Schwadorf Castle

In the 12th century, a small castle was built to secure the river crossing on the military road leading to the eastern border of the country. Walther von Swabdorf is mentioned around 1182 as the first reference to a manor. Schwadorf was princely territory, but by 1194 it passed to Bishop Wolfger of Passau through an exchange.

In 1215, the then Hofmark was granted blood jurisdiction by Emperor Frederick II. Eberhard von Schwadorf was among the ministerials of Duke Heinrich the Elder of Mödling in 1220. In the 14th century, the castle was pledged several times, for example in 1381 to Albrecht von Puchheim. As late as 1383, Schwadorf was referred to as a free property of the Passau bishops.

However, the sovereign reclaimed it two years later. In 1398, it was again in the possession of the diocese, which ceded it to Dukes Wilhelm and Ernst as a life annuity. In the late 15th century, the lordship was pledged to King Matthias Corvinus, which resulted in the castle being confiscated by King Maximilian I in 1490. In 1494, however, it was returned to the Diocese of Passau. With some interruptions, it remained with the Passau bishops until 1806. The current Renaissance castle was built around 1600.

When the diocese had to relinquish its Austrian possessions, Schwadorf was taken over by the state and sold to private individuals in 1826. These included the Knights Fellner von Feldegg (1823) and Theodor Ritter Riedl von Riedenau (1879). Dr. Arnold Segal bought the estate in 1926. A year later, a severe earthquake caused significant damage. After Segal was dispossessed in 1938 and the castle was handed over to the German Settler Society, he regained his property after 1945. Most recently, the castle and estate belonged to the Auer-Welsbach family.

The building, which had not been restored for many decades, was uninhabited and left to decay until a few years ago. Salvation came through a new owner, who has now largely restored the residential building.