A piece of Innsbruck and European transport history stretches inconspicuously across the Inn in the Höttinger Au. The 104 metre long Karwendel Bridge is part of a technical masterpiece from the turn of the century that connects Innsbruck with the southern Bavarian region. The box girder bridge made of riveted steel trusses requires only one river pier to allow trains weighing several tonnes to cross the river. The bridge was renovated in 2007. You can see the forces acting on the bridge when you stand on the wooden footbridge as a pedestrian while a train thunders across. The best view of the Karwendel Bridge is from the Freiburger Bridge further to the east.

The photogenic steel truss bridge as part of the Mittenwald or Karwendel railway is an impressive testimony to the outstanding engineering achievements of the time, which we take for granted today. The railway runs from Innsbruck via Seefeld and Mittenwald to Garmisch-Partenkirchen. Engineer Josef Riehl (1842 - 1917) succeeded in overcoming the 600 metres in altitude to Seefeld thanks to the breathtaking route of the railway line over the Martinswand high above Zirl. Riehl was a child of the post-1848 era: the son of a Bolzano innkeeper, he skilfully exploited the new opportunities offered by technology and finance. As a young man, after studying in Karlsruhe and Munich, he gained his first experience in the construction of the Brenner railway, the Pustertal railway and lines in the east of the empire. In 1870, aged just 28, he founded his own company using his private assets as a basis. He recognised the need for so-called secondary and tertiary railways in addition to the main lines within the vast empire of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Monarchy and the lack of financial resources in the public sector to realise them. Riehl took over the planning of the financial resources and the entire value chain, which he subsequently handed over as complete projects. Roads, railways, power stations and even the necessary railway stations were built under his aegis. With the Hungerburgbahn, the Pustertalbahn and the Stubaitalbahn, Riehl opened up a large part of the inner-Alpine Tyrolean region for the population, tourism and economy. In total, he realised 250 km of railway line in Tyrol alone. One of his masterpieces was the technically demanding Karwendel railway.

Since the end of the 19th century, there had been plans to establish a connection between Innsbruck and Garmisch. One of the most ardent advocates of connecting Tyrol to Bavaria was Mayor Greil from 1890 onwards. In 1904, Austria and Bavaria agreed to realise railway connections between Reutte and Kempten as well as Innsbruck and Garmisch. On the side of the k.k. Monarchy, the state of Austria, the province of Tyrol, Innsbruck and several other municipalities, financed by the Creditanstalt für Handel und Verkehr, formed the Mittenwaldbahn AG with a total volume of just under 24 million crowns, which according to the Austrian National Bank's currency converter corresponds to a value of over 170 million euros. Josef Riehl, together with Wilhelm Ritter von Doderer, received the concession from the Ministry of Railways to build the railway. The particular challenge lay in overcoming the difference in altitude over a relatively short distance between the Inn Valley and the Seefeld plateau without the use of steam locomotives with a purely electrified railway. The contract not only required the laying of rails in alpine terrain. The breathtaking route from Innsbruck up to the Seefeld Plateau across the mountains required the blasting of several tunnels, the construction of viaducts, railway stations such as the Westbahnhof in Wilten and even a dedicated power station on the Ruetzbach. In 1912, Riehl was able to hand over the project to the operator, the city of Innsbruck, within the agreed projected construction costs. The Karwendelbahn is still in operation today as a single-track regional railway and is popular with hikers, skiers and cross-country skiers to get to the Seefeld plateau without traffic jams on the Zirler Berg.

When the university opened in 1669, there were only a handful of professors and students pursuing their studies in Innsbruck. By the middle of the 18th century, around 600 students were enrolled. The number grew steadily. Today, the university is one of the largest employers and, with its many locations between the airport and Rossau, the largest property user in Innsbruck. Originally, the university was not located on the Innrain, but in Herrengasse near the parish church of St Jakob. A lack of space forced the students and professors to move to what was then the outskirts of the city. The move began in 1914, starting with the library. Even before its completion, the university was misappropriated for the first time. During the war years, the half-finished premises were used as a military hospital. Over the course of time, the university on the Innrain was continually expanded to cope with the increasing number of faculties and students. Particularly worth seeing in the library is the old reading room, which is still very popular with students today as a stylish place to study. Today, the entire campus is a self-contained, not uninteresting composition of different architectural styles from the 20th and 21st centuries. The modern Agnes-Heller-Haus blends in surprisingly harmoniously with the neo-baroque buildings next to the GeiWI tower. To the west of this is a student hall of residence. 

The forecourt is controversial, with the square designed by Lois Welzenbacher. Memorialwhich commemorates the fallen members of the university during the First World War. Like many representatives of modernist architecture and art in the 1920s, Welzenbacher was attracted by the excitement and novelty emanating from fascist movements. He was no exception. A basic Greater German attitude was widespread among the population until the 1980s. Fraternity members from various fraternities moved ideologically between Greater German nationalism, conservative Catholic Austrofascism and National Socialism. Academic anti-Semitism and anti-socialism were socially acceptable among academics at the time. Prorector Theodor Rittler dedicated the memorial with the words: "Germany, your kingdom come!" The fraternity motto "Ehre – Freiheit – Vaterland" was only expanded to include the word "Which" in 2019. The renaming of the square to Christoph-Probst-Platz commemorates the Innsbruck medical student who died in 1943 as a member of the resistance group Weiße Rose was executed. A memorial plaque on the Memorial A second plaque commemorates the liberation theologians Ignacio Ellacuría and Segundo Montes, two graduates of the University of Innsbruck who were murdered by the regime in San Salvador in 1989.

Young people meet in a relaxed atmosphere on the back side facing the Inn. The little wall above the Inn, better known as the Sun deck, has become a veritable point of discussion in city politics in recent years. The student approach of consumer-free gatherings in public spaces has come up against the regulatory fury of city officials and politicians. 

The narrow building with the eye-catching façade in Josef-Hirn-Straße is home to Innsbruck's largest student fraternity, the Austria. Next to the entrance is a bronze plaque commemorating the date the association was founded on 9 June 1864. Its motto "In Veritate Libertas“ (Note: Freedom lies in the truth) is recorded here. This means that the Austria is one of the oldest of Innsbruck's many student fraternities, whose often stately fraternity houses you pass again and again, especially in Wilten and St. Nikolaus. The „Bude" the Austria itself is of more recent date. The house was built by the Boys Financed and built in 1902. Old pictures show that it was initially a detached house and was only gradually surrounded by other houses. With its distinguished appearance, turrets and bay windows, it stands out among the residential buildings. During the First World War, it served as a military hospital. Today there are several parlours, bars and rooms for learning and celebrating together in the fraternity house.

How did the foundation of the Austria? In the 19th century, liberal, nationalist desires also became increasingly popular among students and professors at Innsbruck University. University members demanded civil liberties, a free press and a constitution. The traditional feudal order was increasingly shaken in favour of a modern state modelled on France and England. In 1848, it was mainly students who were in favour of the tame revolution in Innsbruck. They joined together in student fraternities. The fraternity system had its origins in medieval universities. Professors and students at universities were organised according to Landmannschaften, i.e. nationalities or language groups. Each fraternity with enough members had its own clothing, insignia and orders, cultivated its own traditions and tried to assert its own interests within university life. This spirit gave rise to the first corps and groups at German universities after the Napoleonic Wars, which saw themselves as the nucleus of German nationalism. While conservative subjects joined together to form paramilitary organisations, these associations enjoyed great popularity among academics.

