Lavamünd

Geschichte

Lavamünd is a market town in the district of Wolfsberg in the Austrian state of Carinthia.The Lavamünd hydroelectric power plant on the Drava river and the Koralpe power plant are located in or near Lavamünd.GeographyLavamünd lies in the southwest of Carinthia, close to the border with Slovenia (Slovene Carinthia). It is situated at the confluence of the Lavant and Drava rivers. In the northeast, Soboth Pass leads across the Koralpe range to Eibiswald in Styria. At an elevation of 348m AA, the area is the lowest part of Carinthia.The municipal area consists of the cadastral communities of Ettendorf, Großlamprechtsberg, Hart (Dobrova), Lamprechtsberg-Hartneidstein, Lavamünd proper, Lorenzenberg (Šentlovrenc), Magdalensberg, Rabenstein (Rabštajn pri Labotu), Weißenberg, and Wunderstätten (Drumlje pri Labotu).HistoryThe region in the Drava valley was already settled in Roman times. The estates at the confluence with the Lavant river were mentioned in a 1091 deed of donation, issued by the local Sponheim count Engelbert I in favour of newly established Saint Paul's Abbey. The market town itself arose in the 13th century; it was first documented in 1334. The Habsburg emperor Frederick III vested the citizens with high justice rights (Blutgerichtsbarkeit) in 1461.