Eisenstadt


Eisenstadt is the capital city of the Austrian state of Burgenland. With a population of 15,074, it is the smallest state capital and the 38th-largest city in Austria overall. It lies at the foot of the Leitha Mountains hill range.
From 1648 to 1921, Kismarton/Eisenstadt was part of the Habsburg Empire's Kingdom of Hungary and the seat of the Hungarian noble family Eszterházy. During this time, the composer Joseph Haydn lived and worked in Eisenstadt as a court musician under the patronage of the Esterházy family. After the cession of Burgenland to Austria in 1921, the city became the province's capital in 1925. As the state capital of Burgenland, it functions as a center of public administration and services and is the seat of three institutes of higher education.
WWW eisenstadt.at

Geography

Eisenstadt lies on a plain leading down to the river Wulka, at the southern foot of the Leitha Mountains, about from the Hungarian border.

Subdivisions

Eisenstadt is divided into three districts ':
  • Eisenstadt-Stadt
  • Kleinhöflein im Burgenland – a town that lies to the west of Eisenstadt proper
  • St. Georgen am Leithagebirge – a town that lies to the east of Eisenstadt proper
Furthermore, Eisenstadt is divided into five Katastralgemeinden:
  • Eisenstadt-Stadt
  • Oberberg, or Oberberg-Eisenstadt – the northern area of Eisenstadt starting beyond the Jewish quarter
  • Unterberg, or Unterberg-Eisenstadt – the southern area of Eisenstadt starting beyond the Kalvarienbergplatz & the Ruster Straße and including the Jewish quarter
  • Kleinhöflein im Burgenland
  • St. Georgen am Leithagebirge
Other informal areas of the city include Wiesäcker and Lobäcker, which lie south of the Eisbach, a tributary of the Wulka. The city is surrounded by the district of Eisenstadt-Umgebung.
The city previously included the districts ' of Eisenstadt-Stadt, Eisenstadt-Oberberg, Eisenstadt-Unterberg, and Eisenstadt-Schloßgrund.

Nearby municipalities

Names and etymology

The city's name means "Iron City" and was first recorded in 1118 as Castrum ferrum, referring to the history of iron mining and iron trade in the area. The first written mention of the town is from 1264 as "minor Mortin", matching the Hungarian name, Kismarton, which recalls Martin of Tours, the patron saint of the main church.

History

Archeological finds prove that the Eisenstadt area was already settled in the Hallstatt period. Celts and Romans settled somewhat later. During the Migration Period, the area was settled by different Germanic tribes and the Huns. Around 800, during the reign of Charlemagne, settlement by the Bavarii began. The territory became part of the Kingdom of Hungary in the 11th century.
The fortress built on the original earth works was destroyed by the troops of Margrave Leopold III of Austria. In 1241, it was destroyed by the Mongol invaders. In 1373, the town came into the possession of the Kanizsai family, who rebuilt the walls surrounding the town and built a fortress at the site of the present day castle between 1388 and 1392. In 1388, Eisenstadt was given the right to hold markets by Emperor Sigismund.
From 1440 Archduke Albert VI of Austria held the town as collateral for a loan. In 1451, Matthias Corvinus ceded it to Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor in return for the Holy Crown of Hungary. Matthias Corvinus reconquered it by force in 1482, but Maximilian I acquired it again in 1490. It remained under Habsburg rule until 1622; however, the Ottoman Empire briefly conquered Kismarton in 1529 and 1532 during their advances on the city of Vienna. It was destroyed by fire in 1589.
In 1648, it passed under the rule of the Esterházy family. These Hungarian princes permanently changed the face of the city due to their extensive construction, especially on their castle, Schloss Esterházy. During this period, the city was captured by the army of Imre Thököly in 1683, and it saw the defeat of the rebel kuruc army of Sándor Károlyi by the Habsburgs in 1704. It was again destroyed by fire in 1776.
The appointment of Joseph Haydn as the prince's Hofkapellmeister began the great artistic period in the city's history. In 1809, Eisenstadt was occupied by French troops during the Napoleonic Wars; in 1897, it was joined to the railway network.
Until the end of World War I, it was the seat of Kismarton district in Sopron county in the Kingdom of Hungary. Without plebiscite, the city and the entire Hungarian territory of Burgenland was annexed to Austria by the Saint-Germain and Treaties of Trianon in 1921. Since 30 April 1925, Eisenstadt has been the seat of the Burgenland state government and thus the state capital. During World War II, Eisenstadt was heavily bombarded. On 2 April 1945, it was captured by Soviet troops of the 3rd Ukrainian Front in the course of the Vienna Offensive, and the city remained under Soviet occupation until 1955. In 1960, it became the see of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Eisenstadt.

Demographics

The ethnic and linguistic structure of the population changed significantly after Burgenland was incorporated into Austria. In 1910, the proportion of the Magyar population was still around 27%; by 1934, however, the share of Hungarian-speaking residents had fallen to about 5%. On the one hand, this change can be attributed to the return of many Magyar civil servants, military personnel, and others to Hungary; on the other hand, it also reflects the inhabitants’ linguistic and national self-identification.
At the last census, Eisenstadt recorded a share of 2.7% Hungarian-speaking and 4.0% Croatian-speaking population. The latter is mainly due to inward migration from surrounding Croatian-speaking or mixed-language municipalities over recent decades.
The confessional composition of the population also changed. The number of Evangelicals rose from 52 in 1890 to 493 in 1961. The number of Jews stood at 906 in 1836 and then declined steadily to 445 by 1923, with emigration occurring primarily toward Vienna. Of the more than 400 Jews in Eisenstadt, about 250 survived the Holocaust. Only two Jews from Eisenstadt returned after 1945.
As of 1 January 2025, the continuously growing provincial capital had a population of 16,118.

Politics

The current mayor of Eisenstadt is Thomas Steiner.
The district council is composed as follows :
The total annual city budget of Eisenstadt in 2021 is €42.256.600 with total expenditure of €42.255.800.

Main sights

Secular buildings

Religious buildings and districts

Bergkirche, housing Haydn's tomb

Museums

Haydnmuseum, a museum dedicated to Joseph Haydn, who lived in the building between 1766 and 1778.Landesmuseum, regional museum

Education

Eisenstadt is the seat of the university of applied sciences FH Burgenland, the college of education PH Burgenland, and the music school Joseph-Haydn-Privathochschule Burgenland.

Transport

The Pannonia Railway had a station in the community.

Culture

Eisenstadt formerly hosted a Joseph Haydn festival, the Haydn Festspiele, a viniculture festival, the Fest der 1000 Weine, and a tournament of the World Athletics Continental Tour, the Austrian Open.

Twin towns — sister cities

Eisenstadt is twinned with:

Notable people

Natives

Sport

Other residents

As a surname

Eisenstadt , a Jewish surname, derives from this city. Some people with this surname or its variants include: