Porcia Castle
Porcia Castle in Spittal an der Drau in Upper Carinthia / Austria was built in the 16th century. It is a renaissance castle in the style of an Italian palazzo. It is one of the most beautiful Renaissance buildings north of the Alps.
history
From 1534 the castle was commissioned by Count Gabriel von Salamanca-Ortenburg (1489-1539), a native of Spain treasurer and confidant of Emperor Ferdinand I , built. Salamanca acquired the county of Ortenburg from Ferdinand on March 10, 1524 and commissioned Italian architects to plan and build the palace. It was only completed under his successors, more than 60 years later, in 1597/98. The street facade and the inner courtyard with its column architecture and the three- story arcades are more typical of an urban Italian palazzo than a castle in Carinthia. The palace garden as it is today was laid out in the 19th century.
The Salamanca family died out in 1620. The county of Ortenburg and with it the castle initially became the property of the middle-class Widmann family. The latter sold it in 1662 to the Italian noble family Porcia , who came from Pordenone and bought several properties in Carinthia at the time. Hence the name of the castle. Prince Johann Ferdinand von Porcia , a minister of Leopold I , and 13 of his descendants resided here until 1918.
The Princes of Porcia sold the castle to Robert Freiherr Klinger von Klingerstorff , who then had the entire inventory auctioned off in a three-day auction due to lack of money. Only the ostentatious furniture that is on display in the Museum of Folk Culture in the castle in the “Prince's Room” remains from the original furnishings . In 1930 the municipality of Spittal initially acquired the castle park and in 1951 the building as well. From the beginning it was the aim of the community to make the castle accessible to the public and to establish it as the cultural center of the city. The Museum of Folk Culture has been housed on the second floor and in the attic since 1958. In 1959 the first theater performances took place in the summer months, and from 1964 the first choir performances.
Todays use
Today, the Porcia Castle houses the Museum of Folk Culture, the Porcia Castle Gallery , a stage for theater performances and concerts, and a café. The city library was also located there until January 2015. Every Thursday there is a farmers' market in the castle courtyard.
The castle is also used for events such as the annual international choir competition. The inner courtyard becomes the setting for the Porcia comedy games for two months in summer . Every two years the Salamanca Festival takes place in Spittal in honor of the builder and first lord of the castle.
Legends about the Countess Salamanca
Catherine of Salamanca was a countess and descendant of Gabriel of Salamanca. According to legend, she was a hard-hearted woman and only loved her only son Johann in the world. One day the countess celebrated a party at the castle and the hungry citizens of the village came to ask for leftovers. But the countess chased them away and even chased her son's dogs after the fugitives. An old man could not escape fast enough and was bitten to death by the dogs. Before he died, he cursed the hard-hearted countess. Soon her son was about to be mauled by dogs too. Salamanca just laughed. But the beggar's words came true. Johann tried to separate fighting dogs, and his own animals killed him. Catherine of Salamanca deeply mourned her son. When she felt her own end was near, she hired a mason to wall up her treasures so that no one could take her belongings. She had the mason killed and a maid, who also knew where the treasure was hidden, killed her with a slipper. After the Countess's death, the Count's subjects spread the story further. It has been rumored since then that the angry woman could not find rest and is still at the Porcia Castle.
Others
On September 25, 1962, the Austrian Post issued a definitive stamp from the series of Austrian monuments worth 40 groschen for this motif .
swell
- ↑ Hartmut Prasch, Museum Primer , p. 14
literature
- Dehio manual. The art monuments of Austria. Carinthia . Anton Schroll, Vienna 2001, ISBN 3-7031-0712-X , pp. 888-893
- Renate Wagner-Rieger, Ingeborg Mitsch: The castle in Spittal on the Drau in Carinthia . Anton Schroll, Vienna 1962
- Hartmut Prasch : Museum Primer. The common thread through the Museum of Folk Culture. Spittal an der Drau. Porcia Castle. , Spittal an der Drau, 2005, ISBN 3-900835-20-9
- Franz Türk: Porcia Castle in Spittal on the Drau (history and legend) . Verlag Buchhandlung Ferdinand Nest, Spittal ad Drau
Web links
- Porcia Castle website
- Entry on Porcia Castle in the Austria Forum
- Entry via Schloss Porcia to Burgen-Austria
Coordinates: 46 ° 47 '52 " N , 13 ° 29' 44" E