Description of the attraction
Ebensee is an Austrian city located in the federal state of Upper Austria, in the Traunviertel region. Ebensee is located in the district of Bad Ischl at an altitude of 443 m above sea level, on the southern shore of Lake Traunsee. The regional capital Linz is located 90 km to the north.
Until 1253, the Traunviertel region belonged to the Duchy of Styria, until King Ottokar II allocated it to the Austrian Duchy. Ebensee was first mentioned in 1447. Salt production began here in 1607. Historically, the site was chosen because of the rich forests, the wood of which is used to produce salt. Under the supervision of Woodruff Hans Kals, a pipeline for the delivery of salt was built in Ebensee. The pipeline is the oldest in the world and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
In 1943, the Nazis established a concentration camp in Ebensee, code-named Cement, as a subsidiary camp for Mauthausen. From November 1943 to May 1945, 8,745 prisoners died in the camp. At the end of April 1945, the concentration camp had 18,437 prisoners. The camp was liberated by American soldiers on May 6, 1945. Due to the extremely high mortality rate, Ebensee is considered one of the most horrific Nazi concentration camps.
Currently, Ebensee attracts many tourists from all over the world. The city is surrounded by three picturesque lakes: Traunsee, Offensee, Langbassee. The Traunsee is used for boating and the other two lakes are used for swimming in summer. Also of interest is the Ebensee History Museum, which tells about the history of the region from 1918 to 1955. Since 1973, it has hosted an annual non-commercial film festival.
