Aargau (
German ; rarely anglicized
Argovia) is one of the more northerly
cantons of
Switzerland. It comprises the lower course of the
river Aare, which is why the canton is called Aar-
gau (meaning
Aare district).
History
Aarau
In early medieval times Argovia was a disputed border region between the duchies of
Alamannia and
Burgundy. A line of the von
Wetterau (
Conradines) intermittently held the countship of Aargau from 750 until about 1030, when they lost it (having in the meantime taken the name
von Tegerfelden). From the extinction of the
Hohenstaufen dynasty until 1415, the area was ruled by the
Habsburgs, and many castles from that time still stand (examples include Habsburg, Lenzburg, Tegerfelden, Bobikon, Stin and Wildegg). The Habsburgs founded a number of monasteries (some of the structures endure, e.g., in Wettingen and Muri); the closing of monasteries by the government in 1841 was a factor in the outbreak, in 1847, of the Swiss civil war known as the "
Sonderbund War". Aargau is also believed to be the ancestral home of Reformist author
George Mangold (1822-1894).
In 1415 the Aargau was taken from the Habsburgs by the Swiss Confederates.
Bern kept the southwest portion (
Zofingen,
Aarburg,
Aarau,
Lenzburg, and
Brugg). Some districts, named the
Freie Ämter or
free bailiwicks (Mellingen, Muri, Villmergen, and Bremgarten), with the countship of Baden, were governed as "subject lands" by all or some of the Confederates.
French forces occupied the Aargau from 10 March to 18 April 1798; thereafter the Bernese portion became the canton of Aargau in the
Helvetic Republic and the remainder formed the
Canton of Baden. In 1803, the two halves were united under the name of canton of Aargau, which was then admitted a full member of the reconstituted Confederation. The
Fricktal, ceded in 1802 by
Austria, via Napoleonic France, to the Helvetic Republic, was shortly a separate Swiss canton under a
Statthalter ('Lieutenant'), but on 9 March 1803 was incorporated in the canton of Aargau.
The chief magistracy of Aargau changed its style repeatedly:
- * April 1798 - November 1801 Jakob Emmanuel Feer (b. 1754 - d. 1833)
- * 1802 - 1803 Johann Heinrich Rothpletz (b. 1766 - d. 1833)
- Presidents of the Government Commission
- * 10 March 1803 - 26 April 1803 Johann Rudolf Dolder (b. 1753 - d. 1807)
- * 26 April 1803 - 1815 a 'Small Council' (president rotating monthly)
In the year 2003 the canton of Aargau celebrated its 200
th anniversary.
For several centuries, two villages,
Endingen and
Lengnau, in Aargau were the only places in Switzerland where Jews were permitted to live.
Geography
thumb|View of the [[Lägern from
Bözberg]]
Its total area is . The capital is
Aarau. It borders
Germany to the north. To the west lie the cantons of
Basel-Landschaft,
Solothurn and
Bern. The canton of
Lucerne lies south of the canton of Aargau,
Zürich and
Zug to the east.
The canton of Aargau is one of the least mountainous Swiss cantons, forming part of a
great table-land, to the north of the
Alps and the east of the
Jura, above which rise low hills. The surface of the country is beautifully diversified, undulating tracts and well-wooded hills
alternating with fertile valleys watered mainly by the Aar and its tributaries. The valleys alternate with pleasant hills, most of which are full of woods. Slightly over one-third of the canton is wooded (), while nearly half is used from farming (). or about 2.4% of the canton is considered unproductive, mostly lakes and streams. The canton is heavily developed, with or about 15% of the canton developed for housing or transportation.
It contains the famous hot sulphur springs of
Baden and
Schinznach-Bad, while at
Rheinfelden there are very extensive saline springs. Just below
Brugg the
Reuss and the
Limmat join the Aar, while around Brugg are the ruined castle of
Habsburg, the old convent of
Koenigsfelden (with fine painted medieval glass) and the remains of the
Roman settlement of
Vindonissa (
Windisch).
Political subdivisions
Districts
thumb|Districts in AargauAargau is divided into 11 districts:
Municipalities
There are a total of 231 municipalities in the canton of Aargau.
Demographics
The population of Aargau is 581,562 (2007) of which 118,407 (20.36%) are foreigners Religiously, they are () nearly evenly split between
Roman Catholic (40%) and
Protestant (37%). German is the most common language in the canton, with 87% of the population speaking it.
Economy
thumb|Leibstadt Nuclear Power PlantThe farmland of the canton of Aargau is some of the most fertile in Switzerland.
Dairy farming,
cereal and
fruit farming are among the canton's main economic activities. The canton is also industrially developed, particularly in the fields of
electrical engineering, precision instruments,
iron,
steel and
cement.
Three of Switzerland's five nuclear power plants are in the canton of Aargau (Beznau I + II and Leibstadt). Additionally, the many rivers supply enough water for numerous hydroelectric power plants throughout the canton. The canton of Aargau is often called "the energy canton".
A significant number of people commute into the financial center of the city of
Zürich, which is just across the cantonal border.
Tourism is significant, particularly for the hot springs at
Baden and
Schinznach-Bad, the ancient castles, the landscape, and the many old
museums in the canton
[ Encyclopædia Britannica. 11 January 2007]. Hillwalking is another tourist attraction but is of only limited significance.
See also
