Portal:Austria

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The Austria Portal

Topographical map of Austria
The flag of 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, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous city and federal state. Austria is bordered by Germany to the northwest, the Czech Republic to the north, Slovakia to the northeast, Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the west. The country occupies an area of 83,879 km2 (32,386 sq mi) and has a population of around 9 million.

Austria emerged from the remnants of the Eastern and Hungarian March at the end of the first millennium. Originally a margraviate of Bavaria, it developed into a duchy of the Holy Roman Empire in 1156 and was later made an archduchy in 1453. In the 16th century, Vienna began serving as the empire's administrative capital and Austria thus became the heartland of the Habsburg monarchy. Before the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire two years later, in 1804, Austria established its own empire, which became a great power and the dominant member of the German Confederation. The empire's defeat in the Austro-Prussian War of 1866 led to the end of the Confederation and paved the way for the establishment of Austria-Hungary a year later. Austria was the common name for the non-Hungarian parts of the state, also known as Cisleithania.

After the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in 1914, Emperor Franz Joseph declared war on Serbia, which ultimately escalated into World War I. The empire's defeat and subsequent collapse led to the proclamation of the Republic of German-Austria in 1918 and the First Austrian Republic in 1919. During the interwar period, anti-parliamentarian sentiments culminated in the formation of an Austrofascist dictatorship under Engelbert Dollfuss in 1934. A year before the outbreak of World War II, Austria was annexed into Nazi Germany by Adolf Hitler, and it became a sub-national division. After its liberation in 1945 and a decade of Allied occupation, the country regained its sovereignty and declared its perpetual neutrality in 1955.

Austria is a semi-presidential representative democracy with a popularly elected president as head of state and a chancellor as head of government and chief executive. Major cities include Vienna, Graz, Linz, Salzburg, and Innsbruck. Austria has the 17th highest nominal GDP per capita with high standards of living; it was ranked 25th in the world for its Human Development Index in 2021. (Full article...)
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Gardens of Mirabell in Salzburg

Salzburg (Bavarian: Såizburg; literally: "Salt Fortress") is the fourth-largest city in Austria and the capital of the federal state of Salzburg.

Salzburg's "Old Town" (Altstadt) with its world famous baroque architecture is one of the best-preserved city centres north of the Alps, and was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997. The city is noted for its Alpine setting. Salzburg was the birthplace of 18th-century composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. In the mid-20th century, the city was the setting for parts of the musical and film The Sound of Music, which also features famous landmarks in Austria. With three universities, Salzburg is the capital city of the State of Salzburg (Land Salzburg), and is home to a large student population.

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Powerplant Kaprun

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Statue of Athena outside the Austrian Parliament
Statue of Athena outside the Austrian Parliament

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Franz Joseph I of Austria

Franz Joseph I of Austria was (18 August 1830 – 21 November 1916) was Emperor of Austria, King of Bohemia and Apostolic King of Hungary from 1848 until 1916.

Born in Schönbrunn Palace, he became emperor in the tumultuous Revolutions of 1848 at the young age of 18. He initially ruled with absolutism until the 1860s when the defeat in the Austro-Prussian War forced him to sign the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867, which established the dual monarchy with him as King of Hungary. Franz Joseph eventually also allowed the establishment of a constitutional monarchy. Under his later rule, Austria experienced unprecedented industrial growth and a flowering of the arts and culture. His reign would become the longest rule of an Austrian monarch.

He was married to the legendary Elisabeth of Bavaria. Their son Crown Prince Rudolph would later commit suicide in Mayerling. World War I broke out in 1914 after the assassination of the heir to the throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand. Franz Joseph would not witness the collapse of his empire, dying in 1916 at the age of 86 years, in his birthplace, the palace of Schönbrunn. With his passing, an era came to an end.

Did you know (auto-generated)

  • ... that Austrian master metalsmith Cyril Colnik chose to close his shop rather than make armaments for World War I?
  • ... that although Austrian model Greta Hofer was only discovered in 2020, she was chosen to work exclusively for Prada that year?
  • ... that in the 1930s Alfred Verdross, an Austrian international lawyer and future judge of the European Court of Human Rights, sympathised with National Socialism?
  • ... that a newspaper in Kentucky reported that the solar eclipse of November 22, 1900, would pass over Austria instead of Australia?
  • ... that the 13th-century Austrian chronicler Jans der Enikel characterized Richard the Lionheart as a "noble goose-roaster"?
  • ... that Austrian mountaineer Franz Oppurg was the first person to achieve a solo ascent of Mount Everest, climbing alone from the South Col to the summit on 14 May 1978?

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