Description of the attraction
The history of the town of Scharnstein began in 1120 with the construction of the fortress of the same name, which is now in ruins. It is located on the hard-to-reach Tessenbakhtal mountain. This castle was probably built by Count Regau. Subsequently, the fortress belonged to the Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I. In 1538, Scharnstein Castle burned down due to the carelessness of the servants, as noted in archival documents. Staying in the ruined fortress became impossible, therefore, in the same year, the construction of a new castle on a low hill began. It is this well-preserved structure that is now known as Scharnstein Castle.
By 1606, the castle with the adjacent buildings, among which inns and a brewery should be especially noted, was rebuilt in the Renaissance style. At the same time, the wooden ceilings in the chambers of the palace were decorated with the coats of arms of its owners - Georg Wilhelm Jørger and his wife Countess Pulheim of Parz. The younger brother of Georg Wilhelm, Karl Jorger, was a Protestant and led the army against the emperor's army. His army was defeated, and Karl Jorger himself died shortly after his arrest and imprisonment in Passau. The enraged emperor in 1625 took away the Scharnstein castle from its owners, who were related to the guilty Karl Jorger.
In the middle of the 19th century, the headquarters of a logging company was located in the Scharnstein castle, and later all its premises, even the palace chapel, turned into private apartments. At the beginning of the 20th century, there were 30 apartments in which 70 people lived.
Currently, there are two museums in the Scharnstein castle - the Museum of Forensic Science and Gendarmerie, which tells about the history of Austrian justice, and the Museum of Contemporary Austrian History.
