Tyrol (state)

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This article is about the present-day Austrian federal state. For other uses of Tyrol see Tyrol (disambiguation).

**Tirol**

State	AT-7 (ISO)
Capital	Innsbruck
Governor	Herwig van Staa
Area - Total	Ranked 3rd 12,648 km²
Population - Total (2006) - Density	Ranked 5th 701556 (2007) populationpercent=x.x 53/km²
The state flag of Tirol
The state of Tirol on the map of Austria

The districts of Tyrol.

Tyrol (German: Tirol) is a state or Bundesland, located in the west of Austria. It comprises the Austrian part of the historical region of Tyrol.

The state is split into two parts - called North Tyrol and East Tyrol - by a 20km-wide strip of land where the state of Salzburg borders directly on the Italian Province of Bolzano-Bozen (Alto Adige/South Tyrol).

North Tyrol borders Bavaria, Germany, in the north, the state of Vorarlberg in the west, Bozen-Bolzano, Italy, and Switzerland in the south and Salzburg in the east. East Tyrol also borders Carinthia in the east.

The highest mountain in the state is the Großglockner in the Hohe Tauern, with an elevation of 3,798 m (12,461 ft.). This is second only to the highest mountain of Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, the Ortler, 3,905 m (12,812 ft.).

The capital is Innsbruck. The town is known for its university, especially the modern techniques in medicine. Tyrol is popular for its famous skiing resorts, such as Kitzbühel, Ischgl or St. Anton. Other larger towns are Kufstein, Schwaz, Reutte and Landeck.

[edit] Administrative divisions

The state is divided into 8 districts (Bezirke), and one Statutarstadt, Innsbruck. The districts and their administrative centers, in order from west to east, and north to south:

Statutory city:

Innsbruck

North Tyrol:

East Tyrol:

Lienz, (Lienz)

[edit] History

Main article: Tyrol

The Americans' assumed perimeter of Nazi Germany's planned National Redoubt.

Historically, Tyrol was a County of the Holy Roman Empire, later the Austrian Empire and finally a Kronland of Austria-Hungary, which extended beyond the boundaries of today's state. Historical references to Tyrol (before World War I) include today's Tyrol (North Tyrol and East Tyrol), but also the Italian provinces of Bolzano-Bozen (Alto Adige or South Tyrol) and Trento (Trentino).

Nazi Germany did make plans in late 1944 to make a last ditch stand in the Tyrol, but it was too late and nothing actually took place at the envisaged National Redoubt.

After World War I, Alto Adige/South Tyrol and Trentino became part of Italy, according to the provisions of the Treaty of Saint Germain. Some tension still pervades the region due to the large number of German speakers in the former that consider themselves more Austrian than Italian.