Castle Schattenburg is a medieval castle in the city of Feldkirch in Austria . One of the best preserved castles of the High Middle Ages in central Europe .
| Castle | |
| Castle Schattenburg | |
|---|---|
| (Burg) Schattenburg | |
 | |
| A country |  Austria |
| City | Feldkirch |
| Founder | Hugo I (Montfort) |
| Founding date | OK. 1200 |
| Building | 1230 - 1265 years |
| Status | the museum |
| condition | largely preserved castle |
| Site | schattenburg.at |
As suggested, the name of the castle goes back to the Middle High German "schaten", which means "protection", "strengthening". In the end, the main task of the castle was to protect the settlement, located at its foot, as well as trade and military routes to the east.
History
In 1188, Count Hugo III von Tubingen (+1228), who called himself Hugo von Monfort from about 1200, moved his residence from Bregenz to the newly founded city of Feldkirch. At the same time, on the cliff above the city, the castle Shattenburg was built, which by the XIV century had gradually turned into the county headquarters (Feldkirch-) Monfort, and thus replaced the old county residence of Alt-Monfort Castle.
In 1375, Burgrave Rudolf IV von Montfort sold the castle of Schattenburg and the possession of Feldkirch to the Austrian Duke Leopold III of the Habsburg dynasty. After the death of Rudolph, the vogts , also located in the castle, ruled the county on behalf of the Hapsburgs.
In the fall of 1405, during the wars of the Friedrich von Toggenburg Shattenburg, during the Appenzelles wars , it was besieged by the combined forces of the Swiss and the inhabitants of Feldkirch. After 18 weeks of the siege and the constant shelling, on January 29, 1406, the castle capitulated, and was eventually burned to the ground. After 2 years, Schattenburg was restored, but already in 1415 and in 1417, it was again seriously affected by the military conflict between King Sigismund and Duke Frederick IV .
In 1417, Shattenburg departed to Count Friedrich VII von Toggenburg, who undertook significant restructuring: for example, it was under him that the three wings of the castle were erected that determine the appearance of the structure today. With the death of Frederick VII in 1436, the castle again fell into the possession of the Hapsburgs.
In the 15th century, at the time of Johann von Koenigsegg , and later in the 17th century, Shattenburg was further expanded and strengthened to be able to withstand ever more sophisticated artillery guns. Probably, it was these preparations that prevented the Swiss from taking up and destroying the castle in the Swabian war of 1499. Schattenburg became the stronghold of Emperor Maximilian in the fight against the territorial expansion of the Swiss Union .
In 1647, the castle, like the city of Feldkirch, was occupied without a fight by Swedish troops during the Thirty Years War . The complete destruction of the castle and the city provided for by the winners was prevented only by paying a significant contribution ; at the same time, Feldkirch had to commit himself to preserve the castle in the interests of the Swedish crown. With the end of the Thirty Years War, Shattenburg lost its military significance.
In 1773, the province and the provincial administration finally moved from the castle to the city residence, which resulted in the gradual decline of the entire structure. In the years 1778-1825, Shattenburg was used as a prison with 6 prison cells and interrogation rooms. At the same time, in 1799, 1806 and 1812, attempts were made to sell the castle for scrap, like a quarry .
Finally, in 1825, Shattenburg became the city property of Feldkirch, and was used as a barracks from 1831 to 1850. In the second half of the 19th century, a poorhouse was organized in the castle, which existed until 1914.
By the efforts of the Feldkirch Museum and Local History Society in 1916-1917, the Feldkirch Museum of Local Lore (German Feldkircher Heimatmuseum), the largest of its kind in Vorarlberg , was established in the castle.
During the years of the national-socialist dictatorship, when Austria was incorporated into the Third Reich , the idea of re-equipment and reorganization of Schattenburg into the so-called “Order Castle” was put forward to educate the new “ideologically pure” elite; these plans, however, were not implemented.
After the end of World War II , Feldkirch, like the whole land of Vorarlberg, fell into the French zone of occupation , and the French barracks were located in the castle for some time. On November 17, 1953, the castle was finally transferred to Feldkirch, and the museum was again opened there.
The castle’s courtyard, which can be viewed without visiting the museum, also houses a very popular restaurant with locals and tourists.
Literature
- Manfred A. Getzner: Burg und Dom zu Feldkirch: Neue Forschungen zur Geschichte der Schattenburg und der Dompfarrkirche St. Nikolaus. Schriftenreihe der Rheticus-Gesellschaft Bd. 50, Feldkirch 2009 ISBN 978-3-902601-09-4
- Heimatpflege- Heimatpflege- und Museumsverein Feldkirch: Schattenburg Feldkirch. Schnell Kunstführer 2624, Verlag Schnell & Steiner, Regensburg 2006