Salzburg Easter Festspiele celebrates centuries of artistic expression in a city Hofmannsthal called “the heart of the heart of Europe.” Settled on the Salzach River, Salzburg began as a Celtic settlement and later became the Roman town of Juvavum. Around 700 CE, St. Rupert founded the Benedictine Abbey of St. Peter and the Nonnberg Nunnery, establishing the city’s religious roots. Salzburg was made a bishopric by St. Boniface in 739 and was raised to an archbishopric in 798. The city’s architecture and culture earned it the nickname “the German Rome” due to its blend of Italian Renaissance and Baroque influences.