The Advent of Swiss Traveling Coaches and Carriages ! The Advent of Swiss Traveling Coa- ches and Carriages The following work is based on a paper given in 2010 to the Andres Furger Carriage Association of America in Williamsburg, Virginia. Copyright Translation Susan Niederberger by Andres Furger 9 rue verte F-68480 Oltingue France
[email protected] www.andresfurger.ch Oltingue 2014 A. A BRIEF GEOGRAPHIC AND FISCAL HISTORY OF SWITZERLAND was not a rich nation relying on its agriculture for income, but rapid industrialization increased the country’s wealth. However, tourism and traffic in transit have always played a large part in the Swiss economy and will continue to do so. Fig. 1 A map of Europe showing the location of Switzerland in Europe as it is today: Topography of Switzerland with the Jura in the north, the Alps in the south and the lowlands in the centre from an English travelling Fig. 2 map dating from 1838. The pass over the Umbrail c. 1900. Federal Archives of Monument Conservation: Eidgenössisches Archiv für Denkmalpflege Switzerland lies in the very heart of Europe, bordered by Germany, France, Italy and Austria. This small country is made up of three very different geographical landscapes: the Fig. 2 shows a light travelling carriage on the Umbrail Pass c.1900. The pass road can be mountainous Jura of the north, the flatlands of central Switzerland and the Swiss Alps in seen leading off into the horizon, framed by a magnificent mountain range. the south. This country is the source of two great rivers, the Rhine and the Rhone (Fig 1.), As a cultural historian, I need to set the subject of travel in Switzerland within the relevant and includes part of the European Alps, which divide north and south Europe.