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Stadtgemeinde Kapfenberg

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Kapfenberg Wirtschaft
  The first traces of human settlement in the area surrounding Kapfenberg go back to the Neolithic. Archaeological findings in the Rettenwand Grotto (stone tools, bronze needles and tools, clay vessels) are evidence of continuous settlement from this time onwards
5-3000 BCE Stoneage findings of ancient population in the Rettenwand Grotto
ca. 1000 BCE Discovery of Bronze Age ecofacts indicating a settlement
ca. 100 BCE Celto-Illyrian-Roman archaeological findings
1. century CE A Roman coin is an indicator of a Roman military camp presumably existence here 
7.-9. century Numerous Slavonic place names testify the settlement of Slavic tribes.
890 Bavarian settlers arrive in the suburb of Diemlach, who buried their dead on a local burial grounds. This burial ground was discovered in 1929 and remains were excavated along with jewelry.
1096 St. Martin’s Church mentioned for the first time in official records.
1173 The castle “Chaffenberg“*, built around 1144 by the Lords of Stubenberg, appears in official records. (“Castrum Chaffenberch” = Castle on the top of the Lookout Hill).

* From Middle High German „chaffen“ or „gaffen“, meaning to peer, gaze or look. Lit.

1256 Kapfenberg is mentioned as a market town (“in foro chapfinberch”).
1328 About 60 families, mainly craft- and tradesmen settle in the market town.
1446 The chainsmith, Arnold Taubenprunner, builds his guildhall (today the rectory). Along the waterways of the Laming and the Thörlbach streams hammer forges are built.
1526 The burghers of Kapfenberg receive the right to elect their own town judge and 12 councillors.
1639 Emperor Ferdinand III awards the market town of Kapfenberg its own coat of arms.
1769 59 burgher families and 12 smallholders living in 71 houses.
1814 Great Fire: 61 out of 97 houses completely destroyed.
1844 The first train passes through Kapfenberg; construction of railway line from Graz to Mürzzuschlag.
1850 The local communities of Kapfenberg, Arndorf, Berndorf, Diemlach, Einöd, Pötschen, Schörgendorf, St. Martin, Stegg and Winkl fuse to form the new community of Kapfenberg.
1854 The guildsman Franz von Mayr-Melnhof builds the first crucible cast steel fabrication hall in Austria at the site of the old hammer forge “Erlachhammer”.
1885/86/96 Foundation of further industries in Kapfenberg: Pengg (one of the oldest chain manufacturers) founder of the Hansen steel mill at Einöd; Gebrüder Andrieu: founders of the steel and rolling mill at Diemlach; Haberler: timber yard and carton factory at St. Martin, Kaltschmid: manufacture of irons at the Laming river banks.
1894 Gebrüder Böhler purchase the Kapfenberg steel mill.
1914 - 1918 Industrial production for First World War armaments generates large market growth.
1918 - 1923 The town council of Kapfenberg makes use of income from industry to complete municipal projects.
9. Mai 1924 The market receives town status.
1924 - 1938 The generally difficult economic circumstances also leads to unemployment and great hardship in Kapfenberg.
12/13. 2. 1934 The Social-Democratic uprising leads to particularly heavy fighting in Kapfenberg and Bruck/Mur.
1938 - 1944 The National-Socialist regime intensifies the expansion of the arms industry. In addition to the core plant in the Thörl Valley, new factory halls are erected; the current Plant VI and a new steel mill (Plant XII in St. Marein) in the wider Mürz Valley. The numerous workers are moved into wooden shanty settlements.
1944 - 1945 Allied bombings destroy plants and private homes between 6. November 1944 and 10. May 1945. Around 200 fall victim to the attacks.
9. Mai 1945 At the end of the war 30,000 Soviet troops march into Kapfenberg. The majority of the remaining intact industrial plants are dismantled and transported away. British troops replace Soviet forces on 24. July.
Reconstruction Providing homes for the rapidly growing population becomes a major priority in addition to rebuilding local infrastructure. Many families help themselves by building their own homes.
1971 Award of the European Flag in honour of valiant efforts towards the European Idea.
1998 Kapfenberg receives a plaque of honour from the Council of Europe. Four study programmes are already available at the University of Applied Sciences FH JOANNEUM Kapfenberg.
1999 The City of Kapfenberg celebrates its 75th anniversary and initiates a major project for the regeneration of its historic town centre at the turn of the millennium.
2009 The Office Innovation Centre (BIZ) is opened in February.
2011 In this year Elisabeth „Lizz“ Görgl wins two gold medals at the alpine skiing World Championships in Garmisch, for which she was awarded a Badge of Honour from the City of Kapfenberg.
2013 In this year Kapfenberg has a lot to celebrate: 75th anniversary of Plant VI, 25th anniversary Industrial and Business Park and 20th anniversary of the Technology Centre.
2014 In September 6000 people from Kapfenberg break the lip dub World Record. The city produces a music video featuring Opus’s hit single “Live is Life”, live and uncut.
2015 The communities of Kapfenberg and Parschlug merge on 1. January as a result of the new council mergers legislation. In this year Kapfenberg also managed to retain first place in the Styrian Flower Competition and became “Most Beautiful Flower Display Town” for the third time in a row. In July, the steel sculpture “Geistesblitz” (brainwave/flash of genius) was officially inaugurated as the two-year long project to rejuvenate the city “Good Morning Kapfenberg” was completed. In total, €2 million were invested in regenerating the city. In November, Class 4-a from local primary school “Dr. Franz Jonas“, won the federal competition „Österreich aus Kinderhand“ (Austria from the hands of children) to design the new 10 Euro coin for the national mint „Münze Österreich AG“, a silver edition of which is available.

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Kapfenberg Tourismus

Kapfenberg – der kulturelle und kulinarische Geheimtipp der Steiermark

Gehen Sie auf Entdeckungsreise – die vielen Veranstaltungen und Gastronomiebetriebe begeistern mit ihrer Kreativität. Kapfenberg öffnet den Weg zu einem bunten, abwechslungsreichen Urlaubsangebot. Von der atemberaubenden Natur bis zum aktionsgeladenen Freizeitspaß, findet man alles was das Herz begehrt. Kulinarische Leckerbissen der Gastronomie reihen sich an kulturelle Veranstaltungen, verbunden mit den zahlreichen Freizeit-, Sport- und Shoppingmöglichkeiten, der den Gast nach einem erlebnisreichen Tag in einen angenehmen und erholsamen Schlaf sinken läßt.