Schloss Lodron

Octagonal nine-story stair towerIt was built around 1610 in the 17th-century Italian style by master builder Daniel Deutta for Count Hans Rudolf von Raitenau and was only completed between 1651 and 1654 by master builder Anton Riebeler for Count Christof Lodron.Thus, the castle became the seat of the Primogeniture Gmünd. During the great city fire of 1792, the castle under Hieronymus Graf Lodron burned down to the 1st floor and could only be rebuilt with great financial effort in 1793 by master builder Johann Glanner from Werfen in Salzburg.The castle is a three-winged, four-story complex around a rectangular courtyard, open towards the park. The north wing is connected to the Upper City Gate towards the street. In the corners of the courtyard stand two octagonal, nine-story stair towers with wide stone spiral staircases, which were even passable for horses.In the broken triangular pediment of the main portal – on the west side – is one of the four Lodron coats of arms of the castle. The walls are structured by cordon cornices and the windows have ear framings with straight pediments. Above the south gate, on the 1st floor, five high round-arched windows are noticeable on the city side and courtyard side.In 1932, Schloss Lodron became the property of Karl Irsa. During the Second World War, it was taken over by the Reichsforstverwaltung (Reich Forest Administration), and the main office of the Reichsautobahn (Reich Motorway) was also housed here. From 1945, the castle served for a long time as quarters for English occupation soldiers.In 1950, the municipality of Gmünd acquired the former count's residence to house the secondary school there. Until the year 2000, renovations and extensions were repeatedly necessary to ensure a well-functioning school operation.The large count's salon, the ancestral hall above the south portal, initially served as a ballroom for the city residents and later as a prayer room for the Protestant citizens.…and today…Today, the “New Castle on the Square” houses the Neue Musikmittelschule Gmünd (New Music Middle School Gmünd) on the first to third floors, and on the ground floor, the Stadtsaal (city hall) and a modern library.