Author: Maarten Koning

The Furka Pass, Rhone Glacier and Grand Hotels

The film Grand Budapest Hotel (1995) by director Wes Anderson shows the decline of a hotel from the Belle Epoque, from 1900 until the First World War (1914-1918).

The Hotel Belvédère

The story of Hotel Belvédère on the Furka Pass is, as a matter of speaking, the model for this film. The hotel is, in any case, one of the most famous from this period.

Sean Connery (1930-2020 )also drove the famous hairpin bend in Goldfinger (1964) in his silver Aston Martin DB5 at an appropriate speed for 007. Countless postcards and, these days, Instagram posts show the hotel and the glacier.

The Furkap Pass, Hotel Belvédère and the famous bend. Photo: TES

Furka Pass, Hotel Belvédère. Photo: TES

Since 2015, however, the hotel has been empty. The nearby Rhone glacier is also shrinking, a development that began as early as the 19th century. Until 1870, the glacier extended into the valley to the village of Gletsch (Canton Valais). In 1980, the glacier was still opposite the Hotel Belvédère. In 2022, there is a lake instead, and the glacier is hundreds of metres away.

Gletsch, Grand Hotel Glacier du Rhône, around 1870. Source: Gletscherlehrpfad Furka Pass. Photo: TES.

The history of the Belvédère began almost two hundred years earlier. The first inn in the region was built in Gletsch in 1830. Alexander Seiler (1819-1891) expanded it into the Grand Hotel Glacier du Rhône in 1857.

The glacier still reached the valley and the village. The hotel was intended for travellers who used the Furka Pass or the Grimsel Pass to exchange horses and increasingly for (English) mountaineers and their large (aristocratic) entourage. The Queen (Queen Victoria 1819-1901) drank her tea here on 23 August 1868, “a delicious cup of tea”.

The Furka Hotel and the Queen

In 1850, a simple hotel was built on the Furka Pass Hotel Furka. The owner was Franz Karl Müller. The most famous guest was Queen Victoria. During her four-day stay at the hotel in August 1868, she admired the glacier and the view of the Alps but was less enthusiastic about the hotel. However, her visit ensured that the Furka Pass and Gletsch were on the front pages and in the news for many days.

The Ice Cave

It also aroused the interest of other entrepreneurs. In 1870, the organ builder Philipp Carlen from Goms (Upper Valais) had a plan: he dug a hundred-metre tunnel into the glacier, the Eisgrotte. For a fee, visitors can see the inside of the glacier. It is a great success. People queue up.

The ‘Eisgrotte‘ still exists. The entrance, however, is almost a kilometre further away. Philipp Carlen’s great-great-grandson and namesake runs the “Eisgrotte‘” today.

 Hotel Furkablick and Hotel Belvédère

Hotel Furkablick. Photo:TES

The number of grand hotels increased rapidly in Switzerland between 1880 and 1914. Between 1888 and 1914, the number of (Grand) Hotels doubled from 1700 to over 3500. Alexander Seiler builds his second hotel, the Belvédère, on the Furka Pass. Franz Karl Müller also establishes his second hotel, the Furkablick.

Grand hotels are always places of progress: electricity, hot water, private sanitary facilities, and facilities for winter and summer sports such as skiing, figure skating, horse racing, golf, tennis and, since the 1920s, bridge. The hotels on the Furka Pass are modest but equipped with the most modern inventions and achievements.

The Gotthard-Matterhorn line. Photo: TES.

The hoteliers also take initiatives to build the Brig-Furka-Disentis railway, today’s Gotthard-Matterhorn line, and to widen and improve the roads over the Furka Pass and the Grimsel Pass. The three hotels on the Furka Pass (Furkahotel, Furkablick and Belvédère) and the Glacier du Rhône in Gletsch flourish.

