Short answers, pulled from the story.
The Swiss constitution does not designate Bern as the official capital but as the seat of the federal government, a distinction settled when the Federal Assembly voted on the 28th of November 1848. The term "federal city" reflects the decentralised nature of Swiss governance rather than a formal capital designation.
Bern was founded in 1191 by Berthold V, Duke of Zähringen, according to 14th-century historiography including the Cronica de Berno of 1309. In 1218, after Berthold died without an heir, Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II made Bern a free imperial city through the Goldene Handfeste.
The etymology is uncertain. The local legend attributes the name to a bear encountered on a hunt by founder Berthold V. For centuries scholars linked it to Verona, known as Bern in Middle High German. The discovery of the Bern zinc tablet in the 1980s shifted the consensus toward a Celtic toponym, possibly the word "berna" meaning "cleft."
Albert Einstein lived at Kramgasse 49 in Bern from 1903 to 1905, working as a patent examiner. His Annus Mirabilis papers, which included the theory of relativity, were published in 1905. The flat is now preserved as the Einsteinhaus museum.
Bern's historic old town, the Altstadt, was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983. The site includes the medieval street layout, the Zytglogge clock tower, the Münster cathedral begun in 1421, the 15th-century town hall, and eleven 16th-century Renaissance fountains attributed largely to the Fribourg master Hans Gieng.
Bern hosted the 1954 FIFA World Cup Final at the Stadion Wankdorf, where West Germany defeated Hungary 3-2. The PostFinance Arena hosted the 2009 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship, including the opening game and final, and the 2011 European Figure Skating Championships. Bern also held the Swiss Grand Prix on the Bremgarten Circuit from 1950 to 1954.