Amstetten () is a city in

Lower Austria Lower Austria ( , , abbreviated LA or NÖ) is one of the nine states of Austria, located in the northeastern corner of the country. Major cities are Amstetten, Lower Austria, Amstetten, Krems an der Donau, Wiener Neustadt and Sankt Pölten, which ...

. It is the capital of the Amstetten District and the centre of the historical region Mostviertel (“Most” – lightly fermented apple juice, “viertel” – a region of the province

Geography

Amstetten is situated between

Linz Linz (Pronunciation: , ; ) is the capital of Upper Austria and List of cities and towns in Austria, third-largest city in Austria. Located on the river Danube, the city is in the far north of Austria, south of the border with the Czech Repub ...

(60 km; 40 miles) and

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

(120 km; 75 miles) on the highway and just over an hour from Vienna by highspeed-train, and lies on the river Ybbs and as well near the

Danube The Danube ( ; see also #Names and etymology, other names) is the List of rivers of Europe#Longest rivers, second-longest river in Europe, after the Volga in Russia. It flows through Central and Southeastern Europe, from the Black Forest sou ...

river.

History

There are traces of human settlements from the

Stone Age The Stone Age was a broad prehistory, prehistoric period during which Rock (geology), stone was widely used to make stone tools with an edge, a point, or a percussion surface. The period lasted for roughly 3.4 million years and ended b ...

and the

Bronze Age The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...

in the area. The first permanent settlement in the area to be mentioned in written sources was Ulmerfeld, mentioned in 995. The first mention of Amstetten itself is dated to 1111. In 1858, the town was linked to the rest of

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military ...

by railroad. Since 1868, it has also been the seat of the local district administration. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, there were two subcamps of the

Mauthausen-Gusen concentration camp Mauthausen was a German Nazi concentration camp on a hill above the market town of Mauthausen, Upper Austria, Mauthausen (roughly east of Linz), Upper Austria. It was the main camp of a group with List of subcamps of Mauthausen, nearly 100 f ...

in Amstetten.

Population

Local economy

The Doka Group, a major international producer/supplier of formwork, has their company headquarters in Amstetten.

Schools

Amstetten has a variety of schools which cater to the needs of its residents, and residents of neighbouring villages. These include a Gymnasium, HLW Amstetten and HAK Amstetten. Language learning in Amstetten is enhanced greatly by the presence of English Language Assistants from the UK and USA, who also run regular extra-curricular events in the local area. There is also a vocational boarding school for technical professions and craftsman education.

Shopping

Amstetten provides good shopping opportunities for its residents. There is a shopping centre with clothes shops, shoe shops, a supermarket, technology shops and other amenities. The shopping centre also has free WiFi. Amstetten’s high street has some clothes shops and several restaurants. There are two second hand shops in Amstetten where good quality clothes can be purchased cheaply. There are several large supermarkets including an Interspar, Billa and Hofer.

Culture

Unfortunately, details of Amstetten’s culture scene are not easily found online. For detailed information of events in Amstetten, the City Hall (Rathaus) can provide programmes and leaflets. Johann Pölz Halle is the local concert hall where school balls, theatre performances and concerts are held. Amstetten has an annual 'Kulturwochen', a series of weeks in Autumn dedicated to Culture. This includes performances from the Amstetten Symphony Orchestra and local Amateur dramatic groups, as well as professional theatre, cabarets, story-telling, lectures and exhibitions. In Winter, Amstetten has its own Christmas Market. In Summer, a summer musical theatre made of amateurs and professionals entertains in what is called 'Musicalsummer Amstetten'.

Sights

Amstetten has several churches. There is a small forest and a river for walking opportunities. There is an indoor and outdoor swimming pool, the 'Stadtbad', which offers attractions such as two slides, a current pool and its own park, the 'Uferpark'. There are several gyms in Amstetten as well as a dance and music school.

Transport

Amstetten has a train station that is served by OEBB trains and the Westbahn trains. From the station, there are direct rail services to Vienna, Munich and Salzburg as well as local tourist attraction Melk.

Twin towns – sister cities

Amstetten is twinned with: * Alsfeld, Germany (1979) * Ruelle-sur-Touvre, France (1992) * Pergine Valsugana, Italy (1999)

Notable people

* Theodor von Frimmel (1853-1928), art historian, musicologist and Beethoven researcher * Friedl Czepa (1898-1973), an Austrian stage, film and television actress * Helene von Damm (born 1938), American diplomat, US Ambassador to Austria * Josef Fritzl (born 1935), criminal, rapist and murderer; see Fritzl caseThe Family Man of Amstetten: Double life of a pillar of Austrian society - Europe - World - The Independent
/ref> * Jochem Schindler (1944-1994), and Austrian Indo-Europeanist * Erwin Wagenhofer (born 1961), author and filmmaker * Paulus Hochgatterer (born 1961), an Austrian writer and psychiatrist. * Michael Garschall (born 1967),

theatre director A theatre director or stage director is a professional in the theatre field who oversees and orchestrates the mounting of a theatre production such as a play, opera, dance, drama, musical theatre performance, etc. by unifying various endeavors a ...

* Georg Breinschmid (born 1973), bassist, composer and jazz musician * Gernot Wagner (born 1980), climate economist and author

Sport

* Josef Hickersberger (born 1948), football player and coach, played 372 games and 39 for

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 ...

* Hermann Fehringer (born 1962), pole vaulter, holds the current Austrian record * Michael Klukowski (born 1981), Canadian football player, played 417 games and 36 for

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

* Daniel Kogler (born 1988), football player, played over 250 games * David Peham (born 1992), an Austrian footballer who has played over 240 games * Lukas Deinhofer (born 1994), an Austrian footballer who has played over 290 games

References

Notes

External links

{{Authority control Amstetten District Cities and towns in Amstetten District Holocaust locations in Austria