Sonderbund War

E99037

The Sonderbund War was a brief Swiss civil conflict in 1847 between conservative Catholic cantons and the liberal federal majority that led to the modern Swiss federal state.

Aliases (1)


Statements (47)

Predicate Object
instanceOf 19th-century conflict
Swiss civil war
civil war
alsoKnownAs Sonderbund War
surface form: "Sonderbundskrieg"
belligerent Fribourg NERFINISHED
Lucerne
Schwyz NERFINISHED
Unterwalden NERFINISHED
Uri
Valais
Zug NERFINISHED
casualties relatively low compared to other European civil wars
cause conflict between conservative Catholic and liberal Protestant political forces
disputes over centralization and federal reform in Switzerland
formation of the Sonderbund by conservative Catholic cantons
commandedBy Guillaume-Henri Dufour NERFINISHED
commanderSide Guillaume-Henri Dufour
surface form: "Guillaume-Henri Dufour was commander of the federal forces"
conflictBetween Sonderbund cantons NERFINISHED
Swiss Armed Forces
surface form: "Swiss federal forces"
constitutionalContext transition from loose confederation to federal state
country Switzerland
endTime 1847-11-29
followedBy Federal Constitution of 1848
surface form: "Swiss Federal Constitution of 1848"
hasDuration less than one month
hasEffect creation of the modern Swiss federal state
guarantee of religious freedom in Switzerland
neutralization of separatist Catholic alliance
strengthening of Swiss federal authority over cantons
involves Swiss cantons
surface form: "Catholic conservative cantons"

liberal-radical majority in the Tagsatzung
legalOutcome ban on separate cantonal alliances against the Confederation
location Switzerland
militaryStrategy federal forces aimed to minimize casualties and destruction
opponent liberal cantons of Switzerland
partOf Swiss political conflicts of the 19th century
peaceSettlement negotiated surrender of Sonderbund cantons
politicalAspect conflict between conservative and liberal forces
precededBy formation of the Sonderbund in 1845
relatedEvent 1848 revolutions
surface form: "European Revolutions of 1848"
religiousAspect conflict between Catholic and Protestant interests
result adoption of the Swiss Federal Constitution of 1848
dissolution of the Sonderbund alliance
victory of the federal (liberal) forces
significance key step in Swiss nation-building
last armed conflict on Swiss territory
startTime 1847-11-03
temporalContext prelude to mid-19th-century European liberal revolutions

Referenced by (2)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Sonderbund War alsoKnownAs Sonderbund War
this entity surface form: "Sonderbundskrieg"
Guillaume-Henri Dufour participatedIn Sonderbund War