Hohensalzburg Fortress

High above the hill on the west side of Salzburg is Hohensalzburg Fortress, the most distinctive landmark in pictures of the city. This location was occupied as early as 700 A.D., with construction of the current Fortress commencing in the fifteenth century.

You can see the Fortress from everywhere in the city. I took this from the east side of the Staatsbrücke Bridge in the center of town. The towers to the right are the Cathedral on Domplatz.

To visit, you take a cablecar to the top, a short fast ride with a spectacular view. An historic railroad up that mountain dates back to the late nineteenth century and you wonder what travel was like in the centuries before that. Here is a shot of the cablecar tracks with the Fortress at the top. I took this in the courtyard outside St. Peter's Abbey.

The fortress is a huge, rambling complex of buildings, a self-contained city. Here's a view of just some of the complex, looking to the southwest.

The views are incredible from all directions. You can see why this was a good place from which to defend the city from foreign invaders.

Another Christmas Market is set up in the area between the buildings, but it is only open on weekends.

The Archbishop of Salzburg lived well here. This ornate furnace is in what used to be his apartment. Informational signs throughout are in German, English, and Italian.

Kohler it's not, but at least the plumbing was indoors.

NOTE: Click on any image in this blog to see it full-size.