Strobl
Encyclopedia
Strobl is a municipality of the Salzburg-Umgebung District (Flachgau), in the northeastern portion of the Austria
n state of Salzburg
, right on the border with Upper Austria
. It comprises the Katastralgemeinde
n of Aigen, Gschwendt, Strobl, and Weißenbach.
in the Salzkammergut
resort region, close to Sankt Gilgen and the Upper Austria
n municipalities of St. Wolfgang and Bad Ischl
. The town has a population of 3,453 (2001) and an area of 93.89 km². Both the main road (No. 158), from Salzburg and St. Gilgen to Bad Ischl, and the road to St. Wolfgang pass on the edge of Strobl so there is no through traffic. There are several villages around the lake - the main ones being St. Wolfgang im Salzkammergut, and St. Gilgen at the other end of the Wolfgangsee, plus the hamlet of Weissenbach bei Strobl.
A small steamer operates on the lake. Also in Strobl, the University of Vienna
operates the Bundesinstitut für Erwachsenenbildung, an adult-education institution, and a frequent location for academic conferences. There is a promenade on the lakeshore, where one can see sculpture by Toni Schneider-Manzell, :de:Toni Schneider-Manzell, Ilse Sprohar, and Eva Mazzucco.
The famous town of St. Wolfgang is within hiking distance, and common excursions from Strobl include the Postalm plateau and the Schafberg
(1783m), which can be ascended via a cog railway, the Schafbergbahn
, as well as Bad Ischl, where Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria
often spent his summers. The Laimer Family folk musicians are a local attraction. The area is popular for hiking and watersports in the summer, for skiing in the winter, and is well-served by pensions and hotels. The former Salzkammergut-Lokalbahn
narrow gauge railway to Salzburg went out of service in 1957.
Around 1800, with the expansion of post and stagecoach lines, the Platzlhof inn was established as a station on the Postal line of Thurn und Taxis
. Due to its picturesque setting the village prospered from 1877 to 1890 with tourist trade spilling over from Bad Ischl. The author Hugo von Hofmannsthal
spent his vacations at Strobl and around 1900, it became a residence of Baron Gecmen-Waldeck, whose family industries generated enormous wealth, and supported a sumptuous residence in Hietzing
(Vienna) as well as vast properties in Bohemia. During this period as well Strobl regularly hosted events for the aristocracy and high bourgeoise summering in Bad Ischl. After the Second World War, a portion of the estate was converted into the Kurhotel Schloss Strobl.
After World War I
Strobl became a popular summer resort for film stars like Emil Jannings
and Theo Lingen
. Princess Marie Vassiltchikov
, in her memoir "Berlin Diaries," mentions stopping in Strobl during her flight after the July 20 Plot
against Adolf Hitler
. In the last days of World War II
, King Leopold III of Belgium
and Princess Lilian were interned at Strobl, closely guarded by a Waffen-SS
contingent.
The town was in the US zone of Allied-occupied Austria after the war, where the villa of the Viennese banking family Deutsch (expropriated by the Nazis in 1938) served as an officers' club. Strobl was the site of a Displaced Persons camp
. In 2008, the Cultural Center which now occupies the villa presented a historical exhibition on local resistance to the Nazis.
(:de:Tassilo von Fürstenberg) is buried.
In 1758 the archbishop Sigismund III (Christoph von Schrattenbach) commissioned Kassian Singer, master builder from Kitzbühel
, to build a church in the village. Singer died before the completion of the project, which was given to Palier Andrä Huber of St. Gilgen. The church was dedicated to the archbishop's patron saint on May 3, 1761.
The building's original late Baroque
appearance is maintained in virtually pristine condition. The high altar painting, by Johann Benedikt Werkstätter (:de:Benedikt Werkstätter), depicts St. Sigmund along with the Holy Trinity. There are also statues of St. Christopher and St. Joseph by Sebastian Eberl. The high alatar and tabernacle were made by Lorenz Hörmbler. On the left side-altar is depicted Our Lady of Good Counsel, and on the right, St. Francis de Sales, painted by Peter Anton Lorenzoni.
A new organ (built by Orgelbau Felsberg) was dedicated in 2003.
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n state of Salzburg
Salzburg (state)
Salzburg is a state or Land of Austria with an area of 7,156 km2, located adjacent to the German border. It is also known as Salzburgerland, to distinguish it from its capital city, also named Salzburg...
