Late Middle Ages · 1291-1415

The Swiss Confederacy: an alliance of valleys

In 1291 three Alpine valleys promise to help each other against anyone who attacks them. Students see how a pass through the Alps made the valleys important, how farmers beat Habsburg knights, and how to tell the history from the legend of William Tell.

Teach it live New Open on the map
Length
45 minutes
Ages
11–14
On the map
3 steps, AD 1291 to AD 1400
Live lesson
7 rounds, 3 on the map
Worksheet
Two A4 pages, with Classroom
You need
A projector; phones for live

Live lesson · new in Classroom

Teach it live. The class answers on their phones.

Put the board on the projector. Students join with a six-digit code, no account needed, and tap the map: where was the frontier, where did the grain come from. Their pins drop in together when you reveal, and the closest student takes the round.

€19 per month: every lesson live, every worksheet, cancel anytime. Rome at its height runs live for free.

A live lesson on the projector: the class's pins on the map around Alexandria, the closest students listed beside it A student's phone: the question and a map to tap
7 rounds
3 places to find on the map, quiz questions, a class vote and a one-line answer.
About 15 minutes
Run it as the map step, or to open the discussion. You move on with the space bar.
A report
Every answer, per student and per round, to read back or print after the lesson.
1

Introduction

5 min

Read aloud

In 1291 three Alpine valleys promise to help each other against anyone who attacks them. Students see how a pass through the Alps made the valleys important, how farmers beat Habsburg knights, and how to tell the history from the legend of William Tell.

By the end of the lesson, students can

  • Explain what the alliance of 1291 was and why the valleys of Uri, Schwyz and Unterwalden joined together.
  • Describe how the confederates defeated the Habsburgs at Morgarten (1315) and Sempach (1386).
  • Distinguish between historical evidence and legend in the story of William Tell.
2

Explore the map

12 min

Project the map, or let students follow on their own devices. Each step opens the map at the right year and place.

a

AD 1291

The founding

Open the map in 1291 and turn on Historical Events (Political Events). Find the Swiss Confederation Founded marker by Lake Lucerne. How many large lakes and valleys can you see around it?

Open this view on the map
b

AD 1300

The pass

Zoom out a little and follow the valley of Uri south to the Gotthard Pass. Traders between the German lands and Italy used this pass. Why would controlling it make poor valleys rich and important?

Open this view on the map
c

AD 1400

A league inside an empire

Move to 1400 and zoom out. The Confederacy is not drawn as a separate state; it still lies inside the Holy Roman Empire. Why might a league of valleys and towns be hard to show on a map?

Open this view on the map
3

Class discussion

14 min

Pick two or three. They run from what happened to why it mattered.

  1. The charter of 1291 is a promise of mutual help. What did the three valleys fear?
  2. The Swiss fought mostly on foot with pikes and halberds. Why did that work so well in the mountains?
  3. Cities such as Lucerne, Zurich and Bern joined the valleys. Why would towns and farmers become allies?
  4. The story of William Tell first appears in writing about 180 years after 1291. Why do nations love founding legends?
  5. Today Switzerland is known for staying out of wars. How is that different from its warlike early history?
4

Game round

9 min

Play Rule History as Mansa Musa, who ruled the great empire of Mali in the same century. Afterwards, compare: Mali was ruled by one powerful king, the Swiss by councils of valleys and towns. Which system protects freedom better?

Open Rule History
5

Worksheet

5 min

This worksheet comes with Classroom

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