Ferlach () in the district of Klagenfurt-Land in Carinthia is the southernmost town in Austria. It is known for its centuries-old gunsmith tradition, part of the Austrian intangible cultural heritage since 2010.
The town centre lies at the junction of the Rosental Straße (B85) highway with Loiblpass Straße (B91), part of the European route E652, running from Klagenfurt to Tržič in Slovenia via Loibl Pass. The Ferlach Railway line from Weizelsdorf went out of service in 1951, but on summer weekends and special occasions a heritage railway service, the Rosentaler Dampfzug runs as far as Weizelsdorf, operated by the preservation group Nostalgiebahnen in Kärnten.
The relocation of the capital of the Duchy of Carinthia to nearby Klagenfurt under the rule of King Maximilian I about 1518 decisively promoted the development of Ferlach as a centre of firearm manufacturing. Under Empress Maria Theresa, its gunsmiths became the main of the Habsburg monarchy. Ferlach firearms were also used by the Bourbon Spain, French and Ottoman Empire armies.
The present-day municipality was established as Oberferlach in 1850. Ferlach received town privileges in 1930 and today is a centre for the production of hunting . The history of the town is depicted in its coat of arms: it features a pine tree with a cone, two crossed silver nails, and a rifle.
Bodental/Poden | 115 | 53.9% | 83.3% |
Loibltal/Brodi | 70 | 51.4% | 68.2% |
Strugarjach/Strugarje | 18 | 61.6% | 94.1% |
W.Bleiberg/Slovenji Plajberk | 124 | 66.9% | 87.3% |
Waidisch/Bajdiše | 93 | 37.6% | 44.5% |
Glainach/Glinje | 114 | 12.3% | 84.7% |
Kappel a.D./Kapla ob Dravi | 262 | 6.5% | 30.3% |
Tratten/Trata | 82 | 15.9% | 41.4% |
Unterglainach/Vesca | 32 | 37.5% | 100% |
Laak/Loka | 41 | 14.6% | 100% |
Seidolach/Ždovlje | 87 | 18.4% | 74.5% |
Dörfl/Kajže | 18 | 55.6% | 79.4% |
Singerberg/Žingarica | 9 | 11.1% | 100% |
Rauth/Rute | 11 | 9.1% | 100% |
Görtschach/Goriče | 230 | 8.8% | 13.7% |
Reßnig/Resnica | 212 | 7.1% | 44.8% |
Kirschentheuer/Kožentavra | 252 | 7.9% | 45.6% |
Otrouza/Otrovca | 71 | 5.6% | 41.0% |
Strau/Struga | 222 | 5.0% | 28.5% |
Unterloibl/Podljubelj | 240 | 8.3% | 22.1% |
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