Salzburg (state)

Salzburg is a beautiful state in Austria, close to the borders of Germany and Italy. Its capital city also shares the name Salzburg, and the area has a rich history tied to an old church leadership called the Prince-Archbishopric of Salzburg, which was part of the Holy Roman Empire.

Over time, the land changed hands many times. After the Napoleonic Wars, it was owned by different countries before finally becoming a permanent part of the Austrian Empire in 1816. Today, Salzburg is famous for its stunning mountains, rich culture, and a special yearly event called the Salzburg Festival.

Geography

Salzburg State covers an area of 7,156 km² (2,763 sq mi). It stretches along its main river — the Salzach – which rises in the Central Eastern Alps in the south to the Alpine foothills in the north. It is located in the north-west of Austria, close to the border with the German state of Bavaria; to the northeast lies the state Upper Austria; Styria to the east, to the south the Austrian states of Carinthia and Tyrol. With 561,714 inhabitants, it is one of Austria's smaller states in terms of population.

The state is traditionally subdivided into five major regions, matching its political districts. In the northern part are Flachgau (Salzburg city and environs) and Tennengau (district capital Hallein). The southern, mountainous part is divided into Pinzgau, Pongau, and Lungau.

History

See also: Archbishopric of Salzburg

Salt mining has been very important for the area, and the name Salzburg means "salt city".

Salzburg as an independent state

In the late 1300s, Salzburg became free from Bavaria. The Archbishopric of Salzburg was its own prince-bishopric and a State of the Holy Roman Empire until German Mediatisation in 1803.

Electorate of Salzburg

The area became secular and, as the Electorate of Salzburg, was given to Ferdinand III, former Grand Duke of Tuscany, the brother of Emperor Francis II.

The end of independence

After Austria lost at Austerlitz in 1805, Salzburg was taken by Austria to make up for losing Tyrol to the Kingdom of Bavaria, and Ferdinand was sent to the Grand Duchy of Würzburg.

Bavarian Salzburg

After Austria lost again in 1809, the region went to Bavaria in 1810.

The country divided between Bavaria and Austria

In 1816, after Napoleon was defeated and Bavaria got its compensation at the Congress of Vienna, Salzburg went back to Austria except for the north-western Rupertiwinkel, which stayed Bavarian. The Salzburger Land was managed from Linz, the capital of Upper Austria. In 1849 the Duchy of Salzburg was created as a crown land of the Austrian Empire and, after 1866, Austria-Hungary.

World War I

Salzburg was part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire during World War I. Many Salzburgers served in the war.

Post-World War I Austrian republics

In 1918 after World War I, the Duchy of Salzburg was replaced with the State of Salzburg, first part of German Austria and then of the First Republic of Austria.

In 1921 a vote in Salzburg showed that most people wanted to join Germany.

Salzburg in Germany

When Germany took over Austria in 1938, Salzburg became part of Nazi Germany.

American control

After Nazi Germany was defeated in 1945, the Allies occupied Austria, recognizing it as independent. Salzburg was occupied by the United States.

Salzburg as an Austrian state

In 1955, Austria became independent again and Salzburg was one of its federal states.

Demographics

The historical population of Salzburg is shown in a chart.

Politics

Salzburg adopted its current rules in 1999. The government is led by a governor, who is chosen by the people in the parliament every five years.

After World War II, most leaders were from the Austrian People’s Party. In 2004, Gabi Burgstaller became the first woman and the first leader from the Social Democratic Party. In April 2023, Wilfried Haslauer became the governor and formed a team with another party to help lead Salzburg.

Government

The leaders and their jobs from the 2023 election include:

Governor Wilfried Haslauer (ÖVP)

• State Direction
• Finance and Asset Management
• Security
• Disaster Prevention
• Museums
• Research and Science
• European Affairs

1st Deputy Marlene Svazek (FPÖ)

• Nature and Environment Protection
• Business
• Early and Primary Education
• Hunting and Fishing
• Youth
• Families
• Integration
• Generations

2nd Deputy Stefan Schnöll (ÖVP)

• Economy and Tourism
• Communities
• Employment and Labour Market
• Infrastructure and Traffic
• Culture

Members of the provincial government

• Josef Schwaiger (ÖVP): Agriculture, Personnel Management, Water, National Parks, Energy, Asylum Seekers
• Daniela Gutschi (ÖVP): Education, Health, Women and Diversity
• Christian Pewny (FPÖ): Social Services, Food, Consumer Protection, Regional Development, Apprenticeships
• Martin Zauner (FPÖ): Spatial Planning, Living, Sport, Basic Traffic

Administrative divisions

Salzburg State in Austria has six districts. These districts are areas that help organize the region for local government. The districts are:

• Hallein District (Tennengau region)
• St. Johann im Pongau District (Pongau region)
• Salzburg-Umgebung District (Salzburg environs) (Flachgau region)
• Tamsweg District (Lungau region)
• Zell am See District (Pinzgau region)

Salzburg city is its own special district.

