Helvetic Republic In Swiss history , the Helvetic Republic ( 1798 – 1803 ) represented an early attempt to impose a central authority over Switzerland , which until then consisted mainly of self - governing canton s united by a loose military alliance , and conquered territories such as Vaud . Its name was taken from the Helvetian people . A constitutional arrangement imposed by French military might , the Republic existed as a state for only five years and failed to achieve widespread popular support among its citizens . However , some aspects of it have survived into present - day Switzerland . History . During the French Revolutionary Wars of the 1790s , the French Republican armies expanded eastward . The French Republican armies enveloped Switzerland on the grounds of " liberating " the Swiss people , whose own system of government was deemed as feudal , especially for annexed territories such as Vaud . Some Swiss nationals , including Frédéric - César de La Harpe , had called for French intervention on these grounds . The invasion proceeded largely peacefully , since the Swiss people failed to respond to the calls of their politicians to take up arms . On 5 March 1798 , French troops completely overran Switzerland and the Old Swiss Confederation collapsed . On 12 April 1798 , 121 cantonal deputies proclaimed the Helvetic Republic , " One and Indivisible " . On 14 April 1798 , a cantonal assembly was called in the Canton of Zurich , but most of the politicians from the previous assembly were re - elected . Exactly 6000 days later on 18 September 1814 began the Congress of Vienna . The new régime abolished cantonal sovereignty and feudal rights . The occupying forces established a centralised state based on the ideas of the French Revolution . Many Swiss citizens resisted these " progressive " ideas , particularly in the central areas of the country . Some of the more controversial aspects of the new regime limited freedom of worship , which outraged many of the more devout citizens . In response , the Cantons of Uri , Schwyz and Nidwalden raised an army of about 10 , 000 men led by Alois von Reding to fight the French . This army was deployed along the defensive line from Napf to Rapperswil . Reding besieged French - controlled Lucerne and marched across the Brünig pass into the Berner Oberland to support the armies of Bern . At the same time , the French General Balthasar Alexis Henri Antoine of Schauenburg marched out of occupied Zürich to attack Zug , Lucerne and the Sattel pass . Even though Reding ' s army won victories at Rothenthurm and Morgarten , Schauenburg ' s victory near Sattel allowed him to threaten the town of Schwyz . On 4 May 1798 , the town council of Schwyz surrendered . On the 13th May , Reding and Schauenburg agreed to a cease - fire , the terms of which included the rebel cantons merging into a single one , thus limiting their effectiveness in the central government . However , the French failed to keep their promises in respecting religious matters and before the year was out there was another uprising in Nidwalden which the authorities crushed , with towns and villages burnt down by French troops . No general agreement existed about the future of Switzerland . Leading groups split into the " Unitaires " , who wanted a united republic , and the " Federalists " , who represented the old aristocracy and demanded a return to cantonal sovereignty . Coup - attempts became frequent , and the new régime had to rely on the French to survive . Furthermore , the occupying forces insisted that the accommodation and feeding of the soldiers be paid for by the local populace which drained the economy . The treaty of alliance with France also broke the tradition of neutrality established by the Confederation . All this made it difficult to establish a new working state . In 1799 , Switzerland became a virtual battle - zone between the French , Austrian and Imperial Russia n armies , with the locals supporting mainly the latter two , rejecting calls to fight with the French armies in the name of the Helvetic Republic . Instability in the Republic reached its peak in 1802 – 03 — including the " Bourla - papey " uprising and the " Stecklikrieg " civil war of 1802 . By then it was 12 million francs in debt having started with a treasury of 6 million francs . This together with local resistance caused the Helvetic Republic to collapse , and its government took refuge in Lausanne . At that time Napoleon Bonaparte , then First Consul of France , summoned representatives of both sides to Paris in order to negotiate a solution . Although the Federalist representatives formed a minority at the conciliation conference — known as the " Helvetic Consulta " — Bonaparte characterised Switzerland as federal " by nature " and considered it unwise to force the country into any other constitutional framework . On February 19 , 1803 , the Act of Mediation restored the cantons . With the abolition of the centralized state , Switzerland became a confederation once again . Constitution . Before the advent of the Helvetic Republic , each individual canton had exercised complete sovereignty over its own territory or territories . Little central authority had existed , with matters concerning the country as a whole confined mainly to meetings of leading representatives from the cantons : the Diet s . The constitution of the Helvetic Republic came mainly from the design of Peter Ochs , a magistrate from Basel . It established a central two - chamber legislature which included the Grand Council ( with 8 members per canton ) and the Senate ( 4 members per canton ) . The executive , known as the Directory , comprised 5 members . The Constitution also established actual Swiss citizenship , as opposed to just citizenship of one ' s canton of birth . Under the Old Swiss Confederacy , citizenship was granted by each town and village only to residents . These citizens enjoyed access to community property and in some cases additional protection under the law . Additionally , the urban towns and the rural villages had differing rights and laws . The creation of a uniform Swiss citizenship , which applied equally for citizens of the old towns and their tenants and servants , led to conflict . The wealthier villagers and urban citizens held rights to forests , common land and other municipal property which they did not want to share with the " new citizens " , who were generally poor . The compromise solution , which was written into the municipal laws of the Helvetic Republic , is still valid today . Two politically separate but often geographically similar organizations were created . The first , the so - called municipality , was a political community formed by election and its voting body consists of all resident citizens . However , the community land and property remained with the former local citizens who were gathered together into the " Bürgergemeinde " . After an uprising led by Alois von Reding in 1798 , some cantons were merged , thus reducing their anti - centralist effectiveness in the legislature . Uri , Schwyz , Zug and Unterwalden together became the canton of Waldstätten ; Glarus and the Sarganserland became the canton of Linth , and Appenzell and St . Gallen combined as the canton of Säntis . Due to the instability of the situation , the Helvetic Republic had over 6 constitutions in a period of 4 years . Legacy . The Helvetic Republic did highlight the desirability of a central authority to handle matters for the country as a whole ( as opposed to the individual cantons which handled matters at the local level ) . In the post - Napoleonic era the differences between the cantons ( varying currencies and systems of weights and measurements ) and the perceived need for better co - ordination between them came to a head and culminated in the Swiss Federal Constitution of 1848 . The Republic ' s 5 - member Directory resembles the 7 - member Swiss Federal Council , Switzerland ' s executive . The period of the Helvetic Republic is still very controversial within Switzerland . It represents the first time that Switzerland existed as a unified country and a step toward the modern federal state . For the first time the population was defined as Swiss , not as members of a specific canton . For cantons like Vaud , Thurgau and Ticino the Republic was a time of political freedom from other cantons . However the Republic also marked a time of foreign domination and revolution . For the cantons of Bern , Schwyz and Nidwalden it was a time of military defeat followed by occupation and military suppression . In 1995 the Federal Parliament chose not to celebrate the 200 year anniversary of the Helvetic Republic , but to allow individual cantons to celebrate if they wished . Administrative divisions . The Helvetic Republic reduced the formerly sovereign cantons to mere administrative districts , and in order to weaken the old power - structures , it defined new boundaries for some cantons . The act of 1798 and subsequent developments resulted in the following cantons : Predecessor states . As well as the Old Swiss Confederacy , the following territories became part of the Helvetic Republic : Unassociated territories . The Helvetic Republic also annexed two territories not previously part of Switzerland :