Rheinau 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 district of Andelfingen in the

Canton of Zürich The canton of Zürich (german: Kanton Zürich ; rm, Chantun Turitg; french: Canton de Zurich; it, Canton Zurigo) is a Swiss canton in the northeastern part of the country. With a population of (as of ), it is the most populous canton in the ...

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

. It is located at a bend of the

Rhine ), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland , source1_coordinates= , source1_elevation = , source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein , source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland , source2_coordinates= , sour ...

River which forms the Swiss-German border in this area. A bridge links Rheinau to

Altenburg Altenburg () is a city in Thuringia, Germany, located south of Leipzig, west of Dresden and east of Erfurt. It is the capital of the Altenburger Land district and part of a polycentric old-industrial textile and metal production region bet ...

, part of the municipality of

Jestetten Jestetten is a municipality in the district of Waldshut in Baden-Württemberg in Germany. History In 1806 Jestetten became part of Baden. From 1840 until 1935, the territory of Jestetten together with Altenburg, Lottstetten and what was then ...

Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg (; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million inhabitants across a ...

state.

Geography

Rheinau has an area of . Of this area, 26.8% is used for agricultural purposes, while 54.8% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 11.3% is settled (buildings or roads) and the remainder (7.2%) is non-productive (rivers, glaciers or mountains).

Rheinau Abbey

Rheinau Abbey was founded in 778 and grew until it was abandoned during the

Protestant 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 i ...

in 1529. It was re-established in 1532 and was a center of the

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) ...

. In 1862 the cantonal council decreed the dissolution of the abbey. Following the dissolution of the abbey, in 1867 a cantonal hospital and nursing home were set up in the buildings. Later, a cantonal psychiatric clinic that developed here was closed in 2000, since then, the buildings have stood empty. The Abbey underwent a major refurbishment in the 2010s. The buildings are open to the public.

Demographics

Rheinau has a population (as of ) of . , 16.7% of the population was made up of foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years the population has grown at a rate of 4%. Most of the population () speaks German (91.2%), with Serbo-Croatian being second most common (2.4%) and French being third (0.8%). In the 2007 election the most popular party was the SVP which received 28.4% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SPS (25.6%), the CVP (13%) and the

Green Party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as social justice, environmentalism and nonviolence. Greens believe that these issues are inherently related to one another as a foundation f ...

(12.6%). The age distribution of the population () is children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 22.6% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 58.8% and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 18.6%. In Rheinau about 64.1% of the population (between age 25–64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either university or a ''

Fachhochschule A ''Fachhochschule'' (; plural ''Fachhochschulen''), abbreviated FH, is a university of applied sciences (UAS), in other words a German tertiary education institution that provides professional education in many applied sciences and applied art ...

''). Rheinau has an unemployment rate of 1.3%. , there were 23 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 3 businesses involved in this sector. 43 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 constructio ...

and there are 10 businesses in this sector. 641 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 42 businesses in this sector.Swiss Federal Statistical Office
accessed 28-Jul-2009

Transport

Rheinau is served by a

Postbus A postbus is a public bus service that is operated as part of local mail delivery as a means of providing public transport in rural areas with lower levels of patronage, where a normal bus service would be uneconomic or inefficient. Postbus serv ...

connection to

Marthalen railway station Marthalen is a railway station in the Swiss canton of Zurich Canton may refer to: Administrative division terminology * Canton (administrative division), territorial/administrative division in some countries, notably Switzerland * Townshi ...

. Until 2010 neighbouring Altenburg was served by a Swiss railway station namely Altenburg-Rheinau, which, despite its location in Germany, is located on the Eglisau to Neuhausen line of the

Swiss Federal Railway Swiss Federal Railways (german: link=no, Schweizerische Bundesbahnen, ''SBB''; french: link=no, Chemins de fer fédéraux suisses, ''CFF''; it, Ferrovie federali svizzere, ''FFS'') is the national railway company of Switzerland. It is usuall ...

(SBB) that crosses the

Germany–Switzerland border The border between the modern states of Germany and Switzerland extends to , mostly following the High Rhine between Lake Constance and Basel. Much of the border is within the sphere of the Zurich metropolitan area and there is substantial traf ...

twice on its route between the

Swiss Swiss may refer to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland *Swiss people Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina *Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses *Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports *Swiss Internationa ...

cantons of Zurich and

Schaffhausen Schaffhausen (; gsw, Schafuuse; french: Schaffhouse; it, Sciaffusa; rm, Schaffusa; en, Shaffhouse) is a town with historic roots, a municipality in northern Switzerland, and the capital of the canton of the same name; it has an estimate ...

. Altenburg-Rheinau was one of only three Swiss operated stations located entirely within Germany, the other two being

and

Lottstetten Lottstetten is a municipality in the district of Waldshut in Baden-Württemberg in Germany. History In 1806 Lottstetten became part of Baden. From 1840 until 1935, the territory of Lottstetten together with Altenburg, Jestetten and what was t ...

. None of the lines running through Altenburg-Rheinau have a direct rail connection to the German railway network. The station is a border station and as such was in local transport tariff zones in both Germany and Switzerland. Notwithstanding protests from the German authorities, the Swiss closed the station after 113 years of service, due to low passenger numbers. The last train to stop at Altenburg-Rheinau did so at 00:27 on 12 December 2010.

References

External links

* {{Authority control Municipalities of the canton of Zürich Cities in Switzerland Germany–Switzerland border crossings