Tarvisio
Encyclopedia
Tarvisio is a town in the Province of Udine
, in the northeastern part of the autonomous Friuli–Venezia Giulia region in Italy
. Located in the Canal Valley (Val Canale) of the Southern Limestone Alps
, at the border with both Austria
and Slovenia
, it is characterized by its location at the tripoint
of Latin
, Germanic
and Slavic Europe
.
, Tarvisio's roots date back to Roman
times. In 1007 Emperor Henry II
vested the newly created Diocese of Bamberg with the Carinthian
Canal Valley down to Pontebba
, a region which had considerable importance because of nearby ore mines
and ironworks
, especially around the village of Fusine (Weißenfels/Bela Peč). Tarvisio remained a southern exclave of the Prince-Bishopric of Bamberg
, until in 1758 the bishop finally sold Tarvisio to the Habsburg Empress Maria Theresa of Austria
. Until 1918 it was part of the Duchy of Carinthia
, it received town privileges
in 1909.
According to the Italian census of 1971, 13,3% of the population was of Slovene ethnicity.
church, where according to legend in 1360 a shepherd discovered a statue of Virgin Mary
. The church and the nearby ski centre can be reached by cable car
from Malborghetto Valbruna
. The area around the Sella Nevea
mountain pass between Tarvisio and Chiusaforte
is also a popular ski resort.
for shopping trips. However trade at the notorious "Rag Market"
diminuished after the implementation of Schengen Agreement
and the establishment of the Eurozone
. Today, tourism
and winter sports in the Karavanke, the Carnic Alps
and the Julian Alps
have become important industries. Tarvisio is known for its profound alpine snow which attracts many tourists for skiing and snowboarding, mainly schools. It was host to the 2003 Winter Universiade
and the Women's 2007 Alpine Skiing World Cup
.
) running from the Austrian A2 Süd Autobahn
to Udine and the A4 autostrada at Palmanova
. The Tarvisio railway station is located at the new Pontebbana line from Villach
to Udine opened in 2000, that replaced the tracks of the former Austrian k.k. Staatsbahn built in 1879.
Province of Udine
The Province of Udine is a province in the autonomous Friuli-Venezia Giulia region of Italy, bordering Austria and Slovenia. Its capital is the city of Udine....
, in the northeastern part of the autonomous Friuli–Venezia Giulia region in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. Located in the Canal Valley (Val Canale) of the Southern Limestone Alps
Southern Limestone Alps
The Southern Limestone Alps are the ranges of the Eastern Alps south of the Central Eastern Alps mainly located in northern Italy and the adjacent lands of Austria and Slovenia. The distinction from the Central Alps, where the higher peaks are located, is based on differences in geological...
, at the border with both Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
and Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
, it is characterized by its location at the tripoint
Tripoint
A tripoint, or trijunction , is a geographical point at which the borders of three countries or subnational entities meet....
of Latin
Latin Europe
Latin Europe is a loose term for the region of Europe with an especially strong Latin cultural heritage inherited from the Roman Empire.-Application:...
, Germanic
Germanic languages
The Germanic languages constitute a sub-branch of the Indo-European language family. The common ancestor of all of the languages in this branch is called Proto-Germanic , which was spoken in approximately the mid-1st millennium BC in Iron Age northern Europe...
and Slavic Europe
Slavic Europe
Slavic Europe is a region of Europe where Slavic languages are spoken. This area is situated in Central and Eastern Europe and the Balkans, and includes the nations of Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, the Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro, Poland, Russia,...
.
History
As a place upon ancient trade routes across the Alps to VeniceVenice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
, Tarvisio's roots date back to Roman
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
times. In 1007 Emperor Henry II
Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor
Henry II , also referred to as Saint Henry, Obl.S.B., was the fifth and last Holy Roman Emperor of the Ottonian dynasty, from his coronation in Rome in 1014 until his death a decade later. He was crowned King of the Germans in 1002 and King of Italy in 1004...
vested the newly created Diocese of Bamberg with the Carinthian
March of Carinthia
The March of Carinthia was a frontier district of the Carolingian Empire created in 889. Before it was a march, it had been a principality or duchy ruled by native-born Slavic princes at first independently and then under Bavarian and subsequently Frankish suzerainty...
Canal Valley down to Pontebba
Pontebba
Pontebba is a comune in the Province of Udine in the Italian region Friuli-Venezia Giulia. It is located about 100 km northwest of Trieste and about 50 km north of Udine, on the border with Austria...
, a region which had considerable importance because of nearby ore mines
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
and ironworks
Ironworks
An ironworks or iron works is a building or site where iron is smelted and where heavy iron and/or steel products are made. The term is both singular and plural, i.e...
, especially around the village of Fusine (Weißenfels/Bela Peč). Tarvisio remained a southern exclave of the Prince-Bishopric of Bamberg
Prince-Bishopric of Bamberg
The Bishopric of Bamberg was established in 1007, to further expand the spread of Christianity in Germany. The ecclesiastical state was a member of the Holy Roman Empire from about 1245 until it was subsumed to the Electorate of Bavaria in 1802...
, until in 1758 the bishop finally sold Tarvisio to the Habsburg Empress Maria Theresa of Austria
Maria Theresa of Austria
Maria Theresa Walburga Amalia Christina was the only female ruler of the Habsburg dominions and the last of the House of Habsburg. She was the sovereign of Austria, Hungary, Croatia, Bohemia, Mantua, Milan, Lodomeria and Galicia, the Austrian Netherlands and Parma...
. Until 1918 it was part of the Duchy of Carinthia
Duchy of Carinthia
The Duchy of Carinthia was a duchy located in southern Austria and parts of northern Slovenia. It was separated from the Duchy of Bavaria in 976, then the first newly created Imperial State beside the original German stem duchies....
