Rütli is a mountain meadow on Lake Lucerne

Lake Lucerne

Lake Lucerne is a lake in central Switzerland and the fourth largest in the country.The lake has a complicated shape, with bends and arms reaching from the city of Lucerne into the mountains. It has a total area of 114 km² , an elevation of 434 m , and a maximum depth of 214 m . Its volume is 11.8...

, in the Seelisberg

Seelisberg

Seelisberg is a municipality in the canton of Uri in Switzerland.-History:The Rütli meadow, according to legend the site of the original oath foundational to the Old Swiss Confederacy, is situated in the territory of the municipality....

 municipality of the Swiss

Switzerland

Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....

 canton of Uri

Canton of Uri

Uri is one of the 26 cantons of Switzerland and a founding member of the Swiss Confederation. It is located in Central Switzerland. The canton's territory covers the valley of the Reuss River between Lake Lucerne and the St. Gotthard Pass. German is the primary language spoken in Uri...

. Here the legendary oath of the Rütlischwur

Rütlischwur

The Rütlischwur is a legendary oath of the Old Swiss Confederacy, taken on the Rütli, a meadow above Lake Lucerne near Seelisberg. The oath is notably featured in the Wilhelm Tell drama of 1804 by Friedrich Schiller.-Early accounts:...

 first occurred and is remembered as the turning-point in the pursuit of independence. Every August 1, on the Swiss National Day

Swiss National Day

The Swiss National Day is the national holiday of Switzerland, set on 1 August. It is an official national holiday since 1994, although the day had been suggested for the celebration of the foundation of the Swiss Confederacy as early as 1889.-History:...

, the oath is re-enacted to commemorate the forming of the Old Swiss Confederacy

Old Swiss Confederacy

The Old Swiss Confederacy was the precursor of modern-day Switzerland....

.

Land forming the Rütli meadow was bought by the Schweizerische Gemeinnützige Gesellschaft in 1859 in order to preserve its state and, among other reasons, to prohibit the construction of a hotel at the historical site. This non-profit company turned the Rütli over to the government as an inalienable gift.

On July 25, 1940, General Guisan used the site for his speech, now remembered as the "Rütlirapport", to the entire officer corps of the Swiss army in which he outlined the Reduit strategy

National Redoubt (Switzerland)

The Swiss National Redoubt was a defensive plan developed by the Swiss government beginning in the 1880s to respond to foreign invasion. In the opening years of World War II the plan was expanded and refined to deal with a potential German invasion. The German plan, Operation Tannenbaum, was real,...

 and his aim never to surrender if invaded (see Switzerland during the World Wars

Switzerland during the World Wars

During both World War I and World War II, Switzerland managed to keep a stance of armed neutrality, and was not involved militarily. However, precisely because of its neutral status, Switzerland was of considerable interest to all parties involved, as the scene for diplomacy, espionage, commerce,...

).

Since 1991, Rütli has also been the start of the "Swiss Way

Swiss Path

The Swiss Path is the name given to a special national path in central Switzerland opened in 1991. It makes a loop around one arm of Lake Uri, starting in Rütli and passing through Bauen, Flüelen, Sisikon and Morschach, finishing at Brunnen...

" hiking trail created to celebrate the 700th anniversary of Switzerland.

Recent controversy

As is often the case across Switzerland, the August 1 celebrations include speeches; at the Rütli it is common for an eminent personality, such as members of the Swiss Federal Council

Swiss Federal Council

The Federal Council is the seven-member executive council which constitutes the federal government of Switzerland and serves as the Swiss collective head of state....

, to speak. After Neonazis disturbed the speeches 2005, strict controls were enforced in 2006 – only people who registered could get a ticket to the Rütli – but for data privacy

Data privacy

Information privacy, or data privacy is the relationship between collection and dissemination of data, technology, the public expectation of privacy, and the legal and political issues surrounding them....

 reasons, the list could not be reviewed by police to identify known radicals. In 2007 concerns remained (receiving international press attention http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/07/17/news/swiss.php http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/23/world/europe/23lucerne.html) and both the President of the Confederation and the President of the National Council

National Council of Switzerland

The National Council of Switzerland is the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Switzerland. With 200 seats, it is the larger of the two houses....

 decided to deliver keynote speeches to prevent extremists upstaging the commemorative significance.

See also

• History of Switzerland
  History of Switzerland
  Since 1848, the Swiss Confederation has been a federal state of relatively autonomous cantons, some of which have a history of confederacy that goes back more than 700 years, arguably putting them among the world's oldest surviving republics. For the time before 1291, this article summarizes...
  
  
• Rütli Commission website (French/German only)