Salzburg is the fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, its population was 156,852. The city is located on the Salzach River, close to the border with Germany and at the base of the Alps mountains.

The town was built on the site of a Roman settlement called Iuvavum. It became a religious center in 696 and the seat of an archbishop in 798. The city’s main sources of income included salt mining, trade, and gold mining. The Hohensalzburg Fortress, one of Europe’s largest medieval fortresses, was built in the 11th century. In the 17th century, Salzburg became an important center during the Counter-Reformation, with many monasteries and Baroque churches constructed. Salzburg has a long history of culture and education. It is the birthplace of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and home to three universities and a large student population. Today, along with Vienna and the Tyrol, Salzburg is one of Austria’s most popular tourist destinations.

Salzburg’s historic center, called Altstadt in German, is famous for its Baroque architecture. It is one of the best-preserved city centers north of the Alps. The historic center was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1996.

Etymology

The name "Salzburg" was first written down in the late 8th century. It is made up of two parts: the first is "Salz-" (which means "salt" in German), and the second is "-burg." The "-burg" part comes from an older German language called Proto-West-Germanic, where it meant "settlement" or "city." It is not from the modern German word "Burg," which means "fortress."

History

The area of the city has been inhabited continuously since the Neolithic Age until the present. During the La Tène period, it was an important center for government under the Celtic Taurisci in the Kingdom of Noricum.

After the Roman invasion in 15 BC, people living in the settlements on the Salzburg hills left their homes. A new Roman city was built in the area of the old town. In 45 AD, the newly created town, called Municipium Claudium Iuvavum, was given the status of a Roman municipium and became one of the most important cities in the Roman province of Noricum.

When the province of Noricum collapsed in 488 AD at the start of the migration period, some Romano-Celtic people stayed in the region. In the 6th century, they came under the rule of the Baiuvarii. The Life of Saint Rupert says that the 8th-century saint helped the city recover. Around 696 AD, Bishop Rupert of Salzburg received the remains of the Roman town from Duke Theodo II of Bavaria, along with a castrum superius (upper castle) on the Nonnberg Terrace, as a gift. In return, he promised to spread Christianity in the east and southeast of Bavaria.

Rupert chose the site of Iuvavum for his basilica. He appointed priests and took control of the Piding manor. He built a church at St. Peter, which is now the location of the cathedral. He may have also founded the monastery and Benedictine nunnery on Nonnberg for his relative Erentrude. Salzburg became the seat of a diocesan bishop in 739 AD and an archbishopric in 798 AD. The first cathedral was built under Archbishop Virgil. The Franciscan Church existed by the early 9th century. The Marienkirche was built in 1139.

The first use of the German name "Salzburg" appears in 739 AD in a report by Willibald about the Bavarian dioceses organized by Saint Boniface. The name comes from the barges that carried salt on the Salzach River, which had to pay a toll in the 8th century, as was common for many European towns. Hohensalzburg Fortress, the city's main fortress, was built in 1077 on the site of a Roman fort by Archbishop Gebhard, who lived there. The fortress was expanded over the centuries. This site is not where the Roman castrum superius was located, which was near Nonnberg.

Salzburg and its surrounding areas gained more power and influence in Bavaria because of salt mining and missionary work. In 996, Holy Roman Emperor Otto III gave Archbishop Hartwig the rights to hold markets and mint coins. The first part of Hohensalzburg Fortress was built in 1077. A city judge was first mentioned in a document between 1120 and 1130. On the left side of the Salzach River, a spiritual district was created with the cathedral, the bishop’s residence, the cathedral monastery, St. Peter’s monastery, and the Frauengarten (likely named after a former convent dissolved in 1583). Civil settlements began to spread into the Getreidegasse, Abtsgasse (Sigmund Haffner-Gasse), and along the quay during the 12th century. Around 1280, the first city walls were built. The oldest known city law document dates from 1287.

