The student Landsgemeinde* in Oberurnen (Glarus) stands in good tradition

How can children and young people be encouraged to take an interest in politics? The residents of Oberurnen in the canton of Glarus found an answer for their nursery and primary school: the student assembly. The regional newspaper “Fridolin” reported on 28 May 2025:
  “The five-member student government had already been elected in February. It prepared the proposals submitted by the individual classes. For example, the Hobi kindergarten wanted a raised bed and the Bizozzero kindergarten wanted a fountain on the playground, while the 3^rd and 4^th grades campaigned for a summer party and for a school camp every other year. The 5^th and 6^th grades wanted homework help in the youth centre. The student council prepared the ten proposals for the assembly. The proposal to install an indoor slide in the school building clearly exceeded the budget. The student council asked the assembly to reject it, which it did. The teaching staff and the authorities made every effort to implement the decisions.
  The student Landsgemeinde was a serious matter and not just a fun re-enactment. One walked at a measured pace in 2/4 time to the assembly march to the sports field. The student government with Landammann Samuel led the way, followed by the real Landammann of the canton of Glarus, Kaspar Becker, and the members of the cantonal parliament from Oberurnen. Two hundred children – from kindergarteners to sixth graders – sat eagerly on their benches, preparing their speeches for the Landsgemeinde and listening to the proposals of their self-elected government.”
  Just like the real Landsgemeinde, this assembly also has its rules. The student Landammann, Samuel, had to call for a second vote several times because the majority was not clear to him. (In the real Landsgemeinde, too, the votes are not counted; instead, the Landammann estimates the majority.)
  In most cases, the student population followed their government. However, when it came to the proposal for a “class camp”, Levin moved to reject it. He argued that many children – including himself – would get homesick there. The solution for the fountain was downright Solomonic. The children in the kindergarten should be allowed to use it for experimenting. Caroline thinks this is a good idea. Nora thinks that the schoolchildren should also be allowed to play with it.  from class 3, on the other hand, wants to repair or replace the fountain on the playground. A motion to reject the proposal is tabled on the grounds that the children already have plenty of other things and that it would be too expensive. Nora’s additional motion is accepted by a large majority. It is then decided not to build a new fountain, but to repair the existing one. However, the kindergarten children are allowed to use the school fountain from now on. An understanding of direct democracy is already evident here: the children not only make demands, but also know that implementing proposals costs money.
  A student parliament is planned for next year. The oldest children here will be eligible to vote in four years’ time. A few years ago, the Glarus cantonal assembly introduced voting rights at the age of 16.

Country folk decide for themselves …

It makes sense to preserve such valuable traditions. To understand them, you have to go back a long way – to the time of the Old Swiss Confederacy. It is worth taking a look back at the beginnings: the three original cantons of Uri, Schwyz and Unterwalden founded the Swiss Confederation in 1291. In 1352, they conquered Glarus and accepted it into their confederation as a “member with lesser rights”. In 1386, the people of Glarus fought alongside the Swiss Confederates in the Battle of Sempach and were subsequently accepted as equal members.
  On 11 March 1387, the “Ammann and country folk commonly in Glarus” came together as a free state for the first Landsgemeinde (open assembly) and adopted a constitution – the first state constitution. It came into being with “the favour and good will of our wise and prudent fellow citizens”. At that time, 15 judges were elected each year to judge every case fairly “among the poor and the rich”. If a violent dispute arose, everyone was to command peace. The disputants then had to immediately cease fighting. Further provisions regulated marriage, inheritance, guardianship and penalties for insult and theft. If the country folk came together to make decisions, the minority had to follow the majority. The same principle applied in the municipalities. With these regulations, the people of Glarus laid the foundations for today’s democratic constitution (Davatz, p.  42), and the Landsgemeinde became a permanent institution – which it remains to this day.

… and fight for freedom at Näfels

However, the people of Glarus still had a difficult test ahead of them. The Habsburgs, who had been defeated at Sempach, returned just one year later – in 1388 – with a large army to recapture the canton of Glarus. The Glarus people immediately sent messengers to Central Switzerland and Zurich. But the Habsburgs were quicker, and the Glarus people had to defend themselves on their own. This led to the Battle of Näfels. The attackers broke through the Letzi, the protective wall in the north of the country, and advanced confidently into the interior of Glarus. But then the people of Glarus arrived and did not rest until they had pushed back the Habsburgs and driven them out.

