Murnau am Staffelsee

Murnau am Staffelsee is a market town in the district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, in the Oberbayern region of Bavaria, Germany.The market originated in the 12th century around Murnau Castle. Murnau is on the edge of the Bavarian Alps, about south of Munich. Directly to its west is the Staffelsee lake and to the south are the peaks and ridges of the Ammergauer Alps beginning with the Hörnle and extending up to the Ettaler Manndl, southwest of the Wetterstein. This mountain range is formed by the Zugspitze and the Alpspitze in the south as well as the Estergebirge with their striking Kistenkar and the Walchensee mountains including Heimgarten and Herzogstand in the southeast.To the south, the Murnauer Moos is the largest continuous wetland of its kind in Central Europe.HistoryMurnau was first documented in 1150. It received the right to hold markets from Louis V, Duke of Bavaria, in 1350 and retains the title of "Markt" ("market") to this day.11th century and beforeThe area around Murnau was already settled in pre-Christian times. From the reign of Septimius Severus, a Roman road called Via Raetia led above the Brenner Pass and Seefeld Saddle through the upper Isar-Loisachtal valleys all the way to Augsburg. The road continued under the name Via Imperii as an imperial road and trade route until the 19th century. Signs of Celtic and Roman settlements have been found on the now-eroded moss area around the Moosberg in the Murnauer Moos. At that time Murnau was no more than a stopping-off point for travellers, called Murau or Mureau. The name Murnau comes from Mure ("mudslide") and Aue ("meadow"), referring to the Murnauer Moos and Loisachtal.