From prehistoric times to the present, this area has been occupied by people whose lives were frequently, as the 17th century philosopher, Thomas Hobbes, said, "... nasty, brutish and short." They have been invaded or dominated by East Goths, Longobards, Awarians, Bavarian, Franconians, Magyars, Mongols, Hungarians, Habsburgs, Turks, [Napoleon's] French, Nazis and Russians. Wars, sieges, occupations, plagues - all have decimated the residents of this and other area villages. Being situated on the border of empires, lying on the main road from Sopron (and farther, Budapest) to Vienna, Klingenbach was primed for disasters of all sorts. There is no record of the number of violent deaths that occurred in this and other area villages, but I suspect we'd be shocked by the number.
Today this quiet village lies in the center of a peaceful Europe.
Europe in 2000 (Klingenbach is the red dot right in the middle).
The Cold War is over. Austria is officially neutral and at peace.
Klingenbach is more of a Croatian village than an Austrian one. After the devastating Ottoman War in 1532 when the Turks totally destroyed many of the area villages and their inhabitants (killed the men, took the women and children into slavery), this area was empty. Invited by the King of Hungary, over 300,000 Croatians abandoned their homeland where the Turks continued to terrorize them and resettled in western Hungary (this area belonged to Hungary from 955 to 1921) in successive immigrations until 1584.
Austria lies at a point of intersection of three large language families of Europe - Slavic, Roman and German. Today, of a population of around 280,000 in Burgenland, about 30,000 to 45,000 are Croatian. Among other officially recognized minorities, they have the right of bilingual education in schools, and Croatian is an officially recognized language. Among the 12 Croatian communities in central Burgenland, Klingenbach is in the middle in population but the highest in percentage of Croatians - 82%. Burgenland's 51 Croatian villages have bilingual signs (also the four Hungarian ones).
Klingenbach's Croatian name is Klimpuh; the Hungarian name is Kelenpatak.
This is the Gemeindeamt (Communal Office), like an American town's City Hall.
On a wall just inside the front door is this plaque. It states the important events in village history. It also says that the village encompasses 482 hectares (about 1,191 acres), and its elevation is 231 meters (about 758 feet).
A rough translation (at times very rough)
1153 - Martinsberger document with the place name of Jacobus
1267 - Parts of Klingenbach are given away to the Marienberg monastery
1276 - Chlingenbach first mentioned in documentary form
1276 - Odenburger [German name for Sopron] judge Pero gives possession of the the village to the Marienberg monastery
14th Century - Most of the village is owned by the Odenburger family Lukas
1351 - Parts of Klingenbach are in the possession of the Odenburger family Agendorfer
15th Century - Sale to Viennese citizen Johann Weyspriach
1419 - City of Odenburg buys Klingenbach
1501-1518 - Oldest records in "Klingenbach Missal" about the history of Klingenbach
16th Century - Attack by the robber baron of Landsee
1529 - Destruction of the village by the Turks
1532 - Plundering by the Turks of the remaining inhabitants
1543-1564 - Oldest records in the Croatian language in the "Klingenbach Missal"
1543 - Initial settlement of Croatian subjects
1564 - Settlement with Croats completed
1672 - Because tax liabilities of the city of Odenburg, Klingenbach is pledged to the Bishop of Raab
1677 - Next pledged to the Jesuits of Guens
1682 - Beginning of some kind of village history [like a parish registry]
1683 July 24 - Burning down of the village by the Turks on the occasion of the second Turkish siege of Vienna
1698 - The 200 residents of Klingenbach paid through the city of Odenburg to acquire the village from the Jesuits of Guens
1704 - Siege and plundering by the Kuruzzen [armed anti-Habsburg Hungarian rebels]
1713 - The plague claims many deaths
1740 - Construction of the church tower
1772 - Laying out the cemetery
1824 - Oldest municipality seal
1856 - Construction of the school
1914-1918 - World War I - 27 killed in action
1921 - Union with Austria
1939-1945 - World War II - 85 killed and missing
1945 April 1 - Invasion of Soviet troops
1972 - Award of the municipality coat of arms
1976 - Inauguration of the newly constructed parish church
1997 - Opening of the town center
Klingenbach has a population of 1,200 people. Besides the Gemeindeamt, it has a Catholic Church, four restaurants, two inns, a community center, athletic complex, a kindergarten (for ages three to five), a primary school (for grades one through four), several businesses (one of which is Hotwell where Bob works), two doctors' offices and many new homes and apartments. I was surprised by how dynamic the village is and the way it continues to grow.
This is the modern fire station.
And representing the past, this is the marker for Roman era graves.
Klingenbach's elected officials consist of a mayor elected to a five-year term and 15 council members elected to five or 10 year terms (not quite sure how that works - my German didn't hold up through the explanation). Burgenland is primarily red (Social Democratic Party).
This is Klingenbach's mayor Johan Frank and his wife, Silvia.
Burgenland is also very rural. The vineyards are a prime source of income for many area residents.
We spotted this little guy on the outskirts of the village.
We have also seen weasels in the village at night but haven't been able to get a picture of them yet - they're much too fast!
We have enjoyed our time in Klingenbach. It has been interesting to experience four seasons, something we didn't have in Houston.
Klingenbach in the spring ...
in the summer ...
in the autumn ...
and in the winter ...
So I come to the end of my history of Klingenbach. We came to the village for Bob's job, little knowing of the history of the area. I was astounded by much that I learned and appreciate anew what it means to lie on the border between empires, Klingenbach's uneasy existence for a few thousand years. But Klingenbach has had 65 years of peace now although surely not for the first time. Austria joined the European Union in 1995 and adopted the Euro in 2002 so the village no longer sits on the border of empires. Of course we always think peace will remain, but war always returns, more savage and destructive than before. I just hope this lovely, quiet village can continue to live in peace.
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