Mödling
Coat of arms
Mödling Location within Austria
Coordinates: 48°5′N 16°16′E / 48.083°N 16.267°E / 48.083; 16.267Coordinates: 48°5′N 16°16′E / 48.083°N 16.267°E / 48.083; 16.267
Country	Austria
State	Lower Austria
District	Mödling
Government
• Mayor	Hans Stefan Hintner
Area
• Total	9.95 km2 (3.84 sq mi)
Elevation	246 m (807 ft)
Population (1 January 2012)[1]
• Total	20,514
• Density	2,100/km2 (5,300/sq mi)
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
• Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
Postal codes	2340, 2342
Area code	02236
Website	www.moedling.at

Mödling is the capital of the Austrian district of the same name located approximately 14 km south of Vienna.

The settlement dates back to the Neolithic. In medieval times. 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 Babenberger family, as a result of which it received the nickname Babenbergerstadt ('Town of the Babenbergers').

Mödling lies in Niederösterreich's industrial zone. The Mödlingbach, a brook which rises in the Wienerwald, flows through the town. Near Achau 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 (SCS). It opened in 1976, and occupies an area of approximately 270,000 m². There are more than 330 shops, employing some 4500 staff.

The SCS offers 10,000 parking spaces, and attracts customers not only from Austria, but also from various other Central European countries, such as Hungary, Slovakia, and Slovenia. In 2004, the SCS had about 25 million customers.

Geography[link]

The Eichkogel view from Pfaffstätten.

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 sylvestris).

History[link]

Richsa Česká fresco ca. 1252

A sundial on an old building on Freiheitsplatz (Freedom Square) The sundial is originally from the year 1503, as indicated by the painting.

Traces of the first settlements of the Hallstatt culture from the Neolithic were found on the Kalenderberg, also Roman coins and a tomb near today's railway station.

After Charlemagne's victory in 803 AD against the 'Awaren' (Avars), a people coming from the East, settlers from today's Bavaria came. About 500 graves from the Awaren were found in the area of the 'Goldenen Stiege' (very close to today's old city).

The first ancient document mentioning 'MEDILIHHA ULTRA MONTEM COMMIGENIUM' is dated September 8, 903, when two bishops (of the then Roman Catholic church) exchanged lands. In 907 the settlement seems however to have been destroyed again. After the battle on the 'Lechfeld' settlement in the area of today's Mödling started again.

After this for some time Mödling housed a relative of the then ruling 'Babenberger' family. Hence their castle's ruin. 1177 AD Henry the Elder, son of Henry II Jasomirgott, became landlord in an area reaching from Liesing to Piesting and Bruck. 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 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.

Duke Albrecht II. in 1343 granted the rights of a 'Market' to Mödling.

1529 AD the Turks devastated Mödling for the first time. In 1679, many citizens died of the Black Death. When the Turks 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, Freiheitsplatz).

In the early 19th century, Ludwig van Beethoven often visited his favorite pub, the Three Ravens, in Mödling.

Arnold Schönberg lived in Mödling between 1918 and 1925, where he invented his influential method of composition with 12 tones.

On November 18, 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 with Nazi Germany, Mödling was incorporated into the newly formed 24th District of Vienna. In 1954, it became once again a part of Lower Austria.

Population[link]

Source: Bevölkerungsentwicklung 1869-2010, Statistik Austria^[2]

Politics[link]

Traffic[link]

The Südbahn which takes passengers to Vienna, runs right through the city . Buses go in all directions.

Access to the A2 motorway is nearby; this motorway also leads to the SCS (Shopping Center South).

You pay for parking via m-parking.

Of historical interest is the first electrical tram from Mödling to Hinterbrühl, also tram number 360, which ran from Mödling via Maria Enzersdorf, Brunn am Gebirge und Perchtoldsdorf to Vienna/Rodaun.

Economy[link]

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[link]

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[link]

Mödling's pedestrian zone

Marian and Holy Trinity column in Mödling

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' (Phlomis 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[link]

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

Museums[link]

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

Theaters[link]

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

Schools[link]

• 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[link]

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

Notable citizens[link]

• Ludwig van Beethoven, composer, lived here in his later years
• Albert Drach, poet
• Robert Eder, local history, ornithologist
• Martin Gusinde, priest and ethnologist
• Paul Harather, director, producer, author
• Michael Jursa, teacher and researcher in Orientalism
• Alfred Maleta, politician, president of the Austrian Parliament ('House of Commons')
• Helmut Prodinger, mathematician
• (Blessed) Maria Restituta, nun and nurse
• Jan Romer, studied here
• Josef Schöffel, mayor, 'Retter des Wienerwaldes'
• Arnold Schönberg, composer, lived here
• Hermann Ullrich, composer and musical writer
• Anton Wildgans, poet
• Anton Webern, had a studio in Mödling
• Ralf Popescu, music producer

International relations[link]

Twin towns — Sister cities[link]

Mödling is twinned with ^[3]

• Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
• Velletri, Italy
• Zemun, Serbia
• Offenbach am Main, Germany
• Puteaux, France
• Köszeg, Hungary
• Vsetín, Czech Republic
• Saint-Gilles, Belgium
• Zottegem, Belgium

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Mödling

Wikisource has the text of the 1905 New International Encyclopedia article Mödling.

• (German) Official site of Mödling
• (German) Online map of Mödling
• (German) Online Scouts of Mödling
• (German) Mödling attractions
• (German) History
• (German) Statistics
• (German) Museum Mödling
• (German) Mödling and surrounding in old picture postcards
• (German) detto
•  "Mödling". Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). 1911.