Salzburg became independent from Bavaria in the late 14th century. It was the seat of the Archbishopric of Salzburg, a prince-bishopric of the Holy Roman Empire. As the Reformation spread, peasants in surrounding areas rioted. The city was taken over during the German Peasants’ War, and the Archbishop had to flee to the fortress. The fortress was attacked for three months in 1525.

After the riots ended, Salzburg’s independence led to increased wealth and prosperity, especially during the late 16th to 18th centuries under Prince Archbishops Wolf Dietrich von Raitenau, Markus Sittikus, and Paris Lodron. In the 17th century, Italian architects and Austrians who studied the Baroque style redesigned the city center and built many palaces.

On October 31, 1731, Archbishop Count Leopold Anton von Firmian signed an Edict of Expulsion, forcing all Protestant citizens to stop practicing their non-Catholic beliefs. About 21,475 people refused and were driven out of Salzburg. Most went to East Prussia with an offer from King Friedrich Wilhelm I of Prussia. Others settled in other Protestant areas in Europe and the British colonies in America.

From 1772 to 1803, under Archbishop Hieronymus Graf von Colloredo, Salzburg became a center of late Illuminism. Colloredo was one of Mozart’s main employers but argued with him and said, “He should go; I don’t need him!” Mozart left Salzburg for Vienna in 1781 with his family, though his father stayed because he had a close relationship with Colloredo.

In 1803, Emperor Napoleon secularized the archbishopric and gave the territory to Ferdinando III of Tuscany as the Electorate of Salzburg. In 1805, Salzburg was annexed by the Austrian Empire, along with Berchtesgaden. In 1809, after Austria’s defeat at Wagram, the territory was given to Bavaria. After the Treaty of Munich in 1816, Salzburg was returned to Austria, but Rupertigau and Berchtesgaden stayed with Bavaria. Salzburg became part of the Province of Salzach, and Salzburgerland was ruled from Linz.

In 1850, Salzburg 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. The Romantic Era increased tourism, and a funicular was built in 1892 to help people reach Hohensalzburg Fortress.

After World War I and the fall of

Geography

Salzburg is located along the River Salzach, near the northern edge of the Alps. To the south of the city are mountains, while to the north are rolling plains. The nearest mountain peak, Untersberg, which is 1,972 meters (6,470 feet) high, is less than 16 kilometers (10 miles) from the city center. The Altstadt, or "old town," is known for its baroque towers, churches, and the large Hohensalzburg Fortress. Two smaller hills, Mönchsberg and Kapuzinerberg, surround this area and provide green spaces within the city. Salzburg is about 150 kilometers (93 miles) east of Munich, 281 kilometers (175 miles) northwest of Ljubljana, Slovenia, and 300 kilometers (186 miles) west of Vienna. Salzburg is at a similar latitude to Seattle.

Because Salzburg is close to the Austrian-German border, some people unofficially consider parts of Germany, such as Freilassing (formerly Salzburghofen), Ainring, and Piding, to be part of the Salzburg area. Public transportation systems cross the border, connecting these regions.

Salzburg has a climate that is partly warm in summer and humid in winter, with large differences in temperature between seasons and regular rainfall. The coldest month is January, with an average daily temperature of 0.0°C (32°F), which is the line that separates continental climates from oceanic climates. The warmest month is July, with an average daily temperature of 19.6°C. Rainfall is spread evenly throughout the year, but it increases slightly during the summer.

Because Salzburg is near the northern edge of the Alps, the city receives more precipitation than other areas, especially in summer. A type of light drizzle called Schnürlregen is common in the local dialect. In winter and spring, strong foehn winds often blow, causing snow to melt quickly. Snowfall happens frequently in winter and can sometimes be heavy. However, warm winds from the south and occasional foehn winds make the climate milder than expected. Climate change has also led to fewer snowfall events in the city. In the future, Salzburg’s climate may shift to an oceanic type, similar to areas near the ocean.

