The Kufstein Fortress (german: Festung Kufstein) is the main landmark of
Kufstein
Kufstein (; Central Bavarian: ''Kufstoa'') is a town in the Austrian state of Tyrol, the administrative seat of Kufstein District. With a population of about 19,600 it is the second largest Tyrolean town after the state capital Innsbruck. The grea ...
, a town in
Tyrol
Tyrol (; historically the Tyrole; de-AT, Tirol ; it, Tirolo) is a historical region in the Alps - in Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Emp ...
,
Austria
Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
. It is sometimes wrongly referred to as ''Geroldseck Fortress''. It is on a hill commanding Kufstein proper. Kufstein Fortress is above sea level.
The fortress is linked to the city below by the
Festungsbahn, a
funicular railway
A funicular (, , ) is a type of cable railway system that connects points along a railway track laid on a steep slope. The system is characterized by two counterbalanced carriages (also called cars or trains) permanently attached to opposite en ...
.
History
The fortress was mentioned for the first time in a document from 1205, where it was called ''Castrum Caofstein''. At the time, it was a possession of the Bavarian Duke Ludwig and the
bishop of Regensburg
The Bishops of Regensburg (Ratisbon) are bishops of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Regensburg, Bavaria, Germany. . In 1415, it was reinforced by
Louis VII, Duke of Bavaria
Louis VII (c. 1368 – 1 May 1447), called the Bearded (German: ''Ludwig der Bärtige'') was the Duke of Bavaria-Ingolstadt from 1413 until 1443. He was a son of Duke Stephen III and Taddea Visconti.
Biography
As brother of Isabella of Bavari ...
. It was a fiercely fought over fortress between Bavaria and the Tyrol and had a pivotal role in an armed conflict in 1336, when
Margrave
Margrave was originally the medieval title for the military commander assigned to maintain the defence of one of the border provinces of the Holy Roman Empire or of a kingdom. That position became hereditary in certain feudal families in the ...
Charles of Moravia had to abandon his pursuit of the Bavarians when the fortress blocked his route.
In 1342,
Margarete "Maultasch", Duchess of the Tyrol, received Kufstein as a wedding present from her husband
Louis of Brandenburg, son of Emperor
Ludwig of Bavaria. This was the first time that Kufstein became part of the
Tyrol
Tyrol (; historically the Tyrole; de-AT, Tirol ; it, Tirolo) is a historical region in the Alps - in Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Emp ...
. When Margarete handed all of the Tyrol to the Habsburg
Duke Rudolph IV in 1363, the Bavarians demanded that she return her original wedding gift and successfully invaded Kufstein.
In 1504, the city and the fortress were besieged and conquered by
Emperor Maximilian I
Maximilian I (22 March 1459 – 12 January 1519) was King of the Romans from 1486 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1508 until his death. He was never crowned by the pope, as the journey to Rome was blocked by the Venetians. He proclaimed himself Ele ...
. Maximilian had the massive round tower built between 1518 and 1522, substantially adding to its defensibility.
[Chizzali. Tyrol: Impressions of Tyrol. (Innsbruck: Alpina Printers and Publishers), p. 44] From 1703 to 1805 it was a
Bavaria
Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total l ...
n possession, returning to
Austria
Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
in 1814.
The fortress acted as a prison for a number of political
dissidents under the
Habsburgs
The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...
. Its name is deeply embedded in Hungarian history. The list of prominent Hungarians imprisoned in the fortress includes:
#
Sen. Miklós Wesselényi, a Hungarian nobleman, from 1785–1789;
#
János Batsányi, a poet, from 1794–1796;
#
László Szentjóbi Szabó, a poet, in 1795;
#
Ferenc Kazinczy
Ferenc Kazinczy (in older English: Francis Kazinczy, October 27, 1759 – August 23, 1831) was a Hungarian author, poet, translator, neologist, an agent in the regeneration of the Hungarian language and literature at the turn of the 19th centu ...
, an advocate of Hungarian language and literature, from 1799–1800;
#
Klára Leövey, a teacher;
#
György Gaál, a Protestant preacher, from 1850–1856;
# Countess
Blanka Teleki, a socialite and educator, from 1853–1856;
#
Sándor Rózsa
Sándor Rózsa (born July 10, 1813, Röszke – died November 22, 1878, Szamosújvár) was a Hungarian outlaw (in Hungarian: '' betyár'') from the Great Hungarian Plain. He is the best-known Hungarian highwayman; his life inspired numerous wr ...
, Hungary's "Robin Hood", a revolutionary, from 1859–1865;
#
Máté Haubner, an evangelical bishop.
It was also where some 100 of the Poles arrested after the
1846 Kraków Uprising were held.
The fortress now houses the City Museum of Kufstein. Part of it is also used for concerts and meetings.
Gallery
File:Kufstein Fortress Cells 2016.JPG, The cells in the tower at Kufstein Fortress
File:Kufstein Fortress Museum.JPG, Animal skeletons in the museum
File:Kufstein Fortress Armour.JPG, Display of armour in the museum
File:Kufstein Fortress Cannon.JPG, Display of artillery at the fortress
File:Kufstein Fortress Keep.JPG, The tower at Kufstein Fortress
File:Kufstein Fortress Funicular 2016.jpg, The Kaiser Maximilian Funicular Railway
Notes
External links
*
Festung Kufstein- official site
{{Authority control
Castles in Tyrol (state)
Kufstein
Museums in Tyrol (state)
History museums in Austria
Music venues in Austria
Historic house museums in Austria