Is that really a misconception? By which I mean, is that a widespread belief in the first place?
For anyone with even the slightest grain of historical knowledge, such a misconception could never arise.
You're right. For everyone with a small knowledge of history. However we are talking of the average person, and I know that for example here in Switzerland it is the "heroic", but mythic fight against the Habsburgs in the beginning and the years 1847/8 and then "neutrality" gets teached, and nothing else...
After all, in the Renaissance Swiss mercenaries were the most feared in Europe - which is the reason they guard the Pope to this day.
Most European conquerors - e.g. Napolean and Hitler - were smart enough to leave Switzerland alone, knowing the warlike tradition of its inhabitants and how its natural defenses have been strengthened to make it very difficult to conquer. Quite simply, conquering Switzerland would never have been worth the casualties you'd take - which in essence is the Swiss defense strategy in a nutshell.
Now here do we have a misconception: Napoleon DID conquer Switzerland, the opposing armies at the time were two RUSSIAN ones ravaging the country. Napoleon advanced on Berne and got every day another letter from Berne, declaring their enemity or friendship depending on which part of the citizens of Berne got the power that day. Napoleon and the French then abolished Feudalism and founded a Swiss state, refederalising it after a time after some "problems". But then nevertheless, one of the more important divisions of Napoleons army on the Russian campaign were Swiss. In 1815, Switzerland only survived due to the fact that there were some little states needed as a buffer, but got back into his pre-state state. After some events leading up to 1847, the Swiss state was finally founded. So it took the Swiss 50 years (1798 - 1848) to found a federal state that encompasses peacefully three language regions, two religions (confessions) and a urban-rural divide. And we expect Iraq to do it in 5 years...
[slightly different situatio in Iraq, there the conflict lines between the two religions and the "ethnities" are more or less the same]
Getting back to the point, that the conquering of Switzerland is difficult is a myth, as at napoleons time we were very divided and at Hitlers time, the Swiss army retreated into the alps (leaving the cities, the money, the industry alone!) so to be able to block the Alps for the Germans which they could use at the time. Plus, "Nazi Gold", Switzerland was worth more as a neutral and a way to speak to the Americans than as just another territory... It had nothing to do with Swiss fighting capabilities.
AFAIK, even today the overwhelming majority of Swiss males (maybe females too? Not sure) serve their time in the militia and actually have their assault rifles at home, ready for use. Or is that a misconception too?
Yes, that is true. I have mine in the cellar, but you ought to have to take one part out of it. The idea behind is that if the Germans or French or whoever attack, that you as a soldier can "fight" your way to your troop... But, there is major opposition lately, as there have been some more occasions of wrong use of the rifles (besides the normal "suicide" and "suicide plus wife or parents or whoever"). Last Fall, a recruit who had just finished the first part of his service and could return home for the first time got home, got back out, hid behind a "hill" and shot a girl waiting for the bus on the other side of the road... . The opposition mostly is of one big "women journal" who started a petition, some left politicians and one or two Swiss French cantonal executives. Sometimes after the "höngg-incident" (with the dead girl), the army stopped giving out the ammunition and the said Executives (geneva) gives the option to deposit the assault rifle at the local "arsenal" (?) although that technically is unconstitutional...
In short, yes we do have our rifle in the wardrobe, but it is likely to change. After all, the sole reason it still exists is that this way you can do the obligatory yearly "shooting training" (?) and thus subsidize the local and many gunclubs who otherwise couldn't survive...
In short short, both are false stereotypes, the ever-fighting gun-loving free and autonomous Swiss, and the peaceloving cowbells swinging mountain farmer.