Within the fraternity system, there were various forms that have survived to this day. The majority of Austrian fraternities that still exist have a traditional Catholic background. However, there are also fraternities that are politically far to the right. The wearing of a sword, the gladius deambulatoris, was permitted to students in the early modern period after completing their first year at university. The fraternities continue the tradition of carrying weapons and honour duels to this day. Most of them still do not accept women into their ranks. They are organised hierarchically and function according to their own rituals. The four principles of the Austria are the Catholic faith (Religio), Fatherland (Patria), science (Scientia) and friendship (Amicitia).

From the 19th century onwards, Catholic student fraternities formed the connecting element between the church, politics and the university. Although a strong, centralised state similar to the one in France was to replace the fragmented system of small states, the Catholic student fraternities were not the only ones to do so. Heiligen Römischen Reiches Deutscher Nation or the German Confederation, a democratic republic was rarely called for. Catholicism, monarchy, multi-ethnic state, German nationalism - the definitions of fatherland were diverse within the various student societies. The entrance area of the fraternity house of the Austriaon which the Habsburg double-headed eagle and the Tyrolean eagle are depicted, gives an indication of the orientation of this connection.

Student fraternities are still powerful organisations. If you take a look at the list of former members of the AustriaOver the decades, bishops as well as leading politicians from the conservative camp have been members. Several provincial governors, mayors of Innsbruck and Federal Chancellor Julius Raab were members. The behaviour with sabres, ribbons and caps at events and processions may seem ridiculous at first glance to uninitiated observers. The customs, traditions and practices are certainly antiquated and not everyone's cup of tea. For outsiders, the world of thought of the connections is also difficult to understand and contradictory. The motto above the Austria portal reads "I am built for the protection & refuge of human rights & free speech". Members of the Austria were involved in the Catholic resistance against National Socialism. On the other hand, Engelbert Dollfuß and Kurt Schuschnigg were both chancellors of that brief era known as the Austrofascism members of the Austrian Parliament, which was to go down in Austrian history. Austria.

From the 16th century onwards, the Innrain, today a busy thoroughfare, was mainly populated by the civil service, which was growing as part of the princely administrative apparatus. In order not to leave the salvation of the new inhabitants unattended, construction of St John's Church began in 1728 in the High Baroque style according to plans by Georg Anton Gumpp. Visitors are greeted by the onion-shaped towers typical of the Baroque style. The temple-shaped entrance area of the church is decorated with a beautiful ceiling fresco. In classic baroque style, the picture shows the Providentia Divinadivine providence. While the cornucopia pours wealth and prosperity onto the righteous, the lower section on the right shows hell, where sinners experience God's punishment for their dissolute existence on earth. The interior is also richly decorated and enchants with its dazzling white colour.

St John's Church is not dedicated to St John the Baptist, but to St John of Nepomuk. According to legend, St John Nepomuk did not want to break the seal of confession when the King of Bohemia questioned him about his wife's confession. As a result, King Wenceslas IV had him tortured in Prague and then drowned in the Vltava. He is considered the patron saint of bridges and confession. The square in front of the church commemorates Bishop Reinhold Stecher, who died in 2013 and is still very popular in Tyrol today, and provides a beautiful view of the free-standing church. Until 1985, this small, inner-city oasis was a car park. The rededication as a car-free zone was relatively early by Innsbruck standards, considering how long it took to turn Maria-Theresien-Straße into a pedestrian zone.

Bekannt ist die Johanneskirche auch als Neue Universitätskirche. When the university emerged from the Jesuit College in 1669, this powerful order in Innsbruck was in charge of higher education in the city. For a long time, university services were held in the Jesuit church. When the main university moved to the Innrain, St John's Church was closer to the students, at least in terms of location. Bishop Stecher, to whom the square in front of the church is dedicated, elevated St John's Church to university church status in 1993. A memorial plaque on the north side of the outer façade of St John's Church commemorates the members of the Catholic student fraternity Leopoldina who died in the world wars.

It is a characteristic of urban expansion and development that infrastructure not only changes technically, but also in terms of its positioning within the municipality. Cemeteries and hospitals not only grow, but often relocate towards the new peripheral areas. When Innsbruck grew from a small community on the bridge into a city, the cemetery was moved from the parish church within the city walls next to the city hospital to today's Adolf-Pichler-Platz. The expanding Hofburg under Emperor Maximilian required the space of the old churchyard. In the 19th century, as more and more buildings grew up around the hospital church and the Gottesacker, both institutions moved westwards. The Tyrolean art historian Heinrich Hammer (1873 - 1953) described the relocation in 1923 in his book Art history guide through the buildings and monuments as follows:

„The city's oldest cemetery was located around St. Jacob's parish church; apparently because of the expanding Hofburg of Maximilian I, it was moved outside the city in 1510 to the Hl. Geist-Spitalskirche, where a Gothic double chapel (below in honour of St. Michael and St. Vitus, above St. Anne) and (1571, 1591) arcades were built as early as 1510-16. After this „old“ cemetery had been enlarged several times (1849), the city decided in 1855 to build a new cemetery in the west of the city, opened part of it in 1856 and at the same time stopped burials in the old cemetery, whose chapel and graves were then demolished in 1869 with the barbaric destruction of most of the old gravestones; its place is now taken by the state secondary school built in 1869 and the Karl Ludwig-Platz marked out in 1896.“

The relocation was not only due to a lack of space, but people's ideas on hygiene were no longer compatible with a cemetery in the centre of town. Although the enlightened Emperor Joseph II failed with his desire for more rationality when it came to death and dying, which culminated in the introduction of reusable folding coffins, new times also dawned in Catholic Tyrol in the period after 1848. In 1855, the city of Innsbruck organised a competition to design a new cemetery. The specifications were a rectangular ground plan and the design of the grounds modelled on an Italian cemetery. Campo Santo. Carl Müller succeeded with his contemporary modern design with several entrances and artistically designed arcades, which encompassed the cemeteries that are now located to the north of the blessing hall. The new cemetery was built in the summer of 1856 on the undeveloped Wilten fields south of the Innrain. The arcade was designed by Franz Plattner, August von Wörndle, Mathias Schmid and Georg Mader, one of the co-founders of Tyrolean stained glass, in a late work of the then modern, romantic Nazarene style. In 1859, Bruneck artist Josef Gröbmer (1815 - 1882) created the statue of the Risen Christ above the then main portal at the north entrance

