Description of the attraction
Oberwelz-Stadt is a city in the south of Central Austria. It is located 830 meters above sea level by the Welzer Bach river in the Murau district of Styria, 85 km west of Graz. It is a small settlement with a population of about a thousand people. Oberwelz received the status of a city in 1305, thanks to the fact that Duke Albrecht I founded a market here.
The castle of Rothenfels, whose name translates as "Red Rock", rises above the city on a hundred-meter cliff. At first it was called the Welz Castle. From 1007 to 1803, the Welser Valley, on the territory of which the city of Oberwelz is located, belonged to the bishopric of Freising. One of the bishops of Freising, Egilbert, built the castle of Rothenfels, where he settled the burgrave, who ruled the local lands. The castle above Oberwelz was first mentioned in 1305. At the beginning of the 19th century, this episcopal estate became the property of the state. The castle, rebuilt in the style of historicism, is currently owned by a private person. It consists of an old palace and a more modest multi-storey building, erected on a cliff just below the main building. There is also a reservoir on the territory of the citadel.
Around the town of Oberwelz, there is a 4.5 km circular tourist route, developed by local youth and dedicated to the legends and fairy tales of the region. It was opened in 2009. The stations of the route are wooden sculptures, each of which illustrates a particular legend. There are figures of the Night Watchman, the Dragon, the Lumberjack, etc. It is better to walk along the local fabulous route in the company of an experienced guide.
Fortified walls with three gates and towers have been preserved in the city since the Middle Ages. The main sacred monument of Oberwelz is considered to be the late Gothic church of St. Pancratius, erected in the middle of the 15th century.
