Orth Castle

Schloss Orth is located in Orth an der Donau in Lower Austria and is a protected monument according to a decision by the Federal Monuments Office.

The four-tower moated castle was built by the Lengenbachers, one of the most powerful noble families in the Babenberg era, and was first documented in 1201. Structurally, it shows similarities with the oldest part of the Vienna Hofburg, the Swiss Wing.

In the 15th century, Schloss Orth was the scene of conflicts between Emperor Frederick III and the Lower Austrian estates, who regarded Ladislaus Postumus as their rightful sovereign. On August 15, 1452, the castle was captured by an army of the estates led by Ulrich von Eyczing. After Ladislaus' death in 1457, new turmoil arose: in 1460, an imperial army besieged the castle, held by Gamareth Fronauer, who considered it his inheritance. Fronauer fled through underground passages, whereupon the castle was captured without a fight on March 26, 1460.

The castle was destroyed in 1529 during the First Turkish Siege and rebuilt in the Renaissance style by Niklas Graf Salm the Elder. In the 17th century, it was used for court hunts and further expanded in the Baroque style in 1679/80. The Habsburgs bought the castle from Count Moritz von Fries in 1824 and incorporated it into the Private and Family Fund. Crown Prince Rudolf used it as a hunting lodge and commissioned a redecoration in the late historicist style around 1873.

Schloss Orth was renovated in 2005 and houses the National Park Centre of the Donau-Auen National Park and museumORTH (proper name) as well as the event centre, both operated by the market town of Orth.

The schlossORTH National Park Centre (proper name of the excursion destination) is open daily from March 21 to November 1 and offers information and booking services for guided National Park tours, the DonAUräume exhibition, and the Auerlebnisgelände Schlossinsel (castle island adventure area) with typical animals and plants of the floodplain landscape.