Antiquity The area of the city has been inhabited continuously since the
Neolithic Age until the present. In the
La Tène period, it was an administrative centre of the
Celtic Taurisci in the Kingdom of
Noricum. After the
Roman invasion in 15 BC, the various settlements on the Salzburg hills were abandoned, following the construction of the Roman city in the area of the old town. The recently created
Municipium Claudium Iuvavum was awarded the status of a Roman
municipium in 45 AD and has become one of the most important cities of the now
Roman province of
Noricum.
Middle Ages When the province of Noricum collapsed in 488 AD at the beginning of the
migration period, part of the Romano-Celtic population remained in the country. In the 6th century, they came under the rule of the
Baiuvarii. The
Life of Saint Rupert credits the 8th-century saint with the city's rebirth, when around 696 AD, Bishop
Rupert of Salzburg received the remains of the Roman town from
Duke Theodo II of Bavaria as well as a
castrum superius (upper castle) on the Nonnberg Terrace as a gift. In return, he was to
evangelize the east and south-east of the country of Bavaria. Rupert reconnoitred the river for the site of his
basilica and chose
Iuvavum. He ordained priests and annexed the manor of
Piding. Rupert built a church at
St. Peter on the site of today's cathedral and probably also founded the associated monastery and the Benedictine nunnery on Nonnberg for his relative
Erentrude. Salzburg has been the seat of a
diocesan bishop since 739 AD and an
archbishopric since 798 AD. The first cathedral was built under Archbishop Virgil. The
Franciscan Church existed since the beginning of the 9th century at the latest. The Marienkirche dates from 1139. The first use of the German name Salzburg can be traced back to 739 AD when the name was used in
Willibald's report on the organization of the Bavarian dioceses by
Saint Boniface. The name derives from the barges carrying salt on the River
Salzach, which were subject to a toll in the 8th century as was customary for many communities and cities on European rivers.
Hohensalzburg Fortress, the city's
fortress was built on the site of a Roman fort in 1077 by Archbishop Gebhard, who made it his residence. It was greatly expanded during the following centuries. This site is not the site of the Roman
castrum superius, which was located on the Nonnberg nearby. The state of Salzburg and its counties soon gained more and more influence and power within Bavaria due to the flourishing
salt mining and the wide-ranging missionary activities. In 996
Otto III, Holy Roman Emperor rented Archbishop Hartwig the
market rights and
minting rights (probably also the toll law). The first part of Hohensalzburg Fortress was built in 1077. A city judge was first mentioned in a document in 1120/30. On the left bank of the Salzach, an extensive spiritual district was created with the cathedral, the bishop's residence north-west of the cathedral, the cathedral monastery on its south side, St Peter's monastery, and the Frauengarten (probably after a former women's convent that was dissolved in 1583). Only during the 12th century did the civil settlement begin to spread into the Getreidegasse, the Abtsgasse (Sigmund Haffner-Gasse), and along the quay. Around 1280, the first city fortifications were created. The oldest known city law document dates from the year 1287.
Under the prince-bishopric's rule Independence from
Bavaria was secured in the late 14th century. Salzburg was the seat of the
Archbishopric of Salzburg, a
prince-bishopric of the
Holy Roman Empire. As the Reformation movement gained momentum, riots broke out among peasants in the areas surrounding Salzburg. The city was occupied during the
German Peasants' War, and the Archbishop had to flee to the safety of the fortress. It was besieged for three months in 1525. Eventually, tensions were quelled, and the city's independence led to an increase in wealth and prosperity, culminating in the late 16th to 18th centuries under the Prince Archbishops
Wolf Dietrich von Raitenau,
Markus Sittikus, and
Paris Lodron. It was in the 17th century that Italian architects (and Austrians who had studied the Baroque style) rebuilt the city center as it is today, along with many palaces.
Modern era Religious conflict On 31 October 1731, the 214th anniversary of
the 95 Theses,
Archbishop Count
Leopold Anton von Firmian signed an Edict of Expulsion, the
Emigrationspatent, directing all
Protestant citizens to recant their non-Catholic beliefs. 21,475 citizens refused to recant their beliefs and were expelled from Salzburg. Most of them accepted an offer by King
Friedrich Wilhelm I of
Prussia, travelling the length and breadth of Germany to their new homes in East Prussia. The rest settled in other Protestant states in Europe and the British colonies in America.
