Swiss Alps Jungfrau-Aletsch

The extension of the natural World Heritage property of Jungfrau - Aletsch - Bietschhorn (first inscribed in 2001), expands the site to the east and west, bringing its surface area up to 82,400 ha., up from 53,900. The site provides an outstanding example of the formation of the High Alps, including the most glaciated part of the mountain range and the largest glacier in Eurasia. It features a wide diversity of ecosystems, including successional stages due particularly to the retreat of glaciers resulting from climate change. The site is of outstanding universal value both for its beauty and for the wealth of information it contains about the formation of mountains and glaciers, as well as ongoing climate change. It is also invaluable in terms of the ecological and biological processes it illustrates, notably through plan succession. Its impressive landscape has played an important role in European art, literature, mountaineering and alpine tourism.

http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1037

Swiss Alps Jungfrau-Aletsch is an impressive landscape and an outstanding example of the formation of the High Alps. It includes the most glaciated part of the mountain range and the largest glacier in Eurasia, the Aletsch Glacier.

The area holds 9 peaks over 4,000m: Finsteraarhorn, Aletschhorn, Jungfrau, Mönch, Schreckhorn, Gross Fiescherhorn, Hinter Fiescherhorn, Grünhorn and Lauteraarhorn. The Jungfrau was first climbed in 1811 and the Finsteraarhorn in 1812. It is still a popular region for mountain climbing.

http://www.worldheritagesite.org/sites/site.php?id=1037

Abbey of St Gall

The Convent of St Gall, a perfect example of a great Carolingian monastery, was, from the 8th century to its secularization in 1805, one of the most important in Europe. Its library is one of the richest and oldest in the world and contains precious manuscripts such as the earliest-known architectural plan drawn on parchment. From 1755 to 1768, the conventual area was rebuilt in Baroque style. The cathedral and the library are the main features of this remarkable architectural complex, reflecting 12 centuries of continuous activity.

http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/268

The Abbey of St Gall was inscribed because of its great influence on the development of monastic architecture and is considered to be a typical example of the large Benedictine monastery.

The beginnings of the monastery can be traced back to 612, when the itinerant Irish monk Gallus had established his hermit's cell in this valley. The area soon became a centre of cult-worship.

In 719 this blended into a monastic community, where the Regula Benedicti was introduced.

It was during the abbacy of Gozbert (816-837) that the so-called Golden Age of St. Gall began. Most impressive remains of this period are the Convent's library and archive, containing 150.000 books including numerous treasures. 

http://www.worldheritagesite.org/sites/site.php?id=268

Lavaux, Vineyard Terraces

The Lavaux Vineyard Terraces, stretching for about 30 km along the south-facing northern shores of Lake Geneva from the Chateau de Chillon to the eastern outskirts of Lausanne in the Vaud region, cover the lower slopes of the mountainside between the villages and the lake. Although there is some evidence that vines were grown in the area in Roman times, the present vine terraces can be traced back to the 11th century, when Benedictine and Cistercian monasteries controlled the area. It is an outstanding example of a centuries-long interaction between people and their environment, developed to optimize local resources so as to produce a highly valued wine that has always been important to the economy.

http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1243

The Lavaux Vineyard Terraces comprise a 30km stretch of land along Lake Geneva where viticulture has been practised since at least the 11th century. There are even findings that suggest that already the Romans grew vines here. 

Local Benedictine and Cistercian Monasteries, who owned the land, started large scale winemaking here. They employed farmers to do the work, against a percentage of the earnings. The landscape is dotted with small villages and castles. 

The vines are grown on terraces: the location benefits of a temperate climate due to the reflection of the sun in the lake and the stone walls. Wines that are produced here are not well-known around the world. They include The Villette, Saint-Saphorin/Lavaux, Epesses, Dézaley and Chardonne. 

http://www.worldheritagesite.org/sites/lavaux.html

Three Castles, Defensive Wall and Ramparts of the Market-Town of Bellinzona

The Bellinzona site consists of a group of fortifications grouped around the castle of Castelgrande, which stands on a rocky peak looking out over the entire Ticino valley. Running from the castle, a series of fortified walls protect the ancient town and block the passage through the valley. A second castle (Montebello) forms an integral part of the fortifications, while a third but separate castle (Sasso Corbaro) was built on an isolated rocky promontory south-east of the other fortifications.

http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/884

The Three Castles, Defensive Wall and Ramparts of the Market-town of Bellinzone are the well-preserved remnants of a defensive stronghold guarding a main pass in the Alps. The earliest constructions that have survived date from the ca. the 10th century. During the remainder of the Middle Ages, the fortifications and town expanded.

The three inscribed castles are:

- Castelgrande (13th century)

- Montebello (ca. 1300)

- Sasso Corbaro (1480)

Also, two-thirds of the original Town Ramparts (with towers) and a defensive wall called La Murata are part of the designated area.

The site's world heritage status was held back at the first discussions in 1999: the restorations "seemed to favour the picturesque to the detriment of authenticity". 

http://www.worldheritagesite.org/sites/bellinzone.html

Rhaetian Railway in the Albula / Bernina Landscapes

Rhaetian Railway in the Albula / Bernina Landscapes, brings together two historic railway lines that cross the Swiss Alps through two passes. Opened in 1904, the Albula line in the north western part of the property is 67 km long. It features an impressive set of structures including 42 tunnels and covered galleries and 144 viaducts and bridges. The 61 km Bernina pass line features 13 tunnels and galleries and 52 viaducts and bridges. The property is exemplary of the use of the railway to overcome the isolation of settlements in the Central Alps early in the 20th century, with a major and lasting socio-economic impact on life in the mountains. It constitutes an outstanding technical, architectural and environmental ensemble and embodies architectural and civil engineering achievements, in harmony with the landscapes through which they pass.

http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1276

"The Rhaetian Railway in the Albula / Bernina Landscapes" consists of the Albula and Bernina transalpine railway lines, noted for their technical quality. The lines were built from 1908-1910.

The Albula line leads from Chur to St. Mortiz and has:

- 42 tunnels and covered galleries (16.5 km)

- 144 viaducts and bridges (2.9 km)

The Bernina line leads from St. Moritz to Tirano across the border in Italy.

It was designed to follow an existing mountain road. 

http://www.worldheritagesite.org/sites/rhaetianrailway.html

Old City of Berne

Founded in the 12th century on a hill site surrounded by the Aare River, Berne developed over the centuries in line with a an exceptionally coherent planning concept. The buildings in the Old City, dating from a variety of periods, include 15th-century arcades and 16th-century fountains. Most of the medieval town was restored in the 18th century but it has retained its original character.

http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/267

The Old City of Berne represents the adaptation of a medieval city into a modern capital. Berne was founded in 1191 by Berchthold V, Duke of Zähringen. After a fire in 1405, which almost completely destroyed the wooden-built town, the houses where rebuilt of sandstone. The medieval structure of the city originating from that time has remained unchanged up to the present day. 

After the Middle Ages, monumental fountains, the cathedral, patrician houses and large public monuments were added to the cityscape.

In 1848 the city became the capital of Switzerland. Currently, Berne has about 130.000 inhabitants. 

http://www.worldheritagesite.org/sites/berne.html