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Switzerland, officially theSwiss Confederation, is alandlocked country located at the intersection ofCentral,Western, andSouthern Europe. It is bordered byGermany to the north,France to the west,Austria andLiechtenstein to the east, andItaly to the south. Switzerland is geographically divided among theSwiss Alps, theSwiss Plateau, and theJura Mountains; the Alps cover most of the country's territory, whereas the majority of its9 million people are concentrated on the plateau, which hosts many of thelargest cities and economic centres, includingZurich,Geneva,Basel,Bern,Lausanne,Winterthur, andLucerne.
Switzerland is afederal republic composed of26 cantons, with Bern serving as thefederal city and the seat of the national government. The country encompasses four principal linguistic and cultural regions—German,French,Italian, andRomansh—reflecting a long-standing tradition of multilingualism and cultural pluralism. Swiss national identity nonetheless remains fairly cohesive, rooted in a shared historical background, common values such asfederalism anddirect democracy, andAlpine symbolism. Swissnationhood transcends language, ethnicity, and religion, leading to Switzerland being described as aWillensnation ("nation of volition") rather than a conventionalnation state.
The country originates from theOld Swiss Confederacy established in theLate Middle Ages as adefensive and commercial alliance; theFederal Charter of 1291 is considered the country's founding document. The confederation steadilyexpanded and consolidated despite external threats and internalpolitical and religious strife. Swiss independence from theHoly Roman Empire was formally recognized in thePeace of Westphalia in 1648. The confederation was among the first and few republics of theearly modern period, and the only one besidesSan Marino to survive theNapoleonic Wars. Switzerland remained a network of self-governing states until 1798, whenrevolutionary France invaded andimposed thecentralistHelvetic Republic.Napoleon abolished the republic in 1803 andreinstated a confederation. Following the Napoleonic Wars, Switzerlandrestored its pre-revolutionary system, butby 1830 faced growing divisionand conflict between liberal and conservative movements; this culminated ina new constitution in 1848 that established the current federal system and enshrined principles such as individual rights, separation of powers, and parliamentary bicameralism.
Switzerland has maintaineda policy of armed neutrality since the 16th century and has not fought an international warsince 1815. It joined theCouncil of Europe in 1964 and theUnited Nations in 2002, pursuing an active foreign policy that includes frequent involvement inpeace building andglobal governance. Switzerland is the birthplace of theRed Cross and hosts the headquarters or offices of most majorinternational institutions, including theWTO, theWHO, theILO,FIFA, theWEF, and the UN. It is a founding member of theEuropean Free Trade Association (EFTA) and participates in theEuropean single market and theSchengen Area. Switzerland is among the world'smost developed countries, with the highest nominalwealth per adult and theeighth-highest gross domestic product (GDP) per capita.It performs highly on several international metrics, includingeconomic competitiveness,democratic governance, andpress freedom. Zurich, Geneva and Basel rank among the highest inquality of life, albeit with some of the highestcosts of living. Switzerland has a longstandingbanking and financial sector, advancedpharmaceutical and biotechnology industries, and a strong tradition ofwatchmaking, precision engineering, and technology. It is known for itschocolate andcheese production, well-developedtourism industry, and growing startup sector. (Full article...)
Good article -show another'UBS Group AG (stylized simply asUBS) is a Swiss multinationalinvestment bank andfinancial services firm founded and based in Switzerland, with headquarters in bothZurich andBasel. It holds a strong foothold in all major financial centres as thelargest Swiss banking institution and theworld's largest private bank. UBS manages the largest amount of private wealth in the world, counting approximately half ofThe World's Billionaires among its clients, with over US$6.1 trillion in assets as of May 2025 (AUM).' Based on international deal flow and political influence, the firm is considered one of the "biggest, most powerful financial institutions in the world". UBS is also a leadingmarket maker and one of the eight global 'bulge bracket' investment banks. Due to its large presence across the Americas,EMEA andAsia–Pacific markets, theFinancial Stability Board considers it aglobal systemically important bank and UBS is widely considered to be the largest and most sophisticated "truly global investment bank" in the world, given its market-leading positions in every major financial centre globally.
UBS investment bankers and private bankers are known for their strict bank–client confidentiality and culture ofbanking secrecy. Apart from private banking, UBS provideswealth management,asset management and investment banking services for private, corporate and institutional clients with international service. The bank also maintains numerous undergroundbank vaults, bunkers and storage facilities for gold bars around theSwiss Alps and internationally. UBS acquired rivalCredit Suisse in anemergency rescue deal brokered by the Swiss government and its Central bank in 2023, following which UBS' AUM increased to over $5 trillion along with an increased balanced sheet of $1.6 trillion. (Full article...)
Bern (Swiss Standard German:[bɛrn]ⓘ), orBerne (French:[bɛʁn]ⓘ), is thede factocapital ofSwitzerland, referred to as the "federal city". With a population of about 146,000 (as of 2024[update]), Bern is thefifth-most populous city in Switzerland, behindZürich,Geneva,Basel andLausanne. The Bern agglomeration, which includes 36 municipalities, had a population of 406,900 in 2014. Themetropolitan area had a population of 660,000 in 2000.
Bern is also the capital of thecanton of Bern, the second-most populous ofSwitzerland's cantons. The city's official language isGerman. The main spoken language is the local variant of theAlemannicSwiss German dialect,Bernese German. In 1983, thehistoric old town (inGerman:Altstadt) in the centre of Bern became aUNESCOWorld Heritage Site. It is notably surrounded by theAare, a major river of theSwiss Plateau. (Full article...)
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Isabelle Wilhelmine Marie Eberhardt (17 February 1877 – 21 October 1904) was aSwiss explorer and author. As a teenager, Eberhardt, educated inSwitzerland by her father, published short stories under a malepseudonym. She became interested inNorth Africa, and was considered a proficient writer on the subject despite learning about the region only through correspondence. After an invitation from photographer Louis David, Eberhardt moved toAlgeria in May 1897. She dressed as a man and converted toIslam, eventually adopting the nameSi Mahmoud Saadi. Eberhardt's unorthodox behaviour made her anoutcast among European settlers in Algeria and theFrench administration.
Eberhardt's acceptance by theQadiriyya, an Islamic order, convinced the French administration that she was a spy or an agitator. She survived an assassination attempt shortly thereafter. In 1901, the French administration ordered her to leave Algeria, but she was allowed to return the following year after marrying her partner, the Algerian soldier Slimane Ehnni. Following her return, Eberhardt wrote for a newspaper published by Victor Barrucand and worked for GeneralHubert Lyautey. In 1904, at the age of 27, she was killed by aflash flood inAïn Séfra. (Full article...)
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