Stadthaus

The Stadthaus, in Zurich

The Stadthaus is a magnificent neo-Gothic municipal building of Zurich, attached to the Fraumünster, on the site of the former convent of the Ladies. The Zurich audio-guided tour stops here to evoke this building born from the economic rise of the end of the nineteenth century, time when Zurich went from twenty-eight thousand to more than one hundred thousand inhabitants, and that today hosts exhibitions under its elegant arcades.

The building of the industrial golden age

The magnificent neo-Gothic municipal building you have in front of you, the Stadthaus, is attached to the church, because it was built at the place where the convent of the Ladies of the Fraumünster was previously. The construction of an administrative building so new and imposing is explained by a phenomenon that is called in German the Gründerzeit, the time of the founders: it was the great economic rise that the brand-new German Empire knew from 1871, after the payment of the war indemnities by France, and whose prosperity radiated over the whole region. In 1893, the city of Zurich went from twenty-eight thousand to more than one hundred thousand inhabitants, by the integration of the neighbouring municipalities: become a great metropolis, it had to have a building worthy of the name to represent it. Of neo-Gothic style, the Stadthaus bears a façade adorned with turrets, gables and wrought windows, that dialogues with the neighbouring spire of the Fraumünster. In the 2000s, the building was entirely renovated, and you can today admire the result by entering inside. Under its elegant arcades are regularly organised temporary exhibitions, generally devoted to Zurich and its region, as well as municipal services open to the public. A neo-Gothic building and a municipal building, the Stadthaus is a fine stop of the discovery of Zurich.

What to see

Here you admire a magnificent neo-Gothic municipal building attached to the Fraumünster, built at the end of the nineteenth century on the site of the former convent of the Ladies, at the time when Zurich went from twenty-eight thousand to more than one hundred thousand inhabitants; adorned with turrets and gables, renovated in the 2000s, it hosts under its arcades exhibitions on the city and its region. The Stadthaus is an emblematic building of Zurich. It is a fine stop, to be explored on foot.

Practical information

The Stadthaus stands on the left bank of the Limmat, attached to the Fraumünster, in the old town of Zurich, reachable on foot or by tram. It is a municipal building whose façade you admire from the outside; the exhibitions under its arcades follow their own hours and conditions, which vary. You discover it during a walk in the centre.

Why was the Stadthaus of Zurich built?

Because, at the end of the nineteenth century, the economic rise of the Gründerzeit and the integration of the neighbouring municipalities made Zurich go from twenty-eight thousand to more than one hundred thousand inhabitants: become a great metropolis, the city needed an administrative building worthy of it; built on the site of the former convent of the Ladies, attached to the Fraumünster, this neo-Gothic building today hosts exhibitions.

Where is the Stadthaus in Zurich?

On the left bank of the Limmat, attached to the Fraumünster, in the old town of Zurich, in Switzerland.