The settlement history of Gams

In keeping with the Nothkreuz, we will briefly go into the history of the settlement of Gams. Forest and mountains were initially an obstacle to the development of the area. Remote and shunned, it was largely uninhabited until the Middle Ages, while the mining areas around Eisenerz and Admont had already been settled by Illyrians and Celts before Roman times. In the 6th century the Slavs came as far as Admont and to a lesser extent also to Gams. It was not until the time of the Carolingian Ostmark that colonisation by Bavarian tribes began, which continued here even during the Madjar storms. Admont was first mentioned in a document in 859, and in 1074 the monastery was founded on a former secular manor. From here, the clearing of the Enns and Salza began immediately. In 1139, the entire land was already in the possession of the monastery of Admont. In 1150, the chapel of St. Gallus was founded in “Sliva”. This marked the beginning of colonisation, Bavarian settlement and cultivation of the land. Thus, 200 years after the foundation of Admont Abbey, there were already 150 German farms in the district of Sankt Gallen. In the 14th century, settlement was largely complete. Since then, there have been no significant changes in the composition of the population or in the number of farms. Until 1848, the landlord was the Admont Monastery with a governor at Gallenstein Castle and a bailiff in Palfau. Even today, the district boundaries coincide with the former boundaries of the monastery estates.