Plainberg

{{Short description|Hill in Bergheim, Salzburg, Austria}} {{Infobox mountain | name = Plainberg | image = Plainberg von Südosten.jpg | image_caption = The Plainberg from the south<br /> View from the Salzburg district of Schallmoos | elevation_m = 549 | elevation_ref = | location = Salzburg, Austria | range = none<ref>The Alpine Club classification of the Eastern Alps (AVE), which defines the Salzkammergut Alps (17a), does not specify a northern boundary (no precise Alpine boundary, as it was created for the Alpine hut directory). The region north of the Salzburg–Eugendorf line, i.e., the Salzburg Lake District, is generally considered part of the Alpine Foreland. Geologically, the hill belongs to the Flysch Zone and thus to the Alpine system. The hills around the Haunsberg can still be considered part of the Salzburg Prealps, but they no longer belong to the Osterhorn Group of the Limestone Alps. The Trimmel mountain group classification (developed for the Austrian cave cadastre based on geological-hydrological criteria) extends into the Alpine Foreland, where these hills belong to group 1570 ''Flysch Zone and Alpine Foreland between Salzach and Traun'', subgroup 1571 ''Flysch Zone between Salzach and Irrsee (Zeller See)'', which also includes the Kolomansberg. The geological boundary to the Limestone Alps runs correctly eastward from Guggenthal.</ref> | coordinates = {{coord|47|50|15|N|13|02|39|E|type:mountain_region:AT-5|display=inline,title}} | prominence_m = 109 | prominence_ref = | isolation_km = 1.67 | isolation_ref = Hochgitzen | type = Inselberg | geology = Sandstone | age = 70–50 mya (Maastrichtian–Ypresian) }}

The '''Plainberg''' is a {{cvt|549|m|ft}} hill located primarily in the municipality of Bergheim, north of the city of Salzburg, Austria. It forms part of the Flyschzone, which lies north of the Alps, and is believed to have been inhabited since prehistoric times. The hill holds particular significance as the site of the Maria Plain pilgrimage church, considered the most important pilgrimage destination in the Salzburg region.<ref>"Maria Plain has been and remains a magnet for pilgrims from near and far. It is the most visited pilgrimage church in the Archdiocese of Salzburg." (Franz Ortner: ''Die Geschichte der Kirche und Seelsorge der Pfarre Bergheim vom 16. Jahrhundert bis zur Gegenwart.'' In: Gemeinde Bergheim (Ed.): ''Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart'', Bergheim 2009, p. 272.)</ref> The Plainberg also serves as a local recreation area and a popular destination for residents of the surrounding area. Nearly the entire hill is designated as a protected landscape area.

== Etymology == The name '''Plain''' derives from Medieval Latin. The word ''plaga'' (meaning slope, field, or plain) evolved into the diminutive form ''plagina'' (small slope), which, through the loss of the ''g'' and final ''a'', became ''plain''. The name thus refers to the sloping terrain of the hill. The naming likely draws inspiration from the expansive, largely treeless southern slope in the west. The earliest documented references to the name appear as ''Play'' in 1285 and ''Play(e)n'' around 1415.<ref name="SONB">{{Cite book |last=Hörburger |first=Franz |title=Salzburger Ortsnamenbuch |editor=Ingo Reiffenstein and Leopold Ziller |publisher=Gesellschaft für Salzburger Landeskunde |location=Salzburg |year=1982 |page=38 |trans-title=Salzburg Place Name Book}}</ref>

The notion that the Plainberg's name originates from the Plainburg castle and the Counts of Plain in Großgmain, southwest of Salzburg,<ref name="hübner" /> is likely incorrect. The jurisdiction of the Counts of Plain and the subsequent ''Plain Court'' ended just before the Plainberg, which, since the Middle Ages, belonged to the Radeck Court (later Neuhaus).<ref name="HistOrtsLexÖ">{{Cite encyclopedia |title=Ehemalige Gericht des Erzstiftes Salzburg: Plain |encyclopedia=Historisches Ortslexikon Österreich |volume=5 |page=9 |trans-title=Former Courts of the Archdiocese of Salzburg: Plain}}</ref> Nevertheless, both ''Plain'' names share the same Latin root.<ref name="SONB" /> The name of the municipality Plainfeld, approximately 10&nbsp;km east of the Plainberg, is unrelated to ''plagina''.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hörburger |first=Franz |title=Salzburger Ortsnamenbuch |editor=Ingo Reiffenstein and Leopold Ziller |publisher=Gesellschaft für Salzburger Landeskunde |location=Salzburg |year=1982 |page=161 |trans-title=Salzburg Place Name Book}}</ref>

As the meaning of ''plagina'' and its derivative ''plain'' became less understood, and with the connotation of a slope, the name increasingly became a simple field name. To clarify its status as a hill, the suffix ''-berg'' was added, first documented in 1803.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Reiffenstein |first=Ingo |author2=Thomas Lindner |title=Historisch-Etymologisches Lexikon der Salzburger Ortsnamen (HELSON) |volume=1 – Stadt Salzburg und Flachgau |publisher=Edition Tandem |location=Salzburg |year=2015 |series=32. Ergänzungsband der Mitteilungen der Gesellschaft für Salzburger Landeskunde |isbn=978-3-902932-30-3 |page=97 |trans-title=Historical-Etymological Lexicon of Salzburg Place Names}}</ref> The name ''Plain'' alone was also used for the hill, as seen in references like “Maria Trost auf dem Plain bey Salzburg” (1753),<ref>{{Cite book |last=Seeauer |first=Beda |title=Auserlesene in Vier Theil verfaßte Lob- und Sittenpredigen |volume=3 |publisher=Verlag Wolff |year=1753 |page=137 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oOlBAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA137 |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=Selected Sermons and Moral Teachings in Four Parts}}</ref> “erzbischöfliche geistliche Räthe und Superiorn auf dem Plain” (1848),<ref>{{Cite book |last=Aigner |first=Bonifaz |title=Kurze Geschichte des berühmten Wallfahrtsortes Maria=Plain bey Salzburg |publisher=Joseph Oberer |location=Salzburg |year=1848 |page=2 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GJ0AAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA2 |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=A Brief History of the Famous Pilgrimage Site Maria Plain near Salzburg}}</ref> and “entlang der 15 Bildstöcke und zweier Säulen nach Plain” (1990).<ref>{{Cite book |last=Dorn |first=Herbert |title=Geheimnissäulen auf dem Weg nach Maria Plain |year=1990 |location=Salzburg |page=28 |trans-title=Mysterious Pillars on the Way to Maria Plain}}. This statement may also refer to the Bergheim locality Plain.</ref>

The use of ''Plain'' alone indicates that the field name was also applied to the Plainberg as a settlement area. Since the 19th century, ''Plain'' has been one of the five localities of the municipality of Bergheim,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Haas |first=Hanns |chapter=An der Schwelle zur Moderne: Bergheim im langen 19. Jahrhundert |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=178 |trans-title=On the Threshold of Modernity: Bergheim in the Long 19th Century}}. In the population statistics table, the five localities of Bergheim, Lengfelden, Muntigl, Plain, and Voggenberg are listed.</ref> encompassing the settlement areas on the hill. This led to variations like ''Plainerberg''<ref>{{Cite book |last=Spaur |first=Friedrich |title=Der Spaziergänge in den Umgebungen Salzburgs zweiter Band |publisher=Franz Xaver Oberer |location=Salzburg |year=1815 |pages=11, 13 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LYZCAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA11 |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=Walks in the Surroundings of Salzburg, Volume Two}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Krawarik |first=Hans |chapter=Die Anfänge der mittelalterlichen Besiedelung im Raum von Bergheim |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=98 |trans-title=The Beginnings of Medieval Settlement in the Bergheim Area}}. Here, the variant ''Plainer Berg'' is written separately.</ref> and ''Plainer Hügel''.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Spaur |first=Friedrich |title=Der Spaziergänge in den Umgebungen Salzburgs zweiter Band |publisher=Franz Xaver Oberer |location=Salzburg |year=1815 |pages=2, 6, 13 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LYZCAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA2 |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=Walks in the Surroundings of Salzburg, Volume Two}}</ref> Names like ''Plainer Hügel'' and ''Plainhügel''<ref>The commonly used variant can be found, for example, at [http://www.woman.at/mywoman/biggtat/stories/328723/ woman.at] (image caption), accessed on February 18, 2013.</ref> reflect the hill's relatively low elevation. The meadows on the Plainberg were historically referred to as ''Plainfelder'' (“The procession went around the Plainfelder,” 1848<ref>{{Cite book |last=Aigner |first=Bonifaz |title=Kurze Geschichte des berühmten Wallfahrtsortes Maria=Plain bey Salzburg |publisher=Joseph Oberer |location=Salzburg |year=1848 |page=22 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GJ0AAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA22 |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=A Brief History of the Famous Pilgrimage Site Maria Plain near Salzburg}}</ref>).

