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Oberallgäu

2021-03-16T10:58:45.232Z


Oberallgäu - interesting facts about the location, history, economy and politics as well as information about the sights of the southernmost district of the Federal Republic of Germany.


Oberallgäu - interesting facts about the location, history, economy and politics as well as information about the sights of the southernmost district of the Federal Republic of Germany.

Sonthofen - Germany's southernmost city is located on the northern edge of the Allgäu Alps and embodies one of two cities in the Oberallgäu district.

Sonthofen extends as a medium-sized town with 21,619 inhabitants over an area of ​​46.6 square kilometers;

the small town of Immenstadt in the Allgäu has 14,314 inhabitants and covers 81.43 square kilometers (as of December 2019).

As a district town, Sonthofen is the administrative seat of the Swabian district of Oberallgäu in the Free State of Bavaria.

Oberallgäu - inhabitants, structure and location of the district

The Oberallgäu district is the southernmost district in Germany with 156,008 inhabitants (as of December 2019) and covers an area of ​​1,528 square kilometers.

It has a population density of 102 inhabitants per square kilometer and is the fifth largest district in Bavaria.

It is divided into 28 municipalities belonging to the district and with the Kempter Forest has a municipality-free area.

In the middle of the district lies the independent city of Kempten, which, as the second largest city in the Bavarian administrative district of Swabia, functions as the upper, school and administrative center of the Allgäu planning region.

The landscape within the district is determined by its location on the edge of the Alps.

The lowest point is the Fluhmühle barrage in Altusried with an altitude of 622 meters;

the highest point is the Hochfrottspitze in the Allgäu Alps at 2,649 meters above sea level.

The district of Oberallgäu is located in the southwest of the Free State of Bavaria on the border with the Austrian states of Vorarlberg and Tyrol and belongs to the administrative district of Swabia.

It borders - from west to east - on the districts of Lindau (Swabia), Ravensburg (Baden-Württemberg), Unterallgäu (Swabia) and Ostallgäu (Swabia).

Oberallgäu district - the key data of its history

The district of Oberallgäu has existed in its current form since the regional reform in Bavaria in 1972, when the old districts of Sonthofen and Kempten (Allgäu) were merged.

At the same time, the communities of Sankt Mang and Sankt Lorenz in the Kempten district were incorporated into the independent town of the same name.

The district was preceded by district offices and, in turn, district courts:

  • Until the secularization at the beginning of the 19th century, the claims to power alternated in the area of ​​the Oberallgäu district.

    In the north it was in the hands of the Prince Abbey of Kempten, the Free Imperial City of Kempten and the Hochstift Augsburg;

    in the southwest it belonged to the imperial county of Königsegg-Rothenfels.

  • In 1804 the regional courts of Sonthofen and Kempten were established, and in 1806 the regional court of Immenstadt.

    In 1809 Kempten was declared an independent city.

  • The administration was incumbent on the Illerkreis, which was a district of the Kingdom of Bavaria until 1817;

    Kempten in the Allgäu was its capital.

  • From 1817 all administrative areas belonged to the Upper Danube District, a district of the Kingdom of Bavaria, which until 1837 was the forerunner of the administrative district of Swabia.

  • In 1862 the district office of the same name emerged from the Kempten district court;

    The Sonthofen District Office emerged from the Sonthofen and Immenstadt district courts.

  • In 1939 the district offices in the German Reich were replaced by rural districts.

    The district offices of Kempten and Sonthofen became the districts of the same name.

  • In 1972 the districts of Kempten (Allgäu) and Sonthofen were combined to form the district of Oberallgäu.

The population in the Oberallgäu district grew by 19 percent between 1988 and 2018, from 130,054 to 155,362.

Oberallgäu district - an overview of its economy

The Oberallgäu district is an economic area with a high quality of life and an attractive cultural offer.

Located close to the economic regions of Munich, Stuttgart and Lake Constance, in the immediate vicinity of Austria and Switzerland, it is characterized by easy accessibility.

It is connected by car via the A 7 and A 96 motorways and the B12, B308 and B309 federal highways.

The nearest airport is Allgäu Airport Memmingen;

Deutsche Bahn offers direct connections from main train stations across Germany.

