Editing Mödling (section)

==History==
[[File:Richza.jpg|thumb|right|220px|[[Richsa Česká]] fresco ca. 1252]]
[[File:Sundial in Mödling.jpg|thumb|right|220px|A [[sundial]] on an old building on Freiheitsplatz (Freedom Square). The sundial is originally from the year 1503, as indicated by the painting.]]

The settlement dates back to the [[Neolithic]] era. Through the centuries, the name of the town evolved from ''Medilihha'' to ''Medelikch'', ''Medling'' and, finally, Mödling. These names trace back to old Slavic meaning 'slowly running water'. 

Today there is a quaint old town with a pedestrian area. The town was the residence of a branch of the [[Babenberg]] family, as a result of which it received the nickname ''Babenbergerstadt'' ('Town of the Babenbergs').

Traces of the first settlements of the [[Hallstatt culture]] from the Neolithic era were found on the Kalenderberg. Roman coins and a Roman burial site have been found near today's railway station.

After [[Charlemagne]]'s victory in 803 AD against the [[Pannonian Avars|Avars]], the area around Mödling was settled by settlers from Bavaria. About 500 Avar graves were found in the area of the "Goldene Stiege" (very close to today's old city).

The first ancient document mentioning "MEDILIHHA ULTRA MONTEM COMMIGENIUM" is dated 8 September 903, when two bishops (of the then Roman Catholic church) exchanged lands. However, in 907 the settlement seems to have been destroyed again. After the [[Battle of Lechfeld]] settlement in the area of today's Mödling started again.

After this, for some time Mödling housed a relative of the then ruling House of Babenberg. In 1177, [[Henry I, Duke of Mödling|Henry the Elder]], son of [[Henry II, Duke of Austria|Henry II Jasomirgott]], became landlord in an area reaching from [[Liesing]] to [[Piesting]] and [[Bruck an der Leitha]]. You can read this in old documents kept in the nearby monastery of Heiligenkreuz. In Henry's days arts and culture dominated in the castle of Mödling; the famous minnesinger [[Walther von der Vogelweide]] stayed there more than once. The Spitalkirche and today's St. Othmar were built in the 15th century, the Karner ([[charnel house]]) in the 12th.

Even in these times, Mödling grew grapes; after [[Langenlois]], it was the largest grape-growing community in Lower Austria.

In 1343, Duke Albrecht II granted the rights of a [[market town]] to Mödling.

In 1529, the [[Ottoman Turks|Ottomans]] devastated Mödling for the first time during their [[Siege of Vienna (1529)|first siege of Vienna]]. In 1679, many citizens died of the [[Black Death]]. When the Ottomans [[Siege of Vienna (1683)|came again in 1683]], almost all the citizens of Mödling were killed. The second epidemic of the Black Death only brought death to 22 inhabitants, hence the survivors built the [[Marian and Holy Trinity columns|monument of the Holy Trinity]] (Dreifaltigkeits- or Pestsäule) at the Freiheitsplatz.

In the early 19th century, [[Ludwig van Beethoven]] often visited his favorite pub, the Three Ravens, in Mödling.

[[Arnold Schoenberg]] lived in Mödling between 1918 and 1925, and invented his [[twelve-tone technique]] of composition there.

On 18 November 1875, Mödling was designated a city.{{Citation needed|date=February 2013}}

From 1883 to 1932, Mödling was the starting point of the [[Mödling and Hinterbrühl Tram]], Austria's first electric railway and world's first long-lasting tram with overhead lines.

In 1938, after the ''[[Anschluss]]'' with [[Nazi Germany]], Mödling was incorporated into the newly formed [[Districts of Vienna|24th District of Vienna]]. In 1954, it became once again a part of [[Lower Austria]].

On May 30, 2023, 3 people were killed by fire at the local hospital.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-05-30 |title=Fire at Austrian hospital kills 3 patients, cigarette suspected as cause |url=https://apnews.com/article/austria-hospital-fire-d8086bbe91a900bcfa0bbfe628d8276e |access-date=2023-05-31 |website=AP News |language=en}}</ref>

{{see also|Lower Austria|Wienerwald, Austria}}