The Plain region has inspired names for other features, such as ''Maria Plain'', ''Plainbach'', ''Plainbrücke'', and ''Plainstraße''. The latter, a northern arterial road from Salzburg, was documented as ''Plainer Weg'' as early as the 18th century.<ref name="hübner">{{Cite book |last=Hübner |first=Lorenz |title=Beschreibung der hochfürstlich-erzbischöflichen Haupt- und Residenzstadt Salzburg und ihrer Gegenden |volume=1 |publisher=Eigenverlag |location=Salzburg |year=1792 |page=546 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=e2YAAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA546 |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=Description of the Archiepiscopal Capital and Residence City of Salzburg and Its Surroundings}}</ref> The Plainberg is so closely associated with the Maria Plain pilgrimage church that it is sometimes mistakenly believed to be named after it.<ref>“On it [the Plainberg] stands the Maria Plain pilgrimage basilica, from which the Plainberg takes its name.” In: {{Cite news |title=Plainberg |work=Salzburger Nachrichten |date=January 14, 2011 |url=http://www.salzburgernachrichten.at |access-date=July 11, 2025}}</ref> Some also believe, via emigrants, that the name ''Maria Plain'' influenced the naming of the American village of Plain in Sauk County, Wisconsin, though this is also incorrect.<ref>The local history exploration discusses whether its name is linked to “Maria Plain.” Despite no historical evidence, this rumor persists. See [http://sites.google.com/site/auswanderer20/towns “auswanderer”], accessed on February 26, 2012.</ref>

== Geography == === Topography === ==== Location and extent ==== thumb|Overview map of the surrounding area thumb|upright=1.4|The Plainberg from the west-southwest, viewed from the Salzburg district of Liefering The Plainberg lies in the transition zone between the Northern Limestone Alps and the Alpine Foreland, forming part of the northern boundary of the Salzburg Basin. It stretches in a west–east direction along the northern city limits of Salzburg to Bergheim, with almost its entire area within the Bergheim municipality. Only the initial southern slopes fall within the city of Salzburg. The hill spans approximately 2.4&nbsp;km in length and about 1&nbsp;km in north–south extent, including the ''Rauchenbichl'', a southeastern ridge between the localities of Gaglham and Radeck. Including the lowermost part of the hill in Salzburg's city area north of the Alterbach, the north–south extent reaches slightly over 1.5&nbsp;km. The northern slope descends steeply along most of its length, while the southern ascent is gentler. The highest point reaches {{cvt|549|m|ft}}. Relative to its surroundings (Salzburg locality at 424 m, Bergheim locality at 435 m), the hill's elevation is modest, at approximately 115–125 meters. The total area of the hill is just over 2&nbsp;km².

==== Settlement topography ==== Several settlement areas are located at the base and on the Plainberg itself, all part of the Bergheim municipality and the cadastral community Bergheim I: * ''Bergheim'': The main village with a rural character at the northwest and western base of the hill. * ''Gaglham'': A partly rural settlement located roughly centrally on the southern side. * ''Hagenau'': Primarily a residential area with suburban characteristics at the southwestern base; a small portion west of the Bergheim state road L118 belongs to the city of Salzburg, within the northern half of the Itzling Nord district. * ''Kemating'' (also ''Plain-Kemating''): A centrally located settlement on the hill with a partly dispersed settlement character. * ''Maria Plain'': A cluster of religious buildings, ancillary structures, and hospitality businesses on the western of the hill's two summits (530 m). * ''Radeck'': Primarily a residential area on the eastern slope. Additionally, the western side features the Hofstätt isolated settlement. The ''Rauchenbichl'' in the southeast is entirely forested, with no residential structures, and is designated as a retreat for deer and small game, off-limits to the public.

East to northeast of the Plainberg lies the residential and commercial area of Kasern, primarily within the city of Salzburg (Kasern district). A smaller portion, including the Lengfelden settlement separated from Radeck by a federal road, belongs to Bergheim. The Bergheim portion of Kasern, together with Radeck, is termed ''Radeck-Kasern''.<ref>{{Cite book |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=12 |trans-title=Bergheim: History and Present}}</ref> However, in terms of Bergheim's localities, the Bergheim part of Kasern (excluding Lengfelden) falls under the Lengfelden locality. The Lengfelden settlement, like other Bergheim settlements on the Plainberg, belongs to the ''Plain'' locality, also referred to as ''Maria Plain''.<ref>The designations of the localities and settlements ''Plain'', ''(Plain)-Kemating'', and ''Maria Plain'' are often not strictly distinguished. For instance, a sign at the border between Salzburg-Itzling and the Bergheim locality of Kemating reads ''Maria Plain''.</ref> The Bergheim and Hagenau settlements at the western base belong to the ''Bergheim'' locality.

The small Salzburg portion of the Plainberg lies in the Itzling district (cadastral community Bergheim II). Salzburg's settlements at the hill's base include the Grabenbauernsiedlung on the western slope toward Kemating, a settlement midway to Gaglham, and one below Rauchenbichl in the east, which also hosts a campsite.

<gallery widths="200"> Hagenau.jpg|Hagenau Kemating 1.JPG|Kemating Gaglham.jpg|Gaglham Radeck.jpg|Radeck </gallery>

==== Water bodies ==== thumb|upright|The regulated Plainbach at the northern base of the Plainberg The Plainbach, a stream approximately 4.3&nbsp;km long, flows parallel to the northern edge of the hill's base. It originates from multiple sources east of Kasern, flows westward, then turns north at the Bergheim locality, and joins the Fischach stream west of Bergheim's Fischach district, which flows into the Salzach after about 1.4&nbsp;km. Another small stream originates northeast of the Maria Plain pilgrimage church and flows north but dries up during low-precipitation periods.

The southern boundary of the Plainberg is marked by the lower course of the Alterbach. On the southern slope, south of Kemating and mostly within Salzburg's city limits, a 350 m-long tributary of the Alterbach (officially ''Alterbach Af''<ref name="sagisw">See Geographic Information System of the State of Salzburg (SAGIS), Water Network Layer.</ref>) flows southwest. On the western side, a stream officially named ''Salzach Sa'' crosses from Hagenau through Salzburg's Itzling Nord district and flows into the Salzach after 330 meters.<ref name="sagisw" />

Small ponds, each a few hundred square meters, are located 330 m south of the Plain church, 300 m northwest of Gaglham, and at the northern base in the eastern half. Drinking water reservoirs are present in Radeck, Maria Plain, and roughly halfway between the pilgrimage church and Bergheim.

==== Land use ==== Regarding land use,<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://eunis.eea.europa.eu/sites/102697/habitats |title=Plainberg |publisher=CDDA National dataset, European Environment Agency |access-date=July 11, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180201000000/http://eunis.eea.europa.eu/sites/102697/habitats |archive-date=February 1, 2018}}</ref> the area is distributed as follows: * 37.6% deciduous forest, * 55.1% grassland (partly with tree cover), * 7.3% built-up area. Forests are located in the north and east, while the southern and southwestern parts are treeless. From a spatial planning perspective, these forests are not designated as protective forests or primarily for forestry but serve welfare and recreational purposes, contributing to water purification, water balance, climate regulation, and public recreation.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.salzburg.gv.at/wep_flachgau_textteil.pdf |title=Waldentwicklungsplan des Landes Salzburg |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150514162537/http://www.salzburg.gv.at/wep_flachgau_textteil.pdf |archive-date=May 14, 2015 |publisher=Salzburg |year=2008 |page=69 |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=Forest Development Plan of the State of Salzburg}}</ref>

=== Climate === No weather station is located on the Plainberg, but several monitoring points exist within Salzburg's city limits at various elevations and on other hills bordering the Salzburg Basin. Exact data for the Plainberg are unavailable but can be inferred from these measurements.<ref>The following data are sourced from: Gabriele Rupnik: ''Umweltklimatologische Studie Salzburg'', Salzburger Geographische Arbeiten Nr. 37, edited by Werner Mahringer and Herbert Weingartner, Self-published by the Institute of Geography, University of Salzburg, Salzburg 2003.</ref>

The weather conditions around the Plainberg align with the climate of Salzburg city and the Salzburg Basin. The climate features relatively mild winters and rainy summers, with June to August being the wettest months and December to February the driest. From 1961 to 1990, average January precipitation was about 60&nbsp;mm, while July saw approximately 200&nbsp;mm, measured at Salzburg Airport. Precipitation on the slightly more northern Plainberg may be lower, as rainfall decreases northward. A consistent snow cover typically occurs from New Year to mid-February, with extremes in the last century ranging from 14 days in 1913 to 121 days in 1971.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Tollner |first=Hanns |title=Klima und Witterung der Stadt Salzburg |publisher=Zentralanstalt für Meteorologie und Geodynamik |location=Vienna |year=1976 |series=Arbeiten aus der Zentralanstalt für Meteorologie und Geodynamik in Wien |volume=20 |page=124 |trans-title=Climate and Weather of the City of Salzburg}}</ref>

The Salzburg region experiences typical basin-related inversion weather conditions, with lower temperatures in lower layers than in higher elevations year-round. This effect is most pronounced at 200–400 m above ground but is also evident at the Plainberg's elevation in about 30% of annual cases and 42% in January. Temperature differences in this range are typically less than 1&nbsp;°C and are most significant from October to February. Data collected on Salzburg's Rainberg at 518 m, roughly the Plainberg's elevation, from 1987 to 1998 show the following monthly average temperatures: {| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" |+ Average Temperatures on the Rainberg (1987–1998) in °C ! Jan !! Feb !! Mar !! Apr !! May !! Jun !! Jul !! Aug !! Sep !! Oct !! Nov !! Dec |- | 0.2 || 1.9 || 4.8 || 8.6 || 13.4 || 15.6 || 18.2 || 18.0 || 14.2 || 9.8 || 3.8 || 0.8 |} These values are likely similar for the Plainberg due to its comparable elevation. However, slight deviations of about 0.5&nbsp;°C lower may occur due to the Rainberg's proximity to urban areas, which yield slightly higher readings.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Stöhr |first=Oliver |chapter=Zur Pflanzenwelt von Bergheim |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=27 |trans-title=On the Flora of Bergheim}}</ref>

Prevailing winds in Salzburg flow northwest–southeast near the ground. This pattern likely applies to the Plainberg, as the west–east flow typical of the Alpine Foreland occurs at higher altitudes or further north. Despite its low elevation, the Plainberg acts as a barrier, reducing air exchange in its wind shadow, notably in Salzburg's Schallmoos and Sam areas.

The relative humidity near the ground in Salzburg varies significantly daily and less so seasonally, with greater fluctuations in built-up areas (55–90%) than in rural surroundings. At higher elevations like the Gaisberg (1278 m), humidity is more stable (75–80%). On the Rainberg, monthly averages range from 69% in May to 83% in November. The Plainberg, at Salzburg's outskirts, likely has similar values, slightly higher than the Rainberg's by 1–3%.

