SARNEN

capital of Obwalden half canton, central Switzerland, at the efflux of the Sarner River from the northern end of Lake Sarnen, southwest of Lucerne. In its town hall (172931), the Weisses Buch (White Book) contains the oldest chronicle extant (c. 1470) of the history of Swiss liberation; the book is also the principal source of the legend of William Tell, the Swiss patriot who was sentenced to shoot, with a crossbow, an apple from his son's head. The Landsgemeinde (open-air elections of the half canton, with voting by show of hands), are held annually on the Landenberg, which was once the site of a Habsburg castle. Notable buildings include the parish church (173942), the Schtzenhaus (1752), Benedictine and Capuchin monasteries, and a college. Sarnen is a tourist centre on the Luzern-Brnig electric railway; industries include precision engineering, woodworking, and textile manufacture. The population is German-speaking and Roman Catholic. Pop. (1980) 7,372.