Balzers

Municipality in Oberland, Liechtenstein

Balzers

Municipality

Balzers in early September 2010

Flag

Coat of arms

Location of Balzers

Balzers (southwest) and its exclaves in Liechtenstein

Coordinates: 47°04′N 9°30′E﻿ / ﻿47.067°N 9.500°E﻿ / 47.067; 9.500
Country|  Liechtenstein
Electoral district| Oberland
Villages| Mäls
Government

• Mayor| Karl Malin (VU)
Area

• Total

| 19.73 km2 (7.62 sq mi)
Elevation

| 472 m (1,549 ft)
Population

• Total

| 4,806[1]
Time zone| UTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)| CEST
Postal code|

9496

Area code| 7003
ISO 3166 code| LI-01
Website| www.balzers.li

Balzers (Swiss Standard German pronunciation: [ˈbaltsərs] ⓘ) is a municipality and village located in southern Liechtenstein. In 2024, the village had a population of 4,806.[2] The main part of the village is situated along the east bank of the Rhine.

## History and culture

[edit]

Balzers, entry (direction to Trubbach)

Historically, the present-day form of the village consists of two different villages, the actual Balzers in the east and Mäls in the west. Not visible to the unaware, the division still persists in the local village culture, where it manifests in half-serious local competition. Some customs, such as the "Funken", a springtime ritual with pre-Christian origins involving a huge bonfire, are still being practised by each separately.[citation needed] The location was first mentioned in 842 as Palazoles.[3] The name originates from Latin palatiola, meaning small palace.[4]

Balzers is the home of the Gutenberg Castle, which was built around 1200 on a rocky hill between Balzers and Mäls.[3]

Balzers seen from Gutenberg Castle, looking towards the Swiss city of Sargans.

## Administration

[edit]

Balzers is locally administered by the mayor and a 10-person municipal council, elected every four years since 1975. The incumbent mayor is Karl Marlin, since 2023.[3]

### List of mayors (1864–present)

[edit]

List of mayors (1864–present) Name  | Term  | Party  | Ref(s)

|
|
|

Franz Anton Kaufmann  | 1864–1865  |  |

[3]

Johann Georg Büchel  | 1865–1867
Franz Wolfinger | 1867–1870
Baptist Fritsche  | 1870–1873
Johann Baptist Frick  | 1873–1876
Johann Georg Vogt  | 1876–1879
Baptist Johann Fritsche  | 1879–1879
Franz Vogt  | 1879–1882
Josef Isidor Brunhart  | 1882–1885
Christian Brunhart  | 1885–1888
Josef Isidor Brunhart  | 1888–1891
Christian Brunhart  | 1891–1894
Josef Isidor Brunhart  | 1894–1897
Heinrich Brunhart  | 1897–1900
Elias Vogt  | 1900–1903
Heinrich Brunhart | 1903–1912
Emil Wolfinger  | 1912–1918
Gebhard Brunhart  | 1918–1927  |  | FBP
Basil Vogt | 1927–1936  |  | CSVP
Georg Vogt | 1936–1939  |  | FBP
Alois Willie  | 1939–1945  |  | VU
Fidel Brunhart | 1945–1960  |  | FBP
Walter Brunhart | 1960–1966  |  | VU
Emanuel Vogt  | 1966–1987  |  | FBP
Othmar Vogt  | 1987–2003  |  | VU
Anton Eberle  | 2003–2011  |  | FBP
Arthur Brunhart | 2011–2015  |  | VU
Hansjörg Büchel  | 2015–2023  |  | FBP
Karl Malin | 2023–  |  | VU

## Transport

[edit]

### Heliport

[edit]

Balzers has a heliport available for charter flights (IATA: -, ICAO: LSXB) (47°04′05″N 9°28′52″E﻿ / ﻿47.06812°N 9.48118°E﻿ / 47.06812; 9.48118﻿ (Balzers heliport)). The heliport has no border-control facilities; therefore, the only flights permitted to use it are those heading to and from elsewhere within the Schengen Area.

Aircraft  | Year implemented  | Type  | In service  | Role

|
|
|
|

Ecureuil AS 350 | 2005, 2008, and 2012  | B3  | 3  | Used for transporting people
Guimbal Cabri G2 | 2011  |  | 1  | Purchased for a new pilot training program, started April 2011
Kaman K-Max | 2006  | 1200  | 1  | Used for transporting cargo

## Economy

[edit]

### Oerlikon Balzers

[edit]

The headquarters of the major thin film coating, solar and vacuum technology company Oerlikon Balzers is located in Balzers.[5]

## Sports

[edit]

FC Balzers plays in Swiss 1. Liga .They play at the Sportplatz Rheinau, stadium has a capacity of 2,000. [6]

## Notable people

[edit]

* Xaver Frick (1913 in Balzers – 2009) Olympic track and field athlete and cross-country skier. He competed in track sprinting events in the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin and cross-country skiing at the 1948 Winter Olympics in St. Moritz. Frick is the only Liechtenstein athlete to date to have competed in both the Summer and Winter Olympic Games. He was awarded a Golden Laurel in 2003 by the government of Liechtenstein for outstanding contributions to sport.
* Andrea Willi (born 1955) Minister of Foreign Affairs (1993–2001).
* Christine Wohlwend (born 1978), politician.

## See also

[edit]

* Alexander Suvorov

## References

[edit]

1. ^ {{ https://www.citypopulation.de/en/liechtenstein/>}}
2. ^ ({{ https://www.citypopulation.de/en/liechtenstein/> Population Blazers}})
3. ^ a b c d Mayr, Ulrike; Vogt, Paul (31 December 2011). "Balzers". Historisches Lexikon des Fürstentums Liechtenstein (in German). Retrieved 24 November 2024.
4. ^ "Balzers". Liechtensteiner Namenbuch. Retrieved 25 December 2024.
5. ^ "Oerlikon Balzers - Contact". Oerlikon.com. Archived from the original on October 2, 2011. Retrieved 2012-02-22.
6. ^ "Liechtenstein - FC Balzers - Results, fixtures, squad, statistics, photos, videos and news - Soccerway". int.soccerway.com.

## External links

[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Balzers.

* Official website

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Municipalities of Liechtenstein

Oberland|

* Balzers
* Planken
* Schaan
* Triesen
* Triesenberg
* Vaduz

Unterland|

* Eschen
* Gamprin
* Mauren
* Ruggell
* Schellenberg

Authority control databases

International|

* VIAF

National|

* Germany
* Czech Republic

Geographic|

* MusicBrainz area
* Pleiades

Other|

* Historical Dictionary of Switzerland

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