Bressanone (German Brixen), the third largest town of the Alto Adige, lies in a broad part of the Isarco valley on the Brenner motorway. It is here that the River Rienza, coming from the Pusteria valley, flows into the Isarco.
History
Bressanone was founded in 901 on the remains of an old settlement. In 970 Bishop Albuin transferred the seat of the bishopric to Bressanone; the first Ottonian cathedral was built c. 990. In 1091 the town became the center of the Bressanone diocese; the town wall was erected in the 12th century and farther north the Neustift convent was founded.
In 1179 Frederick I granted the Bishop the right to mint coins, to conduct markets and to levy taxes, as well as full legal jurisdiction. In 1348 the town was afflicted by the plague; in 1444 many buildings were destroyed in a fire. The famous humanist and theologist Cusanus (Nikolaus van Kues) was from 1450 to 1451 bishop of Bressanone.
Building of the Baroque cathedral was begun in 1745, but is was not consecrated until 1758. From 1797 onwards during the Napoleonic Wars the town was occupied by the French; however, after the defeat of the French army in the battle of Spinges the occupying forces withdrew.
The German deputation order of 1803 put an end to ecclesiastical sovereignty in Bressanone; from 1806 to 1814 the town was under Bavarian rule and then it became part of Tyrol.
The Court Palace in Bressanone is a mix of Renaissance and Baroque styles, and was built between 1595 and 1710. It took the place of a 13th C castle which once stood here.
The collection in the Bressanone Museum in the palace includes medieval and modern works of art, paintings and porcelain and a world-famous collection of cribs.
Always closed on: Epiphany (3 Kings' Day ) - Christian (January 6), New Year's Day (January 1), Liberation Day - Italy (April 25), May Day / Labor Day (May 1), Assumption Day - Christian (August 15), Victory Day / National Unity Day - Italy (November 4), All Saints' Day - Christian (November 1), Feast of the Immaculate Conception (December 8), Day after Christmas, St Stephen's Day, Boxing Day (December 26), Christmas Eve - Christian (December 24), Christmas - Christian (December 25), Easter - Christian
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To the north of the cathedral in Bressanone will be found the original Parish Church of St Michael dating from c. 1500. In 1757-58 the interior was renovated in the Baroque style and the ceilings painted by Josef Hauzinger. In the churchyard, in a niche in the outside wall of the cathedral, is a figure in memory of the poet Oswald von Wolkenstein (1377-1445).
Southeast of the cathedral precincts in Bressanone stands the block of buildings housing the seminary. It was founded in 1607 and the buildings are Baroque. In 1764 the church of the Crucifixion was built on to the existing main façade. The interior contains frescoes by Franz Anton Zeiller.
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Court Palace (Hofburg)
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