🇱🇮 Liechtenstein
Vaduz
Vaduz (population 5,800; the capital of the Principality of Liechtenstein — the 6th smallest country in the world at 160 km², sandwiched between Switzerland (to the west) and Austria (to the east) in the Rhine Valley of the Alps; the only German-speaking country in the world to share no border with Germany) is one of the most unusual capital cities in Europe: a small town (comparable to a large village) that is simultaneously a major international financial centre (Liechtenstein has more registered companies than residents — approximately 70,000 registered companies in a country of 38,000 people; the Liechtenstein financial sector including banking, asset management and private equity accounts for approximately 30% of GDP), the residence of one of the world's wealthiest royal families (the House of Liechtenstein — with an estimated net worth of €3-4 billion, including one of the finest private art collections in Europe) and a tax-advantaged jurisdiction that has attracted multinational corporate headquarters since the 1970s. Vaduz Castle (Schloss Vaduz — the 12th-century hilltop castle on the limestone cliff above the Rhine Valley, visible from Switzerland across the Rhine River; the private residence of the ruling Prince Hans-Adam II and his son Hereditary Prince Alois who exercises day-to-day governmental authority) is the defining symbol of Liechtenstein and one of the most dramatically positioned castles in the Alps. The Liechtenstein Museum of Fine Arts (Kunstmuseum Liechtenstein) and the Prince's Collections (the partial public display of the vast Liechtenstein princely collection — which includes works by Rubens, van Dyck, Raphael, Velázquez and the largest collection of Flemish Baroque painting in private hands) make Vaduz a significant cultural destination.