Gmünd#

Gmuend, Lower Austria, town in the district of Gmuend, alt. 485 m, pop. 6,028, area 25.10 km2, situated in the northwest of the Weinviertel region near the Czech border; railway junction. One part of the town developed out of refugee camps (1915-1918). - District Commission, District Court, Office of Financial Affairs, Office of Surveying, Customs Office, Office of the Customs Police, Job Centre, District Branch of the Chamber of Agriculture, Chamber of Commerce, hospital, community centre, regional insurance office, Assangteich leisure centre, various school types: Bundesgymnasium and Bundesrealgymnasium secondary schools, Handelsakademie (commercial academy), Fachhochschule of Commerce, Foremen´s school of the Institute of Economic Development, Vocational Training Institute, Training Institute for Gerontology. About 61% of the workforce in Gmuend are employed in the service sector (mainly in social services, commerce and transport). Production sites: textile manufacturing, building materials; construction industries; Cross-border ventures with the Czech Republic. - Castle and town first documented 1255-1259, Gothic parish church with Romanesque core, 16th century palace surrounded by English gardens, parts of medieval city walls still extant, square in the town centre with ancient town houses, town hall (16th century) with Museum of the History of Gmuend and Museum of Glass and Rocks. After the fall of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy one part of the city of Gmuend was given to the Czech Republic in 1920 and given the name of Cěske Velenice, between 1942 and 1945 again part of Gmuend, since then returned to Czechoslovakia/the Czech Republic. To the northeast of Gmuend: Blockheide nature reserve.

Literature#