The early history of Switzerland begins with the earliest settlements up to the beginning of Habsburg rule, which in 1291 gave rise to the independence movement in the central cantons of Uri, Schwyz, and Unterwalden and the growth of the Old Swiss Confederacy during the Late Middle Ages.
Prehistory
Paleolithic to Mesolithic
A hand-axe fashioned by Homo erectus has been found in Pratteln, which has been dated to 300,000 years ago. Neanderthal presence is known from the Grotte de Cotencher in Neuchâtel, dating to 70,000 years ago and from the caves of Wildkirchli in the Appenzell Alps, dated to about 40,000 years ago.
Anatomically modern humans reached Central Europe 30,000 years ago, but most of what is now Switzerland was covered by glaciers during the Last Glacial Maximum (Würm glaciation). The ice-free parts, northern Switzerland along the High Rhine and part of the Aar basin, were exposed to permafrost.
Human habitation in the Swiss Plateau can be shown for the beginning Mesolithic, in Wetzikon-Robenhausen beginning around 10,000 years ago.
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File:PN-NE-MZ venus-originale ya.jpg|Venus of Monruz, BC
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Neolithic to Copper Age
The Neolithic reached the Swiss plateau before 7,000 years ago (late 6th millennium BC), dominated by the Linear Pottery culture.
The area was relatively densely populated, as is attested to by the many archeological findings from that period. Remains of pile dwellings have been found in the shallow areas of many lakes, attributed to archaeological cultures such as Cortaillod, Pfyn and Horgen. Artifacts dated to the 5th millennium BC were discovered at the Schnidejoch in 2003 to 2005. The pre-Indo-European population of the Alpine region is typified by Ötzi the Iceman, an individual of the late 4th millennium BC found in the Austrian Alps (some 25 km east of the Swiss border). The Bell Beaker culture marks the transition from the Chalcolithic to the early Bronze Age.
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File:Modell Pfyn Breitenloo P1020773.jpg|Pfyn culture settlement at Breitenloo,
File:HMB Essen und Kochgerät Jungsteinzeit.jpg|Neolithic implements, pottery and foodstuffs, Cortaillod culture
File:Laténium-pointe-cristal.jpg|Crystal arrowhead, Cortaillod culture,
File:Landesmuseum Württemberg Stuttgart Neolithikum 156.jpg|Wooden wheel fragment, Horgen culture
File:Pierre percee Traves dolmen 2.JPG|Megalithic dolmen, Horgen culture
File:Goldberg axe 1.jpg|Alpine copper axe, 4th millennium BC
File:Anthropomorphic stele no 25, Sion, Petit-Chasseur necropolis 13.jpg|Anthropomorphic stele, Sion, Bell Beaker culture,
File:Copper jewellery Switzerland 2700 BC.jpg|Copper necklace and ornaments,
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Bronze Age
In the 3rd millennium BC, Switzerland lay on the south-western outskirts of the Corded Ware horizon, entering the early Bronze Age (Bell Beaker culture) in step with Central Europe, in the late centuries of the 3rd millennium. The Early Bronze Age Rhône culture in western Switzerland (-1500 BC) developed from the Bell Beaker culture and was closely related to the Unetice culture in central Europe. This was followed by the Tumulus culture (-1300 BC) in the Middle Bronze Age, and the Urnfield culture in the Late Bronze Age (). Settlements included lakeside villages and fortified settlements on elevated sites. The dating from the 16th-15th century BC, is a unique find from the Tumulus culture period. Described as "the earliest metal representation of a human body part ever found in Europe", it may have been a ritual object, or mounted on a standard like similar metal hands known from the Iron Age, or possibly a prosthesis. It was found in a grave along with a bronze hair-ring, pin and dagger. The hand had a golden bracelet or cuff decorated with solar motifs.
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File:Dagger-P4140344-black.jpg|Dagger, Unetice/Rhône culture
File:Età del bronzo,armi e oggetti da una tomba del 1800 ac circa, da thun 02.JPG|Thun-Renzenbühl axe,
File:Eschenz gold cup 1.jpg|Eschenz gold cup, Tumulus culture,
File:Goldschale Altstetten - 2 von 10.jpg|Altstetten gold bowl, Urnfield culture,
File:Età del bronzo finale, due spade, 1300-800 ac ca..JPG|Bronze swords, Urnfield culture, 10th century BC
File:Urnfield culture pottery inlaid with tin foil, Switzerland, c. 1000 BC.jpg|Pottery inlaid with tin foil, Urnfield culture,
File:HMB Bronzezeit Wasserfunde Bern.jpg|River and lake finds from Bern, Urnfield culture
File:Bronze Age lake settlement at Cortaillod-Est, Switzerland. Laténium museum.png|Lake settlement at Cortaillod-Est
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Iron Age
thumb|left|Celtic wooden statue from [[Eschenz, |291x291px]]
thumb|Map of late Iron Age Switzerland on the eve of the Roman conquest, indicating tribal territories, large settlements and oppida
The Swiss plateau lay in the western part of the Early Iron Age Hallstatt culture, and it participated in the early La Tène culture (named for the type site at Lake Neuchâtel) which arose out of the Hallstatt background from the 5th century BC.