Illuminism In 1772–1803, under archbishop
Hieronymus Graf von Colloredo, Salzburg was a center of late
Illuminism. Colloredo is known for being one of the main employers of
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Colloredo often had arguments with Mozart, and he dismissed him by saying, (He should go; I don't need him!). Mozart left Salzburg for Vienna in 1781 with his family, although his father
Leopold stayed behind, as he had a close relationship with Colloredo.
Electorate of Salzburg In 1803, the archbishopric was secularised by Emperor
Napoleon; he transferred the territory to
Ferdinando III of Tuscany, former Grand Duke of
Tuscany, as the
Electorate of Salzburg.
Austrian and Bavarian rule In 1805, Salzburg was annexed to the
Austrian Empire, along with the
Berchtesgaden Provostry. In 1809, the territory of Salzburg was transferred to the
Kingdom of Bavaria after Austria's defeat at
Wagram. After the
Congress of Vienna with the
Treaty of Munich (1816), Salzburg was definitively returned to Austria, but without Rupertigau and Berchtesgaden, which remained with
Bavaria. Salzburg was integrated into the Province of Salzach, and Salzburgerland was ruled from
Linz. In 1850, Salzburg's status was restored as the capital of the
Duchy of Salzburg, a
crownland of the
Austrian Empire. The city became part of
Austria-Hungary in 1866 as the capital of a crownland of the Austrian Empire. The nostalgia of the
Romantic Era led to increased tourism. In 1892, a
funicular was installed to facilitate tourism to
Hohensalzburg Fortress. on the left,
Hohensalzburg Fortress in the background
20th century First Republic Following
World War I and the dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Salzburg, as the capital of one of the
Austro-Hungarian territories, became part of the new
German Austria. In 1918, it represented the residual
German-speaking territories of the Austrian heartlands. This was replaced by the
First Austrian Republic in 1919, after the
Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye (1919).
Annexation by Nazi Germany , March 1938 The
Anschluss (the occupation and annexation of Austria, including Salzburg, into
Nazi Germany) took place on 12 March 1938, one day before a scheduled
referendum on Austria's independence. German troops moved into the city. Political opponents,
Jewish citizens and
other minorities were subsequently arrested and
deported to concentration camps. The
synagogue was destroyed.
World War II After Germany invaded the Soviet Union, several
POW camps for prisoners from the
Soviet Union and other enemy nations were arranged in the city. During the Nazi occupation, a
Romani camp was built in Salzburg-Maxglan. It was an Arbeitserziehungslager (work 'education' camp), which provided slave labor to local industry. It also operated as a Zwischenlager (transit camp), holding Roma before their deportation to German camps or ghettos in German-occupied territories in Eastern Europe. Salzburg was also the location of five subcamps of the
Dachau concentration camp.
Allied bombing destroyed 7,600 houses and killed 550 inhabitants. Fifteen air strikes destroyed 46 percent of the city's buildings, especially those around Salzburg railway station. Although the town's bridges and the dome of the
cathedral were destroyed, much of its Baroque architecture remained intact. As a result, Salzburg is one of the few remaining examples of a town of its style.
American troops entered the city on 5 May 1945, and it became the centre of the
American-occupied area in Austria. Several
displaced persons camps were established in Salzburg, among them Riedenburg, Camp Herzl (Franz-Josefs-Kaserne), Camp Mülln, Bet Bialik, Bet Trumpeldor, and New Palestine.
Today After World War II, Salzburg became the capital city of the Federal
State of Salzburg (
Land Salzburg) and saw the Americans leave the area once Austria had signed a
1955 treaty re-establishing the country as a democratic and independent nation and subsequently
declared its perpetual neutrality. In the 1960s, the city became the shooting location and setting of the family musical film
The Sound of Music. On 27 January 2006, the 250th anniversary of the birth of
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, all 35 churches of Salzburg rang their bells after 8:00 p.m. (local time) to celebrate the occasion. Major celebrations took place throughout the year. As of 2017 Salzburg had a GDP per capita of €46,100, which was greater than the average for Austria and most European countries. ==Geography==