Zillertal
Encyclopedia
Tyrol (state)
Tyrol is a state or Bundesland, located in the west of Austria. It comprises the Austrian part of the historical region of Tyrol.The state is split into two parts–called North Tyrol and East Tyrol–by a -wide strip of land where the state of Salzburg borders directly on the Italian province of...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
drained by the river Ziller
Ziller
The Ziller is an approximately 47 km long right-side tributary to the Inn River, in the Zillertal in Tyrol, Austria. It springs from the ridge of the Zillertal Alps, and feeds the Zillergründl Dam. In Mayrhofen it receives the Zemmbach...
. It is surrounded by the strongly glaciated
Glacier
A glacier is a large persistent body of ice that forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. At least 0.1 km² in area and 50 m thick, but often much larger, a glacier slowly deforms and flows due to stresses induced by its weight...
Zillertal Alps
Zillertal Alps
The Zillertal Alps are a mountain range of the Central Eastern Alps on the border of Austria and Italy. The range is named after the Zillertal on its north....
to the south and east, the lower grass peaks of the Kitzbühel Alps to the east and Tux Alps
Tux Alps
The Tux Alps or Tux Prealps are a sub-group of the Austrian Central Alps, which in turn form part of the Eastern Alps within Central Europe. They are located entirely within the Austrian federal state of Tyrol. The Tux Alps are one of three mountain ranges that form an Alpine backdrop to the city...
to the west. The largest settlement is Mayrhofen
Mayrhofen
- Twin towns : Chur, Switzerland Bad Tölz, Germany Bad Homburg, Germany Terracina, Italy Cabourg, France Bad Mondorf, Luxembourg- Transport :Mayrhofen has one railway station, which is located next to the Zillertaler Bundestrasse. The station is a terminus for all Train services operated by the...
.
Geography
The Zillertal branches from the Inn trench near JenbachJenbach
Jenbach is a municipality with 6897 inhabitants in the district of Schwaz in Tyrol, Austria. Many inhabitants of Jenbach believe that the name "Jenbach" is derived from "Jenseits des Baches", which means "Beyond the brook", however earlier versions of the name, for instance "Umbach" give hint that...
, about 40 km northeast of Innsbruck
Innsbruck
- Main sights :- Buildings :*Golden Roof*Kaiserliche Hofburg *Hofkirche with the cenotaph of Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor*Altes Landhaus...
, running mostly in a north-south direction. The Zillertal proper stretches from the village of Strass to Mayrhofen, where it separates into four smaller valleys, the Tux valley and the sparsely settled, so-called Gründe - Zamsergrund, Zillergrund and Stilluppgrund. Along the way, two more Gründe and the Gerlos valley, which leads to the Gerlos Pass
Gerlos Pass
Gerlos Pass is a high mountain pass in the Austrian Alps between the Bundesländer of Salzburg and Tyrol.It connects the Oberpinzgau in the state of Salzburg with the Ziller River valley in Tyrol. The old road leads from Wald im Pinzgau to Gerlos in the Ziller valley. It is closed to trucking and...
and into Salzburg
Salzburg (state)
Salzburg is a state or Land of Austria with an area of 7,156 km2, located adjacent to the German border. It is also known as Salzburgerland, to distinguish it from its capital city, also named Salzburg...
, branch off.
Unlike other side valleys of the Inntal, the Zillertal rises constantly, but only marginally, from one end to the other - only about 100 m over 30 km. Permanent settlements cover about 9% of the entire area of the Zillertal municipalities.
History
Near the Tuxer JochTuxer Joch
The Tuxer Joch is a mountain pass in the Zillertal Alps at a height of that links the lower Zillertal valley with the Brenner route just north of the Brenner Pass. To the northeast just below the summit lies the Tuxer Joch-Haus.- History :...
