1653 peasant revolt forces Swiss cities to concede power

Switzerland’s 1653 Peasant War ended in defeat and executions for the rebels, but it forced the cities to ease their control over rural communities, according to SRF.

On September 6, 1653, Niklaus Leuenberger, known as the Peasant King, was beheaded and quartered in Bern. His limbs were displayed at the city gates as a warning.

The uprising ended after only a few months and was the bloodiest civil war ever experienced by the Swiss Confederation. In the mid-17th century, the Confederation consisted of 13 cantons, dominated by cities seeking to expand their power. Tensions between urban authorities and rural communities reached an unprecedented level.

Although Switzerland avoided the Thirty Years’ War, which devastated Europe between 1618 and 1648, it suffered from the conflict’s aftermath. As the German economy recovered, Swiss farmers struggled to sell their products beyond the Rhine. Money became scarce in both rural communities and cities. The cities responded by devaluing their currencies, pushing farmers into an even more precarious situation, historian Christophe Vuilleumier told French-language broadcaster RTS.

The anger led farmers from Bern’s Emmental region to form an alliance with those from Lucerne’s Entlebuch. Farmers from Solothurn and Basel soon joined them. After initial negotiations with the cities failed, the farmers founded the Huttwil League on April 23, 1653. Alongside better economic conditions, they demanded greater political rights for rural communities.

The farmers armed themselves with whatever they could find. After appointing the Bernese Niklaus Leuenberger as their king, they decided to march on Bern. Thousands of men besieged the city from May 22. At the same time, another peasant leader, Hans Emmenegger, surrounded Lucerne with his followers.

Both cities asked the other cantons for military assistance through the Swiss Diet, the Confederation’s parliament at the time.

Facing the threat of food shortages, Bern’s patricians quickly made concessions and signed the Peace of Murifeld on May 29. The agreement included the dissolution of the Huttwil League. However, not all farmers accepted the peace, especially after Zurich sent 8,000 well-armed troops.

The troops met about 24,000 farmers under Leuenberger’s command near Lenzburg in Aargau. According to Vuilleumier, villages were burned and farms looted. The rebellion ended in an unprecedented bloodbath for Switzerland. Its leaders were arrested and beheaded.

Vuilleumier said the uprising was not pointless from the farmers’ perspective. The currency was revalued, and the cities, particularly Bern, became far more tolerant towards rural communities after recognising how dependent they were on them.

At the beginning of the 20th century, Leuenberger was rehabilitated in his home region. A monument dedicated to him was erected at the entrance to Rüderswil in the Emmental. Local councillor Walter Zaugg said residents identified with Leuenberger as a true representative of the region. Kurt Dellenbach, who lives next to the monument, described him as a role model and said people should stop fighting and negotiate more, as Leuenberger had done.