Habichrigl Castle

Habichrigl Castle, also known as Habichriegl, is a former castle in Upper Austria. It is located in the village of Riegl, about one kilometer west of Bad Zell in the Mühlviertel region. It was in Regensburg possession around 1200, came under the rule of Prandegg in the 17th century, and is now a farm.

The first documented mention occurred around 1200, when the castle was in Regensburg possession. It was then a fief of the Lords of Kapellen. Around 1280, the Mauthausen judge Heinrich Rigelarus is named as the owner. After the Rigel family, the castle was handed over to the Habichler family in 1366. This gave the castle its current name, Habichriegl. The name Rigel changed over time to Riegl, just like the name of the current district.

The Habichlers documented were: Friedrich around 1408, Wolf and Konrad around 1438, Georg around 1483. Georg von Habichler sold the castle in 1483 to the pastor of Zwettl, Andres Königsteiner. His successor, Christoph Walch, sold it to Georg von Hoheneck. The building was later resold to Joachim Stangl von Waldenfels. On July 25, 1596, it came into the possession of the Jörger family, who later acquired the castles of Zellhof and Aich (both near Bad Zell).

As confessed Protestants, the Jörgers finally had to sell all their possessions (Prandegg, the market town of Zell, Zellhof Castle, Pranthof (municipality of Gutau), Habichrigl Castle, Aich Castle and all other farms and tithes) to Gotthard von Scherffenberg, Lord of Spielberg, in 1631. However, he died soon after, and his widow married Hans Reichard von Starhemberg in 1636. Scherffenberg's widow sold the castles of Aich, Habichrigl, and Zellhof in 1645 to her son-in-law Georg Siegmund von Salburg, the owner of Prandegg. From then on, the castle remained in the possession of this family for a longer period.

In 1918, the Zausinger family followed as owners, then Schönerl and their descendants.