1960: 500 years – half a millennium
Anniversaries are celebrated as they come. It so happened that the University of Basel’s 500-year anniversary in 1960 fell during a period marked by contrasts, upheavals, and the East-West conflict – and by optimism and a festive atmosphere. In the 1950s, Basel’s neighbor Freiburg had celebrated its own 500th anniversary, and Basel had hosted numerous city festivals as well. It was clear that the half-millennium anniversary celebration in Basel needed to be something truly special. Newspapers, radio, and television all covered the event. The four-day celebration, which aimed to offer something for everyone – and, notably, for every woman – culminated in a large public festival.
Around 1960, two realizations about the state of things had largely set in: the World Wars were still fresh in memory, especially in the border city of Basel, and the unshaken belief in progress that had prevailed at the 1860 anniversary was now diminished. At the same time, there was a broad sense of optimism from the postwar years of growth. Rector Ernst Staehelin expressed serious concerns in his anniversary address, declaring that the university must redefine its role in the face of “frightening technological possibilities” and a “serious global situation.” The tension of the East-West conflict was also palpable in Basel as the university began organizing its own jubilee. Which guests should be invited was a matter of debate. Nevertheless, despite all these challenging issues, there was a spirit of celebration and optimism in Basel during the 500-year anniversary. The university’s financial stability seemed unassailable in this time of economic growth.
More than just another of so many similar celebrations: a grand jubilee
The 500th anniversary celebration of the University of Basel was set to span four days, beginning at the Basel Trade Fair and concluding with a large public festival. The main days of celebration were preceded by the Swiss university championships and keynote lectures. On the Sunday following the main festivities, there was also a special performance at the theater in Augusta Raurica – sponsored by the Governing Council of Basel-Countryside – and various exhibitions in the city’s museums, some of which extended into September. Over 1,500 guests were invited to a jubilee envisioned as a truly grand celebration.
The trend of hosting university anniversaries with increasing splendor started in the nineteenth century. Such anniversaries not only provided an opportunity for lavish celebrations but also allowed the institution to affirm its identity and accomplishments for its own community and present itself to the wider public. Basel had also taken several opportunities in the 1950s to host anniversary celebrations. In 1951, for instance, the city celebrated its 450th year of Swiss Confederation membership and, in 1957, the two-thousand-year anniversary of the founding of the Roman colony Augusta Raurica (despite repeated warnings that this founding date was incorrect). This tradition of celebration and the fact that a half millennium was being marked amplified the enthusiasm and commitment to spare no efforts in celebrating the event, with a program to match.
A celebration for many different audiences
From 29 June to 2 July, Basel celebrated the four main days of its anniversary: the “Day of Welcome,” the “Day of Sciences,” the “Day of the Cathedral Celebration,” and the “Day of the City.” This approach highlighted a tradition from the nineteenth century that was also evident during the 550th anniversary of the University of Basel: dividing the celebration into separate, somewhat independent parts that together formed a complete event.
This division resulted in part from the length of the four-day anniversary, while also underscoring the committee’s hope that the university’s celebration would appeal to a broad audience of different groups. While the “Day of Sciences” was primarily for academic guests (even though most events were also open to “interested members of the public” who could obtain tickets), the “Day of the City,” set for Saturday, was planned as a grand public festival with stalls and bars around St. Peter’s Square. Even the “Day of Sciences” addressed different subgroups: in the afternoon, “academic events” were held by faculty, with theologians meeting with theologians, lawyers with lawyers, medical professionals with medical professionals, and so on. On the same afternoon, there were “events for the distinguished wives of visiting guests” who had also received invitations, “in accordance with the customs of the times.” Interestingly, the festival report – an otherwise detailed document running nearly 250 pages – only briefly mentioned this event. The ladies were hosted by Dr. Felix Iselin-Merian and his wife for a “refreshment rendezvous” at their home on Rittergasse and in the Kirschgarten at St. Elisabeth’s. The wives of the professors also contributed by presenting two tapestries for the Aula, on which it was said they been working for five and a half years.
The segmentation of the celebration into “days” and time slots implies that by 1960, it was not as simple as it was during the major celebration of 1860 to identify just who “made up” the university. It might have been more practical to refer to groups associated with or specifically connected to the university: representatives of different disciplines, students, student associations, and “distinguished women.” In this sense, the events organized by the student body were more individualized than at previous anniversaries. The conduct of the Swiss university championships and particularly the separate events by student societies, for instance, with distinct colors during the anniversary days, demonstrated that students and their societies knew how to uniquely celebrate the “anniversary semester.”
After four days of festivities, all paths lead to the University Festival
On the first day of festivities, the invited guests and student delegations were traditionally welcomed at the Kollegienhaus, the university’s main building. On the “Day of Sciences,” lectures were held throughout the day. The “general academic event” took place in the morning in the Congress Hall of the Basel Trade Fair, with specialized talks in the individual faculties in the afternoon. The following “Day of the Cathedral Celebration” included three hours for receiving congratulations and gifts before the traditional anniversary procession in the afternoon. The route led from the Kollegienhaus via Blumenrain, Eisengasse, Freie Strasse, Bäumleingasse, and Rittergasse to the Cathedral Celebration. A large audience lined the route, described by the Basler Nachrichten on 2/3 July as “similar to a Morgenstraich,” the Basel Carnival celebrated with groups of costumed cliques carrying decorated lanterns. The article also mentioned that not only women and children attended, but also “a large number of men, which was quite surprising since Friday was supposed to be a regular workday. Government employees, however, were not present, as they had sensibly been dismissed at 4 p.m., exactly when the procession was to disappear into the cathedral.” The procession passed by several city administration buildings, allowing some employees to watch from the windows.
The celebration in the cathedral was chiefly for official guests and students, though others interested in the event could also participate by obtaining a ticket in advance. For those who failed to secure a spot in the church, the festivities could be heard in St. Martin’s or the cathedral cloister, where speeches were transmitted via loudspeakers, or on a radio broadcast from the Beromünster station.
It wasn’t just the considerable media reporting on the anniversary that ensured most of Basel was likely informed about the date and program of the university celebrations. The festival report mentions that Basel’s city center was decorated with garlands, flags, and floral wreaths ten days before the event, making it clear to “even the most oblivious townsman” that something was happening soon. As with the inauguration of the new Kollegienhaus, the university celebration concluded with a “public festival.” In a star-shaped march, the people of Basel converged on the area around St. Peter’s Square, where “thousands” gathered in courtyards, cellars, streets, and squares, as well as in the Kollegienhaus. Over 100 associations had organized several “pubs and small taverns” where a variety of food and drinks were available, and the celebrations lasted until the early morning hours.