Mödling () is the capital of the

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

district A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municipa ...

of the same name located approximately 14 km south of

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

. Mödling lies in

Lower Austria Lower Austria (german: Niederösterreich; Austro-Bavarian: ''Niedaöstareich'', ''Niedaestareich'') is one of the nine states of Austria, located in the northeastern corner of the country. Since 1986, the capital of Lower Austria has been Sankt P ...

's industrial zone (

Industrieviertel (; en, Industrial Quarter), or , is the southeastern quarter of the four quarters of Lower Austria (the northeast state of the 9 states in Austria). It is bordered on the north by Vienna and the , to the west by the , and to the south and east ...

). The Mödlingbach, a brook which rises in the

Vienna Woods The Vienna Woods (german: Wienerwald) are forested highlands that form the northeastern foothills of the Northern Limestone Alps in the states of Lower Austria and Vienna. The and range of hills is heavily wooded and a popular recreation area ...

, flows through the town. Near

Achau Achau is a town in the district of Mödling in the Austrian state of Lower Austria. History After the Anschluss in 1938, Achau became a part of Greater Vienna, but returned to Lower Austria after the war. Population Sport The Achau golf cours ...

it joins with the Schwechat. Woodland occupies a large part of the municipality, part of the Föhrenberge ('Pine Mountains'). Located immediately south of Vienna, and within the boundaries of the district of Mödling, is one of the largest shopping centres in Europe:

Shopping City Süd The Shopping City Süd (SCS) is a shopping centre located in Vösendorf and Wiener Neudorf, south of Vienna, Austria. With a leasable area of , it is the biggest shopping mall in Austria. It contains over 330 shops and has around 5,000 employ ...

(SCS).

Geography

Grapes are grown on the slopes of the Wienerwald; the area is called ''Thermenregion'', where one can find much ''Heurigen'' (the most recent year's wine). Wiener Neudorf to the east, and Maria Enzersdorf to the north, merge directly into Mödling. South of Mödling is Gumpoldskirchen, separated by the Eichkogel with its very special flora. In the west a narrow street runs through Vorderbrühl, formally a village in its own rights, and leads to Hinterbrühl. This narrow valley is called Klausen, above it the remains of the Mödling castle, once belonging to the Babenberger, the then ruling family. On the other side of the Klausen is the Kalenderberg, with the castle of Liechtenstein on its far side. The beginning of the Klausen is marked by the large red-brick aqueduct of the ''Erste Wiener Hochquellenwasserleitung''. The steep, rocky valley sides of the '' Naturpark Föhrenberge'' grow the typical ''Wienerwald-Schwarzföhren'' (the ''austriaca'' form of the

European Black Pine ''Pinus nigra'', the Austrian pine or black pine, is a moderately variable species of pine, occurring across Southern Europe from the Iberian Peninsula to the eastern Mediterranean, on the Anatolian peninsula of Turkey, Corsica and Cyprus, as wel ...

, ''Pinus nigra'').

History

The settlement dates back to the

Neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several p ...

era. Through the centuries, the name of the town evolved from Medilihha to Medelikch, Medling and, finally, Mödling. These names traces back to old Slavic meaning 'slowly running water'. Today there is a quaint old town with a pedestrian area. The town was the residence of a branch of the Babenberg family, as a result of which it received the nickname ''Babenbergerstadt'' ('Town of the Babenbergs'). Traces of the first settlements of the Hallstatt culture from the Neolithic era were found on the Kalenderberg. Roman coins and a Roman burial site have been found near today's railway station. After

Charlemagne Charlemagne ( , ) or Charles the Great ( la, Carolus Magnus; german: Karl der Große; 2 April 747 – 28 January 814), a member of the Carolingian dynasty, was King of the Franks from 768, King of the Lombards from 774, and the first ...

's victory in 803 AD against the Avars, the area around Mödling was settled by settlers from Bavaria. About 500 Avar graves were found in the area of the "Goldene Stiege" (very close to today's old city). The first ancient document mentioning "MEDILIHHA ULTRA MONTEM COMMIGENIUM" is dated 8 September 903, when two bishops (of the then Roman Catholic church) exchanged lands. However, in 907 the settlement seems to have been destroyed again. After the

Battle of Lechfeld The Battle of Lechfeld was a series of military engagements over the course of three days from 10–12 August 955 in which the Kingdom of Germany, led by King Otto I the Great, annihilated the Hungarian army led by ''Harka ''Bulcsú and the chi ...

settlement in the area of today's Mödling started again. After this, for some time Mödling housed a relative of the then ruling

House of Babenberg The House of Babenberg was a noble dynasty of Austrian Dukes and Margraves. Originally from Bamberg in the Duchy of Franconia (present-day Bavaria), the Babenbergs ruled the imperial Margraviate of Austria from its creation in 976 AD until its ...

