Jon Mathieu | “It gets awkward when you start questioning the very existence of the places that people call home.”

Why do natural disasters engender this sense of togetherness?

It is all to do with empathy and that feeling of belonging. People stick together in difficult moments. This does not mean we suddenly all become bosom buddies; the rat race will go on as it always has. But the immediate response is to want to do something. This, essentially, is a ritual that dates back centuries. During the Reformation, men made monetary and material donations – known as “gifts of love” – mainly to their fellow brothers in faith. This tradition was revived when Switzerland became a country in its own right, albeit recipients were now both male and female. This new phase began after the Goldau landslide of 1806. The “Landammann” (chief magistrate) of Switzerland made an appeal for donations. It was the moment when people got their first inkling of a new era after the demise of the Old Swiss Confederacy.

How are the Alps intertwined with Switzerland’s identity? And has our relationship with the Alps changed over time?

The first suggestion of any Alpine identity dates back to the 16th century, when a number of scholars began to refer to “Alpine people” – not least to emphasise that they were less than keen on being affiliated to the Holy Roman Empire. But it was not until the late 19th century and the opening of the Gotthard railway in 1882 that this identity became important. The railway line was the new federal Swiss state’s pride and joy, signalling to the entire (Western) world that we were a mountainous nation. The national exhibitions of 1914 in Berne and 1939 in Zurich made a big play of it. Both events happened to take place shortly before the World Wars – two difficult periods in Swiss history. This national identification with the Alps has waned since the 1960s, although the rest of the world continues to associate Switzerland with mountains.