Fortifications of Zürich
Encyclopedia
Zurich
was an independent (reichsfrei) city or city-state
from 1218 to 1798. The town was fortified
with a city wall from the 13th to the 17th century, and with more elaborate ramparts
constructed in the 17th to 18th century and mostly demolished in the 1830s to 1870s.
on Lindenhof hill
excepted – before the 13th century, until the chance discovery of remnants of the first wall during the 1990s construction work at the central library
.
Following the extinction of the main line of the Zähringer family in 1218, Zurich became a free imperial city
. Over the following decades, a city wall was constructed over a length of some 2,400 m.
From 1642, an impressive set of ramparts was built based on plans by Hans Georg Werdmüller and Johann Ardüser, at an immense cost and completed only in the second half of the 18th century. The ramparts included fifteen bastions, one of them built inside the Limmat river (the Bauschänzli, location of the former Ravelin
Kratz).
The ramparts were mostly destroyed in 1834, but parts of the walls and the western moat remain visible.
Zürich
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
was an independent (reichsfrei) city or city-state
City-state
A city-state is an independent or autonomous entity whose territory consists of a city which is not administered as a part of another local government.-Historical city-states:...
from 1218 to 1798. The town was fortified
Fortification
Fortifications are military constructions and buildings designed for defence in warfare and military bases. Humans have constructed defensive works for many thousands of years, in a variety of increasingly complex designs...
with a city wall from the 13th to the 17th century, and with more elaborate ramparts
Defensive wall
A defensive wall is a fortification used to protect a city or settlement from potential aggressors. In ancient to modern times, they were used to enclose settlements...
constructed in the 17th to 18th century and mostly demolished in the 1830s to 1870s.
First wall
There had been a first city wall dating to the 11th or 12th century. The existence of such an early wall had been suggested, but the mainstream view assumed that the town had been unfortified – the remains of the roman castle and a so called KaiserpfalzKaiserpfalz
The term Kaiserpfalz or Königspfalz refers to a number of castles across the Holy Roman Empire which served as temporary, secondary seats of power for the Holy Roman Emperor in the Early and High Middle Ages...
on Lindenhof hill
Lindenhof hill
The Lindenhof hill is a moraine hill and a public square in the historic center of Zurich, Switzerland.- Topography :Lindenhof hill dominates Lindenhof quarter in the district 1 , the historical center of Zurich's Altstadt. To the North, it ends at Uraniastrasse and to the South near St. Peter...
excepted – before the 13th century, until the chance discovery of remnants of the first wall during the 1990s construction work at the central library
Zentralbibliothek Zürich
Zentralbibliothek Zürich is the main library of both the city and the University of Zürich, housed in the Predigerkloster, the former Black Friars' abbey, in the old town's Rathaus quarter....
.
Second wall
Free Imperial City
In the Holy Roman Empire, a free imperial city was a city formally ruled by the emperor only — as opposed to the majority of cities in the Empire, which were governed by one of the many princes of the Empire, such as dukes or prince-bishops...
. Over the following decades, a city wall was constructed over a length of some 2,400 m.
Early modern ramparts
Ravelin
A ravelin is a triangular fortification or detached outwork, located in front of the innerworks of a fortress...
Kratz).
The ramparts were mostly destroyed in 1834, but parts of the walls and the western moat remain visible.