== Geology == The Plainberg lies in the Rhenodanubian Flysch Zone and features the characteristic rounded ridges and summits typical of such formations. Its rock composition includes flysch, consisting of grey-greenish calcareous quartz to clay-marl-sandstone (''mürbsandstein''), locally termed the Anthering Formation.<ref name="Prey 1960,61">{{Cite journal |last=Prey |first=Siegmund |title=Bericht 1960 über geologische Aufnahmen im Flyschanteil der Umgebungskarte (1 : 25.000) von Salzburg |journal=Verhandlungen der Geologischen Bundesanstalt |year=1960 |issue=3 |pages=A 54–55 |url=https://www.geologie.ac.at/fileadmin/user_upload/dokumente/pdf/jahresberichte/gba_jahres_und_aufnahmsberichte_1960.pdf |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=Report 1960 on Geological Surveys in the Flysch Portion of the Salzburg Area Map (1:25,000)}} – Plainberg–Hochgitzen–Söllheim.<br />{{Cite journal |last=Prey |first=Siegmund |title=Bericht 1961 über geologische Aufnahmen im Flyschanteil der Umgebungskarte (1 : 25.000) von Salzburg |journal=Verhandlungen der Geologischen Bundesanstalt |year=1961 |issue=3 |pages=A 50–51 |url=https://www.geologie.ac.at/fileadmin/user_upload/dokumente/pdf/jahresberichte/gba_jahres_und_aufnahmsberichte_1961.pdf |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=Report 1961 on Geological Surveys in the Flysch Portion of the Salzburg Area Map (1:25,000)}} – Hallwang, Hochgitzen, Muntigl, Lieferinger Hügel, Walser Berg.</ref> For example, at Radeck, there are “marly limestones and sandstones, the latter with shell-like impressions filled with a clay-shale mass.”<ref>{{Cite book |last=Fugger |first=Eberhard |author2=Carl Kastner |title=Studien und Beobachtungen aus und über Salzburg |publisher=Herm. Kerner |location=Salzburg |year=1895 |page=64 |trans-title=Studies and Observations from and about Salzburg}}</ref>

These rocks formed during the transition from the Cretaceous to the Paleogene, approximately 70–50 million years ago (Maastrichtian to Ypresian, spanning the Paleocene to the lower Eocene).<ref name="ÖGK">{{Cite journal |last1=Aberer |first1=Ferdinand |url=https://www.zobodat.at/pdf/MittGeolGes_49_0001-0039.pdf |title=Ueber Helvetikum und Flysch im Räume nördlich Salzburg |last2=Braumüller |first2=Erhard |journal=Mitteilungen der Geologischen Gesellschaft in Wien |year=1956 |volume=49 |location=Vienna |pages=1–89 |language=de |trans-title=On Helveticum and Flysch in the Area North of Salzburg |access-date=July 11, 2025}}</ref> North of the Plainberg–Nußdorf ridge, a characteristic fault line runs from the Muntigl hill (also a flysch remnant) via Heuberg toward Unterkoppl. At Kasern, a geological window reveals ultrahelvetic colorful marls belonging to the basement rock.<ref>A second, southern Helvetic window is at Heuberg, discovered by Prey in the 1950s. See {{Cite journal |last=Del-Negro |first=Walter |year=1962 |title=Neue Vorstellungen über den Bau der Ostalpen |trans-title=New Concepts on the Structure of the Eastern Alps |url=http://opac.geologie.ac.at/wwwopacx/wwwopac.ashx?command=getcontent&server=images&value=JB1051_001_A.pdf |journal=JB. Geol. B. A. |location=Vienna |volume=105 |pages=1–18 |access-date=July 11, 2025}}; {{Cite journal |last=Del-Negro |first=Walter |year=1977 |title=Abriss der Geologie von Österreich |trans-title=Outline of the Geology of Austria |journal=Verhandlungen der Geologischen Bundesanstalt: Bundeslanderserie |location=Vienna |volume=6 |page=25}}</ref> This fault line is part of the Innsbruck-Salzburg-Amstetten Fault system (ISAM), where basement rock between the Limestone Alps and Flysch is thrust upward, offset by about 10&nbsp;km north–south in Salzburg.

During the last Ice Age (Würm glaciation, ca. 100,000–25,000 years ago), the Plainberg was covered by the Salzach glacier.<ref>A rare glacial striation on the Nußdorf Hill, directed northward, confirms the glacier’s passage. {{Cite book |last=Götzinger |first=Gustav |title=Führer für die Quartär-Exkursionen in Österreich |volume=I |publisher=Geologische Bundesanstalt Wien |location=Vienna |year=1936 |page=118 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KigRAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA118 |trans-title=Guide for Quaternary Excursions in Austria}}</ref> At the Hochgitzen–Haunsberg massif, glacier tongues split northward and northeastward (Wallerseelobus). Toward the end of the Ice Age, the massif likely emerged as a flysch nunatak. The northwestern Salzburg Lake Plateau is covered entirely by glacial moraine. Subsequently, a large glacial lake formed in the Salzburg Basin, with streams flowing southwest from the moraine. As the Salzach deepened, the Fischach (from the Wallersee) exposed the Plainberg–Nußdorf ridge as a cliff before the Hochgitzen.<ref>The extent of erosion is evidenced by lake/delta sediments north of Berg (Hallwang).</ref> Glacial low terraces at the southern base, shaped by the Schernbach and Alterbach, indicate further incision. Post-glacial moorland lies to the north, with remnants preserved in the ''Tümpel in Kasern''.<ref>{{Cite book |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |trans-title=Bergheim: History and Present}}</ref>

In the 19th century, stones quarried in the west near Bergheim were used for construction, and the clayey weathering layer on the opposite side was mined for brick production. The vegetation consists of typical flysch hill deciduous mixed forests and grasslands.

== Nature == === Vegetation === thumb|Tree cover on the northwestern slope of the Plainberg After the last Ice Age, the Plainberg was largely covered by open woodland interspersed with grazing areas, extending to the Salzach floodplain in the northwest. The northern side was dominated by common ash, Norway maple, and European beech. In the Early and High Middle Ages, much of this forest was cleared for agriculture. Remnants of this shade forest remain near the Bergheim cemetery and lower northern slopes. Upper slopes are dominated by beech. The northern slope is a fine example of a ravine forest. Between Kemating and Maria Plain, over 20 tree species thrive, including warmth-loving field maple and blackthorn below the Calvary hill. Near the Bergheim commercial center and above Gaglham, remnants of black alder indicate former moor complexes.

Above Gaglham, the cyclamen, a typical beech forest species, grows, unique to this area on the hill. In the dry, nutrient-poor meadows near the Calvary hill, over 40 herbaceous plant species flourish, including the rare white violet (albino forms of various violet species). Small remnants of wet meadows east of the federal road near Radeck point to a former moor that supplied peat until around 1900 before being converted to meadows, where cotton grass and sedge species persist.<ref name="Stöhr 2009 34">{{Cite book |last=Stöhr |first=Oliver |chapter=Zur Pflanzenwelt von Bergheim |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=34 |trans-title=On the Flora of Bergheim}}</ref>

=== Fauna === Intensive agriculture dominates the Bergheim area, with few extensively managed meadows remaining, leading to a significant decline in zoological diversity due to unsuitable habitats.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Gros |first=Patrick |chapter=Einblicke in die Tierwelt der Gemeinde Bergheim |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=36 |trans-title=Insights into the Wildlife of the Bergheim Municipality}}</ref> A remnant wet meadow near Radeck supports several butterfly species, though mainly those with minimal ecological requirements. Of the 72 butterfly species historically recorded in Bergheim, only 30 were observed from the 1990s onward.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Gros |first=Patrick |chapter=Einblicke in die Tierwelt der Gemeinde Bergheim |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |pages=36, 38 |trans-title=Insights into the Wildlife of the Bergheim Municipality}}</ref> Rare birds in the region, such as the grey heron, bluethroat, and yellow wagtail, pass through but do not nest on the Plainberg, historically residing in the Siggerwiesen area.

=== Conservation === thumb|The ''Tree Group in Maria Plain'' In 1976, most of the Plainberg in Bergheim was designated a protected landscape area under the ''Plainberg Landscape Protection Ordinance'',<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.ris.bka.gv.at/GeltendeFassung.wxe?Abfrage=LrSbg&Gesetzesnummer=10000380 |title=Plainberg-Landschaftsschutzverordnung 1981 |publisher=Rechtsinformationssystem der Republik Österreich |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=Plainberg Landscape Protection Ordinance 1981}}</ref> with the Salzburg portion added in 1981 (LSG 49). This covers 201.3 ha in Bergheim and 12.2 ha in Salzburg.<ref>{{Cite web |year=2008 |title=Waldentwicklungsplan Salzburg. Teilplan Salzburg-Umgebung und Stadt Salzburg |trans-title=Forest Development Plan Salzburg: Subplan Salzburg-Umgebung and City of Salzburg |url=http://www.salzburg.gv.at/wep_flachgau_textteil.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150514162537/http://www.salzburg.gv.at/wep_flachgau_textteil.pdf |archive-date=May 14, 2015 |access-date=July 11, 2025 |publisher=Salzburg |page=45 }}</ref> A building ban has been in place since at least 1939, except for the westernmost meadows toward Hagenau.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Wiedmann |first=Werner |chapter=Raumordnung und Raumplanung |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=549 |trans-title=Spatial Planning and Zoning}}</ref> The purpose is to preserve the landscape's beauty, including the Baroque ensemble of Maria Plain, and its recreational value.

