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Originally appearing in Volume V27, Page 796 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.
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URI , one of the cantons of central See also:

Switzerland, and one of the earliest members of the See also:confederation. The name is probably connected with the same obscure See also:root as See also:Reuss and Ursern, and is popularly derived from Urochs or Auerochs (See also:wild See also:bull), a bull's See also:head having been See also:borne for ages as the arms of the region. The See also:total See also:area of the See also:canton is 415.3 sq. m., of which 184.3 are reckoned as " productive " (forests covering 43.9 sq. m.), while of the See also:rest 44.3 are occupied by glaciers and 71 sq. m. by the cantonal See also:share of the See also:Lake of See also:Lucerne. The highest See also:summit in the canton is the Dammastock (11,920 ft.). The canton is composed of the upper valley of the Reuss, a See also:mountain torrent that has cut for itself a deep See also:bed, See also:save in See also:case of the See also:basin of Ursern, near its upper end, and the See also:plain of See also:Altdorf, just before it forms the Lake of Lucerne. Hence, save in these two cases, the canton is made up of a wild Alpine valley, very picturesque in point of scenery, but not offering much See also:chance of cultivation. Through nearly the whole of this See also:savage glen runs the See also:main See also:line of the St Gotthard railway (opened in 1882), the See also:part (281 m.) in the canton being that between Sisikon, on the Lake of Lucerne, and Goschenen, at the See also:northern mouth of the See also:great See also:tunnel (91 m.) through the See also:Alps, and at the See also:lower end of the wild SchBllenen See also:gorge that cuts it off from the basin of Ursern. The most remarkable See also:engineering feats are near Wassen. There is also an electric See also:tramway from Altdorf to its See also:port, Flifelen. On the other See also:hand, several magnificent See also:carriage roads are within the See also:borders of the canton, leading to or over the mountain passes that give See also:access either to See also:Glarus (the Klausen Pass, 6404 ft.), or to See also:Ticino (St Gotthard Pass, 6936 ft.), or to the See also:Grisons (Oberalp Pass, 6719 ft.), or to the See also:Valais (Furka Pass, 7992 ft.). Owing to the See also:physical conformation of the canton, it was difficult for it to extend its See also:rule save towards the See also:south (see below), but since very See also:early days it has held the splendid pastures of the Urnerboden, on the other slope of the Klausen Pass, as well as the Blacken See also:Alp, at the head of the See also:Engelberg valley, though the northernmost slope of the St Gotthard Pass still belongs to Ticino. In 1900 the See also:population of the canton was only 19,700, of whom 18,685 were See also:German-speaking, 947 See also:Italian-speaking (this number varied much during the construction of the St Gotthard railway, mainly by Italian navvies), and 24 See also:French-speaking, while 18,924 were Romanists, 793 Protestants, and z a See also:Jew.

The See also:

capital is Altdorf (q.v.), indissolubly connected with the See also:legend of See also:William Tell (q.v.). The only other important villages are Erstfeld (2416 inhab.), a great railway centre, where the mountain engines are put on, and Silenen (1892 inhab.). The population is all but exclusively See also:pastoral, natural causes limiting much effort in the way of See also:agriculture, save near Altdorf. In the canton there are 102 " alps " or mountain pastures, capable of supporting 10,354 cows, and of an estimated capital value of 5,771,000 fr. Till 1814 Uri formed part of the See also:diocese of See also:Constance (save Ursern, which has always been in that of See also:Coire), while since that date it is administered by the See also:bishop of Coire, though legally in no diocese. The inhabitants are very industrious and saving, though not See also:rich in worldly goods, as their See also:land is so barren. They are extremely conservative, and passionately attached to their See also:religion. Wooden sandals are still commonly worn in the Alpine glens. Of See also:recent years the canton has been much visited by travellers, who have brought much See also:money into it. It forms a single administptive See also:district, which comprises twenty communes. The legislature of the canton is the See also:time-honoured See also:primitive democratic See also:assembly, called the Landsgemeinde, composed of all male citizens of 20 years of See also:age, and See also:meeting once annually near Altdorf on the first See also:Sunday in May. It has retained many curious See also:antique ceremonies and customs.

