Innsbruck

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Innsbruck
Coat of arms Location
Image:InnsbruckWappen.png
Administration
Country Image:Flag of Austria.svg Austria
State Tyrol
District Statutory city
Mayor Hilde Zach
Basic statistics
Area 104.91 km² (40.5 sq mi)
Elevation 574 m  (1883 ft)
Population 117,916  (01/01/2007)
 - Density 1,124 /km² (2,911 /sq mi)
Other information
Time zone CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Licence plate I
Postal codes 6010-6080
Area code 0512
Website www.innsbruck.at

Coordinates: 47°16′″N 11°23′″E / Expression error: Unexpected / operator, Expression error: Unexpected / operator

Innsbruck is the capital city of the federal state of Tyrol in western Austria. It is located in the Inn Valley at the junction with the Wipptal (Sill River), which provides access to the Brenner Pass, some 30 km south of Innsbruck. Located in the broad valley between high mountains, the Nordkette (Hafelekar, 2,334 m) in the north, Patscherkofel (2,246 m) and Serles (2,718 m) in the south, it is an internationally renowned winter sports centre. The German name means "the bridge over the Inn" (Brücke meaning "bridge").

Contents

[edit] History

Image:Innsbruck Goldenes Dachl.jpg
"Golden Roof".
Image:Innsbruck - topview, medq.jpg
Winter view from Hafelekar. The Inn River winds through the city and is overlooked from the south by Patscherkofel.

Earliest traces suggest initial inhabitation in the early Stone Age. Surviving pre-Roman place names show that the area has been populated continuously. In the fourth century the Romans established the army station Veldidena (the name survives in today's urban district Wilten) at Oenipons (Innsbruck), to protect the economically important commercial road from Verona-Brenner-Augsburg. Connections along this road were interrupted during the Völkerwanderung in the fourth century.

The first mention of Innsbruck dates back to 1187 (Oeni Pontum or oeni pons which is Latin for bridge (pons) over the Inn (Oenus), which was an important crossing point over the river Inn. The city's seal and coat of arms show a bird's-eye view of the Inn bridge, a design used since 1267. The route over the Brenner Pass was then a major transport and communications link between the north and the south, and the easiest route across the Alps. The revenues generated by serving as a transit station enabled the city to flourish.

Innsbruck became the capital of all Tyrol in 1429 and in the fifteenth century the city became a centre of European politics and culture as emperor Maximilian I moved the imperial court to Innsbruck in the 1490s.

During the Napoleonic wars Tyrol was ceded to Bavaria, ally of France. Andreas Hofer led a Tyrolean peasant army to victory on the Berg Isel against the combined Bavarian and French forces, and then made Innsbruck the centre of his administration. The combined army later overran the Tyrolean militia army and until 1814 Innsbruck was part of Bavaria. After the Vienna Congress Austrian rule was restored. The Tyrolean hero Andreas Hofer was executed in Mantua; his remains were returned to Innsbruck in 1823 and interred in the Franciscan church.

Main article: Bombing of Innsbruck in World War II

In 1938 Austria was annexed by Nazi Germany in the Anschluss. Between 1943 and April 1945, Innsbruck experienced twenty-one bomb attacks and suffered heavy damage. The KZ Innsbruck-Reichenau concentration camp was located here.[1]

In 1929, here in Innsbruck the first official Austrian Chess Championship was held. The winners were Erich Eliskases, Eduard Glass.

[edit] Demography

A majority of Innsbruck's people are of Tyrolean ancestry.

However, as with many European cities, there are small yet thriving minorities that co-exist with the European majority. These include Turkish, North Africans, Indians, Roma, and even Chinese and Nepali. Many of aspects of their culture can be found throughout the city, such as markets, restaurants, and shops; some even still speak their traditional language in everyday life. They, too, have had a lasting effect on the city of Innsbruck.[citation needed]

Year 1900 1951 1961 1971 1981 1991 2001 2007
Population[2] 49,727 95,055 100,959 116,104 117,287 118,112 113,392 117,916

[edit] Climate

Due to its altitude and position in Central Europe, far from the coast, Innsbruck has an hemiboreal climate (Köppen classification : Dfb) which places the city in the same climate zone as Moscow, Stockholm or Montreal. Winters are colder than those of most major european cities, with a January average low of -7°C, and usually bring a lot of snow. Summer days are unpredictable : one day can be cool and rainy, with temperatures hovering around 15-16°C, while the next day can be hot and sunny with temperatures over 30°C. However, at any time during the summer nights remain quite cool and temperature occasionally drops below 10°C.

The average annual temperature is 9°C.

Climate Table
  Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Mean daily maximum temperature (°C) 1 4 11 16 21 24 26 24 21 14 8 2 14.3
Mean daily minimum temperature (°C) -7 -4 -1 4 8 11 13 12 9 4 0 -4 3.8
Mean monthly rainfall (mm) 53 40 42 57 75 104 121 116 77 61 57 53
Source: The Weather Channel

[edit] Main sights

Image:2682 - Innsbruck - Herzog-Friedrich-Strasse.JPG
The older pedestrian district of Innsbruck with the famous Goldenes Dachl (Golden Roof) and the Alps in the background.
Image:Bergisel-N.jpg
Ski jump stadium on the Bergisel.
Image:Hofburg Innsbruck Austria.jpg
Kaiserliche Hofburg with view of the Nordkette.

