Kempraten
| Kempraten | |
|---|---|
| Former municipality of Switzerland | |
 | |
| Country | Switzerland |
| Canton | St. Gallen |
| District | See-Gaster |
| Municipality | Rapperswil-Jona |
| Coordinates | 47°14′N 8°49′E / 47.233°N 8.817°ECoordinates: 47°14′N 8°49′E / 47.233°N 8.817°E |
| Area | 0 km2 (0 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 409 m (1,342 ft) |
| Postal code | 8640 |
| Surrounded by | Bubikon (ZH), Hombrechtikon (ZH), Jona, Rapperswil, Rüti (ZH) |
| Website | www.rapperswil-jona.ch SFSO statistics |
  Kempraten | |
| Location of Kempraten
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Kempraten-Lenggis is a village (Kirchdorf) within the municipality of Rapperswil-Jona, Wahlkreis (constituency) of See-Gaster in the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland. It is one of the most important archeological sites in the canton of St. Gallen and is located at the eastern parts of the upper Lake Zurich.
History
Settlements in the region of Rapperswil-Jona date back at least 5000 years. Aerchological relicts have been found at the site of a Bronze Age village, and the remains of a first wooden bridge (16th century B.C., reconstructed in 2001) to Hurden (SZ) located in the Seedamm area near the Technical University of Rapperswil (HSR), too.[1][2]
Among the highlights of archaeological relicts include a Neolithic site in Seegubel area and La Tène culture body burials which indicates an early settlement. Linguists are speculating whether a Helvetiic settlement Cambioratin (bay hill) has been established on the so-called Kempratnerbucht (Kempraten bay). Beginning in the 1st century A.D., the Roman vicus Centum Prata (100 meadows) has been an important Roman settlement to secure the province borders, and was both a stage town on the intersection of the streets to Zürich (Latin Turicum), Winterthur (Vitudurum) via Irgenhausen (Irgenhausen Castrum) and to Chur (Curia Rhaetorum) to Rome's alpine route. Centum prata was an economic center for the surrounding area, too, a residential and commercial area for artisans, traders, boatmen and carters living in it. It measured about 300 meters form north to south and 200 meters from west to east, including massive stone buildings, half-timbered and simple wooden houses. At Kempraten's Lake Zurich bay, the Roman transshipment harbour for goods was located that have been transported on the Roman streets, on the wooden bridge from Rapperswil to Hurden and on the waterway Zurich-Walensee. From here, there was probably a boat route to the Gallo-Roman sanctuary on Ufenau island. After the Alamannic invasion and withdrawal of the Roman administration to Italy around the year 401 (488), the Gallo-Roman, probably Christianized population has been still living there.
In 741 and 744, documents in the archives of St. Gallen Abbey describe the village as Centoprato, another document in 863 as Centiprata, inspired by the Latin name Centum Prata. According to a 9th-century document, Kempraten was a well known pilgrimage site with relics of the martyr Alexander (legend of Theban Legion). Around 847, legends tell of a pilgrimage basilica with a priest in Kentibruto, estimated to be the St. Ursula chapel built around 885. At the beginning of the 13th century, Kempraten was part of the Herrschaft Rapperswil by the Counts of Rapperswil. In 1253, it was part of the former parish church Busskirch. Today, this old Christian community belongs to the Catholic parish church Rapperswil-Jona. In his chronicle, Aegidius Tschudi (he also mentions a stone with Roman inscriptions near Jona) in 1443 (Old Zürich War) mentions as military troops from the Old Swiss Confederacy cantons of Uri, Zug and Glarus, fighting against Rapperswil, had their camp at the street to the Rüti Abbey.
Beginning 1803, Kempraten was part of the former municipality Jona. On January 1, 2007, the former municipalities of Rapperswil and Jona merged to form a new political entity: Rapperswil-Jona has a population of 26,350 (December 2012). This makes it the second largest town in the canton after the capital St. Gallen itself.
Transport
Kempraten railway station is a stop of the Zürich S-Bahn on the line S7. It is a 36 minute ride from Zürich Hauptbahnhof.
See also
Notes
- ↑ Website Unterwasserarchäologische Projekte Kanton St. Gallen (German)
- ↑ Neue Zürcher Zeitung (January 20/21, 2001): Die Brücke auf dem Grund des Zürichsees] (German)
Literature
- Georg Matter: Die Römersiedlung Kempraten und ihre Umgebung. Jona 2003.
- D. Hintermann: Der römische Vicus von Kempraten. In: HA 106-108, 1996, p. 128-136.
- G. Matter: Der römische Vicus von Kempraten. In: JbSGUF 82, 1999, p. 183-211.
- Lukas Gschwend: Kempraten vor 1250 Jahren – Ein Beitrag zur ersten schriftlichen Nennung im Jahre 741. Verlag der Kulturkommission der Gemeinde Jona, 1991.
- Eugen Halter: Geschichte der Gemeinde Jona. Schweizer Verlagshaus, Zürich 1970.
- L. Kilger: Wallfahrts-Geschichten aus Kempraten um das Jahr 835. In: Heimatkunde vom Linthgebiet, Band 15, 1943, p. 9-12.
External links
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Media related to Kempraten at Wikimedia Commons - Rapperswil-Jona (official site) (German)
- Kempraten in German, French and Italian in the online Historical Dictionary of Switzerland.
- Römersiedlung Kempraten (German)
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