Melange Sonido, Martin Spengler und die foischen Wiener and Hotel Palindrone in the medieval court of the City Museum, the former Monastery of Saint Peter on the Sperr. Built in the 13th century shortly after Wiener Neustadt had been founded. As usual we can cut the concert report short: Great gigs, full house, enthusiatic audience and fine weather. There is not much more to say (apart from giving Hannes Laszkovits credit for the organisation), so let’s turn to historical Palotica business.

As illustrated in our last report by the example of Linz, there are cities being more or less ignored although they are worth a stop. Maybe Wiener Neustadt is not a Cool City according to urbanists’ definition, but you should give this town (fifty kilometres to the south of Vienna) a chance.

What do Austrians know about Wiener Neustadt? The first association is the MILAK, the Military academy (our West Point or Sandhurst). The second notion might be the Austro-Canadian entrepreneur Frank Stronach who sponsored the local Bundesliga football club using unusual, if not eccentric methods (as he did when he founded his own party in order to reface Austrian politics, which did not work, but sometimes was great fun). Music afficionados would suggest the Matthias Hauer Konservatorium, an academy which provided excellent education. As it was the case with Peter Natterer who plays the sax, the bass and the piano in our band (and does some remarkable beatboxing - but he did not learn that in Wiener Neustadt). Unfortunately the conservatory was closed some years ago.

Regarding Wiener Neustadt’s history most Austrians think about World War II: The airport and the arms factories were targets of American bombers, and as a consequence also big parts of the town were distroyed. Some Third-Reich-apotheosists still use this disastrous air raid to relativise the crimes comitted by the Nazis.

Back to our venue, the monatery of Saint Peter’s which is nearly as old as the town itself. And now Richard the Lionheart enters the scene. Every Austrian (I suppose all British, too) are touched by the story of his arrest in Vienna and his confinement in Dürnstein. Finally located by Minstrel Blondel who persistently walked from castle to castle and sang up to any tower he came across with. What a topic for films and books (apart from the Robin Hoood saga) - but the real facts are by far more thrilling and they concern Wiener Neustadt.

As far as I know Richard’s prison was no bad place (no chains, no water-and-bread-treatment), after all he was a king and the Austrians expected some money for his liberation (ransom business was popular, not only among bandits, but also rulers appreciated this easy income). So, if any Englishman is still worried about how we treated your king, just read this: The region offers some of the best white wines in the world (Grüner Veltliner and Rheinriesling), and Danube Valley is beautiful, too. Maybe Richard was not not so happy when Blondel showed up, because he knew what problems were waiting for him once liberated and returning to normal life.

Europe in late 12th century: A veritable political jumble with conflicting interests and permanently changing alliances. The protagonists were remarkable masters of Situationselastizität (beautiful word created by our Minister of Defense Gerald Klug) and used any method that proved useful. From strategic marriages and other diplomatic subtleties to treachery and brute force. To make things worse the Pope proclaimed the Third Crusade, thus virtually outsourcing European problems to the Levant (which since the conquest of Jerusalem and the foundation of tiny crusader states was no less chaotic than the Occident).

But I should not veer away from Wiener Neustadt, so I will not talk about the occidental-oriental mess. Neither about the Italian sea republics (the real winners of the crusades) nor about Sultan Saladin (another winner). Nor about the far-reaching political, social and cultural consequences of the armed pilgrimages.

So let us talk about Duke Leopold V who played a comparatively insignificant supporting role in history, but is considered a great hero in our region. Anyway, his partisanship on the emperor’s side (who was stressed out by a bunch of European rulers, one of them Richard who, for his part, was stressed by a bunch of French and English rulers) paid well. Part of the ransom for the English king was handed over to Leopold who, after the conquest of Accon in the Holy Land, was a dedicated enemy of Richard. Of course there is another heroic legend explaining why Leo (in our language Poidl) hated Rick, but the saga conceals that the conflict at Accon was caused by the Austrian and that Richard’s arrest provoked indignation all over Europe.

In any case, the duke invested his share of the ransom well. Part of the money was used to fund a new currency, the Viennese Penny. The rest was used to build a fortress protecting the international trade route via Semmering Pass over the Alps, connecting the Baltic Sea with the Mediterranean (the ancient Amber Route). Leopold’s city planners built Nova Civitas according to Roman construction principles, which still can be seen when you stroll around the streets in the center (don’t forget to visit the cathedral).

Corresponding to its strategic position New City was granted extensive privileges, above all by Leopold’s successor Frederick II called The Warlike (don’t confuse him with Emperor Frederick II who lived at the same time): Market rights, jurisdiction and coinage. The international significance of the newly founded town is reflected in a treaty signed by Austria and the mighty sea republic of Venice in 1244 emphasizing the necessity to protect the region between Vienna and the alpine passes. Spices, silk, jewels and dyestuff were transported northwards - leather, furs, copper and silver were brought to the Adriatic Sea.

Maybe the events of the year 1242 motivated Venetians and Austrians to sign that contract. Mongolian reconnaissance patrols (after their troops had defeated Polish and Hungarian armies) showed up near Wiener Neustadt and one of the Mongols was taken prisoner. But what a surprise - the exotic warrior was an Englishman. Maybe he wanted to take revenge for Richard. But Wiener Neustadt’s walls had stood the test, at least with a single representative of an army which was considered invincible.

Without Richard the Lionheart Wiener Neustadt (maybe) would not exist - and without Wiener Neustadt Peter Natterer (possibly) would not have become a musician. So let me send an official diplomatic message to the English people: Thank you for the ransom! Fortunately, some years ago, we got the chance to deliver this announcement on the BBC stage at WOMAD Festival in Malmesbury.

To express our gratitude let us offer you a special gift: The above-mentioned eccentric word Situationselastizität. Actually the inventor, Minister of Defense Gerald Klug, used the adjective situationselastisch. It is hard to translate (like many German compound words). How about situationnally elastic or circumstance-driven flexible or sleek owing to the situation? Nothing sounds good, does it? And just sleek or even slick? They lack the charming complexity of Mr Klug’s creation.

But dear English readers, the solution is easy! Just take over the word without translation. You have done that with rucksack, weltschmerz, leitmotif, hinterland and (thus proving that not only Viennnese are veritable Freudians) angst. We would really appreciate if you integrated situationselastisch into English. It would definitely add to the quality of your political debates - and we would not feel so sorry about taking Richard prisoner and accepting your money. Furthermore, our Minister of Defence (who is also the boss of the Militärakademie Wiener Neustadt, which possibly would not exist without the Lionheart ransom) could contribute to the compensation.

This word is really precious! The Forschungsstelle Österreichisches Deutsch der Universität Graz (Research Center of Austrian German at the University Graz) declared it Word of the Year 2014.