Swiss Highlights

Town on the Birs · Basel-Landschaft

Laufen

A town in the canton of Basel-Landschaft on the Birs river, part of the Prince-Bishopric of Basel until 1792 and of the canton of Bern from 1815.

Derivative illustration produced by Swiss Highlights from a freely licensed photograph.

← Back to explore

Translated during an AI-assisted second-pass review — not yet validated by a native-speaking editor.

Laufen (French: Laufon) is a commune in the canton of Basel-Landschaft, in the Laufen district, built along the Birs in the valley that bears its name. The commune's territory rises to 670 metres on the Nettenberg, its lowest point lying at 348 metres beside the river. The commune's coat of arms repeats that of Basel in inverted colours: the bishop's crosier, black on a white ground in Basel, appears white on a black ground here.

The town belonged to the Prince-Bishopric of Basel until 1792, then was annexed by France from 1793 to 1813, first within the département of Mont-Terrible, then within that of Haut-Rhin. In 1815 the Congress of Vienna assigned the former Prince-Bishopric of Basel to the canton of Bern. Having refused in 1974 to join the new canton of Jura, the Laufental finally chose in 1994, at the end of the process born of the Jura question, to join the canton of Basel-Landschaft.

The church of Sainte-Catherine, built from 1698, the former neoclassical town hall and the former prefecture line a main street closed by an upper gate (Obertor), a lower gate (Untertor) and a gate onto the Birs (Wassertor). Laufen is also home to the headquarters of Ricola, the industrial confectionery maker.

Why this place is remarkable

Laufen owes its shape to its position along the Birs, between the upper and lower gates that close its main street, lined by the church of Sainte-Catherine, built from 1698, and the neoclassical former town hall. Part of the Prince-Bishopric of Basel until 1792 and then of the canton of Bern from 1815, the commune chose in 1994, at the end of the Jura question, to join the canton of Basel-Landschaft — after refusing, twenty years earlier, to join the new canton of Jura.

History and origin

Laufen belonged to the Prince-Bishopric of Basel until 1792, before being annexed by France from 1793 to 1813, first within the département of Mont-Terrible then within that of Haut-Rhin. The Congress of Vienna assigned the former Prince-Bishopric of Basel to the canton of Bern in 1815. In 1974 the Laufental refused to join the new canton of Jura; it finally chose in 1994, at the end of the process born of the Jura question, to join the canton of Basel-Landschaft.

What to do and see

  • Walk the main street between the upper gate (Obertor) and the lower gate (Untertor).
  • See the Church of St. Catherine, built starting in 1698, and the former town hall with its neoclassical façade.
  • Spot the communal coat of arms, which reprises Basel's in reversed colors.
  • Walk along the Birse river, which flows through the town and the valley of the same name.

Coming with family: what to know

  • The route is limited to a main street and a few buildings close to one another, with no details on walking distances.

As a couple

  • A walk along the main street, between fortified gates and old façades.
  • The Church of St. Catherine and the former neoclassical town hall, a few steps from each other.
  • A moment by the Birse river, which gives its name to the valley.

Location

Loads an interactive Google Maps view on demand, from the place's verified coordinates.

Open in Google Maps

Related places

Overview of the Goetheanum at the end of the day: the monumental concrete facade, with its overlapping angular and curved volumes, is pierced by tall windows and dark wooden doors aligned on the ground floor; a few shrubs line the entrance, under a blue sky streaked with pink and golden clouds.

Monument · Dornach, Solothurn · 12 km as the crow flies

Goetheanum

The first building, in wood, burned down on New Year's night 1923. The second, raised from 1925 to 1928, was the first monumental building in reinforced concrete; its great hall was not inaugurated until 1998.

View on the map (Solothurn)

Ermitage pond in Arlesheim in autumn: a white wooden footbridge extends over the water covered with water lilies, in front of a wooded slope with yellow, orange and red foliage.

Village and garden · Basel-Land · 12 km as the crow flies

Arlesheim

The collegiate church and the canons' houses, built from 1679, close a square laid out in one design. Beyond the village, the Ermitage spreads its grottoes, ponds and paths over some forty hectares.

View on the map (Basel-Landschaft)

Slightly elevated view of the fortified Löwenburg estate: a long whitewashed building with a brown tiled roof, pierced by rows of shuttered windows, extends toward a chapel with buttresses and a corner turret; a lawn crossed by a gravel path draws the eye toward the ensemble, under a clear blue sky, with a few trees on the right of the frame.

Hamlet and ruin · Jura · 14 km as the crow flies

Löwenburg

The hamlet of Löwenburg, the only German-speaking part of the commune of Pleigne, combines a castle ruin founded in the 10th century with a 16th-century fortified farm; the Christoph Merian Foundation of Basel has restored it since 1956.

View on the map (Jura)