Wilten & Sieglanger

Wissenswertes zu Wilten & Sieglanger

Judging by archaeological finds, Wilten could be described as Innsbruck's nucleus. After the Roman colonisation around the turn of the century, a military base was established on the site of today's Wilten.

After the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in 476 AD, Tyrol slowly and insidiously came under the control of the Duchy of Bavaria. By 1180, when the Counts of Andechs began to establish the market on the southern bank of the Inn, from which Innsbruck was to emerge, Wilten had already been around for around 1000 years. By this time, however, Christianity and Wilten Abbey were already well established. The Bavarians were only too happy to take over this local administrative centre, both ecclesiastically and politically. With great foresight, Wilten Abbey had many special rights enshrined in treaties in return.

The city of Innsbruck was subsequently dependent on the municipality south of the city in many respects. This began with the energy supply. The Small SillThe canal, which was built in the High Middle Ages, supplied the town with water, which was essential for the town's trades. As the canal flowed through the lands of Wilten Abbey, the abbot had the power of disposal over the right of use until the 16th century, as he did over so many other things. Another special right of the abbey was the right to mill. In the Middle Ages, Innsbruck farmers with grain had to make a pilgrimage to the Wilten mills on the Sill to grind their grain. If medieval towns ran out of bread, there was a risk of unrest and uprisings. As grain was the central element of the diet of the vast majority of society for centuries, this gave the people of Wilten a certain claim to power over Innsbruck. The abbot also lifted the Zehenten a tax that belonged to the church. These financial issues led to constant competition between the monastery and the town, which continued among the population.

Throughout the centuries, Wilten was also important as an ecclesiastical authority. The relationship between the ecclesiastical power in Wilten in the person of the abbot and the secular power in Innsbruck in the person of the sovereign, supported by the Jesuits from the 16th century onwards, was similar to the ongoing dispute between the Pope and the Emperor in the Middle Ages. The town was dependent on the abbot in matters of pastoral care and the mass service. The parish church of St Jakob was merely a branch of Wilten Abbey. Until 1560, Wilten Abbey managed to prevent further monastery settlements in Innsbruck in order to maintain its sphere of influence. It was only during the Reformation that Ferdinand I, a prince from Spain who disregarded many local customs and later Emperor, managed to establish a monastery in the city. At his insistence, the Jesuits came to the court in 1561, followed shortly afterwards by the Franciscans. Masses on high holidays such as Christmas, Easter and baptisms were still celebrated in Wilten. Inns near the monastery were happy to welcome regular visitors from the town on these days.

Wilten was incorporated in 1904 as part of the modernisation of the city of Innsbruck under Mayor Wilhelm Greil. Water and electricity changed people's everyday lives at the time. Around 1900, Wilten only had one school for 9,000 inhabitants, while Innsbruck had six for 25,000. Modernising the infrastructure would have been difficult for the individual districts to manage. It was sensible to join forces. As early as 1905, the first tram ran from Berg Isel to the main railway station. To celebrate the unification of Wilten and Innsbruck, Johann von Sieberer had the Unification fountain at the railway station, which was unfortunately removed during the Second World War.

The Wiltener Platzl and the Kaiserschützenplatz connected Wilten Abbey to the south via Leopoldstraße with the city centre, which begins at the Triumphpforte. This is where modern Wilten developed. The population of Wilten tripled within a few decades to 12,000 by 1900, and many of the houses bear witness to the expansion around the turn of the century. In Wilten, the "Helden“ der Tiroler Erhebung von 1809 in Straßennamen wie Andreas-Hofer-Straße, Speckbacherstraße oder Haspingerstraße verewigt. Westlich wuchs die Stadt entlang der Anichstraße bis zur Klinik und dem Westfriedhof in dieser Zeit ebenfalls. Die Gründerzeithäuser sind ebenso sehenswert wie die Südtirolersiedlung nahe dem Südring in der Speckbacherstraße. Ein kurzer Spaziergang von der Anichstraße durch die Kaiser-Josef-Straße, die Speckbacherstraße, die Stafflerstraße bis zur Sonnenburgstraße, besonders die Häuser 17 und 19 sind sehenswert, gibt einen guten Eindruck vom Städtebau zwischen 1880 und 1945.

Today, Wilten is a diverse and lively neighbourhood. Between the Upper village Around Gasthaus Haymon, Wilten West near the cemetery and the Triumphpforte, you will find traditional and new city life in close proximity. Functional housing from the 1960s and 1970s meets baroque town houses. The redesigned Wiltener Platzl is well received thanks to skilful planning with restaurants and small shops and is home to a small local market every Saturday. The proximity to the university and hospital in combination with the spacious old flats make Wilten attractive for students. In cosy pubs like the Jolly treffen alteingesessene Wiltener auf junges Publikum.