The Town
Informations around Kaprun
The village "Kaprun"
The historical town name 'Chataprun Pisonica' was officially mentioned on 9th February 931. At that time, Kaprun was a mountain village; most people were cattle farmers.
At the turn of this century, Kaprun became famous for its professional mountain-guides. The officially recognized mountain-guides were based in Kaprun, Kesselfall, Wasserfallboden, and Mooserboden.
The construction of the hydro-electric power station 'Tauernkraftwerke' (completed 1955) brought prosperity to Kaprun. The hydro-electric power station of Glockner-Kaprun is visited every year by thousands of sight-seers from all over the world.
Since 1965, the Glacier Cable-car company Kaprun transports thousands of skiers, sun-worshippers, mountaineers, and hikers to the hights of the Kitzsteinhorn glacier.
30 years ago, the construction of cable-cars and ski-lifts at 3.029 metres altitude was a technical revolution.
Kaprun is one of the first-class addresses for tourists in Europe. In the skiing area on the glacier of Kitzsteinhorn, at a height of 3,203 m (10,508 ft), skiers, carvers, and snowboarders find the very best conditions for everything that is fun in winter. Since 1966 Zell am See and Kaprun have merged to form the ‘Europa-Sportregion’, offering their guests 130 km (81 miles) of finest pistes for winter sports. You are not in the mood for skiing or snowboarding? In that case you are sure to find an alternative among the 40 different kinds of sports in the programme here.
In the 1920s and 1930s, Kaprun developped into a 4-season holiday resort; it now has over 700.000 overnight stays per year. Apart from tourism, Kaprun is well known for its crafts, trade and agriculture.
The Burg Kaprun
The building of the castle in Kaprun is assumed to have taken place around the 12th century, because the east tower features romanic criteria!
In 1280, the “tower to Chaprunne” is referred to documentary as a compensation for the assaults undertaken by the Velbers. Initially, the castle was probably possessed by the Earl of Falkenstein or Peilstein.
- 1287 The castle is falling to the Archbishop Rudolf.
- The Velber become the owners in 1338, from 1480 to 1600 the castle serves as an archiepiscopal court that settlers care taking matters.
- In 1526 the castle is burned down by rebellions farmers, around 1600, Josef Hundt of Ainetperg reconstructs the castle in today’s layout.
- In 1601, the guardian Caspar Vogl, who shows solidarity with the Pinzgauer farmers, is decapitated.
- Salzburger Musketeers occupy the castle in 1645. From then on various owners are listed.
- In 1921, Prince Johann II of Liechtenstein sells the castle together with the Fischorn castle to the Peruian Minister H.E. Gildemeister.
- The castle association purchases the castle in 1984, and intensive renovation begin.
- Ever since, the castle association and the culture association Tauriska have been using the castle for cultural purposes as well, and in the meantime the castle has established itself to the cultural central point in our country.
