Schaffhausen (; ), historically known in English as Shaffhouse, is a town with historic roots, a municipality in northern Switzerland, and the capital of the canton of the same name; it has an estimated population of 37,000 as of December 2018. It is located on the shore of the High Rhine; it is one of four Swiss towns located entirely on the northern side of the Rhine, along with , the historic , and .
The largely pedestrianised old town has two preserved medieval gate towers and many fine Renaissance era buildings decorated with exterior frescos, sculptures and a total of 171 oriel windows (more than any other Swiss town). The old canton fortress, the Munot, overlooks the old town. Schaffhausen railway station is a junction of Swiss and German railway lines. One of the lines connects the town with the nearby Rhine Falls in , Europe's largest waterfall and a popular tourist attraction.
Name The town is first mentioned in 1045 as Villa Scafhusun. There are at least two theories on the origin of this name:
One relates to a mention of a "ford" across the Rhine that first occurs in 1050. This "ford" may actually refer to a scapha or skiff which was used to disembark goods coming from Constance to move them around the Rhine Falls. The name Scafhusun then arose from the scapha used at that point.Compare: "[...] in 1050 we hear of the “ford” there across the Rhine. Hence it is probable that the name is really derived from scapha, a skid, as here goods coming from Constance were disembarked in consequence of the falls of the Rhine a little below." Another theory is that Scafhusun comes from Schaf (a sheep), as a ram (now a sheep) formed the ancient arms (traceable to 1049) of the town, derived from those of its founders, the counts of Nellenburg.Compare: "Some writers, however, prefer the derivation from Schaf (a sheep), as a ram (now a sheep) formed the ancient arms of the town, derived from those of its founders, the counts of Nellenburg."
Coat of arms The blazon of the municipal coat of arms is Or on a Base Vert issuant from sinister a Semi Castle Argent with tower with entrance from which is issuing a Semi Ram Sable. accessed 22-December-2009 The canting coat of arms refers to the second interpretation of the name, sheep-house.
History
Schweizersbild, now located in a residential area, is a rock shelter, which during the Paleolithic period was the site of a habitation. Several artifacts were unearthed during archeological excavations, which are on display at the Museum zu Allerheiligen, among others.
Schaffhausen was a city state in the Middle Ages, documented to have struck its own coins from 1045. About 1050 the counts of Nellenburg founded the Benedictine monastery of All Saints, which became the centre of the town. Perhaps as early as 1190, certainly in 1208, it was an imperial free city, while the first seal dates from 1253. The powers of the abbot were gradually limited and in 1277 the Emperor Rudolf I gave the town a charter of liberties. In 1330 the emperor Louis of Bavaria pledged it to the Habsburgs. In the early 15th century, Habsburg power over the city waned. In 1349 and 1401 (Schaffhausen Massacre), two pogroms occurred in the city. By 1411 the guilds ruled the city. Then, in 1415 the Habsburg Duke Frederick IV of Austria sided with the Antipope John XXIII at the Council of Constance, and was banned by the Emperor Sigismund. As a result of the ban and Frederick's need of money, Schaffhausen was able to buy its independence from the Habsburgs in 1418. The city allied with six of the Swiss confederates in 1454 and allied with a further two (Uri and Unterwalden) in 1479. Schaffhausen became a full member of the Old Swiss Confederacy in 1501.
The Reformation was adopted, initially, in 1524 and completely in 1529. The town was heavily damaged during the Thirty Years' War by the passage of Swedish (Protestant) and Bavarian (Roman Catholic) troops and the very important bridge was burnt down. It was not until the early 19th century that the arrested industrial development of the town recommenced. In 1857, the first railroad, the Rheinfallbahn, running from Winterthur, reached Schaffhausen.Canton Schaffhausen website-Numbers and facts accessed 18 April 2009.
Schaffhausen is located in a finger of Swiss territory surrounded on three sides by Germany. On 1 April 1944, Schaffhausen suffered a bombing raid by aircraft of the United States Army Air Forces, which strayed from German airspace into neutral Switzerland due to navigation errors. Air raid sirens had often sounded in the past, without an actual attack, so many residents ignored the sirens that day. A total of 40 civilians were killed in the raid. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt sent a personal letter of apology to the mayor of Schaffhausen and the United States quickly offered four million US dollars in reparations.
Geography and climate Topography The town of Schaffhausen stands on the right bank of the river Rhine. It has an area, (as of the 2004/09 survey) of . Of this area, about 20.2% is used for agricultural purposes, while 53.4% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 24.8% is settled (buildings or roads) and 1.6% is unproductive land. Over the past two decades (1979/85-2004/09) the amount of land that is settled has increased by and the agricultural land has decreased by .Swiss Federal Statistical Office - Regional portraits accessed 27 October 2016
In 1947 it merged with the former municipality of Buchthalen. Its area expanded again in 1964 when Herblingen was absorbed and for a third time in 2009 when Hemmental joined the municipality.
Schaffhausen shares an international border with the German village of Büsingen am Hochrhein, an enclave entirely surrounded by Switzerland.
Climate Schaffhausen has an average of 122.5 days of rain or snow per year and on average receives of precipitation. The wettest month is July during which time Schaffhausen receives an average of of rain. During this month there is precipitation for an average of 11.3 days. The driest month of the year is February with an average of of precipitation over 8.4 days.
