Halbturn Castle was built in 1711 by Lucas v. Hildebrandt, one of the most important representatives of late Baroque architecture, built during the reign of Emperor Charles VI. He used the castle mainly as a hunting and summer residence. Easily reached from Vienna, Halbturn was one of the emperor’s favourite stays. The planning and installation of the park took place between 1724 and 1727 under his creative hand.

The Emperor fell ill during one of his beloved hunting stays in Halbturn and was brought to his city palace “Favorita” (today’s Theresianum) in Vienna, where he died a week later on October 20th 1740.

Maria Theresia, the daughter of Emperor Karl VI, became the first and only woman to reign the great Habsburg Empire. Maria Theresia ordered her architect Anton Hillebrand to make extensive modifications at the castle.

Empress Maria Theresia inherited after the death of her beloved husband Emperor Franz I. Stephan von Lothringen, the reign including the castle and gave it in the same year to her favorite daughter Archduchess Maria Christina. The “Christinenallee” in the castle‘s park is named after her.

The famous ceiling fresco by “Franz Anton Maulpertsch”was ordered by Empress Maria Theresia as a wedding present for her Daughter Archduchess Maria Christina and her groom Duke Albert Kasimir von Sachsen-Teschen.

Archduke Carl, the adopted son of Duke Albert Kasimir, married to the Protestant princess Henriette von Nassau-Weilburg, defeated the until then unbeaten Napoleon in the “Battle of Aspern 1809”. With that he broke the myth of the invincibility of Napoleon and became a famous hero. His monument stands in Vienna on the „Heldenplatz“.

Field Marshal Archduke Albrecht, the son of Archduke Carl and Archduchess Henriette, married Princess Hildegard von Bayern. This marriage resulted in two daughters and one Son, Karl Albrecht, who died of smallpox at the age of only 18 months.
Albrecht, still minor, inherited from his mother Henriette the „Weilburg“ in Baden as the eldest son.
After the death of his father Archduke Carl he also inherited the other possessions, thus Halbturn. Through Archduke Albrecht the reign experienced times of modernization and economic success.

Archduke Friedrich (nephew and adopted son of Archduke Albrecht, Field Marshal and Austrian-Hungarian army leader in the First World War, married to Princess Isabella Croy-Dülmen) took possession of the huge legacy of his uncle Albrecht and over time became, not least by increasing the assets, one of the richest men of the monarchy. Friedrich acquired, in addition to his military career, a wealth of knowledge in mining and metallurgy as well as in agriculture and forestry, especially dairy farming. As military commander and representative of the imperial family Archduke Friedrich had an extraordinary rank and a great reputation.

He generously remodeled Schloss Halbturn so that it was habitable all year round. Furthermore, the castle grounds were extended and newly layed out in the English style. Halbturn became next to the Albertina in Vienna, the Weilburg in Baden and the Palais Grassalkovich in Bratislava (which is now the Slovak President’s seat) one of his main residences.

Archduke Albrecht inherited, after the death of his father Archduke Friedrich, the family‘s remaining  assets and the goods which were preserved in Austria and Hungary after expropriation in the 1st World War.
Albrecht spent a few months during World War II at Schloss Halbturn before he fled the advancing Russian front and emigrated to Argentina via Spain.

Archduke Albrecht was married 3 times. Albrecht died in 1955 in Buenos Aires. His urn was not transferred to Austria until many years later and was buried in the Johanneskapelle on the castle ground of Halbturn.

Baron Paul Waldbott-Bassenheim, the heir and nephew of his uncle Archduke Albrecht, has settled in Halbturn. When the Hungarian Revolution broke out in 1956, he supported the relief measures for the infinite stream of refugees which flooded the Burgenland, with all his forces. During this he met his future wife Countess Marietheres Wickenburg, who was helping as a refugee carer on one of his estates. The couple stood in front of the burnt down ruin of the castle, a restoration under their own power was unthinkable. But with the help of the Federal Monuments Office and the provincial government they were able to rebuild the castle. Paul Waldbott had succeeded in reconstructing agriculture and forestry as well as viticulture, which earned him great recognition and respect. From now on exhibitions with great success were held in the restored castle.

Baroness Marietheres Waldbott-Bassenheim dies on January 5^th in Vienna.
Her name will always be inseparable from the glorious history of Halbturn Castle. Her unshakable will and her visions led to the former ruin being resurrected and brought back to life. With admirable dedication and a deep understanding of the cultural significance of the castle she campaigned for this, not just the outer walls, but also to renew the soul of this place.

As founder and chairwoman of the cultural association, she managed its affairs with both passion and intelligence and under her leadership countless cultural events were launched and the castle became a lively center for art, music and literature.