The Züriputsch of 6 September 1839 was a putsch of the rural conservative population against the liberal rule of the city of Zürich

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...

 on the eve of the formation of the Swiss federal state

Switzerland as a federal state

The rise of Switzerland as a federal state began on September 12, 1848, with the creation of a federal constitution, which was created in response to a 27-day civil war in Switzerland, the Sonderbundskrieg...

. The reason for the putsch was the appointment of the controversial German theologian David Strauss

David Strauss

David Friedrich Strauss was a German theologian and writer. He scandalized Christian Europe with his portrayal of the "historical Jesus," whose divine nature he denied...

 to the theological faculty of the University of Zürich by the liberal government. The rural population saw the old religious order in danger.

Led by Bernhard Hirzel

Bernhard Hirzel

Bernhard Hirzel was a Swiss theologian and Orientalist.He studied theology in Zürich and philology in Berlin and Paris, promoted 1833 in Göttingen. He married Maria Elisa Tobler in 1833....

, pastor of Pfäffikon

Pfäffikon, Zurich

Pfäffikon is a municipality in the canton of Zurich in Switzerland. It is the seat of the district of the same name. It is not to be confused with Pfäffikon SZ on Lake Zurich but in the canton of Schwyz.-History:...

, several thousand putschists stormed the city from the west, and fought the cantonal troops in the alleys between Paradeplatz

Paradeplatz

The Paradeplatz is a square at the Bahnhofstrasse in downtown Zurich. The Paradeplatz tram stop is served by lines 2, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11 and 13...

 and Fraumünster

Fraumünster

The Fraumünster abbey in Zurich was founded in 853 by Louis the German for his daughter Hildegard. He endowed the Benedictine convent with the lands of Zurich, Uri, and the Albis forest, and granted the convent immunity, placing it under his direct authority.- History :In 1045, King Henry III...

. The last shot fired killed botanist and councillor Johannes Hegetschweiler as he delivered the city council's surrender.

The Swiss German

Swiss German

Swiss German is any of the Alemannic dialects spoken in Switzerland and in some Alpine communities in Northern Italy. Occasionally, the Alemannic dialects spoken in other countries are grouped together with Swiss German as well, especially the dialects of Liechtenstein and Austrian Vorarlberg...

 term 'putsch'; originally referring to any sort of hit, stroke or collision, entered the German language as a political term, popularized by Gottfried Keller

Gottfried Keller

Gottfried Keller , a Swiss writer of German-language literature, was best known for his novel Green Henry .- Life and work :...

. The word gained further use during the First World War, as the equivalent of the English "push," or "going over the top," from one's trenches into battle. The derived verb aufputschen remains common in Standard German

Standard German

Standard German is the standard variety of the German language used as a written language, in formal contexts, and for communication between different dialect areas...

 for "to incite", "to excite", in political or in doping

Doping (sport)

The use of performance-enhancing drugs in sport is commonly referred to by the term "doping", particularly by those organizations that regulate competitions. The use of performance enhancing drugs is mostly done to improve athletic performance. This is why many sports ban the use of performance...

contexts.