Rottenegg Castle

The name component Middle High German rôt (= red) possibly indicates a coloring of the local rock, but could also refer to the color of the former building paint. Middle High German egge, eck (= corner) describes a protruding, laterally sloping terrain edge. The dative use of place names common in the Middle Ages led to today's contracted place name, for which the spelling with a double 't' became established: (zum) roten Eck – Rottenegg.

Today, almost only the outer walls of the palas on the former north side of the castle remain. The once three-story building no longer has intermediate ceilings and still shows remnants of stucco and frescoes on the inner walls. Scattered wall remains still bear witness to the former keep on the curtain wall and the outbuildings. The former gatehouse, however, is well preserved and is still inhabited today. A legend surrounding the castle is depicted in a sgraffito on a house below the ruin. It explains why the castle wall is colored red.

The brothers Chunrat and Sighart die P(B)iber von Rotenek appear as the first known owners of Rottenegg Castle on July 25, 1285. The male line of the Rottenegg branch of the Piber family died out with Otto II around 1340. His daughter Dietmut married Herrmann von Landenberg, into whose possession the castle passed. In 1363, the property was handed over to the sons Ruger and Berengar von Landenberg. Thereafter, the owners or feudal lords changed several times: in 1375 the castle went to the Lords of Walsee, in 1377 to Rudolf Neundling as a (purchase fief), after the extinction of the Walsee family to the Habsburgs (ownership), in 1489 to Balthasar Neundlinger (fief), in 1494 through his wife Agnes Greisenegger to the Greisenecker family. In the 16th century, the castle was rebuilt by the Gingers, in 1586 it came by inheritance to the Küenast family, a few years later by purchase to Christoph Artstetter von Wartberg. In 1600, the castle was converted into a palace. In 1606, the palace came to Jobst Schmidtauer von Oberwallsee and Etzelsdorf, in 1712 Franz Veit von Schmidtauer sold the palace to Count Thomas Gundaker von Starhemberger.

During the Starhemberg ownership, the Rottenegg dominion was united with the Eschelberg dominion and initially administered by a caretaker. However, the castle was abandoned by staff in the early 18th century, made available to poor people as housing, and finally left to decay. Since 1936, the complex has been owned by the Plakolm family.

In 1712, the complex, transformed into a small palace, was described as follows: Firstly, the well-built palace, located half a mile from the Danube near Ottensheim in a very pleasant and agreeable place, which is not only equipped with 3 stories high with agreeable rooms, a large hall, beautiful large chapels and vaults, but also with good cellars carved in stone; in which one can store at least 2000 buckets of all kinds of drinks, as well as with a separate building built directly next to the palace, together with [...] a well-built brewery and likewise a well-built farmstead with large brick horse and other livestock stables.