Greg Karsh, age 12, of Las Vegas, Nev., for his question:
WHERE IS TYROL?
Tyrol is a beautiful European mountainous section in western Austria and northern Italy. Before World War I, the Tyrol was a crownland of Austria. The treaty of Saint Germain, signed in 1919, sliced the region into two parts with the northern Tyrol going to Austria and the southern part going to Italy.
The Romans conquered the Tyrol in 15 B.C. Later, the region fell into the hands of various warring German tribes. In 1363 it became part of Austria and it remained there for 556 years.
In 1919, the northern part of the Tyrol became a province of the Austrian republic. The Italians, in taking southern Tyrol, promised political and cultural autonomy to the large German speaking minority in the Italian Tyrol, but the Fascist government of Italy suppressed all German clubs and newspapers. They also outlawed the teaching of the German language anywhere in the area.
During World War II, thousands of German citizens in the Italian Tyrol were moved to Germany or Austria. In 1946, in spite of Austrian objections, the southern Tyrol was again given back to Italy.
By an agreement signed by Austria, Italy promised autonomy for German speaking south Tyroleans. In the late 1950s, these people claimed they had not received autonomy and began fighting for it. A number of border skirmishes occured between Italians and German speaking south Tyroleans. For 20 years, Italy and Austria tried to reach an agreement but failed.
In 1971, the southern Tyrol conflict was finally settled after Italy granted the region a large amount of autonomy.
The Alps cover most of the Tyrol. The region is much like Switzerland except that it has no large lakes. The Oetztal Alps rise about 12,500 feet above sea level. Heavy forests also cover much of the area.
The Tyrol is a winter playground for the people of many countries. Skiing and tobogganing are favorite sports. Summer is warm in the Tyrol and vacationers and mountain climbers are attracted.
Mineral springs in the south make the Italian Tyrol a popular health resort. Many people also visit Trento, a famous art center.
The capital of the Austrian Tyrol is Innsbruck, a famous city in the Inn Valley. This beautiful Alpine town was the setting for the Winter Olympics in 1964 and 1976.
The Italian Tyrol also played a part in the Winter Olympics. The city of Cortina was the setting for the games in 1956.
Brenner Pass cuts through the Tyrol at the Astro Italian border. Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini held many meetings at Brenner Pass during World War II.
The southern Tyrol is famous for its vineyards and fruit orchards. The mountains of Tyrol have some mineral deposits, including zinc, sulfur, coal, iron and copper.
The Austrian Tyrol has an area of 4,883 square miles and a population of about 650,000. The Italian Tyrol covers 5,256 square miles and has a population of about 950,000. About 300,000 of the people living in the Italian section are German speaking.