Foundation and development

Fritz and Paul Sarasin, Carl Schröter, and Steivan Brunies (a native of the Engadine) - who became the founding fathers of the National Park - were concerned about the progression of development in the mountains, and increasing industrialisation. To counter this movement, they founded the Swiss Society for the Protection of Nature, with the vision of setting aside an area of land where nature could develop without human disturbance. In 1906 Brunies commented that

“only by means of a vast project such as this can the last remaining original plant and animal species in our land, in a particular area, be saved.”.