Isny im Allgäu

Isny im Allgäu

Coat of arms
Isny im Allgäu

Coordinates: 47°41′31″N 10°2′22″E / 47.69194°N 10.03944°ECoordinates: 47°41′31″N 10°2′22″E / 47.69194°N 10.03944°E
Country Germany
State Baden-Württemberg
Admin. region Tübingen
District Ravensburg
Government
 • Mayor Rainer Magenreuter (Ind.)
Area
 • Total 85.37 km2 (32.96 sq mi)
Population (2012-12-31)[1]
 • Total 13,186
 • Density 150/km2 (400/sq mi)
Time zone CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Postal codes 88316
Dialling codes 07562
Vehicle registration RV
Website www.isny.de

Isny im Allgäu is a town in south-eastern Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is part of the district of Ravensburg, in the western, Württembergish part of the Allgäu region.

Isny was a Free Imperial City (Freie Reichsstadt) until the mediatisation of 1803.

History

The tiny Imperial City of Isny was tucked between the counties of Waldburg and Egloff.

During the three centuries following its origin in 1042, it was a commercial center controlled and exploited by various competing feudal lords. In the 13th century, Isny's merchants built a fortification system to protect the town from marauders and rival feudal rulers. The town is still partially surrounded by the city walls and moat that were built during these early turbulent times.

Isny before and after the great fire of 1631; St. George's Abbey church is the building with two spires to the right, with the rest of the monastery adjacent. Merian, Topographica Sueviae, 1643–56

After three centuries of domination by feudal lords and territorial rulers, Isny's middle class was able to purchase the town's independence in 1365. Isny's status as an Imperial city made it a self-governing republic in which the city government was elected by propertied residents and in which the guild system thrived. In 1529, Isny's Protestant minority took the city council and voted to make the town Protestant and the Nikolaikirche became the town's main Protestant church.In 1803, the Kingdom of Württemberg allowed the Catholic majority to once again move to the city. In 1889, the majority of urban residents was Catholic (1139 ev / 1444 Cath.).

Isny enjoyed a vibrant economy, based primarily on linen production, until competition from abroad, the devastation of the Thirty Years' War, and a series of fires and plagues brought production to a halt in the 17th century. The town experienced a revival after the end of World War II, when a rehabilitation center for war veterans was established there. Fortunately, Isny emerged from the war largely undamaged, and has since become a popular destination for vacationers and resort-goers.

Isny im Allgau
Imperial City of Isny in the Allgäu
Reichsstadt Isny im Allgäu
Free Imperial City of the Holy Roman Empire
←
1365–1803 →
Capital Isny im Allgäu
Government Republic
Historical era Early modern period
 - Abbey founded by Count of
    Altshausen-Veringen
1096
 -  Isny gained town rights 1235
 - Became Imperial city by
    purchasing Vogtei from
    Stewards of Waldburg

1365
 - Protestant Reformation 1529
 - Abbey gained Imperial
    immediacy
1781
 -  City mediatised and abbey
    secularised to Princely
    County of Quadt-Wykradt		 1803
 - City and abbey mediatised
    to Kgdm Württemberg
1806
Today part of  Germany

International relations

Isny im Allgäu is twinned with:

References

  1. ↑ "Gemeinden in Deutschland mit Bevölkerung am 31.12.2012 (Einwohnerzahlen auf Grundlage des Zensus 2011)". Statistisches Bundesamt (in German). 12 November 2013.


External links

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