Tyrol (Austria) -- Description and travel; Tyrol (Austria) -- History
Indeed, during the time it was the acknowledged resort of the nobility
and even monarchs who came to Innsbruck, it sheltered amongst its many
distinguished guests and travellers the Emperor Joseph II.; Ludwig I.,
King of Bavaria; Gustave III. of Sweden; Heinrich Heine, the gifted
though melancholy poet; and Goethe, who came to Innsbruck with the
Dowager Duchess Amalie of Saxe-Weimar in 1790. In commemoration of
this visit a bust of the poet adorns the room which he occupied. And
last, but by no means least, the Goldener Adler housed the patriot
Andreas Hofer. It was regarding the portraits of the latter, of his
enemy Napoleon Bonaparte, and of Ludwig of Bavaria that Heine remarked
on seeing them hanging side by side in the dining-room of the Inn that
it was strange to see such enemies grouped together even though merely
portraits. Tradition has it that it was from the middle window of the
famous Goldener Adler that Hofer made his speech to the surging crowd
in the narrow street below on August 15, 1809, when he entered the
town in triumph after the third battle on Berg Isel. A copy of the
speech, which was a modest though stirring oration, has been preserved
at the Inn.
One of the most delightful vistas of the old town is to be obtained
from the corner where stand the three well-known Inns, the Goldener
Hirsch, Rother Adler, and Goldener Löwe; whilst from the balcony of
the old Stadtthurm or belfry a fine view over the town and of the
environing mountain summits rewards the adventurous climber.
The old-fashioned "lauben" or arcades of the Herzog-Friedrich-strasse
in particular, under which are set out tiny stalls often kept by
picturesquely attired girls and women, seldom fail to attract the
attention of visitors.
On either side of the street these "lauben" stretch under the low
arcaded roofs, providing not only a cool promenade in the heat of
summer, but a shelter which on wet days can be fully appreciated, for,
to speak frankly, Innsbruck in wet weather strikes one if one wanders
in the byways as a somewhat muddy though intensely interesting town.
In these "lauben" one frequently sees types of the older Tyrolese in
the national costume, which in the towns of Tyrol (as in those of
other countries) show signs of dying out. Old women in the short
skirts, and picturesque aprons, quaint hats and bodices, of the
mountain districts and villages, and the old men, wrapped (if the
weather be cold) in long, flowing, cloaks of green or russet cloth,
smoking their long pipes with painted porcelain bowls, on which are
often as not stirring scenes in miniature from the life of Hofer.
[Sidenote: MARKET TYPES]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account