Swiss mercenaries
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The Swiss mercenaries were a powerful infantry force of professional soldiers originating from the cantons of the Old Swiss Confederacy. They were notable for their service in foreign armies, especial
Swiss mercenaries crossing the Alps. Illustration from an illuminated manuscript of the Luzerner Schilling, 1513.
Swiss mercenaries and Landsknechts engaged in a push of pike. Engraving by Hans Holbein the Younger, early 16th century
Right hand section of preceding drawing
The Battle of Novara marked the pinnacle of Swiss military supremacy (illustration from Johann Stumpf's chronicle, 1548)
Old Swiss Confederacy
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The Old Swiss Confederacy, also known as Switzerland or the Swiss Confederacy, was a loose confederation of independent small states, initially within the Holy Roman Empire. It is the precursor of the
Swiss mercenaries
…The Swiss mercenaries were a powerful infantry force of professional soldiers originating from the cantons of the Old Swiss Confederacy. They were notable for their service in foreign armies, especially among the military forces of the kings of France, throughout the early modern period…
The forces of Zürich are defeated in the Second War of Kappel.
Federal Charter of 1291
Tagsatzung of 1531 in Baden (1790s drawing)