Ebenzweier Castle and its history

From the Middle Ages to modern times

The sun rises over the estate of Ebenzweier Castle. It seems like an idyllic morning. Only the suitcase-laden carriages are a sign that something is wrong. The Schachner family have to give up their domicile. It is the beginning of the 17th century. The Schachners are Protestants and the Counter-Reformation forces the family, who have lived here since the Middle Ages, to pack up their belongings and look for a new home.

In the 13th century, the former residence is the original ancestral seat of the Schachner family. The name Ebenzweier comes from the place description "next to the pond" - first as “Nebenzweier”, then “Ebenzweyer” and later Ebenzweier.

For more than three hundred years, the Schachners have been the lords of Ebenzweier Castle. In the 16th century, the family convert to Protestantism. A certain Abraham Schachner is even pastor in Altmünster. At the beginning of the 17th century, with the crackdown of the Counter-Reformation, the Schachner family is one of countless families forced to leave the country. In short, the territorial prince makes Ebenzweier Castle the property of the province.

Over the next two hundred years, the castle changes hands 12 times. At the beginning of the 19th century, Florian Max Clodi procures the castle. However, his heirs are unable to keep the property for long and sell it to Archduke Maximilian Joseph of Austria-Este. He has the castle converted into a magnificent chateau and a vast landscaped park laid out, which still exists today. After his death, his niece, Archduchess Maria Theresa, inherits the property; she sells it to the Bourbons at the end of the 19th century.

In the 1970s, Prince Carlos Hugues de Bourbon sells the dilapidated castle to the municipality of Altmünster. A short time later, it is taken over by the state of Upper Austria. The castle is restored and a catering and hospitality vocational and boarding school are installed.

Conversions and renovations are part of the history of the castle. Today, the complex consists of two courts. The inner has been completely rebuilt; the outer consists of three wings closed by a wall to the west.

In the front courtyard there is an octagonal stone fountain, on which several coats of arms are engraved. In the middle, on a column, stands a stone figure of St. Florian.

In the central wing of the castle on the upper floor, the rooms are flooded with light by glazed arcades. In the middle there is a slender clock tower with a gable and a conical roof. The three-storey façade faces Traunsee, its 75 windows offering a beautiful view of the lake. The centre of this façade is dominated by a columned porch with a pointed gable.

The altar, a door and the images of the saints in the castle chapel date back to the 17th century. The castle itself is located in a large park in Altmünster am Traunsee. An engraving by Georg Matthäus Vischer from 1674 clearly shows that a large park with flower gardens, kitchen gardens and orchards existed here over four hundred years ago.