Fürstenau (; ) is a municipality in the Viamala Region in the Swiss canton of the Grisons and the smallest town to hold city rights with a market right received from Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor in 1354.

History Fürstenau is first mentioned in 1257 as Fúrstenowo and Furstinowe. Originally there were two medieval tower houses or guard towers and a bishop's house in the area that became Fürstenau. The Bishop's summer residence is of course the reason for the city right.

Geography

Fürstenau has an area, , of . Of this area, 52.3% is used for agricultural purposes, while 32.3% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 9.2% is settled (buildings or roads) and the remainder (6.2%) is non-productive (rivers, glaciers or mountains).

Before 2017, the municipality was located in the Domleschg sub-district of the Hinterrhein district, after 2017 it was part of the Viamala Region.Swiss Federal Statistical Office - Amtliches Gemeindeverzeichnis der Schweiz - Mutationsmeldungen 2016 accessed 16 February 2017 It consists of the village of Fürstenau and Fürstenaubruck, on the right side of the valley.

Demographics Fürstenau has a population (as of ) of . , 8.1% of the population was made up of foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years the population has grown at a rate of 12.5%.

, the gender distribution of the population was 49.4% male and 50.6% female.Graubunden in Numbers accessed 21 September 2009 The age distribution, , in Fürstenau is; 29 people or 9.3% of the population are between 0 and 9 years old. 16 people or 5.1% are 10 to 14, and 13 people or 4.2% are 15 to 19. Of the adult population, 27 people or 8.7% of the population are between 20 and 29 years old. 51 people or 16.4% are 30 to 39, 36 people or 11.6% are 40 to 49, and 44 people or 14.1% are 50 to 59. The senior population distribution is 25 people or 8.0% of the population are between 60 and 69 years old, 28 people or 9.0% are 70 to 79, there are 33 people or 10.6% who are 80 to 89, and there are 9 people or 2.9% who are 90 to 99.Graubunden Population Statistics accessed 21 September 2009

In the 2007 federal election the most popular party was the SPS which received 32.5% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SVP (30.4%), the FDP (27.2%) and the CVP (9.5%).

In Fürstenau about 81% of the population (between age 25-64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either university or a Fachhochschule).

Fürstenau has an unemployment rate of 1.85%. , there were 11 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 4 businesses involved in this sector. 2 people are employed in the secondary sector and there is 1 business in this sector. 133 people are employed in the tertiary sector, with 15 businesses in this sector.

The historical population is given in the following table: year population 1803 107 1850 304 1900 235 1950 253 1980 198 2000 311

Sights Fürstenau has three Swiss Heritage Sites of National Significance.

Heritage sites of national significance The Haus Stoffel, Oberes Schloss (Upper Castle) and Unteres Schloss (Lower Castle, also known as the Bishop's Castle) are listed as Swiss heritage sites of national significance.Swiss inventory of cultural property of national and regional significance 21.11.2008 version, accessed 02-Oct-2009 , the Oberes Schloss is an inn with a Michelin 3-star restaurant.

Languages The municipality is predominantly German-speaking, with a small Romansh-speaking minority. , 92.3% speaks German, with Romansh being second most common ( 3.2%) and Italian being third ( 1.9%).Swiss Federal Statistical Office accessed 02-Oct-2009 + Languages in Fürstenau Languages Census 1980 Census 1990 Census 2000 Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent German 170 85.86% 243 89.66% 287 92.28%Romanish 13 6.57% 15 5.54% 10 3.22%Italian 10 5.05% 4 1.48% 6 1.93%Population 198 100% 271 100% 311 100%

References

External links www.fuerstenau.ws