How Locarno Became The 'City Of Peace'

(MENAFN- Swissinfo) Known for its idyllic lakeside scenery and holiday vibe, Locarno was the unlikely setting for a major diplomatic achievement in 1925 that became synonymous with reconciliation and peace in Europe. The event had a lasting impact on the city. This content was published on July 9, 2025 - 09:00 4 minutes

I oversee the distribution and social media channels for the English department and write news articles in English. I studied modern languages, English, and Russian literature, then completed an MA in international journalism in Cardiff. After that, I worked for BBC Education in Manchester for a few years before moving to Switzerland.

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Reporter specialised in Swiss foreign affairs, with a side hustle as a sub-editor in the English Department. Previously my focus was on disinformation and fact-checks, which I still produce occasionally.

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In the 1920s, Locarno was a small town with a thriving watch and chemicals industry. Its tourism sector too was making a decent trade, drawing holidaymakers from abroad with the surrounding green mountain peaks and crystal blue waters.

Over the course of ten days in October 1925, the town attracted a different type of visitor altogether, as it hosted high-stakes diplomatic talks more commonly associated with Geneva in western Switzerland, back then the seat of the League of Nations, the precursor to the United Nations. Delegates from seven European countries were there to solidify security on the continent after the First World War.

The southern Swiss setting, describedExternal link as“perfectly beautiful” by Miles Lampson, a member of the British delegation, matched the unexpectedly convivial mood between the victor nations, which included France, Britain and Belgium, and the vanquished state of Germany. At Locarno, Lampson reported, the diplomats discussed their differences“with the utmost discretion and good humour”.

New telegraph lines and chic hotels

To roll out the red carpet for some 100 diplomats and over 200 journalists, Locarno's 6,000 inhabitants spruced up house façades and prepared small concerts in local cafés to entertain delegates, says Rodolfo Huber, the city's present-day archivist. Authorities installed new telephone and telegraph lines so the press could deliver their daily reports on the conference. Local police provided security.

City archivist Rodolfo Huber explains why Locarno was chosen to host the 1925 talks:

Accommodation was sorted out in chic hotels, such as the Grand Hotel for the British, Belgians and French, and the Hotel Esplanade for the Germans.

Throughout the conference, the city's mayor, Giovan Battista Rusca, acted as official host. No Swiss delegate was sent to participate in the talks, as the country was neutral and had stayed out of the war.

When, after ten days of discussions, the diplomats emerged from the courthouse where the official meetings took place having agreed a series of new treaties, a crowd waiting outside erupted in applause.

Read more about the Locarno Pact and its reverberations in geopolitics today :

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