Rattenberg () 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 ...

on the Inn River 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 ...

near Rattenberg mountain and

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 ...

. With just 400 inhabitants and a surface area of 10 ha, it is the smallest city in the country.

Geography

The proximity of a mountain to the south of the town means that Rattenberg, like many villages nested in steep sided valleys throughout the

region of the

Alps The Alps () are some of the highest and most extensive mountain ranges in Europe, stretching approximately across eight Alpine countries (from west to east): Monaco, France, Switzerland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Germany, Austria and Slovenia. ...

, receives no direct sunlight for much of the winter. It is one of the few places at a significant southerly latitude that experiences a prolonged period without direct sunlight (another is Viganella, Italy), although the sky remains bright while the town is in the mountain's shadow so there is no permanent darkness or 'polar night' as experienced north of the

Arctic Circle The Arctic Circle is one of the two polar circles, and the northernmost of the five major circle of latitude, circles of latitude as shown on maps of Earth at about 66° 34' N. Its southern counterpart is the Antarctic Circle. The Arctic Circl ...

Gallery

File:Rattenberg, stadszicht met Ehemalige Augustiner- Servitenkloster en Kirche Sankt Augustinus Dm69821 foto6 2017-08-02 10.55.jpg, View to the town with former monastery and churchtower File:Rattenberg, toren van de Katholische Pfarrkirche Sankt Virgil Dm121560 foto8 2017-08-02 11.11.jpg, Churchtower (Katholische Pfarrkirche Sankt Virgil) File:Rattenberg, Spitalkirche Heilige Geist Dm121572 foto5 2017-08-02 11.20.jpg, Church: Spitalkirche Heilige Geist File:Rattenberg, straatzicht Haussauerstrasse foto1 2012-08-09 10.46.jpg, Street view Haussauerstrasse

History

Founded in the 14th century, it was built in the literal shadow of Rat Mountain to protect itself from marauders. Maximilian I had the original town citadel expanded to a formidable fortress.

The modern era

In November 2005, the town announced they were building 30 specialized rotating mirrors called heliostats to reflect sunlight into parts of the town during the winter months. The $2.4 million operation was suggested by Bartenbach Lichtlabor GmbH, a lighting design company. The EU planned to foot half the bill as of November 2005. However, the project was never implemented.

Population

Economy

Christmas baubles - 2022-01-02 - Andy Mabbett - 17

Rattenberg has been known for its glass making. Its abundance of crystal glass shops continue the tradition of craftsmanship.Chizzali, p. 42

References

External links

Website of the Rattenberg Tourist Board
Cities and towns in Kufstein District {{Tyrol-geo-stub