Abraham Davel in Lausanne, Switzerland

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Jean Daniel Abraham Davel, (Major Davel), was a courageous soldier and patriot of Vaud born on October 20, 1670, in Morrens. After studying in Lausanne, he became a skilled notary and land commissioner. In 1692, he embarked on his military career serving under Prince Eugene of Savoy and John Churchill. Alongside the Bernese, Davel participated in the second Villmergen War of 1712, earning a pension after their victory in the Protestant alliance. He then settled in Vaud where he resumed judicial office. In 1717, the Bernese appointed him to command the Vaud militia of the district of Lavaux. However, when faced with Vaudois resistance against the introduction of the Helvetic Consensus, Davel felt compelled by God to liberate his country from the power of Berne. On March 31, 1723, he led a group of 500 to 600 unarmed men into Lausanne at a moment when the Bernese bailiffs were absent. There, he gathered the municipal counsel and presented them with a manifesto highlighting several failures and abuses in the government in Bern. He made his plan for autonomy public, but the counsel immediately reported the incident to Bern. Davel was arrested on April 1st and maintained under torture that his undertaking was directly suggested by God and had no accomplices. He was condemned to death by the court of citizens (Lausanne) and beheaded at Vidy on April 24th. Today, the Vaud section of the Swiss fraternity, Zofingia, commemorates Major Davel's sacrifice every April 24th with a procession following his route that day in 1723. The procession starts from the Château Saint-Maire in Lausanne and leads up to the monument at Vidy, where he was executed. A stele was erected in Louis Bourget Park marking the spot where the scaffolding stood, bearing the inscription: "Here Davel gave his life for his country, 24 April 1723." In recognition of his bravery, several streets are named after him, including "rue du Major Davel" in Baulmes, "rue Davel" in Cully, and "avenue Davel" ("avenue Jean-Daniel-Abram-Davel") in Lausanne.