Oberndorf bei Salzburg

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Coat of Arms	Position in Austria

Oberndorf bei Salzburg is an Austrian town, some 17 km north of Salzburg. It is situated on the river Salzach in the Flachgau district. Its twin sister-town across the bridge is Laufen in Bavaria. The town was split in two in the wake of the Napoleonic Wars when the Principality of the Salzburg Archbishops was divided in 1816 following the Congress of Vienna into a part taken by the Kingdom of Bavaria and a part taken by the Austrian Empire.

Oberndorf became rather famous because the carol "Silent Night" was first performed at St. Nicola church by the school master Franz Gruber and the young priest Joseph Mohr in 1818, from where it spread out to the world.

Oberndorf has just over 5000 inhabitants and can be reached from Salzburg by road and rail.