Raabs an der Thaya

Raabs an der Thaya, Lower Austria, town in the district of Waidhofen an der Thaya, alt. 450 m, pop. 3,295 (in 1981 pop. 3,748), area 134.65 km², located at the confluence of the Moravian arm of the River Thaya and its German arm, in the northern part of the Waldviertel Region. - Road maintenance agency, Museum of the History of the Border Region (Grenzlandmuseum); warehouse, building and construction enterprises, summer tourism (21,970 overnight stays in 1992). - Documented mention around 1100 as "Racoucz", was conferred the status of a town in 1926; parts of the town fortification have been preserved. Parish church originally in Romanesque style (Gothic extensions in the 15^th century); Raabs Castle (2^nd half of the 11^th  century) with Hungerturm and Ochsenturm towers and 2 halls with murals (16^th century); hall church with Romanesque core and Baroque west tower at Eibenstein; ruins of Eibenstein Castle (documented mention around 1194) on a rock projection located east of the town, one of the strategic fortifications built along the Thaya river during the Middle Ages.

Literature: K. Barta, Heimatbuch der Stadt Raabs an der Thaya, 1965; O. Knapp, 900 Jahre Pfarre Raabs an der Thaya, 1982; Österreichisches Städtebuch, vol. IV, part 3, Die Städte Niederösterreichs, 1982.