Additionally, a 0.2 ha area of ''Oaks on the Gaglhamerweg'' in Salzburg was designated a protected landscape element in 1987.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.stadt-salzburg.at/internet/wirtschaft_umwelt/natur/naturschutz_354403/geschuetzte_landscha_356639/eichen_am_gaglhamerweg_356687.htm |title=Geschützte Landschaftsteile |publisher=stadt-salzburg.at |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=Protected Landscape Elements}}</ref> Since 1992, a 420 m² ''Oak Grove near Hagenau'' north of the settlement has also been a protected landscape element.<ref name="Stöhr 2009 34"/>

== History == === Prehistory and antiquity === The Bergheim area, including the Plainberg, was likely inhabited since the Neolithic period (ca. 10,000 BCE). Archaeological finds on and near the Plainberg confirm prehistoric settlement.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Moosleitner |first=Fritz |chapter=Archäologische Funde aus Bergheim |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |pages=47ff |trans-title=Archaeological Finds from Bergheim}}</ref> In Kemating, a dark serpentine sledgehammer from the Neolithic (ca. 4000 BCE), possibly used for metalworking, was found in 1893. In 1977, several neck-ring-shaped copper ingots from the early Bronze Age (2000–1800 BCE) were discovered in Kemating's soil from Lengfelden. On the eastern side near Kasern, a settlement from 2200 to 1600 BCE was identified, and near Radeck, a bronze axe with mid-shaft flanges was found in 1850. Northeast of the Plainberg near the Plainbach, a bronze dagger with three rivet holes for a wooden handle, dated to ca. 1500 BCE, was uncovered. In the mid-19th century, a quarry in Bergheim yielded several Bronze Age artifacts, mostly lost, though six bronze cloak pins with disc or spherical heads (14th–13th century BCE) and ceramic fragments and bronze armlets from the younger Urnfield culture (10th–9th century BCE) were preserved. Fewer finds exist from the Iron Age. From the Early Iron Age (Hallstatt culture, 800–450 BCE), a small bronze ear pick was found near Kasern in 1948 during Plainbach regulation. At Gaglham, near the modern motorway, a settlement from this period was confirmed in 1939, with traces of two 5 × 10 m wooden structures oriented south.

thumb|Plan of the excavated foundations of the Roman villa of L. Vedius Optatus During the Roman province of Noricum, a manor in Kemating, owned by L. Vedius Optatus in the late 3rd century, was excavated. The 32 × 10 m structure, possibly lasting into the 4th century, resembled a villa rustica but was larger, featuring living quarters with floor and wall heating, a bath with cold, warm, and hot water basins, a sweat room, and an open colonnaded hall facing Iuvavum (modern Salzburg). Building materials included local flysch sandstone, travertine (possibly from Plainfeld), and Adnet and Untersberg marble.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Klose |first=Olivier |title=Römische Gebäudereste in Kemeting bei Maria Plain und in der Kellau bei Golling |journal=Mitteilungen der Gesellschaft für Salzburger Landeskunde |year=1925 |pages=73–112 |url=http://anno.onb.ac.at/cgi-content/anno-plus?apm=0&aid=slk&datum=19250003&zoom=2&seite=00000073 |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=Roman Building Remains in Kemating near Maria Plain and in Kellau near Golling}}</ref> Discovered in 1907, 40&nbsp;cm below the surface on two agricultural plots, the site is no longer exposed. Finds, including coins, iron tools, and utensils, are housed in the Salzburg Museum.

=== Middle Ages and Early Modern Period === No archaeological evidence of settlement on the Plainberg exists from the collapse of the Roman Empire through the Early Middle Ages, though the region remained sparsely inhabited. The place name ''Gaglham'', likely derived from the Old High German personal name ''Gagilo'' and the suffix ''-ham'' (from ''-heim''), supports Early Medieval settlement, first documented as ''Gakilheim'' in 991.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hörburger |first=Franz |title=Salzburger Ortsnamenbuch |editor=Ingo Reiffenstein and Leopold Ziller |publisher=Gesellschaft für Salzburger Landeskunde |location=Salzburg |year=1982 |page=81 |trans-title=Salzburg Place Name Book}}</ref> Kemating, first recorded in 991 as ''Cheminatum'', derives from the Old High German ''cheminata'' (from Medieval Latin ''caminata'', meaning a heated room), indicating a settlement “near those living in a heated house.”<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hörburger |first=Franz |title=Salzburger Ortsnamenbuch |editor=Ingo Reiffenstein and Leopold Ziller |publisher=Gesellschaft für Salzburger Landeskunde |location=Salzburg |year=1982 |page=69 |trans-title=Salzburg Place Name Book}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Krawarik |first=Hans |chapter=Die Anfänge der mittelalterlichen Besiedelung im Raum von Bergheim |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=99 |trans-title=The Beginnings of Medieval Settlement in the Bergheim Area}}</ref> Both Gaglham and Kemating likely began as single farmsteads, later subdivided due to inheritance.<ref name="Krawarik 2009 95">{{Cite book |last=Krawarik |first=Hans |chapter=Die Anfänge der mittelalterlichen Besiedelung im Raum von Bergheim |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=95 |trans-title=The Beginnings of Medieval Settlement in the Bergheim Area}}</ref> The name ''Radeck'', possibly linked to the term ''roden'' (to clear), indicates medieval land reclamation through deforestation, first documented as ''Radekke'' around 1225 in connection with a castle.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hörburger |first=Franz |title=Salzburger Ortsnamenbuch |editor=Ingo Reiffenstein and Leopold Ziller |publisher=Gesellschaft für Salzburger Landeskunde |location=Salzburg |year=1982 |page=127 |trans-title=Salzburg Place Name Book}}</ref> Clearings likely began in the 11th century under Salzburg's archbishops.<ref name="Krawarik 2009 95"/> A woman named ''Alheidis de Radecce'' is mentioned in 888.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Matern |first=Peter |chapter=Zur Herkunft der Bergheimer Ortsnamen |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=540 |trans-title=On the Origin of Bergheim Place Names |quote=SUB [= Salzburger Urkundenbuch] II, p. 1102}}</ref>

thumb|Former Schloss Radeck (drawing from 1879), seat of the Lords of RadeckIn 1568, a woodcut map by Philipp Apian, part of the ''Bairische Landtafeln'', likely first recorded Bergheim, with Radeck as the only marked site on the Plainberg, depicted as a castle.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Matern |first=Peter |chapter=Bergheim und Maria Plain auf alten Landkarten und Ansichten |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |pages=366–367 |trans-title=Bergheim and Maria Plain on Old Maps and Views}}</ref> In 1716, a map by Odilo von Guetrather, published by Johann Baptist Homann in Nuremberg, marked ''Plain'' as another locality and depicted the path to the pilgrimage basilica.

; Significance of the Maria Plain Pilgrimage site While the Plainberg was primarily agricultural, serving farmers’ obligations to the authorities, its prominence surged in the mid-17th century with the erection of the Maria Plain miraculous image. The area had long held religious significance, as a Kemating farmstead was donated to a poorhouse in the mid-12th century, managed by the church.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Krawarik |first=Hans |chapter=Die Anfänge der mittelalterlichen Besiedelung im Raum von Bergheim |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=102 |trans-title=The Beginnings of Medieval Settlement in the Bergheim Area}}</ref> The site of the miraculous image became an immediate religious focal point.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hübner |first=Lorenz |title=Beschreibung der hochfürstlich-erzbischöflichen Haupt- und Residenzstadt Salzburg und ihrer Gegenden |volume=1 |publisher=Eigenverlag |location=Salzburg |year=1792 |pages=547ff |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=e2YAAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA547 |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=Description of the Archiepiscopal Capital and Residence City of Salzburg and Its Surroundings}}</ref>

thumb|left|Maria Plain pilgrimage church Since the establishment of the Maria Plain pilgrimage site in 1674, the Plainberg's identity has been closely tied to it. Shortly after the church's completion, “Plainberg” became synonymous with the sanctuary, as seen in a 1709 biography of Salzburg's Archbishop Johann Ernst von Thun und Hohenstein: “He offered [it] to MARY, the Mother of GOD, on the Plain-Berg in Salzburg, called MARY’s Consolation.”<ref>{{Cite book |last=Textor |first=Sebastian |title=Gemma Principum oder Kleinod der Fürsten |publisher=Johann Joseph Mayr |location=Salzburg |year=1709 |page=2 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QP5DAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA2 |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=Gem of Princes or Jewel of the Princes}}</ref> This association continued, evident in Lorenz Hübner's 1792 description of Salzburg's northern surroundings.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hübner |first=Lorenz |title=Beschreibung der hochfürstlich-erzbischöflichen Haupt- und Residenzstadt Salzburg und ihrer Gegenden |volume=1 |publisher=Eigenverlag |location=Salzburg |year=1792 |pages=546ff |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=e2YAAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA546 |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=Description of the Archiepiscopal Capital and Residence City of Salzburg and Its Surroundings}}</ref> In 1848, “Plain” stood for the pilgrimage site,<ref>“His Princely Grace, along with the entire court, arrived at Plain at 8 o’clock…” ({{Cite book |last=Aigner |first=Bonifaz |title=Kurze Geschichte des berühmten Wallfahrtsortes Maria=Plain bey Salzburg |publisher=Joseph Oberer |location=Salzburg |year=1848 |page=20 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GJ0AAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA24 |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=A Brief History of the Famous Pilgrimage Site Maria Plain near Salzburg}}).</ref> and in 1937, the term “Maria Plainberg” appeared.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Mell |first=Camillo |title=Die Molluskenfauna des Kapuzinerberges in Salzburg nebst weiterer Fundortsangaben Salzburger Weichtiere |journal=Verhandlungen der Zoologisch-Botanischen Gesellschaft in Wien |year=1937 |page=179 |url=https://www.zobodat.at/pdf/VZBG_86-87_0177-0270.pdf |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=The Mollusk Fauna of the Kapuzinerberg in Salzburg with Additional Salzburg Mollusk Site Records}}</ref> The Plainberg and Maria Plain remain inseparable in public perception.

The erection of the Maria Plain miraculous image triggered an unexpected surge in pilgrimages. Between 1657 and 1674, the basilica's consecration year, approximately 34,000 masses were reportedly held.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Veits-Falk |first=Sabine |chapter=Das Bettelwesen am Plainberg |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=429 |trans-title=The Begging System on the Plainberg}}</ref> This led to economic growth, as pilgrims increased demand for hospitality, lodging, and goods, prompting the establishment of shops and inns in Salzburg's Itzling and Lengfelden.

