Bern, Switzerland's de facto capital, is its fifth-most populous city, behind Zurich, Geneva, Basel and Lausanne
A chronology of key events:
1291- Origin of the Swiss confederation when three cantons form an alliance to resist outside control.
1815- In the wake of the Napoleonic wars, the borders of Switzerland - and the territory's neutrality - are established at the Congress of Vienna.
1848- Federal constitution defines the political system, providing for a centralised government.
1874- Revised constitution allows for the exercise of direct democracy by referendum.
1914-18 - Switzerland organises Red Cross units during World War One.
1919-20- Treaty of Versailles reaffirms Swiss neutrality.
1920- Joins League of Nations. League's headquarters established in Geneva.
1923- Customs union with Liechtenstein.
1939-45 - Federal Council issues a declaration of neutrality at start of World War Two. Refuses to join United Nations.
Magic formula
1959- Founder-member of European Free Trade Association (Efta).
Four party government system comes into being in a political agreement know as the "magic formula" which lasts for decades and brings a large measure of political stability.
1963- Joins Council of Europe.
1967- Right-wing groups campaign to restrict entry of foreign workers.
1971- Women granted right to vote in federal elections.
1979- After referendum, French-speaking part of Bern becomes separate canton of Jura.
1985- Referendum guarantees women legal equality with men within marriage.
1986- Referendum opposes UN membership by three to one. Immigrant numbers restricted.
1992- Switzerland joins World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) but December referendum rejects membership of European Economic Area - a free-trade zone.
1994- Referendum approves law making racial discrimination and denial of Nazi Holocaust illegal. Laws tightened against drugs traffickers and illegal immigrants.
1995- Swiss Banking Association announces - after pressure from Jewish groups - it has uncovered dormant pre-1945 bank accounts containing millions of dollars.
1998August - Swiss banks agree $1.25bn compensation deal with Holocaust survivors and families.
Right-wing gains
1999October - General election strengthens right-wing vote. The People's Party (SVP), led by Christoph Blocher, becomes second strongest political force in the country with nearly a quarter of the vote.
2001March - Voters reject moves to open talks on joining the European Union.
2001June - Swiss vote narrowly in favour of allowing their soldiers to carry weapons during peacekeeping missions abroad.
2001September - Parliament votes overwhelmingly in favour of United Nations membership, paving the way for a referendum on the issue.
2001October - Eleven die as huge fire breaks out after crash in Gotthard tunnel.
2001December - Voters reject proposal to scrap the army.
2002January - Bankrupt national carrier Swissair relaunched as Swiss.
2002March - A narrow majority of Swiss vote in favour of joining the United Nations in a referendum.
Bergier report by independent panel of historians finds that Swiss authorities knew what lay in store for Jewish refugees to whom Swiss borders were closed in 1942. The report also concluded that Switzerland had bolstered the economy of Nazi Germany but not to a degree that prolonged the war.
2002June - Swiss people vote in referendum to decriminalise abortion which will be allowed in first 12 weeks of pregnancy. A proposal which would have tightened the already strict abortion law is rejected in a separate referendum.
UN membership
2002September - Switzerland formally becomes a member of the UN.
2002November - By narrowest of margins, referendum rejects drastic tightening of asylum laws.
2003May - Nine different issues put to referendum. Swiss vote against abolition of nuclear power, new proposals on rights for the disabled and the introduction of car-free Sundays but in favour of army cuts and changes to civil defence.
2003October - The right-wing Swiss People's Party (SVP) becomes the biggest force in parliament after winning almost 28% of the vote in general elections.
2003December - Parliament agrees to grant right-wing Swiss People's Party second post in seven-seat government at the expense of the Christian Democrats, altering the "magic formula" which has brought stability to Swiss politics since 1959.
2004May - Agreement signed with EU on taxing accounts held in Swiss banks by EU taxpayers.
2004September - Voters in a referendum reject moves to relax strict naturalisation laws. The result is seen as a victory for the right-wing.
2004November - Referendum votes in favour of allowing scientific research using stem cells taken from human embryos.
Immigration debate
2005June - Voters in referendum support joining EU Schengen and Dublin agreements and extending rights for same-sex couples.
