History of Basel

There are settlement traces on the Rhine knee from the early La Tne period (5th c
entury BC). In the 2nd century BC, there was a village of the Raurici at the sit
e of Basel-Gasfabrik, to the northwest of the Old City, likely identical with th
e town of Arialbinnum mentioned on the Tabula Peutingeriana.[7] The unfortified
settlement was abandoned in the 1st century BC in favour of an Oppidum on the si
te of Basel Minster, probably in reaction to the Roman invasion of Gaul. In Roma
n Gaul, Augusta Raurica was established some 20 km from Basel as the regional ad
ministrative centre, and a castle was built on the site of the oppidum. The city
of Basel eventually grew around the castle.
The name of Basel is derived from the Roman-era toponym Basilia, first recorded
in the 3rd century. It is presumably derived from the personal name Basilius.[8]
The Old French form Basle was adopted into English, and developed into the mode
rn French Ble. The Icelandic name Buslaraborg goes back to the 12th century Leiarvs
ir og borgarskipan.
Basel was incorporated into Germania Superior in AD 83. Roman control over the a
rea deteriorated in 3rd century, and Basel became an outpost of the Provincia Ma
xima Sequanorum formed by Diocletian. The Alamanni attempted to cross the Rhine
several times in the 4th century, but were repelled. In a great invasion of AD 4
06, the Alemanni appear to have crossed the Rhine river a final time, conquering
and then settling what is today Alsace and a large part of the Swiss Plateau. F
rom this time, Basel has been an Alemannic settlement. The Duchy of Alemannia fe
ll under Frankish rule in the 6th century, and by the 7th century, the former bi
shopric of Augusta Raurica was re-established as the Bishopric of Basel. Based o
n the evidence of a third solidus with the inscription Basilia fit, Basel seems
to have minted its own coins in the 7th century.[9] Under bishop Haito, the firs
t cathedral was built on the site of the Roman castle, later replaced by a Roman
esque structure consecrated in 1019. At the partition of the Carolingian Empire,
Basel was first given to West Francia, but passed to East Francia with the trea
ty of Meerssen of 870. The city was plundered and destroyed by a Magyar invasion
of 917. The rebuilt city became part of Upper Burgundy, and as such was incorpo
rated into the Holy Roman Empire in 1032.
Prince-Bishopric of Basel[edit]
Main article: Prince-Bishopric of Basel
Since the donation by Rudolph III of Burgundy[10] of the Moutier-Grandval Abbey
and all its possessions to Bishop Adalbero II in 999 till the Reformation, Basel
was ruled by prince-bishops (see Bishop of Basel,[11] whose memory is preserved
in the crosier shown on the Basel coat-of-arms
see above).
In 1019, the construction of the cathedral of Basel (known locally as the Mnster)
began under German Emperor Heinrich II.[12] In 1225 1226, the Bridge over the Rhi
ne was constructed by Bishop Heinrich von Thun and lesser Basel (Kleinbasel) fou
nded as a bridgehead to protect the bridge. The bridge was largely funded by Bas
el's Jewish community which had settled there a century earlier.[13] For many ce
nturies to come Basel possessed the only permanent bridge over the river "betwee
n Lake Constance and the sea".
The Bishop also allowed the furriers to found a guild in 1226. Eventually about
15 guilds were established in the 13th century. They increased the town's, and h
ence the bishop's, reputation, influence, and income from the taxes and duties o
n goods in Basel's expanding market.[13]
In 1347, the plague came to Europe but did not reach Basel until June 1349. The
guilds, asserting that the Jews were responsible several had been tortured and con
fessed demanded they be executed, which the Council did in January 1349, except fo
r a few who escaped to Alsace.[13] During the Basel massacre, 600 Jews were murd
ered. They were shackled inside a wooden barn on an island in the Rhine, which w

as set afire. The few survivors - young orphans - were forcibly converted to Chr
istianity. The council then forbade Jews in Basel for 200 years, except that the
ir money was helpful in rebuilding after the Basel earthquake of 1356 which dest
royed much of the city along with a number of castles in the vicinity. The city
offered courts to nobles as an alternative to rebuilding their castles, in excha
nge for the nobles' military protection of the city.
In 1412 (or earlier), the well-known guesthouse Zum Goldenen Sternen was establi
shed. Basel became the focal point of western Christendom during the 15th centur
y Council of Basel (1431 1449), including the 1439 election of antipope Felix V. I
n 1459, Pope Pius II endowed the University of Basel where such notables as Eras
mus of Rotterdam and Paracelsus later taught. At the same time the new craft of
printing was introduced to Basel by apprentices of Johann Gutenberg.
The Schwabe publishing house was founded in 1488 by Johannes Petri and is the ol
dest publishing house still in business. Johann Froben also operated his printin
g house in Basel and was notable for publishing works by Erasmus.[14] In 1495, B
asel was incorporated in the Upper Rhenish Imperial Circle; the Bishop of Basel
was added to the Bench of the Ecclesiastical Princes. In 1500 the construction o
f the Basel Mnster was finished. In 1521 so was the bishop. The Council, under th
e supremacy of the guilds, explained that henceforth they would only give allegi
ance to the Swiss Confederation, to whom the bishop appealed but in vain.[13]
As a member state in the Swiss Confederacy[edit]
Main article: Canton of Basel
Map of Basel in 1642, engraved by Matthus Merian, oriented with SW at the top and
NE at the bottom.
The city had remained neutral through the Swabian War of 1499 despite being plun
dered by soldiers on both sides. The Treaty of Basel ended the war and granted t
he Swiss confederates exemptions from the emperor Maximillian's taxes and jurisd
ictions, separating Switzerland de facto from the Holy Roman Empire.[15]
On 9 June 1501, Basel joined the Swiss Confederation as its eleventh canton.[16]
It was the only canton that had been asked to join, not the other way round. Ba
sel had a strategic location, good relations with Strasbourg and Mulhouse, and c
ontrol of the corn imports from Alsace, whereas the Swiss lands were becoming ov
erpopulated and had few resources. A provision of the Charter accepting Basel re
quired that in conflicts among the other cantons it was to stay neutral and offe
r its services for mediation.[17][18]
In 1503, the new bishop Christoph von Utenheim refused to give Basel a new const
itution whereupon, to show its power, the city began the construction of a new c
ity hall.[13]
In 1529, the city became Protestant under Oecolampadius and the bishop's seat wa
s moved to Porrentruy. The bishop's crook was however retained as the city's coa
t of arms. For the centuries to come, a handful of wealthy families collectively
referred to as the "Daig" played a pivotal role in city affairs as they gradual
ly established themselves as a de facto city aristocracy.
The first edition of Christianae religionis institutio (Institutes of the Christ
ian Religion John Calvin's great exposition of Calvinist doctrine) was published
at Basel in March 1536.[19]
In 1544, Johann von Brugge, a rich Dutch Protestant refugee, was given citizensh
ip and lived respectfully until his death in 1556 then buried with honors. His b
ody was exhumed and burnt at the stake in 1559 after it was discovered that he w
as the Anabaptist David Joris.[13]

In 1543, De humani corporis fabrica, the first book on human anatomy, was publis
hed and printed in Basel by Andreas Vesalius (1514 1564).[20]