A walk through the well-kept grounds with their old trees is like a visit to a museum and a journey into the past. The monuments and tombs not only show a wide variety of artistic styles, but also reveal a lot about the buried and the circumstances of the time. Many of the tombs, such as the monument to the Unterberger family and the neo-Gothic crypt of Innsbruck composer Josef Pembaur, are decorated with Nazarene-style paintings like the arcades and indicate the deep piety of the buried. The gravestone of the social democratic Innsbruck politician couple Maria and Martin Rapoldi, on the other hand, was designed as a mosaic in the typical matter-of-fact republican style of the interwar period. The androgynous-looking figure wears a palm branch and crown, with the city coat of arms of Innsbruck proudly emblazoned below as a secular symbol. Josef Kiebach's sparsely decorated civic grave of honour also bears the city's coat of arms. The tomb of the last governor of the imperial and royal monarchy, Josef Schraffl. Josef Schraffl (1855 - 1922), the last governor of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy, has a baroque, suffering crucified figure and a stone eagle, reflecting the general mood of Tyrol, which was divided at the Brenner Pass after the First World War. Under arcade 96 is the tomb of the Greater German nationalist mayor Wilhelm Greils, who is holding German oak leaves in the hand of a veiled woman who has sprung from antiquity. The Trentino sculptor Andrea Malfatti designed the Oberer tomb in arcade 48 with the Transfiguration of Christ and the Lodron tomb Mourning figure of a girl in arcade 52 in the Italian-naturalistic style. In 1909, the Innsbruck master builder Josef Retter had a neo-Gothic chapel built in the centre of the newer, southern part of the cemetery, which could now serve as a film set thanks to its romantic ivy growth, as a family burial place. The solid wooden door is framed by a mosaic that is reminiscent of Art Nouveau.

Some of the elaborately designed monuments, graves of honour and family tombs of important Innsbruck residents are quite controversial. A bust commemorates Prelate Anton Müllner, a war-mongering poet who wrote terrible works under the name of Brother Willram. The memorial to the martyrs of the striking fraternity is particularly „patriotic“ Suevia. Their motto „Freedom, honour, fatherland“, which they share with other German nationalist academic organisations such as the Libertas in Vienna, is crowned by a martial figure. The first mayor of the post-war period, Anton Melzer (1898 - 1951), who was removed from the city council after 1938 and was imprisoned for a long time in the Reichenau camp, has his artistically designed grave of honour in the immediate vicinity of the final resting place of Egon Denz, who was mayor of Innsbruck during the Nazi era.

The oldest graves of honour were transferred from the old municipal cemetery to the new central cemetery in 1858, as was the crucifix in the centre of the northern part of the complex, for example the tomb of the court sculptor under Ferdinand I Alexander Colin (1527 - 1612), who had his memorial with the Awakening of Lazarus or the representative of the early Enlightenment in Austria and Chancellor of Tyrol Josef von Hormayr (1705 - 1779). A particularly creepy monument at the north entrance commemorates this move. Josef created the ensemble in 1775 for the burial place of the Counts Wolkenstein-Trostburg, one of the oldest noble families in Tyrol. In 1873, the neo-Gothic monument was erected by the town directly in front of the main entrance. In the same year, the Innsbrucker Nachrichten praised the monument in a report about the cemetery on All Souls' Day:

„Leaving the cemetery after this brief review, we come across a well-known monument from the old cemetery, partly hidden behind cypress trees. The town council had the former Wolkenstein monument restored by the sculptor Grissemann and placed here in memory of all the remains transferred from the old cemetery. This important marble work from the end of the last century, with its somewhat foppish old man holding the hourglass over the high coffin, the Grim Reaper, and the beautiful female figure facing him, who turns away from him in horror, is an ornament to our cemetery, which has almost become a centre of Tyrolean art.“

The monument depicts Saturn, the Roman equivalent of the Greek god Chronos. The artistically designed figures in the style of classical antiquity fit in surprisingly well with the 1870s, which were characterised by the onset of historicism. Saturn was the Roman patron saint of time, agriculture and fertility. According to legend, the father of heaven devoured his own children to prevent them from depriving him of his power as ruler. However, his son Jupiter, the Greek Zeus, was saved and was able to overthrow him. The monument shows Saturn in the form of an angel of death, mercilessly holding an expired hourglass in front of a grieving woman bent over a skull, while a child at the foot of the sarcophagus covers its face with a veil.

Three years after the inauguration of the new municipal cemetery, the city opened the Protestant section to the south of the main site, which was of course structurally separated in order to maintain Catholic order in the province of Tyrol. Five years later, the Jewish section followed, also specially enclosed. The former Jewish cemetery at Judenbühel in St. Nikolaus had to be relocated after the graves had been vandalised several times. This sad story was to be repeated in 1961 during the Eichmann trials, when the Jewish section of the Westfriedhof was once again desecrated by unknown persons. In 1889, the cemetery doubled in size after the grounds had become too small in just over 30 years. The former end with the cemetery chapel became the connecting section and the main entrance was moved to the eastern end.

During the brief economic boom of the interwar period, the cemetery, which was opened in Pradl Western cemetery The complex was extended and modernised again. The chapel in the centre of the complex was rebuilt in 1927 in a cubic style with a pyramid roof according to plans by the municipal building official Franz Wiesenberg. The stone ensemble above the entrance to the new blessing hall with God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit is designed in the functional style of the interwar period. Gottlieb Schuller and Rudolf Jettmar designed the paintings, Franz Santifaller the wooden figures symbolising faith, love and hope. Inside, Tyrolean stained glass mosaics adorn the walls. The old vestibule with the frescoes End of the world, Last judgement und Heavenly Jerusalem Fortunately, Franz Plattner's remains were preserved. The cemetery was given a small urn grove in accordance with the modern ideas of the First Republic era. The change in the burial rite from the pompous Orthodox rite to a bourgeois cremation was one of the first measures in the revolutionary Soviet Union of the 1920s to manifest the renunciation of the monarchist system of Tsarism. The Social Democrats, who were strong in Innsbruck, were only able to achieve a partial success with the urn grove. The planned crematorium was too much of a good thing and, like the reusable coffin of Joseph II, was scuppered by protests from the Catholic part of Tyrol.

In 1939, the property developer New home (note: today's Neue Heimat Tirol) in Wilten, Pradl, Reichenau and Saggen residential complexes, which are still in use today as Südtirolersiedlungen are known. The most impressive of these estates was built between Egger-Lienz-Straße and Franz-Fischer-Straße under the direction and realisation of Theodor Prachensky and Jakob Alberts. At first glance, the architecture may appear monotonous and unspectacular, but if you consider the dimensions and significance of the project from the perspective of the 1930s and 40s, you quickly realise that it was not a housing estate that was created here, but an entire district. The two- to three-storey buildings, since the last renovation in bright red and yellow instead of the original grey, are grouped around spacious, interconnected inner courtyards. Those who have the opportunity to visit the Südtirolersiedlung The dimensions and size of this ensemble can be seen from above, for example from the Ferrari bend on the Brenner main road. The individual inner courtyards are bordered by low, stone walls that give the entire ensemble the character of an inner-city fortress. The entrance to the estate from Stafflerstrasse to Speckbacherstrasse with its neo-Romanesque columns represents a small city gate through which one enters the estate. As with the Pembau block, Prachensky probably also wanted the bay window with the balconies above it to represent a connection to Innsbruck's history, as the composition is very reminiscent of the Goldene Dachl in the old town centre. The building material used for the passageway was the Höttinger Breccie also used a speciality of Innsbruck. To understand the contrast Prachensky created, you have to think back to Wilten in the late 1930s. To the east and north, the middle-class Wilhelminian style houses bordered the South Tyrolean estate, to the south the Südring had not yet been built and to the west towards Zollerstraße the area was still more or less unpopulated and empty.

After the First World War, the historic province of Tyrol was divided at the Brenner border. The German-speaking population of South Tyrol suffered more and more reprisals under Mussolini's fascist regime. This led to disagreements between Benito Mussolini and Adolf Hitler. Mussolini wanted to Italianise the German-speaking South Tyroleans, whereas Hitler had promised to unite all German-speaking ethnic groups. In 1939, the two dictators agreed to give the German-speaking population of South Tyrol the opportunity to resettle from Italy to the German Reich. The propaganda in favour of the resettlement under the motto "Home to the realm" had an effect. The majority of German-speaking South Tyroleans chose to emigrate northwards.

"South Tyroleans, confess yourselves! A difficult but proud hour calls on you to confess for your blood and your people, to decide whether you will finally renounce your German nationality for yourselves and your descendants or whether you will proudly and freely confess your German identity. You are not choosing between your homeland and Galicia, but between a South Tyrol that has become alien to us and the land that the Führer will assign to us in the German Reich. The decision is difficult, but not in doubt for a moment, because we know what we owe to the call of our German blood, the German people and our Führer. We sacrifice the clod to the great goal, the great, holy German Reich."

As the capital of the Reichsgau, Innsbruck was to fulfil many of the so-called Optants to be included. It was expected that 20,000-50,000 new citizens would arrive. In many peripheral areas of the city at the time, the construction of housing estates began as early as August 1939 in anticipatory obedience. In order to Resettler Despite the war, all the levers within the immense resources were freed up to bring them "home" as quickly as possible. The DAF, the German Labour Fronttook over the organisation and founded the housing association New home.

In the first construction phase of the Special measure South Tyrol the city of Innsbruck planned 1000 flats, with almost 2000 more to be built by 1944. In addition to flats, shops, restaurants, schools, kindergartens and offices were to be built. As the war continued, money, building materials and labour became scarce, but despite this, just over 2,100 flats were completed across the city.

When the blocks between Egger-Lienz-Straße and Franz-Fischer-Straße were ready for occupation in 1942, the situation was completely different from when the South Tyrolean population had been surveyed a few years earlier. The fortunes of war had turned and with them the enthusiasm for the Home-in-Reich movement. There were now too many flats for too few "returnees" who dared to make the move from their Italian homeland to the north. Over 40% of the flats were therefore not allocated to South Tyroleans, but to "deserving" subjects of the Nazi system.

During Allied air raids between December 1943 and December 1944, some of the houses in Speckbacherstraße were hit. None of them had to be demolished and the building fabric was basically preserved. In the 1960s, the houses were raised by two storeys, followed later by renovations and a change of colour from dull grey to various more vibrant colours. Between the blocks is the traffic park, where Innsbruck's children can obtain their cycling licence under the watchful eye of the police.

On the corner of Speckbacherstraße and Franz-Fischer-Straße, you can see a silent witness to the construction of the Südtirolersiedlung to admire. There is a stone statue at the height of the first floor. It was made by the South Tyrolean sculptor Alexander Lanner, who also created the Führer bust in the Wedding Hall in the Golden Roof and the Princess with frog prince in the fountain in the courtyard garden. The tightly and resolutely heading north into the Altreich The looking man is supposed to represent a typical South Tyrolean in traditional Merano costume, a symbol for the optants who Blood and soil ideology of the German people and left their homeland to do so.

When the Innsbruck municipal council decided in 2016 to "The pasture" to be felled, a storm of indignation broke out. Every trained Innsbruck resident immediately knew which tree it was. The city council for urban planning was inundated with emails in which outraged citizens gave free rein to their emotions over the loss of the tree. All the shouting and screaming did not help. The tree was decrepit and diseased and posed a safety risk due to its imposing size.

The willow in question stood on Sonnenburgplatz, a small inner-city roundabout in Wilten. It covered a stone fountain consisting of two intertwined dolphins spouting water into two shell basins. The square offered neither a cosy bench nor did it commemorate a special event in the city's history. No famous artist had designed it and the once customary title of the fountain Salt and pepper fountain was hardly known to anyone. It was only with the imminent disappearance of the pasture that the people of Innsbruck consciously rediscovered the place, which had long gone unnoticed and overlooked in everyday life.

The fountain was installed on the square in front of the railway station in 1886 to welcome arriving guests to the up-and-coming tourist city of Innsbruck. The two dolphins, symbolising peace and harmony, were the inspiration for the design. When Baron Johann von Sieberer realised his plan in 1905 to celebrate the unification of Innsbruck and Wilten with his much more grandiose Unification fountain the dolphin fountain was moved to Wilten to its current location near the Wilten state railway station, which opened in 1883 and is now the Westbahnhof. The two coats of arms of Innsbruck and Wilten were probably engraved in one of the basins at a later date.

From the 1880s, Sonnenburgplatz developed into Wilten's posh neighbourhood. The name recalls the sovereign jurisdiction of Sonnenburg, which had its origins in the Middle Ages above Mount Isel. Similar to Claudiaplatz in Saggen, residential buildings for the wealthy bourgeoisie were built in the style of the time in Wilten, which was still an independent neighbourhood at the time. A picture postcard from 1910 shows the expanse and splendour of the square, where a cyclist presents her modern sports equipment, without a willow, mind you.

The architectural highlight of the ensemble is the 1902 historicist-style Sonnenburg on the south-west side of the square with its presidential balcony and rich decorations. The Wilhelminian style houses in the side streets are also worth seeing. The statues of bare-breasted ladies and bearded gentlemen at Sonnenburgstraße 17 and the beautiful facades of the colourful buildings in Stafflerstraße to the west of the square allow you to travel back in time. Belle Époque.

By the way: the newly planted tree is growing vigorously and will soon be a worthy, stately successor. What is more exciting is whether it will be possible to upgrade Sonnenburgplatz by freeing it from traffic so that it once again becomes a postcard-worthy motif in Innsbruck's cityscape.

The Tiroler Glasmalerei- und Mosaikanstalt was perhaps Innsbruck's most internationally successful industrial enterprise in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The influence that the company had on Innsbruck can hardly be overestimated. The architecture of the factory building in Wilten reflects the exceptional skills of the artists and craftsmen. Unlike many other entrepreneurs, the art-loving company founders attached great importance to the aesthetics of their plant. The co-founder of the company and master builder Josef von Stadl created a factory building, the core of which still exists today. The facility had to manage the balancing act between art workshop, exhibition space, offices and industrial production for large orders with more than a hundred windows.

If you enter the complex, which opened in 1870, from Müllerstraße, you will notice the marble plaque framed by mosaics, which commemorates the visits of Emperor Franz Josef. I. The statue of St Barbara above the entrance, like the rest of the core of the three-storey main building, has been preserved to this day despite many renovations. The neo-Romanesque main building, decorated with gold lettering, is reminiscent of a church in its formal language. A medieval-looking lamp with an Austrian emblem hangs in front of the entrance. In the inner courtyard, several preserved works in different styles bear witness to the craftsmanship of different eras. Opposite the entrance portal, a Habsburg coat of arms with a double-headed eagle and an Orthodox-style depiction of the Mother of God with Christ the King on her lap in gold adorn the façade. In the rear courtyard of the main building, you can see the production halls and workshops that were added in 1884. A mosaic of the Mother of God in Art Nouveau style hangs somewhat apart in the corridor between the wings of the building. The gable of the western façade in Glasmalereistraße is crowned by a Madonna and Christ Child in gold.

The history of the Tyrolean stained glass and mosaic centre is at least as interesting as the building itself. After centuries in which glass painting had sunk into insignificance, this craft made a comeback in the slipstream of the new architectural styles of historicism and under the patronage of King Ludwig in the form of Germany's first industrial glass painting studio. In Tyrol, it took many coincidences and three remarkable men to launch this important craft for sacred buildings.

Josef von Stadl and Georg Mader from Steinach and Albert Neuhauser from Innsbruck founded the Tyrolean stained glass workshop in 1861. Four years later, over 450 windows had already been produced. The workshop grew, which necessitated a move to the Baur's house of the textile manufacturer Franz Baur. These premises soon became too small for the company and its future plans. Construction of the new factory premises in Wilten began in 1869. In the same year, production of the company's own raw material, glass, began in the workshop under the technical direction of the inventor Neuhauser. When the space inside the factory became too small for glass production, a factory-owned cathedral glassworks was built in 1872 on the Wilten fields at the site of today's Schöpfstraße 19, where the precious raw material was produced on a large scale until 1899.

After the economic crisis of 1873, the construction industry flourished under the masses of orders from the public sector and with it Tyrolean glass painting. From the very beginning, the stained glass factory was characterised by its good connections and its large network, not only within the Danube Monarchy. The first overseas commission left the factory for the USA as early as 1871. After 1873, the company was a regular guest at the then popular world exhibitions. The best-known works in Innsbruck are probably the windows of the municipal baths in Salurnerstraße, St Nicholas Church and the Evangelical Church of Christ.

In 1874, Neuhauser had to leave the company for health reasons. He was succeeded by Albert Jele as the new director of the stained glass workshop and partner. Under his aegis, the company expanded significantly. Jele was an art historian, widely travelled and spoke several languages. With its international branches, Tiroler Glasmalerei became a global player in its sector. In 1880, the company expanded to Vienna. Art Nouveau artists, expressionists and modern architects discovered the colourful windows from Wilten for projects outside of church construction. The works of art were supplied as far afield as India and Australia. In 1891, the new management opened a branch in New York to avoid the import duties of 45% in the USA.

Meanwhile, Neuhauser founded the Tyrolean Mosaic Institute. In 1900, his solo project merged with the parent company to form the Tyrolean Glass Painting and Mosaic Institute. In Innsbruck, the parish churches of St Nicholas, Dreiheiligen and Hötting, Wilten Basilica, the Monastery of Perpetual Adoration, the Collegium Canisianum, the Chamber of Commerce, TIWAG on Landhausplatz and the Wilten Art Clinic all have mosaics made by the Wilten art company. The two cemeteries in Pradl and Wilten also display the skills of the mosaic workshop in various places. On the low buildings in Müllerstraße, a mosaic above the entrance is a reminder of the former purpose of the otherwise inconspicuous building. The adjoining building at Glasmalereistraße 8 was built the following year by the Innsbruck master builder Anton Fritz as a residence for Jele on Glasmalereistraße, which had been built shortly before. The architect did not break with the neo-Romanesque style of the factory building opposite and used the church-like round arches and Art Nouveau elements. Above the entrance door, a window in the style of the turn of the century shows a boat. In 1929, the Mader family bought the house and had it remodelled by Franz Baumann in the style of the Neuen Sachlichkeit The building will be extended by a third floor while retaining the original building core.

Even though the golden age of stained glass was over with the end of the monarchy, the business was able to survive. Fresh input from changing artists and artistic directors, including big names such as Hans Andre, Max Weiler, Ernst Nepo and Max Spielmann, kept the business going. In 1929, the Mader building in Glasmalereistraße was remodelled according to Franz Baumann's plans together with the addition of a new storey. In 1944, the stained glass and mosaic workshop was badly damaged in an air raid. Reconstruction began immediately after the war. Since 2000, the western part of the listed building has been home to an inn. The company continues to produce high-quality stained glass to this day, now in its fifth generation. From the historicism of the Belle Epoque to the expressionism of the interwar period and abstract art after 1945, stained glass has accompanied the Tyrolean architecture and art scene for over 150 years.

An imperial wedding and an imperial death within a few days of each other in the summer of 1765 once again made Innsbruck the centre of Europe for a short time. The Triumphal Gate commemorates the events that took place in Innsbruck. 

On 5 August, Maria Theresa's son Leopold married the Spanish princess Maria Ludovica in Innsbruck. For the wedding party coming from south-west and eastern Europe, Innsbruck was an ideal meeting place to finalise the deal and make the union official, as the former royal seat already had experience with royal and princely weddings. However, the celebrations were marred by several accidents. Despite all efforts, the cultural programme in little Innsbruck could not be adapted to the tastes of the noble society. Changeable weather and the groom's stomach flu dampened the mood. The news of the death of one of the bride's uncles did nothing to lift the spirits either. But the bad end came shortly after the wedding. On 18 August, the highlight of the disastrous wedding was the death of the groom's father, Emperor Franz Stephan I of Habsburg-Lorraine, from a stroke.

The original wooden gate was actually only intended as a temporary, festively decorated entrance to the city during the wedding. It was not unusual to revive this Roman custom of the triumphal arch at important events organised by the imperial ruling family. During the visit of Emperor Charles VI, a triumphal arch was also erected for the ceremonial entry into the city. In 1774, however, his daughter Maria Theresa had her triumphal arch built permanently in stone, modelled on that of the ancient Emperor Constantine, to commemorate both the death of her husband and the marriage of her son forever. The southern part of the triumphal gate facing Leopoldstrasse expresses the joy of the wedding of the future Emperor Leopold II. The portrait of the ruling couple is flanked by the figures of the Providentia Divina, der göttlichen Vorsehung, und der Constantia, der Beständigkeit. Diese beiden Eigenschaften sahen die Habsburger als ganz entscheidend für ihre Dynastie an. Sie legitimierten die Macht ihres Hauses über ihre Untertanen durch das Gottesgnadentum, der Vorsehung, auf der die Beständigkeit the fate of the country for the good of all. On the northern part facing Maria-Theresien-Strasse, the Angel of Death is enthroned in Baroque pathos to symbolise mourning over the sudden death of the emperor. The remains of the city wall and the demolition material of the suburban gate at today's southern entrance to the old town, which fell victim to the modernisation of the city under Maria Theresa in 1765, were used as building material.

Especially with the Nordkette from the south or from the east with the Winklerhaus in the background, the Triumphpforte is a wonderful motif. It's worth getting up early, as the traffic during the day is quite annoying for photo enthusiasts.

The Winklerhaus right next to the Triumphpforte and in the middle of the city traffic, often remains hidden from the eyes of inattentive walkers. Wrongly so, as it is one of the few Art Nouveau buildings in Innsbruck. The two parts of the building, consisting of a commercial wing in Leopoldstraße and a residential wing in Maximilianstraße, stand out clearly from the rest of the surrounding architecture. The Innsbruck city pharmacist Franz Winkler (1833 - 1895) had the building extended to its current height in 1873. His successor as landlord and Innsbruck lawyer Josef Winkler hired the Munich architect Anton Bachmann to replace the classicist façade with the current Art Nouveau façade.

