Aggstein Castle

On the right bank of the Danube, in the middle of the Wachau, lies the Aggstein Castle.

It’s not only the Dürnstein but also the Aggstein Castle that you should see when you spend your holiday in the Wachau. A trip to these ruins guarantees an adventure for young and old, as well as incredible views of the Danube and the Wachau region.

The beginning

The foundations of this castle go back to the beginning of the 12th century when the castle was built by Manegold III of Acchispach (Aggsbach) in order to protect the trade route in the valley. Later, the castle fell into the possession of the Kuenringer family who owned it until the middle of the 14th century.

Robber knights and rose gardens

Over the following 300 years it was destroyed and rebuilt multiple times. Aggstein became famous because of the robber knight Jörg Scheck von Wald, who caused fear and terror here during the 15th century (hence the epithet "Schreckenwald" - "terror forest"). A large part of this can still be seen from the castle today and dates back to this time (construction from 1420 to 1436), for instance the rose garden. If legend is to be believed, Jörg Scheck von Wald confined his prisoners to this 4x10 metre bluff. Most of them starved to death in agony, others sought a quick death by jumping into the deep.

From a quarry to an attraction

At long last, the castle fell into disrepair and then served as a quarry for the construction of the Langegg monastery. Once the deterioration of the castle couldn’t be stopped, its stones and woodwork were used to construct the Langegg monastery. Today, the only remnants are the tower and the main building of the castle. These, however, are more than impressive and transport visitors back to its bygone days of glory. The refurbished castle ruins have a wide range of attractions for visitors: viewing platforms, themed tours about life in the middle ages with information and adventure stations, and a knight’s hall wait to be discovered.