, a pass between the Wipptal
Wipptal
The Wipptal is a valley extending along the Sill River southward from Innsbruck, Tyrol, Austria, where the Sill meets the larger Inn river, up to the Brenner Pass at the Austro-Italian border, one of the lowest passes across the Central Eastern Alps...
and the Tux valley, there have been archeological finds from middle Stone Age
Stone Age
The Stone Age is a broad prehistoric period, lasting about 2.5 million years , during which humans and their predecessor species in the genus Homo, as well as the earlier partly contemporary genera Australopithecus and Paranthropus, widely used exclusively stone as their hard material in the...
. The oldest remains of settlements in the Zillertal date back to the Illyrians
Illyrians
The Illyrians were a group of tribes who inhabited part of the western Balkans in antiquity and the south-eastern coasts of the Italian peninsula...
during the late Bronze
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
and early Iron Age
Iron Age
The Iron Age is the archaeological period generally occurring after the Bronze Age, marked by the prevalent use of iron. The early period of the age is characterized by the widespread use of iron or steel. The adoption of such material coincided with other changes in society, including differing...
s - a tribe from the Balkan Peninsula who were absorbed by the Bavarians (Baiuvarii).
The earliest written record of the Zillertal dates from 889, when Arnulf of Carinthia
Arnulf of Carinthia
Arnulf of Carinthia was the Carolingian King of East Francia from 887, the disputed King of Italy from 894 and the disputed Holy Roman Emperor from February 22, 896 until his death.-Birth and Illegitimacy:...
granted land to the Archbishop of Salzburg in the "Cilarestal". Ownership of the valley was divided along the river Ziller. Even today this division is visible, as churches on the right bank of the river generally have green towers and belong to Salzburg Diocese
Diocese
A diocese is the district or see under the supervision of a bishop. It is divided into parishes.An archdiocese is more significant than a diocese. An archdiocese is presided over by an archbishop whose see may have or had importance due to size or historical significance...
, while churches on the left bank have red towers and belong to Innsbruck Diocese.
In 1248 the land west of the Ziller was acquired by the Counts of Tyrol
County of Tyrol
The County of Tyrol, Princely County from 1504, was a State of the Holy Roman Empire, from 1814 a province of the Austrian Empire and from 1867 a Cisleithanian crown land of Austria-Hungary...
, while the lands east of the Ziller pledged as security to the Counts of Tyrol by the Lords of Rattenberg
Rattenberg
Rattenberg, Austria is a town on the Inn River, near Rattenberg mountain and Innsbruck. With a population of 440, it is the smallest town in the country....
from 1290 to 1380. In 1504, with both the County of Tyrol and the Archbishopric of Salzburg
Archbishopric of Salzburg
The Archbishopric of Salzburg was an ecclesiastical State of the Holy Roman Empire, its territory roughly congruent with the present-day Austrian state of Salzburg....
dominated by the Habsburg
Habsburg
The House of Habsburg , also found as Hapsburg, and also known as House of Austria is one of the most important royal houses of Europe and is best known for being an origin of all of the formally elected Holy Roman Emperors between 1438 and 1740, as well as rulers of the Austrian Empire and...
s, the Zillertal valley was united under Emperor Maximilian
Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor
Maximilian I , the son of Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor and Eleanor of Portugal, was King of the Romans from 1486 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1493 until his death, though he was never in fact crowned by the Pope, the journey to Rome always being too risky...
and put under joint Tyrolean/Salzburgian rule.
In 1805, the Treaty of Pressburg ended the War of the Third Coalition and forced Austria to cede Tyrol to Bavaria
Bavaria
Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
. For the purposes of this treaty, the Zillertal was considered part of Salzburg and thus remained with Austria. The people of the Zillertal nevertheless joined Andreas Hofer
Andreas Hofer
Andreas Hofer was a Tirolean innkeeper and patriot. He was the leader of a rebellion against Napoleon's forces....