From Leopoldstraße, you can admire the façade with its rich and sweeping ornamentation. The animals, mythical creatures and masks on the capitals are typical of the playful Art Nouveau style. In the frieze zone above the shop wing is a mosaic of a Byzantine Madonna, an extremely unusual depiction of the Virgin Mary for Innsbruck. Instead of the suffering Mother of God, it shows precious stone jewellery and rich headdresses. Above the entrance to the shop on the ground floor, morris dancers are contorting their limbs, a reminiscence by the artist of Innsbruck's city history. This courtly dance from the time of Maximilian was also captured for posterity in sculptural form on the Golden Roof.

The part of the Winklerhaus in Maximilianstraße is less colourful, but no less worth seeing. The bay window decorated with two mythical creatures in particular is evidence of an imaginative and creative builder:

"Let each man do as he pleases,
Let everyone see where they stay,
And who stands,
that he does not fall."

Art Nouveau was an expression of a new bourgeois self-image around the turn of the century. It was a kind of rebellion against traditional values, which the aristocracy still embodied despite the changes after 1848, especially in the Austrian monarchy. Enlightened citizens increasingly saw themselves as individuals outside of Catholic-orientated hierarchies and the new technocracy. Sensuality and nature against rationality and class thinking, body awareness as a sign of a new era. Life reformers abhorred the new synchronisation of time and having to submit to the galloping technologisation and rationality in every respect. Man, body, mind and soul in connection with nature were to take centre stage. Art Nouveau as an art movement was based on this trend. Similar to Romanticism in the 18th and 19th centuries, a form of mysticism away from structured and sober reality was to return to life. The splendour hinted at a new, better time, a golden age. The clear forms of classicism and the pure reason it represented were to be overcome by the playfulness of Art Nouveau.

The Winklerhaus represents a contrast to the majority of buildings erected in Innsbruck around 1900. This becomes clear when you look at the architecture of the Winklerhaus with the austere main post office in Maximilianstraße opposite, which was planned in the typical style of the k.uk. The building was planned in 1908. Unlike in Vienna, where Art Nouveau by artists such as Otto Wagner and Gustav Klimt began its triumphal march, this style never really caught on in Tyrol. Town pharmacist Franz Winkler, on the other hand, was open to modern art not only in his choice of residence, but also in the design of his final resting place. An expressive modernist, cubist painting adorns the Winkler family tomb in the arcades of the Westfriedhof cemetery in Wilten.

Innsbruck residents born before the 1990s probably still remember the omnipresent Innsbruck beer logo with nostalgia Adambräu at the town's pubs. Until recently, a large mural with the iconic Adambräu logo was emblazoned on a residential building in Knollerstraße, showing two men cheerfully toasting each other. Unlike today, where every self-respecting pub offers a fine selection of domestic and foreign beers, in the nightlife of days gone by you were usually only spoilt for choice between Zipfer und Adambräu. The brand has now disappeared from bar counters and supermarket shelves, but some of the brewery buildings still exist.

The brewery in Wilten began in the Windegg residencebetter known as Stachelburg Palace. The estate with a Gothic building centre from the 15th century was the residence of the Counts of Stachelburg. Like the other four aristocratic residences, Windegg was freedIn other words, they did not have to pay any duties or taxes. The barons of Sternbach who succeeded them as owners gave the house its baroque appearance in 1730 and extended the main house to include the side wings. If you have the opportunity, you can take a look at the elaborate stucco decorations and the house chapel inside.

Since 1820 at the latest, the Spiked castle High-proof spirits were distilled and served. In 1825, Franz Josef Adam bought the former aristocratic estate and opened his brewery and restaurant. He had come to Innsbruck a few years earlier as a silk manufacturer and general merchant from Mals in the South Tyrolean Vinschgau Valley and had earned himself citizenship of the city. Adam had the façade of the residence remodelled into its present form and had a fourth floor added. After his death in 1830, his no less business-minded wife Elisabeth, who also ran the inn that still exists today, took over the business. Wooden cellar above Wilten Abbey.

Their children initiated a long period of regular changes of ownership with the sale in 1835. In 1886, the owners Heinrich Jenewein and Hermann Winter expanded the business as Adambräu Wilten OHG The Stachelburg was extended by a loggia, which served as a parlour and stage. In keeping with the fashion of the time, a pavilion for concerts was built in the garden. The Exl stage appeared for some time in her early days in the Adambräu which became one of the town's most popular catering establishments thanks to its high-quality furnishings, plentiful beer, music and theatre. Shooting festivals, song evenings and club meetings filled the brewery's seats and cash register.

The First World War changed everything. The economy and the course of the war Adambräu in two respects. In these austere times, consumption in Innsbruck's public houses fell dramatically. Towards the end of the war, the brewery's output was only 614 hectolitres. In 1917, a co-operative of 20 Innsbruck restaurateurs took over the beleaguered business as a Adambräu Innkeepers' Co-operative Society mbHto ensure the supply of beer to Innsbruck. On 20 February 1918, during the first air raid on the city, several bombs hit the Adambräu premises. The nearby wooden bridge over the Sill Canal was hit. Over 700 window panes shattered under the blast wave. The biggest damage was caused by the hit on the sprinkler condenser of the cold store. The leaking ammonia caused the people of Innsbruck to believe that there had been a major gas attack and to panic.

Eight years after the bombing, the Adambräu was rebuilt, perhaps the most striking and most discussed intervention in Innsbruck's cityscape to date. According to plans by Lois Welzenbacher, the co-operative had the brewhouse rebuilt in the style of the White Tyrolean Modernism was erected. The asymmetrical building with its striking jagged, smooth white surface and irregular windows in metal frames caused a stir. The red cold store with its industrial bonnet next to the main building also stood out. Welzenbacher's design, together with the administration building of the power station just a stone's throw away, was intended to usher in a new era of architecture away from historicism and create a visible contrast between the modern, industrialised city and the old town.

While the exterior of the building could not have changed more strikingly between 1926 and 1931, the brewery's focus remained limited to supplying Innsbruck's catering trade. In the 1950s, the optimistic celebration period that prevailed before the First World War returned. The Adambräu became the most popular address for balls and celebrations.

 It was not until the 1960s that the company, now trading as Adambräu Gesellschaft m.b.H., began selling its beer via the retail trade. In 1994, Brauunion, which dominated the Austrian beer market, took over Adambräu. While the brand remained for some time, the production facility in Innsbruck closed down.

Welzenbacher's buildings were placed under a preservation order in 1996. The former refrigerated ship was rather carelessly converted into an office block and lost its distinctive appearance. The brewhouse, on the other hand, was carefully renovated in 2005. Rainer Köberl and his team from aut.architektur und tirol attached particular importance to the character of the former industrial facility, both inside and out, which is now home to the University of Innsbruck's Archive for Architecture. In keeping with the spirit of his planner, the concept of Form follows function and the special style of the White Tyrolean Modernism built. The ADAMBRÄU lettering on the façade facing Südbahnstraße, which is otherwise not very pretty, is a reminder of the building's history. In the former Windegg manor house, you can admire the Gothic vaults from the 15th century over a game of billiards.