It elects the single member of the Federal Standerat, as well as the cantonal executive of seven members (holding See also:

office for four years), two of whom are the highest officials, the Landammann and his See also:deputy. There is also a sort of See also:standing See also:committee, called the Landrat, which is charged with the See also:administration and See also:minor legislative matters. It is composed of members elected for four years by a popular See also:vote in the See also:pro-portion of one to every 400 (or fraction over 200) inhabitants, though each See also:commune, even if not attaining this See also:standard of population, is entitled to a member. The single member of the Federal Nationalrat is elected by a popular vote. The constitutional details, apart from the Landsgemeinde, are settled by the cantonal constitution of 1888 (since revised slightly). Uri is first mentioned in 732 as the See also:place of banishment of Eto, the See also:abbot of See also:Reichenau, by the See also:duke of Alamannia. In 853 it was given by See also:Louis the German to the nunnery (Frauenmunster) at See also:Zurich which he had just founded, and of which his daughter, See also:Hildegard, was the first See also:abbess. Hence the "See also:abbey folk" in Uri enjoyed, as such, the See also:privilege of exemption from all jurisdictions save that of the See also:king's See also:Vogt or " steward of the See also:manor " at Zurich, this Vogtei being cut off from the See also:country of the Zurichgau. The rule of the abbess was mild, so that the other inhabitants of Uri either became her. tenants or obtained similar privileges. Little by little the gathering together of all the inhabitants for the purpose of regulating the customary cultivation of the land created a corporate feeling and led to a sort of See also:local See also:government. On the extinction of the Zaringen See also:dynasty (1218), the Vogtei reverted to the king, who gave it to the Habsburgs. But in 1231 King See also:Henry bought Uri from them, and thus it became again immediately dependent on the king, the See also:purchase being perhaps due to the rising importance of the route over the St Gotthard Pass (first distinctly mentioned in 1236).

As early as 1243 Uri had a See also:

common See also:seal, and in the See also:confirmation of its privileges (1274) granted by See also:Rudolf of See also:Habsburg mention is made of its " head-See also:man " (See also:Amman) and of the " commune " (universitas). Uri therefore was quite ready to take part, with See also:Schwyz and See also:Unterwalden, in See also:founding the " See also:Everlasting See also:League " (germ of the later Swiss confederation) on the 1st of See also:August 1291, defending its See also:liberty in the fight of See also:Morgarten(1315) and renewing the League of the Three at Brunnen (2315). Later it took part in the victory of See also:Sempach (1386). In 1403, with the help of Obwalden, it won the Val Leventina from the duke of See also:Milan, but it was lost in 1422, though in 1440 Uri alone reconquered it and kept it (winning the bloody fight of Giornico in 1478) till 1798. In 1419, with Obwalden, Uri bought See also:Bellinzona, but lost it at the See also:battle of Arbedo (1422), though, with Schwyz and Nidwalden, it won it back in 1500, keeping it also till 1798. In 1512 Uri shared in the See also:conquest of See also:Lugano, &c., by the Confederates, her natural position forcing her to extend her rule towards the south, though many attempts on and temporary occupations of the Val d'Ossola (1410-1515) ultimately failed. In 1410 a perpetual See also:alliance was made with the valley of Ursern or Val Orsera, the latter being allowed its own head-man and assembly, and courts under those of Uri, with which it was not fully incorporated till 1888. Ursern originally belonged to the great See also:Benedictine monastery of Disentis, at the head of the Vorder See also:Rhine valley, and was most probably colonized in the 13th See also:century by a German-speaking folk from the Upper Valais. At the See also:Reformation Uri clung to the old faith, becoming a member of the " Christliche Vereinigung " (1529) and of the See also:Golden League (1586). In 1798, on the formation of the Helvetic See also:republic, Uri be-came part of the huge canton of the Waldstatten and lost all its Italian possessions. In See also:September 1799 Suworoff and the See also:Russian See also:army, having crossed the St Gotthard to Altdorf, were forced by the French to pass by the Kinzigkulm Pass into Schwyz, instead of sailing down the lake to Lucerne. In 1803 Uri became an See also:independent canton again, with Ursern, but without the Val Leventina.

It tried hard to bring back the old See also:

state of things in 1814-15, and opposed all attempts at reform, joining the League of See also:Sarnen in 1832 to maintain the pact of 1815, opposing the proposed revision of the pact, and being one of the members of the Sonderbund in 1845. Despite defeat in the See also:civil See also:war of 1847, Uri voted against the Federal constitution of 1848, and by a crushing See also:majority against that of 1874.

End of Article: URI

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