, right on the border with Upper Austria
Upper Austria
Upper Austria is one of the nine states or Bundesländer of Austria. Its capital is Linz. Upper Austria borders on Germany and the Czech Republic, as well as on the other Austrian states of Lower Austria, Styria, and Salzburg...
. It comprises the Katastralgemeinde
Katastralgemeinde
A Katastralgemeinde , a German word , is a cadastral subdivision of municipalities in the nations of Austria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, the Italian provinces of South Tyrol, Trentino, Gorizia, Trieste, and in Slovenia.A cadastral community records property ownership in a cadastre,...
n of Aigen, Gschwendt, Strobl, and Weißenbach.
Geography
It lies on the eastern side of lake WolfgangseeWolfgangsee
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 of Abersee and Ried as well as the market town of St. Wolfgang in the state...
in the Salzkammergut
Salzkammergut
The Salzkammergut is a resort area located in Austria. It stretches from City of Salzburg to the Dachstein mountain range, spanning the federal states of Upper Austria , Salzburg , and Styria . The main river of the region is the Traun, a tributary of the Danube...
resort region, close to Sankt Gilgen and the Upper Austria
Upper Austria
Upper Austria is one of the nine states or Bundesländer of Austria. Its capital is Linz. Upper Austria borders on Germany and the Czech Republic, as well as on the other Austrian states of Lower Austria, Styria, and Salzburg...
n municipalities of St. Wolfgang and Bad Ischl
Bad Ischl
Bad Ischl is a spa town in Austria. It lies in the southern part of Upper Austria, at the Traun River in the centre of the Salzkammergut region. The town consists of the Katastralgemeinden Ahorn, Bad Ischl, Haiden, Jainzen, Kaltenbach, Lauffen, Lindau, Pfandl, Perneck, Reiterndorf and Rettenbach...
. The town has a population of 3,453 (2001) and an area of 93.89 km². Both the main road (No. 158), from Salzburg and St. Gilgen to Bad Ischl, and the road to St. Wolfgang pass on the edge of Strobl so there is no through traffic. There are several villages around the lake - the main ones being St. Wolfgang im Salzkammergut, and St. Gilgen at the other end of the Wolfgangsee, plus the hamlet of Weissenbach bei Strobl.
A small steamer operates on the lake. Also in Strobl, the University of Vienna
University of Vienna
The University of Vienna is a public university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the German-speaking world...
operates the Bundesinstitut für Erwachsenenbildung, an adult-education institution, and a frequent location for academic conferences. There is a promenade on the lakeshore, where one can see sculpture by Toni Schneider-Manzell, :de:Toni Schneider-Manzell, Ilse Sprohar, and Eva Mazzucco.
The famous town of St. Wolfgang is within hiking distance, and common excursions from Strobl include the Postalm plateau and the Schafberg
Schafberg
Schafberg is a mountain in the Austrian state of Salzburg. Its height is 1783 metres. Situated within the Salzkammergut mountain range of the Northern Limestone Alps the Schafberg rises at the shore of a lake called Wolfgangsee....
(1783m), which can be ascended via a cog railway, the Schafbergbahn
Schafbergbahn
The Schafberg Railway is a metre gauge cog railway in Upper Austria leading from Sankt Wolfgang im Salzkammergut up to the Schafberg . With a total length of 5.85 km it gains about 1,200 m in height difference. The rail gauge is . It uses the Abt system. Operation started in 1893...
, as well as Bad Ischl, where Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria
Franz Joseph I of Austria
Franz Joseph I or Francis Joseph I was Emperor of Austria, King of Bohemia, King of Croatia, Apostolic King of Hungary, King of Galicia and Lodomeria and Grand Duke of Cracow from 1848 until his death in 1916.In the December of 1848, Emperor Ferdinand I of Austria abdicated the throne as part of...
often spent his summers. The Laimer Family folk musicians are a local attraction. The area is popular for hiking and watersports in the summer, for skiing in the winter, and is well-served by pensions and hotels. The former Salzkammergut-Lokalbahn
SKGLB-Museum
The SKGLB-museum shows relics of the former Salzkammergut-Lokalbahn that was a railway line in gauge track from Salzburg to Bad Ischl with a branch to Mondsee - a town located at the lake Mondsee. The engine shed of the terminal station at Mondsee is the only preserved engine shed of this line...
narrow gauge railway to Salzburg went out of service in 1957.
