Felix Calonder

Felix Louis Calonder (December 7, 1863 – June 14, 1952) was a Swiss politician, member of the Swiss Federal Council from 1913 to 1920, and President of the Confederation in 1918. He was affiliated to the Free Democratic Party. During his tenure of office, he held the Department of Home Affairs from 1913 to 1917, and the Political Department from 1918 to 1919. As of 2016, Felix Calonder has been the Federal Council's only native Romansh speaker.

Early life (1863 - 1891)

Calonder was born in Scuol in the Engadin valley, the son of a master builder from Trin. When Calonder was six years old, his family moved to Trin where he went to elementary school. From 1878 to 1881 Calonder visited the cantonal school in Chur. He dropped out, worked as a commercial trainée for three years, and didn't graduate with a Matura until 1885 in Zurich. He studied law in Zurich, Munich, Paris, and Bern, where he submitted his doctoral thesis on international law in 1889. He was active in the student corporation "Zofingia", and became a militia officer and judge in the Swiss Armed Forces.