Salzburg, Austria: First, a bit of History!

Our first blog series of our recent tour of Salzburg, Austria!  

Salzburg and how it came to be...

The name Salzburg was first documented in 755 AD.  However, well before its name the first signs of settlements within Salzburg's present city limits date as far back as to Neolithic times! The first actual city that merged smaller Celtic communities was founded by Romans in 15 BC and named Iuvavum!  Iuvavum, though, was abandoned after the Roman Empire came into decay and the area remained dormant until the 5th century when St. Rupert received the ruins as a present in 699 AD from the Duke of Bavaria and the city began to rise again. 

Rupert became the city′s bishop, launched St. Peter′s Abbey and is still to this day the patron saint of Salzburg. The picture at right is one I took from St. Peters cemetery.  St. Peters is the oldest monastery in the German-speaking world; some say the oldest continuously active monastery North of the Alps. WOW!

Fortress Salzburg from St. Peters cemetery

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THE CASTLE: Festung Hohensalzburg

I love to walk the hills around the city of the Salzburg to take in the many different perspectives of this castle.  Above, I took this picture while walking along Moenchsberg (Monks Mountain) - a beautiful walk that provides panoramic views of the city and Austrian Alps.  

Construction of the fortress began in 1077 under Archbishop Gebhard von Helfenstein. This original design was just a basic bailey with a wooden wall. In the Holy Roman Empire, the archbishops of Salzburg were already powerful political figures and they expanded the castle to protect their interests. Gebhard's conflict with Emperor Henry IV during the Investiture Controversy influenced the expansion of the castle, with the Archbishop taking the side of Pope Gregory VII and the German anti-king Rudolf of Rheinfelden. The castle was gradually expanded during the following centuries. The ring walls and towers were built in 1462 under Prince-Archbishop Burkhard II von Weißpriach - there is so much more history to this incredible fortress that it deserves very own blog! 

Salzburg's Mirabell Palace!

Another great place to visit while in Salzburg is Schloss Mirabell.  With its wonderful gardens and great views of the cities highlights. Some of you may recognize this palace from the movie "Sound of Music" - where they sing the famous song "Do-Re-Mi" around the pegasus statue in the center of this photo!  This palace was established by Archbishop Wolf Dietrich in 1606 but was renamed by the Italians to its current name, Mirabell, from the Italian "bella" or beauty.  It was rebuilt in the baroque style and finally into the neoclassical style upon later restoration.  A beautiful place for a picnic or a stroll for love birds (as seen in my picture below).

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The Catacombs.... a must see

Its origins date back to about 700, when the adjacent St. Peter's Abbey (Stift St. Peter) was established by Saint Rupert of Salzburg. The abbey's cemetery, probably at the site of an even earlier burial place, was first mentioned in a 1139 deed, the oldest tombstone dates back to 1288.

Catacombs carved into the rock of the Festung HohenSalzburg are catacombs that may stem from the Early Christian days of Severinus of Noricum during the Migration Period.

I find these just incredible to view... this was a place of refuge in the early days of Christianity within Salzburg. The fact that these were dug into the mountain side so very long ago is astounding. A good place to hide, too! 

COMING UP NEXT:  An historical tour of Church sites in Austria and Bavaria!