Leuk ( French : Loèche-Ville ) is a municipality in the district of Leuk in the canton of Valais in Switzerland . On 1 January 2013, the former municipality of Erschmatt merged into the municipality of Leuk.
68-616: Since it controls access to the Gemmi Pass , it had some importance from the time of Roman Raetia . The Leukerbad thermal baths are just north of Leuk, towards the pass. It is the capital of the Leuk district of the Valais. Leuk is home to one of the known installations of Onyx , the Swiss interception system for signals intelligence gathering . Leuk is first mentioned in 515 as villa de Leuca . Leuk
136-625: A pilgrimage chapel at Thel and the Ringacker chapel, which was built in 1690-94 above a plague cemetery. A Marian shrine, whose hermitage was inhabited by a hermit around 1720–1885, is one of the most important baroque rooms of the Valais. In the Early and High Middle Ages Leuk changed owners repeatedly until 1138 when it finally came under the authority of the Bishop of Sion . The new rulers encouraged Leuk's development by granting concessions. In 1209 Leuk
204-401: A diversification of the economy. After 1950 a new wave of hotel construction of hotels and holiday homes and apartments, led to a strong population growth. Starting in the 1930s and increasingly after 1950 funiculars , cable cars and chair lifts opened up many of the high alpine villages for winter sports and tourism. The Bernese Oberland designates primarily an area around the upper valley of
272-741: A high Alpine hiking pass, and further to the Kander Valley via the Hohtürli , another high Alpine hiking pass, on the north flank of the Blümlisalp range. Kandersteg , at the north entrance of the old Lötschberg Tunnel (1913, 14 km), which connects the Bernese Oberland with the German-speaking part of the Valais, opens up to the north to Frutigen where it is joined by the Entschligetal from
340-610: A major intercontinental telecommunications center. Near the earth station are the antennas of the Swiss military Onyx system for electronic intelligence gathering . In 1999, the Leuk Castle Foundation was established to restore and maintain the Bishop's Castle in Leuk. As part of the restoration, one of the medieval towers was topped with a glass cupola by the architect Mario Botta . Leuk has an area, as of 2011, of 44.1 square kilometers (17.0 sq mi). Of this area, 19.6%
408-514: A major north-south axis through the Alps, links the region with both the capital of the canton, Bern , and its sizable southern neighbour, the canton of Valais . The flag of the Bernese Oberland consists of a black eagle in a gold field (in reference to the region's old status as reichsfrei ) over two fields in the cantonal colours of red and black. The Swiss German dialects spoken in the Bernese Oberland are Highest Alemannic German , contrasting with
476-476: A new church. On the west, a tower and bridge were built in the Dala gorge. The Feschel gorge to the east was spanned with a bridge in 1563. The two gorges and the river Rhone to the south provided excellent natural fortifications for the growing town. The borders of the town were the site of several bloody clashes. The first was the victory in 1296 of troops loyal to the bishop over the upper Valais nobility (including
544-537: A private car. From the 2000 census, 2,845 or 84.6% were Roman Catholic , while 159 or 4.7% belonged to the Swiss Reformed Church . Of the rest of the population, there were 21 members of an Orthodox church (or about 0.62% of the population), there were 2 individuals (or about 0.06% of the population) who belonged to the Christian Catholic Church , and there were 29 individuals (or about 0.86% of
612-433: A sword of the last. Leuk has a population (as of December 2020) of 3,991. As of 2008, 11.0% of the population are resident foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years (1999–2009) the population has changed at a rate of 4.7%. It has changed at a rate of 3.3% due to migration and at a rate of 1.1% due to births and deaths. Most of the population (as of 2000) speaks German (3,118 or 92.8%) as their first language, Albanian
680-442: A total of 860 inhabited buildings. There were 217 multi-family buildings (25.2%), along with 59 multi-purpose buildings that were mostly used for housing (6.9%) and 50 other use buildings (commercial or industrial) that also had some housing (5.8%). In 2000, a total of 1,126 apartments (79.5% of the total) were permanently occupied, while 241 apartments (17.0%) were seasonally occupied and 50 apartments (3.5%) were empty. As of 2009,
748-718: A wide and easy trail. The trail over the Gemmi Pass is very popular with hikers both in summer and in winter. The pass itself is also used as a vantage point, because of the view of some major peaks in the Pennine Alps , such as the Dom , Matterhorn , Weisshorn and Dent Blanche . This Valais location article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Bernese Oberland The Bernese Oberland ( German : Berner Oberland ; Alemannic German : Bärner Oberland ; French : Oberland bernois ), sometimes also known as
