Geography of Switzerland rolling hills and plains of the plateau. The smaller Jura Mountains are located on the north west side of the plateau. Much of the northern border with Germany follows the Rhine, though the Rhine enters Switzerland near Schaffhausen. The eastern border with Germany and a portion of Austria is drawn through Lake Constance (). A portion of the southwest border with France is drawn through Lake Geneva. Switzerland is divided into 26 sovereign cantons. The cantons along the Swiss Plateau tend to be the most populous, industrial and religiously Protestant. The cantons in the Alps tend to be less populous,
Cantons of France several smaller "communes". In the latter case, administrative services, the "gendarmerie" headquarters for example, are often situated in the principal town ("chef-lieu") of the "canton", although there are exceptions, such as "cantons" and , which have in common a "chief-town" which does not belong to either "canton". For statistical (INSEE) purposes, the twenty arrondissements of Paris – the administrative subdivisions of that city – are sometimes considered "cantons", but they serve no greater electoral function. "Cantons" also form legal districts, as seats of "Tribunaux d'instance" or "Courts of First Instance" (also, ""TI""...). Historically, the "cantons" are called "justices de paix"