Niederhaus Castle

The Niederhaus is a castle located in Passau on the tip of the rocky promontory at the confluence of the Ilz and Danube rivers, below the Veste Oberhaus. The promontory, as well as the right bank of the Ilz to the north, belongs to the Bschütt district of the Altstadt quarter.

The first construction on the promontory is estimated to be from the year 737. This was a temporary dwelling that Duke Odilo of Bavaria had assigned to Bishop Vivilo with refugee nuns.

The present hilltop castle already existed around the year 1250, as building accounts of Prince-Bishop Otto von Lonsdorf already distinguished between "old" and "new" castles. Since the mid-14th century, the names "Oberhaus" and "Niederhaus" have been common.

In 1358, a lodging room for 13 pilgrims was built in the large cellar vault, today known as the "Pilgrimskeller". As a connection between Niederhaus and Oberhaus, a double battlement was erected in 1367 following the capture of Niederhaus by the citizens of Passau in their struggle against the bishop.

In 1435, the castle was destroyed by a gunpowder explosion. Reconstruction took place under Prince-Bishop Leonhard von Laiming and was completed no later than 1444. In that year, the later Pope Pius II reported on the magnificent halls and rooms of the Niederhaus. At that time, a knight's hall and two castle chapels served as a secondary residence for the bishops.

In the 17th century, the Niederhaus was converted into a prison for unruly clerics. Under Prince-Bishop Joseph von Thun, Niederhaus was designated as a workhouse and penitentiary in 1762.

The castle gained military significance in 1805, as it was used by the Elector of Bavaria as a war magazine and blocking fort for the Danube. To provide a clear field of fire for the cannons on Veste Oberhaus, modifications had to be made to Veste Niederhaus. The nine-story tower was reduced to four stories, and the eastern keep was half demolished.

In 1815, the castle walls on the Ilz, Danube, and Holzgarten sides were extended, and a howitzer battery was erected. Niederhaus retained its fortress status until 1867.

In 1890, the history painter Ferdinand Wagner acquired the Niederhaus. Ten years later, the construction of the Luitpoldbrücke, a suspension bridge over the Danube, was decided. As the owner of the castle was against the bridge construction, he decided in 1907 to sell the Niederhaus to the painter Eduard Strobelberger.

Since the Niederhaus is still in private ownership today, it is not publicly accessible.