SECTION 10
#1732851417989816-670: Is one of the few valleys on the right side of the Aare. South of Interlaken the short valley of the Lütschine opens to the most well-known valleys of the Bernese Oberland, namely the Lauterbrunnental to the south, and the valley of the Schwarze Lütschine to the east with Grindelwald situated just below the Eiger , Schreckhorn , and Wetterhorn . Grindelwald and Lauterbrunnen are separated by
884-419: Is the second most common (79 or 2.4%) and French is the third (52 or 1.5%). There are 15 people who speak Italian and 2 people who speak Romansh . As of 2008, the gender distribution of the population was 49.6% male and 50.4% female. The population was made up of 1,526 Swiss men (43.8% of the population) and 203 (5.8%) non-Swiss men. There were 1,573 Swiss women (45.1%) and 184 (5.3%) non-Swiss women. Of
952-508: Is used for agricultural purposes, while 48.9% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 4.8% is settled (buildings or roads) and 26.8% is unproductive land. The municipality is the capital of the Leuk district. It is located above the right side of the Rhone , between the Dala gorge and the Feschelbach river. The town is surrounded by vineyards . It consists of the village of Leuk-Stadt, the castle,
1020-566: The Aare with its many larger and smaller side-valleys. It makes up the northern side the Bernese Alps and includes most of its highest peaks: Finsteraarhorn (4,274 m (14,022 ft)), Jungfrau (4,158 m (13,642 ft)), Mönch (4,110 m (13,480 ft)), Schreckhorn (4,078 m (13,379 ft)), Gross Fiescherhorn (4,049 m (13,284 ft)) and Lauteraarhorn (4,042 m (13,261 ft)). Other lower ranges partially in
1088-582: The Bernese Highlands , is the highest and southernmost part of the canton of Bern . It is one of the canton's five administrative regions (in which context it is referred to as Oberland without further specification). It constitutes the Alpine region of the canton and the northern side of the Bernese Alps , including many of its highest peaks, among which the Finsteraarhorn (4,274 m (14,022 ft)),
1156-665: The Brienzer Rothorn , the highest summit of the 30-kilometre-long (19 mi) prominent mountain range dominating the north shore of the Lake Brienz as far as its western end above Interlaken with the Harder . The easternmost section of the ridge constitutes the border with the canton of Lucerne (LU) , but the western part is fully in Bernese territory. The region of Habkern , north of the Harder,
1224-661: The Brünig , Susten (with a Roman mansio ), Grimsel , Lötschen , Gemmi , Rawil , Sanetsch and the Col du Pillon . During the High Middle Ages , a number of Bernese Oberland villages grew around valley parish churches which were religious and cultural centers within each surrounding valley. During the Middle Ages, the Bernese Oberland first belonged to the Kingdom of Burgundy followed by
1292-747: The Gadmertal , on its most eastern point culminates at the Susten Pass just south of the Titlis ( OW ) connecting with the valley of the Alpine Reuss (UR), the northern part of the St. Gotthard Route . The Joch Pass to the northeast at the beginning of the Gental , a foot pass west of the Titlis connecting to the canton of Nidwalden (NW) and further down to the resort Engelberg in
1360-586: The High Alemannic Bernese German spoken in Bern and the northern parts of the canton. In the short-lived Helvetic Republic (1798–1803), the Bernese Oberland was a separate canton . Prehistorically the Bernese Oberland was crossed by hunters or traders, but the first known settlements were from the Roman era . The Romans settled along the river and the lakes. They used a number of alpine passes including;
1428-722: The Inventory of Swiss Heritage Sites . In the 2007 federal election the most popular party was the CVP which received 71.78% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SP (13.34%), the SVP (11.2%) and the FDP (1.76%). In the federal election, a total of 1,856 votes were cast, and the voter turnout was 75.9%. In the 2009 Conseil d'État/Staatsrat election a total of 1,684 votes were cast, of which 117 or about 6.9% were invalid. The voter participation
SECTION 20
#17328514179891496-723: The Kleine Scheidegg pass, which is accessible from both sides via a rack railway, and which is the starting point of the Jungfrau Railway to the Jungfraujoch , a saddle between the Jungfrau and Mönch (literally, German Joch translates to yoke ). On the southeastern side of the mountain range formed by Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau lies the head of the largest glacier of the Alps, the Aletsch Glacier , which however entirely lies on
1564-609: The Stockhorn by cable cars to the west, the one summit of the Bernese Oberland with the probably most unobstructive view over the Bernese Lowlands and Thun . Not far from Erlenbach, one can access the Diemtigtal to the south with the Gsür to its very south end, also rising directly above Adelboden. Zweisimmen also connects to Saanen and Gstaad via the small pass of Saanenmöser , with
