Childrens Illustrated Encyclopedia

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Eiger

3970m

Simplon Pass

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Matterhorn

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Rhône

Zürichsee

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Vierwaldstätter

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Lake

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Lac de

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Switzerland

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Monthey

Sion

Zermatt

Brig

Fribourg Thun

Interlaken

Schaffhausen

Bülach

Zug

Schwyz

Chur

Klosters

St.Moritz

Bellinzona

Locarno

Lugano

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Frauenfeld

Sankt Gallen

Solothurn Balzers

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Luzern

Basel

Zürich

Lausanne

Geneva

(Genève)

Bern

VadUZ

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Find out more

Winter sports

over 120 million visitors a year come to the swiss

Alps to enjoy climbing, hiking, and winter sports.

Alpine skiing has been included in the olympic

Games since 1936. Mountain resorts with chair

lifts, ski runs, and ski instructors cater to winter

visitors. But tourism is having a dangerous

impact. trees are cleared to make way for ski

runs, and without these natural barriers, there

is a much greater risk of avalanches.

Alpine pAstures

Most Alpine villages are clustered at

the base of mountain slopes and

in valley plains. these locations

provide fertile soil, adequate water,

and temperate weather. Vines can

even be grown on south-facing

slopes. swiss dairy farmers keep their

cattle in the valleys during the winter.

in the summer, they are taken up to

lush, green Alpine meadows to graze.

lAke GeneVA

picturesque villages line the shores

of europe’s largest Alpine lake,

especially to the north, where

the soil is fertile. Geneva, at the

southwest of the lake, is a major

banking and insurance center. Many

international organizations, such as

the red Cross, are based in the city.

switzerland is a landlocked country

at the heart of europe. the Alps

create a major barrier to the south.

to the north, the Jura Mountains

form its border with France. lake

Geneva, on the French border,

is formed by the rhône river.

lieChtenstein

Area: 62 sq miles

(160 sq km)

Population: 37,500

Capital: Vaduz

Languages: German,

Alemannish dialect, italian

Religions: roman Catholic,

protestant

Currency: swiss franc

sWitzerlAnd

Area: 15,937 sq miles

(41,277 sq km)

Population: 8,122,000

Capital: Bern

Languages: German,

swiss-German, French,

italian, romansch

Religions: roman Catholic,

protestant, Muslim,

nonreligious

Currency: swiss franc

N

S

W E

switzerland

A lAnd oF hiGh MountAins and isolated

valleys, the 26 provinces (cantons) of switzerland

have been a united confederation since 1291.

With access to the north via the rhine river,

and control of the Alpine passes to the south,

switzerland has dominated europe’s north-south

trade routes for many centuries. the country

lacks natural resources, but has become a wealthy

financial, banking, and commercial center, with a

worldwide reputation for precision engineering,

especially watchmaking. Although mountains

cover nearly three-quarters of the land, dairy

farming is very important, and the swiss export

a wide range of cheeses and milk chocolate.

liechtenstein, a tiny mountainous country

on switzerland’s eastern border, is also an

important financial and manufacturing center.

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Volcano Mountain Capital

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europe

europe, history of

Mountains

Mountain wildlife

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