Can You Describe The History Of Swiss Alps Crossings?

Long before our Common Era, travellers, primarily traders, crossed the Alps on their way northward from Italy. But the construction of the Swiss road network dates from the time of the Roman Empire. Indeed, the Romans, for military reasons, were the first to build international roads across the Alps. For them, the Great St. Bernard Pass in western Switzerland was Mons Jovis, or Mount Jupiter. They built a temple there to honour their god of that name.

This difficult route, rich in history, was taken by many armies, notably by Napoleon in the year 1800. Nowadays, a road suitable for motor traffic climbs to a height of about 8,100 feet (2,470 meters) and enables motorists to drive down to Italy during the period from June to mid-October. To get an idea of the rugged climate in this impressive region of the Alps, consider the fact that a lake near the pass is frozen for an average of 265 days in the year.

As early as the late 13th century, the German emperor was aware that the Gothard Pass would play an essential role in European politics and north-south trade. However, the Swiss soon realized that it was in the interest of their independence to keep foreign armies off the pass. They annexed the south slope of the pass in the year 1331, in order to prevent convoys from being plundered and merchants and pilgrims from being attacked. A document dating from 1370 testifies that foreigners and natives could go "body and goods" from the Gothard to Zurich without running any risk. In this connection, as early as 1240, the Gothard is mentioned in certain chronicles as the "usual way for pilgrims going from the north to Rome."

For centuries, travellers would use a mule track some 10 to 15 feet (3 to 4.5 meters) wide, made of flat stones and slabs of granite. Moreover, crossing the Gothard involved many unforeseeable risks—snowfalls, avalanches, falling stones, thunderstorms and gales, all of which caused delays and loss of life and goods. In wintertime, the pass remained closed for many months. Indeed, the Gothard was the most dangerous of all the Alpine passes.

From the year 1831, stagecoaches were able to cross the Gothard Pass, thanks to a road that had taken 10 years to build. It took 22 hours to travel the 95 miles (153 kilometres) from Fluelen to Lugano, "the land where the lemon tree blooms." On May 31, 1882, the day the Gothard railway was opened with a tunnel passage, the stagecoach crossed the pass for the last time, and because of the tunnel, silence enveloped the snowy summits, though not forever.