Ossiach ( sl, Osoje) is a municipality in the Feldkirchen District in 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 ...

n state of

Carinthia Carinthia (german: Kärnten ; sl, Koroška ) is the southernmost Austrian state, in the Eastern Alps, and is noted for its mountains and lakes. The main language is German. Its regional dialects belong to the Southern Bavarian group. Carin ...

. The small settlement is mainly known for Ossiach Abbey.

Geography

It is located at the southern shore of Lake Ossiach, on the slope of the small ''Ossiacher Tauern'' range within the Nock Mountains, a range of the Gurktal Alps, at the road between Villach and Feldkirchen. The commune consists of the Katastralgemeinden ''Alt-Ossiach'', ''Ossiach'', ''Ostriach'', ''Rappitsch'', ''Tauern'' and ''Untertauern''.

History

Ossiach Abbey was founded about 1000. The monastery church was mentioned in a 1028 deed, hence the first of the

Benedictine Order , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...

in the

Duchy of Carinthia The Duchy of Carinthia (german: Herzogtum Kärnten; sl, Vojvodina Koroška) was a duchy located in southern Austria and parts of northern Slovenia. It was separated from the Duchy of Bavaria in 976, and was the first newly created Imperial Sta ...

. The abbey developed to an ecclesiastical and cultural centre of the region, though no larger homestead arose outside its walls. After the dissolution of the monastery by the order of Emperor Joseph II in 1783, the rural area from 1850 was part of neighbouring Steindorf. The Ossiach municipality was not established until 1904. Today the church is also renowned for the Carinthischer Sommer classical music festival, held around July and August each year. The pianist

Wilhelm Backhaus Wilhelm Backhaus ('Bachaus' on some record labels) (26 March 1884 – 5 July 1969) was a German pianist and pedagogue. He was particularly well known for his interpretations of Mozart, Beethoven, Schumann, Chopin and Brahms. He was also much ...

held his last concert here on June 29, 1969. Since 1974, the abbey has held church opera productions, particularly the parables of

Benjamin Britten Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten (22 November 1913 – 4 December 1976, aged 63) was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British music, with a range of works including opera, other ...

, as well as other theatrical productions. Some Austrians have written works specifically for the festival, including Cesar Bresgen (''Das Spiel vom Menschen'', 1982) and Dieter Kaufmann (''Bruder Boleslaw'', 1989). A

chapel of ease A chapel of ease (or chapel-of-ease) is a church building other than the parish church, built within the bounds of a parish for the attendance of those who cannot reach the parish church conveniently. Often a chapel of ease is deliberately bu ...

stands in the village of ''Tauern''. First mentioned in 1290, the ''Tauernkirche'' was rebuilt in 1519 in a Late Gothic style and received a Baroque equipment including a

high altar An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, churches, and other places of worship. They are used particularly in pagan ...

in the 17th century.

Neighboring municipalities

Politics

Seats in the municipal assembly (''Gemeinderat'') as of 2003 elections: * Austrian People's Party (ÖVP): 4 * Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ): 4 * Social Democratic Party of Austria (SPÖ): 3

References

{{Authority control Cities and towns in Feldkirchen District