In the 18th century, growing recognition that poverty was not divinely ordained but could be addressed shifted attitudes toward begging. Some viewed the poor as partly responsible for their condition, while others advocated state-led poverty alleviation.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Spaur |first=Friedrich |title=Nachrichten über das Erzstift Salzburg nach der Säkularisation |publisher=Niklas Ambrosi |location=Passau |year=1805 |page=62 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HHgAAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA62 |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=News about the Archdiocese of Salzburg after Secularization |quote=“As all German states seek to eradicate the trade of idlers and beggars through the introduction of good poorhouses and workhouses, no one doubts that the government will soon follow these commendable examples and cleanse Salzburg of this bothersome plague.”}}</ref> The Plainbettel was abolished in 1804, welcomed by authorities but opposed by local merchants.

=== 19th Century and First Republic === [[File:Fischbach Maria Plain G 0539 II 02.jpg|thumb|Johann Fischbach: “Maria Plain” – Steel engraving (1852)]] [[File:Mayburger Salzburg vom Plainberg aus 1881.jpg|thumb|Josef Mayburger: “Salzburg from the Plainberg” – Painting (1881)]] During the Napoleonic Wars after 1800, the Bergheim area saw conflicts between France and Austria, but no military actions occurred on the Plainberg, and no reported attacks by French soldiers took place there.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Mitterer |first=Kurt Anton |chapter=Kriegerische Ereignisse im Bergheimer Raum während der Franzosenkriege |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |trans-title=Military Events in the Bergheim Area during the Napoleonic Wars}}. No such events on the Plainberg are mentioned in detailed accounts.</ref>

Beyond resident farmers and clergy, the Plainberg attracted new inhabitants by the 19th century, including retired professors from the University of Salzburg, drawn by the scenic southern slope's views.<ref name="Spaur 1805 59">{{Cite book |last=Spaur |first=Friedrich |title=Nachrichten über das Erzstift Salzburg nach der Säkularisation |publisher=Niklas Ambrosi |location=Passau |year=1805 |page=59 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HHgAAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA59 |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=News about the Archdiocese of Salzburg after Secularization}}</ref>

The Plain locality encompassed most of the Plainberg and adjacent eastern areas, including the modern Hallwang settlement of Berg. Population data for Plain include:<ref>{{Cite book |last=Haas |first=Hanns |chapter=An der Schwelle zur Moderne: Bergheim im langen 19. Jahrhundert |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=178 |trans-title=On the Threshold of Modernity: Bergheim in the Long 19th Century}}</ref> {| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" |+ Residences and population in the Plain Locality |- ! Year !! Houses !! Residents |- | 1812 || 22 || 132 |- | 1839 || 21 || 113 |- | 1869 || 22 || 133 |- | 1890 || 23 || 153 |- | 1900 || 25 || 174 |- | 1910 || 30 || 263 |- | 1991 || 74 || 385 |- | 2006<ref>{{Cite book |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=12 |trans-title=Bergheim: History and Present}}; Statistik Austria, count for the Plain locality including the Bergheim part of Kasern.</ref> || N/A || 219 |} The gender ratio was balanced, and the population was almost exclusively Roman Catholic. Detailed data for the Plainberg in 1812 and 1890 include:<ref>{{Cite book |last=Haas |first=Hanns |chapter=An der Schwelle zur Moderne: Bergheim im langen 19. Jahrhundert |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |pages=178–179 |trans-title=On the Threshold of Modernity: Bergheim in the Long 19th Century}}</ref> {| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" |+ Residences and population on the Plainberg ! Settlement !! 1812 !! colspan="2" | 1890 |- | |Residents |Houses |Residents |- | Gaglham || 13 || 2 || N/A |- | Gaglham incl. Hofstätt and Plainbrücke || N/A || 4 || 46 |- | Kemating || 30 || 6 || 29 |- | Plain<ref>Understood as Maria Plain.</ref> || 42 || N/A || N/A |- | Maria Plain incl. Berg–Maria Plain railway stop || N/A || 7 || 34 |- | Radeck || 38 || 6 || 44 |}

thumb|In the Franciscan-Josephine Survey map from the mid-19th century, Maria Plain is the only locality recorded on the PlainbergBergheim resisted new social and political movements in the late 19th century, with social democracy and pan-Germanism in the minority, adhering to political Catholicism. In the early 20th century, a Burschenschaftsverein, aligned with the Austrian Farmers’ Association, formed in Bergheim, gathering unmarried farmers and male servants. An annual Burschentag in Maria Plain drew about 300 members, significant given the population.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Haas |first=Hanns |chapter=An der Schwelle zur Moderne: Bergheim im langen 19. Jahrhundert |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=202 |trans-title=On the Threshold of Modernity: Bergheim in the Long 19th Century}}</ref>

On April 25, 1901, the first post office in Bergheim was established in Kasern, near the railway, handling mail for the Plainberg, previously managed by Salzburg. Mail was delivered multiple times daily on weekdays, with Sunday deliveries limited to Maria Plain. From August 1, 1912, a limited post office in Bergheim operated under Salzburg 1, with no change in delivery until after 1945, when Bergheim gained its own post office. The Kasern post office closed in 2009, and mail delivery for the Plainberg has since been handled from Salzburg-Itzling.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Putzer |first=Peter |chapter=Zur Geschichte der Post in Bergheim |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=600 |trans-title=On the History of the Post in Bergheim}}</ref>

Before the Salzburg Festival, Friedrich Gehmacher and Heinrich Damisch proposed a concert and opera house on the Plainberg for its scenic views, but the plan was abandoned with the outbreak of World War I.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hauser |first=Anton |title=Das alte Salzburg |publisher=Jugend und Volk |location=Vienna |year=1991 |page=33 |trans-title=Old Salzburg}}</ref>

Post-war, returning soldiers passed through Bergheim, raising fears of looting and violence. In 1920, several assaults occurred in the Plainberg's forest.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Neuper |first=Wolfgang |chapter=Von der Ersten zur Zweiten Republik – Bergheim zwischen 1918 und 1955 |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=212 |trans-title=From the First to the Second Republic – Bergheim between 1918 and 1955}}</ref> During the economic crisis, Bergheim issued emergency currency from September 1920 to 1922, with a 10-Heller note depicting the Plainberg's southern side and Maria Plain.

=== National Socialism to present === thumb|Part of the modern Kirchfeldsiedlung, replacing the Bergheim refugee camp After Austria's Anschluss in 1938, the Plainberg was annexed to Salzburg but returned to Bergheim after 1959. In 1939–1940, a Reich Labour Service camp was built between Bergheim and Hagenau, used for Plainbach regulation and the West Autobahn (A 1) construction along the southern slope. Post-war, the American occupation established a refugee camp on the site, leased from the Bergheim parish, initially for former Wehrmacht soldiers. By October 1946, the camp's 16 wooden barracks housed 391 people, 95% Danube Swabians.<ref>{{Cite book |last=März |first=Johann |chapter=Flüchtlingslager in Bergheim |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=231 |trans-title=Refugee Camp in Bergheim}}</ref> By autumn 1948, it held over 460.<ref>{{Cite book |last=März |first=Johann |chapter=Flüchtlingslager in Bergheim |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=233 |trans-title=Refugee Camp in Bergheim}}</ref> The camp developed its own social structure, including a kindergarten, school, food supply, sports clubs, and a police force. A typhus outbreak in 1950 led to a temporary closure. The camp transitioned to self-administration in 1952 and dissolved by the late 1950s after the land was sold to housing cooperatives, now the Kirchfeldsiedlung, home to some former refugees and their descendants.

thumb|left|The Bindergut, temporary residence for Maria Plain's Benedictines during wartime From January 1939, most of the Plainberg was incorporated into Salzburg.<ref>Raumordnungsgesetz, January 1, 1939; see also ''Ratsherrensitzung vom 13. Feber 1939''; Minutes (AStS, BU 1541, pp. 2–4), in: ''[http://www.stadt-salzburg.at/pdf/protokolle_der_ratsherrensitzungen_1939-1944.pdf Protokolle der Ratsherrensitzungen der Gauhauptstadt Salzburg 1939–1944]'', AStS, BU 1541–1543, ed. Magdalena Granigg, p. 8 (pdf, stadt-salzburg.at; 2.74 MB).</ref> In 1941, Maria Plain's clergy were displaced from their superiorate to accommodate children evacuated via Kinderlandverschickung, officially termed ''Youth Hostel Maria Plain''.<ref>Named in the ''Jahresbericht Jänner 1942'' (AStS, BU 1543, pp. 464–482), in: ''[http://www.stadt-salzburg.at/pdf/protokolle_der_ratsherrensitzungen_1939-1944.pdf Protokolle der Ratsherrensitzungen der Gauhauptstadt Salzburg 1939–1944]'', AStS, BU 1541–1543, ed. Magdalena Granigg, p. 312 (pdf, stadt-salzburg.at; 2.74 MB).</ref> The priests were housed in the Bindergut.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://bergheim.riskommunal.net/gemeindeamt/download/222740149_1.pdf |title=Bergheim – Unser Dorf bei Salzburg |publisher=Gemeinde Bergheim |year=2012 |issue=126 |pages=20–21 |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=Bergheim – Our Village near Salzburg}}</ref> In 1943, a small air-raid shelter for about 30 people was built at the eastern end, the smallest in Salzburg, constructed using forced laborers and prisoners of war.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.geheimprojekte.at/ls_salzburg.html |title=Luftschutzstollen in Salzburg Stadt |publisher=geheimprojekte.at |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=Air-Raid Shelters in Salzburg City}}. Not mentioned in ''[http://www.stadt-salzburg.at/pdf/protokolle_der_ratsherrensitzungen_1939-1944.pdf Protokolle der Ratsherrensitzungen der Gauhauptstadt Salzburg 1939–1944]''.</ref>