1632-451: The canton of Obwalden (OW) . North and above of Meiringen is the ski and hiking resort Hasliberg just on the other side of the ski resort Melchsee-Frutt (OW). The low Brünig Pass to the north connects Meiringen and the Haslital with the upper canton of Obwalden and further down to Central Switzerland and Lucerne (LU). Above of Brienz on the northeastern shore of Lake Brienz soars
1700-499: The gothic style . It was richly furnished with altars and sculptures and was consecrated in 1494 as St. Stephan's Church by Bishop Jost von Silenen. In the charnel house , with its dance of death fresco , 26 statues dating from the 13th to 16th centuries were discovered in 1982 under about a meter (three feet) of bones. The statues including an excellent Pietà from the 14th century. In addition to St. Stephan's parish church there were several other churches in town. They include
1768-506: The secondary sector and there were 44 businesses in this sector. 850 people were employed in the tertiary sector , with 133 businesses in this sector. There were 1,595 residents of the municipality who were employed in some capacity, of which females made up 41.8% of the workforce. In 2008 the total number of full-time equivalent jobs was 952. The number of jobs in the primary sector was 84, of which 71 were in agriculture and 13 were in forestry or lumber production. The number of jobs in
1836-426: The 14th century there was still a strong Roman minority in Leuk. The town's first church dates from the 6th or 7th century and probably originated from a Roman building. This church was replaced in the 9th century by a larger building. It was replaced again in the 11th and 12th centuries. The romanesque bell tower of the current church is from this third building. The current church was built by Ulrich Ruffiner in
1904-572: The 19th century many residents of the Simmen valley and the Interlaken district emigrated to North America, Germany or Russia. In the late 19th century, new transportation links made it easier for people to travel into the valleys. The Bern-Lötschberg-Simplon railway opened in 1913 and became the largest privately owned railroad in Switzerland. The collapse of the hotel industry during both world wars forced
1972-555: The 19th century, by the Bishop of Sion . The expansionist policy of the city of Bern led them into the Bernese Oberland. Through conquest, purchase, mortgage or marriage politics Bern was able to acquire the majority of the Bernese Oberland from the indebted local barons between 1323 and 1400. Under Bernese control, the five valleys enjoyed extensive rights and far-reaching autonomy in the Bäuerten (farming cooperative municipalities) and Talverbänden (rural alpine communities). Throughout
2040-811: The Bernese Oberland are the Uri Alps (east) and the Emmental Alps (north). Its largest part and the Alpine part of the Aare before the river enters Lake Brienz is called the Haslital culminating on the Grimsel Pass at its southeastern corner connecting with the Goms in the Upper Valais , and Andermatt in canton of Uri (UR) via the Furka Pass . And its major side-valley, called
2108-466: The Bernese Oberland villagers to sell their cattle. After the French invasion of Switzerland in 1798, the old Bernese order was fractured and the Bernese Oberland was separated from the canton of Bern, forming the canton of Oberland . Within this new canton, historic borders and traditional rights were not considered. As there had been no previous separatist feeling amongst the conservative population, there
Leuk - Misplaced Pages Continue
2176-454: The Bernese Oberland was somewhat consistent. A main settlement grew on the valley floor below an elevation near 1,100 m (3,600 ft). This main settlement had a market and often a castle or other fortifications. This market town was surrounded by scattered villages, hamlets and individual farm houses to an elevation of 1,600 m (5,200 ft). During the 14th–16th centuries, the Bernese Oberland villages began extensive trading with
2244-431: The Bernese grain producing towns in the lowlands. This allowed the alpine villages to renounce self-sufficiency in grain and focus on raising cattle in the high alpine pastures and bringing them down into the valleys in the winter ( transhumance ). They then exported cattle over the passes into Italy and into the Bernese lowlands. Around 1500, in addition to the seven medieval markets, eleven new cattle markets opened to allow
2312-457: The Bishop's Castle (the seat of Meier) and the Viztumsturm (Viztum's tower). In the 14th century the castle ruled over three surrounding areas; Loye (Lobio), Tschablen (Cabulo) and Galdinen (Caldana). All three of those areas grew into independent municipalities. In 1458, Leuk codified the customary rights of the citizens into law. This "old castle law" was updated in 1563. With the decline of