In the most serious breakdown in Swiss railway history, power failure brings trains to a standstill for several hours.
2005September - Referendum vote goes in favour of opening job market to workers from the 10 newest European Union countries.
2005November - Referendum backs five-year ban on use of genetically modified crops.
2006September - Voters in a national referendum back plans to make their asylum laws among the toughest in the West.
2007January-May - Ex-directors of Swissair, which collapsed in 2001, are in the dock in Switzerland's biggest corporate trial. They are all cleared.
2007September - Row over Swiss People's Party's ''kick out the black sheep'' poster aimed at deporting foreigners who commit crimes.
2007October - Elections. Swiss People's Party (SVP) boosts its standing as the biggest group in parliament, scooping nearly 29% of the vote.
2007December - Swiss People's Party (SVP) quits the governing coalition after one of its leaders, Christoph Blocher, is forced from his cabinet seat.
2008June - Voters reject referendum initiative to limit naturalisation of foreigners by allowing Swiss communes to vote on individual cases.
2008October - Libya cancels all oil deliveries to Switzerland and withdraws assets worth billions of dollars from Swiss banks in response to the arrest of leader Muammar Gaddafi's son, Hannibal. Mr Gaddafi and his wife were detained for assault but the charges were later dropped.
Switzerland unveils a $5.3bn rescue plan for its largest bank, UBS, which was badly hit by the global credit crisis.
2008December - Swiss People's Party (SVP) rejoins the governing coalition with the election of party member Ueli Maurer to the Federal Council.
Switzerland scraps routine passport controls at all its borders after joining the EU's Schengen Agreement.
Recession
2009January - Swiss economy officially goes into recession.
2009March - Switzerland's government announces it will relax its rules on banking secrecy to allow Swiss financial institutions to co-operate with international investigations into tax evasion.
2009September - Swiss economy returns to growth.
2009November - Swiss voters approve referendum initiative banning the construction of minarets.
2010September - Election of fourth female minister to seven-member Federal Council gives Swiss cabinet majority of women for first time ever.
2010November - Swiss voters approve referendum initiative on automatically deporting foreigners who have committed serious crimes.
2011February - Voters in a referendum reject plans for tighter gun controls.
2011May - In the wake of the crisis at Japan's Fukushima nuclear plant, Switzerland becomes the first country in Europe to announce plans to phase out nuclear power.
2011September - The government announces that the Swiss franc is to be pegged to the euro, after Swiss manufacturers warn that the currency's strength is making Swiss exports uncompetitive and risks tipping the country back into recession.
2011October - Right-wing Swiss People's Party loses ground in parliamentary elections, but remains the largest party.
Immigration debate
2012April - The government re-imposes immigration quotas on workers from central and eastern European Union countries, through a "safeguard clause" in its agreement with the EU on freedom of movement. The EU criticises the decision.
2012November - The Ecopop environmentalist group collects enough signatures to force a national referendum to cap annual population growth at 0.2%, by drastically restricting immigration.
2013June - Lower house of parliament refuses to debate bill to allow banks to pass client information to US tax authorities in pursuit of American tax evaders. US has threatened to deny Swiss banks access to dollar markets unless the country complies.
2013 September - Voters reject a proposal to scrap military conscription.
2014 February - A Swiss People's Party proposal to bring back strict quotas for immigration from European Union countries is narrowly passed in a national referendum, invalidating a Swiss-EU agreement on freedom of movement.
2014November - Voters reject a proposal backed by the environmentalist pressure group Ecopop for net immigration to be limited to a maximum of 0.2% of the population.
2015 January - The Swiss National Bank responds to the steep depreciation of the euro during 2014 by abruptly terminating the pegging of the franc to the euro introduced in 2011. The move causes the franc to soar and prompts warnings of serious damage to Switzerland's struggling tourism and export sectors.
2016June - Voters in a referendum reject a proposal to introduce an unconditional basic income.
2017February - A measure to make it easier for third generation immigrants to become citizens is approved in a referendum.
2017May - Voters in a referendum approve plans to phase out nuclear energy.
2018March - Voters in a referendum reject a proposal to abolish the mandatory licence fee for public broadcasting.
