Feldkirchen in Kärnten

Feldkirchen in Kärnten ( sl, Trg) is a town in the Austrian state of Carinthia and the capital of the district of the same name. It consists of the Katastralgemeinden ''Fasching'', ''Feldkirchen'', ''Glanhofen'', ''Gradisch'', ''Hoefling'', ''Klein Sankt Veit'', ''Pernegg'', ''Rabensdorf'', ''Sankt Ulrich'', ''Sittich'', ''Tschwarzen'' and ''Waiern''. The name ''Feldkirchen'' means the church in the fields.

Geography

Location

Feldkirchen is located on the northern edge of the Klagenfurt Basin at the junction of the federal highways (''Bundesstraßen'') ''B 93 Gurktal Straße'' toward Friesach, ''B 94 Ossiacher Straße'' to Villach and ''B 95 Turracher Straße'' to Klagenfurt.

Waters

Both the Glan river and the small ''Tiebel'', main inflow of Lake Ossiach, run through the town.

There are three lakes in the vicinity to Feldkirchen
* The Lake of Flatschach (''Flatschacher See'')
* The Lake of Dietrichstein (''Dietrichsteiner See'')
* The Lake of Maltschach (''Maltschacher See'')

Flatschacher See Feldkirchen (Kärnten).jpg, Lake of Flatschach
Feldkirchen Dietrichsteiner See.jpg, Lake of Dietrichstein
Feldkirchen Maltschacher See.jpg, Lake of Maltschach

Neighbouring municipalities

History

The settlement may have developed at the site of the former ''Beliandrum'' mansio along the Roman road from ''Teurnia'' near Spittal an der Drau to ''Virunum'', capital of the Noricum province. A Roman tombstone of the 2nd century is included into the walls of the Saint Michael filial church. The earliest mention of Feldkirchen is as ''Ueldchiricha'' ("Church in the Fields") in an 888 document by Arnulf of Carinthia. The parish church ''Maria im Dorn'', a Romanesque basilica with a Carolingian choir, is one of the oldest sacred buildings in Carinthia.

Feldkirchen, once an estate of the Eppenstein noble family, was bequeathed to the Diocese of Bamberg in 1166. The bishops had the ''Amthof'' erected, the former seat of the local administration, today a place for cultural events and a small museum. Finally Maria Theresa of Austria acquired Feldkirchen in 1759. The village of ''Markstein'' south of the town centre is a former checkpoint at the border between the Austrian Empire and the Upper Carinthian part of the short-lived Napoleonic Illyrian Provinces. The building of a customs station and a border stone remained. Feldkirchen received town privileges in 1930.

Demographics

According to the 2001 census, Feldkirchen has 14,030 inhabitants. Of that, 77.1% admit themselves to the Roman Catholic Church, 12.0% are Evangelist, 0.8% belong to the Orthodox Church, and 5.1% are Muslims. 2.0% are non-religious.

Sights

* Catholic parish church ''Maria im Dorn''
* Catholic church ''St. Michael''
* Catholic church ''St. Martin''
* Catholic church ''St. Ulrich''
* ''Amthof''
* ''Antoniusheim''

Gallery

Image:Feldkirchen Stadtpfarrkirche Mariae Himmelfahrt 14122007 33.jpg, Parish church ''Maria im Dorn''
Image:Amthof feldkirchen.jpg, ''Amthof''
Feldkirchen Luager-Kreuz.jpg, Luager Cross

Politics

Seats in the municipal assembly (''Gemeinderat'') as of 2015 elections:
*Social Democratic Party of Austria (SPÖ): 14
*Austrian People's Party (ÖVP): 10
*Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ): 3
* Greens: 2
FePlus
2

International relations

Twin towns — sister cities

Feldkirchen in Kärnten is twinned with:
* Bamberg, Germany, since 1993
* Ahrensburg, Germany, since 1998

Notable residents

* Otto Maria Polley (1910–1984), writer
* Sven Klimbacher, ice hockey player
* Siegfried Grabner, snowboarder
* Herbert Gantschacher, director, producer, writer

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Feldkirchen In Karnten
Cities and towns in Feldkirchen District