2380-659: The Canton of Valais allows young children to attend one year of non-obligatory Kindergarten . During that school year, there 4 kindergarten classes (KG1 or KG2) and 63 kindergarten students. The canton's school system requires students to attend six years of primary school . In Leuk there were a total of 13 classes and 258 students in the primary school. The secondary school program consists of three lower, obligatory years of schooling (orientation classes), followed by three to five years of optional, advanced schools. There were 180 lower secondary students who attended school in Leuk. All
2448-607: The Dukes of Zähringen . After the extinction of the Zähringen line, the Bernese Oberland was ruled by a number of local Barons (including Oberhofen, Strättligen, Brienz-Ringgenberg, Wädenswil, Weissenburg). For a time, some of the Walser barons (Raron, vom Turn) ruled portions of the Bernese Oberland. The Saanen valley was ruled by the Counts of Gruyères . Portions of the alpine passes were held, until
2516-492: The Harder on its southeast. At the west end of Lake Thun, at the outlet of the river Aare, lies the town of Thun , which already belongs to the Swiss Plateau, not far from Bern to the northwest. Since 2010, the Bernese Oberland covers one of five administrative regions of the canton of Bern (called German : Verwaltungsregion Oberland ) and consists of four administrative districts with 80 municipalities: Before 2010,
2584-822: The Kander flows through the Frutigtal . Above Spiez rises the Niesen , offering a wide view over the Bernese part of the Swiss Plateau to the northwest. Zweisimmen , still part of the Obersimmental, lies 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) south of Boltigen, the junction of the upper and lower parts of the Simmental. From Erlenbach in the Niedersimmental, the lower valley of the Simme , one can access
2652-581: The Late Middle Ages, the Bernese Oberland, as a whole or in part, revolted several times against Bernese authority. The Evil League ( Böser Bund ) in 1445 fought against Bernese military service and taxes following the Old Zürich War , in 1528 the Bernese Oberland rose up in resistance to the Protestant Reformation and in 1641 Thun revolted. During the Middle Ages, the settlement pattern in
2720-410: The Louwene Valley and the upper valley of the Saane south of Gstaad. After flowing northwards, in Saanen the Saane turns to the west, firstly, in order to become La Sarine in the now French-speaking canton of Vaud (VD) , and secondly, opens a railway connection to Montreux at the eastern shore of Lake Geneva . The Jaun Pass , a road pass, connects the Simmental near Reidenbach with La Gruyère ,
2788-408: The Viztumsturm. During the fighting against the French in 1799 , after the Battle of Pfyn Leuk was burned but escaped further damage. The parish of Leuk is first documented in 1227. Starting in 1500 a number of surrounding villages left the Leuk parish to form their own daughter parishes, including; 1501 Leukerbad, 1660 Gampel, 1663 Turtmann, 1962 Susten. In the second half of the 16th century,
Leuk - Misplaced Pages Continue
2856-410: The alpine regions. This combined with other reports and alpine paintings started the tourism industry in the Bernese Oberland. By 1800 there were resorts on Lake Thun and Lake Brienz (especially at Interlaken between the two lakes). Shortly thereafter the resorts expanded into the alpine valleys (Lauterbrunnen, Grindelwald), and began attracting English guests. However, because of the widespread poverty of
2924-528: The banks of the Rhone in the Pfynwald (Pfyn forest), until this was restricted for environmental reasons in the 1970s. Limestone mining commenced in 1928 on the Rhone in Susten but has now been given up. In 2005 there were ten large farms and seven wineries in the municipality. In 1908 the Alusuisse-Werke (now Alcan Ltd ) opened a processing plant in Chippis and Steg which provided jobs for many people from Leuk. The Leuk-Leukerbad-Bahn railway line opened in 1915 and converted to bus operation in 1967. In 2005,
2992-407: The canton of Bern . The pass itself lies within the canton of Valais, at a height of 2,269 metres (7,444 ft) above sea level. The main trail reaches 2,322 metres (7,618 ft). The pass lies between the Daubenhorn (2,942 metres (9,652 ft)) in the west and the Plattenhörner in the east. The pass is at the west end of the Aar Massif and at the east end of the Wildstrubel Massif. Near
3060-502: The construction rate of new housing units was 2.3 new units per 1000 residents. The vacancy rate for the municipality, in 2010, was 0.84%. The historical population is given in the following chart: The Dalaturm, the Church of St. Stephan, the Rathaus (Town council house), the Ringacker Chapel of Mariä Empfängnis with the Hermitage and Zen-Ruffinen Castle are listed as Swiss heritage site of national significance . The entire small town of Leuk and village of Erschmatt are part of
