Ellhorn
{{short description|Mountain in Switzerland}}
{{Infobox mountain
| name = Ellhorn
| photo_caption = Ellhorn, as seen from the south-west
| elevation_m = 758
| elevation_ref =
| listing = Mountains of Switzerland
| location = Fläsch, Switzerland
| map = Switzerland
| map_caption = Location in Switzerland
| coordinates = {{coord|47|3|13|N|9|28|44|E|type:mountain_region:CH_scale:100000|format=dms|display=inline,title}}
| coordinates_ref =
| range_coordinates =
| first_ascent =
| easiest_route =
| photo = Ellhorn 2014.JPG
}}Ellhorn is a mountain in Switzerland on the Rätikon mountain range on the Central Eastern Alps, located on the border with Liechtenstein. It has an elevation {{convert|758|m}} above sea level.{{Cite web |date=1 October 2012 |title=Ellhorn (758m) |url=https://www.hikr.org/tour/post56737.html |access-date=30 March 2024 |website=Hikr.org |language=de}}
History
The mountain was historically part of Liechtenstein, in the municipality of Balzers. In the 1930s, Swiss military planners became concerned that the territory made fortifications in Fläsch vulnerable. This concern was heightened by perceptions that Liechtenstein was susceptible to annexation into Nazi Germany in the wake of the Anschluss of Austria.{{Cite web |last=Büchel |first=Donat |date=31 December 2011 |title=Ellhorn |url=https://historisches-lexikon.li/Ellhorn |access-date=19 March 2024 |website=Historisches Lexikon des Fürstentums Liechtenstein |language=de}}
In 1938, the Swiss Federal Council began negotiations with Liechtenstein to cede the Ellhorn mountain to them. Though Josef Hoop, the Prime Minister of Liechtenstein, was supportive of the transfer, he argued that the country should be fairly compensated for the loss of territory, with either a transfer of Swiss land elsewhere or greater banking cooperation between the two countries. The transfer faced resistance from the residents in Balzers, and was not supported by Franz Joseph II, the ruling Prince of Liechtenstein.{{Cite news |last=Meier |first=Günther |date=11 December 2023 |title=Die Angst vor feindlichen Truppen: Wie die «Loreley des Alpenrheins» den Besitzer wechselte |url=https://www.nzz.ch/schweiz/die-angst-vor-feindlichen-truppen-wie-die-loreley-des-alpenrheins-den-besitzer-wechselte-ld.1769481 |access-date=30 March 2024 |work=Neue Zürcher Zeitung |language=de}}{{Cite book |last=Peter Geiger |title=Krisenzeit. Liechtenstein in den Dreissigerjahren 1928–1939 |date=2000 |publisher=Liechtenstein Institute |volume=2 |location=Vaduz |language=de}} In addition to unofficial objections from Nazi Germany, the lack of support forced Hoop to end negotiations with Switzerland.
Following World War II, Switzerland once again pressed Liechtenstein for the transfer of Ellhorn. Switzerland threatened to, among other things, end the customs union between the two countries which had existed since 1924.{{Cite web |last=Marxer |first=Roland |date=31 December 2011 |title=Zollanschlussvertrag |url=https://historisches-lexikon.li/Zollanschlussvertrag |access-date=25 October 2023 |website=Historisches Lexikon des Fürstentums Liechtenstein |language=de}} Despite the community in Balzers again objecting in November 1948, the transfer was approved by the Landtag of Liechtenstein the following month and finalised in 1949. In exchange for the transfer, Switzerland agreed to forgive much of Liechtenstein's debt incurred during World War II. In 1952, Switzerland expanded its fortifications in the area to include the Ellhorn mountain.