. In 1177, Henry the Elder, son of Henry II Jasomirgott, became landlord in an area reaching from

Liesing Liesing () is the 23rd district of Vienna. It is on the southwest edge of Vienna, Austria. It was formed after Austria's ''Anschluss'' with Germany, when Vienna expanded from 21 districts to 26. Fifteen Lower Austrian districts, especially the ...

Piesting The Piesting is a river in southern Lower Austria. A left tributary of the Fischa, its drainage basin is . The sources of the Piesting are the Kalte Gang, the , and the Längapiesting, which begin south of the Schneeberg. These rivers meet in G ...

and

Bruck an der Leitha Bruck an der Leitha ( bar, label=Central Bavarian, Bruck aun da Leitha; "Bridge on the Leitha") is a town in the state of Lower Austria of Austria on the border of Burgenland, marked by the Leitha river. In 2018 it had a population of around 8,00 ...

. You can read this in old documents kept in the nearby monastery of Heiligenkreuz. In Henry's days arts and culture dominated in the castle of Mödling; the famous minnesinger

Walther von der Vogelweide Walther von der Vogelweide (c. 1170c. 1230) was a Minnesänger who composed and performed love-songs and political songs (" Sprüche") in Middle High German. Walther has been described as the greatest German lyrical poet before Goethe; his hundr ...

stayed there more than once. The Spitalkirche and today's St. Othmar were built in the 15th century, the Karner (charnel house) in the 12th. Even in these times, Mödling grew grapes; after Langenlois, it was the largest grape-growing community in Lower Austria. In 1343, Duke Albrecht II granted the rights of a

market town A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village or city. In Britain, small rural ...

to Mödling. In 1529, the Ottomans devastated Mödling for the first time during their first siege of Vienna. In 1679, many citizens died of the Black Death. When the Ottomans came again in 1683, almost all the citizens of Mödling were killed. The second epidemic of the Black Death only brought death to 22 inhabitants, hence the survivors built the monument of the Holy Trinity (Dreifaltigkeits- or Pestsäule) at the Freiheitsplatz. In the early 19th century,

Ludwig van Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classic ...

often visited his favorite pub, the Three Ravens, in Mödling.

Arnold Schönberg Arnold Schoenberg or Schönberg (, ; ; 13 September 187413 July 1951) was an Austrian-American composer, music theorist, teacher, writer, and painter. He is widely considered one of the most influential composers of the 20th century. He was as ...

lived in Mödling between 1918 and 1925, and invented his

twelve-tone technique The twelve-tone technique—also known as dodecaphony, twelve-tone serialism, and (in British usage) twelve-note composition—is a method of musical composition first devised by Austrian composer Josef Matthias Hauer, who published his "law o ...

of composition there. On 18 November 1875, Mödling was designated a city. From 1883 to 1932, Mödling was the starting point of the Mödling and Hinterbrühl Tram, Austria's first electric railway and world's first long-lasting tram with overhead lines. In 1938, after the ''

Anschluss The (, or , ), also known as the (, en, Annexation of Austria), was the annexation of the Federal State of Austria into the German Reich on 13 March 1938. The idea of an (a united Austria and Germany that would form a " Greater Germany ...

'' with

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

, Mödling was incorporated into the newly formed 24th District of Vienna. In 1954, it became once again a part of

Population

Politics

:¹ 2020 as NEOS, formerly LIF :² Wir für Mödling – Eva Maier :³ Bürgerliste Michael Kanyka :⁴ Wir für Mödling, formerly Liste Pepi Wagner :⁵ Mödling 2000 :⁶ The size of regional council is 41. :⁷ The size of city government could vary between 9 and 14.

Traffic

Mödling functions as a traffic hub for its direct vicinity. Bus lines connect the town and Südbahn with the surrounding areas. The Südbahn connects Mödling to Vienna, but also to other local centers like

Wiener Neustadt Wiener Neustadt (; ; Central Bavarian: ''Weana Neistod'') is a city located south of Vienna, in the state of Lower Austria, in northeast Austria. It is a self-governed city and the seat of the district administration of Wiener Neustadt-Land Distr ...

by commuter trains. Many bus lines end/start at Mödling's railway station: Most of them lead to Vienna (with different ways) (207, 259, 260, 265, 266, 269, 270...) but also other villages in the district are destinations: Gießhübel (262), Hinterbrühl, Gaaden... (364, 365), Guntramsdorf (363) and many more. The closest airport is

Vienna International Airport Vienna International Airport (german: Flughafen Wien-Schwechat; ) is the international airport of Vienna, the capital of Austria, located in Schwechat, southeast of central Vienna and west of Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia. It is the ...