The Great Grand Hotel Depression

But then, on 1 August 1914, the First World War (1914-1918) began, followed two decades later by the Second World War (1939-1945). The great grand hotel depression begins. On the one hand, the splendour of the Belle Époque now seems old-fashioned and outdated. Moreover, medicine offers alternative treatments so that spa cures and mountain air attract fewer and fewer visitors.

After 1960, other holiday destinations and the number of holidaymakers increase rapidly. However, the new target groups have limited budgets and holiday days. Until 1914, wealthy guests usually stayed in hotels for months.

Many hotels were demolished, burned down (whether because of insurance money or for other reasons remains to be seen) or stood empty. Only the old names in mondaine villages and towns remained open. The “Eisgrotte”, however, continues to attract many visitors.

Even Hotel Furka, the hotel of the visit of the Queen, is blown up to make room for a car park. The construction of the Furka base tunnel (1982) also meant the end of the Furka Pass as a vital traffic connection.

Hotel Belvédère in 2022. Photo: TES

The Belvédère Hotel and the Ice Cave

In 1985, Valais’s Canton took over the remaining hotels (Furkablick and Belvédère). The glacier has shrunk by hundreds of metres, and the canton wants to build a hydroelectric power station in the new lake and demolish the hotels. However, due to the population’s resistance, it does not happen.

Right on top the Furka pass, Hotel Belvédère and the disappeared glacier. Photo: TES

In 1988, the canton sold the Hotel Belvédère to Philipp Carlen, the current operator of the “Eisgrotte”. The hotel reopened in 1990. In 2015, however, it closed its doors (for good?).

But Philipp Carlen also has other initiatives, a glacier nature trail, an alpine garden and soon a slide for children. He also wants to rent out boats on the lake.

Only the Hotel Furkablick still has a function, namely as a gallery. There is new hope for the Hotel Glacier du Rhône in Gletsch. There are plans to reopen this grand hotel in 2025 after renovation. It is part of the revival and upgrading of Grand Hotels that have been taking place since the end of the 20th century.

The Revival of Grand Hotels

Swiss Historic Hotels, founded in 1995, plays a role in this revival. Other Grand Hotels such as the Badrutt’s Palace, the Kulm Hotel and the Suvretta House in St. Moritz, Les Trois Rois in Basel, the Kurhaus in Bergün, the Bellevue in Scuol, the Montreux Palace, but also hotels in smaller towns such as Maloja and Celerina are just a few examples of an almost unbroken continuity from the Belle Époque era, even if only a few hotels have remained independent.

Other Grand Hotels, such as the Val Sinestra in the Lower Engadine, have used the splendour of the past for other purposes. However, many Grand Hotels are waiting for investors and renovation.

Grand Hotel Celerina, Upper Engadine. Photo: TES

Grand Hotel Maloja, Upper Engadine. Photo: TES

Suvretta House, Upper Engadine. Photo: TES

Hotel Les Trois Rois, Basel. Photo: TES

Continental Parkhotel (the former Grand Hotel Beauregard), Lugano. Photo: TES

The future of some Grand Hotels is uncertain. However, the “Eisgrotte” will be gone within two generations. That is a certainty.

The glacier in 1980, on the left of Hotel Belvédère. Source: Gletscherlehrpfad. Photo: TES

The lake in front of Hotel Belvédère in 2022. Photo: TES

The Rhone Valley, view from the Furka Pass. Photo: TES

Buochs, democracy and the Netherlands

What do the small villages of Buochs (Canton Nidwalden), democracy, and the Netherlands have in common? Not much at first glance. But appearances can be deceptive.

Not only were Louis Wyrsch or Borneo Louis (1793-1858) and his son Alois (Louis) Wyrsch (1825-1888) employed in the Netherlands and the Dutch East Indies for many years, but the other son of Borneo Louis, Jakob Konstantin Wyrsch (1842-1933), also had an international career.