3128-494: The feudal system, the weakening of the secular episcopal power and the rise of the democratic self-consciousness of the Valais, the old order was replaced with a new power structure. The former leading families of de Leuca, Perrini, Raron and Pontemallio were replaced with new families including: the Werra [ fr ] , Mageran, Allet, Ambühl, Albertini, Gasner, Mayenzet, Zen-Ruffinen and Loretan. The village subsequently grew into an independent town with elegant homes and
3196-532: The highest in both range and canton. The region essentially coincides with the upper basin of the Aare , the latter notably including Lake Thun and Lake Brienz , the two large lakes of the region. On the banks of the lakes or the Aare are the main settlements of Thun , Spiez , Interlaken , Brienz and Meiringen . The numerous side valleys of the Bernese Oberland include a large number of Alpine villages, many of them being tourist resorts and connected by mountain railways to Spiez and Interlaken. The Lötschberg ,
3264-475: The insurance or financial industry, 42 or 6.3% were technical professionals or scientists, 83 or 12.5% were in education and 204 or 30.8% were in health care. In 2000, there were 398 workers who commuted into the municipality and 877 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net exporter of workers, with about 2.2 workers leaving the municipality for every one entering. Of the working population, 20.9% used public transportation to get to work, and 55.8% used
3332-406: The leading Leuker families tended to Protestantism . However, in 1604, when the Valais Grand Council met in Visp and voted to remain with the Catholic faith , these the families (especially the Mageran and Ambühl) decided to return to the old faith. In the Middle Ages, the local economy was based on the transport of goods, alpine herding, farming and viticulture . The town produced gravel from
3400-510: The municipality. There were 1,602 married individuals, 221 widows or widowers and 137 individuals who are divorced. As of 2000, there were 1,209 private households in the municipality, and an average of 2.6 persons per household. There were 330 households that consist of only one person and 124 households with five or more people. Out of a total of 1,264 households that answered this question, 26.1% were households made up of just one person and there were 14 adults who lived with their parents. Of
3468-399: The pass in August 1878, and described it in a letter to his wife. Although the pass cannot be traversed by road, it is still directly accessible by cablecar from Leukerbad. Alternatively, the pass can be reached by a two-hour dramatic hike on foot. From Kandersteg a cable car gives access to the Sunnbüel area (1,934 m), 10 km north of the pass, allowing hikers to cross the pass on
SECTION 50
#17328514179893536-485: The pass is the Daubensee , which has no outlet above ground. The Gemmi Fault passes close to the pass. The pass is mentioned in the Sherlock Holmes story The Final Problem . Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson cross the pass on their way to Meiringen , where Sherlock Holmes has his famous meeting with Professor Moriarty at the Reichenbach Falls . The pass is described by Guy de Maupassant in his short-story L'Auberge . The American writer Mark Twain also visited
3604-421: The population have completed non-mandatory upper secondary education , and 215 or (6.4%) have completed additional higher education (either university or a Fachhochschule ). Of the 215 who completed tertiary schooling, 73.5% were Swiss men, 21.4% were Swiss women, 3.7% were non-Swiss men. During the 2010–2011 school year there were a total of 438 students in the Leuk school system. The education system in
3672-561: The population in the municipality 1,617 or about 48.1% were born in Leuk and lived there in 2000. There were 985 or 29.3% who were born in the same canton, while 319 or 9.5% were born somewhere else in Switzerland, and 295 or 8.8% were born outside of Switzerland. The age distribution of the population (as of 2000) is children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 24% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 59.8% and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 16.2%. As of 2000, there were 1,401 people who were single and never married in
3740-425: The population) who belonged to another Christian church. There were 141 (or about 4.20% of the population) who were Islamic . There was 1 person who was Hindu and 4 individuals who belonged to another church. 48 (or about 1.43% of the population) belonged to no church, are agnostic or atheist , and 124 individuals (or about 3.69% of the population) did not answer the question. In Leuk about 1,149 or (34.2%) of
3808-401: The rest of the households, there are 328 married couples without children, 455 married couples with children. There were 64 single parents with a child or children. There were 18 households that were made up of unrelated people and 55 households that were made up of some sort of institution or another collective housing. In 2000 there were 534 single family homes (or 62.1% of the total) out of