Politics Government The City Council (de: Stadtrat) constitutes the executive government of the town of Schaffhausen and operates as a collegiate authority. It is composed of five councilors (), each presiding over a department (Referat), which each consists of several administrative districts. The president of the executive department acts as mayor (Stadtpräsident(in)). In the mandate period January 2025 – December 2028 (Amtsdauer) the City Council is presided by Stadtpräsident Peter Neukomm. Departmental tasks, coordination measures and implementation of laws decreed by the Grand City Council (parliament) are carried by the City Council. The regular election of the City Council by any inhabitant valid to vote is held every four years. Any resident of Schaffhausen allowed to vote can be elected as a member of the City Council. The mayor is elected as such as well by public election while the heads of the other directorates are assigned by the collegiate. The mayor as well as the delegates are elected by means of a system of Majorz.
, Schaffhausen's City Council is made up of two representative of the SP (Social Democratic Party), of who one is also the mayor, one of the FDP (The Liberals), one of the SVP (Swiss People's Party), one of the GLP (Green Liberal Party), and one independent. The last regular election was held on 18 August 2024.
+ Stadtrat of Schaffhausen 2025-2028 City Councillor(Stadtrat/ Stadträtin) Party Title Head of department (Referat, since) of elected since Peter Neukomm SP Stadtpräsident (Mayor) Mayor's Office (Präsidialreferat, 2017) 2012 Marco Planas independent Bildungsreferent Education (Bildungsreferat, 2025) 2024 Daniel Preisig independent (until 2025: SVP) Finanzreferent (Vice President) Finances (Finanzreferat, 2017) 2016 Katrin Bernath GLP Baureferentin Construction and Civil Engineering (Baureferat, 2017) 2016 Christine Thommen SP Sozial- und Sicherheitsreferent Social Services and Security (Sozial- und Sicherheitsreferat, 2020) 2020
Yvonne Waldvogel is the town chronicler () since 2018.
Parliament
The Grand City Council (Grosser Stadtrat) holds legislative power. It is made up of 36 members, with elections held every four years. The Grand City Council decrees regulations and by-laws that are executed by the City Council and the administration. The delegates are selected by means of a system of Proporz.
The sessions of the Grand City Council are public. Unlike members of the City Council, members of the Grand City Council are not politicians by profession, and they are paid a fee based on their attendance. Any resident of Schaffhausen allowed to vote can be elected as a member of the Grand City Council. The parliament holds its meetings in the Kantonsratsaal (Cantonal Council Hall) on Kornmarkt.
The last regular election of the Grand City Council was held on 24 November 2024 for the mandate period () from January 2025 to December 2028. Currently the Grand City Council consist of 10 members of the Social Democratic Party (SP/PS) and one of its junior section, the JUSO, 8 of the Swiss People's Party (SVP/UDC), 6 of The Liberals (FDP/PLR) and none of its junior partner, the JFSH, 4 of the Green Liberal Party (GLP/PVL), 2 of the Green Party (GPS/PES)) and one of its junior partner, the Junge Grüne, and one each of The Centre (former CVP/PDC), Evangelical People's Party (EVP/PES), Federal Democratic Union (EDU/UDF), and one of the PUSH.
National elections National Council In the 2023 federal election the most popular party was the SP (35.9%, +3.8). The next five most popular parties were the SVP with 29.7% of the vote (-3.1), the FDP (12.7%, +3.1), the GLP with 7.4% (+0.8), the Greens with 6.3% (-1.7), and others (8.0%). In the federal election, a total of 14,450 votes were cast, and the voter turnout was 60.9% (+2.2).
In the 2019 federal election the most popular party was the SVP with 32.8% of the vote (-6.2). The next five most popular parties were the SP (32.1%, -1.9), the FDP (9.6%, -3.1), the Greens with 8.0% (+3.7), the GLP with 6.6% (+6.6), and others (10.9%). In the federal election, a total of 13,351 votes were cast, and the voter turnout was 57.7% (-3.0).
In the 2015 federal election the most popular party was the SVP with 39.0% of the vote (+7.2). The next three most popular parties were the SP (34.0%, -7.6), the FDP (12.7%, +0.6), the Greens with 4.3% (+4.3), and others (10.0%). In the federal election, a total of 13,754 votes were cast, and the voter turnout was 60.7% (+2.8).
Demographics
Population Schaffhausen has a population () of . , 27.9% of the population are resident foreign nationals.Federal Statistical Office - Ständige und nichtständige Wohnbevölkerung nach institutionellen Gliederungen, Geburtsort und Staatsangehörigkeit (Land) accessed 31 October 2016 Of the foreign population, (), 21% are from Germany, 13.3% are from Italy, 8.8% are from Croatia, 13.3% are from Serbia, 6% are from North Macedonia, 9% are from Turkey, and 28.6% are from other countries.Statistical Office of the Canton of Schaffhausen accessed 2 December 2009 Most of the population () speaks German (84.3%), with Serbo-Croatian being second most common (3.4%) and Italian being third (3.2%).Swiss Federal Statistical Office accessed 22 December 2009
Over the last four years (2010–2014) the population has changed at a rate of 2.82%. The birth rate in the municipality, in 2014, was 9.6, while the death rate was 10.1 per thousand residents.