Buochs, Protestant church, tombstone of Louis Wyrsch (Borneo Louis)

Buochs, a Protestant church, the gravestone of Alois (Louis) Wyrsch

Buochs and the so-called “Urschweiz” (the cantons of Uri, Schwyz, Obwalden and Nidwalden) are democratic mirrors for the Netherlands today.

Buochs was the birthplace and place of execution of the painter Johann Melchior Wyrsch (1732-1798) by French soldiers in 1798 when France invaded the Swiss Confederation after annexing part of the former diocese of Basel in 1792.

Pfarrkirche St. Martin and Pfarrhof

The French troops conquered Beckenried Stans and Stanstad without much resistance, but there was fierce fighting in Buochs, and many inhabitants were killed in revenge.

Johann Melchior Wyrsch, a painter recognised at home and abroad at the time, tried to mediate but was mercilessly shot. The village honours him with a statue. The Nidwalder Museum is dedicating an exhibition to the artist until 29 September 2024.

Buochs, sculptor Hans von Matt (1899-1985), statue of Johann Melchior Wyrsch

The villages and cantons on Lake Lucerne are not only of great importance for the development of modern-day Switzerland and its unique direct democracy.

The splendour of the villages and the international networking of many of their inhabitants also bear witness to their economic, cultural and cosmopolitan past and present. A major international conference was recently held in Bürgenstock.

This region is often wrongly labelled as “nationalistic”, “backwards”, or “primitive” by certain circles in Switzerland. 

Buochs

Politically, they tend to be conservative, an excellent counterbalance to the often opportunistic and (morally) superior thinking of circles in the more urbanised cantons.

The Urschweiz, as it has proven since 1291 against Habsburg, Burgundy, France, the Italian dukes and the German emperors and other leaders, has no fear. Its inhabitants also traded, studied, or waged war on all continents.

Its political compass deserves more respect even if the results of direct democracy and most cantons do not please everyone. After all, the Supreme Federal Court still can correct apparent cases of “conservatism” (e.g.Appenzell Innerrhoden 1990).

Beckenried

Suppose the possible new treaty with the European Union is not subject to a mandatory referendum. In that case, Switzerland would be at the same (low) political level as the Netherlands, with all the consequences.

In a 2005 referendum on the European Union in the Netherlands, an overwhelming majority (62% against 37%) voted against further European integration.

Not because this majority is against a European Union, but against this European Union and the lack of a relevant say in the most critical issues with far-reaching consequences.

Geneva, referendum September 2022

It was the first-ever national referendum. Until then, citizens had never had the opportunity to have a say in developing this European Union. The European Union was and is never an issue in national and European elections, only to make the most far-reaching decisions and the associated consequences.

Voter turnout was almost 70 per cent, compared to 30-40 per cent in European elections. Politicians, the media, academics, and the bureaucracy reacted by abolishing the referendum and ignoring the result.

“Highly educated” says nothing about mentality, wisdom and integrity, and even supposedly “less educated” people are highly educated in their field, especially in Switzerland.

Direct democracy in Switzerland is not old-fashioned but modern and tailored to the age of international, technological and social developments. It is a good indicator and barometer of the problems and bottlenecks in society that politicians cannot ignore.

It does not mean that direct democracy is ideal. The “inflation” of popular initiatives and some results may be wrong or sometimes problematic. But that is precisely the strength of the federal model, which is based on subsidiarity and compromise: In the end, there is always further discussion, and the result is usually well-founded, even if the political process sometimes takes (too) long.

Conclusion

In 1309, Emperor Henry VIII (1278-1313) of the Holy Roman Empire granted the cantons of Uri, Schwyz and Unterwalden independent jurisdiction. Uri and Schwyz had already received the status of imperial immediacy in the 13th century, Unterwalden in 1309.

The granting of independent jurisdiction (i.e. without interference from “foreign judges“) and imperial immediacy or free status to mountain villages (!) was unique in the Holy Roman Empire and a sign of their prestige.

The urban appearance of these villages corresponded to this status. In Switzerland, there could also be more appreciation for these communities, even if their political clock ticks differently.

