Statteneck Castle

Statteneck Castle was built in 1278 by the Lords of Goldegg without the permission of the Styrian sovereign. Since the Lords of Goldegg were vassals of the Archbishop of Salzburg, but the castle was located on Habsburg territory, conflict was inevitable. That this dispute was carried out at the highest level is unusual, but interesting for historical records.

In this dispute, Archbishop Friedrich II von Walchen of Salzburg as the sovereign of Salzburg, Duke Albrecht I, the sovereign of Styria, and as arbitrator his father King Rudolf of Habsburg were involved. The latter entrusted the castle to the Bishop of Seckau in 1286 until the situation was clarified.

The Lords of Goldegg argued with a building permit from 1164 from the Margrave of Traungau, thus not one from the current sovereign Albrecht I. However, they could not convince with this, and so the castle fell to Duke Albrecht I in 1288. Thereupon, open war broke out, and Archbishop Friedrich II von Walchen invaded the Enns Valley, recaptured the castle, and destroyed it. Just two years later, under pressure, the Archbishop had to rebuild the castle and hand it over to Duke Albrecht.

A compromise ended the dispute. The castle finally fell to the Lords of Goldegg, but no more castle was to be built there. Thus, the year 1298 can be regarded as the definitive end of Statteneck Castle. The Katzpeck family then received it in the 16th century merely as a castle fief, i.e., the area around the ruin, which is why the names "Katzenstein" or "Katzenburg" arose.