Schernberg Castle
Description
Schernberg Castle stands on a hill above Schwarzach im Pongau on the left bank of the Salzach River. Today it is the St. Vinzenz Home, a residential facility for people with disabilities run by the Sisters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul.
The fortress of Schernberg was first recorded in 1193 as a tower owned by the Lords of Schernberg. In 1370 they sold it to the Graf family, whose members expanded it into a castle by 1550.
In 1845, Cardinal Friedrich von Schwarzenberg, Prince-Archbishop of Salzburg, bought the decayed building and first turned it into a brewery, then into a hospital and care institution by 1850. He entrusted it to the Sisters of Charity with the wish that it always remain a home for elderly and disabled people. Five sisters began operating the institution in 1846—unique in Salzburg at the time, since no psychiatric hospital yet existed.
Under National Socialism, mass deportations took place. In 1941, 151 residents were forcibly taken away—mostly to Niedernhart near Linz or to Hartheim Castle—where they were murdered. Some fled into the nearby woods. Sister Anna Bertha Königsegg courageously tried to protect the disabled residents from being sent to the gas chambers.
After 1945 The Sisters of Charity continued running the home, now serving adults with intellectual or multiple disabilities. Most staff today are not members of the order.
Address
Schernberg 1, Schwarzach im Pongau, Austria
Established
12th century