Zurich Town Hall

It served as the seat of government and administration of the Republic of Zurich until 1798.

The canton of Zurich owns it since 1803, and it houses both legislative chambers, the cantonal parliament (German: Kantonsrat) as well as the City Parliament (German: Gemeinderat).

It is built on a fundament (foundation) anchored in the river Limmat and faces the Limmatquai (pedestrian area) at a pedestrian bridge, or the Rathausbrücke.

The 17th-century building replaces an earlier Rathaus (city council chambers) built in 1397, which in turn replaced a 13th-century court house (Richthus).

It is an integral part of the medieval town on the right side of the Limmat, separated by the Hirschengraben from the Hochschulen quarter uphill to the east, and delimited by the Bellevue and Central squares to the south and north, respectively.