Rupertiwinkel

The Rupertiwinkel is a small historic region on the southeastern edge of Bavaria, just north of Salzburg. It takes its name from Saint Rupert, the first bishop of Salzburg who lived in the late 7th and early 8th centuries. The area stretches from the Salzach River on the east to the Chiemgau hills on the west, with Laufen and Waginger See at its heart. The northern part belongs to Traunstein District, while the southern reaches climb into the Chiemgau Alps. Two rivers, the Alz and the Saalach, mark parts of its boundaries. For centuries the Rupertiwinkel formed the western fringe of the Archbishopric of Salzburg. In 1125 Bishop Rupert’s successors founded Höglwörth Abbey near Anger, a Canons Regular monastery still standing today. The prince-archbishops built Staufeneck Palace as a residence and strengthened Tittmoning Castle as a border fortress. After Salzburg lost its independence in 1803, the region passed to Austria in 1806, only to be ceded to Bavaria ten years later. The people here still keep their own folk music and Tracht costumes alive. Visitors find a quiet landscape of rolling farmland, clear lakes and wooded hills. Waginger See offers swimming and boating in summer, while the foothills of the Alps provide gentle walks. Tittmoning on the Salzach has a medieval old town and a castle that once guarded the border. Laufen’s baroque buildings line the riverbank, and nearby Piding recalls the early grant to Bishop Rupert. The region’s churches and museums show the craftsmanship of artists such as painter Johann Michael Rottmayr and sculptor Balthasar Permoser.