Old Castle Zwölfaxing

Göttweig Abbey had already received land on the Schwechat from Bishop Altmann of Passau in 1083. In 1120/22, it received another estate from Ekkerich II of Kuffern. Both Pellendorf and the neighboring Zwölfaxing were located on Göttweig territory. The abbey ceded both places to King Przemysl Ottokar. In 1326, a fortified court was located here, presumably a predecessor of the later castle. It belonged to a Leopold Fuez, who named himself after Zwölfaxing. Around 1479, the Danickler family acquired this court. In 1559, it was owned by Tobias Weiß. Ten years later, it was described as a free noble seat. It then belonged to Baron Johann Petheo zu Gerze, who sold it to Franz von Poppendorf. He proudly described himself as "supreme master of ordnance in all imperial lands and supreme commissioner for the fortification of the border areas against the Turks." In 1570, he began to erect a castle here. Two years later, he tried to sell the probably still unfinished building to the emperor, who, however, refused. In 1579, the Taxis family acquired Zwölfaxing Castle, followed in 1609 by Veit Sieß and in 1639 by Johann Georg Puecher von Meggenhausen. From 1674, the Knights of Gatterburg were the lords of the castle. After the devastation caused by the Turks on their advance to Vienna, Maximilian Servatius von Gatterburg had the building restored in 1692. On this occasion, a tower was also added. The castle remained in the possession of the Gatterburg family until the first half of the 20th century. In 1936, it was leased. In the immediate vicinity of Zwölfaxing was an airfield of the German Luftwaffe. This was bombed in 1945 by English fighter planes, destroying the baroque main building of the castle. After the war, residential houses were built in its place. In 1948, the Kafka family acquired the remaining buildings. They still own the extensive estate today.

Courtyard side The castle is located in a park east of the Schwechat on the outskirts of Zwölfaxing. Preserved are, in addition to the once stately mill, which dates back to the Middle Ages, and the former brewery from the 17th century, especially the so-called Old Castle. This was expanded for residential purposes by the owners after the destruction of the main building. The horseshoe-shaped two-story complex previously served primarily economic purposes as a fore-castle. Its wings enclose a west-facing courtyard, which opens towards the buildings of the extensive estate. These mostly date from the second half of the 19th century. The ten-axis show facade of the Old Castle faces the former main castle. Its area is now separated from the castle park by a wall and built with settlement houses. The two floors, of which only the upper one is inhabited, are visually separated on the new main facade by a sgraffito frieze discovered only in the second half of the 20th century. The windows on the upper floor, provided with straight pediments, are mostly stone-framed. The round-arched portal, the former passage, is arranged asymmetrically. A magnificently crafted coat of arms stone of Maximilian Ernst von Gatterburg from 1675 is walled into the facade. Two stone inscription tablets indicate that Franz von Poppendorf laid the foundations of the castle in 1570 and that Maximilian von Gatterburg had the building extensively restored in 1692. The rooms have cross-rib vaults. In the upper floor, some stucco ceilings from the 18th century have been preserved. Nothing has been preserved of the main castle drawn by Georg Matthäus Vischer in 1672. However, the mentioned inscription tablets and the coat of arms stone may originate from this building.