Everything about Murten totally explained
Murten is a
municipality in the
See district of the
canton of
Fribourg in
Switzerland.
It is located on the southern shores of
Lake Morat. Murten is situated between
Berne and
Lausanne and is the capital of the Lake District of the canton of Fribourg.
Geography
This small medieval town lies in the Swiss "Midlands" on the edge of the Great Marsh, on a gentle hill (450 metres above sea level) and on the shore of Lake Morat (or Murtensee, named after the town). Numerous attractions from a significant past have been well preserved here, such as the castle, the ring wall, the street scene and the arcades. Lake Morat is a smaller lake located in between
Lake Biel and
Lake Neuchâtel.
Mount Vully is situated on the western side of the Seeland's largest plain and resembles a pearl gently placed among the three lakes of Murten, Neuchâtel and Biel. Already long ago, the Celtic and
Helvetic tribes appreciated the region's temperate climate and the local countryside's particular charm. Today, the Vully vineyards take up a large part of the south face of Mount Vully. The over 100 hectares of vineyards are facing towards Lake Morat.
Murten is also famous in history for the defeat of
Charles the Bold by the Swiss. The former fortified city, which has kept most of its ramparts and towers, has picturesque charm.
The first language of 73% of the population is
German, of 14%
French, and of 3%
Italian.
History
The town’s name is derived from the Celtic word moriduno, meaning “lakeside fortress”. It was first mentioned in 515 as the existence of a defensive place called “Muratum”. By 1013, the place was known as a fortress. Duke
Berchtold IV of
Zähringen founded the town in 1159 next to the fortress. After his death, Murten was recognized as a “Free Imperial Town” by the
German emperor Frederic II. At that time, the emperor himself lived in the South of Italy and a small town north of the
Alps wasn't his concern. It didn't last long -– in 1255 Murten fell under the protection of Count
Peter of Savoy.
A fire in 1416 led to rebuilding in stone.
On
June 22 1476, Charles the Bold, duke of
Burgundy, laid a siege known as the
Battle of Murten. The town hung on for 13 days but finally was saved by the Bernese army. The enemy’s army was destroyed completely — some 10,000 Burgundians were killed. Since then, Murten celebrates the victory every year on
June 22.
From 1484 on, and for 300 years, Murten was ruled by the two cantons —
Bern and
Fribourg. In 1803, Napoleon gave the town to the canton of Fribourg. Today Murten is still a part of the
Canton of Fribourg.
Population
| Estimated Growth of Population |
| 1900 |
2645 habitants |
| 1910 |
2418 habitants |
| 1930 |
2570 habitants |
| 1950 |
3106 habitants |
| 1960 |
3610 habitants |
| 1970 |
4512 habitants |
| 1980 |
4657 habitants |
| 1990 |
4718 habitants |
| 2000 |
5578 habitants |
| 2004 |
5651 habitants |
Further Information
Get more info on 'Murten'.
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