Hainburg City Wall

With its 2.5 km long city wall, three preserved gates, and 15 towers from the 13th century, Hainburg possesses one of the oldest and best-preserved city fortifications in Europe. The first written mention of Hainburg occurred in the Nibelungenlied in connection with Rüdiger von Bechelaren.

The year 1050 is considered the founding year for Hainburg, when Emperor Heinrich III commissioned the construction of the castle on the Schlossberg. In 1108, Hainburg came into the possession of the Babenbergs. Around 1220, the fortifications were strengthened. Among other things, the Wienertor, and thus the largest medieval city gate in Europe, was built. The lower part was built in the first half of the 13th century, the upper part in 1267 by Ottokar II of Bohemia.

In 1278, Ottokar lost the Battle of Dürnkrut. Hainburg thereby came into the possession of the Habsburgs. They mortgaged the castle to various owners. The city was neglected and consequently lost its importance. In 1529, the Turks under Sultan Suleiman devastated the city. In 1683, during the "second Ottoman campaign," the city was captured and completely destroyed by the Turks. According to tradition, almost the entire city population died in the process. The castle complex and the fortifications also suffered severe damage. In 1784, Joseph II established a tobacco factory in the city through the tobacco patent, thus founding tobacco processing in Hainburg. This led to the city being almost completely re-settled.