Major industries and companies

For the economy of the Oberallgäu district, the dairy industry, tourism, mechanical engineering, the packaging industry and the food industry play an essential role.

The wide range of courses at the University of Applied Sciences in the independent city of Kempten also contributes to its economic life.

50.3 percent of the total area of ​​the Oberallgäu district is used as agricultural land;

however, most of the employees are in the manufacturing sector.

  • Käserei Champignon Hofmeister GmbH & Co. KG with its headquarters in Lauben is one of the leading providers of milk and cheese specialties.

  • As one of the leading companies, Robert Bosch GmbH manufactures high-tech systems for active driving safety at its Immenstadt and Blaichach locations in the Oberallgäu district.

  • Swoboda technologies produces metal-plastic composite parts for the automotive industry in Wiggensbach.

  • Allfo GmbH & Co. KG in Waltenhofen produces packaging solutions in the form of vacuum bags.

  • In the IT services sector, Scaltell AG in Waltenhofen stands out as a dynamic company.

  • The economic focus on mechanical engineering is represented by, among others, BHS-Sonthofen GmbH in Sonthofen and MAH Maschinenbau Haldenwang GmbH & Co. KG in Haldenwang.

  • With around nine million overnight stays (as of 2019) annually, the Oberallgäu district is one of the most important holiday regions in Germany.

The unemployment rate in 2020 was a comparatively low 2.6 percent due to the diverse structures and the balanced mix of agriculture, tourism, industry and handicrafts.

In Bavaria it was 3.6 percent in the same year, and 5.9 percent in Germany.

From the forests and lakes in the foothills of the Alps to the peaks, gorges and mountain lakes of the Allgäu Alps: The Oberallgäu district casts a spell over you as a holiday region with its natural beauty.

This can be explored on hikes, mountain and ski tours as well as along the well-developed network of cycle paths.

The most beautiful bike tours through the Oberallgäu district

Three of the routes - the Iller cycle path, the Bodensee-Königssee cycle path and the Allgäu cycle path - also represent sections of long-distance cycle paths.

  • With a total length of 144 kilometers, the Iller cycle path leads from Oberstdorf to Ulm with an easy level of difficulty.

    It follows the course of the Iller from its source to its confluence with the Danube and crosses Sonthofen, Immenstadt im Allgäu, Altusried, Memmingen, Illertissen and Neu-Ulm.

    In Immenstadt im Allgäu it connects to the Bodensee-Königssee cycle path.

  • The Bodensee-Königssee Cycle Path extends from Lindau to Königssee over a total length of 414 kilometers, with medium to high difficulty.

    Some of the most beautiful castles and lakes in Bavaria lie along its route.

  • The Allgäu-Radweg runs 156 kilometers from Isny ​​to Halch, mostly on old railway lines.

    It is easy to moderately difficult to conquer, leads through Kempten, Unterthingau, Marktoberdorf and Steingaden and connects to the Lake Constance-Königssee cycle path.

  • The Heckmair route became known in 1989 as the first mountain bike crossing of the Alps.

    It can only be used during the summer months, it is not signposted and requires excellent physical condition.

    Its 312 kilometer route takes mountain bikers from Oberstdorf to Riva, across the Alps and through four countries.

  • The 432-kilometer Joe Route is a transalp tour that also extends from Oberstdorf to Riva.

Hikers also get their money's worth in the Oberallgäu district.

The Breitachklamm near Oberstdorf is one of the most imposing and deepest rock canyons in Central Europe;

it meanders one and a half kilometers through the limestone and is an impressive natural monument.

Oberallgäu - Worth knowing about the politics of the district

District Administrator of the Oberallgäu district and the first woman in this position is the German local politician Indra Baier-Müller of the small party Free Voters.

She replaced her predecessor Anton Klotz (CSU) in May 2020.

Roman Haug (Free Voters), who followed in the footsteps of Alois Ried (CSU) in May 2020, will act as her deputy.

The district council consists of 70 seats, which were distributed as follows in the 2020 election: 24 went to the CSU, 16 to the Free Voters (FW), 14 to the Greens, five to the Junge OberAllgäu (LJOA) list and three to the SPD.

The following parties each received two seats: the ÖDP / Independent Citizens, the FDP, the AfD and the Oberallgäu Citizens' Alliance.

Source: merkur

All news articles on 2021-03-16

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