ETR // Stage 39 // Konstanz - Lausanne

47°39'38.5"N 9°10'43.4"E
47.660686, 9.178715
Konstanz - Lausanne
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Distance

Konstanz - Lausanne
Radius 100 km
338 km

Highlights

Lake Konstanz
Konstanz Altstadt
Konstanz Cathedral
Niederburg District
Rosgartenmuseum
Konstanz Town Hall
The Imperia Statue

Take a morning in Konstanz Altstadt

The Altstadt (Old Town) is relatively large considering the small size of modern Konstanz, and contains many old buildings and twisting alleys. From the roof of your hotel, you'll see that the city skyline is dominated by Konstanz Cathedral, several other churches and three towers left over from the city wall, one of which marks the place of the former medieval bridge over the Rhine.

The well-preserved medieval district of Niederburg includes the Romanesque Konstanz Cathedral, known for its Gothic spire and mix of decorative styles.

Rosgartenmuseum chronicles the local cultural history and heritage, exhibiting prehistoric to 20th-century objects. You should also visit Konstanz town hall, which is adorned with delicate frescoes and a Renaissance-style courtyard.

The Stone Age, The Celts, The Romans and The Renaissance

The first traces of civilization at Konstanz date back to the late Stone Age. During the reign of Augustus, the Celts living south of the Danube were conquered by the Romans, and the first Romans settled on the site Around 40 AD. This small town on the left bank of the Rhine was probably first called Drusomagus and belonged to the Roman province of Raetia. Its later name, originally Constantia, comes either from the Roman emperor Constantius Chlorus, who fought the Alemanni in the region and built a strong fortress around 300 AD, or from his grandson Constantius II, who visited the region in 354. The remains of the late Roman fortress Constantia were discovered in 2003.

If you run out of time and haven't seen it all, take another night in Konstanz and relax by the lake in the evening, when the light is just right for looking out over the water past The Imperia Statue, the city's famous landmark. Otherwise, get back on the bike and head west, towards Basel.

The Art and Architecture of Basel

Situated in in northwestern Switzerland on the river Rhine, Basel is famous for its many museums, including the Kunstmuseum, which is the first collection of art accessible to the public in the world (1661) and the largest museum of art in Switzerland, the Fondation Beyeler, the Museum Tinguely and the Museum of Contemporary Art, which is the first public museum of contemporary art in Europe. Over 40 museums are spread throughout the city-canton, making Basel one of the largest cultural centres in relation to its size and population in Europe.

Basel is well-known internationally through institutions like the Basel Accords, Art Basel, The University of Basel, Switzerland's oldest university (founded in 1460), and the city's centuries-long commitment to humanism have made Basel a safe haven at times of political unrest in other parts of Europe for such notable people as Erasmus of Rotterdam, the Holbein family, Friedrich Nietzsche, Carl Jung, and in the 20th century also Hermann Hesse and Karl Jaspers, among other luminaries.

Photos

Dave O'Byrne
European Touring Route AS

Partners

Highlights

Basel Kunstmuseum
Fondation Beyeler
Museum Tinguely
Museum of Contemporary Art
Art Basel
University of Basel
Lac Neuchatel
Lake Geneva
Lausanne Olympic Capital
Cathedral of Notre Dame

The origins of Basel

There are traces of a settlement at the nearby Rhine knee from the early La Tène period (5th century BC). In the 2nd century BC, there was a village of the Raurici at the site of Basel-Gasfabrik (to the northwest of the Old City. The unfortified settlement was abandoned in the 1st century BC in favour of an oppidum on the site of Basel Minster, probably in reaction to the Roman invasion of Gaul. Basel was the seat of a Prince-Bishopric starting in the 11th century, and joined the Swiss Confederacy in 1501. The city has been a commercial hub and an important cultural centre since the Renaissance, and has emerged as a centre for the chemical and pharmaceutical industries in the 20th century.

Time to get back out on the road and head towards Lausanne, riding along Lac Neuchatel and passing through the towns of Biel, Neuchatel and Yverdon-les-Bains until you arrive at yet another beautiful lakeside at Lausanne, for yet another great evening steeped in culture and gastronomic exploration.

Lausanne on the shores of Lake Geneva

Located 62 km northeast of Geneva, Lausanne is the capital and largest city of the Swiss canton of Vaud. A city of hills in a recognised wine-growing region on the shores of Lake Geneva, it lies about halfway between the Jura Mountains and the Alps, and facing the French town of Évian-les-Bains across the lake. Lausanne grew around the cathedral of Notre Dame built in the 12th century and in the 20th century, Lausanne became a focus of international sport, hosting the International Olympic Committee, and has been recognised as the Olympic Capital since 1994, with over 55 international sport associations.

Initially a Celtic and Roman settlement on the shores of the lake, the Romans built a military camp which they called Lousanna at the site of a Celtic settlement. On the hill above was a fort called Lausodunon or Lousodunon. By the 2nd century AD, it was known as Vikanorum Lousonnensium and in 280 as lacu Lausonio. By 400, it was civitas Lausanna, and in 990 it was mentioned as Losanna. After the fall of the Roman Empire, insecurity forced the residents of Lausanne to move to its current centre, a more hilly site that was easier to defend. The city which emerged from the camp was ruled by the Counts of Savoy and the Bishop of Lausanne.

From 888 to 1032, the initially relatively small town belonged to the kingdom of Upper Burgundy. During the 11th century, Lausanne developed into a political, economic and religious center. The city became the center of the secular rule of the bishops. In the period that followed, especially in the 12th and 13th centuries, Lausanne really flourished. Finally, in 1275, the Lausanne Cathedral was consecrated in the presence of Pope Gregory X and King Rudolf I of Germany.