Demography

Salzburg's population grew greatly in 1935 when the city merged with nearby towns. After World War II, many refugees moved to Salzburg to find new homes. The city built new homes for American soldiers during the postwar period, and these homes were later used to help refugees when they left. Around 1950, Salzburg's population reached 100,000 people, and by 2016, it had grown to 150,000 people. Salzburg is home to many people from Germany, Bosnia, Serbia, and Romania.

Architecture

The Romanesque and Gothic churches, monasteries, and early timber-framed houses were the main buildings in medieval cities for a long time. The Cathedral of Archbishop Conrad of Wittelsbach was the largest basilica north of the Alps. The choir of the Franciscan Church was started by Hans von Burghausen and finished by Stephan Krumenauer. This structure is one of the most important religious Gothic buildings in southern Germany. At the end of the Gothic era, Nonnberg Abbey, the Margaret Chapel in St. Peter's Abbey, St. George's Chapel, and the grand halls of the "Hoher Stock" in Hohensalzburg Fortress were built.

Inspired by Vincenzo Scamozzi, Prince-Archbishop Wolf Dietrich von Raitenau began changing the medieval town to match the architectural style of the late Renaissance. Plans for a large cathedral by Scamozzi did not come to life after the archbishop fell from power. A second cathedral, designed by Santino Solari, became the first early Baroque church in Salzburg. This church influenced the design of many other churches in southern Germany and Austria. Markus Sittikus and Paris von Lodron continued rebuilding the city with major projects, including Hellbrunn Palace, the prince archbishop's residence, university buildings, fortifications, and other structures. Giovanni Antonio Daria, under the order of Prince Archbishop Guido von Thun, built the residential well. Giovanni Gaspare Zuccalli, also under the same archbishop, created the Erhard and Kajetan churches in the southern part of the town. The city's redesign was completed with buildings designed by Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach, who was supported by Prince Archbishop Johann Ernst von Thun.

After the time of Ernst von Thun, the city's growth stopped, which is why no Rococo-style churches were built. Sigismund von Schrattenbach continued work on the "Sigmundstor" and the statue of Saint Mary on the cathedral square. When the former "Fürsterzbistum Salzburg" (Archbishopric) was divided among Upper Austria, Bavaria (Rupertigau), and Tyrol (Zillertal Matrei), a long period of slow development began. This period ended only when the Gründerzeit (a time of industrial growth) brought new energy to the city. The builder family Jakob Ceconi and Carl Freiherr von Schwarz played key roles in shaping the city during this time.

Modernist buildings, especially those from the post-war period, are common in Salzburg. Examples include the Zahnwurzen house (located at Linzergasse 22 in the old town), the "Lepi" public baths in Leopoldskron (built in 1964), and the original 1957 Salzburg Congress Center, which was replaced by a new building in 2001. A famous example of this era is the Großes Festspielhaus, opened in 1960 by Clemens Holzmeister.

Adding new buildings to Salzburg's old town without harming its UNESCO World Heritage status is difficult. However, some modern structures have been built: the Mozarteum at the Baroque Mirabell Garden (designed by Robert Rechenauer), the 2001 Congress House (designed by Freemasons), the 2011 Unipark Nonntal (designed by Storch Ehlers Partners), the 2001 "Makartsteg" bridge (designed by HALLE1), and the "Residential and Studio House" of architects Christine and Horst Lechner in the old town (winner of the 2010 Salzburg Architecture Award). Other modern buildings are outside the old town, such as the Faculty of Science building at the University of Salzburg (designed by Wilhelm Holzbauer), the Red Bull Hangar-7 at Salzburg Airport (designed by Volkmar Burgstaller), and the Europark Shopping Centre (designed by Massimiliano Fuksas).

Districts

Salzburg is divided into twenty-four urban districts (neighborhoods) and three landscape zones to help organize the city's layout.