History
The name Strobl originally meant "scrubby" or "unkempt;" the town's name goes back to the 14th century, when the Wolfgangsee was known as the Abersee, and one Friedrich Stroblo appears as the owner of a Seege -- a fishpond or weir. Wolf Strobl took over property from the Laimer family about 1553, which became known as Am Schober, an inn which provided the basis for the later settlement's first given official mention in 1593, in connection with Hanns III Strobl, who was a local official and tavernkeeper in 1587. Later, Joseph Sigmund Berchtold und Sonnenburg married into the Strobl family and came into the property. Nonetheless, the name "Strobl" was firmly attached to the area around the Am Schober inn. The first lane as one enters the town from the east is still called the "Schoberweg."Around 1800, with the expansion of post and stagecoach lines, the Platzlhof inn was established as a station on the Postal line of Thurn und Taxis
Thurn und Taxis
The Princely House of Thurn and Taxis is a German family that was a key player in the postal services in Europe in the 16th century and is well known as owners of breweries and builders of many castles.- History :...
. Due to its picturesque setting the village prospered from 1877 to 1890 with tourist trade spilling over from Bad Ischl. The author Hugo von Hofmannsthal
Hugo von Hofmannsthal
Hugo Laurenz August Hofmann von Hofmannsthal ; , was an Austrian novelist, librettist, poet, dramatist, narrator, and essayist.-Early life:...
spent his vacations at Strobl and around 1900, it became a residence of Baron Gecmen-Waldeck, whose family industries generated enormous wealth, and supported a sumptuous residence in Hietzing
Hietzing
Hietzing is the 13th municipal District of Vienna . It is located west of the central districts, west of Meidling...
(Vienna) as well as vast properties in Bohemia. During this period as well Strobl regularly hosted events for the aristocracy and high bourgeoise summering in Bad Ischl. After the Second World War, a portion of the estate was converted into the Kurhotel Schloss Strobl.
After World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
Strobl became a popular summer resort for film stars like Emil Jannings
Emil Jannings
Emil Jannings was a German actor. He was not only the first actor to win the Academy Award for Best Actor, but also the first person to be presented an Oscar...
and Theo Lingen
Theo Lingen
Theo Lingen , born Franz Theodor Schmitz, was a German actor, director and screenwriter. He appeared in over 230 films between 1929 and 1978, and directed 21 films between 1936 and 1960.-Life and career:...
. Princess Marie Vassiltchikov
Marie Vassiltchikov
Marie Illarionovna Vassiltchikov was a Russian princess who was acquainted with some of the people who plotted to kill kill Adolf Hitler in the July 20 Plot, but was not directly involved in the plot itself.-Early life:...
, in her memoir "Berlin Diaries," mentions stopping in Strobl during her flight after the July 20 Plot
July 20 Plot
On 20 July 1944, an attempt was made to assassinate Adolf Hitler, Führer of the Third Reich, inside his Wolf's Lair field headquarters near Rastenburg, East Prussia. The plot was the culmination of the efforts of several groups in the German Resistance to overthrow the Nazi-led German government...
against Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
. In the last days of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, King Leopold III of Belgium
Leopold III of Belgium
Leopold III reigned as King of the Belgians from 1934 until 1951, when he abdicated in favour of the Heir Apparent,...
and Princess Lilian were interned at Strobl, closely guarded by a Waffen-SS
Waffen-SS
The Waffen-SS was a multi-ethnic and multi-national military force of the Third Reich. It constituted the armed wing of the Schutzstaffel or SS, an organ of the Nazi Party. The Waffen-SS saw action throughout World War II and grew from three regiments to over 38 divisions, and served alongside...
contingent.
The town was in the US zone of Allied-occupied Austria after the war, where the villa of the Viennese banking family Deutsch (expropriated by the Nazis in 1938) served as an officers' club. Strobl was the site of a Displaced Persons camp
Displaced persons camp
A displaced persons camp or DP camp is a temporary facility for displaced persons coerced into forced migration. The term is mainly used for camps established after World War II in West Germany and in Austria, as well as in the United Kingdom, primarily for refugees from Eastern Europe and for the...
. In 2008, the Cultural Center which now occupies the villa presented a historical exhibition on local resistance to the Nazis.
