Traunstein

Traunstein is a town in the south-eastern part of Bavaria, Germany, and is the administrative center of a much larger district of the same name. The town serves as a local government, retail, health services, transportation and educational center for the wider district.The historic market square, Bavarian hospitality, local breweries, outdoor sports facilities, Easter Monday horse parade and connections with Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, contribute to the town's profile as a tourist destination.GeographyThe town is situated at the heart of a region called Chiemgau, approximately 11 km east of Lake Chiemsee between Munich and Salzburg, 15 km north of the Alps, and 30 km west of Salzburg.HistoryEarly historyAlthough in 790, the church records already list possessions "ad Trun" and some medieval defence constructions are known to have existed in the surroundings since the 10th century, Trauwenstein itself was first mentioned in a manuscript of the Baumburg monastery in the year 1245. The name means "castle on the Traun," and the domicile of the Lord of "de Truna," surrounded by a little settlement, was likely located there.