. The town lies close to several major motorways (A2, A23, S1). Until the 1960s, the town was connected to the tram system of Vienna though the line 360 was discontinued after the commuter train system was introduced on the Südbahn. Historically Mödling was the site of the first electrified tram line, which had mainly touristic use.

Economy

In the old days, because of the rail-connection to the north/Vienna and to the south, several large industries had their plants here. Today most of the firms are SMEs. The larger ones have moved to Wiener Neudorf into the 'Industriezentrum Niederösterreich Süd'.

Castles

The Mödling area in the Vienna Forest contains many old castles (german: Burgen) and ruins. Castle Liechtenstein is the most famous and biggest castle. It was owned by the wealthy family who later founded the country of the same name. Burgruine Mödling also stands nearby and is one of the oldest ruins in the area. It dates back to the 11th century. In addition, Black Tower (Schwarzer Turm) looks out over downtown Mödling from the Calendar mountains. It was built over 200 years ago, but is still privately occupied to this day. Lastly, on the walk between Black Tower and Castle Liechtenstein, one will come across a 200-year-old amphitheatre nearly buried in the woods. It was built in the same time frame as the Black Tower and served as an important cultural centre for the local Mödling population.

Culture and sights

The well-preserved and revitalized Old City is protected by the Hague Convention. The town hall holds the registry office. Because of its lovely environment many couples choose to marry here. Schrannenplatz and Kaiserin-Elisabeth-Strasse were pedestrianised at the very early date of 1976, the first time a 'Bundesstraße' had been declared a pedestrian area. Nearby is the Eichkogel Nature Reserve, with rare flora, like 'Knollen-Brandkraut' ('' Phlomoides tuberosa'') and others, on 'Halbtrockenrasen'. Among the rocks in the Klausen rare plants grow, like the 'Mödlinger Federnelke' (''Dianthus plumarius'' subsp. ''neilreichii''), which was discovered as late as the middle of the 19th century by the botanist August Neilreich, or the 'Deutsche Alant' (Inula germanica).

Buildings

* St. Othmar church and charnel * Spitalkirche * Ruins of the Mödling castle * Husarentempel on the top of the 'Kleine Anninger' * Schwarzer Turm * Amphitheater

Museums

* Museum Mödling * Volkskundemuseum * Stadtverkehrsmuseum * Essinger-Haus (where a famous painter used to live) * Beethoven-Gedenkstätte * Schönberg-Haus

Theatres

* Stadttheater * Bühne Mayer * Mödlinger Puppenkiste (MÖP) * Theater im Bunker (in a former air-raid shelter in Vorderbrühl) * Komödienspiele (summer plays in the Stadttheater)

Schools

* Elementary and secondary schools * Bundesgymnasium und Bundesrealgymnasium Franz-Keim-Gasse * Bundesgymnasium und wirtschaftskundliches Bundesrealgymnasium Untere Bachgasse * Höhere Technische Bundeslehr- und Versuchsanstalt * Vienna Business School Mödling, Handelsakademie der Wiener Kaufmannschaft * Höhere Lehranstalt für Mode & Bekleidungstechnik oder Produktmanagement & Präsentation * Beethoven Musikschule * Chorschule der Sängerknaben vom Wienerwald * Volkshochschule * Polytechnische Schule

Institutions

* Bezirkshauptmannschaft * Finanzamt * Bezirksgericht * Veteranärmedizinisches Institut, which has importance beyond the area of Mödling

Notable citizens

, (1770-1827), composer, lived here in his later years *

Albert Drach Albert Drach (17 December 1902 – 27 March 1995) was an Austrian-Jewish writer and lawyer. He was born in Vienna and died in Mödling. In 1988 he was awarded the Georg Büchner Prize by the Deutsche Akademie für Sprache und Dichtung for being a ...

, (1902-1995), writer and lawyer *

Martin Gusinde Martín Gusinde (29 October 1886, in Breslau – 10 October 1969, in Mödling, Austria) was an Austrian priest and ethnologist famous for his work in anthropology, particularly on the native groups of Tierra del Fuego. He was one of the most nota ...

, (1886-1969), priest and ethnologist * Paul Harather, (born 1965), director, producer, author * Manfred Hemm, (born 1961), opera singer * Alfred Maleta, politician, president of the Austrian Parliament ('House of Commons') * (Blessed) Maria Restituta, (1894-1943), nun and nurse * Jan Romer, (1869-1934), Polish general, studied here * Robert Lamezan de Salins (1869-1930), Polish military officer and diplomat *

Josef Schöffel Josef may refer to *Josef (given name) *Josef (surname) Josef is the surname of the following people: * Jens Josef (born 1967), German composer of classical music, a flutist and academic teacher * Michelle Josef (born 1954), Canadian musician and tr ...

