Dornhofen Castle

Dornhofen Castle is located in the municipality of Hart-Purgstall in the district of Graz-Umgebung in Styria. It is a protected monument along with its associated Meierhof (manor farm).

Until the 17th century, two agricultural farmsteads stood on the current site of the castle. The then owner, Maria von Wilfersdorf, sold them to Otto von Radmannsdorf, who had them demolished and a castle built in their place. The property was already seized during the shell construction phase and acquired by Gottfried von Falbenhaupt. The castle was completed in 1624. Subsequently, the owners changed several times until it came into the possession of the Viennese Archbishop Ladislaus von Kollonitsch in 1746. During this heyday of the castle, the cardinal bequeathed it to his adopted nephew, and Dornhofen Castle remained in his family until 1870. After many changes of ownership, the premises temporarily served as a guesthouse or children's home. After the Second World War, it stood empty for a long time and began to decay. It was not until 1972 that Dornhofen Castle was acquired by the Strahl family and used as a chicken coop (even in living rooms with parquet floors). It was only in the 1990s that a change of heart occurred. The castle was saved from complete decay, extensively restored, and made accessible to the public as an event center with an attached restaurant.