Settlement in Appenzell started in the 7th and the 8th century alongside the river
Glatt, nowadays part of canton of St. Gallen. The
abbey of Saint Gall was of great influence on the local population. In 907 Herisau is mentioned for the first time, the canton (Appenzell:
abbatis cella) is named first in 1071.
Foundation The name
Appenzell () means "cell (estate) of the
abbot." This refers to the
Abbey of St Gall, which exerted a great influence on the area. By the middle of the 11th century, the abbots of St Gall had established their power in the land later called Appenzell, which, too, became thoroughly
teutonized, its early inhabitants having probably been romanized
Raetians. By about 1360, conflicts over
grazing rights, taxes, and tithes were causing concern for both the abbot and the farmers of Appenzell. Both parties wanted to protect their rights and interests by joining the new
Swabian League. In 1377 Appenzell was allowed to join the League with the support of the cities of
Konstanz and
St. Gallen (the city of St. Gallen was often at odds with the neighboring Abbey of St Gall). With the support of League, Appenzell refused to pay many of the gifts and tithes that the Abbot Kuno von Stoffeln demanded. In response to the loss of revenue from his estates, Kuno approached the
Austrian House of Habsburg for help. In 1392 he made an agreement with the Habsburgs, which was renewed in 1402. In response, in 1401 Appenzell entered into an alliance with the city of St. Gallen to protect their rights and freedom.
Independence and joining the Swiss Confederation Following increasing conflicts between the Appenzellers the abbot's agents, including the bailiff of Appenzell demanding that a dead body be dug up because he wanted the man's clothes, In response, the League raised an army and marched to St. Gallen before heading toward Appenzell. On 15 May 1403, they entered the pass to
Speicher and outside the village of Vögelinsegg met the Appenzell army. A small force of Appenzell and Confederation troops defeated the League army and signed a short lived peace treaty. Following another Appenzell victory on 17 June 1405, at
Stoss Pass on the border of Appenzell town, the new canton continued to expand. Following a defeat at
Bregenz, Appenzell was unable to hold the
Bund together. The city of St. Gallen and the canton of Schwyz each paid off the Austrians to avoid an attack, and the
Bund was dissolved by King
Rupert on 4 April 1408. To end the confrontation between the old and new faiths, the Landesgemeinde decided in April 1525, that each parish should choose a faith, but that the principle of free movement would be supported, so that the religious minority could attend the church of their choice regardless of where they lived. The entire Ausserrhoden (except Herisau, where Joseph Forrester convinced them to remain Catholic until the late 16th century) converted to the Reformation in 1529. The
Innerrhoden (except for Gais which joined Ausserrhoden in 1597) remained with the old faith. While the majority of the residents of Appenzell town remained Catholic under their priest, Diepolt Huter, there was a strong Reformed minority. In 1531, the minority were nearly successful in getting the town to ally with the Protestant Ausserrhoden. But an armed mob of angry residents from the neighboring village of Gonten prevented the abolition of the
Mass in Appenzell. The Catholic victory in the
Second War of Kappel in 1531 ended plans for a reformation of the entire canton of Appenzell. and
Grimmenstein in
Walzenhausen) in Ausserrhoden remained Catholic even though the towns around them adopted the new faith. In 1870 the monastery grounds were declared
exclaves of the canton Appenzell Innerrhoden by the federal government. In 1994 for the first time two women were elected into government. The open assembly (
Landsgemeinde) was abolished in 1997. The Landsgemeinde still convenes in Appenzell Inerrhoden. The
right of foreigners to vote is determined by each municipality. ==Geography==