Échallens

Geschichte

Échallens is a municipality in the district of Gros-de-Vaud in the canton of Vaud in Switzerland.HistoryThe territory of the municipality was already settled very early. There are remains of a Bronze Age foundry.The first documentation dates from 1141 under the name of Charlens. Later forms of the name include Challeins, Escharlens (1177), Eschallens (1228), and Eschalleins (1279). The present form of the name first appears in 1315. The name comes from the personal name Charles.The site belonged originally to the Bishop of Lausanne. At the end of the 12th century, the Burgundian Lords of Montfaucon established the territory of Échallens and built a castle there in the 13th century. In 1317, the rights of the house of Savoy were recognized. In 1350, Échallens was encircled by a wall and received city rights in 1351. From then until the 16th century, a weekly market was held.In 1410, the government of Échallens passed to the house of Chalon, which originated in Burgundy. For this reason, the Eidgenossen took over after the Burgundian Wars and put it under the administration of Fribourg and Bern in 1476.Because of the common administration of Catholic Fribourg and Protestant Bern, the Reformation did not gain ground in Echallen, and it remained Catholic.