Salzburg (, ; , also known as Salzburgerland; ) is a state () of Austria bordering Germany and Italy. In German, its official name is , to distinguish it from its eponymous capital Salzburg.
The state of Salzburg is closely tied to the former Prince-Archbishopric of Salzburg, an ecclesiastical principality of the Holy Roman Empire that existed for centuries until its secularization in 1803. After the Napoleonic Wars, the territory changed hands several times, becoming part of Austria, then briefly Bavaria, before being permanently incorporated into the Austrian Empire in 1816. In the 20th century, the region became a federated state of Austria and is today known for its Alpine landscapes, cultural heritage, and the annual Salzburg Festival.
Salzburg State covers an area of . It stretches along its main river â the Salzach â 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; to the east the state Styria; to the south the states Carinthia and Tyrol. With 561,714 inhabitants, it is one of the country's smaller federal states in terms of population.
Running through the south are the main ranges of the Alpine divide (incl. the Hohe Tauern mountains) with numerous three-thousanders. The Dachstein massif and the Berchtesgaden Alps ranges of the Northern Limestone Alps border Salzburg State to the east and north.
The state is traditionally subdivided in five major regions (Gaue), congruent with its political districts (Bezirke, see administrative divisions).
Salzburg municipalities with town privileges:
Wals-Siezenheim, a common municipality with about 12,000 inhabitants, is known as 'Austria's largest village'.
Salt mining has played an important role in the region's development; Salzburg means "salt city".
Independence from Bavaria was secured in the late 14th century. The Archbishopric of Salzburg was an independent prince-bishopric and State of the Holy Roman Empire until German Mediatisation in 1803.
The territory was secularized and, as the Electorate of Salzburg, given as compensation to Ferdinand III, former Grand Duke of Tuscany, the brother of Emperor Francis II.
Following the Austrian defeat at Austerlitz in 1805, Salzburg was annexed by Austria as compensation for the loss of Tyrol to the Kingdom of Bavaria, and Ferdinand was transferred to the Grand Duchy of Würzburg.
After Austria's defeat in 1809, the region was handed over to Bavaria in 1810.
In 1816, following the defeat of Napoleon and the provision of adequate compensation to Bavaria at the Congress of Vienna, it was returned to Austria with the exception of the north-western Rupertiwinkel which remained Bavarian. The Salzburger Land was administered as the department of Salzach from Linz, the capital of Upper Austria. In 1849 the Duchy of Salzburg was established as a crown land of the Austrian Empire and, after 1866, Austria-Hungary.
Salzburg participated in World War I, as part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. 49,000 Salzburgers were called to arms, of whom 6,000 were killed.
In 1918 after World War I, the Duchy of Salzburg was dissolved and replaced with the State of Salzburg, as a component part initially of German Austria and subsequently of the First Republic of Austria, the separate state which was mandated by the Allied powers.
In 1921 a plebiscite Salzburg, a majority of 99.11% voted for a unification with Germany.
As a result of Germany's annexation of Austria in 1938, Austria, including Salzburg State, was incorporated into Nazi Germany.
After the defeat of Nazi Germany in 1945, the Allies occupied the territory of Austria, being recognized as an independent territory under their rule. Salzburg State was occupied by the United States.
In 1955, Austria was again declared an independent state and Salzburg was once again one of the reconstituted federal states of the Second Republic of Austria.
The historical population is given in the following chart:
Salzburg adopted its current provincial constitution in 1999. The provincial government (Landesregierung) is headed by a governor (Landeshauptmann), who is elected by a majority in the provincial parliament Landtag. Provincial elections are held every five years.
After World War II, most provincial governments were led by the conservative Austrian People's Party (ÃÂVP). ÃÂVP politician Josef Klaus (1910-2001), later chancellor of Austria, served as governor of Salzburg from 1949 till 1961. In 2004 Gabi Burgstaller became the first Social Democratic (and first female) governor of Salzburg.
The last results, in April 2023 (Compared to 2018) were: <blockquote>
</blockquote> The current governor of Salzburg, Wilfried Haslauer (ÃÂVP), entered into coalition discussions with the FPÃÂ, after his proposition of a ÃÂVP-FPÃÂ-SPÃÂ coalition was rejected by the Social Democrats. Haslauer said "I regret that we could not implement the Alliance for Salzburg". After successful coalition negotiations, the ÃÂVP and the FPÃÂ entered into a governing coalition with Haslauer as the Governor and Marlene Svazek as the First Deputy Governor.https://www.euractiv.com/section/politics/news/right-wing-coalition-to-govern-in-salzburg-gives-foretaste-of-upcoming-elections/ Salzburg State has joined Lower Austria and Upper Austria as the third black-blue coalition provincial government. The ÃÂVP has four seats in the government, while the FPÃÂ has three. The current president (speaker) of the Salzburg federal state parliament is Brigitta Pallauf.
Government ministers and their portfolios from the 2023 Salzburg state election.
Salzburg State comprises six districts, known as Bezirke or vernacularly Gaue:
Salzburg city is its own administrative district.
The federal state is divided into 119 municipalities, including Salzburg City. 11 of them have city status (Städte), 25 are market towns (Marktgemeinden) and the other 83 are simple municipalities (Gemeinden). Below is a list of all the municipalities divided by district:
The federal state's gross domestic product (GDP) was 29 billion ⬠in 2018, accounting for 7.5% of the Austria's economic output. GDP per capita adjusted for purchasing power was 46,500 ⬠or 154% of the EU27 average in the same year. Salzburg is the federal state with the highest GDP per capita in Austria before Vienna.
The Salzburg Cathedral was the first Baroque building in the German-speaking artistic world. Two other important buildings initiated by the Salzburg archbishops were Hohenwerfen Castle and Hohensalzburg Fortress. The first Archbishop of Salzburg was Arno of Salzburg (785âÂÂ821), in whose honor the world-famous hiking circuit â the Arnoweg â is named.
The predominant stylistic elements of Salzburg's architecture have their origins in the Baroque and the Rococo periods.
Salzburg City's historic centre was named by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.
The official working language is Austrian German, and it can be heard especially in the cities and formal contexts. The vernacular language, typically spoken in informal settings and rural areas in Salzburg, is Bavarian.
Altenmarkt im Pongau, Flachau, Wagrain, St. Johann, Zell am See (Saalbach-Hinterglemm), Obertauern, Bad Gastein, Rauris, Lofer, Hochkönig, Krispl