[edit] Buildings

[edit] Museums

  • Riesenrundgemälde
  • Schloss Ambras (A Castle)
  • Tiroler Landesmuseum
  • Tiroler Volkskunstmuseum
  • Zeughaus
  • Tiroler Museumsbahnen
  • Kaiserjägermuseum

[edit] Churches

  • Ursulinenkirche
  • Dom zu St. Jakob (St. Jacob's Cathedral)
  • Hofkirche
  • Stift Wilten
  • Wiltener basilika
  • Spitalskirche
  • Liebfrauenkirche

[edit] Parks

  • Alpenzoo (Alpine Zoo)
  • Rapoldipark
  • Hofgarten
  • Schlosspark Ambras

[edit] Cultural events

As a very popular tourist destination, Innsbruck organises the following events every year:

  • Vierschanzentournee (Four Hills Tournament)
  • Innsbrucker tanzsommer
  • Bergsilvester (New Years Eve)
  • Festwochen der Alten Musik (Weeks of Classic Music)
  • Christkindlmarkt (Christmas fair)

[edit] Sports

Due to its location between high mountains, Innsbruck serves as an ideal place for skiing in winter, and mountaineering in summer. There are several ski resorts around Innsbruck with the Nordkette served by a cable car and additional chair lifts further up. Other ski resorts nearby include Axamer Lizum, Igls, Seefeld, Tulfes and Stubai Valley. The glaciated terrain in the latter makes skiing possible even in summer months.

The Olympic Winter Games were held in Innsbruck twice, first in 1964, then again in 1976, when the Denver, Colorado voters rejected a bond referendum to finance the games. Along with St. Moritz, Switzerland and Lake Placid, New York in the United States, it is one of three places which have twice hosted the Winter Games. It also hosted the 1984 and 1988 Winter Paralympics.

Other notable events held in Innsbruck include the Air & Style Snowboard Contest from 1994 to 1999 and the Ice Hockey World Championship in 2005. Together with the city of Seefeld, Innsbruck organized the Winter Universiade in 2005. Innsbruck is also one of the host cities for Euro 2008 which is to be held in Switzerland and Austria.

[edit] Economy and education

Image:Innsbruck tram system.jpg
The city has a highly developed tram system.

Innsbruck is the cultural and economic center of western Austria and is one of the most famous and substantial tourist centres, with more than a million overnight stays. It is also a university city.

In Innsbruck there are some 78,000 employees and about 8,000 places of work. 35,000 people shuttle every day into Innsbruck.

[edit] Tourism

Tourism is the most important source of income for the city authority, largely because of Innsbruck's beautiful town centre with its historic buildings, the friendly ambience and the extensive sport facilities both in winter and in summer.

[edit] Transport

Innsbruck is located along the A12/A13 corridor, providing freeway access to Verona, Italy and Munich, Germany. The A12 and A13 converge near Innsbruck, at which point the A13 terminates.

Innsbruck's main station is one of the most frequented railway stations in Austria. The Austrian east-west railway crosses the south-west route through the Brenner pass, connecting northern Italy and southern Germany.

Innsbruck Airport provides services including Frankfurt, London, and Vienna.

The town's tram-network consists of two city-lines and two lines serving the surrounding area — the Innsbrucker Mittelgebirgsbahn to Igls and the Stubaitalbahn into the Stubaital. The network will be enlarged during the coming years to reach Hall in Tirol in the east and Völs in the west. The trolleybus service will be abandoned as the tram network is enlarged. Numerous bus lines serve the inner city and transport to surrounding areas.

[edit] Education

Innsbruck is home to the oldest grammar school (Gymnasium) in western Austria, the "Akademisches Gymnasium Innsbruck". The school was founded in 1562 by the Jesuit order and was the precursor of the university, founded in 1669.

Innsbruck hosts several universities. The most well-known are the University of Innsbruck (Leopold-Franzens-Universität), the Innsbruck Medical University, and the Management Center Innsbruck (MCI).

[edit] Politics

The results of the 2006 local elections were:

  • Für Innsbruck 26% (conservative)
  • SPÖ 19% (left)
  • Austrian Green Party 18,5% (left)
  • ÖVP 15,5% (conservative)
  • Freie Liste Rudi Federspiel 9% (right)
  • FPÖ 5% (right)

[edit] Miscellaneous

  • The international headquarters of SOS Children's Villages, one of the world's largest charities, is located in Innsbruck.
  • Innsbruck has two universities, the Leopold-Franzens-Universität Innsbruck and the Innsbruck Medical University. The Innsbruck Medical University has one of Europe's premier ski injury clinics.
  • Douglas Adams claimed that he got his idea for the novel The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy during a visit to Innsbruck in 1971, lying drunk in a field looking up at the stars.
  • Künstlerhaus Büchsenhausen, an international fellowship programme for visual and new media arts, is located in Innsbruck.
  • The international headquarters of MED-EL, one of the largest producers of cochlear implants, is located in Innsbruck.
  • Innsbruck boasts two large lakes, Baggersee and Lansersee. These lakes are popular hangouts for locals during the spring and summer.
  • In the TV series Friends, (Season 1, "The One With the Stoned Guy") Chandler claims that he had waited tables during the Olympic Games in Innsbruck 1976. (Although he would have been about 8 years old at the time.)[4]

Image:Panorama insbruck1.jpg
Panoramic view to west.

[edit] Twin cities

Innsbruck is twinned with:

[edit] References

  1. ^ Christine O'Keefe. Concentration Camps. [1]
  2. ^ Statistik Austria [2], City of Innsbruck Website [3]

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

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Innsbruck


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