Living Moments - N°2 Edition 2014

107 www.private-residences.net 7TaTYR 8ZXPY_^ the Emperor of Hohenstauffen, Konrad IV, and gave her the castle as a “morning gift” for the wedding. His daughter Elisabeth was born there, later the wife of Albrecht I of Habsburg and hence ancestress of the Austrian imperial family. At around 1500, the castle and court were left to Emperor Maximilian I, who, due to a shortage of money, mortgaged it many a time. The men of Wolkenstein-Trostburg, the chapter of nuns in Hall and the bishops of Brixen were fief holders from time to time, until, in 1678, the Counts Künigl of Ehrenburg took over the castle and its posses- sions and eventually became the legal owners. The generously arranged park with a wide circular wall around the stronghold with its two towers became the centre for political,economic and social life of its day. At the end of the 17 th century, the Count’s residence was moved and the “Grafenhaus” of the castle was built next to the church. It was situated in a more convenient and favourable location accord- ing to the conditions of that time. The chateau commissioner stayed in the castle for the time being and the brickwork started to decay, even though Bishop Christoph of Madruzzo had invested the great sum of 600 gulden for maintenance work between 1558–1560. Weather, wind and rain, but also times of war as in 1809 and 1813, when heavy fighting took place in the surround- ings, speeded up the decay of the castle so that only sparse remains were indicative of its former splendour. In 1992, the old walls were made alive. A business man from South Tyrol purchased the castle and reconstructed it with much love for detail over a period of 20 years. The castle can be accessed via a private road, passing rural estates up to the castle premises which measure a total of 15,000 square metres. At the end of the road you will find the presti- gious castle gate which is conveniently opened at the touch of a button to welcome visitors, thus offering the highest level of safety and privacy at the same time. After passing through the castle gate you drive along the castle walls and arrive at a modern, two-storey commercial and event building which is, among other things, currently used as an exhibition area for vintage cars by the lord of the castle. This building is fully glazed throughout the upper floor and offers multi- functional use for events, parties, vernissages or Bei der Gestaltung wurde viel Wert auf die Erhaltung der Historie gelegt In the design, much emphasis was placed on the preservation of history