Wörgl () is a

city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

in the

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

n state of

Tyrol Tyrol ( ; historically the Tyrole; ; ) is a historical region in the Alps of Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Empire and Austria-Hungary, f ...

, in the

Kufstein Kufstein (; ) is a town in the Austrian state of Tyrol, the administrative seat of Kufstein District. With a population of about 20,000 it is the second largest Tyrolean town after the state capital Innsbruck. The greatest landmark is Kufstein For ...

district. It is from the international border with

Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

Population

Transport

Wörgl is a

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

junction in the line between

Innsbruck Innsbruck (; ) is the capital of Tyrol (federal state), Tyrol and the List of cities and towns in Austria, fifth-largest city in Austria. On the Inn (river), River Inn, at its junction with the Wipptal, Wipp Valley, which provides access to the ...

and

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

, as well as the inner-Austrian line to

Salzburg Salzburg is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020 its population was 156,852. The city lies on the Salzach, Salzach River, near the border with Germany and at the foot of the Austrian Alps, Alps moun ...

. Its

railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

has been designated as a ''Hauptbahnhof'' () since 10 December 2006. European route E641 connects Wörgl with

. The E45 and E60 routes (Austrian

autobahn The (; German , ) is the federal controlled-access highway system in Germany. The official term is (abbreviated ''BAB''), which translates as 'federal motorway'. The literal meaning of the word is 'Federal Auto(mobile) Track'. Much of t ...

A12) pass through Wörgl. File:Bahnhof Wörgl alt.jpg, Wörgl railway station in 1900 File:Wörgl Gare 1965.jpg, Wörgl railway station in 1965

History

The Wörgl Experiment

Wörgl was the site of the "Miracle of Wörgl", beginning on 31 July 1932 during the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

. Beginning with the issuing of "Certified Compensation Bills", a form of

local currency In economics, a local currency is a currency that can be spent in a particular geographical locality at participating organisations. A regional currency is a form of local currency encompassing a larger geographical area, while a community curren ...

commonly known as Stamp

Scrip A scrip (or ''wikt:chit#Etymology 3, chit'' in India) is any substitute for legal tender. It is often a form of credit (finance), credit. Scrips have been created and used for a variety of reasons, including exploitative payment of employees un ...

Freigeld ( German for "free economy") is an economic theory and proposal founded by the German-Argentine economist Silvio Gesell in his 1916 book, '' The Natural Economic Order'' (). Some of the basic economic ideas of Freiwirtschaft were also indepen ...

. This was an application of the monetary theories of the

economist An economist is a professional and practitioner in the social sciences, social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy. Within this ...

Silvio Gesell Johann Silvio Gesell (; 17 March 1862 – 11 March 1930) was a German-Argentine economist, entrepreneur, and social reformer. He was the founder of (German language, German for "free economy"), an economic model for market socialism. In 1900, ...

by the town's then-mayor, . The experiment resulted in a growth of

employment Employment is a relationship between two party (law), parties Regulation, regulating the provision of paid Labour (human activity), labour services. Usually based on a employment contract, contract, one party, the employer, which might be a cor ...

and meant that local government projects such as new houses, a reservoir, a ski jump and a bridge could all be completed, contrasting with much of the depression in the rest of the country.

Inflation In economics, inflation is an increase in the average price of goods and services in terms of money. This increase is measured using a price index, typically a consumer price index (CPI). When the general price level rises, each unit of curre ...

and

deflation In economics, deflation is a decrease in the general price level of goods and services. Deflation occurs when the inflation rate falls below 0% and becomes negative. While inflation reduces the value of currency over time, deflation increases i ...

are also reputed to have been non-existent for the duration of the experiment. Despite attracting great interest at the time, including from French Premier Edouard Daladier and economist

Irving Fisher Irving Fisher (February 27, 1867 – April 29, 1947) was an American economist, statistician, inventor, eugenicist and progressive social campaigner. He was one of the earliest American neoclassical economists, though his later work on debt de ...

