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BELLINZONA (Ger. Bellenz)

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Originally appearing in Volume V03, Page 704 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.
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BELLINZONA (Ger. Bellenz) , the See also:political See also:capital of the Swiss See also:canton of See also:Tessin or See also:Ticino. It is 105 M. from See also:Lucerne by the St Gotthard railway, 19 m. from See also:Lugano and 14 M. from See also:Locarno at the See also:head of the Lago See also:Maggiore, these two towns having been till 1881 capitals of the canton jointly with Bellinzona. The old See also:town is built on some hills, on the See also:left See also:bank of the Tessin or Ticino See also:river, and a little below the junction of the See also:main Ticino valley (the Val Leventina) with that of Mesocco. It thus blocked the road from See also:Germany to See also:Italy, while a See also:great See also:wall was built from the town to the river bank. Bellinzona still possesses three picturesque castles (restored in See also:modern times), dating in their See also:present See also:form from the 15th See also:century. They belonged for several centuries to the three Swiss cantons which were masters of the town. The most See also:westerly, See also:Castello Grande or of See also:San Michele, belonged to See also:Uri; the central See also:castle, that of Montebello, was the See also:property of See also:Schwyz; while the most easterly castle, that of Sasso Corbaro, was in the hands of See also:Unterwalden. The 13th-century See also:church of San Biagio (Blaise) has a remarkable 14th-century See also:fresco, while the collegiate church of San Stefano See also:dates from the 16th century. In 1900 the See also:population of Bellinzona was 4949, practically all Romanists and See also:Italian-speaking. Possibly Bellinzona is of See also:Roman origin, but it is first mentioned in 590. It played a considerable See also:part in the See also:early See also:history of See also:Lombardy, being a See also:key to several Alpine passes.

In the 8th century it belonged to the See also:

bishop of See also:Como, while in the 13th and 14th centuries it was tossed to and fro between the cities of See also:Milan and Como. In 1402 it was taken from Milan by See also:Albert von See also:Sax, See also:lord of the Val Mesocco, who in 1419 sold it to Uri and Obwalden, which, however, lost it to Milan in 1422 after the See also:battle of Arbedo. In 1499 (like the See also:rest of the Milanese) it was occupied by the See also:French, but in 1500 it was taken by Uri. In 1503 the French See also:king ceded it to Uri, Schwyz and Unterwalden, which henceforth ruled it very harshly through their bailiffs till 1798. At that date it became the capital of the canton Bellinzona of the Helvetic See also:republic, but in 1803 it was See also:united to the newly-formed canton of Tessin. (W. A. B.

End of Article: BELLINZONA (Ger. Bellenz)

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BELLMAN, KARL MIKAEL (1740–1795)

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