“Näfelserfahrt”

The Landsgemeinde then decided that the population would gather every year to pray for the fallen, who had lost their “life and limb”, and to thank God and the saints for the victory. This is still the case today. Every year on the first Thursday in April, the people of Glarus quietly visit the various places where the battles took place. A member of the cantonal government gives a speech. The procession then continues on to the “Fahrtsplatz” in Näfels. Every year, a Catholic and a Protestant clergyman take turns delivering a sermon there. Afterwards, the historic “Fahrtsbrief” is read aloud. It describes the events and names of the fallen, which are engraved on the balustrade of the church gallery.
  The Näfelserfahrt is much more than a historical event. It is a memorial and a unique history lesson. Its aim is to protect freedom and preserve peace. While the Landsgemeinde is a public event, today attended by many guests from Switzerland and abroad, the people of Glarus use the Näfelserfahrt as an opportunity for inner reflection among themselves.

The Glarus Landsgemeinde
in difficult times

Both the Landsgemeinde and the Näfelserfahrt have always been important for internal peace and cohesion, especially in difficult times. I would also like to highlight this here.
  When Huldrych Zwingli carried out the Reformation in Zurich in 1523, 80 per cent of the population in nearby Glarus opted for the new faith. Catholics were now only a minority of around 20 per cent. As in other cantons of the former Swiss Confederation, the question arose: Can we still live together? What will happen to our Landsgemeinde? In Glarus, there was a danger that the Reformed majority would constantly outvote the Old Believer minority. How could this be resolved without causing a split?
  The people of Glarus found a way. They did not wage war, nor did they divide their land: they established three cantonal assemblies. One week before the joint cantonal assembly on the first Sunday in May, the Catholics met for the Catholic cantonal assembly and the Protestants for the Protestant cantonal assembly. Here they discussed their own affairs. Then, a week later, they met for a joint Landsgemeinde. For this Landsgemeinde, there was a special state treaty with a rotation system for the important offices. This is how the country remained united. However, some communities split up. Even today, Oberurnen is predominantly Catholic, while Niederurnen is predominantly Protestant. In 1836, the three cantonal assemblies were merged again.
  Why was this approach successful? I think that tradition and its preservation forged bonds that endured. Neither side ever forgot that they had fought for their freedom together. That is why they never divided up the country or even fought each other over religious beliefs. In other parts of Switzerland at that time, religious conflicts were more difficult, even if they did not lead to a thirty-year war as in Germany.
  We find many other examples of this high art of communication in the history of Glarus. During the industrialisation period, there were still numerous textile factories in the canton of Glarus. In 1864, the Landsgemeinde in Glarus passed Europe’s most progressive factory law, which limited weekly working hours for the first time and served as a model for the federal factory law of 1877. Fridolin Schuler from Glarus became federal factory inspector. In 1916, the cantonal assembly decided to introduce a cantonal old-age and disability insurance scheme. At federal level, it would be more than 30 years before the Federal Council was able to put our pension insurance scheme to the vote in 1948.

Back to the student
Landsgemeinde in Oberurnen

As long as communities such as Oberurnen continue to teach young people about their democratic traditions in such a lively way, voters will continue to gather in the large square in Glarus for the annual Landsgemeinde – as they have done for over 600 years. This is also a good incentive for other cantons and communities to teach our young people about democracy, and direct democracy in particular. •

* The Landsgemeinde is an ancient form of Swiss democracy. Today, it only takes place in the cantons of Appenzell Innerrhoden and Glarus. Once a year, the eligible voters gather in the open air to elect the government and courts and vote on laws and spending. Votes are cast by a show of hands. It is then estimated whether the majority is for or against a proposal. In case of doubt, the votes can be counted. Every person eligible to vote in the respective canton can raise their own concerns and participate in the political discussion. (easyvote.ch)

Sources: Davatz, Jürg. Glarner Heimatbuch – Geschichte
(Glarus Local Native Book – History), Glarus 1980