who were the salzburgers and why did they migrate to america
Salzburger Emigrants The Salzburger Emigrants are a group of German-speaking Protestant refugees that emigrated to Georgia in 1734 to escape religious persecution. This group was expelled by the Catholic Authorities in present-day Austria. Pastor Samuel Urlsperger, the leader of the Society for Promotion of Christian Knowledge, called upon King George II of England for help. The Lutheran King offered them refuge in his Georgia colony, which later became the town of Ebenezer.
Georg von Trapp According to Maria von Trapp's memoirs, Georg von Trapp found himself in a vexing situation after the German takeover of Austria in 1938. He was offered a commission in the German Navy, a tempting proposition for a Captain without a navy, but decided to decline the offer, being opposed to Nazi ideology. Knowing that he could not decline the offer without the threat of arrest, possibly for his entire family, von Trapp decided to leave Austria. The family took a train to Italy, then sailed to the United States for their first concert tour, then in 1939 went back to Europe to tour Scandinavia, hoping to continue their concerts in cities beyond the reach of the Third Reich.[19] During this time, they went back to Salzburg for a few months before returning to Sweden to finish the tour. From there, they traveled to Norway to begin the trip back to the United States in September 1939.[8]