Federal Palace of Switzerland
Federal Palace | |
---|---|
![]() View from the Bundesplatz | |
General information | |
Town or city | Bern |
Country | Switzerland |
Completed | 1 April 1902 |
Design and construction | |
Architect | Hans Auer |
The Federal Palace (German: Bundeshaus, French: Palais fédéral, Italian: Palazzo federale, Romansh: Chasa federala, Latin: Curia Confœderationis Helveticæ) is the name of the building in Bern in which the Swiss Federal Assembly (federal parliament) and the Federal Council are housed. It consists of a central parliament building and two wings (eastern and western) housing government departments and a library.
The two chambers where the National Council and the Council of States meet are separated by the Hall of the Dome. The dome itself has an external height of 64 m, and an internal height of 33 m. The mosaic in the center represents the Federal coat of arms along with the Latin motto Unus pro omnibus, omnes pro uno (One for all, and all for one), surrounded by the coat of arms of the 22 cantons that existed in 1902. The coat of arms of the Canton of Jura, created in 1979, was placed outside of the mosaic.
The name in German and Romansh both mean "federal house", whereas the French and Italian names both translate to "Federal Palace".
History
The building was designed by the architect Hans Auer and its inauguration took place on 1 April 1902. The total cost, at the time, was 7,198,000 Swiss Francs.
Trivia
As president of the political party SP, and therefore member of the so-called Elefantenrunde meaning the presidents of the five most 'important' political parties in Switzerland, Ursula Koch participated at the first live stream broadcast from the Federal Palace (Bundeshaus) in late 1999.[1]
As reported in a study by the Federal parliamentary services (Parlamentsdienste), the noise caused by human activities in the chamber of the National Council is clearly too loud. The previously undisclosed study was published by 10vor10 on 12 December 2014, pointing that the noise level is usually at a level of about 70 decibels – comparable to a frequented roadway – so a concentrated work for the politicians, in fact, is not possible.[2]
Photos
-
The south side of the Federal Palace.
-
Inside the building.
-
The Three Confederates.
-
Dome of the Federal Palace. The name Jura can be read at the bottom of the picture, indicating where the coat of arms of the Canton of Jura was placed after the secession from Berne in 1979.
-
The salle des pas perdus.
-
The room of the National Council (and of the Federal Assembly).
-
The Council of States.
-
Inside the west wing of the building.
-
A meeting room for political parties.
-
Federal Palace, night view.
See also
References
- ↑ "Das hatte die Technikwelt 1999 zu bieten" (in German). 20 Minuten. 2014-12-12. Retrieved 2014-12-12.
- ↑ "Lärmbelastung im Nationalrat deutlich zu hoch" (in German). 10vor10. 2014-12-12. Retrieved 2014-12-13.
External links
![]() |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bundeshaus Bern. |
|
Coordinates: 46°56′48″N 7°26′39″E / 46.94667°N 7.44417°E
|