The Wiltener Platzltoday a popular meeting place for Innsbruck's youth and students, has its roots, if you like, in Roman antiquity. On the corner of Leopoldstraße and Dr.-Karl-von-Grabmayr-Straße, a mural from the 1950s commemorates the Roman military camp of Veldidena. It was located directly on the driveway to the Via Raetia Today it is bordered by the Sill to the east, the Südring to the north and Stafflerstraße to the west. Four mighty watchtowers and a wall over 2 metres thick surrounded the castle, where more than 500 soldiers were stationed. A trading post, a village with a tavern, armourers, brickworks and craftsmen's workshops grew up around the military camp. The land around Veldidena had to be cleared for the livestock. Equipment and clothing had to be made and repaired, and the men had to be fed and entertained. 

The village of Wilten around the monastery with its centre at today's Haymon Inn grew towards the town of Innsbruck even after the Bavarian takeover of the Inn Valley. A lively village life developed outside the enclosure of the monastery. Wiltein According to the monastery's land register, it consisted of the large Meierhof, 2 mills, 12 farms, 5 fiefs, 30 small cottages and a Preuhauswhere the beer for the cheerful monastery life was produced. Long before Innsbruck's main traffic artery, the Südring, mercilessly cut through the city centre from the 1960s onwards, a kind of medieval Bacon belt. In the 19th century, Wilten became the centre of the Little Sill the fastest growing part of today's city of Innsbruck.

On Lower village square A second village centre was already established in the Middle Ages. At the beginning of the 17th century, the village had 80 houses and an impressive 600 inhabitants. By 1775, Wilten had grown to the present-day Leopoldstraße 22. 56 town houses and 80 farms, plus five inns and seven aristocratic residences were home to around 1000 people. While in the monastery and the Leuthaus the administration of the village, the parishes and lands of the monastery were based here, where today Wiltener Platzl und Kaiserschützenplatz The city's economic and civil life was centred around the Brenner Pass. Traders and travellers moved from the Brenner Road to Innsbruck to pay their toll at the customs station at the Triumphal Gate. Over time, the farmhouses that had settled around the village fountain developed into bourgeois residences, aristocratic residences, craft businesses and shops along this main thoroughfare. The variety of architectural styles still bears witness to the lively hustle and bustle over the centuries.

The house at Leopoldstraße 27 was home to a blacksmith from 1428 at the latest. Together with house number 25, it is a marvellous example of residential buildings from the first half of the 19th century and Biedermeier architecture. Not only did the economically barren period after the Napoleonic Wars cause a lull in the construction industry, many of the less attractive buildings of this period were swept away by the furore of historicism after 1880. The core of the building opposite at Leopoldstraße 30 and 32 can even be traced back to the 12th century. Where today there is a fashion boutique and flats, merchants were able to sell their goods in the Materialists Ladele and thus reduce the expected load at the customs station. The magnificent manor house at Leopoldstraße 22 is known as the Steidlevilla known. The core of the building dates back to the 17th century, but in the 19th century it was transformed from an aristocratic residence into a neoclassical villa in the style of the bourgeois building frenzy. It was named after the Tyrolean home defence leader Richard Steidle, who was shot and seriously wounded by German National Socialists Werner von Alversleben in front of his villa in 1933.

The square building at today's Liebeneggstraße 2, decorated with Baroque paintings, developed together with the Welsbergschlössl at Leopoldstraße 35 in the 15th century from a farmhouse to a Liebenegg residence. In 1601, the two houses were confirmed as an open-air residence, which also included a farmhouse with a meadow. In 1824, the k.k. Gubernial registrar had the Liebenegg residence to four storeys and convert it into a block of flats.

A little further towards the city centre is one of Innsbruck's most traditional inns. In 1901, Heinrich and Maria Steneck from Trentino opened the Wine restaurant Steneck. The pub was particularly popular with the Italian-speaking population of Innsbruck. Both the Italian Prime Minister Alcide de Gasperi as a young student and Benito Mussolini are said to have enjoyed specialities and wine from their homeland here during their time in Innsbruck. The people of Innsbruck were fond of the Wallschen for a long time, the exceptionally good catering was nevertheless gladly accepted. Generations of Innsbruckers have enjoyed the Stennias the now ageing pub is affectionately known, enjoyed schnitzel, sausages and chips at affordable prices. When Heinrich Steneck passed away on 22 December 1953, Innsbrucker Nachrichten bid a touching farewell to the founder of this institution on behalf of the entire city.

The increase in traffic since the 1980s took away the charm of the former village centre. Only with the recent redesign of the Wiltener Platzls has succeeded in making this historic square more attractive again. The modern village square with its fountain and seating area is a popular meeting place for residents and walkers alike. Between the two buildings of Ansitz Liebenegg is the modern building in which the Wilten neighbourhood meeting place, a service provided by the Innsbruck Social Services is housed here. The Leopoldstrasse and the Leopoldstraße continue their tradition as a commercial centre outside the city centre. Wiltener Platzl continues to this day. Unlike other main streets in the peripheral neighbourhoods, shops of all kinds flourish here. Boutiques, studios and other small shops manage to establish themselves in the latest hip neighbourhood. Grätzel as well as long-established and new eateries on Wiltener Platzl. The weekly market and a small Christmas market in Advent also enliven the urban zone.

The Haymon Giant Inn is part of the inventory of the Wilten neighbourhood. The history of the building reads like an outline of the neighbourhood between the monastery estate and contemporary history. The exterior and interior of the inn reflect the changes of time. Unlike the Golden Eagle or the White cross This traditional house was not built in the early modern period as an inn and accommodation for travellers and traders. In the Middle Ages, a farmhouse stood on this site, one of the many farms under the rule of the Abbot of Wilten. In the 15th century, the building was extended in the Gothic style. The guest rooms with their mighty cross vaults still bear witness to this. The Counts of Lodron had the farmhouse converted into a restaurant in 1679. Ansitz Augenweidstein expand. The stone entrance gate is a remnant of the baroque extension. A votive image of the Virgin Mary, who has been venerated in Wilten since late antiquity Dear woman under the four pillars carries the blessing "Protected by the divine mother, Augenweydstein will be helped in all hardships and dangers." The striking façade paintings by Raimund Wörle (1896 - 1979) from 1956 depict the giants Thyrsus of Seefeld and Haymon, to whom, according to legend, the foundation of Wilten Abbey goes back. The post-war depiction of Thyrsus is interesting. Next to the knight, who is armed only with a tree trunk, is the Austrian coat of arms. Thyrsus is still a fair-haired giant, but of Austrian nationality. After National Socialism, people still wanted to be Germanic, but not necessarily German.