3876-425: The secondary sector was 205 of which 46 or (22.4%) were in manufacturing and 138 (67.3%) were in construction. The number of jobs in the tertiary sector was 663. In the tertiary sector; 91 or 13.7% were in wholesale or retail sales or the repair of motor vehicles, 48 or 7.2% were in the movement and storage of goods, 95 or 14.3% were in a hotel or restaurant, 18 or 2.7% were in the information industry, 28 or 4.2% were
3944-415: The soil of the canton of Valais (VS) . Via the upper, southern end of the Lauterbrunnental the experienced hiker can reach the Kandertal by traversing the Tschingel and Kander Neve from northeast to southwest. West of the Lauterbrunnental the Schilthorn rises, separating the valley of the Weisse Lütschine from the Kiental . The Lauterbrunnen Valley is connected to the Kiental via the Sefinafurgga ,
4012-422: The southwest, with the ski resort of Adelboden at its southern end. Adelboden and its sister resort Lenk join their respective areas to an extended and unified ski and hiking area across another mountain range. Lenk is situated at the southern end of the Obersimmental, the upper part of the Simmental , which again joins the Kander of the Kandertal just south of Spiez at the southern shore of Lake Thun after
4080-434: The train station in Susten was rebuilt with a new railway bridge over the Rhone and a new rail tunnel towards Salgesch. Traditionally Leuk was the central administrative center of the region. At the beginning of the 21st century, it is also the educational, legal and services center in part due to the satellite earth station of International Teleport Switzerland AG. The large antennas of the earth station have made Leuk into
4148-407: The upper secondary students attended school in another municipality. As of 2000, there were 128 students in Leuk who came from another municipality, while 124 residents attended schools outside the municipality. Gemmi Pass Gemmi Pass is a high mountain pass across the Bernese Alps connecting Leukerbad (on the south) in the canton of Valais with Kandersteg (on the north) in
SECTION 60
#17328514179894216-418: The valley when La Sarine turns north again, and the town of Bulle in the canton of Fribourg (FR) , west of the Lac de la Gruyère . North of Spiez, right across Lake Thun, on its northern shore, lies the Niederhorn , the south end of the northernmost mountain range of significant elevation of the Bernese Oberland, with the Gemmenalphorn and the Hohgant at the other end, separated by a small valley from
4284-402: The village of Susten on the left bank of the Rhone and the hamlets of Brianen, Feithieren, Gampinen and Pfyn. The municipalities of Erschmatt and Leuk are considering a merger on at a date in the future into the new municipality with an, as of 2011, undetermined name. The blazon of the municipal coat of arms is Gules a Griffin rampant coward langued and armed Argent holding in front paws
4352-411: The vom Turn and von Raron families), who were supported by nobles from the Bernese Oberland . In 1386, Leuk prevented the advance of Count Amadeus VII of Savoy into the Upper Valais with the destruction of Dala bridge. In 1415, during the Rarner war, the Bishop's Castle and the Viztumsturm were destroyed by invaders. In 1541, Ulrich Ruffiner built the present Gothic -style town hall on the ruins of
4420-494: Was 70.5%, which is much more than the cantonal average of 54.67%. In the 2007 Swiss Council of States election a total of 1,849 votes were cast, of which 73 or about 3.9% were invalid. The voter participation was 76.4%, which is much more than the cantonal average of 59.88%. As of 2010, Leuk had an unemployment rate of 2.2%. As of 2008, there were 148 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 56 businesses involved in this sector. 218 people were employed in
4488-436: Was already inhabited in the pre-Roman era . Scattered La Tène era graves with poppy-head pins, brooches and a belt hook have been found in Leuk. In the 6th century it belonged to the demesne of the King of Burgundy Sigismund, who donated it to the Abbey of Saint-Maurice. The local population of Romanized Celts gradually became Germanized around the turn of the millennium due to invading Alamanni . However, even by
4556-401: Was given the right to have its own weights and measures. In 1285 they built a hospital and in 1310 they added a warehouse, one on the old trade route between northern Italy and the markets of Champagne. With the warehouse they established a group of teamsters that provided extra draft animals to help wagons make it over the mountains. The episcopal fief holders Viztum and Meier built
4624-416: Was little enthusiasm for the new order. The 1801 Malmaison Constitution proposed reuniting the canton of Oberland with Bern, but it was not until the Act of Mediation , two years later, with the abolition of the Helvetic Republic and the partial restoration of the ancien régime , that the two cantons were reunited. In 1729, Albrecht von Haller published the poem Die Alpen about his travels through
#988011