Urban Districts (Stadtteile):

Landscape Zones (Landschaftsräume):

• Gaisberg
• Hellbrunn
• Heuberg

Main sights

Salzburg is a popular destination for tourists, with more visitors than locals during busy times. In addition to Mozart's birthplace, other important places include:

• The historic center of Salzburg, a World Heritage Site
• Baroque-style buildings, including many churches
• Felsenreitschule, an open-air theatre built in a quarry that was used to build Salzburg Cathedral
• Franziskanerkirche, one of Salzburg's oldest buildings, built in 1208 and used by the Franciscans since 1642
• Getreidegasse, a narrow shopping street with many tall townhouses
• Großes Festspielhaus, an opera house and concert hall built in 1960 for the Salzburg Festival
• Haus für Mozart, formerly the Kleines Festspielhaus, an opera house and concert hall built in 1925
• Hohensalzburg Fortress (Festung Hohensalzburg), a large castle overlooking the Old Town
• Holy Trinity Church (Dreifaltigkeitskirche), built in 1694
• Hotel Goldener Hirsch, a five-star hotel located in a building on Getreidegasse that dates back to at least 1407
• Kollegienkirche, a Baroque-style church belonging to the University of Salzburg
• Mirabell Palace (Schloss Mirabell), a palace built in 1606 with wide gardens and a marble hall
• Museum der Moderne Salzburg, a modern art museum with locations in the old city and on the Mönchsberg
• Mozartplatz, a historic square with a monument to Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
• Mozart's birthplace (Mozarts Geburtshaus), a house in Getreidegasse that is now a museum about Mozart
• Nonnberg Abbey (Stift Nonnberg), a Benedictine monastery founded around 712 or 715
• Residenz, the former home of the Prince-Archbishops
• Residenzgalerie, an art museum located in the Residenz
• Residenzplatz, a large square outside the Residenz with a large fountain
• Salzburg Cathedral (Salzburger Dom)
• Salzburger Landestheater, a theatre and venue for opera, theatre, and dance with resident performers
• Salzburger Marionettentheater, a marionette theatre established in 1912
• Salzburg Museum, a museum about the artistic and cultural history of Salzburg
• Sigmundstor, an 18th-century tunnel connecting the Altstadt with the Riedenburg quarter through the Mönchsberg
• Sphaera [de], a sculpture of a man on a golden sphere (Stephan Balkenhol, 2007)
• St Peter's Abbey (Stift Sankt Peter), a Benedictine monastery founded in 696 with a famous cemetery
• St Sebastian's Church [de] (Sebastianskirche), a church built in 1511

• Schloss Leopoldskron, a Rococo-style palace and historic site in Leopoldskron-Moos, a southern district of Salzburg
• Hellbrunn, with its parks and castles
• Tour companies offering tours of locations from The Sound of Music film
• Hangar-7, a building owned by Red Bull that displays historical airplanes, helicopters, and Formula One cars
• Haslachmühle, a historic flour mill in the Gnigl district

Greater Salzburg Area

• Anif Castle, located south of the city in Anif
• Shrine of Our Lady of Maria Plain, a late Baroque church on the northern edge of Salzburg
• Salzburger Freilichtmuseum Großgmain, an open-air museum with old farmhouses from across the region
• Schloss Klessheim, a palace and casino that was once used by Adolf Hitler
• Berghof, Hitler's mountain retreat near Berchtesgaden
• Kehlsteinhaus, the only remaining part of Hitler's Berghof
• Salzkammergut, a lake area east of the city
• Untersberg mountain, located near the city on the Austria–Germany border, offering views of Salzburg and the Alps
• Skiing is a winter activity. Salzburg does not have its own ski facilities but is a gateway to skiing areas to the south. The city's airport receives charter flights from Europe during winter.
• Salzburg Zoo, located south of the city in Anif

Education

Salzburg is an important place for learning and has three universities, along with many professional colleges and high schools.

