Traunsee Castle

Traunsee Castle (also known as Württemberg Castle) is located in the municipality of Altmünster (Pensionatstr. 74) in the Gmunden district on Lake Traunsee in Upper Austria.

Traunsee Castle was built between 1872 and 1875 by Duke Philipp of Württemberg as a summer villa for his wife Archduchess Maria Theresia. Archduchess Maria Theresia was a granddaughter of Archduke Karl, the victor of the Battle of Aspern (1809). The building was therefore named Villa Maria Theresia, but also became known in the Traunsee region as Württemberg Castle. After the death of Duke Philipp († 1917), the castle passed into the ownership of Duchess Marie Therese. In 1927, it was sold to her sons Robert and Ulrich. During and after the First World War, it was used as a refugee camp and a military hospital. In 1935, it was leased to the Provincial Association for Tourism in Linz, and from 1938, it went to the provincial government of the Gau Oberdonau.

The planning and construction of the castle, built in the French Renaissance style, was carried out by the architect Heinrich Adam (1839–1905). The castle grounds comprise approximately 20 hectares. The castle chapel was planned and executed between 1878 and 1880 by the Viennese architect Heinrich von Ferstel, the builder of the Votivkirche in Vienna.