Rechnitz Castle

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Rechnitz Castle, around 1930

Rechnitz Castle , also called Batthyány Castle , was a castle in the center of Rechnitz in the Oberwart district in Burgenland . It belonged to the Batthyány family for several centuries . Today only a few remains are preserved.

history

Rechnitz Castle in the 17th century, copper engraving by Burckhard von Birkenstein 1689

The complex goes back to the 13th century. The Czech-Hungarian king and later Emperor Ferdinand I gave Franz Batthyány in 1527 Rechnitz as a pledge and finally in 1564 as a free self .

In 1687 Adam II Batthyány (1662–1703) granted the 36 Jews resident in Rechnitz a letter of protection; His father Christoph had already made a similar agreement in 1673. This was the basis for the formation of a small Jewish community.

In 1906, Rechnitz Castle was acquired by Heinrich Baron Thyssen-Bornemisza de Kászon , the youngest son of August Thyssen , who had received the Hungarian title of nobility through adoption.

During the Second World War , the SS requisitioned the castle. In the last months of the war it served as the headquarters of the construction section management of the south-east wall . Forced laborers were also housed in the stables and in the basement of the castle. On the evening of March 24, 1945, the Rechnitz massacre took place nearby , which was perpetrated by participants in a retinue festival of Jewish-Hungarian slave laborers held in the castle . The last mistress of the castle was Heinrich's daughter Margit von Batthyány . Rechnitz Castle was probably destroyed by the Red Army on the night of March 29th to 30th, 1945 .

architecture

Rechnitz Castle, around 1859
The embankment wall of Rechnitz Castle

The former castle was a very large complex. It had a trapezoidal plan around an arcaded courtyard. It was so big that a whole regiment of hussars could exercise inside it. In the middle of the courtyard was a fountain decorated with a pelican, the Batthyany's heraldic animal . The facility had four corner towers. The long, two-storey front was dominated by the high gate tower. This was later converted into a classicist clock tower. At the corners of the front, mighty three-axis pavilions stepped forward like a bastion. The castle had more than 200 rooms. On the first floor of the south and east wing, several rooms had beautiful stucco ceilings and ceiling paintings. The interior dates from the last quarter of the 17th century. The chapel was in the middle of the rear wing. Its walls were divided by Ionic pilasters. The stucco work was considered the work of Filiberto Lucchese .

To the north of Schlossberggasse, the towering embankment wall of the former castle has been preserved. There are also extensive cellars and a fountain, which is decorated with a former stone lantern. New buildings were built on the site of the castle.

See also

literature

  • The art monuments of Austria. Dehio Burgenland 1976 . Rechnitz, Schloss, p. 249, and Schlossberggasse, p. 251.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Entry on Rechnitz Castle in the private database "Alle Burgen". Retrieved December 8, 2018.
  2. ↑ http://www.batthyany.at/18_jahrhund.0.html
  3. ↑ http://www.vhs-burgenland.at/home/Geschichte_und_Zeitgeschichte_files/12rechnitz.pdf
  4. ↑ http://www.batthyany.at/rechnitz.html
  5. ↑ Entry about Rechnitz Castle on Burgen-Austria

Web links

Commons : Rechnitz Castle  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Coordinates: 47 ° 18 '17.4 "  N , 16 ° 26' 30.7"  E