The Wachau (Шаблон:IPA2) is an Austrian valley with a landscape of high visibility formed by the Danube river. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations of Lower Austria, located precisely between the towns of Melk and Krems. It is 30 km in length and was already settled in prehistoric times. A well-known place and tourist magnet is Dürnstein, where King Richard the Lion-Heart of England was held captive by Duke Leopold V.
The Wachau was added to the UNESCO list of world heritage sites in recognition of its architectural and agricultural history.
Related to the Austrian Wachau is the Wachovia area in North Carolina, comprising most of Forsyth County. Founded in 1753 by members of the Moravian Church the colony of 100,000 acres (400 km²) was named "die Wachau" after the valley in Austria because western North Carolina reminded their leader Bishop August Gottlieb Spangenberg of the ancestral home of the Moravians' patron Nicolaus Ludwig, Imperial Count von Zinzendorf 1700-1760. Now the Latin form of the name, Wachovia, is used, hence the name of the Wachovia Corporation founded there in 1879.
The Wachau is highly well known for its production of apricots and grapes, both of which are used to produce specialty liquors and wines. Wachau is a source of Austria's most prized dry Rieslings and Grüner Veltliners. These wines have great elegance, derived from the steep stony slopes that the vines are planted on next to the Danube.
