The private museum Historic Swiss Army in Schwyz offers a historical insight into the period after Napoleon, the Sonderbund War in Switzerland and the formation of the Swiss Army after the founding of the Swiss Confederation in 1848.

In three exhibition rooms you will gain an in-depth insight into the Swiss army around 1850.

The exhibition includes uniforms of all troop types with hats and tchakos, equipment, sabres and weapons. These objects tell of the life of a soldier after the founding of the Swiss Confederation. The blue, colourful uniforms of the orderlies of 1852 / 1861 / 1875 and 1898 were splendid and always in line with fashion.

Numerous lithographs, documents and pictures show the uniforms and events of this period and, with cross-references to Napoleon's time in Switzerland, the Sonderbund War and the Bourbaki Army's invasion of Switzerland in 1871, provide a historically exciting insight into this era.

The tour is a journey into the past, a historical excursion with insights into weaponry and uniform lore. With the help of uniforms and pictures, weapons and objects of daily use, the history of Switzerland, but also of soldiers in foreign service around 1820, comes to life.

In a tour of approx. 2 hours, you will gain an in-depth insight into the time when Switzerland and its army were formed.

A possible thematic extension would be on the following topics:

•  Napoleon and Switzerland around 1800;
•  Swiss soldiers as mercenaries around 1800 to 1860;
•  The Sonderbund War in 1847;
•  The Bourbaki Army's defection to Switzerland and its impact on Switzerland.