Post-war, Bergheim negotiated to reclaim the Plainberg by exchanging it for a 35 ha strip along the Salzach, including the slaughterhouse, now Itzling-Nord. This took effect on July 13, 1950.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Netsch |first=Ludwig |title=Stadtchronologie Salzburg ab 1945 |volume=1 |publisher=Dokumentation der Stadt Salzburg |location=Salzburg |year=1981 |page=Registerblatt 1950/2 |trans-title=City Chronology Salzburg from 1945}}</ref> Part of Kasern remained with Salzburg to preserve Bergheim's rural character, despite industrialization beginning around 1900.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.visit-salzburg.net/sights/kasern.htm |title=Kasern |publisher=visit-salzburg.net |access-date=July 11, 2025}}; {{Cite book |last=Müller |first=Guido |chapter=Bergheims Grenzen und Grenzräume im Wandel |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |pages=536–537 |trans-title=Bergheim’s Borders and Border Areas in Transition}}</ref>

thumb|Marker at the highest point of the Plainberg In 1963, regular waste collection was introduced in parts of Bergheim, including the Plainberg.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Schnell |first=Christine |chapter=Zur Entwicklung der Abfallentsorgung in der Gemeinde Bergheim |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=511 |trans-title=On the Development of Waste Disposal in the Bergheim Municipality}}</ref>

Today, the western side with its sacred buildings is popular among walkers and tourists. The rest of the hill is less used for recreation, with unmarked footpaths offering limited views due to tree cover. A recently built forest road from Maria Plain to Radeck in the upper area is not yet mapped.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.salzburg.gv.at/gisonline/(S(whg4kw45owjwd455ybpwxv55))/init.aspx?karte=default |title=SAGIS |publisher=Amtliches Geographisches Informationssystem des Landes Salzburg |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130306020147/http://www.salzburg.gv.at/gisonline/(S(whg4kw45owjwd455ybpwxv55))/init.aspx?karte=default |archive-date=March 6, 2013 |access-date=July 11, 2025}}; {{Cite web |url=https://data.bev.gv.at/geonetwork/srv/ger/catalog.search#/map |title=Österreichische Karte 1:50.000 |publisher=Bundesamt für Eich- und Vermessungswesen Österreich |access-date=October 3, 2024 |trans-title=Austrian Map 1:50,000}}</ref>

== Economy == === Agriculture, livestock, and hunting === thumb|Hay harvest on the Plainberg Hills in the Flysch Zone typically feature forested areas alongside meadows. The treeless areas were likely used for agriculture in ancient times. Excavations of a Roman-era manor in Kemating suggest that farming was practiced in the area as early as antiquity.

In the early 19th century, reports indicate that the southern slope of the Plainberg had been used for agricultural purposes for centuries. The fields were fertile, and the prosperity of local farmers was evident in their outward wealth.<ref name="Spaur 1805 59"/> Grain cultivation dominated, with the arable land of the Bergheim cadastral community—largely encompassing the Plainberg—divided in 1833 as follows: one-third for winter grains, one-third for oats, and the remainder for clover, fallow land, and some flax.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Haas |first=Hanns |chapter=An der Schwelle zur Moderne: Bergheim im langen 19. Jahrhundert |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=164 |trans-title=On the Threshold of Modernity: Bergheim in the Long 19th Century}}</ref> Livestock consisted almost exclusively of cattle. In 1817, the Plain locality recorded 15 oxen, 47 cows, and one horse, with sheep present in minimal numbers in other Bergheim localities. Throughout the 19th century, cattle numbers likely remained stable, consistent with trends across the state of Salzburg.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Haas |first=Hanns |chapter=An der Schwelle zur Moderne: Bergheim im langen 19. Jahrhundert |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=166 |trans-title=On the Threshold of Modernity: Bergheim in the Long 19th Century}}</ref> Today, five active farms remain on the Plainberg, including Radeck.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Gierlinger |first=Johann |chapter=Die Landwirtschaft in Bergheim nach 1945 bis zur Gegenwart |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=494 |trans-title=Agriculture in Bergheim from 1945 to the Present}}</ref>

From 1830 to 1961 (except during the war years of 1940–1944), the “Lorenzimarkt” or “Plainmarkt,” a festive livestock market and kermesse, was held annually on St. Lawrence's Day, August 10, in the meadow in front of the Maria Plain pilgrimage church. This event set livestock prices for the upcoming season, primarily involving trade in horses and cattle, alongside sales of clothing, household goods, and other typical fair items. Livestock trading occurred mainly in the morning, with the afternoon dedicated to socializing. The Plainmarkt was a popular event; for example, consumption included: {{blockquote|8,000 Frankfurter sausages, 4,000 knackwurst, 150 sticks of sliced sausage, an additional 10,000 sausages, 1,200 bratwurst, and 20,000 rolls. The in-house butcher at the adjacent Maria Plain inn slaughtered three bulls, two 600-kilogram heifers, four pigs, and four calves.}}<ref>{{Cite book |last=Wuschitz |first=Katharina |chapter=Von Gasthäusern, Handwerkern, Krämereien und dem Plainmarkt – Handwerk und Gewerbe vom 18. Jahrhundert bis in die 1950er Jahre |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=463 |trans-title=On Inns, Craftsmen, Shops, and the Plainmarkt – Crafts and Commerce from the 18th Century to the 1950s}}</ref> The market ceased in 1961 due to challenges in driving livestock to the site amid increasing motorized traffic and competition from the livestock market in Maishofen in the Pinzgau region.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Wuschitz |first=Katharina |chapter=Von Gasthäusern, Handwerkern, Krämereien und dem Plainmarkt – Handwerk und Gewerbe vom 18. Jahrhundert bis in die 1950er Jahre |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=471 |trans-title=On Inns, Craftsmen, Shops, and the Plainmarkt – Crafts and Commerce from the 18th Century to the 1950s}}</ref>

The forests between Maria Plain and Radeck remained undeveloped at least until the High Middle Ages,<ref name="Krawarik 2009 95"/> later serving as hunting grounds.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Spaur |first=Friedrich |title=Nachrichten über das Erzstift Salzburg nach der Säkularisation |publisher=Niklas Ambrosi |location=Passau |year=1805 |page=64 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HHgAAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA64 |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=News about the Archdiocese of Salzburg after Secularization}}. See also page 63, which explicitly mentions a hunter’s house in Radeck.<br />{{Cite book |last=Spaur |first=Friedrich |title=Der Spaziergänge in den Umgebungen Salzburgs zweiter Band |publisher=Franz Xaver Oberer |location=Salzburg |year=1815 |page=18 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LYZCAAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA18 |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=Walks in the Surroundings of Salzburg, Volume Two}}. Mentions the existence of hunting paths in the Plainberg forest.</ref> In the 19th century, as in many other rural communities in the region, communal hunting rights in Bergheim were leased to nobles and wealthy citizens for financial reasons. This led to active hunting in Bergheim's forests, with game management tailored to this purpose. Consequently, agricultural fields often suffered damage from wildlife and hunting activities, prompting legal regulations by the century's end to reserve hunting rights for landowners.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Haas |first=Hanns |chapter=An der Schwelle zur Moderne: Bergheim im langen 19. Jahrhundert |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |pages=168–169 |trans-title=On the Threshold of Modernity: Bergheim in the Long 19th Century}}</ref> The once-abundant game population has significantly declined. Bergheim's communal hunting grounds are now primarily located at Hochgitzen, with minimal activity on the Plainberg. While species like wild boar and fallow deer were occasionally hunted in the past, only a roe deer population of approximately 150–200 and a greatly reduced small game population remain today.<ref name="Brunner-Gaurek 2009 445">{{Cite book |last=Brunner-Gaurek |first=Monika |chapter=Bergheimer Vereine |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=445 |trans-title=Bergheim Associations}}</ref>

=== Industry, commerce, and crafts === thumb|Northern side of the Plainberg with the Bergheim commercial center thumb|Kasern commercial area Immediately north of the Plainberg lies the Bergheim commercial center, hosting numerous businesses. Additionally, plans exist to construct a renewable energy facility, the “Ökoenergiepark Bergheim,” at the northern base of the hill.

Just beyond the current Salzburger Straße (B 150), a major road passing the southeastern flank of the hill to the motorway, the “Redlacken” area—now known as Rettenlackstraße—was home to one of three brickworks in and around Salzburg.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hübner |first=Lorenz |title=Beschreibung der hochfürstlich-erzbischöflichen Haupt- und Residenzstadt Salzburg und ihrer Gegenden |volume=2 |publisher=Eigenverlag |location=Salzburg |year=1793 |pages=407–408 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IN1LAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA407 |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=Description of the Archiepiscopal Capital and Residence City of Salzburg and Its Surroundings}}</ref> This site, later called “Röttelacken,” also produced reddish clay used for painting porcelain manufactured in Salzburg's Riedenburg district from 1734 to 1848.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Sitte |first=Camillo |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=A3TUBVuu6QoC&pg=PA513 |title=Zur Geschichte der Salzburger Weissgeschirr-Fabrikation |publisher=Böhlau-Verlag |year=2008 |editor=Camillo-Sitte-Gesamtausgabe: Schriften zu Kunstkritik und Kunstgewerbe |location=Vienna |page=513 |trans-title=On the History of Salzburg Whiteware Manufacturing |chapter= |access-date=July 11, 2025}}</ref> The brickworks operated into the first half of the 20th century. During this period, a chemical factory, a bell foundry, and a soap manufactory also established operations there. Peat was extracted in the area earlier, but evidence of this activity is no longer visible. Today, the area hosts various commercial enterprises.

