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Salzburg (pronounced ; Austro-Bavarian: Såizburg) is a state (Land) of Austria. It is officially named Land Salzburg, colloquially Salzburgerland, to distinguish it from its eponymous capital, the City of Salzburg. By its centuries-long history as an independent Prince-Bishopric, Salzburg's tradition differs from the other Austrian lands.
The Austrian state of Salzburg stretches along its primary river, the Salzach running from the Central Eastern Alps in the south — reaching a height of 3,657 metres (11,998 ft) at Mt. Großvenediger — down into the Alpine foothills in the north, with an area of 7,156 km2. It is located in the north of the country, close to the border with the German state of Bavaria. It is surrounded by the Austrian lands of Upper Austria in the northeast, by Styria in the east, by Carinthia in the south as well as by Tyrol and South Tyrol (Italy) in the southwest. With 529,085 inhabitants, it is one of the country's smaller 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 Land to the east and north.
The state is traditionally subidivided 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 has played an important role in the region's development; Salzburg means "salt castle".
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 1813.
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 province 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 'Rupertigau' 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.[1]
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. (However, in the November Plebiscite 99% of Salzburgers voted in favor of union with Germany.)
After the plebiscite of 1938, Salzburg and all the territory of Austria was annexed to the Third Reich.
After the defeat of Nazi Germany in 1945, the Allies occupied the territory of Austria, being recognised as an independent territory under their rule. Salzburgerland was occupied by the United States.
In 1955 Austria was declared independent of the Allies and Salzburg was once again one of the reconstituted federal-states of the second Republik Österreich.
Salzburg has its own state constitution since 1999. The state government (Landesregierung) is headed by a Landeshauptmann ('State Captain') governor. It is elected by a majority in the Landtag parliament. State elections are held every five years.
After World War II, most state governments were led by the conservative Austrian People's Party (ÖVP). The ÖVP politician Josef Klaus (1910-2001), later Chancellor of Austria, served as Landeshauptmann from 1949 to 1961. In 2004 Gabi Burgstaller became the first Social Democratic (and first female) Salzburg governor.
The last results, in May 2013 (compared to 2009) were:
Party Average Seats Austrian People's Party (ÖVP) 29.0% (36.6%) 11 (14) Social Democratic Party of Austria (SPÖ) 23.8% (39.4%) 9 (15) Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ) 17.0% (13.0%) 6 (5) The Greens (Die Grünen) 20.2% (7.4%) 7 (2) Team Stronach (TS) 8.3% (-) 3 (-)
The elected Salzburg Landeshauptmann is Wilfried Haslauer (ÖVP), chairing a coalition government of ÖVP, Greens and Team Stronach ministers (Landesräte). The current president (speaker) of the Salzburg Landtag is his party fellow Brigitta Pallauf.
Salzburg comprises five districts, known as Bezirke or vernacularly Gaue:
The city of Salzburg is its own administrative district.
The state is divided into 119 municipalities, including Salzburg. 11 of them have city status (Städte), 24 are market towns (Marktgemeinden) and the other 84 are simple municipalities (Gemeinden). Below it is shown a list of all the municipalities divided per district:
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 (785-821), in whose honor the world-famous hiking circuit — the Arnoweg — is named.
The predominant stylistic elements of Salzburg architecture have their origins in the Baroque and the Rococo periods.
Salzburg's historic "Old Town" was named by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.
Austrian German is the local written language, and it can be heard, especially in the cities. Austro-Bavarian is also spoken, especially in the rural areas and the common language of Salzburgerland.
Altenmarkt im Pongau, Flachau, Wagrain, St. Johann, Zell am See (Saalbach-Hinterglemm), Obertauern, Bad Gastein, Rauris, Lofer, hochkönig
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Vienna, Austria, Italy, Germany
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Austria, Zell am See District, Salzburg (state), Napoleonic Wars, States of Austria
Vienna, Austria, Social Democratic Party of Austria, Upper Austria, Austrian People's Party
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United Kingdom, United States, Japan, Vorarlberg, Styria
Nazi Germany, Salzburg (state), Austria, Salzburg, Reichsgau
Vienna, Social Democratic Party of Austria, Austria, Burgenland, Upper Austria