The state also has 119 municipalities. These are towns and villages where people live. Some of these are bigger cities, some are smaller market towns, and others are simple villages. Here are the municipalities grouped by their districts:

• Hallein District (Tennengau) (13 municipalities): Abtenau, Adnet, Annaberg-Lungötz, Bad Vigaun, Golling an der Salzach, Hallein, Krispl, Kuchl, Oberalm, Puch bei Hallein, Rußbach am Paß Gschütt, St. Koloman, Scheffau am Tennengebirge.
• Salzburg-Umgebung District (Flachgau) (37 municipalities): Anif, Anthering, Bergheim, Berndorf bei Salzburg, Bürmoos, Dorfbeuern, Ebenau, Elixhausen, Elsbethen, Eugendorf, Faistenau, Fuschl am See, Großgmain, Göming, Grödig, Hallwang, Henndorf am Wallersee, Hintersee, Hof bei Salzburg, Koppl, Köstendorf, Lamprechtshausen, Mattsee, Neumarkt am Wallersee, Nußdorf am Haunsberg, Oberndorf bei Salzburg, Obertrum, Plainfeld, St. Georgen bei Salzburg, St. Gilgen, Schleedorf, Seeham, Seekirchen am Wallersee, Straßwalchen, Strobl, Thalgau, Wals-Siezenheim.
• St. Johann im Pongau District (Pongau) (25 municipalities): Altenmarkt im Pongau, Bad Gastein, Bad Hofgastein, Bischofshofen, Dorfgastein, Eben im Pongau, Filzmoos, Flachau, Forstau, Goldegg, Grossarl, Hüttau, Hüttschlag, Kleinarl, Mühlbach am Hochkönig, Pfarrwerfen, Radstadt, St. Johann im Pongau, St. Martin am Tennengebirge, St. Veit im Pongau, Schwarzach im Pongau, Untertauern, Wagrain, Werfen, Werfenweng.
• Tamsweg District (Lungau) (15 municipalities): Göriach, Lessach, Mariapfarr, Mauterndorf, Muhr, Ramingstein, St. Andrä im Lungau, St. Margarethen im Lungau, St. Michael im Lungau, Tamsweg, Thomatal, Tweng, Unternberg, Weißpriach, Zederhaus.
• Zell am See District (Pinzgau) (28 municipalities): Bramberg am Wildkogel, Bruck an der Großglocknerstraße, Dienten am Hochkönig, Fusch an der Großglocknerstraße, Hollersbach im Pinzgau, Kaprun, Krimml, Lend, Leogang, Lofer, Maishofen, Maria Alm, Mittersill, Neukirchen am Großvenediger, Niedernsill, Piesendorf, Rauris, Saalbach-Hinterglemm, Saalfelden, St. Martin bei Lofer, Stuhlfelden, Taxenbach, Unken, Uttendorf, Viehhofen, Wald im Pinzgau, Weißbach bei Lofer, Zell am See.

Economy

In 2018, the state of Salzburg had a big part of Austria's economy. Its total money made, called GDP, was 29 billion euros, which is about 7.5% of all Austria's money. Each person in Salzburg made about 46,500 euros after counting what things cost, which is more than most places in Europe. This made Salzburg the richest state in Austria at that time, just before Vienna.

Architecture

The Salzburg Cathedral was the first Baroque building in the German-speaking world. Two other important buildings built by the Salzburg archbishops were Hohenwerfen Castle and Hohensalzburg Fortress. The world-famous hiking trail called the Arnoweg is named after the first Archbishop of Salzburg, Arno of Salzburg.

The main styles of architecture in Salzburg come from the Baroque and Rococo periods. The historic center of Salzburg City was chosen as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

Language

The main language spoken in Salzburg is Austrian German, which you’ll hear in cities and during formal events. In smaller towns and countryside areas, people often speak Bavarian, a local dialect used in everyday, casual conversations.

Visitors' attractions

Salzburg is home to many amazing places to explore. One of the biggest ice caves in the world is called Eisriesenwelt. You can also drive along a beautiful scenic road known as the Großglockner Hochalpenstraße, or Grossglockner High Alpine Road.

Other popular spots include the lake district Salzkammergut, which spans across Salzburg and nearby areas like Upper Austria and Styria. Near the town of Sankt Johann im Pongau, you'll find the Liechtensteinklamm, a long and deep gorge in the Alps. Also, Nonnberg Abbey, a historic monastery, was featured in the famous movie, The Sound of Music.

Sports

Salzburg is a great place for exciting sports! There is a famous racing track called Salzburgring just north east of Salzburg city. You can go skiing all year at places like Ski Amadé and Kitzsteinhorn, where snow stays on a glacier. There’s also an icespeedway in St. Johann im Pongau, and you can try Aperschnalzen, a fun old tradition where people race using whipcracking.

The area has many wonderful ski resorts including Altenmarkt im Pongau, Flachau, Wagrain, St. Johann, Zell am See (Saalbach-Hinterglemm), Obertauern, Bad Gastein, Rauris, Lofer, Hochkönig, and Krispl.

Assorted statistics

Salzburg has 21 tourist regions and 115 resort towns, with enough beds for 192,000 guests. It is home to 185 lakes, the largest being Wolfgangsee. The longest river there is the Salzach, and the highest mountain is Großvenediger, standing at 3,666 meters tall.

There are many places to explore, with 7,200 kilometers of hiking paths and 2,000 kilometers of marked cycle paths. For mountain biking fans, there are 3,000 kilometers of trails. Salzburg also offers 13 golf courses, 1,700 kilometers of ski slopes, and 2,220 kilometers of cross-country ski trails, making it a great place for outdoor activities all year round.