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Oberwart (; hu, Felsőőr; hr, Gornja Borta) is a town in
Burgenland Burgenland (; hu, Őrvidék; hr, Gradišće; Austro-Bavarian: ''Burgnland;'' Slovene: ''Gradiščanska'') is the easternmost and least populous state of Austria. It consists of two statutory cities and seven rural districts, with a total of ...
in southeast
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 ...
on the banks of the
Pinka The Pinka () is a river in Central Europe with a length of approximately . Its basin area is . Its source is located in Styria, eastern Austria, next to the provincial border of Burgenland. It passes into Hungary between the villages of and Fels ...
River, and the capital of the district of the same name. Oberwart is the cultural capital of the small ethnic Hungarian minority in Burgenland, living in the
Upper Őrség Upper Őrség ( hu, Felső-Őrség, ; german: Wart) is a traditional ethnographic region and a small Hungarian language island in southern Burgenland, Austria. It consists of the town of Oberwart (Hun: ''Felsőőr'') and the two villages of Unter ...
or Wart microregion.


History

The settlement was established in the 11th century by the guards of the Hungarian frontier (''őr''s) together with
Unterwart Unterwart or Alsóőr (german: Unterwart; hu, Alsóőr; Croatian: ''Dolnja Borta'') is a village in Burgenland, Austria, in the district of Oberwart (Hun: ''Felsőőr''). The village lies on the banks of the Pinka river, and it had a population ...
(''Alsóőr'') and
Siget in der Wart Siget in der Wart or Őrisziget (; ) is a small village in Burgenland, Austria, in the district of Oberwart (Hun: ''Felsőőr''). The village lies on the banks of the Zicken Bach (''Szék-patak'') and administratively belongs to the neighbouring to ...
(''Őrisziget''). It was first mentioned in historical documents in 1327 under the name ''Superior Eör''. It was part of the old
county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...
of Vas until 1921. Old surnames and the special local dialect shows that the population was related to the
Székelys The Székelys (, Székely runes: 𐳥𐳋𐳓𐳉𐳗), also referred to as Szeklers,; ro, secui; german: Szekler; la, Siculi; sr, Секељи, Sekelji; sk, Sikuli are a Hungarian subgroup living mostly in the Székely Land in Romania. ...
of
Transylvania Transylvania ( ro, Ardeal or ; hu, Erdély; german: Siebenbürgen) is a historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and south its natural border is the Carpathian Mountains, and to the west the Ap ...
(i.e. the guards of the eastern border of
Kingdom of Hungary The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from the Middle Ages into the 20th century. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the coronation of the first king Stephen ...
). The community of the ''őr''s received the privileges of the nobles by King
Charles I of Hungary Charles I, also known as Charles Robert ( hu, Károly Róbert; hr, Karlo Robert; sk, Karol Róbert; 128816 July 1342) was King of Hungary and Croatia from 1308 to his death. He was a member of the Capetian House of Anjou and the only son of ...
in the 14th century. The privileges were acknowledged by
Rudolph I Rudolf I (1 May 1218 – 15 July 1291) was the first King of Germany from the House of Habsburg. The first of the count-kings of Germany, he reigned from 1273 until his death. Rudolf's election marked the end of the Great Interregnum which h ...
in 1582. The village was partially destroyed by the Ottoman army in 1532.
Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...
appeared in Felsőőr in the 16th century, and it was backed by the mighty counts of Battyhány. Pastor Ferenc Eőri took part in the
synod A synod () is a council of a Christian denomination, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. The word ''wikt:synod, synod'' comes from the meaning "assembly" or "meeting" and is analogous with the Latin ...
of 1618. In the Age of
Counter-Reformation The Counter-Reformation (), also called the Catholic Reformation () or the Catholic Revival, was the period of Catholic resurgence that was initiated in response to the Protestant Reformation. It began with the Council of Trent (1545–1563) a ...
, most of the region had to return to
Roman Catholic 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 ...
faith, but the free noble village of Felsőőr remained
Calvinist Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Ca ...
. In 1673 the army occupied the church and the school to give them back to the Catholics. The rectory was destroyed, and the pastor expelled. The villagers erected a new church in 1681 from wood. According to the laws of the Diet of 1681, Felsőőr became an "articular place" which means that it was the only legal place to practice Protestant religion for the whole region. The villagers participated in the Hungarian national uprising of
István Bocskay Stephen Bocskai or Bocskay ( hu, Bocskai István; 1 January 155729 December 1606) was Prince of Transylvania and Hungary from 1605 to 1606. He was born to a Hungarian noble family. His father's estates were located in the eastern regions of th ...
in 1605, and of Count
Francis II Rákóczi Francis II Rákóczi ( hu, II. Rákóczi Ferenc, ; 27 March 1676 – 8 April 1735) was a Hungarian nobleman and leader of Rákóczi's War of Independence against the Habsburgs in 1703–11 as the prince ( hu, fejedelem) of the Estates Confedera ...
in 1705. In 1706 the Austrian army of General
