Explore the history and secrets of the castle from the tower to the cellars
In the years 1201 to 1208 had Hadmar II of Kuenring invest the castle town Weitra, the castle stood in the south, at the highest point of the stepped sloping granite plateau. Weitra possessed since its inception the military, administrative, judicial and ecclesiastical central function in the so-called "Districtus Witrensis", in addition, the castle was a central market town and refuge in times of war.
In 1581 the Habsburg emperor Rudolf II entrusted Freiherr Wolf Rumpf von Wiehlroß with the city and dominion of Weitra, at that time one of the largest and richest in the whole Waldviertel. Wolf hull let the castle to plans of the imperial builder Pietro Ferrabosco 1590 to 1606, which also built the Stallburg in Vienna, rebuild into a magnificent Renaissance castle, which is now more than ever living center and attraction of the Upper Waldviertel.
Wolf Rumpf's widow Maria, a born Countess Arco, married Count Friedrich von Fürstenberg, a native of Swabia, to whom she bequeathed town and castle Weitra. Since then, this family (later princes and landgraves) owned by Schloss und Gut Weitra.
As the venue of the Lower Austrian State Exhibition 1994, the castle was completely renovated and subsequently opened to the public and made available for use "from the tower to the cellars". In addition to the Castle and Brew Museum, a varied program of events is offered all year round.
