An enchanting journey through history and entertainment.
The romantic Tratzberg Castle has always been considered a Renaissance jewel among the historical buildings of Europe and is one of the most valuable and best-preserved cultural assets of its time.
The turbulent history of Tratzberg Castle
Tratzberg Castle was first mentioned in documents in the 13th century and served as a former border fortress against Bavaria. Emperor Maximilian used it as a hunting lodge, but the original fortress was completely destroyed by fire in 1492. In 1500, the first late Gothic part of today’s Tratzberg Castle was built, in 1554 Augsburg merchant Georg Ritter von Ilsung acquired the castle, expanding it in the spirit of the Renaissance and then the Fugger merchant family furnished it with most of what we see today.
After various ownerships, Tratzberg remained uninhabited for almost 150 years. Through the marriage of Franz Count Enzenberg to Ottilie Countess Tannenberg, the castle passed to the Counts Enzenberg in 1847, whose private residence remains to this day. Finally the dynasty of the Counts Enzenberg met with that of the Counts Goëss, until we arrive to Count Ulrich Goëss-Enzenberg, a descendant of Empress Maria-Theresia. In the 5 generation, he received the extensive Tyrolean inheritance from his mother’s brother, Count Georg Enzenberg and his wife Elisabeth Princess Esterhazy. Today the Castle is privately owned and serves as the residence of the Count Goëss-Enzenberg family.
Hidden treasures in magnificent rooms
The Castle presents magnificent rooms with hidden treasures as the splendid family tree of the Habsburgs in the great ballroom, the hunting room with its hunting scenes (a secret staircase is also cleverly hidden here, leading from the private rooms of Emperor Maximilian through the hall and directly into the open air), the Fugger Room, the Women’s Chamber and Queen’s Chamber (a secret door is also hidden in this room) where the noble ladies lived, the castle chapel and a surprising armory (where a knight’s armor comes back to life!).
In particular, the Fugger Room is almost completely original, with a secret staircase in the paneling, which, according to tradition, leads directly into the forest, under the Inn to the other side of the valley, and treasures a piece of art and cultural historical importance: the painting by Dürer’s pupil Hans Schäufelein. In the Fugger Chamber the Gothic post bed is still furnished with the original textiles and the room also hosts one of the most valuable pieces of furniture in southern Germany: the Reifensteiner box from South Tyrol around 1460. A rarity for the time is the “secrecy” built into the depths of the outer wall – an outflow toilet from the Middle Ages.
Experience the Castle
The popular Schlosswirt invites you to linger in its cozy guest garden, while the Seminarhof Tratzberg offers the perfect setting for incentives, meetings or seminars. At the Castle you can also invite your business partners or friends to an unforgettable wine reception and choose from multiple award-winning wines from the wineries of Count Enzenberg (Manincor, South Tyrol). An experience that can be booked from April to October for at least 20 people and that also include an audio guided Castle tour and the use of the slow train Tratzberg Express.
You can explore the magnificent Renaissance building, the originally furnished rooms and learn the stories of those who once lived here during one of the Castle’s organized Tour for Adults. If you like you can add to your experience also an exciting virtual tour with virtual reality glasses to see how the old castle fell victim to the flames in 1492 and how it was rebuilt in 1500 – and Kids Tour, where children will discover the castle at the same time and thus together with their parents, but will hear an exciting fairy tale version of the castle’s history. They will also meet a real knight and will be invited to look for the castle ghost Tratzi and its mouse friend Adele. At the end a quiz will wait for them and if lucky they will even win a prize.
Tratzberg Castle is also media partner of Excellence Magazine and of the digital platform beyond.luxury.
