Panoramic, Government building, Castle of Vaduz, Tre Cavalli (literallyThree Horses) sculpture, Rotes Haus (literallyRed House), Cathedral of St. Florin, Liechtenstein Museum of Fine Arts, House of Parliament
Vaduz (/fɑːˈduːts/;[2]German:[faˈdʊt͡s]ⓘ or[faˈduːt͡s]ⓘ;[3]High Alemannic pronunciation: [faˈdot͡s])[4] is the capital ofLiechtenstein and also the seat of thenational parliament. The village, which is located along theRhine, has 5,696 residents.[1] The most prominent landmark of Vaduz isVaduz Castle, perched atop a steep hill overlooking the village. It is home to the reigning prince of Liechtenstein and theLiechtenstein princely family. The village's distinctive architecture is also displayed in landmarks such as theCathedral of St. Florin, Government House, Village Hall, the National Art Gallery, as well as the National Museum. Although Vaduz is the best-known village in the principality internationally, it is not the largest; neighbouringSchaan has a larger population.
The nameVaduz had been first recorded asde Faduzes. The name of the settlement, like most other towns in theRhine Valley region, is ofRomance origin. The name can be traced back to OldRhaeto-Romance rootauadutg'aqueduct', which in turn evolved from theLatinaquaeductus.[4]
Vaduz is mentioned in historic 12th-century manuscripts asFaduzes. In 1322 a mention of thecastle is made, which was sacked by theSwiss in 1499 during theSwabian War. The entire village was also destroyed.[5]
In the 17th century theLiechtenstein family was seeking a seat in the Imperial diet, theReichstag. As they did not hold any territory that was directly under the Imperial throne they were unable to meet the primary requirement to qualify.[6]
The family yearned for the added power a seat in the Imperial government would bring, and therefore sought to acquire lands that would bereichsunmittelbar, or held directly from theHoly Roman Emperor himself, without any intermediate feudal patronage. After some time, the family was able to arrange the purchase of the minusculeHerrschaft ("Lordship") ofSchellenberg and thecountship of Vaduz (in 1699 and 1712, respectively) from the Hohenems. Tiny Schellenberg and Vaduz possessed exactly the political status required: no feudal lord other than the Emperor.[citation needed]
Thereby, on 23 January 1719, after the purchase had been duly made,Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor, decreed Vaduz and Schellenberg were united, and raised to the dignity ofFürstentum (principality) with the name "Liechtenstein" in honour of "[his] true servant,Anton Florian of Liechtenstein". It is on this date that Liechtenstein became a sovereign member state of theHoly Roman Empire. As testimony to the pure political expediency of the purchases, the Princes of Liechtenstein did not set foot in their new principality for over 120 years.[citation needed]
Vaduz is located in theOberland electoral district, which has fifteen seats in theLandtag of Liechtenstein. Since the introduction of Liechtenstein municipal law of 1864, Vaduz has been locally administered by a mayor and municipal council. Until 1941, this consisted of the mayor, the municipal treasurer, and seven other councillors.[7]
In 1974, the municipal law was revised which extended the term of the mayor and council to four years and increased the seats of Vaduz's municipal council to twelve. The system to elect the municipal council was changed to use aopen listproportional representation system. In 1976, Vaduz replaceduniversal male suffrage withuniversal suffrage.[7] Universal suffrage was not introduced to Liechtenstein on a national level until 1984.[8]
Vaduz features anoceanic climate with warm summers and chilly winters.Köppen-Geiger climate classification system classifies its climate as Marine West Coast Climate (Cfb).[10] The village experiences a noticeable increase in precipitation during the summer, but in general all twelve months see some precipitation. Vaduz receives, on average, approximately 900 mm (35 in) of precipitation per year.Vaduz's warmest month, July, sees average high temperatures reach 25 °C (77 °F) while average low temperatures are about 14 °C (57 °F). The village's coldest month, January, sees average highs of 3 °C (37 °F) and average lows of −3 °C (27 °F).