(Source and further information: Gemeinde Buochs, Gemeinde Beckenried, Gemeinde Stansstad)

Impressions of Buochs

Hotel Rigiblick am See (1912)

Impressions of Stansstad

The artists Escher and Haas-Triverio in Italy (1922-1935)

The Dutch artist Maurits Cornelis Escher (1898-1972) is world-famous. But who knows Giuseppe Haas-Triverio (1889-1963)? The two artists were close friends between 1922 and 1935 and shared a passion for Italy.

Giuseppe Haas-Triverio and M. C. Escher on a hike from Scanno to Villetta Barrea, Abruzzen, 21. 5. 1929. Photo: M. C. Escher

Josef Haas was born in Sachseln (Canton Obwalden) in 1889. As an autodidact, he travelled to Rome at a young age, where he developed his talents, initially with oil paintings and later increasingly with woodcuts.

In 1919, he married the Italian Secondina Triverio, and from then on, Josef called himself Giuseppe Haas-Triverio. He became increasingly recognised and opened a studio in Rome, where he taught (aspiring) artists from Switzerland and Italy.

Born in Arnhem, Escher studied graphic techniques under Samuel Jessurun de Mesquita (1866-1944) in Haarlem. He then lived in France and Spain before settling in Rome in 1922. There he married the Swiss Giulia (“Jetta”) Umiker (1897-1969) in 1924.

Escher and Haas lived and worked within walking distance of each other in Rome, and their friendship developed. They travelled through Italy together on several working trips until 1935.

Haas kept a diary, and Escher took photographs and recorded the journeys in his agendas. Sometimes, they travelled alone or were accompanied by other artists. In any case, both were inspired by Italy, its people, art, and nature.

Both diaries and Escher’s pictures have been preserved. Together with the artworks by the two artists, they form the starting point for the exhibition “Gemeinsam Unterwegs. Giuseppe Haas-Triverio & M.C. Escher” (Travelling together: Giuseppe Haas-Triverio & M.C. Escher) at the Museum Bruder Klaus in Sachseln.

Giuseppe Haas-Triverio, Stilo, 1931, woodcut, 60 x 70 cm / 36 x 47 cm, Stiftung Giuseppe Haas-Triverio, Inv. HS 29.

Maurits C. Escher, Cattolica von Stilo, Kalabrien, November 1930, Lithography, 22,6 x 29,7 cm (Escher 1986, Kat. 139), © The M. C. Escher Company, Baarn, The Netherlands

The exhibition mainly shows woodcuts by the two artists and their differences and similarities. The latter is apparent, as the artists often pictured the same objects.

Haas wrote in his diary: “Mit dem holländischen Künstlerkollegen Maurits Cornelius Escher, der zehn Jahre jünger was als ich und auch auf dem Monte Verde wohnte, unternahm ich bis 1935 jedes Frühjahr Reisen nach Korsika, Malta, Sizilien, Kalabrien und in die Abruzzen” (With the Dutch artist colleague Maurits Cornelius Escher, who was ten years younger than me and also lived on Monte Verde, I travelled to Corsica, Malta, Sicily, Calabria and Abruzzo every spring until 1935).

Due to the health of one of his sons, Escher moved with his family to Steckborn (canton of Thurgau) in 1935 and later to Château-d’Oex (canton of Vaud).

Impression of the exhibition. Photo: Christian Hartmann

After a stay in Belgium and after the German occupation, he returned to the Netherlands in 1941 and lived in Baarn.

The beginning of the Second World War also meant a return to Sachseln for Haas. He devoted himself to local themes. Unlike Escher, he fell into oblivion. 

The catalogue by Beat Stutzer, Gemeinsam Unterwegs. Giuseppe Haas-Triverio & M.C. Escher (Sachseln, 2024) is a unique source of the two artists’ friendship and life in Italy between 1922 and 1935.

Impressions of the exhibition