Herrliberg

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Coordinates: 47°17′N, 8°37′E

Herrliberg
Country Switzerland
Canton Zurich
District Meilen
Coordinates 47°17′N, 8°37′E
Population 5,677  (December 2003)
  - Density 633 /km² (1,639 /sq.mi.)
Area 8.97 km² (3.5 sq mi)
Elevation 464 m (1,522 ft)
Postal code 8704
SFOS number 0152
Surrounded by Egg, Erlenbach, Küsnacht, Maur, Meilen, Oberrieden, Thalwil
Website www.herrliberg.ch
Herrliberg (Switzerland)
Herrliberg
Herrliberg

Herrliberg is a municipality in the district of Meilen in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland.

It is located on the north bank of the lake of Zürich and has a population of about 5,700 (in 2003). In the local dialect it is called Herrlibärg.

The area is 9 km². The distance from the main square to Zürich's main station is 22 kilometres. The locality is placed on five tiers.

Contents

[edit] History

There are findings dating back to the Bronze age.

In the 8th century, a village called Tächliswil was established. A hamlet called Wezzo (today Wetzwil) was donated to the monastery of St. Gallen in 797. There are also a number of other hamlets, including Breitwil, Kittenmühle and Intwil.

Wine growing was important for centuries. In the Middle Ages, most of the land belonged to the churches of Zürich (Grossmünster and Fraumünster), but in 1412 Herrliberg was established as the place of a reeve. This made Herrliberg associated with Zürich. Since 1815, the municipality is part of the district of Meilen.

The chapel in Wetzwil predates 1370. The first school was opened in 1639. Thereafter, in 1687, the local parish church was built.

In 1886, the peak of wine growing, Herrliberg counted 174 wine growers, cultivating 1.3 km² of wine.

The population has been growing over the years as follows:

Year Population
1634 516
1900 1,000
1940 2,000
1960 3,200
2000 5,500

With the opening of the railway link to Zürich in 1896, Herrliberg started to develop as part of the suburbs of Zürich.

[edit] Sights

There are three churches in Herrliberg. The Protestant churches can be found in Wetzwil and Tal. The catholic church St. Marien is remarkable as it is was built recently. The architecture is distinctive.

[edit] Famous people

Herrliberg is the home of Christoph Blocher. He was ousted from the Swiss Federal Council on December 12th, 2007 by a majority vote of the joint chambers of the Swiss parliament. It is also the home of Jürg Marquard, a Swiss publisher. Recently, Leon Bergfeld a german artist has settled in Herrliberg.

Famous organist, harpsichordist, conductor and Bach interpreter Karl Richter resided in Wetzwil, when not working in Munich with his Münchener Bachchor und Bachorchester.

[edit] External links