Eichbüchl Castle

The exact time of the construction of the former castle is disputed among castle researchers. While Felix Halmer assumes that "Aichpüchl" was built in the first half of the 14th century and suspects the Lords of Vierdung as its builders, younger researchers refer to the Wiener Neustadt council protocols, which show that the castle was built between 1558 and 1566.

Perhaps the old building was destroyed during the Turkish invasion of 1529, and the new complex was built somewhat apart from it. In 1566, it belonged to the imperial rent master Hans Hohenkircher. He died in 1571 at Eichbüchl. His widow married Friedrich von Sinzendorf in 1580. Through his second wife Katharina, the manor passed to Balthasar von Donawitz.

At the beginning of the 17th century, the Barons von Teufel were lords of Eichbüchl. They united it with their Frohsdorf dominion. From 1657 to 1818, the Counts Hoyos were the castle lords. As they hardly lived there, the complex fell into disrepair. In 1818, Caroline Murat acquired the two Steinfeld castles, to which Katzelsdorf had been added in the meantime, from Ernst Graf Hoyos. After a twofold change of ownership (General Alexander von Yarmoloff (1830) and Duke Blacas d’Aulpe (1839)), Maria Therese, Duchess of Angouleme, bought the three castles in 1845. Afterwards, they belonged to her nephew, Henry V, Count of Chambord and Duke of Bordeaux.

However, he and his court preferred Frohsdorf Castle, so Eichbüchl was left to decay. In 1868, Quirin Ritter von Leitner acquired the building and had it immediately restored. His successor, Friedrich Freiherr von Waldbott-Bassenheim, continued the work in 1875. In 1882, Eichbüchl came into bourgeois hands. In 1906, a Chinese silk importer had the castle completely redesigned in the "Zuckerbäckerstil" (confectioner's style). In 1938, it was taken from his family and returned in 1945. However, it was severely damaged and almost completely emptied. In the second half of the 20th century, the owners changed frequently. The current castle lord, Mag. Dietmar Machold, acquired the building in 1997, which he has since regularly made available for concerts and cultural events.