Happy TravellerWelcome to Allschwil, a charming town located in the district of Arlesheim in the canton of Basel-Country in Switzerland. Allschwil is a seamless suburb of Basel and is located between Basel to the east and Alsace in France to the west. The official language of Allschwil is (the Swiss variety of Standard) German, but the main spoken language is the local variant of the Alemannic Swiss German dialect.
History:
The modern municipality of Allschwil is first mentioned in 1118 as Almswilre. The region around Allschwil has been occupied since at least the Middle Paleolithic. Archeological finds from the municipality include a few scattered Middle Paleolithic items, cups from the Glockenbecherkultur (c. 2400–1800 BC), a mid-Bronze Age hoard (presumably a metal depot) and a Hallstatt culture settlement at in den Vogelgärten. In 1937, at New-Allschwil, a Gallo-Roman cremation cemetery (from c. AD 25–60) was discovered. It is one of the oldest in northern Switzerland. It is possible that the Roman road station Arialbinum (mentioned in Antonine Itinerary and Tabula Peutingeriana) may correspond to Allschwil.
Medieval town:
Allschwil was part of the Herrschaft of Birseck, which was given in 1004 as an imperial donation to the Bishop of Basel. Through the middle of the 15th century the Herrschaft was often pawned and sold. The town of Allschwil was located along the Alsace-Solothurn via Passwang pass trading route along the border. Its location on the border and trade route allowed Allschwil to grow into an important customs facility. After 1724 it housed the northern salt warehouse of the vogtei of the diocese of Basel. Allschwil was one of the seven so-called free villages (Vagantes extra civitate Basiliensem) and was therefore under the parish of St. Johns Chapel at Basels cathedral for baptism and high church festivals.In the wake of the German Peasants War Allschwil, together with Reinach, Therwil, Oberwil and Ettingen, joined Basel in 1525 with a Burgrecht agreement. This agreement was dissolved in 1585 in the Baden Agreement. In 1529 the village embraced the Protestant Reformation and converted to the new faith. Nearly a hundred years later, in 1627, the Bishop of Basel succeeded in spreading the Counter-Reformation to Allschwil. After 1567 there was a Jewish settlement in Allschwil. In 1692 there were 24 Jewish families living in the Judengässlein (from German: Little Jewish Alley) and they made up about 15% of the population. They had their own cemetery in Zwingen and a funeral right in Hegenheim. Children of Jews and Christians attended the 17th-century school together. Accusations of horse theft and Jewish plans to build a synagogue in Allschwil led to an expulsion decree in 1694 from the Bishop. Many of the Jews fled to Hegenheim.The village Church of St. Peter and Paul was built in the 12th century and was under the patronage of the Basel cathedral. The lower part
