Stans
Stans is the capital of the canton of Nidwalden in Switzerland.
The official language of Stans is German, but the main language is the local variant of Alemannic Swiss German.
History
Stans is one of the oldest settlements in the entire Nidwalden valley. The first traces of human settlement date to the second century BC. During the Roman era there is little evidence of a settlement except for some Gallo-Roman Ustrinum or funeral pyres and the Latin root of the name Stans.During the seventh or eighth century, the Alamanni settled in the region. The Christian Alamanni built the first church in Stans around 750 AD. This pre-Carolingian church served as the parish church for the entire Engelberg Valley. The church was expanded numerous times until it was finally replaced in 1647 by the new church of St. Peter and Paul.
Stans was first mentioned in 1124. By 1291, when Unterwalden joined Uri and Schwyz in what became the Swiss Confederation, Stans was already the capital of the section known as Unterwalden nid dem Kernwald which would become the half canton of Nidwalden.
In 1386, during the Battle of Sempach, a soldier from Stans, Arnold von Winkelried, is claimed to have thrown himself on the pikes of the Habsburg army which led the Swiss to victory. However it is doubtful whether he existed or died in the battle as the first mention of his selfless act appears over 150 years after the battle and a man who may have been Arnold was party to a lawsuit in 1389. Regardless, the legend is firmly in place in Stans, with a monument and his house located in the town.
Following the Swiss victories in the Burgundian Wars the Old Swiss Confederation was nearly torn apart by internal conflict when the city cantons insisted on having the lion's share of the proceeds since they had supplied the most troops. The country cantons resented this and the Tagsatzung or leadership of each of the cantons met in Stans in 1481 to resolve the issues. However, they were unable to resolve the issues and war seemed inevitable. A local hermit, Niklaus von der Flüe, was consulted on the situation. He requested that a message be passed on to the members of the Tagsatzung on his behalf. The details of the message have remained unknown to this day, however it did calm the tempers and led to the drawing up of the Stanser Verkommnis. As part of the Verkommnis Fribourg and Solothurn were admitted into the confederation.
During the Middle Ages, Stans was protected with seven towers. However, the town never built a wall to connect the towers and encircle it.
In 1713 two-thirds of the town was destroyed in a fire. Following the fire, new regulations kept the village square open and clear of construction. The large, open square surrounded by baroque houses and the town council house owe their appearance to the fire and subsequent reconstruction.
In 1798 Stans was stormed by French troops, following the decision of Nidwalden not to adopt the constitution of the Helvetic Republic. Children orphaned by this event were gathered by the educator Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi for his first school. He converted the Convent of St. Klara into a school for the children. However, he only had the school until the following year when the French Army needed the building and the orphan's school came to a sudden end. In 1814, following the collapse of the Napoleonic Act of Mediation, Nidwalden attempted to return to the Ancien Regime government, with subject lands belonging to the canton. Stans and the rest of Nidwalden only gave up their subject lands when Federal troops marched into the city. Stans and the rest of Nidwalden joined the Sonderbund in 1845 and were involved in the 1847 Sonderbund War.
In the 20th century, modern technology and transportation changed Stans. In 1893 Stans was connected to the rail network of Lucerne by steam ferry. In 1964 the Lucerne-Stans-Engelberg rail way was opened and in 1966 the A2 motorway was constructed.
The open-air assembly was held in Stans annually until its abolition in 1997.
Geography
The area of Stans is. Much of the land within the borders of Stans is agricultural, while just over a third is forested. Of the remaining area, about 17% is settlements and less than 2.6% is unproductive. The highest point within the borders of Stans is on the Stanserhorn and is above sea level. The lowest point is at Fronhofen where the elevation is. The village square has an elevation of.Climate
Stans has an average of 137.7 days of rain per year and on average receives of precipitation. The wettest month is August when Stans receives an average of of precipitation on 13.6 days. The month with the most days of precipitation is June, with an average of 14.2, but with only of precipitation. The driest month of the year is January with an average of of precipitation over 13.6 days.Demographics
Stans has a population of. , 9.4% of the population was made up of foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years the population has grown at a rate of 13.2%. Most of the population speaks German , with Italian being second most common and Serbo-Croatian being third. the gender distribution of the population was 48.6% male and 51.4% female. there are 2,816 households, of which 1,837 households contain only one or two individuals. 202 or about 7.2% are large households, with at least five members.In the 2007 federal election the most popular party was the FDP which received 88% of the vote. Most of the rest of the votes were given to local small right-wing parties.
In Stans about 75.2% of the population have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education.
The historical population is given in the following table:
| Year | Inhabitants | Swiss | Foreign |
| 1970 | 5,445 | 5,022 | 423 |
| 1980 | 5,660 | 5,340 | 320 |
| 1990 | 6,171 | 5,697 | 474 |
| 1995 | 6,468 | 5,896 | 572 |
| 2000 | 6,914 | 6,349 | 665 |
| 2005 | 7,512 | 6,875 | 637 |
| 2006 | 7,556 | 6,936 | 620 |
| 2007 | 7,577 | 6,909 | 668 |
| 2008 | 7,784 | 7,050 | 734 |