Fribourg

Fribourg was founded in 1157 by Berthold IV of Zähringen on a defensible bend of the Sarine. After the Zähringen line died out, the counts of Kyburg confirmed its privileges; in 1277 the town was sold to the Habsburgs. Cloth and leather production brought Fribourg renown across central Europe, while its allegiance drew it into the battle of Laupen against Bern in 1339.

The Habsburgs ceded Fribourg to Savoy in 1452. During the Burgundian Wars it fought alongside Bern, later gaining imperial freedom and joining the Swiss Confederation in 1481. Fribourg remained Catholic during the Reformation, and the Jesuits founded the College of Saint Michael in 1582. Patrician families tightened their hold on government in 1627; their rule ended with the French invasion of 1798. Under the Act of Mediation in 1803, the city was separated from its canton and became its capital.