Bad Bleiberg

Not to be confused with Bleiburg.

Bad Bleiberg (Slovene: Plajberk pri Beljaku) is a market town in the district of Villach-Land, in Carinthia, Austria. Originally a mining area, especially for lead (German: Blei), Bad Bleiberg today due to its hot springs is a spa town.^[3]

Bad Bleiberg
Municipality
Coat of arms
Bad Bleiberg Location within Austria
Coordinates: 46°37′29″N 13°41′09″E
Country	Austria
State	Carinthia
District	Villach-Land
Government
• Mayor	Christian Hecher (Ind.)
Area [1]
• Total	44.81 km2 (17.30 sq mi)
Elevation	902 m (2,959 ft)
Population  (2018-01-01)[2]
• Total	2,283
• Density	51/km2 (130/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code	9530, 9531
Area code	04244
Website	www.bad-bleiberg.at

Geography

Bad Bleiberg is situated west of the district's capital Villach in a high valley on the northern slope of the Dobratsch (Villacher Alpe) massif, the easternmost part of the Gailtal Alps mountain range.

The municipal area comprises the cadastral communities of Bleiberg proper and Kreuth.

History

King Henry II of Germany granted the Carinthian lands around Villach to the newly created Diocese of Bamberg at the Frankfurt synod of 1 November 1007, together with other estates like Griffen or the Canal Valley around Tarvisio. When under Emperor Frederick II Bamberg was elevated to a Prince-Bishopric, the territories became ecclesiastical exclaves within the territory of the Carinthian dukes. In 1759 the Bamberg estates were finally acquired by Empress Maria Theresa and incorporated into Habsburg Carinthia.

Bad Bleiberg with Dobratsch massif, 1908 postcard

The mine was first mentioned as Pleyberg in a 1333 deed issued by the Bamberg bishops; it was operated by the Swabian Fugger family from the late 15th century onwards. Georgius Agricola described the mining and smelting of lead and zinc in his 1556 book De re metallica. Mining operations ceased in 1993 for economic reasons, today a tourist mine offers guided underground tours.

The current municipality was established in 1850, it received the status of a market town in 1930. When in 1951 a hot spring had flooded an adit, a public bath was established and Bleiberg received the official Bad title of a spa town in 1978.

Politics

The municipal assembly (Gemeinderat) consists of 19 members. Since the 2021 local elections, it is made up of the following parties:

• Independent List Bad Bleiberg (ULB): 12 seats
• Social Democratic Party of Austria (SPÖ): 4 seats
• Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ): 2 seats
• Verantwortung Erde (ERDE): 1 seat

The mayor of the municipality, Christian Hecher, was also elected in 2021.^[4]

Twin town

• Pradamano, Italy

Notable people

Oskar Potiorek (1853–1933), Austro-Hungarian army officer