, it received town privileges
Town privileges
Town privileges or city rights were important features of European towns during most of the second millennium.Judicially, a town was distinguished from the surrounding land by means of a charter from the ruling monarch that defined its privileges and laws. Common privileges were related to trading...
in 1909.
According to the Italian census of 1971, 13,3% of the population was of Slovene ethnicity.
Main sights
Tarvisio features include the parish church Saints Peter and Paul, built in the 15th century, as well as sceneries like the Fusine laghi mountain lakes. At the summit of the 1,789 m Monte Lussari (Luschariberg/Svete Višarje) is a pilgrimagePilgrimage
A pilgrimage is a journey or search of great moral or spiritual significance. Typically, it is a journey to a shrine or other location of importance to a person's beliefs and faith...
church, where according to legend in 1360 a shepherd discovered a statue of Virgin Mary
Mary (mother of Jesus)
Mary , commonly referred to as "Saint Mary", "Mother Mary", the "Virgin Mary", the "Blessed Virgin Mary", or "Mary, Mother of God", was a Jewish woman of Nazareth in Galilee...
. The church and the nearby ski centre can be reached by cable car
Cable car
A cable car is any of a variety of transportation systems relying on cables to pull vehicles along or lower them at a steady rate, or a vehicle on these systems.-Aerial lift:Aerial lifts where the vehicle is suspended in the air from a cable:...
from Malborghetto Valbruna
Malborghetto Valbruna
Malborghetto Valbruna is a comune in the Province of Udine in the Italian region Friuli-Venezia Giulia, located about 100 km northwest of Trieste and about 50 km northeast of Udine, on the border with Austria. , it had a population of 1,025 and an area of 120.5 km²...
. The area around the Sella Nevea
Sella Nevea
Sella Nevea is a high mountain pass and ski resort in the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region of northeast Italy. Sella Nevea is a località of the comune of Chiusaforte, in the province of Udine.- Geography :...
mountain pass between Tarvisio and Chiusaforte
Chiusaforte
Chiusaforte is a comune in the Province of Udine in the Italian region Friuli-Venezia Giulia, located about 90 km northwest of Trieste and about 40 km north of Udine, on the border with Slovenia...
is also a popular ski resort.
Economy
For decades, Tarvisio benefited economically from people coming from Austria and YugoslaviaYugoslavia
Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
for shopping trips. However trade at the notorious "Rag Market"
Street market
A street market is an outdoor market such as traditionally held in a market square or in a market town, and often held only on particular days of the week...
diminuished after the implementation of Schengen Agreement
Schengen Agreement
The Schengen Agreement is a treaty signed on 14 June 1985 near the town of Schengen in Luxembourg, between five of the ten member states of the European Economic Community. It was supplemented by the Convention implementing the Schengen Agreement 5 years later...
and the establishment of the Eurozone
Eurozone
The eurozone , officially called the euro area, is an economic and monetary union of seventeen European Union member states that have adopted the euro as their common currency and sole legal tender...
. Today, tourism
Tourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
and winter sports in the Karavanke, the Carnic Alps
Carnic Alps
The Carnic Alps are a range of the Southern Limestone Alps in East Tyrol, Carinthia, South Tyrol and Friuli . They extend from east to west for about between the Gail River, a tributary of the Drava and the Tagliamento, forming the border between Austria and Italy.They are named after the Roman...
and the Julian Alps
Julian Alps
The Julian Alps are a mountain range of the Southern Limestone Alps that stretches from northeastern Italy to Slovenia, where they rise to 2,864 m at Mount Triglav. They are named after Julius Caesar, who founded the municipium of Cividale del Friuli at the foot of the mountains...
have become important industries. Tarvisio is known for its profound alpine snow which attracts many tourists for skiing and snowboarding, mainly schools. It was host to the 2003 Winter Universiade
2003 Winter Universiade
The 2003 Winter Universiade, the XXI Winter Universiade, took place in Tarvisio, Italy.-Medals table:...
and the Women's 2007 Alpine Skiing World Cup
2007 Alpine Skiing World Cup
The 41st World Cup season was scheduled to begin on October 28, 2006, but cancellation of the opening races in Sölden delayed the season's start by two weeks. A very poor snowpack in the Alps, along with stormy weather in January, caused numerous races to be moved and rescheduled throughout the...
.
Transport
Tarvisio has access to the A23 Alpe-Adria autostrada (European route E55European route E55
European route E 55 is a E-route. It passes through the following cities:Helsingborg … Helsingør – Copenhagen – Køge – Vordingborg – Nykøbing Falster – Gedser … Rostock – Berlin – Lübbenau – Dresden – Teplice – Prague – Tábor – Linz – Salzburg – Villach – Tarvisio – Udine – Palmanova – Mestre...
) running from the Austrian A2 Süd Autobahn
Autobahns of Austria
The Austrian autobahns are controlled-access highways in Austria. They are officially called Bundesstraßen A according to the Austrian federal road act...
to Udine and the A4 autostrada at Palmanova
Palmanova
Palmanova is a town and comune in northeastern Italy, close to the border with Slovenia. It is located 20 km from Udine, 28 km from Gorizia and 55 km from Trieste near the junction of the Autostrada Alpe-Adria and the Autostrada Venezia-Trieste .Palmanova is famous for its fortress...
. The Tarvisio railway station is located at the new Pontebbana line from Villach
Villach
Villach is the second largest city in the Carinthia state in the southern Austria, at the Drava River and represents an important traffic junction for Austria and the whole Alpe-Adria region. , the population is 58,480.-History:...
to Udine opened in 2000, that replaced the tracks of the former Austrian k.k. Staatsbahn built in 1879.