Early history The area of Aargau and the surrounding areas were controlled by the
Helvetians, a tribe of
Celts, as far back as 200 BC.
Medieval Aargau The reconstructed Old High German name of Aargau is
Argowe, first unambiguously attested (in the spelling
Argue) in 795. The term described a territory only loosely equivalent to that of the modern canton, including the region between Aare and
Reuss rivers, including
Pilatus and
Napf, i.e. including parts of the modern cantons of Bern (
Bernese Aargau,
Emmental, parts of the
Bernese Oberland),
Solothurn,
Basel-Landschaft,
Lucerne,
Obwalden and
Nidwalden, but not the parts of the modern canton east of the Reuss (
Baden District), which were part of
Zürichgau. Within the
Frankish Empire (8th to 10th centuries), the area was a disputed border region between the duchies of
Alamannia and
Burgundy. A line of the von
Wetterau (
Conradines) intermittently held the countship of Aargau from 750 until about 1030, when they lost it (having in the meantime taken the name
von Tegerfelden). This division became the ill-defined (and sparsely settled) outer border of the early
Holy Roman Empire at its formation in the second half of the 10th century. Most of the region came under the control of the ducal
house of Zähringen and the comital houses of
Habsburg and
Kyburg by about 1200. In the second half of the 13th century, the territory became divided between the territories claimed by the
imperial cities of
Bern,
Lucerne and
Solothurn and the Swiss canton of
Unterwalden. The remaining portion, largely corresponding to the modern canton of Aargau, remained under the control of the Habsburgs until the "conquest of Aargau" by the
Old Swiss Confederacy in 1415.
Habsburg Castle itself, the original seat of the House of Habsburg, was taken by Bern in April 1415. The Habsburgs had founded a number of monasteries (with some structures enduring, e.g., in
Wettingen and
Muri), the closing of which by the government in 1841 was a contributing factor to the outbreak of the Swiss civil war – the "
Sonderbund War" – in 1847.
Under the Swiss Confederation When
Frederick IV of Habsburg sided with
Antipope John XXIII at the
Council of Constance,
Emperor Sigismund placed him under the
Imperial ban. In July 1414, the Pope visited
Bern and received assurances from them, that they would move against the Habsburgs.
Unteraargau or Berner Aargau Bern's portion of the Aargau came to be known as the
Unteraargau, though can also be called the Berner or Bernese Aargau. In 1514 Bern expanded north into the
Jura and so came into possession of several strategically important mountain passes into the Austrian
Fricktal. This land was added to the Unteraargau and was directly ruled from Bern. It was divided into seven rural
bailiwicks and four administrative cities, Aarau, Zofingen, Lenzburg and Brugg. While the Habsburgs were driven out, many of their minor nobles were allowed to keep their lands and offices, though over time they lost power to the Bernese government. The bailiwick administration was based on a very small staff of officials, mostly made up of Bernese citizens, but with a few locals. When Bern converted during the
Protestant Reformation in 1528, the Unteraargau also converted. At the beginning of the 16th century a number of
Anabaptists migrated into the upper Wynen and Rueder valleys from
Zürich. Despite pressure from the Bernese authorities in the 16th and 17th centuries, Anabaptism never entirely disappeared from the Unteraargau. The four
Ämter were then consolidated under a single Confederation
bailiff into what was known in the 15th century as the
Waggental Bailiwick (). In the 16th century, it came to be known as the
Vogtei der Freien Ämter. While the
Freien Ämter often had independent lower courts, they were forced to accept the Confederation's sovereignty. Finally, in 1532, the canton of Uri became part of the collective administration of the Freien Ämter. At the time of the Protestant Reformation, the majority of the Ämter converted to the new faith. In 1529, a wave of
iconoclasm swept through the area and wiped away much of the old religion. After the defeat of Zürich in the second
Battle of Kappel in 1531, the victorious five Catholic cantons marched their troops into the Freie Ämter and reconverted them to Catholicism. The chaotic legal structure and fragmented land ownership combined with a tradition of dividing the land among all the heirs in an inheritance prevented any large scale reforms. The governor tried in the 18th century to reform and standardize laws and ownership across the county, but with limited success. With an ever-changing administration, the County lacked a coherent long-term economic policy or support for reforms. By the end of the 18th century there were no factories or mills and only a few small
cottage industries along the border with Zürich. Road construction first became a priority after 1750, when Zürich and Bern began appointing a governor for seven years. which was then admitted as a full member of the reconstituted Confederation following the Act of Mediation. Some parts of the canton of Baden at this point were transferred to other cantons: the
Amt of
Hitzkirch to Lucerne, whilst
Hüttikon,
Oetwil an der Limmat,
Dietikon and
Schlieren went to Zürich. In return, Lucerne's
Amt of
Merenschwand was transferred to Aargau (district of Muri). The
Fricktal, ceded in 1802 by
Austria via Napoleonic France to the Helvetic Republic, was briefly a separate canton of the Helvetic Republic (the
canton of Fricktal) under a
Statthalter ('Lieutenant'), but on 19 March 1803 (following the Act of Mediation) was incorporated into the canton of Aargau. The former cantons of Baden and Fricktal can still be identified with the contemporary
districts – the
canton of Baden is covered by the districts of Zurzach, Baden, Bremgarten, and Muri (albeit with the gains and losses of 1803 detailed above); the
canton of Fricktal by the districts of Rheinfelden and Laufenburg (except for
Hottwil which was transferred to that district in 2010).
Chief magistracy The chief magistracy of Aargau changed its style repeatedly: • first two consecutive
Regierungsstatthalter : • April 1798 – November 1801 Jakob Emmanuel Feer (1754–1833) • 1802–1803 Johann Heinrich Rothpletz (1766–1833) • Presidents of the Government Commission • 10 March 1803 – 26 April 1803 Johann Rudolf Dolder (1753–1807) • 26 April 1803 – 1815 a 'Small Council' (president rotating monthly) • annual
Amtsbürgermeister 1815–1831 • annual
Landammänner since 1815
Jewish history in Aargau ’s collection. In the 17th century, Aargau was the only federal condominium where Jews were tolerated. In 1774, they were restricted to just two towns,
Endingen and
Lengnau. While the rural upper class pressed incessantly for the expulsion of the Jews, the financial interests of the authorities prevented it. They imposed special taxes on peddling and cattle trading, the primary Jewish professions. The Protestant occupiers also enjoyed the discomfort of the local Catholics by the presence of the Jewish community. The Jews were directly subordinate to the governor; from 1696, they were compelled to renew a letter of protection from him every 16 years. The
Swiss Jewish Kulturverein was instrumental in this fight from its founding in 1862 until it was dissolved 20 years later. ==Geography==