's Tyrolean Insurrection of 1809 in the Battle of the Ziller Bridge (14 May). Later that year, the insurrection was defeated and the Zillertal briefly became Bavarian until the Congress of Vienna
Congress of Vienna
The Congress of Vienna was a conference of ambassadors of European states chaired by Klemens Wenzel von Metternich, and held in Vienna from September, 1814 to June, 1815. The objective of the Congress was to settle the many issues arising from the French Revolutionary Wars, the Napoleonic Wars,...
in 1814/1815.
While the relatively lenient stance of the archbishops of Salzburg had allowed the creation of small pockets of Protestantism
Protestantism
Protestantism is one of the three major groupings within Christianity. It is a movement that began in Germany in the early 16th century as a reaction against medieval Roman Catholic doctrines and practices, especially in regards to salvation, justification, and ecclesiology.The doctrines of the...
in their lands since the Protestant Reformation
Protestant Reformation
The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century split within Western Christianity initiated by Martin Luther, John Calvin and other early Protestants. The efforts of the self-described "reformers", who objected to the doctrines, rituals and ecclesiastical structure of the Roman Catholic Church, led...
, the remaining Protestants were oppressed more harshly during the Habsburg
Habsburg
The House of Habsburg , also found as Hapsburg, and also known as House of Austria is one of the most important royal houses of Europe and is best known for being an origin of all of the formally elected Holy Roman Emperors between 1438 and 1740, as well as rulers of the Austrian Empire and...
rule of the 19th century. In 1837, 437 Protestant inhabitants of the Zillertal left the valley after they were given the choice of renouncing the Augsburg Confession
Augsburg Confession
The Augsburg Confession, also known as the "Augustana" from its Latin name, Confessio Augustana, is the primary confession of faith of the Lutheran Church and one of the most important documents of the Lutheran reformation...
or emigrating to Silesia
Silesia
Silesia is a historical region of Central Europe located mostly in Poland, with smaller parts also in the Czech Republic, and Germany.Silesia is rich in mineral and natural resources, and includes several important industrial areas. Silesia's largest city and historical capital is Wrocław...
, where Frederick William III of Prussia
Frederick William III of Prussia
Frederick William III was king of Prussia from 1797 to 1840. He was in personal union the sovereign prince of the Principality of Neuchâtel .-Early life:...
offered them lands and housing near Erdmannsdorf (now Mysłakowice in western Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
).
In 1902, the Zillertal Railway was constructed, which still runs between Jenbach and Mayrhofen to this day, opening up the valley, the economy of which had previously relied mostly on agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
and mining
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
, to commerce
Commerce
While business refers to the value-creating activities of an organization for profit, commerce means the whole system of an economy that constitutes an environment for business. The system includes legal, economic, political, social, cultural, and technological systems that are in operation in any...
and tourism
Tourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
. From 1921 to 1976, magnesium carbonate
Magnesium carbonate
Magnesium carbonate, MgCO3, is a white solid that occurs in nature as a mineral. Several hydrated and basic forms of magnesium carbonate also exist as minerals...
(and later tungsten
Tungsten
Tungsten , also known as wolfram , is a chemical element with the chemical symbol W and atomic number 74.A hard, rare metal under standard conditions when uncombined, tungsten is found naturally on Earth only in chemical compounds. It was identified as a new element in 1781, and first isolated as...
) were mined around the Alpine pastures of the Schrofen and Wangl Alm
Transhumance in the Alps
Transhumance in the Alps, or seasonal migration between valley and high pastures is a traditional practice that has shaped much of the landscape in the Alps, as without it, most areas below 2000 m would be forests.While tourism and industry contribute today much to Alpine economy, seasonal...
en above the Tuxertal A ropeway conveyor
Ropeway conveyor
A ropeway conveyor or material ropeway is essentially a subtype of gondola lift, from which containers for goods rather than passenger cars are suspended....
of more than 9 km length was used to transport the ore to the Zillertal Railway goods station in the valley below.