The Haymon already had over 100 years under its belt. In 1840, a pub opened for the first time in the former Ansitz Augenweidstein their doors. There had already been an inn south of the monastery since the 17th century, today's Bierstindl. As the town grew, the number of excursionists on church holidays and walkers on Mount Isel increased, providing enough business for a second inn. 12 years later, Johann Gruber bought the Haymon and ran it under the authorisation of the monastery lords. In order to utilise the space in the former palazzo, the rooms were rented out as flats. One Neighbourhood display in the Innsbrucker Nachrichten of 1857 advertised the rental house: "In the Gasthause zum Haymon No. 6 in Wilten... two beautiful quarters on the 3rd floor, each with three heatable rooms, kitchen and dining vault, wooden huts and laundry room, attic room... for rent.“

The Giant Haymon changed owners and tenants frequently, but remained closely linked to Wilten Abbey even after the end of the monarchy and enjoyed great popularity among Innsbruck's citizens. In the economically difficult years between the wars, these two factors were vital for the continued existence of the business. The Giant Haymon was hosted by the Catholic youth centre in Wilten. On one stage, plays such as "Your own blood" for the performance. Conservative associations and organisations such as the Archduke Karl Ludwig Veterans' Associationwhich Tyrolean Landsmannschaftwhich Wilten marksmen and Catholic student fraternities such as the Cimbria chose the inn as their clubhouse. During Austrofascism, the local branch of the Unity Party Patriotic Front held her consultation hours at the giant Haymon or organised lectures for associations such as the Maternity protection network. As part of the ecclesiastical-political network, the Riese Haymon accommodated external members of the Home defence. Even during the years of National Socialism, the inn remained connected to the church. The landlord Heinrich Pfeifer lost his licence after several charges of "political unreliability", including refusing to fly the flag on the Führer's birthday. After the turmoil of war, the inn was able to recover quickly. The chestnut garden, the cosy parlours and the traditional Austrian dishes that were served satisfied the Innsbruckers' desire for the "good old days". When the business faltered in the 1990s and closed its doors, Innsbruck residents collected signatures to keep the giant Haymon open. After several changes of tenant with different concepts, today you can once again enjoy home-style cooking within the old walls in Wilten's Oberdorf.

The site of today's Wilten Abbey is one of the earliest populated parts of Innsbruck's urban area. Where the Wilten Basilica stands today was probably already a place of worship in the 5th century, after Christianity had become the Roman state religion. A church dedicated to St Laurentius was first mentioned in 565. According to legend, the history of the monastery begins with the giant Haymon, who founded a monastery in the late 9th century on the ruins of the Roman fortress of Veldidena. It is very likely that the Dukes of Bavaria had a monastery built in order to administratively integrate their territories in the Inn Valley into their domain. Thanks to their educated and literate brethren, ecclesiastical institutions such as monasteries were the most important administrative units in late antiquity for orchestrating structures, rule, laws, ownership, infrastructure and public order. In Wilten, a small community of pastors ran the affairs of the region between the Nordkette and Brenner.

In 1128, Bishop Reginbert of Brixen handed over the monastery to the then newly founded Premonstratensian Order. The document confirming the takeover by the Premonstratensian Order in 1138 is still preserved in the archives of Wilten Abbey. Considering that the original monastery in Premontre in France was only founded by the order's founder Norbert of Xanten in 1120, the expansion to Tyrol was very rapid. Starting in France, the order managed to be represented throughout Europe within just a few decades. The idea of poverty was not as pronounced among the Premonstratensians as it was among the Franciscans or Dominicans, who emerged at the same time. Although Norbert, who was venerated as a saint from 1582, was a church reformer, he could not deny his origins in the nobility and his political role as Archbishop of Magdeburg and advisor to the king, despite his spirituality.

The assumption of ecclesiastical rights and duties was linked to the lordship over lands that the monastery could dispose of. In 1140, the Brixen Abbey transferred all of its land between Berg Isel, Sill and Inn to Wilten Abbey. The powerful Bavarian duke Heinrich der Löwe donated a hereditary farm from his estate to the monastery. The Mentlberg and lands in the Sellraintal valley were also added. Tyrol's perhaps most beautiful valley head, Lüsens, is still owned by the church today. The monastery had lower jurisdiction over these lands, which included everything that was not subject to the blood court. In 1180, it was Wilten Abbey that ceded the lands south of the Inn to the Counts of Andechs, on which the town was founded. Part of the deal was the takeover of several parishes by the Premonstratensians.

With the blessing of God and the industrious labour of the subjects, abbots were regarded as strict landlords, the monastery grew, even if there were repeated setbacks, such as the fire in 1304. A Romanesque church was built in 1311, as was the foundation of the monastery. A monastery school was mentioned in 1313. Ruedger the schoolmaster found his way into the chronicles of Wilten as village master even 10 years earlier. In addition to lively panel painting, the pupils probably also copied books. In the still existing Leuthaus not only secular guests of the monastery who could not be accommodated inside were received here. The basic structure of the building, which dates back to Roman times, served as the official residence of the Wilten court judge. In 1818, the district court moved from Sonnenburg Castle to the Leuthaus. The mighty building, which is well worth seeing, unfortunately disappears visually next to the monastery, the street and the surrounding blocks of flats. Today it houses the Wilten Boys' Choir.

The Baroque era's frenzy of remodelling did not stop at the monastery. The fashion of the time demanded an architectural statement in the 17th century in order to represent the pastoral duties of the Praemonstratensians in a manner befitting their rank. The baroque rebuilding of the monastery in 1665 was a matter of imperial importance. Emperor Leopold I was personally present at the opening. The lavish church furnishings and many of the paintings were added to over the following centuries. The gleaming white stone figures on the gable depict the patron saints Laurentius and Stefanus as well as St Mary. The entrance gate is guarded by the giants Haymon and Thyrsus, the two legendary protagonists of the legend surrounding the foundation of the monastery. Inside, frescoes depict the handover of the monastery to St Norbert, the stoning of St Stephen and St Anne, the patron saint of Wilten, who protects the monastery from approaching Bavarian troops. Directly behind the mighty entrance portal stands a man-sized figure of Haymon in silver armour with a dragon's tongue in his hand. The black side altars and the main altar are particularly splendid in contrast to the rest of the church's white colour scheme. Parts such as the chapter house and the cross vault have been preserved and date back to the Gothic period.

The abbots of Wilten were represented in the provincial parliament until 1914. Even in the First Republic and during the time of Dollfuß and Schuschnigg, the abbey played a role in politics as Innsbruck's most important Catholic institution. The Christian Social Party relied on the influence of the church's pulpits, infrastructure, front organisations and press organs. In 1939, Wilten Monastery was dissolved by the National Socialists and all associated associations and organisations were incorporated into the party structure. During an air raid in 1944, large parts of the monastery were devastatingly damaged. The reopening after successful renovation was celebrated at Christmas 1952.

Today, Wilten Abbey looks after 22 parishes in and around Innsbruck. The Premonstratensians are one of the most influential orders in the city. After the First World War, youth centres for pastoral care were founded in Pradl, Hötting and Wilten to support single mothers and working-class families. Above Mentlberg Castle, on the grounds of the monastery, the Waldhüttl for the Vincentian community, where migrants provide for themselves and run an open church. The monastery is still a centre of art and culture today. Particular pride is taken in the Wilten Boys' Choirwhich were first mentioned in 1235. The collections, archives and library of Wilten Abbey can be visited as part of a guided tour. Concerts are regularly held on the premises of the monastery. The sumptuous interior furnishings are also very impressive. In the collegiate church there is a collection of icons with works dating back to the 13th century, which show the similarities and differences between the Catholic and Orthodox faiths. In the area of the monastery gate you can see Klosterladele buy small local delicacies and gifts.