Sigbert Heister Sigbert Graf Heister ( Kirchberg an der Raab, 1 January 1646 – Kirchberg an der Raab in Steiermark, 22 February 1718) was an Imperial Field marshal. His father was Gottfried Heister (1609–1679), vice president of the Hofkriegsrat. Sigb ...
sacked Felsőőr. In 1841 the village got the right to hold a market. In the time of the
Hungarian Revolution of 1848 The Hungarian Revolution of 1848 or fully Hungarian Civic Revolution and War of Independence of 1848–1849 () was one of many European Revolutions of 1848 and was closely linked to other revolutions of 1848 in the Habsburg areas. Although th ...
, the villagers defeated (with the help of a
Hussar A hussar ( , ; hu, huszár, pl, husarz, sh, husar / ) was a member of a class of light cavalry, originating in Central Europe during the 15th and 16th centuries. The title and distinctive dress of these horsemen were subsequently widely ...
troop) a smaller Croatian army. Later they had to pay a huge amount of tribute to avoid collective punishment. Geographer Elek Fényes described the village in 1851 as an important and historically significant ''őr'' settlement: : "The fields are of only average fertility but the meadows are good. Has got sufficient wood and pasture. The inhabitants are the most diligent in the county: they are not only cultivating flax and breeding horses but they produce cloth and lint, make knives and other ironworks, practice crafts and trade." At that time, 41 noble families lived in Felső-Őr. Some typical family names were: Ádám, Adorján, Albert, Andorkó, Balás, Bertha, Bertók, Fábián, Fülöp, Gál, Imre, Kázmér, Miklós, Orbán, Pál, Pongrácz, etc. After the
Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867 The Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867 (german: Ausgleich, hu, Kiegyezés) established the dual monarchy of Austria-Hungary. The Compromise only partially re-established the former pre-1848 sovereignty and status of the Kingdom of Hungary ...
, the village began to develop rapidly, and the population reached 3900 people in 1910. According to the
Treaty of Trianon The Treaty of Trianon (french: Traité de Trianon, hu, Trianoni békeszerződés, it, Trattato del Trianon) was prepared at the Paris Peace Conference (1919–1920), Paris Peace Conference and was signed in the Grand Trianon château in ...
in 1920, Felsőőr was annexed by Austria, but the Hungarian population opposed the decision and organised a movement to establish the autonomous province of
Lajtabánság Lajtabánság (; german: Leitha-Banate, Banschaft), or the Banate of Leitha, was a short-lived western Magyars, Hungarian state in the region where the Austrian States of Austria, federal state of Burgenland now exists. It existed between Octo ...
. In November 1921, the Austrian army occupied the village. After the
annexation of Austria The (, or , ), also known as the (, en, Annexation of Austria), was the annexation of the Federal State of Austria into the Nazi Germany, German Reich on 13 March 1938. The idea of an (a united Austria and Germany that would form a "Ger ...
by
Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
in 1938, the
Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
inhabitants of the village (appr. 140 people) were deported, and the synagogue was transformed into a fire department depot. According to the Nazi policy of
Germanisation Germanisation, or Germanization, is the spread of the German language, German people, people and German culture, culture. It was a central idea of German conservative thought in the 19th and the 20th centuries, when conservatism and ethnic nationa ...
, the old Hungarian school of the Reformed Church was secularized. In 1939 Oberwart was incorporated as a town. In April 1945 the
Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, after ...
occupied Oberwart after a week of fierce fighting and plundered the half-destroyed town. In the 1950s and 1960s, Oberwart was rebuilt and thoroughly modernized. On 2 September 1984, the European number-one hit
Live Is Life "Live Is Life" is a 1984 song by Austrian pop rock band Opus. It was released as the first single from their first live album, ''Live Is Life'' (1984), and was also included on the US version of their fourth studio album, '' Up and Down'' (1984 ...
by
Opus ''Opus'' (pl. ''opera'') is a Latin word meaning "work". Italian equivalents are ''opera'' (singular) and ''opere'' (pl.). Opus or OPUS may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Opus number, (abbr. Op.) specifying order of (usually) publicatio ...
was recorded on a concert in Oberwart in a live version with the audience singing along. On 5 February 1995, close to a
Romani Romani may refer to: Ethnicities * Romani people, an ethnic group of Northern Indian origin, living dispersed in Europe, the Americas and Asia ** Romani genocide, under Nazi rule * Romani language, any of several Indo-Aryan languages of the Roma ...
housing in Oberwart, the racist terrorist
Franz Fuchs Franz Fuchs (12 December 1949 – 26 February 2000) was an Austrian domestic terrorist who killed four people and injured 15, some seriously, using three improvised explosive devices and 24 mail bombs, which he sent in five waves between 1993 an ...
killed four young Romani men using a
booby trap A booby trap is a device or setup that is intended to kill, harm or surprise a human or another animal. It is triggered by the presence or actions of the victim and sometimes has some form of bait designed to lure the victim towards it. The trap m ...
connected to a sign with the words ''"Roma zurück nach Indien"'' ("Roma go back to India").


Sights

* Reformed Church - The present imposing Baroque church was built in 1771-73 by Christoph Preising. The tower was built in 1808-09 by Matthias Preising. The furniture, the pulpit and the ecclesiastical equipment are valuable art pieces from the 18-19th centuries. * Old Rectory - The Old Rectory was built in 1784, next to the Reformed Church in rural
Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...
style, with an arcaded porch. It was enlarged in 1823. Today it is a community center and museum. The old documents of the
Calvinist Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Ca ...
community (for example the parish registers since 1732) are important historical sources. * Former School of the Reformed Church - The famous school of the church was founded in the 17th century. The old school building behind the church was built in 1802. *Old Parish Church - The old parish church of the Ascension was enlarged and rebuilt in Gothic style in 1463. In the 16-17th centuries it was a Calvinist church. The huge tower was built that time in 1656 under the pastoral service of János Szeremley. The church was rebuilt in Baroque style in 1728 and 1778. The restoration in 1975 revealed the medieval architectural details and murals in the apse from the 14th century (St George and St Michael). The furniture is Baroque from the 18th century. *New Parish Church - The modern concrete-and-glass church and religious center was built in 1967-69 by the plans of
Günther Domenig Günther Domenig (6 July 1934 – 15 June 2012) was an Austrian architect. Domenig was born in Klagenfurt, and studied architecture at the Graz University of Technology (1953–1959). After working as an architectural assistant, he set u ...
and Eilfried Huth. * Evangelical Church - It was built between 1812 and 1815 in Neo-Classical style. The
evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide Interdenominationalism, interdenominational movement within Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being "bor ...
parish has been always the third in numbers behind the other two religion in Oberwart (for example 684 people in 1880 and 1198 in 2001). * Flea Market - On the first Saturday of every month, a flea market is held in central Oberwart.


Hungarians

In the course of the 20th century a
language shift Language shift, also known as language transfer or language replacement or language assimilation, is the process whereby a speech community shifts to a different language, usually over an extended period of time. Often, languages that are perceiv ...
occurred in local population, changing the use of Hungarian to
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...
.
Magyars Hungarians, also known as Magyars ( ; hu, magyarok ), are a nation and ethnic group native to Hungary () and historical Hungarian lands who share a common culture, history, ancestry, and language. The Hungarian language belongs to the Uralic ...
lost their historical majority in Felsőőr/Oberwart but the town remained the most important Hungarian educational, religious and cultural centre in Burgenland. Nowadays there are appr. 1100 ethnic Hungarian inhabitants of the town, mostly members of the
Calvinist Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Ca ...
parish. Felsőőr is the oldest Calvinist congregation in Austria. The Christian Reading Club of Young Men (founded in 1889) is an important cultural association of the Hungarian minority with a library, folk dance group and theater group. The new cultural center of the Calvinist Church was built in 1956-57. The Hungarian kindergarten was reestablished after World War II in 1951 and a new Bilingual Secondary School was set up in 1992. The old Hungarian district of the town is called Fölszeg (i.e. Upper End). The neighbourhood is the oldest part of the town with narrow lanes and more than one hundred old houses which are typical examples of the rural architecture of the Felső-Őrség. The vaulted porches and the stuccoed gables are characteristic architectural features.


Coat-of-arms

The old coat-of-arms of Felsőőr depicted a medieval Hungarian frontier-guard (Hungarian: ''őr'') with two swords in his hands, one raised as the symbol of attack, the other crossed as the symbol of defence. The inscription of the arms was ''Nobiles de Felső-Eőr''. The new coat-of-arms of Oberwart was granted in 1972. The main feature of the old arms - the figure of the frontier-guard - was kept but the details changed and the inscription disappeared.


Demographics

According to geographer Elek Fényes, in 1851 Felső-Őr was a Hungarian village with a population of 2323 people. Calvinists were the largest religious group (60%), followed by Roman Catholics (26%), Lutherans (13%) and only 10 Jews. The population statistics of Oberwart/Felsőőr recorded by official Hungarian and Austrian censuses were: The population of the town increased continuously during the last 150 years with only two smaller setbacks caused by
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
and
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. Hungarians were the most populous
ethnicity An ethnic group or an ethnicity is a grouping of people who identify with each other on the basis of shared attributes that distinguish them from other groups. Those attributes can include common sets of traditions, ancestry, language, history, ...
until 1951 when German speaking people were recorded for the first time as the largest group. The number of Hungarians reached its peak in 1920 with 3,138 people (75% of the total population). In the second half of the 20th century they decreased both in numbers and percentage, reaching the lowest point in 1971 with only 204 people. The community was growing again in the last decades of the century. The small Roma minority disappeared after the hardships of Nazi rule. The number of Croatians only began growing in the last two decades of the 20th century.


Sports

Oberwart is home to
Oberwart Gunners Oberwart Gunners, for sponsorship reasons known as Unger Steel Gunners Oberwart, is a professional basketball club based in Oberwart, Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern ...
of the
Austrian Basketball Bundesliga The Austrian Basketball Bundesliga (in German: Österreichische Basketball Bundesliga) was the top men's professional basketball league in Austria.O ...
.


References


External links

* * {{Authority control
Cities and towns in Oberwart District Holocaust locations in Austria