assemblies and establish only one Landsgemeinde.

Industry

The geography of the canton helped to establish slate works in the 17th century. The mountainous surroundings of Glarus were also an advantage in industrilisation. Cotton spinning was important in the 18th century, complementing traditional woolen spinning. Industrialisation also brought cotton printing, hydroelectric plants and later metal and machinery factories, as well as paper mills.

Dairy farming and cattle breeding were not replaced by industrial advances. Cattle graze on mountain pastures. Cattle breeding and dairying are important on the mountain pastures.

Municipalities

The 29 municipalities (Ortsgemeinden) are:

External links

• Official Statistics (http://www.statistik.admin.ch/stat_ch/ber00/ekan_gl.htm)
• Official Site (http://www.gl.ch/) (German)