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Not far from the Austrian-Czech border the town of Weitra sits on a hill. It was built 1201–1208 by Hadmar II of Kuenringen as a castle and town complex. Around 1600 the castle was transformed into a Renaissance palace by the imperial architect Pietro Ferrabosco. Here one can spend a whole day, wandering through the palace museum, the brewery museum, the permanent exhibition on the Iron Curtain and: the palace theatre. The Fürstenberg family, who has been residing here since 1606, built the theatre already in the 18th century. In 1885, Count Eduard Egon of Fürstenberg gave it its present form. It is a typical rectangular hall theatre with a royal box at the far end, elegantly decorated in shades of white and gold by the Viennese architect A. Führer. Also worth seeing are the historic town centre, the medieval city walls and the textile museum.

Literature:

- Herwig Birklbauer – Wolfgang Katzenschlager, 800 jahre Weitra, Weitra s. d. [cca 1982]

- Erwein H. Eltz – Wolfgang Katzenschlager – Arno Strohmeyer (eds.), Schloss Weitra (museum guide), Artstetten 1996

- Robert Maria Prosl, Zur Geschichte des Bühnenwesens in Niederdonau, St. Pölten 1941 (Niederdonau, Ahnengau des Führers, Schriftenreihe für Heimat und Volk, Hefr Nr. 33/34)

- Carsten Jung, Historische Theater in Deutschland, Österreich und der Schweiz, Berlin – München 2010, p. 96–99

Schloss Weitra ∙3970 Weitra ∙ Austria

Tel: +43 (0) 2856 3311 ∙ E-Mail: info@schloss-weitra.at ∙ www.schloss-weitra.at   

Visits: Wed–Mon 10–17:30 Uhr (May–Oct) ∙ guided tours for groups all year round on appointment

Red. KK