!!!Osttirol

East Tirol, alpine region, comprises the uppermost Drau/Drava valley, 
the Isel valley, its side valleys (Defereggen, Virgen, Tauern and 
Kalsertal valleys) and the headwater region of the River Gail; 
encircled by high mountains, the Hohe Tauern mountains with Glockner 
and Venediger mountains in the north, Rieserferner mountains to the 
west, the Schober mountains (all glaciated) to the east, and the 
Karnisch Alps and Lienz Dolomites in the south; crossed in the south 
by the ancient transit route between the Pustertal and Oberdrautal 
valleys, with passes to the Gail valley (Kartitscher Sattel), Moell 
valley (Iselsberg) and the upper Salzach valley (Felber Tauern pass, 
the shortest distance between East and North Tirol, with Felber-Tauern 
Tunnel, 5304 m). The valley communities still celebrate village 
festivals, old customs and traditions; Paarhof farmsteads, typical of 
Austrian inner alpine regions, and the East Tirolian Einhof farmstead 
types dominate. The economy is mainly based on cattle raising, 
forestry and tourism. Increase in trade and industry since 1960 (EGO 
Austria Electric Appliances in Heinfels, Liebherr-Werk Lienz, 
refrigerators).

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East Tirol was separated from North Tirol in 1919 when South Tirol was 
ceded to Italy, and  Corridor Traffic between North and East Tirol 
through South Tirol was arranged with Italy. East Tirol forms the 
political district of Lienz (2,020 km%%sup 2/%, pop. 48,338) with 
the city of  Lienz as administrative, economic and cultural centre and 
traffic junction; it comprises the market towns of  Matrei in Osttirol 
and  Sillian (border station to Italy) as well as 30 municipalities. 
The ruins of  Aguntum are the remains of a Roman settlement; settled 
by Slavs in the early Middle Ages (hence "Windisch-Matrei"), 
it formed the western part of their territory of Karantania and later 
became part of Carinthia. East Tirol belonged to the County of Goricia 
for a long time, was incorporated into Austria and united with Tirol 
in 1500, while smaller regions were under the rule of Salzburg and 
Brixen. East Tirol was part of Bavaria between 1805-1809, between 
1809-1814 it belonged to the Illyrian provinces of France, the area 
fell back to the Habsburgs in 1815. Between 1938-1945 East Tirol 
belonged to Carinthia, 1945-1955 it was part of the English occupation 
zone.

!Literature
M. Hornung, Rauchkueche und Rauchstube in Osttirol, 1964; 
L. Ebner, Kartitsch in Osttirol - Vergangenheit und Gegenwart einer 
osttiroler Berggemeinde, 1982; H. W. Buchenauer, Gletscher und 
Blockgletscher. Geschichte der westlichen Schobergruppe (Osttirol), 
1990; Bezirkskunde Osttirol, ed. by Kath. Ti. Lehrerverein, 1993.


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