Fürstenau ''( Romansh: Farschno)'' is a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

in the

Viamala Region Viamala Region is one of the eleven administrative districts in the canton of Graubünden in Switzerland. It had an area of and a population of (as of ).. It was created on 1 January 2017 as part of a reorganization of the Canton. Merger ...

in the Swiss canton of Graubünden and the smallest town to hold city rights with a market right received from Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor in 1354.

History

Fürstenau is first mentioned in 1257 as ''Fúrstenowo'' and ''Furstinowe''. Originally there were two

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

tower house A tower house is a particular type of stone structure, built for defensive purposes as well as habitation. Tower houses began to appear in the Middle Ages, especially in mountainous or limited access areas, in order to command and defend strateg ...

s or guard towers and a bishop's house in the area that became Fürstenau. The Bishop's summer residence is of course the reason for the city right.

Geography

Fürstenau has an area, , of . Of this area, 52.3% is used for agricultural purposes, while 32.3% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 9.2% is settled (buildings or roads) and the remainder (6.2%) is non-productive (rivers, glaciers or mountains). Before 2017, the municipality was located in the Domleschg sub-district of the Hinterrhein district, after 2017 it was part of the Viamala Region. It consists of the village of Fürstenau and Fürstenaubruck, on the right side of the valley.

Demographics

Fürstenau has a population (as of ) of . , 8.1% of the population was made up of foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years the population has grown at a rate of 12.5%. , the gender distribution of the population was 49.4% male and 50.6% female.Graubunden in Numbers
accessed 21 September 2009 The age distribution, , in Fürstenau is; 29 people or 9.3% of the population are between 0 and 9 years old. 16 people or 5.1% are 10 to 14, and 13 people or 4.2% are 15 to 19. Of the adult population, 27 people or 8.7% of the population are between 20 and 29 years old. 51 people or 16.4% are 30 to 39, 36 people or 11.6% are 40 to 49, and 44 people or 14.1% are 50 to 59. The senior population distribution is 25 people or 8.0% of the population are between 60 and 69 years old, 28 people or 9.0% are 70 to 79, there are 33 people or 10.6% who are 80 to 89, and there are 9 people or 2.9% who are 90 to 99.Graubunden Population Statistics
accessed 21 September 2009 In the

2007 federal election This electoral calendar 2007 lists the national/federal direct elections held in 2007 in the de jure and de facto sovereign states and their dependent territories. Referendums are included, although they are not elections. By-elections are not ...

the most popular party was the

SPS SPS may refer to: Law and government * Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures of the WTO * NATO Science for Peace and Security * Single Payment Scheme, an EU agricultural subsidy * The Standard Procurement System, fo ...

which received 32.5% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SVP (30.4%), the FDP (27.2%) and the CVP (9.5%). In Fürstenau about 81% of the population (between age 25-64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either university or a '' Fachhochschule''). Fürstenau has an unemployment rate of 1.85%. , there were 11 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 4 businesses involved in this sector. 2 people are employed in the

secondary sector In macroeconomics, the secondary sector of the economy is an economic sector in the three-sector theory that describes the role of manufacturing. It encompasses industries that produce a finished, usable product or are involved in constructi ...

and there is 1 business in this sector. 133 people are employed in the

tertiary sector The tertiary sector of the economy, generally known as the service sector, is the third of the three economic sectors in the three-sector model (also known as the economic cycle). The others are the primary sector (raw materials) and the second ...

, with 15 businesses in this sector. The historical population is given in the following table:

Sights

Fürstenau has three Swiss Heritage Sites of National Significance.

Heritage sites of national significance

The ''Haus Stoffel'', '' Oberes Schloss'' (Upper Castle) and '' Unteres Schloss'' (Lower Castle, also known as the Bishop's Castle) are listed as Swiss heritage sites of national significance.Swiss inventory of cultural property of national and regional significance
21.11.2008 version, accessed 02-Oct-2009 , the Oberes Schloss is an inn with a Michelin 3-star restaurant. File:FürstenauStoffelhaus.JPG, Stoffel House File:SchlossSchauenstein.JPG, ''Oberes Schloss'' (Upper Castle) File:Unteres Schloss Fürstenau.jpg, ''Unteres Schloss'' (Lower Castle)

Languages

The municipality is predominantly German-speaking, with a small Romansh-speaking minority. , 92.3% speaks German, with Romansh being second most common ( 3.2%) and Italian being third ( 1.9%).Swiss Federal Statistical Office
accessed 02-Oct-2009

References

External links

www.fuerstenau.ws
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Furstenau Municipalities of Graubünden Cities in Switzerland Cultural property of national significance in Graubünden