Glarus

Glarus lies on the Linth between the mountains of Glärnisch and Schilt. First recorded in the ninth century as Clarona, it belonged for centuries to Säckingen Abbey. The valley freed itself from the abbey in 1395, and Glarus became its political centre in 1419. Its soldiers' service abroad drew the town into the conflicts of neighbouring powers.

Huldrych Zwingli served as a Catholic priest at Glarus from about 1506 and accompanied Swiss soldiers on campaigns in Italy. After the defeat at Marignano in 1515, his support for the papacy became unpopular and he left for Einsiedeln. The Reformation reached Glarus in 1528; after the Second War of Kappel in 1531, Catholics and Protestants both worshipped in the town church. In 1798 Glarus became capital of the Helvetic Republic's canton of Linth. The Act of Mediation dissolved it in 1803 and restored a smaller canton of Glarus.