The Zillertal was known for its itenerant tradesmen, "farm doctors" and singing families. In the second half of the 19th century refuge huts were erected and trails established as climbing became a mass sport. The development of the area for tourism begain in 1953/1954 with the construction of the Gerlosstein ski ergion, today the Zillertal Arena
Zillertal Arena
The Zillertal Arena is a winter sports area and the largest ski area in the Zillertal valley in Austria. It has 163 kilometres of piste and 50 lifts that can transport 76,000 people every hour...
, which was soon followed by other lifts and the opening of the Mayrhofner Penkenbahn in 1954. The use of water power took off in the 1970s.
Economy
With the downfall of the mining industry in the valley, tourism has become the dominant economical factor in the second half of the 20th century and beyond. There are now (as of 2003) 6 million nights spent by tourists in the valley, mostly during winter sports holidays. Following a phase of mergers by building connecting lifts during the 1990s and early 2000s, there are now four big ski areas and three smaller satellite areas in the valley, with a combined total of more than 170 lifts and more than 630 km of downhill slopes.Traditional agriculture - mostly cattle
Cattle
Cattle are the most common type of large domesticated ungulates. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae, are the most widespread species of the genus Bos, and are most commonly classified collectively as Bos primigenius...
, dairy
Dairy
A dairy is a business enterprise established for the harvesting of animal milk—mostly from cows or goats, but also from buffalo, sheep, horses or camels —for human consumption. A dairy is typically located on a dedicated dairy farm or section of a multi-purpose farm that is concerned...
and some sheep farming on the Alm pastures - is still widespread, securing the continued existence of this predominant cultural landscape
Cultural landscape
Cultural Landscapes have been defined by the World Heritage Committee as distinct geographical areas or properties uniquely "..represent[ing] the combined work of nature and of man.."....
. There is also a significant lumber
Lumber
Lumber or timber is wood in any of its stages from felling through readiness for use as structural material for construction, or wood pulp for paper production....
industry with a large sawmill
Sawmill
A sawmill is a facility where logs are cut into boards.-Sawmill process:A sawmill's basic operation is much like those of hundreds of years ago; a log enters on one end and dimensional lumber exits on the other end....
outside the village of Fügen
Fügen
Fügen is a municipality in the Schwaz district of Tyrol, Austria.-External links:...
, and a relatively large number of factories of various industries in the outher valley. Four large reservoir
Reservoir
A reservoir , artificial lake or dam is used to store water.Reservoirs may be created in river valleys by the construction of a dam or may be built by excavation in the ground or by conventional construction techniques such as brickwork or cast concrete.The term reservoir may also be used to...
s in the Gründe supply the water for a total of eight hydroelectric power stations generating slightly more than 1,200 GWh per year.
Culture
The Zillertal is particularly renowned for its musical tradition. For instance, several families of travelling singers and organ builders from the valley have been credited with spreading the Christmas carolChristmas carol
A Christmas carol is a carol whose lyrics are on the theme of Christmas or the winter season in general and which are traditionally sung in the period before Christmas.-History:...
Silent Night
Silent Night
"Silent Night" is a popular Christmas carol. The original lyrics of the song "Stille Nacht" were written in Oberndorf bei Salzburg, Austria, by the priest Father Joseph Mohr and the melody was composed by the Austrian headmaster Franz Xaver Gruber...
across the world during the 19th and early 20th centuries. More recently, the Schürzenjäger
Schürzenjäger
The Schürzenjäger, formerly Zillertaler Schürzenjäger, is one of the most successful bands of Austria and was founded in 1973. "Schürzenjäger" is a German term for "Heartbreaker", which was first used in the early 1900s...
band have had tremendous success in German-speaking countries with their crossover
Fusion (music)
A fusion genre is music that combines two or more styles. For example, rock and roll originally developed as a fusion of blues, gospel and country music. The main characteristics of fusion genres are variations in tempo, rhythm, i a sometimes the use of long musical "journeys" that can be divided...
mix of Volksmusik
Volksmusik
Volksmusik is the common umbrella designation of a number of related styles of traditional music from the Alpine regions of Germany, Austria, Switzerland and South Tyrol...
and pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
.