• University of Salzburg, a government-funded public university
• Paracelsus Medical University
• Mozarteum University Salzburg, a public university that teaches music and dramatic arts
• Fachhochschule Salzburg [de]
• Alma Mater Europaea, a private university
• SEAD Salzburg Experimental Academy of Dance [de]

Notable citizens

• Saint Liutberga (died around 870), a respected nun in Saxony during the 9th century.
• Paracelsus (around 1493–1541), a Swiss doctor, alchemist, and astrologer from the German Renaissance.
• Barbara Thenn (1519–1579), a merchant and currency official.
• Heinrich Biber (around 1644–1704), a violinist and composer in Salzburg starting in the early 1670s.
• Joseph Leutgeb (1732–1811), a skilled horn player who performed for the archbishop’s court.
• Johann Michael Haydn (1737–1806), a composer and younger brother of Joseph Haydn. His music was praised by Mozart and Schubert. He also taught Carl Maria von Weber and Anton Diabelli. He is known for writing sacred music.
• Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791), a composer born and raised in Salzburg, which was part of the Prince-Archbishopric of Salzburg within the Holy Roman Empire. He worked at the archbishopal court from 1773 to 1781. His birthplace and home are tourist attractions. His family is buried in a small churchyard in the old town, and there are many monuments to "Wolferl" in the city.
• Ignaz Assmayer (1790–1862), an Austrian composer of religious music.
• Joseph Mohr (1792–1848), a Roman Catholic priest and writer born in Salzburg. He wrote the lyrics for "Silent Night," with music by Franz Xaver Gruber. They performed it for the first time on Christmas Eve in 1818.
• Christian Doppler (1803–1853), an expert in sound theory, born in Salzburg. He discovered the Doppler effect.
• Georg Pezolt (1810–1878), a painter, architect, art critic, and conservator, born in Salzburg.
• Marko Feingold (1913–2019), President of the synagogue in Salzburg.
• King Otto of Greece (1815–1867), born Prince Otto Friedrich Ludwig of Bavaria at Mirabell Palace, a few days before Salzburg returned to Austrian rule.
• Hans Makart (1840–1884), an influential Austrian painter-decorator, born locally. Makartplatz (Makart Square) is named after him.
• Irma von Troll-Borostyani (1847–1912), an Austrian writer, journalist, and advocate for women’s rights.
• Ludwig Hans Fischer (1848–1915), a landscape painter, engraver, and ethnologist.
• Theodor Herzl (1860–1904), an Austro-Hungarian Jewish journalist and political leader who founded modern political Zionism. He worked in Salzburg’s courts after earning his law degree in 1884.
• Georg Trakl (1887–1914), a significant writer in German Expressionism, born in Salzburg.
• Georg von Trapp (1880–1947), Maria von Trapp (1905–1987), and their children formed the Trapp Family. They lived in Salzburg until fleeing to the United States after the Nazi takeover.
• Stefan Zweig (1881–1942), a writer who lived in Salzburg for about 15 years until 1934.
• Hilda Crozzoli (1900–1972), Austria’s first female architect and civil engineer.
• Herbert von Karajan (1908–1989), a famous orchestra conductor, born in Salzburg and died in Anif.
• Franz Krieger (1914–1993), a businessman and photographer, born in Salzburg.
• Thomas Bernhard (1931–1989), a novelist, playwright, and poet, raised in Salzburg and lived there for part of his life.
• Alex Jesaulenko (born 1945), a well-known former Australian rules football player.
• Klaus Ager (born 1946), a respected contemporary composer and professor at the Mozarteum.
• Roland Ratzenberger (1960–1994), a Formula One race driver born in Salzburg. He died during practice for the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix.
• Felix Baumgartner (1967–2025), a record-breaking skydiver and BASE jumper.
• Ferdinand Habsburg (born 1997), a racing driver born in Salzburg. He is the heir to the headship of the House of Habsburg-Lorraine.

Events

• The Salzburg Festival is a well-known music and theatre event that draws many visitors during July and August each year. A Salzburg Easter Festival and a Salzburg Whitsun Festival are also held each year for a shorter time.
• The Europrix multimedia award is hosted in Salzburg.
• The Electric Love Festival is held in Salzburg.