, mayor, 'Retter des Wienerwaldes' *

, (1874-1951), painter and composer, lived here * Anton Wildgans, poet *

Anton Webern Anton Friedrich Wilhelm von Webern (3 December 188315 September 1945), better known as Anton Webern (), was an Austrian composer and conductor whose music was among the most radical of its milieu in its sheer concision, even aphorism, and stead ...

, (1883-1945), composer and conductor, had a studio in Mödling *

Martin Bauer Martin W. Bauer is a Professor of social psychology. He directs the MSc in Social and Public Communication at the Department of Psychological and Behavioural Science at LSE. Martin Bauer was a Research Fellow in 'Public Understanding of Science' ...

, Austrian motorcycle racer, 3-Time IDM Superbike Champion, also he raced in MotoGP and the Superbike World Championship. * Maria Janitschek (1859-1927), writer * Robert Müller (1877-1942), film manager, distributor of films and producer * Egon Neumann (1894–1948), composer * Otto Brunner (1898-1982), historian * Peter Weiser (1926-2012), journalist and secretary general of the Vienna Konzerthaus *

Franz Koglmann Franz Koglmann (born 22 May 1947) is an Austrian jazz composer. He performs on both the trumpet and flugelhorn in a variety of contexts, most often within avant-garde jazz and third stream contexts. An award-winning composer, Koglmann has perfor ...

(born 1947), jazz musician * Herbert Kaufmann (born 1949), politician (SPÖ) and member of the Management Board of Flughafen Wien AG * Bruno Liberda (born 1953), composer * Dieter Chmelar (born 1957), journalist, presenter and comedian *

Michael Spindelegger Michael Spindelegger (born 21 December 1959) is an Austrian politician. He served in the cabinet of Chancellor Werner Faymann as foreign minister of Austria from 2008 to 2013 and as finance minister from 2013 to 2014; additionally, he held the o ...

(born 1959), politician (ÖVP) * Gery Keszler (born 1963), founder and organizer of the Life Ball s * Manfred Zsak (born 1964), football legend * Ernst Aigner (born 1966), football player * Rupert Huber (born 1967), composer and pianist * Michael Buchleitner (born 1969), obstacles and long distance runner *

Karin Gayer Karin Gayer (born 1969 in Mödling near Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET ...

(born 1969), writer * Stephan Marasek (born 1970), football legend * Marion Maruska (born 1972), tennis player * Thomas Aigner (born 1973), historian * Markus Scharrer (born 1974), football player *

Christine Reiler Christine may refer to: People * Christine (name), a female given name Film * Christine (1958 film), ''Christine'' (1958 film), based on Schnitzler's play ''Liebelei'' * Christine (1983 film), ''Christine'' (1983 film), based on King's novel ...

(born 1982), Miss Austria 2007 * Lisa Makas (born 1992), football player

International relations

Twin towns — Sister cities

Mödling is twinned with Große Linksammlung und Download hilfreicher Programme
/ref> *

Esch-sur-Alzette Esch-sur-Alzette (; lb, Esch-Uelzecht ; german: Esch an der Alzette or ''Esch an der Alzig'') is the second city of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and the country's second-most populous commune, with a population of 35,040 inhabitants, . It lies ...

, Luxembourg *

Velletri Velletri (; la, Velitrae; xvo, Velester) is an Italian ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Rome, approximately 40 km to the southeast of the city centre, located in the Alban Hills, in the region of Lazio, central Italy. Neighbouring comm ...

, Italy *

Zemun Zemun ( sr-cyrl, Земун, ; hu, Zimony) is a municipality in the city of Belgrade. Zemun was a separate town that was absorbed into Belgrade in 1934. It lies on the right bank of the Danube river, upstream from downtown Belgrade. The developme ...

, Serbia * Offenbach am Main, Germany * Puteaux, France * Köszeg, Hungary *

Vsetín Vsetín () is a town in the Zlín Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 25,000 inhabitants. Originally a small town, Vsetín has become an important centre of industrial, economic, cultural and sports life during the 20th century. Administ ...

, Czech Republic * Saint-Gilles, Belgium *

Zottegem Zottegem (, Sotteghem and Sottegem in older English and French language sources) is a municipality located in Belgium and more particularly in Flanders, in the province of East Flanders. The municipality comprises the town of Zottegem proper and ...

, Belgium * Dabas, Hungary Planned partner city relations: * Gyál, Hungary

References

External links

Official site of Mödling

Online Scouts of Mödling

Mödling attractions

Statistics

Museum Mödling

Mödling and surrounding in old picture postcards

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Moedling Cities and towns in Mödling District