Schattenburg Castle, Feldkirch, Austria

Schattenburg castle was mentioned in the chronicle by the monks Ortlieb and Berthold in 1138. Muntifurt Castle, mentioned in the first half of the 12th century, may have housed vassals of the Earl of Bregenz, who ruled over the area at the time. At his coming to power (1182) the Earl Hugo I, the grandson of the last Earl of Bregenz Rudolf (1150), repositioned his residence to Feldkirch Castle, important for reasons of power politics and the control of traffic.

For 200 years, the Castle remained the property of the Earls of Montfort. Upon the death of the last of the Montforts, Rudolf IV (1390), the castle and the power that came with it passed to the Habsburgs. The Habsburgs ruled the estate through governors who lived in the Castle until 1773.

Only from 1416 until 1436 was their rule briefly interrupted, when it came into the hands of the Earls of Toggenburg. Duke Friedrich of Austria’s help in the flight of the antipope Johannes XIII turned out to be fatal for him. Not only was he outlawed in the name of the Emperor and excommunicated, he also lost all is possessions, among which Feldkirch. In 1825 the City bought the partially ruined Castle from the state for 833 Guilders. Today Schattenburg is a museum.

References:

schattenburg.cc

User Reviews

Alexander Turan (2 years ago)
Nice place with good food and nice staff. The portions are pretty big for an average person (esp. women), which I personally liked!

Lyra Lan (2 years ago)
I like how they “toured” visitors with a guide book full of pictures. Nice to see all of those well-kept historic stuff.

Natalia Bondarenkova (2 years ago)
I loved it! There is a lot to see in this castle museum. The views from the windows are very nice too. I definitely recommend to visit Schattenburg, if you're in Feldkirch ?

Mayomi Gunarathna (2 years ago)
Very beautiful place. You can find nice museum and restaurant inside. But you have to reserve before you go.

Antonio Cilia (3 years ago)
Very important Museum to know the history of the city of Feldkirch and the Vorarberg land. To visit.

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Château de Foix

The Château de Foix dominates the town of Foix. An important tourist site, it is known as a centre of the Cathars. Built on an older 7th-century fortification, the castle is known from 987. In 1002, it was mentioned in the will of Roger I, Count of Carcassonne, who bequeathed the fortress to his youngest child, Bernard. In effect, the family ruling over the region were installed here which allowed them to control access to the upper Ariège valley and to keep surveillance from this strategic point over the lower land, protected behind impregnable walls.

In 1034, the castle became capital of the County of Foix and played a decisive role in medieval military history. During the two following centuries, the castle was home to Counts with shining personalities who became the soul of the Occitan resistance during the crusade against the Albigensians. The county became a privileged refuge for persecuted Cathars.

The castle, often besieged (notably by Simon de Montfort in 1211 and 1212), resisted assault and was only taken once, in 1486, thanks to treachery during the war between two branches of the Foix family.

From the 14th century, the Counts of Foix spent less and less time in the uncomfortable castle, preferring the Governors' Palace. From 1479, the Counts of Foix became Kings of Navarre and the last of them, made Henri IV of France, annexed his Pyrrenean lands to France.

As seat of the Governor of the Foix region from the 15th century, the castle continued to ensure the defence of the area, notably during the Wars of Religion. Alone of all the castles in the region, it was exempted from the destruction orders of Richelieu (1632-1638).

Until the Revolution, the fortress remained a garrison. Its life was brightened with grand receptions for its governors, including the Count of Tréville, captain of musketeers under Louis XIII and Marshal Philippe Henri de Ségur, one of Louis XVI's ministers. The Round Tower, built in the 15th century, is the most recent, the two square towers having been built before the 11th century. They served as a political and civil prison for four centuries until 1862.

Since 1930, the castle has housed the collections of the Ariège départemental museum. Sections on prehistory, Gallo-Roman and mediaeval archaeology tell the history of Ariège from ancient times. Currently, the museum is rearranging exhibits to concentrate on the history of the castle site so as to recreate the life of Foix at the time of the Counts.

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