Flattnitz Pass (el. 1400 m.) is a high mountain pass in the

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

Alps The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Swi ...

. The pass is located in the

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

of Carinthia, connecting

Glödnitz Glödnitz ( sl, Glodnica) is a municipality in the district of Sankt Veit an der Glan in the Austrian state of Carinthia. Geography The municipal area stretches along the densely forested valley of the Glödnitz river, a tributary of the Gurk, ...

in the Gurk valley with Stadl on the Mur river, beyond the border with Styria. The pass height comprises a

dispersed settlement A dispersed settlement, also known as a scattered settlement, is one of the main types of settlement patterns used by landscape historians to classify rural settlements found in England and other parts of the world. Typically, there are a numb ...

with a high-altitude sanatorium (''Luftkurort'') and an

Alpine lake Alpine lakes are classified as lakes at high altitudes in mountainous zones, usually near or above the tree line, with extended periods of ice cover. These lakes are commonly formed from glacial activity (either current or in the past) but can al ...

('' Flattnitzer See''). It is a popular destination for

hikers Hiking is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century.AMATO, JOSEPH A. "Mind over Foot: Romantic Walking and Rambling." In ''On Foot: A Hist ...

and for cross-country skiers in winter. The pass was possibly known in

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

times, it was first mentioned in an 898 deed issued by the Carolingian emperor Arnulf. In 1173 the Gurk bishops had a Romanesque chapel erected, dedicated to St John the Baptist, which was rebuilt as a parish church with an adjacent hospice building about 1330. The bishops used Flattnitz (from Slovene: ''blato'', "moss") as a summer residence. The pass height was devastated by invading Ottoman forces in 1478. In the 17th century, Flattnitz was a mining area for silver, iron ore, and lead.

External links

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{{Authority control Mountain passes of the Alps Mountain passes of Carinthia (state) Mountain passes of Styria