Transport

Salzburg Hauptbahnhof has many train connections. Trains travel east and west to cities like Vienna, Munich, Innsbruck, and Zürich, including daily high-speed ICE services. Trains also go north and south to places such as Venice and Prague. Salzburg is a key stop for trains heading south through the Alps into Italy.

Salzburg Airport has regular flights to European cities like Frankfurt, Vienna, London, Rotterdam, Amsterdam, Brussels, Düsseldorf, and Zürich. It also connects to cities such as Naples, Hamburg, Edinburgh, and Dublin. Many charter flights are also available.

In the city, there is a trolleybus and bus system with more than 20 routes, and buses run every 10 minutes. Salzburg has an S-Bahn system with four lines (S1, S2, S3, S11). Trains leave the main station every 30 minutes and are part of the ÖBB network. The S1 line takes about 25 minutes to reach the famous Silent Night Chapel in Oberndorf.

Popular culture

In the 1960s, the movie The Sound of Music, which is based on the real-life story of Maria von Trapp, who married into an aristocratic family and escaped the German Anschluss, was filmed in Salzburg and the surrounding areas.

The city appears on a map during a scene in the 1989 film Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, where the character Indiana Jones travels through Salzburg.

Salzburg is the setting for the Austrian crime series Stockinger and the Austrian-German television crime drama series Der Pass.

In the 2010 film Knight & Day, Salzburg is used as the setting for much of the movie.

In 2025, Salzburg was one of the mystery destinations featured on the NBC reality competition series Destination X.

Language

Austrian German is often used in writing and is similar to the standard German spoken in Germany, but it has some differences in words and a few grammar rules. Salzburg is part of the Austro-Bavarian dialect area, specifically the Central Bavarian dialect. Many people in Salzburg, both young and old, speak this dialect. However, professors Irmgard Kaiser and Hannes Scheutz from the Universität Salzburg have noticed a decrease in the number of people who speak the dialect in the city over recent years. More students are using standard German, and Scheutz believes this change is more related to media use than to influence from parents.

Sports

The former club known as SV Austria Salzburg reached the UEFA Cup final in 1994. On April 6, 2005, Red Bull purchased the club and renamed it FC Red Bull Salzburg. The home stadium of FC Red Bull Salzburg is the Wals Siezenheim Stadium, located in a suburb near Salzburg. This stadium was one of the places where matches were played during the 2008 European Football Championship. FC Red Bull Salzburg currently competes in the Austrian Bundesliga.

After Red Bull acquired SV Austria Salzburg and changed the club’s name and colors, some fans decided to leave and create a new team to keep the original traditions alive. The reformed SV Austria Salzburg was established in 2005 and once played in the Erste Liga. Due to financial problems, the club was temporarily moved to the fourth division. However, after several promotions, including one in the 2024/25 season, the club is now in the second division.

Red Bull also supports the local ice hockey team, the EC Salzburg Red Bulls. This team plays in the Erste Bank Eishockey Liga, a league based in Austria that includes top teams from Austria, Hungary, Slovenia, Croatia, Italy, and one team from the Czech Republic.

Salzburg was considered as a possible host city for the 2010 and 2014 Winter Olympics. However, it did not win the bids, as Vancouver and Sochi were chosen instead.

Gallery

• Mozart's Birthplace: Getreidegasse 9
• Night View from Mirabellgarten
• Famous Fountain in Mirabell Gardens (Seen in the "Do-Re-Me" Song from The Sound of Music)
• Sunset at Staatsbrücke
• Sigmund Haffner Gasse Leading to the City Hall (Rathaus)
• Residential and Studio House of Lechner in the Old Town
• Salzburg Basin
• Fortress (Background), Salzburg Cathedral (Center), and Salzach River (Foreground)
• ÖBB Train Connection from Innsbruck to Salzburg
• Mozart Monument
• Fountain in Residenzplatz
• Palace of Mirabell
• View of the Old Town and Fortress from Kapuzinerberg
• Salzburg at Night