Bleiburg

Infobox Town AT
name=Bleiburg
Pliberk
name_local=
image_coa = Wappen at bleiburg (gaertner).png

state = Carinthia
regbzk =
district = Völkermarkt
population =4083
population_as_of = 01.01.2001
population_ref =
pop_dens =
area =69.72
elevation = 479
lat_deg=46
lat_min=35
lat_sec=24
lat_hem=N
lon_deg=14
lon_min=47
lon_sec=56
lon_hem=E
postal_code = 9150
area_code =04235
licence = VK
mayor = Stefan Visotschnig (SPÖ)
website = [http://www.bleiburg.at www.bleiburg.at]

Bleiburg ( _sl. Pliberk) is a small town in the Austrian state of Carinthia, south-east of Klagenfurt, in the district of Völkermarkt, near the border with Slovenia. It is an old border town located in the valley of the "Feistritz" river, north of the Petzen massif of the Karawanken mountain range. It is home to a district court, military barracks and to the local productive and services industry. The name of Bleiburg, literally meaning "Lead Castle", can be attributed to the lead mining operations in the Petzen mountain.

According to a 2001 census, Bleiberg has about 4,100 inhabitants. 30.4% of the population are Carinthian Slovenes (in 1971 there were 52.8%). The municipality consists of the twelve Katastralgemeinden Aich ("Dob"), Bleiburg, Grablach ("Grablje"), Kömmel ("Komelj"), Moos ("Blato"), Oberloibach ("Libuče"), Rinkenberg ("Vogrče"), Sankt Margarethen ("Šmarjeta"), Schattenberg ("Senčni kraj"), Unterloibach ("Libuče"), Weißenstein ("Belšak") and Woroujach ("Borovje"). It can be further divided into 23 villages:

History

The oldest surviving document mentioning the town as "Pliburch" is dated to 1228. Bleiburg received town privileges in 1370. The annual "Wiesenmarkt" (meadow market) has taken place every year at least since 1428 on September 1.

Between 1918 and 1920, Bleiburg was occupied by Yugoslav troops, but, in spite of the sizeable Slovenian minority in the surrounding villages, remained with Austria after the Carinthian Plebiscite which was managed through the immigration of people from Upper Austria to the area of Carinthia.

In May 1945, Bleiburg was the initial location of the Bleiburg massacre, in the course of which Yugoslav partisans killed thousands of Ustase, Cetniks, and Belogardists along with some civilians that were fleeing with the war criminals. In early September of 2004, the Austrian media reported that the Croatian government had decided to purchase a plot of land near Bleiburg in order to erect a monument to commemorate the massacre, which sparked some minor political controversy in Austria.

Politics

Seats in the municipal council (elections as of 2003):
* ÖVP: 9
* SPÖ: 8
* Enotna Lista: 5
* FPÖ: 1

Notable people

*Kiki Kogelnik, artist, born January 22, 1935 in Bleiburg, died February 1, 1997 in Vienna