Gainfarn is a village on the western edge of

Bad Vöslau Bad Vöslau (; Central Bavarian: ''Bod Vöslau'') is a spa town and Municipality (Austria), municipality in the state of Lower Austria. It is also known as the cradle of the Austrian red wine cultivation. The population, as of 2022, is 12,424. G ...

, in

Lower Austria Lower Austria ( , , abbreviated LA or NÖ) is one of the nine states of Austria, located in the northeastern corner of the country. Major cities are Amstetten, Lower Austria, Amstetten, Krems an der Donau, Wiener Neustadt and Sankt Pölten, which ...

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

. It is an urban quarter and a

cadastral community A cadastral community (or cadastre community, cadastral r cadastremunicipality, cadastral r cadastrecommune,Problémy s překladem termínu „katastrální území“ do angličtiny. in: Geodetický a kartografický Obzor. Český úřad zeměm� ...

within Bad Vöslau city.

Geography

Gainfarn borders to the southwestern part of Bad Vöslau town. Bad Vöslauer Straße (B 212) is running through it. In addition to Gainfarn village, the cadastral community consists of the hamlet of Haidlhof and a few individual sites, including Merkenstein Castle.

Statistics

* Area of cadastral community: 23.39 km² (9.03 sq mi) * Population (1 January 2022) ** Total: 3819 ** Density: 163/km² (423/sq mi)

History

Gainfarn probably originated in the 11th century; at the beginning of the 12th century a vineyard in the village is mentioned and around 1136 it is documented that some Reginbert bequeathed a farm in ''Goinurin'' to the

Klosterneuburg Monastery Klosterneuburg Abbey () is a twelfth-century Augustinian monastery of the Catholic Church located in the town of Klosterneuburg in Lower Austria. Overlooking the Danube, just north of the present Vienna city limits at the Leopoldsberg, the monas ...

. From 1206 to about 1430 a family named after the place ''(... von Gainfarn)'' is documented. The Gainfarn church existed before the 14th century, but was only mentioned in a document in 1312, when the previous filial church was detached from Traiskirchen parish and became a parish of its own. In 1448 the estate and village were merged with the Merkenstein dominion and were owned by the

Hohenberg family The House of Hohenberg is an Austrian nobility, Austrian and Czech nobility, Czech noble family that descends from Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg, Countess Sophie Chotek (1868–1914), who in 1900 married Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, A ...

. After Gainfarn had been devastated by Hungarian troops of

Matthias Corvinus Matthias Corvinus (; ; ; ; ; ) was King of Hungary and King of Croatia, Croatia from 1458 to 1490, as Matthias I. He is often given the epithet "the Just". After conducting several military campaigns, he was elected King of Bohemia in 1469 and ...

, Johann von Hohenberg sold the dominion to Emperor Frederick III in 1484. He had them managed by '' pfleger'' – the Lords of Haid; from 1542 to 1585 Franz von Ficin, a

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

, was in charge. In 1529 and again in 1683, Gainfarn was destroyed in the course of the Ottoman wars, as was Merkenstein Castle. The administration of Merkenstein domion, which was owned by Gundakar von

Dietrichstein The House of Dietrichstein was one of the oldest and most prominent Austrian nobility, Austrian noble families originating in the Duchy of Carinthia. The family belonged to the Uradel, high nobility (German: ''Hochadel''). The Mikulov Castle, Niko ...

since 1675, was moved to Gainfarn. In 1713/14 the plague claimed 63 victims. In the Franciscan cadastre of 1819, the triangular street village is already listed with numerous smaller and larger farmsteads. After the abolition of the

feudal system Feudalism, also known as the feudal system, was a combination of legal, economic, military, cultural, and political customs that flourished in medieval Europe from the 9th to 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of structuring socie ...

as a result of the revolution of 1848/1849, Gainfarn became an independent municipality in 1849. In 1864 a cold water medical institution was built at a previously discovered spring; in 1879 it was expanded and a sanatorium was added. In 1932 it had to be closed due to economic difficulties; the building was redesigned in 1953/54 as a company housing complex for employees of the ''Vöslauer Kammgarnfabrik'' (Vöslau Worsted Factory). According to ''Adressbuch von Österreich für Industrie, Handel, Gewerbe und Landwirtschaft'' (Directory of Austria for Industry, Trade, Business, and Agriculture) in 1938, numerous tradespeople and businesses were resident in the municipality of Gainfarn. On January 1, 1972, the municipality of Gainfarn was merged with the municipality of Bad Vöslau, as it had been before part of Bad Vöslau during the Nazi era.

Public facilities

In Gainfarn there are two kindergartens, an elementary school, and ''Realgymnasium'' ''Bad Vöslau – Gainfarn''. Gainfarn has a fire station of the local volunteer fire brigade.

Culture and sights

* Gainfarn Palace, now housing Bad Vöslau Music School * Catholic Parish Church John the Baptist

External links

Gainfarn Website
(in German)

References

Populated places in Lower Austria {{LowerAustria-geo-stub