The story behind the song "Silent Night"

The Napoleonic wars (1792-1815) had caused great suffering in Europe. The Congress of Vienna was held to establish new borders and a new order for Europe. As a result, the ecclesiastical Principality of Salzburg lost its status as an independent country, and was forced to secularize. In 1816, its lands were divided in two with part assigned to Bavaria and part to Austria. The site where "Silent Night!" was first performed - in Oberndorf near Salzburg - had been a suburb of Laufen, but was now separated from its town center located across the Salzach River, which became the new border. For centuries, transportation of salt along the river had provided the basis for the local economy. The salt trade declined during the Napoleonic wars, and then never fully recovered. This caused a depression in the local economy, with the transport companies, boat builders and laborers facing unemployment and an unsure future. It was during these hard times that Joseph Mohr was a parish priest in Oberndorf (1817-1819). There he met Franz Xaver Gruber, the church organist. The song helped the people forget the poverty, hunger, and war. Its popularity spread quickly. Kaiser Faranz I and Czar Alexander I of Russia heard the song in 1822 during a visit to Zillertal. The Rainer Family Singers performed the song in 1839 on Broadway. Today, two billion people all over the world know this song. It has been translated into over 300 languages and dialects.

The song itself is still considered holy by the townsfolk, and is only sung on Christmas eve. A plan to sing the song at the end of a celebration last year to commemorate Gruber's birthday caused an uproar.