St. Gilgen (

Central Bavarian Central or Middle Bavarian form a subgroup of Bavarian dialects in large parts of Austria and the German state of Bavaria along the Danube river, on the northern side of the Eastern Alps. They are spoken in the ' Old Bavarian' regions of Upper ...

: ''St. Gieng'') is a village by

Lake Wolfgang Lake Wolfgang () is a lake in Austria that lies mostly within the States of Austria, state of Salzburg (state), Salzburg and is one of the best known lakes in the Salzkammergut resort region. The municipalities on its shore are Strobl, St. Gilgen ...

in the

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

n state of

Salzburg Salzburg is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020 its population was 156,852. The city lies on the Salzach, Salzach River, near the border with Germany and at the foot of the Austrian Alps, Alps moun ...

, in the

Salzkammergut The Salzkammergut (, ; ) is a resort area in Austria, stretching from the city of Salzburg eastwards along the Alpine Foreland and the Northern Limestone Alps to the peaks of the Dachstein Mountains. The main river of the region is the Traun (r ...

region.

History

Named after

Saint Giles Saint Giles (, , , , ; 650 - 710), also known as Giles the Hermit, was a hermit or monk active in the lower Rhône most likely in the 7th century. Revered as a saint, his cult became widely diffused but his hagiography is mostly legendary. A ...

, St. Gilgen was first mentioned in documents in 1376. In 1863, shipping on Lake Wolfgang started and brought attention to the little village. The construction of the Salzkammergut-Lokalbahn in 1893 led to another increase in tourism. Rich Viennese, such as the surgeon

Theodor Billroth Christian Albert Theodor Billroth (26 April 18296 February 1894) was a German surgeon and amateur musician. As a surgeon, he is generally regarded as the founding father of modern abdominal surgery. As a musician, he was a close friend and conf ...

, started to build summer residences there.

Geography

St. Gilgen is situated in the north-western shore of the lake Wolfgangsee, close to Strobl and to the

Upper Austria Upper Austria ( ; ; ) is one of the nine States of Austria, states of Austria. Its capital is Linz. Upper Austria borders Germany and the Czech Republic, as well as the other Austrian states of Lower Austria, Styria, and Salzburg (state), Salzbur ...

n municipality of St. Wolfgang. It has 3,784 inhabitants, lies 545 metres above sea level and covers an area of 98.67 square kilometres.

Overview

The parish church is dedicated to Saint Aegidius (Latin), in English

, which is reflected in the name of the town, Sankt Gilgen. St. Gilgen is a well-known travel destination. Boats from St. Gilgen sail around the Wolfgangsee, providing transport and views of the surrounding mountains. The hermitage of the original St. Gilgen may be seen, behind a chapel, in the Falkenstein cliffs west of St. Wolfgang and east of Fürberg. In 2005 St. Gilgen was promoted as the "Mozart Village" by the Wolfgangsee Tourist Board. Although

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition and proficiency from an early age ...

never visited St. Gilgen (as he had intended to), his grandfather worked in the town, his mother was born in St. Gilgen, and his sister ''Nannerl'' moved there after her marriage. The village now boasts a first-class international school, the St. Gilgen International School. The Gut Aich Priory (Benedictine) was founded in St. Gilgen in 1993. St. Gilgen - Kirche mit Friedhof.JPG, Parish church and cemetery in the center of Sankt Gilgen St Gilgen - Rathaus.jpg, Town hall of Sankt Gilgen Sankt Gilgen - pristanište.jpg, Quay on Lake Wolfgang St. Gilgen - Zwölferhorn-Seilbahn, Talstation (b).JPG, Valley station of the Zwölferhorn cableway

Notable people

* Anna Maria Walburga Pertl (1720–1778), mother of

* August Brunetti-Pisano (1870–1943), composer * Brother David Steindl-Rast (1926–Present), Benedictine monk and interfaith lecturer on peace and gratitude * Michael Jeannée (born 1943), journalist * Miguel Herz-Kestranek (born 1948), actor *

Hubert Raudaschl Hubert Raudaschl (; born 26 August 1942 in Sankt Gilgen am Wolfgangsee) is an Austrian sailboat manufacturer and former Olympic athlete. He has participated in nine Olympic games between 1964 and 1996. Raudaschl has competed in the se ...

(born 1942), sailboat manufacturer and former olympic athlete *

Helmut Kohl Helmut Josef Michael Kohl (; 3 April 1930 – 16 June 2017) was a German politician who served as chancellor of Germany and governed the ''Federal Republic'' from 1982 to 1998. He was leader of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) from 1973 to ...

(1930-2017), the former

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

Chancellor Chancellor () is a title of various official positions in the governments of many countries. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the (lattice work screens) of a basilica (court hall), which separa ...

used to reside in the town during summer. *

Sarah Zadrazil Sarah Zadrazil (born 19 February 1993) is an Austrian Association football, footballer who plays as a midfielder for German club FC Bayern Munich (women), Bayern Munich and the Austria women's national football team, Austria national team. With ...

(born 1993), an Austrian footballer.

References

External links