On the western side of the Plainberg, a quarry operated near Bergheim until 1897.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Fugger |first=Eberhard |title=Das Salzburger Vorland |journal=Jahrbuch der k.k. Geologischen Reichsanstalt |volume=49 |location=Vienna |year=1899 |page=291 |url=http://opac.geologie.ac.at/wwwopacx/wwwopac.ashx?command=getcontent&server=images&value=JB0492_287_A.pdf |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=The Salzburg Foreland}}. The river referred to as “Plainbach” in the source is the historical name for the lower course of the Alterbach south of the Plainberg (see page 301); the current Plainbach north of the Plainberg is not named in this source.</ref> Stones quarried there were used as building materials for local religious structures, including the Maria Plain pilgrimage basilica and the Michaelbeuern Abbey.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Slupetzky |first=Heinz |author2=Josef-Michael Schramm |chapter=Geologische Verhältnisse und Entstehung des heutigen Landschaftsbildes von Bergheim |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=25 |trans-title=Geological Conditions and the Formation of Bergheim’s Current Landscape}}</ref> Several quarries also operated east of the Plainberg, with one southeast of Radeck active from the 1880s.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Fugger |first=Eberhard |title=Das Salzburger Vorland |journal=Jahrbuch der k.k. Geologischen Reichsanstalt |volume=49 |location=Vienna |year=1899 |page=297 |url=http://opac.geologie.ac.at/wwwopacx/wwwopac.ashx?command=getcontent&server=images&value=JB0492_287_A.pdf |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=The Salzburg Foreland}}</ref>

Around the turn of the 20th century, economic activity on the Plainberg was more diverse than today. In addition to agriculture, businesses in Maria Plain in 1901 included one bakery, one butcher, two general stores, one hay merchant, one millwright, one shoemaker, and one innkeeper.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Haas |first=Hanns |chapter=An der Schwelle zur Moderne: Bergheim im langen 19. Jahrhundert |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=174 |trans-title=On the Threshold of Modernity: Bergheim in the Long 19th Century}}. Citing Salzburger Geschäfts-, Volks- und Amtskalender für das Jahr 1901, pages 105 and 109.</ref> Souvenirs and devotional items are still sold near the pilgrimage church today.

The hospitality industry gained prominence on the Plainberg with the rise of pilgrimages. The Maria Plain inn (“Plainwirt”), located next to the pilgrimage basilica, has been operated by the same family since 1654.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Wuschitz |first=Katharina |chapter=Von Gasthäusern, Handwerkern, Krämereien und dem Plainmarkt – Handwerk und Gewerbe vom 18. Jahrhundert bis in die 1950er Jahre |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=461 |trans-title=On Inns, Craftsmen, Shops, and the Plainmarkt – Crafts and Commerce from the 18th Century to the 1950s}}</ref> Originally a residence for priests, it was converted into an inn after they moved to the Maria Plain superiorate building. The structure was rebuilt in 1687.<ref name="ökunst">{{Cite book |editor=Kunsthistorischen Institute der k.k. Zentral-Kommission für Denkmalpflege |title=Österreichische Kunsttopographie |volume=11, Part 3: Gerichtsbezirk Salzburg |publisher=Kunstverlag Anton Schroll |location=Vienna |year=1916 |page=378 |url=http://www.archive.org/stream/sterreichische11austuoft/sterreichische11austuoft_djvu.txt |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=Austrian Art Topography}}. Unedited transcript of a scan.</ref> Around the turn of the 20th century, Radeck had two inns: the Schwarz’sche Gasthaus and the Jägerwirt, which still operates. The Jägerwirt included a garden pavilion, now an exhibit at the Salzburg Open-Air Museum in Großgmain since 1994. In 1914, another inn, the still-operating “Plainlinde,” opened on the route from Salzburg at the intersection toward Radeck.

<gallery widths="180"> File:Gasthof Maria Plain 5.jpg|Maria Plain Inn<br />(Maria Plain) File:Plainlinde.JPG|Plainlinde Inn<br />(Maria Plain) File:Gasthof Jägerwirt.jpg|Jägerwirt Inn<br />(Radeck-Kasern) </gallery>

Today, hospitality on the Plainberg is driven by the pilgrimage site and related tourism, as well as non-religious recreational visitors. Tourism in Bergheim, measured by overnight stays, more than tripled from 1986 to 2008.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Moßhammer |first=Hans |chapter=Der Tourismusverband Bergheim |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=510 |trans-title=The Bergheim Tourism Association}}</ref>

In the Salzburg portion of the Plainberg's southeast, there is a cider tavern and the “Panorama Camping Stadtblick” campsite, which also offers dining facilities.

=== Radiofabrik === The “Radiofabrik” is a private radio station in the city of Salzburg, part of the Association of Austrian Community Broadcasters. From 2001, a transmission antenna was located on the roof of the Maria Plain inn next to the basilica but was later relocated to Hochgitzen, a nearby hill in Bergheim, for technical reasons.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www2.radiofabrik.at/presse/presseaussendungen/2011-2/radiofabrik-senderwallfahrt-am-15-oktober/ |title=Radiofabrik-Senderwallfahrt am 15. Oktober |work=Radiofabrik |publisher=Radiofabrik.at |date=October 13, 2011 |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=Radiofabrik Transmitter Pilgrimage on October 15}}</ref> The new transmission station, established in early 2013, was named “Ada” after the British mathematician and programmer Ada Lovelace (1815–1852).<ref>{{Cite web |date=November 30, 2011 |title=Neuer Radiofabrik-Sender "Ada" in Betrieb |trans-title=New Radiofabrik Transmitter “Ada” in Operation |url=http://www.radiofabrik.at/home/home-news-einzelansicht/article/neuer-sender-ab-mitte-dezember.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140717064737/http://www.radiofabrik.at/home/home-news-einzelansicht/article/neuer-sender-ab-mitte-dezember.html |archive-date=July 17, 2014 |access-date=July 11, 2025 |publisher=Radiofabrik.at}}. Updated multiple times.</ref>

== Transportation == thumb|Road from Kemating to Radeck thumb|upright|The Plainstiege The road to Radeck connected to a route from Salzburg's Gnigl district to Lengfelden and further to Upper Austria's Innviertel. Today, this is the four-lane Lamprechtshausener Straße (B 156). Additional access routes include a road from Itzling to Gaglham (named “Gaglhamerweg” since 1944<ref>{{Cite book |last=Martin |first=Franz |title=Salzburger Straßennamen |editor=Gesellschaft für Salzburger Landeskunde |edition=4th, revised and significantly expanded by Willa Leitner-Martin and Andreas Martin |location=Salzburg |year=1995 |page=80 |trans-title=Salzburg Street Names}}</ref>) with a connection to Radeck, as well as roads from Bergheim to Maria Plain and Kemating. Several footpaths exist, including one—rarely used due to limited views—passing over the hill's highest point. The northern descent is accessible only on foot, primarily via a staircase known as the “Plainstiege.” Long-distance trails crossing the Plainberg and passing Maria Plain include the Rupertiweg, Arnoweg, and the Salzburg section of the Austrian Way of St. James.

The West Autobahn (A1) crosses the southern edge of the Plainberg, partly along the Salzburg-Bergheim municipal border, with the Salzburg Nord exit on the eastern side providing access to the B 156 toward central Salzburg and northward.

thumb|left|Maria Plain–Plainbrücke stop of the Salzburg Local Railway On February 1, 1885, the “Berg–Maria Plain” railway stop was established approximately 800 meters east of Radeck, in the Berg settlement (now part of Hallwang), on the Empress Elisabeth Railway, opened in 1860 and now part of the Western Railway at the Salzburg-Kasern stop.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Röll |first=Freiherr von |title=Enzyklopädie des Eisenbahnwesens |edition=2nd, completely revised |year=1912–1923 |url=http://www.zeno.org/Roell-1912/A/Kaiserin-Elisabeth-Bahn |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=Encyclopedia of Railway Systems}}. Specifies the railway’s opening date as August 12, 1860. The stop’s opening date of February 1, 1885, is cited in Salzburger Zeitung, January 25 and 31, 1885, per {{Cite book |last=Müller |first=Guido |chapter=Bergheims Grenzen und Grenzräume im Wandel |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=536 |trans-title=Bergheim’s Borders and Border Areas in Transition}}.</ref> In 1886, the Salzburg Local Railway opened, passing below Hagenau on the opposite side of the hill to the former “Maria Plain–Plainbrücke” stop, traversing the Hagenauerberg spur.<ref>Named by Christian Pongruber, former mayor of Bergheim, in an oral history interview, in: {{Cite book |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=652 |trans-title=Bergheim: History and Present}}</ref> This line was electrified from Salzburg to Plainbrücke in August 1923 and to Bergheim, including the Hagenau stop, in May 1927. Operations beyond Bergheim switched to electric power in May 1947.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Mackinger |first=Gunter |chapter=Bahn und Bus – Der Nahverkehr |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=622 |trans-title=Train and Bus – Local Transportation}}</ref>

No public transportation directly serves the hill. The closest access is via the Salzburg Local Railway (Maria Plain–Plainbrücke stop), the Salzburg trolleybus line 6 (Plainbrücke stop)—both at the southwestern end—and the city bus line 21 (Jägerwirt stop near Radeck in the east and Plainbachstraße stop near the Plainstiege to the north).

== Structures == === Maria Plain === The Plainberg, particularly its western side, is a popular local hill for Salzburg residents. The primary destination is the Maria Plain pilgrimage church, located at 530 meters above sea level and prominently visible to the south. It is considered the most significant pilgrimage site in Salzburg state. The Maria Plain ensemble includes the basilica, built from 1671 to 1674, an adjacent superiorate building constructed around 1675, a Calvary hill with four chapels and a crucifixion group built from 1686 to 1692, a 1692 burial chapel, the Ursprungskapelle (rebuilt in 1710 after a wooden chapel for the Maria Plain miraculous image stood from 1652), and the Schmerzenskapelle, completed in 1734. The entire complex was restored from 2003 to 2009.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.bda.at/text/136/908/14727/Maria-Plain_Wallfahrtsort-vor-den-Toren-Salzburgs |title=Maria Plain, Wallfahrtsort vor den Toren Salzburgs |publisher=Bundesdenkmalamt |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=Maria Plain, Pilgrimage Site at the Gates of Salzburg}}</ref>

Each year on February 2 (Candlemas), a candlelight procession with a traditional candle blessing takes place from the Ursprungskapelle to the basilica.

=== Mystery Pillars === thumb|upright|Wayside shrine XV below the Plain church A pilgrimage path, established in 1705 by a private individual, begins in Salzburg's Elisabeth-Vorstadt district and consists of 15 wayside shrines and a votive pillar, all preserved, restored, or partially rebuilt. The path leads to the Plainberg, ending near the first chapel of the Calvary hill. The oil paintings on the 15 shrines depict the 15 Rosary Mysteries. The series concludes with a votive pillar featuring an image of the Maria Plain miraculous image, text on the path's origin, and the builder's votive inscription. On the Plainberg, shrines IX to XV and the votive pillar stand from the Plainbrücke at the hill's base. A modern shrine, modeled after the mystery pillars, is located directly in front of the superiorate building next to the Maria Plain basilica.

