Steyregg Castle

Steyregg Castle is a private castle complex in Upper Austria, situated above the town center of Steyregg in the Mühlviertel region. The castle was built under the Ottokars in the 11th or 12th century. Its expansion into a castle took place under the Jörgers at the end of the 16th century. Today, the castle is privately owned and can be rented for events.

An Ottokar von Steyr from the Traungauer family is considered the builder of Steyregg Castle, who had the castle erected in the 11th or 12th century. An exact date has not been handed down. In 1147, the complex is mentioned as a Passau fief, and its then owner, Hartwik von Hagenau, died in that year. His successor was Provost Otto von Lengbach before Leutold von Wildon became the owner in 1235. In 1280, Ulrich von Kapellen bought the castle. Through marriage, it came into the possession of the Liechtensteins after 1406. The Liechtensteins enlarged the castle and the dominion. The latter received high jurisdiction around 1535.

In 1581, Wolfgang Jörger bought the castle. The Jörgers transformed it into a Renaissance castle, built the castle chapel, established an extensive library, and acquired a painting collection. In 1594, the castle was counted among the refuge castles during the Turkish threat. As the Jörgers were Protestants, their estates were confiscated during the Counter-Reformation (1620). Helmhard Jörger received the castle back five years later. In 1638, the castle came into the possession of David Ungnad II von Weissenwolff, Helmhard's son-in-law and later governor of Upper Austria. In 1679, Helmhart Christoph von Weissenwolff bought Luftenberg Castle and united the two dominions. Under Josef Anton Graf Weissenwolff, a family entailment of the two castles was established. Around 1750, the dominion counted 622 subjects.

Lightning strikes in 1770 and 1779 caused fires that devastated the castle and the town. The destroyed parts of the building and the west tower were not rebuilt. After 1779, the former gardener's house was converted into a new castle. In 1917, the Weissenwolff family died out in the male line, and the related Thurn und Taxis family inherited the castle. Irene Princess of Thurn und Taxis married Altgraf Niklas Salm-Reifferscheid in 1940. During World War II, aerial bombs severely hit the castle, and the baroque part of the new castle was destroyed. In the post-war period, Steyregg served as emergency accommodation for displaced persons. In 1956, a makeshift renovation of the castle followed.

In 1962, the castle passed into the possession of the Salm-Reifferscheidt family and stood completely empty from 1966. In the late 1980s, the castle underwent renovation. After its revitalization in 2004/2005, the castle, including its state rooms, is available for events.