Stans

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Coordinates: 46°57′N 8°21′E

Stans
Canton	Nidwalden
District	n.a.
Coordinates	46°57′N 8°21′E
Population	7353   (December 2003)
Area	11.08 km²
Elevation	452 m
Postal code	6370
SFOS number	1509
Website	www.stans.ch
Stans

Stans is the capital of the Nidwalden (Nidwald) canton in Switzerland. It has a population of 7300, 12% of which is of foreign nationality (2002). The area of Stans is 11 km².

Contents 1 History 2 Industry 3 Sights 4 External links

[edit] History

Stans was first mentioned in 1172. In 1798 it was stormed by French troops, followed the decision of Nidwalden not to adapt a new constitution. Children orphaned by this event were gathered by the educator Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi for his first school. The open-air assembly (Landsgemeinde) was held in Stans annually until its abolition in 1997.

[edit] Industry

There are 650 local businesses which employ 6900 people. 2% of these are in the agricultural sector, 37% in trade and industry, 61% in services.

[edit] Sights

The main sights of Stans are: the Stanserhorn (1900m) mountain and tourist resort, accessible via one of the oldest mountain railways in Switzerland, the Stanserhornbahn (1893), and by cable car; the main square (Dorfplatz); the parish church, St. Peter und Paul (built 1641 - 1647) with a Romanesque tower; the monastery St. Klara; a monument for the local hero Arnold von Winkelried and his birth place (Winkelriedhaus); a Capucin monastery; a salt storage house and an old alleyway (Schmiedgasse).

[edit] External links

• Official Page (German)
• Stanserhorn