=== Schloss Radeck === At the eastern end of the hill stood Schloss Radeck. A castle built around 1225 belonged to the Salzburg archbishops by 1273 and was later overseen by the Maria Plain clergy. It burned down during the Peasants' Revolt of 1525 and was later rebuilt as a castle-like structure.<ref name="visit">{{Cite web |url=http://www.visit-salzburg.net/sights/kasern.htm |title=Kasern |publisher=visit-salzburg.net |access-date=July 11, 2025}}</ref> Today, only the chapel, consecrated in 1516, remains, with a bell from 1548 and an altar from the late 17th century.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Brunner-Gaurek |first=Monika |chapter=Von Bauopfern, Haussegen, Kapellen und Marterln – Alltag im Zeichen religiöser Traditionen |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |pages=401–402 |trans-title=On Building Sacrifices, House Blessings, Chapels, and Wayside Shrines – Everyday Life in the Context of Religious Traditions}}</ref> The site is privately owned.

=== Plainbrücke === thumb|Plainbrücke with the pilgrimage basilica and a mystery pillar (Ignaz Preisinger: “Maria Plain,” c. 1850) Located at the southwestern end of the Plainberg and closely associated with it, the Plainbrücke in the Itzling district was built in 1733 under Salzburg Archbishop Leopold Anton von Firmian. This stone bridge, constructed from conglomerate blocks, spans the Alterbach. Its side railings date from the Baroque period, while the substructure and surface are modern. A statue of John of Nepomuk stands at the center of the western railing, earning the bridge the occasional name “Nepomuk Bridge.”<ref>{{Cite book |last=Dorn |first=Herbert |title=Geheimnissäulen auf dem Weg nach Maria Plain |location=Salzburg |year=1990 |page=27 |trans-title=Mystery Pillars on the Way to Maria Plain}}</ref>

At the Plainbrücke, two roads from Salzburg converged: one leading over the Plainberg to Lengfelden and serving as the pilgrimage route to the basilica, and the other heading to Bergheim and northward. The latter, existing since at least the Middle Ages, was less significant historically, as the main northern route ran along the left bank of the Salzach, now in Bavarian territory.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Koller |first=Fritz |title=Verkehrsland Salzburg |year=2005 |isbn=3-85015-202-2 |editor=Landespressebüro |series=Sonderpublikationen Nr. 198 |location=Salzburg |pages=7–27 |language=de |trans-title=Salzburg’s Transportation Role in the Middle Ages and Early Modern Period |chapter=Die Verkehrsstellung Salzburgs in Mittelalter und früher Neuzeit}}</ref> In the last century, this route became a major traffic artery, now designated as the Bergheimer Landesstraße (L 118).

== Religion and folk culture == thumb|upright|Wayside shrine on the path from Bergheim to the Plain church

=== Religious processions === In Catholic tradition, alongside pilgrimages and other processions, the supplicatory procession is a form of religiously motivated walk, typically led by a cross-bearer and often involving the blessing of agricultural fields. In Bergheim, such processions, known as Rogation Days, were held for centuries on the three days before Ascension Day. On the Plainberg, an annual cross procession occurred until 1993 on the day before Ascension Day, and from 1704, an additional procession took place on the Sunday after Corpus Christi. Following a reorganization, a star pilgrimage to Maria Plain now occurs annually on the Tuesday before Pentecost, starting from the Bergheim parish church, the Radeck chapel, and Lengfelden. Additionally, every other year (alternating with another route), a supplicatory procession travels from the Bergheim parish church to Radeck on the Tuesday before Ascension Day.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Ortner |first=Franz |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |year=2009 |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |location=Bergheim |pages=285 |language=de |trans-title=The History of the Church and Pastoral Care of the Bergheim Parish from the 16th Century to the Present |chapter=Die Geschichte der Kirche und Seelsorge der Pfarre Bergheim vom 16. Jahrhundert bis zur Gegenwart }}</ref>

=== The Augenbründl === thumb|left|The Augenbründl Near the hilltop with the Maria Plain church, on the northern side beside the Plainstiege, lies the “Jakobsbründl” or “Augenbründl,” a spring considered holy in folk belief. The following legend explains its origin: {{blockquote |text=Once […] a priest was walking from the Plainberg to Lengfelden to bring the viaticum to a sick person and bless their soul. It was deep winter, and an icy crust covered the steps of the Plainstiege. Lost in prayer, the priest slipped, and to his horror, the host fell into the snow. In his distress, he prayed to the Miraculous Mother of Plain […] When he rose with the help of the sacristan, he noticed that the snow had melted where the holy host had fallen, and a small spring bubbled up […] |lang=de |source=Salzburger Bauernkalender 1928, p. 68 |ref={{Cite book |last=Brunner-Gaurek |first=Monika |chapter=Von Bauopfern, Haussegen, Kapellen und Marterln – Alltag im Zeichen religiöser Traditionen |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |page=409 |trans-title=On Building Sacrifices, House Blessings, Chapels, and Wayside Shrines – Everyday Life in the Context of Religious Traditions}}}} Previously, a stone shrine with a triptych stood at the spring. The central image depicted Jesus at the Jacob's Well, with an inscription along the frame: “The water you draw here quenches thirst only briefly, but the water I give you quenches it for eternity.”<ref name="gaurek">{{Cite book |last=Brunner-Gaurek |first=Monika |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |year=2009 |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |location=Bergheim |page=409 |trans-title=On Building Sacrifices, House Blessings, Chapels, and Wayside Shrines – Everyday Life in the Context of Religious Traditions |chapter=Von Bauopfern, Haussegen, Kapellen und Marterln – Alltag im Zeichen religiöser Traditionen}}</ref> Today, a simple, now-deteriorated wooden shrine with an image of the Maria Plain miraculous image stands beside the spring. The water is believed to have health benefits, and the site is considered a “place of power” in esoteric circles.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.kraftort.org/Heiliges_Wasser/Osterreich/Quellen_SBG/Maria_Plain/maria_plain.html |title=Maria Plain |publisher=kraftort.org |access-date=July 11, 2025}}</ref>

=== Customs and music === In 1965–66, the Radeck rifle shooters’ association was formed. Its flag features the coat of arms of the former Lords of Radeck on one side and an image of the Radeck castle chapel on the other. The traditional attire includes a hat with cock feathers.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Brunner-Gaurek |first=Monika |chapter=Bergheimer Vereine |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |pages=440–441 |trans-title=Bergheim Associations}}</ref>

Midsummer bonfires are occasionally lit on the Plainberg during the summer solstice.

The hill has inspired the names of a folk music ensemble and a Krampus group. The Bergheim-based ''Vocalensemble Maria Plain'' performs works from the Baroque period and First Viennese School.<ref name="Brunner-Gaurek 2009 445"/> Additionally, a Bavarian polka called “Plainberg-Boarischer” was composed by Salzburg musician Tobi Reiser.

== References == {{Reflist|20em}}

== Further reading == * {{Cite book |last=Spaur |first=Friedrich |title=Der Spaziergänge in den Umgebungen Salzburgs zweiter Band |publisher=Franz Xaver Oberer |location=Salzburg |year=1815 |pages=1–23 |chapter=Siebenter Spaziergang oder Erste Spazierfahrt nach Maria Plain, Lengfelden, die Papiermühle, Radeck und Minnesheim |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LYZCAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA1 |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=Walks in the Surroundings of Salzburg, Volume Two}} * {{Cite journal |last=Fugger |first=Eberhard |title=Das Salzburger Vorland |journal=Jahrbuch der k.k. Geologischen Reichsanstalt |volume=49 |issue=Der Plainberg |location=Vienna |year=1899 |section= |pages=289–300 |url=http://opac.geologie.ac.at/wwwopacx/wwwopac.ashx?command=getcontent&server=images&value=JB0492_287_A.pdf |access-date=July 11, 2025 |trans-title=The Salzburg Foreland}} (PDF; 8.87 MB) * {{Cite book |editor=Gemeinde Bergheim |title=Bergheim. Geschichte und Gegenwart |location=Bergheim |year=2009 |trans-title=Bergheim: History and Present}}. This (popular) academic anthology includes references to the Plainberg or objects on it in nearly all contributions. Articles specifically addressing Plainberg-related topics include: ** {{Cite book |last=Putzer |first=Peter |chapter= |trans-title=The Wayside Shrines on the Path to Maria Plain |title=Die Bildsäulen auf dem Weg nach Maria Plain |language=de}} ** {{Cite book |last=Veits-Falk |first=Sabine |chapter= |trans-title=The Begging System on the Plainberg |title=Das Bettelwesen am Plainberg |language=de}} *The Plainberg is also a thematic focus in: **{{Cite book |last=März |first=Johann |chapter= |trans-title=Refugee Camp in Bergheim |title=Flüchtlingslager in Bergheim |language=de}} **{{Cite book |last=Matern |first=Peter |chapter= |trans-title=Bergheim and Maria Plain on Old Maps and Views |title=Bergheim und Maria Plain auf alten Landkarten und Ansichten |language=de}} **{{Cite book |last=Wuschitz |first=Katharina |chapter= |trans-title=On Inns, Craftsmen, Shops, and the Plainmarkt – Crafts and Commerce from the 18th Century to the 1950s |title=Von Gasthäusern, Handwerkern, Krämereien und dem Plainmarkt – Handwerk und Gewerbe vom 18. Jahrhundert bis in die 1950er Jahre |language=de}}

== External links == {{Commons category|Plainberg}} * Aerial images of the Bergheim area with the Plainberg from various decades at [http://www.salzburg.gv.at/themen/se/sagis/geodaten_und_karten/luftbildarchiv.htm www.salzburg.gv.at] (sample images from the official aerial image database) * Website of the Maria Plain pilgrimage church [http://www.mariaplain.at/ Maria Plain] * View from the Plainberg as a [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BjsP3f_-suI video] on YouTube

Category:Hills of Austria Category:Salzburg Category:Geography of Salzburg Category:Protected areas of Austria