thumb|View of Vaduz from space
thumb|Panoramic view of Vaduz
Vaduz (, []) is the capital of Liechtenstein and also the seat of the national parliament. The town, which is located along the Rhine, has 5,696 residents.
In the 17th century the Liechtenstein family was seeking a seat in the Imperial diet, the Reichstag. As they did not hold any territory that was directly under the Imperial throne they were unable to meet the primary requirement to qualify.
The family yearned for the added power a seat in the Imperial government would bring, and therefore sought to acquire lands that would be reichsunmittelbar, or held directly from the Holy Roman Emperor himself, without any intermediate feudal patronage. After some time, the family was able to arrange the purchase of the minuscule Herrschaft ("Lordship") of Schellenberg and the countship of Vaduz (in 1699 and 1712, respectively) from the Hohenems. Tiny Schellenberg and Vaduz possessed exactly the political status required: no feudal lord other than the Emperor.
Thereby, on 23 January 1719, after the purchase had been duly made, Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor, decreed Vaduz and Schellenberg were united, and raised to the dignity of Fürstentum (principality) with the name "Liechtenstein" in honour of "[his] true servant, Anton Florian of Liechtenstein". It is on this date that Liechtenstein became a sovereign member state of the Holy Roman Empire. As testimony to the pure political expediency of the purchases, the Princes of Liechtenstein did not set foot in their new principality for over 120 years.
Politics
Vaduz is located in the Oberland electoral district, which has fifteen seats in the Landtag of Liechtenstein. Since the introduction of Liechtenstein municipal law of 1864, Vaduz has been locally administered by a mayor and municipal council. Until 1941, this consisted of the mayor, the municipal treasurer, and seven other councillors.
In 1974, the municipal law was revised which extended the term of the mayor and council to four years and increased the seats of Vaduz's municipal council to twelve. The system to elect the municipal council was changed to use an open list proportional representation system. In 1976, Vaduz replaced universal male suffrage with universal suffrage.
The incumbent mayor is Florian Meier, elected in the 2024 Vaduz mayoral by-election.
Last election
Geography
Climate
Vaduz features an oceanic climate with warm summers and chilly winters. Köppen-Geiger climate classification system classifies its climate as Marine West Coast Climate (Cfb). The village experiences a noticeable increase in precipitation during the summer, but in general all twelve months see some precipitation. Vaduz receives, on average, approximately of precipitation per year.
Vaduz's warmest month, July, sees average high temperatures reach while average low temperatures are about . The village's coldest month, January, sees average highs of and average lows of .
Main sights
Vaduz Castle is the home of the reigning prince of Liechtenstein and the Liechtenstein princely family. The castle is visible from almost any location in Vaduz, being perched atop a steep hill in the middle of the town. The Cathedral of St. Florin, Government House and Village Hall display the various styles and periods of architecture in the town. Schalun Castle is located in the municipality, to the northeast of Vaduz.
thumb|[[Cathedral of St. Florin]]
thumb|[[Kunstmuseum Liechtenstein]]
Demographics
As of 2019, 5,696 people lived in Vaduz. With 67% the population is predominantly Roman Catholic, while the percentage of Catholics is significantly higher among residents with Liechtenstein nationality (81%) than among foreigner residents (47%). The largest minority religions in the town are Protestantism (10%) and Islam (8%).