Schaffhausen

Town and capital of the canton of Schaffhausen, north Switzerland, 35 km/22 mi north of Zürich; population (2000) 33,600. There are watch-making, mechanical and chemical engineering, and textile industries. The Rhine falls here in a series of spectacular cascades 60 m/197 ft high.

Schaffhausen has narrow streets and medieval architecture, including a 12th-century Romanesque basilica, and it is overlooked by the fortress of Munot. It was made an imperial city in 1208, and in 1454 made an alliance with six of the Swiss confederates, being finally admitted to the confederation in 1501.

Schaffhausen

Canton in northern Switzerland, almost entirely surrounded by territory belonging to Germany; area 298 sq km/115 sq mi; population (1999 est) 73,600. The principal feature of this hilly region is the Rhine valley, where the river falls in a series of cascades of up to 60 m/197 ft (the Rheinfall). Vine growing is the main agricultural activity.

The industrial development of the canton of Schaffhausen is closely linked with the hydroelectric plant at the Rheinfall; power generated here supplies the chemical industry at Rheinfelden, aluminium smelters at Neuhausen, and engineering works at Schaffhausen.