By the final centuries BC, the Swiss plateau and Ticino were settled by Continental Celtic speaking peoples (Gauls): the Helvetii and Vindelici inhabited the western and eastern part of the Swiss plateau, respectively, and the Lugano area
by the Lepontii.
The interior Alpine valleys of eastern Switzerland (Grisons) were inhabited by the non-Celtic Raetians.
The distribution of La Tène culture burials in Switzerland indicates that the Swiss plateau between Lausanne and Winterthur was relatively densely populated. Settlement centres existed in the Aare valley between Thun and Bern, and between Lake Zurich and the Reuss. The Valais and the regions around Bellinzona and Lugano also seem to have been well-populated; however, those lay outside the Helvetian borders.
Almost all the Celtic oppida were built in the vicinity of the larger rivers of the Swiss plateau.
About a dozen oppida are known in Switzerland (some twenty including uncertain candidate sites), not all of which were occupied during the same time. For most of them, no contemporary name has survived; in cases where a pre-Roman name has been recorded, it is given in brackets.
The largest were the one in Bern-Engehalbinsel (presumably Brenodurum, the name recorded on the Bern zinc tablet), on the Aare, and the one in Altenburg-Rheinau on the Rhine.
Of intermediate size were those of Bois de Châtel, Avenches (abandoned with the foundation of Aventicum as the capital of the Roman province), Jensberg (near vicus Petinesca, Mont Vully, all within a day's march from the one in Bern, the Oppidum Zürich-Lindenhof at the Lake Zurich–Limmat–Sihl triangled Lindenhof hill, and the Oppidum Uetliberg, overlooking the Sihl and Lake Zurich shore.
Smaller oppida were at Geneva (Genava), Lausanne (Lousonna) on the shores of Lake Geneva, at Sermuz on the upper end of Lake Neuchâtel, at Eppenberg and Windisch (Vindonissa) along the lower Aar,
and at Mont Chaibeuf and Mont Terri in the Jura Mountains, the territory of the Rauraci.
A female who died in about 200 BC was found buried in a carved tree trunk during a construction project at the Kern school complex in March 2017 in Aussersihl. Archaeologists revealed that she was approximately 40 years old when she died and likely carried out little physical labor when she was alive. A sheepskin coat, a belt chain, a fancy woolen dress, a scarf and a pendant made of glass and amber beads were also discovered with the woman.
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File:Età del ferro, recipiente greco da Grächwil vicino Meikirch, 570 ac. ca 01.JPG|Grächwil hydria (Greek import), Hallstatt culture, 570 BC
File:Hallstatt culture gold.jpg|Gold jewellery, Hallstatt culture,
File:Età del ferro, cintura a catena, 200 ac ca., da tiefenau berna.JPG|Jewellery, La Tène culture
File:HMB Keltenschmuck Münsingen-Rain Grab 12.jpg|Jewellery, La Tène culture
File:Mont Vully Maquette.jpg|Mont Vully oppidum, La Tène culture
File:Laténium-oreille-carnyx.jpg|Carnyx ornament, La Tène culture,
File:Iron Age La Tene Sacrificial Site (28472054990).jpg|Lake depositions at La Tène
File:Latenium Celtic bridge mg 2221.jpg|Reconstructed Celtic Bridge at La Tène, 3rd century BC
File:Basel oppidum reconstruction, Switzerland, c. 80 BC.jpg|Basel oppidum reconstruction,
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Roman era
thumb|300px|Switzerland during the Roman era
In 58 BCE, the Helvetii tried to evade migratory pressure from Germanic tribes by moving into Gaul, but were stopped and defeated at Bibracte (near modern-day Autun) by Julius Caesar's armies and then sent back. In 15 BCE, Tiberius and Drusus conquered the Alps, and the region became integrated into the Roman Empire: the Helvetii settlement area became part first of Gallia Belgica and later of the province of Germania Superior, while the eastern part was integrated into the Roman province of Raetia.
The following 300 years saw extensive Roman settlement, including the construction of a road network and the founding of many settlements and cities. The center of Roman occupation was at Aventicum (Avenches), other cities were founded at Arbor Felix (Arbon), Augusta Raurica (Kaiseraugst near Basel), Basilea (Basel), Curia (Chur), Genava (Geneva), Lousanna (Lausanne), Octodurum (Martigny, controlling the pass of the Great St. Bernard), Salodurum (Solothurn), Turicum (Zürich) and other places. Military garrisons existed at Tenedo (Zurzach) and Vindonissa (Windisch). According to legend this occurred after a stag bearing an illuminated crucifix between his antlers appeared to him in the marshland outside the town, at the shore of Lake Zürich. However, there is evidence that the monastery was already in existence before 853. The Fraumünster is across the river from the Grossmünster, which according to legend was founded by Charlemagne himself, as his horse fell to his knees on the spot where the martyrs Felix and Regula were buried.
When the land was granted to the monastery, it was exempt from all feudal lords except the king and later the Holy Roman Emperor (a condition known as Imperial immediacy; in German or ). The privileged position of the abbey (reduced taxes and greater autonomy) encouraged the other men of the valley to put themselves under the authority of abbey. By doing so they gained the advantages of the Imperial immediacy and grew used to the relative freedom and autonomy.