St. Sigismund Parish Church
Strobl has an attractive church (:de:Pfarrkirche St. Sigismund (Strobl)), where Prince Tassilo von FürstenbergFürstenberg
Fürstenberg and can refer to the following.- Historical states :* Fürstenberg , county * Fürstenberg-Baar, county * Fürstenberg-Blumberg, county...
(:de:Tassilo von Fürstenberg) is buried.
In 1758 the archbishop Sigismund III (Christoph von Schrattenbach) commissioned Kassian Singer, master builder from Kitzbühel
Kitzbühel
-Demographic evolution:-Personalities:*Karl Wilhelm von Dalla Torre , entomologist and botanist*Alfons Walde , expressionist painter and architect*Peter Aufschnaiter , mountaineer and geographer...
, to build a church in the village. Singer died before the completion of the project, which was given to Palier Andrä Huber of St. Gilgen. The church was dedicated to the archbishop's patron saint on May 3, 1761.
The building's original late Baroque
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
appearance is maintained in virtually pristine condition. The high altar painting, by Johann Benedikt Werkstätter (:de:Benedikt Werkstätter), depicts St. Sigmund along with the Holy Trinity. There are also statues of St. Christopher and St. Joseph by Sebastian Eberl. The high alatar and tabernacle were made by Lorenz Hörmbler. On the left side-altar is depicted Our Lady of Good Counsel, and on the right, St. Francis de Sales, painted by Peter Anton Lorenzoni.
A new organ (built by Orgelbau Felsberg) was dedicated in 2003.
Politics
Seats in the municipal assemby (Gemeinderat) as of 2009 elections:- Austrian People's PartyAustrian People's PartyThe Austrian People's Party is a Christian democratic and conservative political party in Austria. A successor to the Christian Social Party of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, it is similar to the Christian Democratic Union of Germany in terms of ideology...
(ÖVP): 13 - Social Democratic Party of AustriaSocial Democratic Party of AustriaThe Social Democratic Party of Austria is one of the oldest political parties in Austria. The SPÖ is one of the two major parties in Austria, and has ties to trade unions and the Austrian Chamber of Labour. The SPÖ is among the few mainstream European social-democratic parties that have preserved...
(SPÖ): 6 - Freedom Party of AustriaFreedom Party of AustriaThe Freedom Party of Austria is a political party in Austria. Ideologically, the party is a direct descendant of the German national liberal camp, which dates back to the 1848 revolutions. The FPÖ itself was founded in 1956 as the successor to the short-lived Federation of Independents , which had...
(FPÖ): 2
Notable residents
- Hugo von HofmannsthalHugo von HofmannsthalHugo Laurenz August Hofmann von Hofmannsthal ; , was an Austrian novelist, librettist, poet, dramatist, narrator, and essayist.-Early life:...
chose Strobl as his favorite retreat. - Strobl was the summer home of the actor Emil JanningsEmil JanningsEmil Jannings was a German actor. He was not only the first actor to win the Academy Award for Best Actor, but also the first person to be presented an Oscar...
from 1929, and his primary residence after 1945, where he died in 1950. - After the deposition of the Nazi officials in May 1945, the actor Theo LingenTheo LingenTheo Lingen , born Franz Theodor Schmitz, was a German actor, director and screenwriter. He appeared in over 230 films between 1929 and 1978, and directed 21 films between 1936 and 1960.-Life and career:...
served a few days as de facto mayor of the town. - In spring 1945 King Leopold III of BelgiumLeopold III of BelgiumLeopold III reigned as King of the Belgians from 1934 until 1951, when he abdicated in favour of the Heir Apparent,...
was held here as a prisoner of war with his family by 200 men of the Waffen-SS until he was freed by the 106th Cavalry Group of the US Army in May 1945. - In 1973 Hildegard KnefHildegard KnefHildegard Frieda Albertine Knef was a German actress, singer and writer. She was billed in some English language films as Hildegard Neff or Hildegarde Neff.-Early years:...
lived at the Hubertushof hunting lodge of Prince Fürstenberg. - Helene Thimig-Reinhardt (:de:Helene Thimig), actress and wife of thetare director Max ReinhardtMax Reinhardt----Max Reinhardt was an Austrian theater and film director and actor.-Biography:...
, lived more than 20 years in Strobl. She is memorialized by a bust on the Promenade.