Sankt Gilgen ( Central Bavarian: ''St. Gieng'') is a village by

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

in the

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

n state of

Salzburg Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label=Bavarian language, Austro-Bavarian) is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872. The town is on the site of the ...

, in the Salzkammergut region.

History

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 The SKGLB-museum is a railway museum in Mondsee in Upper Austria. It shows relics of the 1957 closed Salzkammergut-Lokalbahn (abbreviation: SKGLB) that was a railway line in gauge track from Salzburg to Bad Ischl Bad Ischl (Austrian German ...

in 1893 led to another increase in tourism. Rich Viennese, such as the surgeon Theodor Billroth, started to build summer residences there.

Geography

Sankt Gilgen is situated in the north-western shore of the lake

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

, close to Strobl and to the

Upper Austria Upper Austria (german: Oberösterreich ; bar, Obaöstareich) is one of the nine states or 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, a ...

n municipality of

St. Wolfgang Saint Wolfgang of Regensburg ( la, Wolfgangus; 934 – October 31, 994 AD) was bishop of Regensburg in Bavaria from Christmas 972 until his death. He is a saint of the Catholic ( canonized in 1052) and Eastern Orthodox churches. He is regarde ...

. 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

Saint Giles Saint Giles (, la, Aegidius, french: Gilles), also known as Giles the Hermit, was a hermit or monk active in the lower Rhône most likely in the 6th century. Revered as a saint, his cult became widely diffused but his hagiography is mostly lege ...

, 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

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 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition r ...

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 Gut Aich Priory (Kloster Gut Aich) is a Benedictine monastery in St. Gilgen in Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It ...

(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 August Brunetti-Pisano (24 October 1870 - 1 September 1943), was an Austrian composer. Brunetti-Pisano was born in St. Gilgen. He was Georg Trakl's piano teacher. He was for a long time the president of the "Kunstgesellschaft Pan" (''Society of ...

(1870–1943), composer * Brother David Steindl-Rast (1926–Present), Benedictine monk and interfaith lecturer on peace and gratitude *

Michael Jeannée Michael may refer to: People * Michael (given name), a given name * Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael Given name "Michael" * Michael (archangel), ''first'' of God's archangels in the Jewish, Christian and ...

(born 1943), journalist *

Miguel Herz-Kestranek Miguel Herz-Kestranek (born April 3, 1948) is an Austrian actor and author. Life Miguel Herz-Kestranek was born the son of an industry and art family from the former Viennese Jewish upper middle class on April 3, 1948, in St. Gallen, Canton of ...

(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 s ...

(born 1942), sailboat manufacturer and former olympic athlete * Helmut Kohl (1930-2017), the former

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

Chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...

used to reside in the town during summer.

References

External links