Weiz

Weiz lies in eastern Styria, where a church and settlement were recorded in 1188 under the name Vides. In 1288 Liutold of Kuenring sold Gutenberg Castle and the market of Weiz to the Stubenberg brothers. The church of Saint Thomas stood above the market square and was later incorporated into a fortified refuge. In 1556 the burghers began building a town hall with offices, an archive and a market school. Emperor Ferdinand I granted the market its coat of arms in 1560, depicting the fortified church.