Being a poor state of farmers, Liechtenstein had to fight famines, plague and Rhine floods in the 16th century. Liechtenstein’s capital Vaduz is known worldwide for being one of the centres of witch burnings at that time: About 10% of the population died at the stake. But also the establishment of the Principality in 1699, the alliance with Napoleon and the threat of the annexation by Hitler are looked at in the documentary, as well as the transformation from peasant state to one of the richest countries in the world.
Besides, the documentary ‘The 1818 Liechtenstein Saga’ answers the following questions:
- What was the role of Liechtenstein and its selling of citizenship to Jews in the World War II?
- How does the Princely Family of Liechtenstein, owning about 7 billion Euros, live in their castle in Vaduz?
- What made the world’s first Whistleblowers Klaus Lins and Heinrich Kieber sell sensitive customer data to foreign authorities and thus spark an international hunt for tax evaders?
- How did Liechtenstein deal with the relaxation of banking secrecy and the withdrawal of billions of client money?
- Can the Principality maintain prosperity despite the financial cirisis or is it in danger of falling back into the poverty of past days?
