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Hochosterwitz Castle

is a castle in Austria, considered one of Austria's most impressive medieval castles. It is on a 172-metre (564 ft) high dolomite rock near Sankt Georgen am Längsee, east of the town of Sankt Veit an der Glan in Carinthia. The rock castle is one of the state's landmarks and a major tourist attraction.

The castle was first mentioned in a deed of donation from King Ludwig the German from the year 860, when Friesach and several farms were donated to the diocese of Salzburg. Among them was a farm near Osterwitz (curtis ad Astaruizza). The castle is mentioned in the oldest documents, dated between the 11th and 12th centuries, and also during the attacks of the Turkish peoples in the 15th century as a place of refuge for the population. Initially owned by Count Ceizolf von Spanheim, a descendant of the German Emperor Arnulf von Karantanien, known as the first Donor von Osterwitz, the castle remains in his family's possession. After the death of Hans Schenk von Osterwitz on May 30, 1478, the last of his tribe, his property passed to King Friedrich III. return.

 

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Uploaded on May 3, 2023