Climate data for Vaduz, elevation 457 m (1,499 ft), (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1973–present)
Vaduz Castle is the home of the reigning prince of Liechtenstein and theLiechtenstein princely family. The castle is visible from almost any location in Vaduz, being perched atop a steep hill in the middle of the village. TheCathedral of St. Florin, Government House and Village Hall display the various styles and periods of architecture in the village.
As of 2019, 5,696 people lived in Vaduz.[1] Foreigners resident in the village make up 42% of the population.[15]With 67% the population is predominantlyRoman Catholic, while the percentage of Catholics is significantly higher among residents with Liechtenstein nationality (81%) than among foreigner residents (47%). The largest minority religions in the village areProtestantism (10%) andIslam (8%).[16]
The National Art Gallery as well as the National Museum are located in Vaduz. The art gallery (Kunstmuseum Liechtenstein) is a museum of modern and contemporary art, and also shows displays from the private princelyLiechtenstein Collection, the main public display of which is inVienna. The building is an architectural landmark built by the Swiss architects Morger, Degelo and Kerez. It was completed in November 2000 and forms a "black box" of tinted concrete and black basalt stone. The museum collection is also the national art collection of Liechtenstein. TheLiechtenstein National Museum is showing a permanent exhibition on the cultural and natural history of Liechtenstein as well as special exhibitions. There are also thePostage Stamp Museum and a Ski Museum. Vaduz has a kind of folksong that has been greatly influenced by Switzerland, known asKöpugeäng.
Vaduz is one of the few capital cities in the world to not have an airport. The closest major airport isZurich Airport, and the closest minor airport being theSt. Gallen–Altenrhein Airport.Friedrichshafen Airport also provides access to Vaduz. By car, Vaduz is directly accessible via theA13 motorway in Switzerland, or via theA14 motorway in Austria.[17] Vaduz is connected to Switzerland over the Rhine river by theVaduz–Sevelen footbridge [de], or the Werdenberger-Binnenkanal bridge for motor vehicles, which was opened in 1975.[7] Buses can be taken fromBuchs, St. Gallen,Sevelen andFeldkirch into Vaduz. These buses typically run every 20 to 40 minutes and are operated byLiechtenstein Bus.[18]
Vaduz has two primary schools: Äule Primary School, near the Vaduzer-Saal;[20] and Ebenholz Primary School,[21] near theUniversity of Liechtenstein, which is also located in the village. Both schools have the same secretariat and administration.[20] The school assignments of children are largely determined by their street addresses.[21] There are four kindergarten sites, of the Kindergarten Bartlegrosch, in Vaduz.[22]
Barbara Erni (1743–1785) thief and confidence trickster, the last person to be executed in Liechtenstein
Franz Joseph II, Prince of Liechtenstein (1906–1989 in Grabs), the reigning Prince of Liechtenstein from 1938 until his death; lived full-time in the principality
Aurelia Frick (born 1975) a Liechtenstein politician, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Education and Culture.
^abHans Stricker, Toni Banzer, Herbert Hilbe:Liechtensteiner Namenbuch. Die Orts- und Flurnamen des Fürstentums Liechtenstein. Band 2:Die Namen der Gemeinden Triesenberg, Vaduz, Schaan. Hrsg. vom Historischen Verein für das Fürstentum Liechtenstein. Vaduz 1999, S. 430–435.
^"KindergartenArchived 13 October 2016 at theWayback Machine." Commune of Vaduz. Retrieved on 12 May 2016. "Kindergarten Bartlegrosch Bartlegroschstrasse 31 9490 Vaduz " and "Schwefelstrasse 15 9490 Vaduz" and "Schimmelgasse 13 9490 Vaduz" and "Weiherweg 15 9490 Vaduz"
^"Weiterführende Schulen Schaan." Commune of Schaan. Retrieved on 12 May 2016. "Realschule Schaan Duxgass 55 9494 Schaan" and "Sportschule Liechtenstein Duxgass 55 9494 Schaan" and "Realschule Vaduz Schulzentrum Mühleholz II 9490 Vaduz" and "Oberschule Vaduz Schulzentrum Mühleholz II 9490 Vaduz"
^"Biedermann, Gisela".Historical Encyclopedia of the Principality of Liechtenstein (in German). 19 September 2017. Retrieved5 April 2023.
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