St. Gotthard Pass is a pass in Switzerland at 2108m, between Airolo, Ticino, and Andermatt , Canton of Uri, connecting the northern (German speaking) part of Switzerland with the Italian speaking part Ticino.Though the pass was locally known in Antiquity, it was not generally used until the early 13th century.

The pass was dedicated to the Bavarian Saint Gotthard (Godehard of Hildesheim) ca 960 – May 4, 1038, Abbot of Hersfeld , later Bishop of Hildesheim (1022). The son of Archbishop Frederick of Salzburg, Gotthard became abbot of the Benedictine monastery of Nieder Altaich (996) and reformed other monasteries, under the patronage of Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor. His hospice for travellers at Saint-Moritz, near Hildesheim, became famous.

Today the St. Gotthard Tunnel, opened in 1881 for railway traffic, replaces the pass road.

External links

• [http://www.saintpatrickdc.org/ss/0504.htm Brief notes on Saint Godehard