Wildberg Castle

The current castle-palace complex is a building complex stretched from south to north on a slump hill of the western slope towards the Haselgraben. The total built-up area is 4,430 square meters, with the main castle occupying 2,180 square meters. In the southern, higher part of the complex on the mountain peak is the medieval high castle, which is now partly in ruins. Parts of the outer walls of the former palas and remnants of the former curtain wall are still preserved. The mighty 14th-century keep, a round tower with a conical roof and battlements accessible to visitors, is well preserved. Its height is 27 m, and the wall thickness at the base is 3.45 m.

The inhabited, lower-lying palace complex in the north is a three-winged complex from the 15th century, into which parts of the medieval building fabric have been integrated. The building wings enclose a trapezoidal inner courtyard, which is closed off in the north by a large Gothic gate, from where a bridge leads out of the palace over the deep neck ditch.

Wildberg is a compound place name that describes the castle's location. The first part of the name derives either from Middle High German "wilt" or "wilde" (=wild, desolate, untamed) or from Middle High German "wilde" (=wilderness) or also from Middle High German "wilt" (=game, wild animals). In conjunction with Middle High German "bërc" (=mountain), the castle name thus literally means either a wild-desolate mountain or a mountain where many wild animals could be found.

The first documented mention of the complex dates back to 1135. It gained particular strategic and economic importance due to its control over the Haselgraben, which represented an important traffic route between Bohemia and the central Upper Austrian region.

The castle was built by the high-ranking noble family of the Haunsperger, who also owned Linz. On June 30, 1198, the Wildberg fief passed to the son-in-law of Gottschalk von Haunsperg-Wildberg, namely Gundaker II von Steyr, the son of Gundaker I, who lived at Steinbach Castle and is considered the ancestor of the later Starhemberg family. Wildberg is the oldest seat that is still in the family's possession today.

Around the middle of the 16th century, a Renaissance building with arcades was erected between the tower and the Gothic castle. In 1654, a fire raged in the castle, but the damage was soon repaired. From 1664/65, the palace was built on the site of the former outer bailey. Around 1750, the Wildberg dominion, including Auerberg and Lobenstein, comprised 703 subjects. The Wildberg line of the Starhembergs died out in 1857, and the castle then passed to the Schaunberg-Eferding branch of the family. In the early 1920s, the roof of the old palas collapsed, sealing the extensive decay of the northern castle area. In 1965, this part was leased by the Starhemberg Forestry and Estate Directorate to the Urfahr-Umgebung local heritage association, which has been working since the 1970s to secure and restore the castle area. Since 1984, the Schloss Wildberg Cultural Association has been granted use of the palace for artistic purposes. This historically significant complex is structurally in a deplorable state and urgently requires comprehensive renovation.

In 1394, Wildberg came into the focus of supra-regional politics after the Bohemian King Wenceslaus, son of the deceased Emperor Charles IV, was captured by rebellious nobles in Prague after disputes within the House of Luxembourg. On July 5, 1394, he was handed over to Kaspar and Gundaker von Starhemberg, who held him captive in a tower room in Wildberg. However, at the urging of German princes, he was released as early as August 1, 1394. Wenceslaus became Roman-German King in 1400.

Adalbert Stifter made Wildberg Palace the setting for his unfinished short story "Julius," written in 1830. He also mentions the castle in the short story "Der Waldgänger": "... they passed that castle, which looks down from the jewel-sparkling canopy of leaves with its old walls and the dark round tower into the depths, and where once that Bohemian King Wenceslaus was imprisoned ..."

Wildberg Castle is located on the route of the Adalbert Stifter hiking trail. This circular hiking trail (5 km) leads from the village square in Kirchschlag down a long slope into the Haselgraben to the palace. From the castle, there are wide views of the hilly landscape of the Mühlviertel, of Linz and the Danube to Wallsee, and into the Alpine foothills. In good weather, the mountain range of the Alps from Ötscher to Traunstein can also be seen. From Wildberg Castle, the path leads steeply uphill via the Rudolfsquelle to the bathhouse and back to Kirchschlag.

Wildberg Castle and Palace are privately owned by the Starhemberg family and cannot be visited.