Aframhof Castle

Aframhof is located in the small village of Afram, not far from Wildon. The castle of the Lords of Afram was situated on a steep slope above the village, but has now completely disappeared. A farm below the fortified building belonged to it. It was a small fortified house, surrounded by walls and a moat. The farm was the free property of the Averam family, who soon called themselves Afram. Burchart von Averam, who appears in documents in 1136, was a follower of the Lords of Plain, who owned extensive estates in the area. In 1253, King Ottokar II transferred the possessions of the Counts of Plain to the Bishop of Seckau. However, the farm remained in the possession of the Lords of Afram. Through marriage, a quarter of the farm came into the possession of Nikolaus von Frauheim around 1300, but Wilhelm Aframer was able to buy this share back from him. He sold it to the Bishop of Seckau, who in turn enfeoffed Nikolaus von Frauheim with it in 1318. In 1338, Meinhard and Rudolf von Afram renounced their remaining shares. Knight Dietmar Zebinger took possession of the farm by force around the same time. After a settlement, he was enfeoffed with it by the Bishop. The further fate of the farm cannot be traced until the 15th century, as there were two other farms in Afram that belonged to the Diocese of Seckau. During the Hungarian Wars, the Perneckers took possession of the farm. The Diocese of Seckau soon lost its suzerainty, as the Bishop had opposed Emperor Frederick III.

Around 1530, Aframhof was granted by the Emperor to Georg von Herberstein. He was soon able to shed the feudal bond and take it over as free property. In 1546, Franz von Herbersdorf acquired it. Caspar von Herbersdorf had the already heavily neglected farm renovated, but incurred such high debts that he had to mortgage it temporarily. Although Otto von Herbersdorf managed to redeem the estate from the pledgee Magdalena Paradeiser, the financial situation was already so hopeless that his widow Benigna had to sell the property to Hans Sigmund von Glojach. In the 17th and 18th centuries, ownership changed frequently, with it happening twice that the buyers could not pay the purchase price and thus the farm reverted to the seller. In 1748, the Graz Jesuits acquired the farm. Until 1752, Aframhof belonged to the neighboring Marienhof lordship. After the dissolution of the order, it came under state administration in 1773. Soon after, it came into bourgeois possession and again changed owners frequently. Aframhof is today a well-maintained manor, whose core dates from the 18th century. However, it was rebuilt after 1842 by Maria Putz von Treuental in the Historicist style. Somewhat later, it was enriched by the square tower adorned with battlements. The neo-Gothic castle chapel also dates from this period.