Judenburg

It is located in the Upper Styrian region, on the western end of the Aichfeld basin, stretching along the Mur River from Judenburg down to Knittelfeld in the east. The broad valley is bound by the Niedere Tauern range in the north and the Noric Alps (Lavanttal Alps) in the south.

The municipal area also comprises the cadastral communities of Tiefenbach and Waltersdorf, a former municipality incorporated in 1963.

The municipal area includes the following ten villages (populations as of January 1, 2020):

• Auerling (129)
• Feeberg (176)
• Gasselsdorf (28)
• Judenburg (8,386)
• Oberweg (517)
• Ossach (45)
• Reifling (57)
• Ritzersdorf (15)
• Strettweg (367)
• Waltersdorf (133)

Archaeological findings indicate that the area was settled at least since the days of the Celtic kingdom of Noricum. Judenburg itself was first mentioned in a 1074 staple right deed as mercatum Judinburch, a market town within the estates of Eppenstein Castle, the ancestral seat of the Bavarian Eppensteiner noble family, who ruled as Styrian margraves in the 11th century. The name literally means "Jews' Borough", referring to the town's origin as a trading outpost on the route from the Mur Valley across the Obdach Saddle mountain pass to Carinthia, in which Jews played an important role, being represented in the city's coat of arms.

Upon the extinction of the Eppensteiner dynasty in 1122, the estates passed to the Styrian Otakars and in 1192 to the House of Babenberg, Dukes of Austria since 1156. Judenburg received town privileges in 1224 and the right to collect tolls in 1277. The town grew to an important commercial centre for iron ore mined at nearby Eisenerz, but also for valeriana celtica used in perfumes during the 13th and 14th centuries. Judenburg was even granted a valeriana trade monopoly by the Habsburg emperor Frederick III in 1460. After several pogroms, all Jews were expelled from the Duchy of Styria by order of Emperor Maximilian I in 1496. Following his breakthrough in Italy, General Napoléon Bonaparte made his headquarters at Judenburg and it was there, on the night of 7–8 April 1796, that he signed the Truce of Judenburg with the Austrians.

In the beginning of the 20th century, the town was one of the centres of Austria-Hungary's steel industry and also a garrison city of the Austro-Hungarian Army. From 1910 to 1914 one of the first trolleybusses in Austria connected Judenburg station with the town's centre. Little remains of the former industry today, but Judenburg remains an industrial and trade centre. In May 1918, the city was the site of a failed military mutiny.

In 1938, with the annexation of Austria by Nazi Germany, Judenburg became part of the Third Reich. Due to the presence of the word Jude ("Jew") in the town's name, many possible new names were suggested, including Zirbenstadt (after Zirbe, the German name for the Swiss pine tree) and Adolfsburg (in honor of Adolf Hitler). However, the planned renaming was indefinitely postponed after the outbreak of war and ultimately never happened.^[3][4]

During the Second World War, a subcamp of Mauthausen concentration camp was located nearby,^[5] where a displaced persons' reception centre was established after the war. Judenburg was also one of several towns that saw the handover of Cossacks to the Red Army.

Seats in the municipal assembly (Gemeinderat) as of the 2020 elections:

• Social Democratic Party of Austria (SPÖ): 13
• Austrian People's Party (ÖVP): 7
• Communist Party of Austria (KPÖ): 2
• The Greens - The Green Alternative (die Grüne): 2
• Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ): 1

Judenburg is a member of the Douzelage, a unique town twinning association of 24 towns across the European Union. This active town twinning began in 1991 and there are regular events, such as a produce market from each of the other countries and festivals.^[6][7] Discussions regarding membership are also in hand with three further towns (Agros in Cyprus, Škofja Loka in Slovenia, and Tryavna in Bulgaria).

• Richard Paltauf (1858–1924), an Austrian pathologist and bacteriologist.
• Michael Powolny (1871–1954), sculptor, medallist, ceramist, designer and teacher.
• Walter Pfrimer (1881–1968), politician and Nazi, known for the 1931 Pfrimer Putsch, died locally
• Maria Cäsar (1920-2017), an Austrian political activist (KPÖ) and resistance activist, lived locally.
• Jack Unterweger (1950–1994), author and serial killer
• Christian Muthspiel (born 1962), jazz musician, composer and trombonist
• Wolfgang Muthspiel (born 1965), jazz guitarist and record label owner.
• Alf Poier (born 1967), singer-songwriter and stand-up comedian

• Harald Bosio (1906–1980), skier
• Gernot Jurtin (1955–2006), football player, played 373 games and 12 for Austria
• Herfried Sabitzer (born 1969), football player, played 333 games and 6 for Austria
• Renate Götschl (born 1975), skier, won silver and bronze medals at the 2002 Winter Olympics
• Christoph Sumann (born 1976), biathlete, two silver medals at the 2010 Winter Olympics
• Christian Pfannberger (born 1979), racing cyclist
• Andreas Zuber (born 1983), racing driver
• Thomas Krammer (born 1983), football player, played over 380 games
• Tony Breznik (born 1984), an Austrian bodybuilder.
• Michael Madl (born 1988), football player, played 322 games
• Manfred Gollner (born 1990), an Austrian footballer who has played over 290 gamess
• Stefan Nutz (born 1992), an Austrian professional footballer who has played over 340 games
• Stefan Posch (born 1997), football player, played 220 games and 30 for Austria

• Official homepage
• Judenburg tourism