The capital of Tyrol, Innsbruck (elevation 1,880 feet [573m]; pop. 150,000), is one of Europe's most beautiful cities. It has long been a center of commerce and traffic, as it lies at the junction of two important routes across the central Alps--a north-south and an east-west highway. In the eastern Alps, Innsbruck is about 30 minutes from the Italian border and 45 minutes from the German border.

Today, Innsbruck's beauty is protected by town planners who ensure that any new structures built in the inner city harmonize with the preexisting Gothic, Renaissance, and Baroque buildings. Modern urban development exists, spreading along the Inn River to the east and west, away from the historic areas.

The name Innsbruck means "bridge over the Inn"--the Inn, of course, is the river that flows through the city, which lies at a meeting place of the Valley of the Inn and the Sill Gorge. As long ago as 1180, a little settlement on the river was moved from the northern bank to the site of the present Old Town (Altstadt). In 1239, as a part of Swabia Bavaria, it was granted its own "rights and privileges," and in 1420, Innsbruck became the capital of Austria.

The city was celebrated throughout Europe under the Hapsburg Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I. Under Maximilian, whose reign (1490-1519) signaled the end of the Middle Ages, Innsbruck reached the height of its cultural and political importance (and it's still the cultural center of Tyrol). The city had a second imperial heyday some 300 years later, during the 40-year reign of Maria Theresa. Much later, in 1945, Innsbruck became the headquarters of the French zone of occupation.

Twice in a dozen years--in 1964 and 1976--the eyes of the world turned to Innsbruck when it hosted the Winter Olympics. It's now a winter sports center with modern facilities. Skiers who come to Innsbruck benefit twice: They stay in a cosmopolitan city called the jewel of the Alps, and they ski on some of the world's choicest slopes. Nonskiers and summer visitors can enjoy the sights of the medieval Old Town, the shops with Tyrolean specialties, and the many other outdoor activities that Tyrol offers.