, the "experiment" was ended by Austria's central bank

Oesterreichische Nationalbank The (, , abbr. ) is the National central bank (Eurosystem), national central bank for Austria within the Eurosystem. It was the Austrian central bank from 1923 to 1938 and from 1945 to 1998, issuing the Austrian schilling, shilling. It star ...

on 1 September 1933, so that the federal government would maintain a monopoly on the country's legal tender. British economist

John Maynard Keynes John Maynard Keynes, 1st Baron Keynes ( ; 5 June 1883 – 21 April 1946), was an English economist and philosopher whose ideas fundamentally changed the theory and practice of macroeconomics and the economic policies of governments. Originall ...

thought that "future economics will learn more from Gesell's ideas than from Marx's". In 2006, milestones were placed across the town to commemorate this event.

World War II

The nearby Itter Castle (8 kilometres (5 miles) away from Wörgl) was the site of one of the last European battles of World War II. The castle had been seized from Grüner by SS Lieutenant General

Oswald Pohl Oswald Ludwig Pohl (; 30 June 1892 – 7 June 1951) was a German high-ranking SS official during the Nazi era. As the head of the SS Main Economic and Administrative Office and the head administrator of the Nazi concentration camps, he was a ke ...

under the orders of

Heinrich Himmler Heinrich Luitpold Himmler (; 7 October 1900 – 23 May 1945) was a German Nazism, Nazi politician and military leader who was the 4th of the (Protection Squadron; SS), a leading member of the Nazi Party, and one of the most powerful p ...

on 7 February 1943. The transformation of the castle into a prison was completed by 25 April 1943, and the facility was placed under the administration of the

Dachau concentration camp Dachau (, ; , ; ) was one of the first concentration camps built by Nazi Germany and the longest-running one, opening on 22 March 1933. The camp was initially intended to intern Hitler's political opponents, which consisted of communists, s ...

. The Battle for Itter Castle took place on 5 May 1945, with surrendered

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...

troops, the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

, Austrian Resistance fighters and former French political prisoners fighting against the 17th ''Waffen-SS Panzer Grenadier'' Division. The leader of the surrendered

troops, Major Josef Gangl, was killed during the battle by a sniper and is buried in Wörgl's municipal cemetery.Sepp Gangl-Straße
is a street in Wörgl named after Gangl. Woergl Denkmal Brunner

and Josefine Brunner in Wörgl Waldemar von Knoeringen's de">:de:Waldemar_von_Knoeringen">deresistance network against the

Nazi Party The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party ( or NSDAP), was a far-right politics, far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that created and supported the ideology of Nazism. Its precursor ...

was based in Wörgl. Commemoratives plaques and memorials have been established in the town, including to resistance member Josefine Brunner.

Twin towns – sister cities

* Albrechtice nad Orlicí, Czech Republic * Suwa, Japan

Notable people

* Reinhard Furrer, German scientist. * Gerhard Berger, Former

Formula One Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...

racing driver and former co-owner of Scuderia Toro Rosso. * Stefan Horngacher, Olympic

ski jumper Ski jumping is a winter sport in which competitors aim to achieve the farthest jump after sliding down on their skis from a specially designed curved ramp. Along with jump length, competitor's aerial style and other factors also affect the fin ...

. * Hans Peter Haselsteiner, Building tycoon and former deputy chair of the Liberal Forum. * Richard Kitzbichler, Former

Austria national football team The Austria national football team () represents Austria in men's international Association football, football competitions, and is controlled by the Austrian Football Association. The Austrian Football Association (ÖFB) was founded on 18 Mar ...

player and present assistant manager of

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

side Southampton F.C. * Hannes Staudinger, Austrian

cinematographer The cinematographer or director of photography (sometimes shortened to DP or DOP) is the person responsible for the recording of a film, television production, music video or other live-action piece. The cinematographer is the chief of the camera ...

. * Gisela Wurm, Austrian

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

Gallery

References

External links

*
Wörgl's attempt in the 1930s to establish a local currencyCommunity Currency Online Magazine
{{DEFAULTSORT:Worgl Cities and towns in Kufstein District Freiwirtschaft Kufstein District