Orbe (French: [ɔʁb]; Latin: Urba; older German: Orbach, [ɔʁbax]; Arpitan: Orba) is a municipality in the Swiss canton of Vaud.

[3] During the Roman era, Orbe – then known as Urba – was a town of Gallia, in the territory of the Helvetii.

On the Boscéaz hill are the remains of a vast and luxurious Roman villa, the large, exquisite mosaics of which are visible.

By the Middle Ages, Orbe sat on the road over the Jougne Pass and at the crossroads of two major transportation routes.

Orbe Castle and the town's market were built on the hill above the river and the bridge.

The town remained part of the independent Kingdom of Burgundy until the death of the last king, Rudolf III in 1032.

With Rudolph's death, the entire kingdom, including Orbe, was incorporated into the empire.

In 1076, Emperor Henry IV replaced the Burgundian noble in Orbe with one of his vassals, Count Wilhelm II.

Around the end of the 11th century, Romainmôtier Abbey acquired some land in the town, on which they built a hospital.

[3] In addition to the religious land owners, the Counts of Montfaucon-Montbeliard began to live in the town.

Two years later, Amadeus III of Montfaucon-Montbeliard built the Bourg-Vieux and Bourg-Neuf to help protect the town.

After the death of Girard de Montfaucon and of his wife, Orbe was inherited by Count Montbeliard in 1379.

The Chalon family held the town until it was captured by the Swiss Confederation in 1475 during the Burgundian Wars.

However, the Swiss were unable to hold it and Hugh de Chalon recaptured it in the same year.

The de Chalon lands, including Orbe and nearby Echallens, became a joint condominium or gemeine Herrschaft which was administered by Bern and Fribourg.

It remained a subject territory until the 1798 French invasion and the creation of the French-backed Helvetic Republic.

The Helvetic Republic, which espoused the ideals of the French Revolution, was very popular with the urban residents of Orbe.

[9] Most of the population (as of 2000[update]) speaks French (4,229 or 82.3%), with Portuguese being second-most common (255 or 5.0%) and German being third (161 or 3.1%).

[9] The historical population is given in the following chart:[3][13] The Boscéaz (a Gallo-Roman villa), Orbe Castle with its two towers and plaza, the Swiss Reformed Church of Notre-Dame and the City Hall are listed as Swiss heritage site of national significance.

The entire old town of Orbe is part of the Inventory of Swiss Heritage Sites.

[14] The Gallo-Roman villa is known for its Roman mosaics,[15] which are composed of several hundreds of pieces on the floor of the original site.

The factory was opened in 1901 by Daniel Peter, the inventor of milk chocolate, to expand his production.

In the tertiary sector; 343 or 18.7% were in wholesale or retail sales or the repair of motor vehicles, 82 or 4.5% were in the movement and storage of goods, 58 or 3.2% were in a hotel or restaurant, 15 or 0.8% were in the information industry, 36 or 2.0% were the insurance or financial industry, 515 or 28.1% were technical professionals or scientists, 121 or 6.6% were in education and 257 or 14.0% were in health care.

In the Vaud cantonal school system, two years of non-obligatory pre-school are provided by the political districts.