Anif (German Anif) is a commune (German Gemeinde) in Austria, in the federal state of Salzburg. It is part of the Salzburg County. The population is 4081 people (as of December 31, 2005). City covers an area of 7.61 km². The official code is 50 301.
Anif Castle stands on an artificial pond in the eponymous town of
Anif on the southern outskirts of Salzburg. The exact date of the
castle's origin has not yet been established. It is known that in
1520 a castle already existed on this site, which belonged to a
certain Praunenecker. But since 1530, Anif Castle has been
constantly mentioned as a feudal allotment issued to the Archbishop
of Salzburg. Later, the castle was transferred to the bishops from
Chiemsee, who later used it as a summer residence until 1806. The
last of the bishops laid out an English park around the castle.
In 1803, during the German mediatization, the Archbishopric of
Salzburg was turned into a kurfurche for Ferdinand III. Two years
later, in 1805, according to the terms of the Peace of Presburg, the
territories of the electors, which had previously been an
archbishopric, became part of the Austrian Empire. Thus, Anif
Castle, together with the park, became public property.
Although the castle was leased from that point on, the tenants did
not undertake any restoration work. This changed when the property
was sold to the great-grandson of Empress Maria Theresa, Count Alois
Stepperg in 1837. He rebuilt Anif Palace between 1838 and 1848 in
the New Gothic style, giving the castle a modern look. Until that
time, it consisted of a simple four-story building and a two-story
passage to the chapel.
After the death of the count in 1891,
the castle passed into the ownership of his heiress Sophie, who
married Count Ernst von Moy de Sons, from an old French aristocratic
family.
In 1918, Anif attracted public attention when King
Ludwig of Bavaria III fled here with his family and entourage to
escape the revolution. In the "Declaration of Anif", written on
November 12/13, 1918, Ludwig III refused to abdicate, but he
released all Bavarian officials, soldiers and officers from their
oath.
During World War II, the Germans were stationed at the
castle, followed by an American unit in 1945.
Currently, Anif
Castle is in the possession of the de Sons family. The castle is
closed to the public.
Not far from the Austrian city of Salzburg, in the town of Anif,
there is a zoo, which opened in 1960. Although animal breeding was
carried out here before the official establishment of the zoo. Back
in 1619, Archbishop Markus Sitticus built gardens, parks and a
zoological garden here. Historical documents show that by 1620, 100
red deer, 1 mountain goat, more than 1000 turtles lived on the
territory, and there were also cages with bears, wolves, lynxes,
eagles and storks.
Today the zoo covers an area of 95
hectares, where about 800 different animals of 140 species live. The
zoo has an interesting rocky landscape.
The concept of the
zoo lies in the geographical division of the territory into large
zones: South America, Africa and Eurasia. Animals from the African
savannah are of the greatest interest. Zebras, antelopes and rhinos,
guinea fowls, as well as various types of African birds. Also in the
zoo live kangaroos, various types of monkeys, bears, chamois.
The zoo hosts a variety of activities every day. Visitors come
to the zoo with the whole family to enjoy a leisurely walk and
interact with animals. By the way, dogs are allowed to come to the
zoo, which, nevertheless, must be kept on a short leash so as not to
frighten the permanent inhabitants. During the summer months, the
zoo is open once a week until late in the evening to show visitors
the animal lifestyle at night.
A walk in the Helbrunn Zoo
will bring great joy not only to children, but also to adults: in
one day you can learn a lot of interesting information about the
daily life of animals, their habits and predilections.
There
are not many staff at the zoo, however, the territory is kept clean
and tidy. The zoo staff urge not to feed the animals, because it can
cause huge harm to their health.
Ad anua Ecclesia ("Church near Anif") in the Duchy of Bavaria was
already mentioned in the register of 788 Congestum Arnonis by Bishop
Arno of Salzburg. The name is probably of Celtic origin and dates
back to the Hallstatt era. For centuries, the village belonged to
the Archbishopric of Salzburg. The modern church of St. Oswald was
under the supervision of the monks of St. Peter's Abbey.
Anif
Castle, built in the early 16th century, was rebuilt by
Prince-Archbishop Johann Ernst von Thun around 1693 and subsequently
served as the summer residence of the Bishops of Chiemsee. Rebuilt
in the Neo-Gothic style in the middle of the 19th century, it was
the refuge of the deposed King Ludwig III of Bavaria during the
German Revolution of 1918-19. The romantic palace became famous
thanks to the filming of films such as The Sound of Music, The Great
Races (1965) and The Odessa Affair (1974). It was also used as
Cinderella's house in The Slipper and the Rose (1976).
In
1782, the Brothers Grimm recorded from the Brixener Volksbuch a
local tale about a peasant and a wild woman (Wilde Frau). Anif as a
village became a municipality in its own right when it, along with
neighboring Niederalm, was separated from the village of Grödig on
17 July 1884. Later, a third part, Noah Anif, was created.
Today Anif is one of the richest southern suburbs of Salzburg. The
main employer is the Sony DADC plant in Niederalm.
With an area of only 7.6 km², Anif is one of
the smallest communities in the Salzburg region. The high proportion
of pasture increased significantly in 1998; by a majority decision
in December 1998, a new zoning plan came into force, which allocated
500,000 m² of building land or commercial space in pastures, which
is mainly due to farmers who "want to remain farmers" and therefore
agreed to a significant rezoning. In addition, it also benefits the
green belt of the city of Salzburg, which has recently also been
explicitly placed under building protection.
Together with
PGV Austria Trunk GmbH and Sony DADC, the two large companies are
located in Anif (actually in Niederalm). The remaining companies are
located in a business park built in 1998.
The municipality of Anif has a primary school, a kindergarten and an extended day.