History
Vorarlberg has been inhabited since the early Stone Age but it wasn’t until the arrival of the Celts in 400 BC, followed by the Romans in around 15 BC, that lasting settlements were maintained. Brigantium, the forerunner of Bregenz, was a stronghold of the Romans until around the 5th and 6th centuries, when the raiding Germanic Alemanni tribes increased their influence and effectively took over.
The province enjoyed a peaceful existence until the early 15th century, when it suffered substantial damage during the Appenzell War with the Swiss Confederation. Relations with its neighbour later improved to such an extent that in 1918 Vorarlberg declared independence from Austria and sought union with Switzerland. The move was blocked by the Allied powers in the post-war reorganisation of Europe; fears that an even-further reduced Austria would be easily assimilated into a recovering Germany were certainly founded. Today, Vorarlberg still looks first towards its westerly neighbours, and then to the Austrian capital, Vienna, 600km to the east.
