Velden am Wörther See

Velden am Wörthersee (Slovene: Vrba ob Jezeru) is a market town in the district of Villach-Land in the Austrian state of Carinthia. Situated at the western shore of the Wörthersee lake it is one of the most popular holiday resorts of Austria.

The municipality of Velden also includes the Katastralgemeinden of Augsdorf (Loga Vas), Dieschitz (Deščice), Duel (Dole), Kerschdorf ob Velden (Črešnje), Köstenberg (Kostanje), Latschach an der Drau (Loče), Lind ob Velden (Lipa) and Sankt Egyden (Šentilj).

According to a 2001 census 2.8% of the population are Slovene-speaking.

Historical notes

Original a mansio at the Roman road between Villach (Sanctium) and Virunum it was first mentioned in a 1263 deed as Campus (field, pasture - German: Feld) and in 1410 as Velben. In medieval times it belonged to the estates of the Hohenwart castle, seat of the Counts of Celje, of Ortenburg, the Knightly Order of Saint George in Millstatt and the Habsburgs.

In 1545 the Khevenhüller noble family acquired the lands and in 1603 built a Renaissance manor house. Demolished by a fire it was rebuilt in 1892 as a hotel called Schloss Velden. A real estate of Gunter Sachs it was the filming location of the popular 1990-1992 German-Austrian tv series Ein Schloss am Wörthersee starring Schlager singer Roy Black.

Twin towns

• Bled, Slovenia, since 2004
• Gemona del Friuli, Italy
• Jesolo, Italy, since 2006

External links

Schloss Velden - official site