The Rütli Meadow, a mountainous territory above Lake Lucerne in the canton of Uri, is known as being the birthplace of Switzerland’s independence.
On the 1st of August 1291, the local leaders of the forest communities of Uri, Schwyz and Nidwalden met at Rütli and signed a pact for the independence of Switzerland. This pact is the founding act of the Swiss Confederation, also known as Confoederatio Helvetica in Latin and abbreviated with the worldwide known “CH” letters.
Since then, the 1st of August is commemorated as the Swiss National Day and the local population celebrates it all around the country with amazingly colourful fireworks.
In the city of Basel, the celebrations for the Swiss National Day start on the 31st of July at 18:00, in the city’s centre and the region of the River Rhine. A spectacular fireworks show starts at exactly 23:00 around the river and it lasts for 30 minutes.
