Forchtenstein

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Forchtenstein

Coat of arms
Forchtenstein
Location within Austria
Coordinates: 47°43′N 16°20′E / 47.717°N 16.333°E / 47.717; 16.333Coordinates: 47°43′N 16°20′E / 47.717°N 16.333°E / 47.717; 16.333
Country Austria
State Burgenland
District Mattersburg
Government
 • Mayor Friederike Reismüller
Area
 • Total 16.6 km2 (6.4 sq mi)
Elevation 343 m (1,125 ft)
Population (1 January 2013)[1]
 • Total 2,799
 • Density 170/km2 (440/sq mi)
Time zone CET (UTC+1)
 • Summer (DST) CEST (UTC+2)
Postal code 7212
Website www.gemeindeforchtenstein.at

Forchtenstein (Hungarian: Fraknóváralja or Fraknókő, Croatian: Fortnavski grad; until 1972, Forchtenau, Fraknó, Fortnava) is a town in the district of Mattersburg in the Austrian state of Burgenland. It is the location of Forchtenstein Castle, one of the many palaces of the famous Esterházy family.

It consists of two subdivisions (Katastralgemeinden) which were formerly separate towns: Forchtenau (Hungarian: Fraknó) and Neustift an der Rosalia (Hungarian: Újtelek).

Population

Historical population
Year Pop.  ±%  
1869 1,685—    
1880 1,732+2.8%
1890 1,816+4.8%
1900 2,054+13.1%
1910 2,158+5.1%
1923 2,127−1.4%
1934 2,213+4.0%
1939 2,223+0.5%
1951 2,184−1.8%
1961 2,363+8.2%
1971 2,502+5.9%
1981 2,557+2.2%
1991 2,678+4.7%
2001 2,832+5.8%
2011 2,845+0.5%

The castle gained a nickname as the "Castle of Fear". The castle has one red and one black tower. The castle boasted many torture chambers including one called the Pit of Oblivion, a deep pit where torture victims would be strung upside down and deprived of food and water until they died. The Pit of Oblivion is located in the black tower. Although many of the rooms are now available to the public either for rental or visitation, one room still remains private and inaccessible and is the treasure room of the castle.

Gallery

  • Sculpture at Esterházy Castle

  • At Esterházy Castle

  • At Esterházy Castle

  • Aerial photograph of the castle

References

  1. ↑ Statistik Austria - Bevölkerung zu Jahres- und Quartalsanfang, 2013-01-01.
Municipalities in the district of Mattersburg
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