Offenburg Castle

The castle was built at the beginning of the 12th century by a follower of the Eppensteiners. It is considered the ancestral castle of the Teufenbachers.

In 1122, Offenburg came into the possession of the Traungauers. The Offenburgers, who were appointed to administer the castle, were princely ministerials. They originated from the Liechtenstein family. In 1268, however, they lost the castle to the Bohemian King Ottokar. He appointed Dietrich von Fulin as burgrave. In 1276, the Liechtensteiner were able to drive the Bohemians out of their lordships and re-enter Offenburg. The suzerainty had meanwhile passed to the Counts of Heunburg. After an uprising of the Styrian nobles against Albrecht von Habsburg, Offenburg once again became princely.

In 1279, Dietmar von Offenburg was again enfeoffed with his castle. In 1295, Offenburg was partially pledged to the Counts of Heunburg. Around the middle of the 14th century, the Gallers took over the pledge. After the death of the last Galler, Duke Ernst confiscated the castle and initially appointed administrators before pledging it to Andree Ramung in 1421. When Bernhard Ramung died, King Ferdinand I confiscated the fief and sold the lordship in 1531 to Hans Hofmann von Grünbühel. In 1589, his son sold the castle to the brothers Carl and Otto von Teufenbach.

After a major fire in 1590, the damage to Offenburg was no longer repaired. In 1613, Hans Wilhelm Freiherr von Saurau took over the property. In 1656, Offenburg came into the possession of Gregor Freiherr von Sidenitsch, who was followed in 1698 by Ferdinand Fürst von Schwarzenberg. His family still owns Offenburg, which has now fallen into ruin.