Basel-Landschaft

The Canton of Basel-Landschaft (German:  Basel-Landschaft  "Basel-Country"; informally: Baselland/Baselbiet, hence Basel Land, in French Bâle-Campagne), is one of the 26 cantons of Switzerland. The capital is Liestal. It shares borders with the cantons of Basel-Stadt, Solothurn, Jura and Aargau, and with the French région of Alsace and the German state of Baden-Württemberg.

History

Basel-Landschaft, together with Basel-Stadt, formed the historic Canton of Basel until they separated following the uprising of 1833 (Battle of the Hülftenschanz near Frenkendorf).

In Roman times, the area of Basel was a centre of Roman activity. There are well-preserved remains at the site of Augusta Raurica in the canton of Basel-Landschaft. Around AD 200 there were about 20,000 people living in this city, now part of the much smaller Augst. The remains are on display in an open-air museum. The museum attracts over 140,000 visitors per year. Many of these visitors are schoolchildren from other parts of Switzerland. The site of Augusta Raurica includes the best-preserved amphitheatre north of the Alps, and a reconstructed Roman villa.