The Guinness Encyclopedia

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Extensible Markup Language | 1995-06-15 | 6KB | 19 lines

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8" ?> <!DOCTYPE card PUBLIC "-//Apple, Inc.//DTD card V 2.0//EN" "" > <card> <id>6194</id> <filler1>0</filler1> <cantDelete> <false /> </cantDelete> <showPict> <true /> </showPict> <dontSearch> <false /> </dontSearch> <owner>5472</owner> <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="stylesheet_3106.css" /> <content> <layer>background</layer> <id>31</id> <text>AUSTRIAOfficial name: Republik ├ûsterreich (Republic of Austria)Member of: UN, EU/EC, OSCE, OECDArea: 83859 km2 (32378 sq mi)Population: 7940000 (1993 est)Capital: Vienna (Wien) 2045000 (city 1533000; 1991 census)Other major cities: Linz 434000 (city 203000), Graz 395000 (city 232000), Salzburg 267000 (city 144000), Innsbruck 235000 (city 115000) (1991 census)Language: German (official; 96%)Religion: Roman Catholic (84%)GOVERNMENTExecutive power is shared by the Federal President (who is elected by universal adult suffrage for a six-year term) and the Council of Ministers, led by the Federal Chancellor. The President appoints a Chancellor who commands a majority in the Federal AssemblyΓÇÖs lower chamber, the Nationalrat, whose 183 members are elected by universal adult suffrage according to proportional representation for a term of four years. The 63 members of the upper chamber ΓÇô the Bundesrat ΓÇô are elected by the assemblies of the nine provinces of the Federal Republic.GEOGRAPHYThe Alps ΓÇô much of which are covered by pastures and forests ΓÇô occupy nearly two thirds of Austria. The highest point is the Grossglockner (3798 m / 12462 ft). Lowland Austria, in the east, consists of low hills, the Vienna Basin and a flat marshy area beside the Neusiedler See on the Hungarian border. Along the Czech border is a forested massif rising to 1200 m (4000 ft). Principal river: Danube (Donau) 2850 km (1770 mi). Climate: There are many local variations in climate owing to altitude and aspect. The east is drier than the west, and is, in general, colder than the Alpine region in the winter and hotter, but more humid, in the summer. Areas over 3000 m (10000 ft) are snow-covered all year.ECONOMYAlthough Austria produces about 90% of its own food requirements, farming employs only 7% of the labor force. The arable land in the east has fertile soils producing good yields of cereals and grapes for wine. Dairy produce is an important export from the pasturelands in the east and in the Alps. The mainstay of the economy is manufacturing industry, including machinery and transport equipment, iron and steel products, refined petroleum products, cement and paper. Natural resources include hydroelectric power potential and extensive forests. The Alps attract winter and summer visitors, making tourism a major foreign-currency earner. Currency: Schilling.HISTORYThe Babenberg family ruled what became Austria from the late 10th century until 1250. Their successor as duke was defeated by Rudolf of Habsburg, the Holy Roman Emperor, in 1276, and from that date Austria became the heartland of the Empire. With one exception, every Holy Roman Emperor from 1438 to 1806 was a member of the Habsburg family. In 1529, and in 1683, Austria repelled the Turks from the walls of Vienna and halted their advance across Europe. By the middle of the 16th century, the extent of the HabsburgsΓÇÖ territory had become unmanageable, and Charles V divided his inheritance, separating Spain from the Empire in central Europe. In the 18th century, Maria Theresa and her son Joseph II reformed Austria and strengthened the multilingual Habsburg state. This was based on Austria, Hungary and Czech-speaking Bohemia, but it also included Polish, Croat, Slovak, Slovene and Italian areas.Napoleon I abolished the anachronistic Holy Roman Empire, but Francis II, foreseeing its dissolution, took the title Emperor of Austria. Metternich shaped the fortunes of Austria in the early 19th century and attempted to maintain the boundaries drawn by the Vienna Settlement (1814ΓÇô15), but the Empire was bedevilled by national and ethnic divisions. AustriaΓÇÖs partnership with the Hungarians (in the Dual Monarchy established in 1867) did not ease these tensions. Defeat in the Austro-Prussian War (1866) excluded Austrian influence from Germany, and the Habsburgs were left to dominate unstable south-central Europe. In 1914, a Serb assassinated the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne ΓÇô an event which precipitated World War I. In 1918ΓÇô19, the Habsburg empire was dismembered. A separate Austrian republic was established despite considerable support for union with Germany. Unstable throughout the 1920s and 1930s, Austria was annexed by Germany in 1938 (the Anschluss). Austria was liberated in 1945, but Allied occupation forces remained until 1955 when the independence of a neutral republic was recognized. The collapse of Communism in Eastern Europe (1989ΓÇô91) allowed Austria to renew traditional links with Hungary and the Czechs. Austria joined the EU/EC in 1995.</text> </content> <name>Austria</name> <script></script> </card>