Mellau is a town in the

Bregenz Forest The Bregenzerwald (, ) is one of the main regions in the States of Austria, state of Vorarlberg (Austria). It overlaps, but is not coterminous with, the Bregenz Forest Mountains, which belong to a mountain range, range of the Northern Limestone A ...

in the westernmost

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 ...

n state of

Vorarlberg Vorarlberg ( ; ; , , or ) is the westernmost States of Austria, state () of Austria. It has the second-smallest geographical area after Vienna and, although it also has the second-smallest population, it is the state with the second-highest popu ...

, part of the district of

Bregenz Bregenz (; ) is the capital of Vorarlberg, the westernmost states of Austria, state of Austria. The city lies on the east and southeast shores of Lake Constance, the third-largest freshwater lake in Central Europe, between Switzerland in the wes ...

Geography

Mellau covers an area of 40.55 km². Mellau lies at the foot of the

Kanisfluh The Kanisfluh is a mostly isolated massif in the central Bregenz Forest Mountains between the municipalities Mellau and Au, Vorarlberg, Au.The Kanisfluh is considered the most famous mountain and landmark of the Bregenz Forest, Vorarlberg, Austri ...

mountain which is considered to be the Bregenz Forest's landmark.

History

From 1805 to 1814 Mellau belonged to

Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...

but then reverted to Austria. In 1870 there was a great fire in Mellau: The church, the school, the rectory and 18 other houses were razed. After the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, from 1945 to 1955 the town was in the French zone of occupation.

Population

The municipality has about 1300 inhabitants.

Coat of arms

The coat of arms was designed by the artist Hubert Dietrich in 1962. It shows an uprooted

fir Firs are evergreen coniferous trees belonging to the genus ''Abies'' () in the family Pinaceae. There are approximately 48–65 extant species, found on mountains throughout much of North and Central America, Eurasia, and North Africa. The genu ...

tree, which symbolises the affiliation to the Bregenz Forest, and three crosses, which are a remembrance of the plague.

Tourism

Thanks to the merging of the two ski areas Damüls and Mellau in 2010, the largest ski area in the Bregenz Forest and one of the largest ski regions in the state of Vorarlberg was created: The ski resort area Damüls-Mellau. In the summer and autumn of 2015, the Mellau cable car was rebuilt in the form of a monocable. Bregenzerwald Umgang This "Bregenz Forest Walking Tour" offers insights into the architecture and community planning of 12 traditional villages in the Bregenzerwald. While walking over various landscapes, visiting public buildings, homes and everyday objects, walkers gain a comprehensive overview of typical Bregenzerwald architectural styles as they developed throughout the ages.

Trivia

In Austria, Mellau is known for the song "Vo Mello bis ge Schoppornou" ( Alemannic for "From Mellau to Schoppernau") by the Bregenz Forest band Holstuonarmusigbigbandclub.

Notable people

* Norbert Bischofberger (born 1954), scientist, co-developer of the influenza vaccination

Tamiflu Oseltamivir, sold under the brand name Tamiflu among others, is an antiviral medication used to treat and prevent influenza A and influenza B, viruses that cause the flu. Many medical organizations recommend it in people who have complicati ...

. * Hubert Dietrich (1930-2006), painter and painting restorer. * Hermann Rützler (1883-1960), photographer and author.

References

External links

Mellau HomepageBregenzerwald Umgang Mellau
Bregenz Forest Mountains Cities and towns in Bregenz District {{Vorarlberg-geo-stub