FDC from Austria: 50 years diocese in Eisenstadt

Eisenstadt is a city in Austria, the state capital of Burgenland. It has a population of about 12,000 (2006). In the Habsburg monarchy, Kismarton (Eisenstadt) was the seat of the Eszterházy Hungarian noble family. The composer Joseph Haydn lived there as Hofkapellmeister under Esterházy patronage. Until the end of World War I, it was the seat of Kismarton district in Sopron county in the Kingdom of Hungary. Without plebiscite, the city and the entire Hungarian territory of Burgenland (with the exception of the city of Sopron where the only plebiscite was held) was transferred to Austria by the Saint-Germain and Treaties of Trianon in 1921. Since 30 April 1925, Eisenstadt is seat of the Burgenland state government and thus the state capital. During World War II, Eisenstadt was heavily bombarded. In 1945, it was occupied by the Red Army, and the city remained until 1955 under Soviet occupation. In 1960, Eisenstadt became the see of its own Roman Catholic diocese.